The Awesome by Eva Darrows can probably be described best by the author herself (from her blog “The Rantings of an Unfit Mind”, fittingly):
“Ten dollars brings you action! Romance! Giant Russian women! Chatty zombies! Inappropriate humor! What more could you ask for? (Except a whole heaping helping of class, but that’s for someone else’s book, I’m afraid.)”
Our heroine in this story, seventeen-year-old Maggie Cunningham (or Maggie “Cunnilingus” as the bullies in school called her-until she beat them all up) has the mouth of a sailor. She can be crude, hilarious, sad, confident, and scary- but she is always AWESOME. She is entering the family business with her mother- the family business being monster hunting, of course– and finds out that part of getting her Monster-hunting license is *GASP* losing her virginity! So while Maggie and her mother are battling ghosts, goblins, vampires, and also getting covered in goo, slime, and blood, she also must navigate the world of the equally-as-supernatural beings that are teenage boys.
This story is laugh out loud funny but also surprisingly heartwarming. Maggie and her mother are both strong and independent female characters. Their mother-daughter dynamic is heartwarming- if not slightly unconventional- but the way that Maggie is able to discuss her body and sex with her mother in a non-shameful way was what I loved the most about this book.
Darrow’s blog hints that she may be writing a sequel, and I’m sure readers will enjoy any more of Maggie Cunningham’s snarky outlook on life that they can get.