Review of Personal Demons

Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers

Pages: 364

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pub. Date: September 14, 2010

ARC obtained through Book It Forward Tours

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "Frannie Cavanaugh is a good Catholic girl with a bit of a wicked streak. She's spent years keeping everyone at a distance—even her closest friends—and it seems her senior year will be more of the same...until Luc Cain enrolls in her class. No one knows where he came from, but Frannie can't seem to stay away from him. What she doesn't know is that Luc works in Acquisitions—for Hell—and she possesses a unique skill set that has the King of Hell tingling with anticipation. All Luc has to do is get her to sin, and he’s as tempting as they come. Frannie doesn’t stand a chance. Unfortunately for Luc, Heaven has other plans, and the angel, Gabe, is going to do whatever it takes to make sure that Luc doesn’t get what he came for. And it isn't long before they find themselves fighting for more than just her soul."

Frannie Cavanaugh comes from a good Catholic family that is very religious except Frannie; she's the odd one out, since she got kicked out of Catholic school for questioning things too much.  She's a typical teenage girl though.  She spends Sundays with her grandfather working on his old Shelby Mustang, she hangs out with her friends, Riley and Taylor, and practices Judo to clear her mind. Everything is pretty normal in her life until smoking hot Luc, a new kid at school, enters her world.  He's really tempting her and she feels a connection, even though she knows her parents disapprove of him.  What Frannie doesn't know is that Luc actually has the boss from Hell, literally, and is on a mission to "tag" her soul for Hell.  Why you ask? Frannie has a special skill that would come in handy.  Luc works in acquisitions for Hell and is pretty good at what he does.  He doesn't know why he has to "tag" Frannie, but at first, he wants to get this mission over with so he can get a promotion.  On the other hand, there's Gabe, the dreamy good guy who wants to protect her from Luc and all that he temptingly offers.  As I'm sure you've guessed it, Gabe works for Heaven and is an angel.  Frannie is literally torn between good and evil!  Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers is a delicious guilty pleasure that fans of fantasy and love triangles will enjoy.


Talk about a love triangle?!!  If you enjoy love triangles, you must read Personal Demons. Desrochers really knows how to create a sizzling one!  I usually get bored by love triangles, but I thought this triangle was well done.  Like Frannie, I was torn between both guys as the situations changed quickly.  I could definitely see why Frannie was so conflicted; this love triangle was on steroids!  And dear lord was this book steamy!  Wow!  I am definitely not putting this book on my classroom shelf, but I can see high school female students really loving it.  Even though it's not appropriate for my classroom, I am glad I read it, because it has such a unique premise and an interesting take on the timeless conflict of good versus evil.  


Desrochers writing style was entertaining.  She switches the point of view from Luc to Frannie, which was very intriguing as it gave me great insight into the characters.  My only wish is that Gabe would get to narrate as well.  I would really like to learn more about Gabe so perhaps in the sequel Desrochers will tell us more about him.  Even though Desrochers' story is a fantasy, it also dealt with the serious issues of death, forgiveness and finding peace.  It wasn't simply just about a hot guy from Hell! Some of the novel's themes definitely spoke more to me, especially towards the end.


The characters were well done.  Frannie is a tough girl, who does well in school, has good friends and a stable family, but is extremely hard on herself. She doesn't let a lot of people in, except her grandfather, and I think many young girls may be able to relate to that.  Speaking of her grandfather, I loved that she had a close relationship with him.  I don't see this often in YA so that was definitely a pleasure to read.  Also, Frannie has two parents that are happily married and care about her, which is another rarity in young adult literature.   


The only reason I didn't give this novel four out of five stars is because at times the dialogue felt a bit young. I'm not a fan of teen-speak and in this case it was the persistent use 'cause and whatever, but I'm sure young adults won't have a problem with this.  This is a pet-peeve of mine when it comes to young adult literature so that may be why I noticed it more.  


I really enjoyed Personal Demons and I'm glad it's part of a trilogy as I may be picking up Original Sin, which comes out next July and Hellbent, which is published in May of 2012.  Oooh! Both come out during the summer! I can already see myself on the beach reading this series! With that said, I think Desrochers has a compelling and unique storyline that many readers will enjoy, especially ones in need of a break from the usual supernatural creatures, which have been recycled for some time.  A story about a girl torn between a demon and an angel makes for a very suspenseful and steamy read.  In fact, I hate to say it, but Luc makes sinning oh-so-fun!

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