Selene Castrovilla's upcoming novel, Melt, doesn't release until November, but I have a few treats to hold you over. I reviewed and I also threw in some quotes, music, photos of setting/places, and more. There's a giveaway below that EVERYONE can enter. Good luck and enjoy!
Contemporary, Young Adult
Melt is a brutal love story, set against the backdrop of The Wizard of Oz. Sixteen year old “good girl” Dorothy just blew into the small town of Highland Park – where the social headquarters is Munchkinland (Dunkin’ Donuts.) There, she meets Joey – a “bad boy” who tells no one about the catastrophic domestic violence he witnesses at home. Can these two lovers survive peer pressure, Joey’s reputation, and his alcoholism? And then there’s his family's secret – about to be unleashed.
Told in dual first person, Joey's words are scattered on the page - reflecting his broken state. Dorothy is the voice of reason - until something so shattering happens that she, too, may lose her grip. Can their love endure, or will it melt away?
Melt is based on true events. It is both a chilling tale of abuse, and a timeless romance. It will hit you like a punch in the face, and also seep through the cracks in your soul.
Setting
Highland Park, NY
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(Image Source)[/caption]Highland Park is a fictional town based on a small town on Long Island, NY.
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(Image Source)[/caption]Places
Dunkin' Donuts
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(Image Source)[/caption]Reynolds Channel
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(Image Source)[/caption]"We got to the water to this inlet or something I always forget what it's called. It's part of Reynolds Channel but it's got this separate name." --Selene Castrovilla, Melt (pg. 44)
bridge in Highland Park
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(Image Source)[/caption]"It's this little bridge connecting two parts of Highland Park divided by water." --Selene Castrovilla, Melt (pg. 107)
Metropolitan Museum of Art
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(Image Source)[/caption]"So I took him around, showed him the Egyptian exhibit and tomb, and the medieval section with the thick suits of armor. The Monet room, a place where you could actually be among some of the finest works of Claude Monet, who was in my opinion the greatest of the impressionist painters." --Selene Castrovilla, Melt (pg. 112-113)
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(Image Source)[/caption]Vices
Music mentioned
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I Melt With You by Modern English[spotify id="spotify:track:4hHbeIIKO5Y5uLyIEbY9Gn" width="300" height="110" /]
Come Fly With Me by Frank Sinatra[spotify id="spotify:track:5iOnSrG79MzrCaq0I8Lpv6" width="300" height="110" /]
My Way by Frank Sinatra
Movies mentioned
Books mentioned
"Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger
Favorite Quotes
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(Image Source)[/caption]**All quotes are from the ARC, and are subject to change in the final copy**
Review
When I first heard that Melt is set in the backdrop of The Wizard of Oz, I thought I would find many similarities that it would mirror it or repeat it. But it's not at all like that. It's a story that stands on it's own with a powerful words and lessons. The storytelling was diverse and brilliant, that I have to give Castrovilla kudos for pulling it off. She threw caution to the wind, and boy did it work out for the best. I flew right threw this book, but it was evenly paced. Nothing was rushed and everything happened for a reason when they needed to. I was just so engrossed in it, seeing everything unfold and learning new lessons along with the characters.
Joey is the one that people tell Dorothy to stay far away from. Now that might seem familiar, but it's not. He's no bad boy we come across often, but what others call a "loser." He drinks, smokes pot, and hangs at the bridge with others like him. But he doesn't flirt or sleep around, and is no alpha. But there is so much more to him than what everyone sees. Where Joey is the so-called "loser" from the wrong side of town with family and drinking problems, Dorothy rivals him with her gated new house and psychologist for parents. But Dorothy sees through all that. She actually sees when no one else does. She sees Joey for who he is. The person people don't see, or try to see.
Joey has a less than stellar life. Having to watch his mom or take a beating himself more than a time or two all his life does have a heavy and negative affect on him. And having his brothers around that environment... it's pretty painful and really unfair. The youngest one scared shitless, while the other one escapes any chance he can get. It's up to Joey to hold everything together, when everything is falling apart right before his eyes. It was hard to read at times. Unfortunately abuse does happen in some families. Some of us on the outside don't know what it's like behind closed doors of people far, and near and dear to us. I like that Joey realizes that when some people don't, and points out what we unknowingly overlook. I'm surprised with all the crap he's been through, saw and lived with, that he's not like one of those rebellious, arrogant bad boys. He cares a whole lot more than he shows. That was shocking to me, but it's what made me grow to like him even more. He's broody and a bit moody, yes, but he's got a lot of heart.
