Department 19 by Will Hill

Jamie Carpenter watches as his father is gunned down by mysterious government agents.  Two years later he is an outcast in society for his father's supposed crime.  But when his mother is kidnapped by a mysterious and dangerous creature, Jamie is brought into the Loop where the vampire hunters work for the government in Department 19.  It's up to Jamie to find his mother before the oldest living vampire does the unthinkable.  

Confession: I've never read Dracula.  It was just never high on my list of things to read.  And that story figures heavy into this story.  Despite my lack of Dracula literature reading, I still got the gist of the story and the background of some of the characters.  In this novel, Dracula is dead, killed like in the original story, but he turned three brothers into vampires and they are the oldest living vampires.  They are brutal and vicious and they are creating an army of other vampires.  The second oldest, Alexandru, kidnaps Jamie's mother, leading Jamie to hunt for his mother.  Jamie is taken by Department 19, a secret government agency founded by original slayers of Dracula, to hide him.  But Jamie only wants to find his mother.  Aided by Frankenstein (the monster), Jamie becomes immersed in the world of the supernatural, determined to find his mother and figure out what really happened to his father.

There is a lot going on in this book and I suppose part of that is a trilogy.  There is the mystery of Jamie's father, and why his mother was taken.  And there is something going on with the vampire brothers.  It's not confusing when you're reading it but when thinking about it, I can only hope that more is answered in the next book.  I enjoyed it though and I liked the characters.  I found Jamie a bit abrasive and there was a lot of yelling (I can't help noticing when a verb is overused), but it is all understandable.  It is on the gory side so if you are squeamish, be forewarned.  Mostly it is vampires exploding and lots and lots of blood.  But it didn't bother me too much.   enjoyed the alternating historical chapters and thought they were a nice touch.  There are definitely a quite a few stick with it images.  I'm curious to see where all of this is going.

Won from LibraryThing
Off the Shelf
350 Page

Savannah Grey (e-book) by Cliff McNish

Savannah has moved around a lot between foster homes, never caring to get to close to someone.  Then she meets Reece and they realize that they have something in common: something in their throats that they wish to protect, a weapon.  As Savannah's power grows and her relationship with Reece progresses, she realizes that the weapon was created to fight a monster of epic proportions.

"Does it feel like you want to take care of what's inside?" he said in a hushed tone  "To guard whatever's in there?  Shield it?"
I sat there, stunned.  p.62 e-ARC

Though this is listed as horror, it is horror-light.  And that is fine by me because I am a scaredy-cat.  I think the alternate chapters on the monster made it less frightening for me.  I am always one to be more afraid of the monsters I can't see and so understanding more of the monster made it easier.  In fact, the monster's story was as intriguing as Savannah's plot if not more so. 

Savannah, as a character, is sort of season one Buffy.  She has plenty of superpowers and plenty of angst though is surprisingly accepting of what is going on in her body.  It is only when her friends are threatened that she freaks out.  I liked her as a character in general though for some reason all the human characters felt a little flat next to the monster.  And the whole "love" relationship is something that will continue to bother me in every book that does the instant falling in love thing.  I realize that there is a generally sound reason behind it in this book, but still, it bothers me.  I was much more interested in Savannah's relationship with her friend Nina and I feel like that could have been something more.  But it is what it is and I liked how Nina was such a loyal friend.

But honestly, it was the ending that made this book for me.  I love it when I am surprised by a book.  It happens so rarely that an author will fall out of line and do something more original and that is what happened in the end.  I was really and truly shocked.  And so that was so awesome.

Provided by NetGalley
Hogwarts: Transfiguration
E-book
ABC
Off the Shelf

Bleeding Violet (Portero #1) by Dia Reeves

Hanna runs away to Portero to live with the mother she never knew.  But Portero is a different kind of small town, overrun with monsters, hidden doors and ghosts who will not only haunt you but inhabit you.  Hanna finds more than she bargained for in Portero, not only from the town and her mother but from the boy she falls for.

