Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Review: Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter


Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: March 29th, 2011

Don’t miss this spectacular new series that will steal your heart and haunt your dreams,  Welcome to Shadow Falls camp, nestled deep in the woods of a town called Fallen…
One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever.  Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls—a camp for troubled teens, and within hours of arriving, it becomes painfully clear that her fellow campers aren’t just “troubled.”  Here at Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapshifters, witches and fairies train side by side—learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world.
Kylie’s never felt normal, but surely she doesn’t belong here with a bunch of paranormal freaks either.  Or does she?  They insist Kylie is one of them, and that she was brought here for a reason.  As if life wasn’t complicated enough, enter Derek and Lucas.  Derek’s a half-fae who’s determined to be her boyfriend, and Lucas is a smokin’ hot werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past.  Both Derek and Lucas couldn’t be more different, but they both have a powerful hold on her heart. 
Even though Kylie feels deeply uncertain about everything, one thing is becoming painfully clear—Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs…
(Courtesy of Goodreads)

Okay, so I have to be honest and say that lately I've been totally OVER the whole Paranormal Romance thing.  I loved, loved, loved it for awhile, and then the stories just started to seem regurgitated.  Of course there are some shining stars recently, but mostly I have been left feeling disappointed when reading anything within the genre.  All of that said, I was still kind of looking forward to this book.  The synopsis was such, that it intrigued me; it seemed different enough. I was thinking, Percy Jackson-meets-Twilight?  Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Well, I have to say that I really enjoyed this book.  Perhaps my expectations were low due to a slew of disappointments, but I really don't think so.  I think it was just very well done.  The story was good, the characters great, and the pace was fantastic.  Some questions were answered, but many were left for later books, which can sometimes leave the reader hating the author; not this time.  I felt like Hunter answered just enough of my questions that she will have me eagerly waiting for the next book, without totally pissing me off by leaving me hanging too much,  What I liked best was that nothing was cliche or predictable.  Every time I felt like I had it figured out, I was wrong.  Any author that keeps me guessing gets at least a B+.  Add to that some stellar character development and a very interesting storyline, and I'm hooked!

Book number two in the series, Awake at Dawn, drops October 11th, and I can't wait!  I am so eager to find out more about Kylie, Derek, and Lucas.  I know that,as with this book, there will be unanswered questions (the third book, Taken at Dusk, drops on April 30th, 2012), but in this case, it's part of the allure!

My Rating:   ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Grade Level Recommendation:  This was pretty clean.  Minimal mention of sex, minimal language, fair amount of paranormal-type violence.  Messy parental divorce.  I would say it's fine for ages 13+ (8th grade+).

2 comments:

  1. I liked this book too! Can't wait for the next one. Great review

    The Cait Files

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really liked this and am looking forward to the next two books in the series. I also did not expect to like it as much as I did. Love the covers in the series too...
    NC
    Truly Bookish

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