Review: The Serpent King

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“Wanting to believe something is powerful”

“If you're going to live, you might as well do painful, brave, and beautiful things.”

“Nothing makes you feel more naked than someone identifying a desire you never knew you possessed.”

I found The Serpent King through the Goodreads Choice Awards and it's been on my to-read shelf a few months. The description seems a little bizarre so I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed each of the characters. The book unfolds from the three main characters alternating point of view during their senior year of high school together. Though they are all the outcasts, they couldn't be more different than one another and yet still such great friends. Dill Early is the son of the shamed snake handling preacher turned jailed pedophile, and he is literally paying for the sins of his father. He and his mother barely make ends meet, and she is just as fanatical as her husband. He's in love with Lydia, the second character who actually comes from a good family, but has dreams of escaping their backwoods Tennessee town. Lydia is a fashion blogger with an eclectic sense of style and a snarky attitude to match. Their friend Travis is a very large, introverted guy who prefers living in the fantasy world of his favorite books to his reality. His father is an asshole who drinks too much and doesn't shy away from getting physical with his wife and son. Each of them is dealing with their own stories, histories, and problems but with each other, they attempt to work them out. Unfortunately, it's not all sparkles and rainbows and their place in the small town tragedy will forever alter their course through life.


View all my reviews