After Reading: DEVILS IN THE DARK by Marcus Damanda

By: Meradeth Houston on 4:00 AM

To most of the Facebook Fifteen, bullying Audrey Bales was just a game—until two deep cuts with a Swiss army knife changed everything forever. Audrey didn’t want attention anymore. After five weeks at Fairview High School, Audrey wanted to die.

The doctors did the only thing they could with her: they put her away.

But in Fairview, Virginia, the nightmare is only beginning. The chat session had not gone unobserved. The Facebook Fifteen have drawn the attention of an ancient evil that lives only to punish those who would prey upon the weak.

They are the ghosts of 1,000 dead children—1,000 suicides—and their master…

Their master likes Audrey Bales.

And as Audrey attempts to heal her mind and body, far from home, their master prepares for the revenge he will unleash upon her return. (Goodreads)

I've been looking forward to this one my TBR list for a while (too long--my TBR is getting away from me!). It absolutely did not disappoint. I was sucked in and read it in a single day. The story is heart-rending and definitely dark, but there's splashes of humor here and there that help light the way. Possibly the best part was the great characterization. Each of the characters were very well fleshed out and leapt off the page. Even in the darkest situations, I could understand motivations and found myself cheering Audrey on, while seriously loathing a few of the Facebook Fifteen. Damanda doesn't shy away from the extremely tough subjects in this novel--suicide, bullying, punishments--but it works well and is very authentic. I highly recommend this, and the next two books in the series are high on my list!