When Dorothy mentioned that Joey reminds her of Holden from Catcher in the Rye, I said the same thing after the first few chapters. There are similarities in personality and the way they see things and how it affects them. I saw a little bit of my favorite literary novel Catcher in the Rye in it. I saw it in the writing, the perspectives on certain aspects in life, and in the characters as well. The writing also reminded me a little of John Steinbeck and Salinger with the whole literary incorporated in it, and a bit of Tahereh Mafi as well with it's poetic-ism (is that a word?). There was a lot of literary aspects in it, and it is truly appreciated to tell this story.
As hard as it was being in his head with his home-life and all, I liked his POV. It's poetic in a dark and poignant way, packed with powerful force of emotions in it. It's like being on the outside looking in. As a reader, it's like that, even in Joey's POV -- who's the one actually living that life. It's like he's watching everything as it passes by, even though he wants nothing more than to do something to fix it, or run far away and never look back. Honestly, it's equivalent to watching an ill person slowly dying from a disease that's eating away at him. Reading Joey's POV is so different than Dorothy's, and I like the one of many differences.
What I love about YA romances is that it's not like what you read in NA or Adult books. Feelings are real, yes, but it's not to the point where it's exhausting and dramatic. Even though the romance does fill a big chunk of the story, it wasn't all that mushy or lovey dovey, which is what I like. There are things they -- mostly Joey -- are dealing with. But there were parts where I'm almost literally screaming at joey, let her love you already! He's so foreboding when she said those three words and when he pushed her away for her own well-being right up until the end when he learned the greatest, most life-changing lesson of all. But even though this isn't your typical mushy romance, it is obvious that Joey deeply cared for Dorothy. I thoroughly liked that side of him. The side that no one knows of, the side you would never expect from him. That just added more depth to his character arc.
I can't
I can't
I can't take the chance of dragging her down to the muck with me.
She don't belong at the bottom
of the pond
She don't belong here in my kitchen.
I can't let her be
here
even just in my mind she might get muddy.
Another thing I liked was that there are many different ways the word "melt" was used in the book. Though there's only water to melt the wicked witch in Oz, but there's so many more ways to melt a person. And these characters come across those other things that melts them along the way. I like that Castrovilla incorporated that here, and how it connects to both Oz and to the book title.
All through the book, Joey thinks lowly of himself because of what he's lived with and what led him to believe about life, family and love. It wasn't until the end that he saw the metaphorical puddle that opens his eyes to the things that have been clouded and distorted. He was so close to an inevitable consequence, and usually it takes just that to see sense, that he found peace with the help of Dorothy and a guy at the support group. Dorothy helped him, held him, stayed with him, cared for him, and loved him when no one else had in his life. My only hang up was the ending. It just...ended. I just sat there like, what? I wanted more. Even just a little. An epilogue or something? I'll even bite for another sentence. It's not a cliffhanger, don't worry, but it just ended after Joey does a few monumental things. It wasn't until then that I understood the moral of the story. Looking back at how they started at the beginning to the growth these characters went through as the story progressed, it all led up to the ending. Without spoiling anything, what Joey finally realizes at the end is that his beliefs he grew up believing couldn't be more off and to take courage for those you love.
I received an ARC provided by Jen Halligan PR for the blog tour and an exchange for an honest review, however, it does not influence my review nor am I being compensated.
My Playlist
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About the Author
Selene Castrovilla is an award-winning teen and children’s author who believes that through all trends, humanity remains at the core of literature. She is the author of Saved By the Music and The Girl Next Door, teen novels originally published by WestSide Books and now available digitally through ASD Publishing. Her third children’s book with Calkins Creek Books, Revolutionary Friends, was released in April. She is also a contributing author to UncommonYA. Selene holds an MFA in creative writing from New School University and a BA in English from New York University. She lives on Long Island with her two sons. Visit her website www.SeleneCastrovilla.com for book excerpts and more information!Website | Twitter | Tumblr | Pinterest | Facebook | Google + | Goodreads
Giveaway
One winner will receive a signed ARC of MELT and $25 Amazon or B&N gift card (US/CA only). Three winners will receive an ebook copy (international).
***Any contestant that uses dummy or contest only accounts to enter will be disqualified.***
Good luck! And thanks for stopping by.
Melt blog tour was organized by Jen Halligan PR, and ARC provided by blog tour host.
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