Review: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke

Title: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
Author: April Genevieve Tucholke
Series: Between #1
Publication: August 15th 2013 by Dial
Genre: Young Adult ~ Paranormal
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town… until River West comes along. River rents the guest house behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard.

Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more?

Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery... who makes you want to kiss back.

Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

Blending faded decadence and the thrilling dread of gothic horror, April Genevieve Tucholke weaves a dreamy, twisting contemporary romance, as gorgeously told as it is terrifying—a debut to watch.

I was struggling a lot with rating Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. I kept going back and forth between three and four stars and eventually settled for three because I had issues with some of the characters and the plot. 

Obviously this book is gorgeous. From the cover to the prose to the gothic and dark atmosphere. I did really enjoy reading it. In fact, I could hardly put it down. It was an interesting and mysterious and haunting book, which I liked. I actually think fans of Edgar Allan Poe would like it also.

What I didn't like were some of the characters. Violet I had probably the most issues with. It wasn't that she was a bad main character or anything but I just couldn't totally like her with her. She seemed too... disconnected from everything, if that makes any sense. But all in all, she was okay. And only just that.

River was more interesting, obviously. The mystery, the charm and the more darker parts of him. I liked that very much. There aren't many guys in books that are like him. Not in the YA genre at least. 

And for the secondary characters? I didn't care much for them. I think Luke and Sunshine were pretty awful for most of the time. They had their good moments. At least Luke had them. But I didn't care about them and wasn't interesting in learning more about either. River's brother, Neeley, I liked more. He was probably my favorite character aside from River. So I hope to read more about him in the second book. 

And the plot let me down a little. It wasn't as exciting as I would've liked it to be. Sure, it was pretty intense and maybe a little shocking but I had predicted something like it along the lines. 

So Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea was an enjoyable book. It was dark, chilling and the writing was really good. The mystery aspect was also nicely done so I would recommend it to people who like gothic books with a paranormal twist.

About the Author:

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April Genevieve Tucholke is the author of Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea and its upcoming sequel, Between the Spark and the Burn. She loves classic horror movies and coffee. She has lived in many places, including Scotland, and currently resides in Oregon with her husband Nate Pedersen.