STOLEN

In Yair-Levy’s supernatural debut, the first in a series, Dylan Prescott is just another college student until demons come calling.
On the campus of UCLA, having her soul sucked out by a demon with gorgeous eyes is the last thing Dylan Prescott expects to happen. But that’s just what happens late one night—except it doesn’t go quite as the demon expected, because Dylan is already missing her soul. As if it isn’t enough to find out that she’s a demon, too, Dylan discovers that she’s a wanted, superpowerful demon who’s supposed to be dead. After her anthropology professor assigns her to be partners with Tristan Stewart, the mysterious (and stunning) guy who seems to know a lot more about Dylan’s past than even Dylan knows, the two embark upon an epic romance and a quest to find Dylan’s real parents while keeping her out of the hands of the menacing Shadow Horde. Although it at first appears to follow the boilerplate supernatural romance formula—featuring dreamy guys, lots of blushing, and lots of hastily revealed, confusing rules about the demon realm that are tossed off quickly in order to get back to the star-struck lovers—the novel takes a different turn in its second half, revealing a much more interesting and original story. This makes for a somewhat frustrating read, as the first half of the novel, before getting to the good stuff, moves slowly and seems to be ticking off all the boxes on the YA romance checklist. Dylan’s quest should be central to the plot, but nearly the entire plot in the first half of the novel is obscured by her back and forth with Tristian, which feels rather reminiscent of the Twilight novels. However, when Dylan is kidnapped and allowed to fully come into her own as the heroine, the story shows much more backbone and becomes tense and deliciously creepy. Only then do the sparks of creativity and bold, vivid images that Yair-Levy hints at in the beginning of the story become fully realized.
A mixed bag that rallies after a weak beginning to provide a satisfyingly supernatural payoff.