Bruiser - Neal Shusterman

I inhaled this book. I recently finished Scythe and Thunderhead, and decided it was about time I caught up on Shusterman backlist titles, and it was definitely the right choice.

Not sure how to review this without spoilers, though. There's a great SF/magic conceit at the heart of this story, and it's beautiful and painful and somehow he manages to tell a fast-paced, accessible story around it. It starts with twins - a girl going out with a bit of a sad rescue-case, and her brother, indignant and ready to do something about it. But the new boyfriend has more going on behind the scenes than anyone could have realized, and when they do, it's going to change everyone's lives.

 

Format in this is brilliant. Short, tense chapters alternate voice between the twins, the love interest, and his younger brother. Each has a distinctive voice, and Brewster/Bruiser's is conveyed in symmetrical verse. Recommended as a rare YA that should work for hestitant, as well as confident readers, and both male and female readers. I inhaled this in a day. Excellent storytelling.