Blood Wounds

Author: Susan Beth Pfeffer
Year: 2011
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt


I normally wouldn't have picked this book up but it was written by Susan Beth Pfeffer and I loved her Life As We Knew It books. I recommend those books to just about everybody I come in contact with (so if you haven't read them, go out, get them and read them. They're terrific.) Blood Wounds centers on Willa. Willa is part of a blended family and has two stepsisters who she likes but also envies and resents. Her stepsister's mother pays for them to go to fancy schools, travel and compete in very expensive hobbies; whereas Willa doesn't have the money to do these things. Then, one day, Willa gets word that her biological father (who she hasn't seen since she was a toddler) has killed his current wife and daughters and may be heading to Willa's home to kill her. The story focuses on the ramifications from her father's actions and how it affects Willa and the people she loves. 


I didn't identify with Willa because I've never been in any of her situations but I did root for her. I wanted Willa to find her way through these problems and come out on the good side. I felt for her. In the end, that's what I think the author wanted. There's some hard and raw stuff to deal with in this story and I think that won't appeal to a lot of readers. But I liked it. Pfeffer is very good at fleshing her characters out and making them real. 


Also is very fun to follow on her blog: http://susanbethpfeffer.blogspot.com/