Dia Reeves (1977–2019) was the author of many sci-fi, fantasy, and horror novels for teens, including Bleeding Violet, Slice of Cherry, and Heartsick. She lived in Texas and worked as a librarian.
"Brutally beautiful — not like anything else you'll read this year,
or any other."
- Cassandra Clare, #1 New York Times bestselling author of
Clockwork Angel
Reeves, Dia
Slice of Cherry
Simon Pulse, 2011 [512p] R* Gr. 9-12
Always close, sisters Kit and Fancy bond even more tightly after
the Bonesaw Killer, their father, is convicted of multiple murders.
They rarely even notice the fact that they are outsiders (even in
the wacked-out town of Portero, where portals let in monsters and
the townsfolk are never surprised by anything) as they fill their
days with increasingly violent acts. Those acts seem to feed
something in each of them, even though they also rid the town of
bad guys (though occasionally their standards slip to include
someone who could, perhaps, have done just fine with a stern
talking to rather than . . . death). In come two brothers with
enough secrets of their own to rival the girls’, and suddenly
romance mixes with gore, and love threatens to separate the
sisters. The use of entries in Fancy’s dream journal as chapter
starts is a bit contrived, but it nevertheless works well to add
insight into Fancy’s brain, revealing her to be less obviously
violent than Kit but much more disturbed overall. While the girls
quietly use a parallel universe to perform horrific murders, their
mother, a strong, proud woman who both loves her girls and
occasionally fears them, keeps them in check and attempts, in her
own eloquently mysterious ways (some supernatural, some strict
maternal) to save her girls from whatever it is they need saving
from. Reeves’ women are stunning—brazening through life on a
mixture of sexuality, vulnerability, instability, and brilliance
that serves them well as they encounter monsters literal and
figurative, internal and external. Fans of Reeves’ first novel,
Bleeding Violet (BCCB 3/10), will relish a second, though no more
complete, glimpse at the deeply fascinating town of Portero and its
bizarre, memorable residents. AS
--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, January 2011
"Twisted and creepy, this book is not for the faint of heart.
Reeves sets no boundaries for herself, as readers witness the
strange mind of a serial killer, possibly changing all perceptions
of love and murder. Horrifyingly beautiful, the small,
monster-driven town of Portero is rendered in the most captivating
way. " --Romantic Times
"Reeves returns to her fictional East Texas town of Portero for a
tale more gruesome, disturbing and shamelessly enjoyable than
Bleeding Violet...Somehow, in this orgy of gore, a touching
coming-of-age tale emerges, as the two emotionally stunted young
women connect with community. The warm, fuzzy moral—that it's fine
to be a serial killer as long as you're doing it to help
others—will delight and entertain readers mature enough to
appreciate that fictional morals needn't always coincide with
real-life didacticism. This gleeful page-turner is a winner." -
KIRKUS
"This is a memorable and utterly twisted coming-of-age story that
reads like Dexter for (mature) teens, soaked in the paranormal--and
blood."--Publishers Weekly
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