Review: Sweet Evil (The Sweet Trilogy #1) by Wendy Higgins

Published: May 1, 2012 by HarperTeen
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance
Format: ebook
Source: Purchased

Goodreads Summary

Fans of Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series will be drawn to Wendy Higgins's sexy, thrilling Sweet Evil series.

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences? This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.

Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She's aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn't until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He's the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

"Pleasure is the bait of sin." - Plato

Colorful Auras

Anna is one of those goody-two-shoes characters that truly is just good. By definition, it comes across in the fact that she's a virgin, she stays away from alcohol and drugs, and she gets all her homework done on time. Deeper than that, this girl truly abhors lying to others and when she sees the propensity towards addiction in her best friend, Jay, she does her best to steer him away from those temptations. Her character is refreshing. She doesn't try to load off her beliefs on others and lets them do as they wish, but she also has no desire to change the person she is. Even though she comes across as naive, she is very strong of will. She has a ton of powers that she hides from the world as she tries to come across as a normal person.

The world is intricate and I really loved learning about all the details. Higgins does a great job of making Sweet Evil more than just an angel/demon book. Anna is different from anyone, as she's a Nephilim that is part angel and part demon. There are other Nephilim out there that she learns about as she gathers more information about her true heritage. These Nephilim are part demon and part human. The Nephilim are the part of the story that hurt my heart to read about. They are regarded as nothing important and are required to do the "work" of their demon parents. These parents are all men, the Dukes of the deadly sins (and a few more sins thrown in). I don't want to give too much away about the intricacies of the story, as it's really interesting to learn all about.

There are so many wonderful characters thrown in. From the other Nephilim that Anna meets to her human friends and even her adopted mother, Patti, it's hard not to love each and every one of them.

Sins Run Rampant

The only thing that I'd watch out for is that this is young adult as the characters are all indeed in that age range. There are some young adult books that are acceptable for my son to read who is about to turn 13. This one isn't one I'd call acceptable for him just yet. So if you have an avid reader on your hands as I do who is a bit younger and likes to read 'older' books, I would just read this one first to determine whether you think they should read it. There are teenagers in this world whose main function is to spread the sins of their fathers far and wide. It's very hard to watch remembering their ages and the people they go after, but it's also very important to the story.

Oh Boy

Well Higgins doesn't hold back on the love interest in Sweet Evil. Kaidan Rowe is the son of the Duke of Lust and definitely doesn't disappoint. He's a drummer in a band, has bad boy written all over him, and basically couldn't be a better opposite to our straight-laced heroine Anna. While there are some definite steamy scenes with him involved, he doesn't do commitment. Also, Nephilim aren't allowed to date each other. So while Anna would like nothing more than to tame her a Kaidan and have him all to herself, there are a lot of obstacles she'll have to cross before getting there. Right now, it's heartbreak alley for her. Still, it's a blast to read about. He's incredibly sweet to her while also being a jerk trying to push her away so she doesn't get too attached. I'm very interested in how this will all play out since Nephilim are killed on the spot for dating one of their own.

Do You Believe in Fate?

Sweet Evil is an excellent opening book to the series. We get a lot of information about the workings of the world, in small tidbits sprinkled throughout the entire book so it's not information overload. I loved the descriptions of how the Angels and Demons all fit together and the backstory for their lives. I adore the characters and the depth each one has. The romance is a definite complexity that I'm itching to see play out. I am also absolutely invested in finding out how everything ends. Recommended to Paranormal Fantasy lovers.

Excerpts

I noticed several things about the drummer all at once. He was focused on the task at hand, keeping perfect rhythm. Instead of a swirl of transparent colors around his torso, there was a small, concentrated starburst of bright red at his sternum. But otherwise his aura was blank. Huh. That was strange. But before I could contemplate it too much, my eyes landed on his face. Wowza. He was smokin' hot. As in H-O-T-T hott. I'd never understood until that moment why girls insisted on adding an extra T. This guy was extra-T worthy.

"I met someone who's like me," I said. The train blew its whistle. The newspaper slipped from Patti's hands and fell to the floor in a crinkly swoosh. I was taken aback by the black storm cloud of emotion that billowed around her.

Before I could turn away he punched the side of my head and I staggered to the side, bending and catching myself with my hands on the floor. My ear rang and my head throbbed, but with slow movements I got to my feet. I kept my eyes down, scared to see the bloodlust in his eyes. I saw his arm lift and I braced myself.