A review by thekosichronicles
The Innocents by Lili Peloquin

3.0

[b:The Innocents|2443|The Innocents Abroad|Mark Twain|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320520180s/2443.jpg|6459342] by [a:Lili Peloquin|5766317|Lili Peloquin|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1350233818p2/5766317.jpg] is a well-written book about the wealthy town of Serenity Point in Connecticut, Peloquin herself grew up in New England and could have been inspired by her life there.

We meet sisters Alice and Charlie, who - altough sisters - could not have been more unlike. Silent, artistic Alice and bold, sporty-girl Charlie love and hate each other just as any other sisters. They have one problem: their step-father.

Richard Flood the Third is a very rich man with a dark past. His late wife died of cancer a year before the book begins and his daughter was in a car accident in which she too passed away at the same time.

Maggie, the sisters mother, recently divorced their father and quickly remarried the rich mr Flood. As Charlie and Alice's dad go to Japan with his jazz-band on tour they are forced to live with their mother and step-father, something they do not like at first. Not at all.

But Charlie adapts well to this rich life and is drawn to the alcoholic and former drug-addict Jude. Alice on the other hand find herself drawn to the quiet Tommy, who dated Richards late daughter, Camilla.

The first thing that shocks people on the other hand isn't that mr Flood remarried so quickly after his first wife past away, it is the resemblance of Alice and late Camilla.

Alice is clearly uncomfortable of the fact and starts digging deeper, which is the center-plot of the book.

The book is quite good in many aspects. For example I had problems guessing half-way through what was going to happen, somethings I rarely have problems after reading so much. As much as that was relieving, it was also annoying. I had no clue of how it would end.

One thing that is not as good is the very formal language, even between the teenagers. They speak very proper and Alice herself while having her tantrums is very formal with her words.

A warning should be posted out here to any of you who is not comfortable reading about teenagers drinking alcohol or the mentioning of drugs. I was not disturbed of it but others may be, so there is your warning.

Peloquin leaves a giant question mark at the end of the book, but perhaps that is question to be answered in the second book of the series, 'This Side of Jealousy'. I do hope so, because nearly all of the threads were left loose.