Furious Review

Furious
by Jill Wolfson
Genre: YA Paranormal
Format: ARC received from Around the World ARC Tours in exchange for my honest review.
Midnight Minute: Wronged high school girls become modern day Furies!
Expected Publication: 04.16.13
From Goodreads:

Three high school girls become the avenging Furies of Greek legend.

We were only three angry girls, to begin with. Alix, the hot-tempered surfer chick; Stephanie, the tree-hugging activist; and me, Meg, the quiet foster kid, the one who never quite fit in. We hardly knew each other, but each of us nurtured a burning anger: at the jerks in our class, at our disappointing parents, at the whole flawed, unjust world.

We were only three angry girls, simmering uselessly in our ocean-side California town, until one day a mysterious, beautiful classmate named Ambrosia taught us what else we could be: Powerful. Deadly. Furious.

Midnight Thoughts:

~ I love Greek mythology, but I've read more than my fair share of awful YA versions of Greek mythology re-tellings.  Recently Brodi Ashton renewed my faith in the genre, and Jill Wolfson continues the trend.  Call me butter, because I'm on a roll! 
~ I was really excited that Meg is a foster kid, because I don't think there's enough positive roles for foster kids... but this book continued the Awful Foster Parent(s) stereotype.  Not saying there aren't lots of awful foster parents out there, but it'd be nice to see some good ones.  Or even some boring ones. Of course, bad foster parents is one of the reasons Meg is so full of fury, so I'm going to have to be okay with that.
~ Meg has a crush on Brendon, in part because of his cute eye crinkles.  You know who does the best eye crinkles in the world?

This guy.

~ Somehow Meg finds the balls to ask Brendon out, and is humiliated for the effort.  But wait.  More humiliation is in store for our mc!
~ Meg is mixed race, and really- hallelujah!  Because it's nice to have someone who isn't Caucasian being featured. 
~ And then there's Meg's bff- Raymond, who despite filling in the role of gay bestie sidekick- is not a walking stereotype either!  And his mom is amazeballs!  Raymond is kind of the Voice of Reason, and I loved him. 
~ Okay, honestly, not all foster parents are cheap and cruel.  Remember Daddy Warbucks? He was a peach!  
~ Alix is a tough surfer girl, but she's got some depth.  Even Stephanie, who is a bit of a Eco-warrior stereotype- has an interesting background.  
~ For some reason I kept picturing Ambrosia as the mean popular girl from Sabrina the Teenage Witch.  Probably because she was described as atypically pretty for such a popular girl, and that's one of my few frames of reference.  I possibly watch entirely too much tv and movies...
~ A billion extra points if you figure out what's up with  Ms. Pallas (I did- instantly!  BAM!).
~ The majority of the book is told from Meg's POV, but occasionally Ambrosia breaks in with a little entry into her The Book of Furious, and I really enjoyed her input.   
~ Even though I found Stephanie to be a bit of an Al Gore on Steroids and Red Bull, I really liked her hippy style.  Someday, when I am older, it'll be all long skirts with bells and coral necklaces.  Watch this space. 
~ I've always believed that hate is one of the easiest emotions to have, especially in teens.  Love, loyalty, indifference?  Now those are hard!  Of course hate is very hard to maintain, at least for me.  Unless it's against people who insist on riding their bikes incorrectly on busy roads and/or twisty, forested back roads.  I hate those mofos, always!
~ I really want to hear the music the Furies make... okay, maybe that's tempting fate, so nevermind!
~ Here's why I dig Meg:  When she's thinking of all the descriptive words she'd like attached to her name, she comes up with words like Poised, Self-Assured, Positive, Confident, etc.  Most teen girls would want words like Pretty, Popular, Skinny as a Model.  You go, Meg!
~ Words I'd like attached to my name: Filthy Rich, Maureen Johnson's Bestie, Inventor and Owner of the World's Largest Underground Library, and Awesome. 
~ Raymond becomes the Furies managers, but he is no Charlie to Angels, because Ambrosia is not about to let him run the show. 
~ What happens to someone who's whole life becomes about revenge?  Ask Emily Thorne or the Count of Monte Cristo.  
~ Nitwidiots- Raymond's word, but I'm stealing it. Because I am surrounded by nitwidiots... oh, wait, that's just my reflection. 
~ Giving into anger only makes you angrier... Which is why I probably shouldn't be following the Jodi Arias trial, I could turn into a Fury at any moment. 
~ Come on, Ambrosia, admit it, it's really not that hard to find really pissed off teenage girls, don't even act like it is. 
~ Ms. Pallas says that justice becomes revenge, which morphs into soul-rotting revenge.  Truth, or What She Said.  Revenge sounds great, in theory, but in real life you damage yourself by ruining other people.  Little revenges are okay though. 
~ I loved how Wolfson linked Ambrosia's past to the present day, but sincerely, Ambrosia could use a little therapy and some Xanax. 
~ Meg and Brendon were so adorable and awkward with one another, loved it!  
~ Guys, you need to read this book.  I really liked it and I haven't read any other YA books that have done justice to Furies like this one has done.  Bring it on, Jill Wolfson, I will read all your books!

Timeless Characters:

Ambrosia- narrates the prologue.  So not your average teenage girl.
Meg- our mc, is a "late-bloomer", which is a good enough reason to be furious with the world. 
Brendon- the crinkly eyed, surfing object of Meg's affection, also a member of the Plagues.
Raymond- Meg's best friend, he's young, super-smart and gay.  He is AWESOME.
Dawn and DeeDee- the unfortunately nicknamed Double D twins. 
Lottie Leach- Meg's current foster parent, lavishes what love she is capable of on He-Cat, her butt-ugly kitty.
Stephanie- dread-locked lover of mother earth, just don't litter or she'll go all Fury on you ass. 
Alix- tough as nails surfer girl who has a soft spot for her brother. 
Kai "Pox" Small- one of Brendon's friends and a member of The Plagues, a bunch of jerky surfer boys.  There is bad blood between him and Alix. 
Ms. Pallas- Meg's civics teacher with some hidden secrets.
The rest of the Plagues: Gnat and Bubonic. 
Simon- Alix's older brother and co-president of the Raymond is Awesome club (I'm the other co-president, just so we're clear). 

Midnight Moment:

The moment when Alix sees her dad, and the Furies go to work on him... much more intense than I was expecting! 

Stop The Clock:

I can definitely recommend this book, but most especially if you like Greek mythology or need something a little different.  I really loved that the book wasn't about hooking up with your soul mate in high school, but rather Meg really coming into her own.


Jill Wolfson — Website | Jill Wolfson

Furious gets a Midnight Book Rating of: