Review: LIPS TOUCH THREE TIMES by Laini Taylor

Thanks to Nikole at Scholastic Canada for sending me this book to review!

Lips Touch Three Times is a series of three sophisticated young adult fairy tales. The first, Goblin Fruit, tells the story of what happens when a lonely high-school girl receives her first kiss. The second called Spicy Little Curses tells the story of a girl, cursed at her baptism, who can't speak for fear she'll kill all who hear her words. When she grows to adulthood this girl must make the ultimate decision whether or not to utter her first cursed words. The third tale centers around another girl who when almost grown, finally discovers why her life has always seemed so different from other people’s.

This book is like someone’s imagination gone wild. I think the author pegs the character’s personalities down tightly. They are innocent and wise, scary and kind. I don't think any one of the characters is completely good or completely evil - they are more complicated than that and they blend well with the story lines. The plots are well developed and the stories come to the point quickly leading the reader along a well-written path.

I enjoyed all three stories. While they all had a young girl as the protagonist I found the plots to be quite different. The third tale was the longest and I thought, the scariest. I can’t imagine that any young adult wouldn’t enjoy these narratives. They encompass themes that most can relate to: first love, friendship, coming of age and feelings of alienation. They have a sort of associated ‘coolness’ in that they are not afraid to tackle themes that most young women dream about.

Each short story is prefaced by a graphic short story mirroring the one about to be told. I couldn’t quite gleam all the details from the graphic stories – there were no words at all – but they did add beautifully to the quality of this book. The cover illustration gives an idea of the drawings inside.

This would make a great holiday gift for anyone who loves fantasy and graphic novels.