Review: Jenny Pox by J.L Bryan

Product Details:

• Paperback: 292 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace (July 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1453728406
• ISBN-13: 978-1453728406
• Purchase Information:
• Smashwords
• Amazon (Papaerback)
• Amazon (Kindle edition)
• Jenny is a shy, small-town girl whose touch spreads a deadly supernatural plague. She can't touch anyone without hurting or killing them. Her life is lonely until she meets a boy named Seth with the opposite power, a healing touch. Jenny's love for Seth brings the wrath of Seth's popular and manipulative girlfriend Ashleigh, who secretly wields the most dangerous power of all.
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• What a change from the norm. Jenny Pox is fantastic. Jenny lives a lonely and secluded life, never being able to interact with the rest of humanity without killing them. I really felt for Jenny. We've all been teenagers and have suffered bullying and been ostracized in some form or another, and J.L Bryan really captures the atmosphere of being a teenager. Even though Jenny has been through so much she still manages to be a nice person. At school she's considered a freak, called 'Jenny Mittens' because she has to wear them all day for fear of accidentally touching someone. Her arch nemesis, Ashleigh, is the beautiful popular cheerleader who everyone practically worships. Her daddy's the pastor, and she seems to have a vendetta against Jenny, which seems to have your typical high school animosity, but turns out to be much worse than you can imagine. Then Jenny is helped by Seth, the rich jock, and finds he's hiding a secret like her, but he's dating Ashleigh. She finally feels she's found someone she can relate to and is overjoyed, things go smoothly for a while until Ashleigh pulls him back under her spell. Jenny is devastated, but decides to fight for Seth. She gets Seth back but makes an even bigger enemy out of Ashleigh. Seth is the handsome, all-American boy whose ancestors settled the town. He starts out seeming like a jerk, but as their relationship progresses you find out what a kind, caring person her is. I ended up really liking him. He was a nice surprise and I was glad when he and Jenny began to discover each other. Ashleigh is just a nasty piece of work, and it feels like she should be the one spreading plagues. Ashleigh's one of those characters you love to hate. While reading the book I could imagine everything like I was watching a movie on my laptop and not reading a book. I really loved the concept of the story and I believe J.L pulled it off really well. The secondary characters help give the story life, and one of my favorites was her father. He came to realizations about himself and his life and made changes, which can be hard with what he had to deal with. If your looking for something different in the YA world, I highly suggest you give Jenny Pox a go. Be warned though, there are sex scenes, drug use and quite a bit of violence and gore. The three children's gifts are the only paranormal aspects in the book, and the author weaves them into a believable story line. The explanation for these gifts is explained in the ending and I thought it was skilfully done. I never saw it coming once while I was reading. Jenny Pox is a captivating and distinct read. I give it 4/5. ( I received this review copy from the author.)
• Jo-Anne