Title: Charm & Strange
Author: Stephanie Kuehn
Release date: June 11, 2013
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Pages: 224
Source: Publisher/Netgalley
Reading level: YA
Challenges: YA Contemporary, Debut Author
When you’ve been kept caged in the dark, it’s impossible to see the forest for the trees. It’s impossible to see anything, really. Not without bars . . .
In Stephanie Kuehn’s brilliant debut Charm & Strange, Andrew Winston Winters is at war with himself.
He’s part Win, the lonely teenager exiled to a remote Vermont boarding school in the wake of a family tragedy. The guy who shuts all his classmates out, no matter the cost.
He’s part Drew, the angry young boy with violent impulses that control him. The boy who spent a fateful, long-ago summer with his brother and teenage cousins, only to endure a secret so monstrous it led three children to do the unthinkable.
Over the course of one night, while stuck at a party deep in the New England woods, Andrew battles both the pain of his past and the isolation of his present.
Before the sun rises, he’ll either surrender his sanity to the wild darkness inside his mind or make peace with the most elemental of truths—that choosing to live can mean so much more than not dying.
Charm & Strange has to be the most perfect title for this book. It’s just the right mix of charming and strange and it’s completely unique to the YA market. While I didn’t completely love it, I have to say I did thoroughly enjoy my time reading Charm & Strange.
First off, I just want to clarify. Charm & Strange is contemporary. I did not expect that at all when I first started reading it and it took me a little while to realize that I was, in fact, reading a contemporary novel. Don’t be fooled by the cover or synopsis and read this one thinking it’s paranormal, like I did.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about the characters in Charm & Strange for a good portion of the book. Andrew is a very odd character. He’s hard to get a read on and I never really felt like I connected to him. For once though, that didn’t actually detract from my enjoyment of the story. Andrew’s personality was definitely that of a loner and I felt like maybe I wasn’t supposed to connect to him. He’s a very messed up person and while I didn’t connect to him, I really felt for him. And while Andrew is a loner, he can’t completely shut everyone out. New girl in school, Jordan, brings out something in Andrew and he just can’t avoid her completely. Jordan was a bit of a mystery to me for a while but she ended up being a very good person and a true friend to Andrew when he needed one most.
Fair warning: the story is very dark. This is definitely a book for older YA readers. There’s sex, drugs, alcohol, abuse, depression, and more. It may be a quick read but it’s definitely not a light one. You really need to be in the right mood to read this one.
Without giving anything away about the story, I just want to say this: it’s not at all what’s expected. Sure there were a few little things that were kind of predictable but that’s it. With every turn of the page, I never knew what was coming. Once you start this book, be prepared to read straight through. It’s a gripping read that will shock you more than once throughout the course of Andrew’s story.
Overall, Charm & Strange may not have been the perfect read but it was pretty dang close. If you like a darker story, I highly recommend this one. Stephanie Kuehn is on my list of authors to check out from now on.
What others have to say about Charm & Strange:
Miss Literati’s review: “CHARM AND STRANGE, Stephanie Kuehn’s debut YA novel, is an emotional read filled with twists and turns that will leave readers haunted by this story days after they’ve finished reading it.”
WinterHaven Books’ review: “This book needs to be read, just remember to have a box of tissues and your favorite blanket to hide under because I promise you will need them! “
this was a lot different than I thought it would be too, but I loved it. Great review.
I’ve been very curious about this one. It seems to be getting high marks. I’m curious to see what the darkness is all about. Though I’m not usually a contemporary fan, this one does have some allure for me.
I love dark and I’ve been wanting to read this one for quite some time. I’m really glad to see you liked it. Thanks for the review! 😀
~Briana
Oh, I definitely thought this was a paranormal read! Glad that I know better now before going to read this myself. I’m definitely intrigued by how many reviewers are noting the fact that this is apparently nothing like most YA books. I’m always in the mood for something unique, so I can’t wait to read this one. Great review!
Contemporary? Wow, I really thought it was going to be paranormal. Weird.
Glad to hear that’s is a shocking story, though. I always like to be surprised by books!
Great review 🙂
Hey Katie! Thanks so much for the quote! I really enjoyed this book and your review nailed it! So glad to hear you enjoyed it too =)
Loved seeing your thoughts on this as I’m hoping to get to it this fall-I hope I can handle the dark as I do tend to prefer lighter books.
A dark, shocking story with an odd main character? I like it already!
i really wanted to read it. i’m also suprised it is contemporary. a great review katie
I’ve heard that this one is so twisty and twisted it’s really hard to guess the ending and why it all happens and who it’s all about.
Haven’t read it, but you’re so careful about avoiding spoilers that it’s very appealing now!