Supernatural activity is back in the state of Washington. In this clunky debut novel, homeschooled Gwenhwyfar Williams, an Other, feels she should hide her half-pooka identity, inherited from the Welsh shape-shifting father she never met, from small-town and small-minded Klikamuks. As more and more Others, including her best friend Chloe, a dryad, turn up murdered, Gwen knows a serial killer is stalking her kind. In her rush to find the killer, which becomes more plodding than intense, the teen also tries to reconcile her feelings for her longtime boyfriend, Zack, whose family of Christian zealots has historical ties to the Klan-like White Knights, and fellow Other Tavian, a half-kitsune, or fox-spirit, and manga artist. She also begins to rethink her “born” Otherness superiority over “bitten” Others, like vampires and werewolves, when she discovers their persecution. Fans of urban fantasy will take interest in Gwen’s questioning of her sexuality and marvel at her animal abilities and intimacy, while other readers will find the theme of prejudice applied heavy-handedly throughout. (Fantasy. YA)