I kept silent a long while, thinking about everything Wyatt had told me: doorways to other worlds, a mayor with power over the dead, a Key made of bone.  I let it all sink in and found myself smiling.  I was right to have come to Portero, a town more insane than I could ever hope to be. p.112

After reading Slice of Cherry I knew I had to go back and read Dia Reeves' first book set in the town of Portero.  This isn't a traditional series  There is no real order but I think it usually helps to read the first book to get to know the setting better.  While Slice of Cherry was more of a character study featuring less of the town, Bleeding Violet is all about the character of Hanna and the character of Portero.  There is more exploration of the town and how the monsters work and, intriguingly, the character of the Mayor.

While I think Slice of Cherry is scarier for me because of its subject (serial killer sisters), Bleeding Violet doesn't pull any punches when it comes to monsters and gore and head trips.  Portero is not a sleepy small Southern town like Hanna and the reader expects.  Instead it is full of many mysteries.  Hanna does a great job of adapting unlike, say, me who would probably be dead in about 5 seconds.  It helps that she has her dead father around to help and the carved Swan who sometimes comes to life to save her.  And it also helps that she befriends Wyatt, a Mortmaine-initiate.  The Mortmaine protect the town and deal with the monsters.  They are controlled by the Mayor, a shady figure if I ever saw one and who I'd like to know more about.  Is she what she claims to be?  Something more?  It's all very fascinating.  I really recommend any of Reeves' books a chance.  She has some serious talent.

Hogwarts: Defence Against the Dark Arts

Slice of Cherry (Portero #2) (e-book) by Dia Reeves

Fancy and Kit Cordelle are the daughters of the Bonesaw Killer and are ostracized by their town because of their serial killer dad.  But the girls have inherited their dad's love of murder though they try to suppress it.  Until Fancy opens a door into another world, that is.  With a place to hide the bodies, the girls begin giving into their desires though they try to only hurt those who hurt others.  But once the Turner boys, whose dad was the Bonesaw Killer's last victim, take an interest in the Cordelle sisters things begin to change.  And Fancy does not like change...

Kit settled against the building opposite the side door of the dress shop, her cap pulled low over her eyes so that her poison mouth was the most visible part of her, the same shade of red as the brick in her fist. (e-book)

Well, this was....er...different.  For me, anyway.  I don't usually read horror since I like to sleep at night but I was drawn to this book, initially, because of the super amazing cover.  And then I read the description and thought well, okay, I'll give it a shot.  Then I download it onto the Nook and got scared.  What was I thinking?  I thought.  I'll wait. But I peeked at the beginning and decide to read the first chapter, then a chapter after that.  And wouldn't you know it?  I read the whole thing.  But only during the day.  I'm serious about sleeping.  And it was a good thing I did.  Because this is some disturbing stuff.  Girls who like to murder people, yeah.  Disturbing.  But strangely compelling too.  I honestly could not figure out where this story was headed especially with the introduction of the two guys.  And so I kept reading because I was invested in Fancy and Kit and could not tell where this was going and where they were going to end up.

There is a whole fantasy element to the story that is rare in a horror novel. At the first appearance of the monsters, I was surprised (I haven't read Bleeding Violet which is set in the same town), but once I went with the whole concept, it blended horror and fantasy perfectly.  The town is interesting with the way they have developed coping mechanisms for the appearance of real life monsters and their reaction to the girls' "solving" of their problems is different.  It defies expectations which is something that can be said for the whole book.

Fancy and Kit do not invite sympathy.  At all.  But the character growth in both of them is done with such style. And the love interest part of the story was very mysterious.  I really couldn't figure out what angle the Turner boys were coming from until it was spelled out for me.  I liked that.  I hate guessing the ending before the story is over. 

Despite the fact that I liked it and that I'm praising it, I must say that this book isn't for everyone.  It has some really gory elements and is disturbing.  The fantasy elements might be off-putting for straight horror fans and the horror elements might be too much for fantasy fans.  But if you can put up with fairly graphic scenes of murder and mayhem, then I suggest you read it.  Just don't read it before bed.


Hogwarts: Defence Against the Dark Arts
E-book Challenge