Because it is my Blood by Gabrielle Zevin - ADVISABLE

Zevin, Gabrielle  Because it is my Blood, 350 pages.  Farrar Straus Giroux, 2012.  $17.99  Content:  Language: PG (6 swears); Violence: PG-13; Mature Content: PG.  

This is the second book in a series.  

Anya has been released from juvenile detention and is trying to make a future for herself regardless of her record.  She has a little sister to protect, a brother that she has hidden to help him avoid his criminal punishment, and she is part of a large crime family whose business specializes in chocolate.  On top of all of her responsibilities she has to avoid her ex-boyfriend Win, because if she doesn’t, Win’s father (the District Attorney) will return Anya to the juvenile detention center.  After Win holds Anya’s hand and is caught on tape, Win’s father has Anya put back in jail.  Anya’s lawyers help her escape to Mexico where she befriends a boy named Theo and learns the agricultural side to chocolate.  After a double attempt on Anya and her sister’s lives, Anya decides it’s time to return home and set things right with her family.  What she finds when she gets home is a lot of buried secrets and heartache, but Anya is strong and she has ideas of her own for her family and the chocolate trade.  

This book is fun because it has strong characters, is well written and has a fast paced story.  The ending definitely sets up for a third book and I can’t wait to read it.  Anya is a character that overcomes hardship to take care of her family and this is a great book to add to your library.  

MS, HS-ADVISABLE.  Reviewer, C. Peterson.