Taller than all her friends and most of the boys, Helen Hamilton spends most of her time trying to be small and inconspicuous. In fact, she gets bad stomach cramps when she's the center of attention, which happens more and more often once Lucas Delos and his family move to Nantucket in the beginning of Josephine Angelini's STARCROSSED. Helen wants to kill Lucas with her bare hands and tries to in the hallway of the school in front of a large audience the first time she lays eyes on him. The likely reasons are the Furies in her head crying tears of blood. And the nightmares of walking through a desert land, dying of thirst that feel all too real don't help. The quiet Helen has turned moody and angry, lashing out at her father and her best friend at the slightest provocation.

But Helen never dreamed she was a Scion, a demigod descended from the gods of long ago. She's not reconciled to her situation until she and those she loves are in danger. It's a complex plot, and I don't' want to give away any spoilers, but there's a lot of drama around her relationship with Lucas and its ramifications. If they marry, they could jeopardize the world and bring about a second Trojan War, but then again, can they live without each other?

Josephine Angelini has used a unique twist on Greek mythology as the central focus to her young adult paranormal romance, and it works. She blends in seemingly- real nightmares and the curse of the ancient Furies to give depth to the story and authenticity to the tension. In some YA romances, it's easy to see exactly how things will play out, but that's not the case in Angelini's tale, which makes it all the more enjoyable in my humble opinion. I always seem to prefer the paranormal romances that have more action and a sense of mystery, so if you prefer more romance, keep this in mind. And don't get me wrong, there's romance here, it's just not the focus. That and there are more potential love interests than Lucas, and he's not even my favorite.

Angelini brings most of her characters to life nicely and they're easy to empathize with as they're tough where they need to be but also have weaknesses like the rest of us. Nantucket itself is a character in this novel, too, and I always love reading about places I'd like to visit. In addition to great characters, Angelini packs the book with suspense: Helen has people trying to kill her, a threat to her relationship with Lucas and lots more details to keep the reader turning pages. There are a few slower points in this book but not enough to take away from any enjoyment. I'm eager to see where Angelini takes the story next. Fans of urban fantasy and romance with a sense of mystery and action should pick this one up.