The Replacement
The Replacementby Brenna Yovanoff
Mackie Doyle seems like everyone else in the perfect little town of Gentry, but he is living with a fatal secret - he is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now the creatures under the hill want him back, and Mackie must decide where he really belongs and what he really wants.A month ago, Mackie might have told them to buzz off. But now, with a budding relationship with tough, wounded, beautiful Tate, Mackie has too much to lose. Will love finally make him worthy of the human world? (goodreads.com)
Release date: September 21, 2010This was one of the books I picked up while at BEA in May. I read it on the train home from NYC and was halfway through it before I realized the back cover listed the pub date as September 2010. Oops. This lead to my writing of the review in the Spring and my posting of it in the Fall.On the back of the book it says that Brenna Yovanoff is one of the three Merry Sisters of Fate along with Maggie Stiefvater and Tessa Gratton. Now, I have never read anything by Tessa, but her website greets you with a peaceful image of a forest until you see the glob of blood over it (book, Blood Magic due 2011 is now added to my wishlist!). I already know that Maggie writes about homicidal, terrifying faeries and after reading The Replacement I can see why these people would be friends.This book was one of the creepiest books I have read in a long time. And it's not particularly the kind of creepy that you realize is happening. It's one that seeps into your subconscious and revisits you when you least expect it. I regularly have night terrors, but this book added a sense of whimsy to them, in a creeped out way. The night I finished the book I woke up on numerous occasions thinking there was someone standing in my room (The Cutter, perhaps?) only to realize it's just my bath robe on the back of the door. This didn't just happen once, it happened at least 5 times that night.The cover of the book, from the ARC I read in May (in case it changes) adds to the creepyness of the story. It's as if I could feel the iron of the metallic-looking cover seeping into my blood and poisoning me as I read. It's the cover that made me pick up this book, not knowing what it was at BEA. When I started reading I wasn't sure how I would like the story as I don't tend to favour books with male protagonists, however Mackie was very likable and his friendships and relationships were things I cared about throughout the story.This book is set in an eerie world which likely only the town of Gentry knows. I hope I never pass through such a place on my way somewhere or end up accidentally visiting such a place because by golly are those folks messed up!Brenna Yovanoff is one of the 2010 Debs and this book qualifies for my Debut Author Challenge for this year! Woohoo!