All These Things I've Done (YA)

All These Things I've Done. Gabrielle Zevin. 2011. FSG. 354 pages.

The night before Junior year--I was sixteen, barely--Gable Arsley said he wanted to sleep with me.

 I enjoyed this one. It wasn't quite what I was expecting. Which wasn't a bad thing at all. It was different, yes, but in a good way, a unique way.

Set in the future, in 2083, our heroine, Anya, is the daughter of a mobster. Her family business? Chocolate. Yes, in Zevin's futuristic society, chocolate and caffeine are illegal substances. And just like prohibition, the ban of chocolate has led to a rise in crime and crime families. There are a handful of families--world-wide--who deal in chocolate and the like. And it can be a dangerous, dangerous game. Just ask our heroine. For she's lost her mother, her father, and in a way her brother. Her parents were both killed--murdered. And her brother has not been the same since the accident that took his mother's life. Anya knows he may never be grown up enough to take care of himself, to take care of his younger sisters, to take care of the family business. And she's accepted that. She has. She knows that even though she's not technically the oldest, it is her responsibility to take care of everyone. And that everyone includes her grandmother, Galina, who is confined to her bed and kept alive by machines. 

So what happens when she falls in love with the Assistant D.A's son...quite a bit! Because even though she's not actively in the family business, even though she's not a 'real' criminal, her life has its dangers and risks. For even if she doesn't want a part of her family legacy, there's no escaping it either.

As I said, this is an interesting read. And I am glad I read it.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews