Awesome Cover Art in YA literature: Sweetly by Jackson Pearce

Okay. I love this cover. How can you resist!?! I mean, even if you have no interest in the subject matter, it has to catch your eye; it has to make you a little curious to learn what the book is about. As soon as I saw it, my eyes zoomed right in on it. If you look at each individual branch, they look so simple, but all together, they form this incredibly creepy face!What is this? I thought. That's the job of a great cover, to draw readers in, make them curious about what lies within those pages. It worked in my case, I dug around to find out what this story is about. Check out the blurb...

As a child, Gretchen's twin sister was taken by a witch in the woods. Ever since, Gretchen and her brother, Ansel, have felt the long branches of the witch's forest threatening to make them disappear, too.

Years later, when their stepmother casts Gretchen and Ansel out, they find themselves in sleepy Live Oak, South Carolina. They're invited to stay with Sophia Kelly, a beautiful candy maker who molds sugary magic: coveted treats that create confidence, bravery, and passion.

Life seems idyllic and Gretchen and Ansel gradually forget their haunted past-- until Gretchen meets handsome local outcast Samuel. He tells her the witch isn't gone-- it's lurking in the forest, preying on girls every year after Live Oak's infamous chocolate festival, and looking to make Gretchen it's next victim. Gretchen is determined to stop running and start fighting back. Yet the further she investigates the mystery of what the witch is and how it chooses its victims, the more she wonders who the real monster is.

Gretchen is certain of only one thing: a monster is coming, and it will never go away hungry. 

I'm not drawn to witch stories, but this one kind of reminds me of a re-imagining of Hansel and Gretal. I have a feeling there's some underlying message to the tale and I want to know what it is.  The real monster huh?...Hum....

Toodles!