Review: Jenny Pox by JL Bryan

Title: Jenny Pox
Author: JL Bryan
Source: received through blog tour in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:

Jenny has a secret. Her touch spreads a supernatural plague.

She devotes her life to avoiding contact with people, until her senior year of high school, when she meets the one boy she can touch, and she falls in love.

But there's a problem--he's under the spell of his devious girlfriend Ashleigh, who secretly wields the most dangerous power of all.

Now Jenny must learn to use the deadly "Jenny pox" she's fought her entire life to hide, or be destroyed by Ashleigh's ruthless plans.

Not recommended for readers under sixteen due to mature content.



Review:




Wow, I must say that I think this is the strangest book I've ever read! That's not necessarily a bad thing. The story centers around Jenny – who has what people call the Jenny pox. She is basically lethal to touch. Her whole life, she has had to keep her body covered – including wearing gloves wherever she goes – so she doesn't accidentally kill somebody. How awful would that be? I connected with Jenny in a lot of ways. Not the lethal touch part, but the fact that she is an outsider. She's lonely, she keeps to herself, people think she's weird so they make fun of her, etc... I think there are a lot of girls out there who could identify with that.

During Jenny's senior year in high school, she finally meets the one boy she can touch. Because of Seth, she isn't alone for the first time in her life. I liked seeing the unpopular girl get the boy. Life is looking up for Jenny, but it doesn't last. Seth's ex-girlfriend Ashleigh will stop at nothing to get what she wants, including revenge on Seth and Jenny. Ashleigh really is the worst kind of villain – and she has this ability to manipulate people. The things that she is capable of is scary

The things that happen in this book are just bizarre. There are some gross, disturbing, and gory moments. It will definitely keep your attention. I honestly don't recommend this book to most teenagers. There's a lot of adult content involved – one of which is sex. I really don't mind reading about teen sex usually – especially if it's between 2 mature teens who are in love and it's tastefully done. However, there is one scene in this book that I think goes over the line in calling this young adult. I will leave it at that – I don't want to give too much away. Also, there is a lot of drug use in this book. It's not just a few random people – it's everyone. Even the heroine in this story is a druggie. In my opinion, the book made it seem like you weren't normal if you weren't doing it – and I don't think that's the best image for teens.