Review: The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door by Karen Finneyfrock

Title: The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door
Author: Karen Finneyfrock
Year Published: 2013

Genre: YA fiction, LGBTQ

Pages: 259

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Location (my 2013 Google Reading map): USA (PA)


FTC Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my school library

Summary (from the inside flap of the book): Celia Door enters her freshman year of high school with giant boots, dark eyeliner, and a thirst for revenge against Sandy Firestone, the girl who did something unspeakable to Celia last year. But then Celia meets Drake, the cool new kid from New York City who entrusts her with his deepest secret. When Celia's quest for justice threatens her relationship with Drake, she's forced to decide which is sweeter: revenge or friendship.

Review: This book has been sitting on my TBR pile all summer and I am so glad that I finally picked it up and read it. What a gem! The story was compelling and the characters warmed my heart.

Celia Door has gone "dark": dark hoodies; dark combat boots; dark clothes; dark attitude. All in reaction to an event in eighth grade. Junior High is difficult. Junior High girls are nasty. And by the end of this book my heart ached for Celia. And I wanted to throttle the girls in her school. But I can't and I won't. This book really captures how it feels to be bullied, to want friends, to want to fit in and at the same time not want to conform.

Drake opens up Celia's world. He is kind, friendly, fun, and wants her for a friend. He has issues of his own, which are dealt with well in the book. Both he and Celia think they have the answers to their problems (revenge for her, confrontation for him), but in reality their plans don't work. However, there is a good ending, one in which the reader feels there is hope even though everything isn't fixed.