The Collector by Victoria Scott

Wow, this book was good. Plus it's told from a male POV, which made it different than usual. The main character, Dante, is sure aware of his own self-worth. The story was well told and amazingly done. I couldn't help but love every character, even the bad guy-who happens to be the main character. Yeah, you heard that right. Why is he the bad guy? Well, Dante happens to be a demon and soul collector for hell. He works for Boss Man to collect the bad souls as well as tag a soul when one commits a sin. Dante being Dante gives the story a unique aspect that you simply don't find in most books. It's interesting to see from the 'bad guy's' point of view for once. The story really shows the whole 'don't judge a book by its cover' thing. Just because Dante works for the bad guy, doesn't mean he's completely evil nor beyond redemption.

Dante is a walking, talking contradiction. One moment, he claims he likes his job and is a bad boy, the next he's thinking about how much he hates being a Collector and regrets what he's done. Dante has been sent to collect a girl named Charlie's soul. Why? He doesn't know. But he does know that if he does this job, Boss Man will promote him, and that's what he wants. Dante is constantly conflicted about what he's doing though. He knows it isn't right, and wants to make amends, but won't sacrifice himself to do so. He is extremely arrogant, selfish, and, well, mean. At least, to start with. As the book progresses, so does Dante. It's amazing how one person has the ability to make him rethink his whole world. He learns life-altering things that can change everything. As secrets come out, he's pushed to his limits, and does things he never imagined he would.

The plotting of this book is superb. Just as it began to slow down after some action-packed/crazy scene, Dante plots some new antic that throws readers right back in. It takes place in a small town where not much is expected to happen, until Dante shows up. Victoria Scott takes readers for a wild ride on an action, romance, and rebellion filled roller coaster of a story. It's an amazing debut novel and a spectacular addition to the YA genre as a whole. Dante has girls swooning everywhere. It packs one heck of a punch and doesn't stop. I was flipping pages until I hit the very last one. The sequel, The Liberator, comes out in August and I sure can't wait. I give this book five stars!

Author Bio:

I’m a teen fiction writer with a die-hard affection for dark and humorous books. My work is represented by Sara Crowe of Harvey Klinger literary agency. I have a master’s degree in marketing, and currently live in Dallas with my husband, Ryan.

My first book series started with THE COLLECTOR, and was published by Entangled Teen in April 2013. The second book in the trilogy, THE LIBERATOR, will release August 2013. My next series kicks off with FIRE & FLOOD and is being published by Scholastic, March 2014.


You Can Find Her At:
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Synopsis:

Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of Hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn’t want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days.

Dante doesn’t know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of Hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.

Title: The Collector
Author: Victoria Scott
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release: April 2, 2013
Series: Dante Walker
Pages: 352