Under My Skin – James Dawson

Format: Paperback
Published: 5th March 2015
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Pages: 320 Pages

The Blurb
Meet Molly Sue. Once she’s under your skin there’s no getting rid of her…

Seventeen-year-old Sally Feathers is not exactly a rebel. Her super-conservative parents and her treatment at the hands of high school bullies means that Sally’s about as shy and retiring as they come – but all that’s about to change. Accidentally ending up in the seedier side of town one day, Sally finds herself mysteriously lured to an almost-hidden tattoo parlour – and once inside, Sally is quickly seduced by its charming owner, Rosita, and her talk of how having a secret tattoo can be as empowering as it is thrilling. Almost before she knows what she is doing, Sally selects sexy pin-up Molly Sue, and has her tattooed on her back – hoping that Molly Sue will inspire her to be as confident and popular as she is in her dreams.

But things quickly take a nightmareish turn. Almost immediately, Sally begins to hear voices in her head – or rather, one voice in particular: Molly Sue’s. And she has no interest in staying quiet and being a good girl – in fact, she’s mighty delighted to have a body to take charge of again. Sally slowly realises that she is unable to control Molly Sue…and before long she’s going to find out the hard way what it truly means to have somebody ‘under your skin’.

Rating: 4/5.

The Review
Sally is an incredibly nervous person and doesn’t much like being in front of other people; this minor thing makes school life very difficult for her. One day she spontaneously decides to get a tattoo and chooses a beautiful pin-up girl called Molly-Sue. Sally is in love with her and can’t actually believe she has a piece of ink – what will her parents say?

Under My Skin was fast-paced, scary and full of drama, which for any YA novel is definitely a good thing. You felt like you were running along with the story and pleading to find out what happened – something I love.

Sally and Molly-Sue’s relationship was volatile and both of them secretly hated one another (yes you’ve read correctly). I won’t spoil it for you, but Molly-Sue isn’t as she seems, don’t be fooled by her sweet American nature.

The only negative for me was that I felt it was a little immature to start with. I know it was directed at the teenage audience but even for them I think it was too much. However, I will admit that the more you read the more Sally matured, as did her friends.

This will be the second of James’s book that I have read and I’m definitely keen to read some more. He does a great job at making you feel like you’re part of the story and that you’re immersed in the magical world.

Find out more about James at his website at www.jamesdawsonbooks.com and on Twitter at @_jamesdawson.

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