by Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguié ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 7, 2010
This hefty series opener and literary bottom feeder offers a dizzying blend of dystopian teen romance, fangs and fur, the craft, voodoo and assorted religions and political philosophies. After centuries in hiding, vampires have declared themselves and are wrapping up a largely successful world takeover. Youthful vampire-killing teams trained in Salamanca, Spain, oppose them, including one directed by a mysterious Roman Catholic priest. Members include Jenn, a California teen in love with the requisite high-minded vampire struggling with uncontrollable desire for her; Antonio, said vampire; a Nordic werewolf; a mean-spirited Belfast IRA sympathizer, a British magick-worker and a Japanese Ninja/Buddhist. Armed with martial-arts skills and traditional weapons (stakes, holy water) that they pack in checked luggage to avoid confiscation (presumably by the TSA—but never mind; if logic is a concern, this novel is best avoided), our dysfunctional team flies to New Orleans, where a powerful vampire holds Jenn’s sister hostage. Yes, it’s derivative and violent, but the page-turning action, hordes of sexy vampires and sullen teens qualify this as an end-of-summer beach read for those so inclined. (Paranormal romance. 14 & up)
Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4169-9802-0
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2010
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by Rebecca Ross ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 26, 2023
The well-paced romantic tension is a highlight of this enjoyable duology closer.
Even a war driven by gods can’t sever communication between journalist lovers Iris and Roman in this steampunk-adjacent romantic adventure.
A prologue sets the scene: Dacre, a god strummed to sleep by magic in Divine Rivals (2023), will not slumber forever. His willingness to wage war to acquire more powerful magic leads him to lay waste to entire towns, and Inkridden Tribune journalist Iris Winnow and war correspondent Roman Kitt can no longer be assured the other is safe—or even still alive. In Iris’ world of cigarette smoke, copper pipes, and driving goggles, colleagues affectionately call each other by their last names, watch each other’s backs, and face danger on the front lines. Though Underling Correspondent Roman is traveling with Dacre’s army, he questions why he was healed of his grievous wounds, while at the same time, he gradually recovers memories of Iris and recalls that she was special to him. Their magically connected typewriters allow for the rediscovery of their love and for communicating potentially deadly information about the invasion of Hawk Shire. The story primarily unfolds from Iris’ and Roman’s viewpoints, and while the prose occasionally uses well-worn phrases, Anglophiles will particularly enjoy the worldbuilding, and returning readers will welcome appearances from Capt. Keegan Torres; her wife, Marisol; and Dacre’s archnemesis—and wife—the goddess Enva. Main characters present white.
The well-paced romantic tension is a highlight of this enjoyable duology closer. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250857453
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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by Tomi Oyemakinde ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 2023
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
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