Review: Another Jekyll, Another Hyde by Daniel & Dina Nayeri

Publisher:  Candlewick Press

Publication Date:  March 27th, 2012

An elusive stalker is targeting Marlowe kids - and something unearthly has gotten into its wealthiest student - as the Another series builds up to a fiendish finale. When his billionaire father marries French governess Nicola Vileroy, high society is all abuzz - but Thomas, the most popular student at Marlowe, is just plain high. Ever since his girlfriend Belle dumped him, he's been spending less time with old friends and more time getting wasted at clubs. But after someone slips him a designer drug one night - and his stepmother seems to know way too much about his private life - things really start to get scary. As Thomas's blackouts give way to a sinister voice inside his head, and as news of a vicious hate crime has students on edge, Thomas comes to the sickening realization that Madame Vileroy has involved him in a horrifying supernatural plan. How can he muster the strength and will to stop it? The pulse-quickening climax revisits Jekyll and Hyde as a current-day cautionary tale laced with a heady dose of paranormal intrigue.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

I recently read and reviewed the first book in this series, Another Faust (read my review HERE), in preparation for reading this book.  My eye had been on it for awhile, and when I got an advance copy of Another Jekyll, Another Hyde, I knew it was time to get around to reading it.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, and wish I had time to read book number two, Another Pan.  I understood what was going on in Another Jekyll, Another Hyde, but there were a few holes, so I will definitely go back and read Another Pan, but I think you really only NEED to read Another Faust to read this book.

Another Jekyll, Another Hyde was fantastic.  I liked it slightly better than Another Faust because there wasn't a lot of backstory to bog it down, so it was a quicker, more action-packed read.  Where the pacing in Another Faust kind of ebbed and flowed, the pacing in this book was non-stop, all while keeping the mystery and intrigue alive until the last page.  This is the kind of book series that would make a brilliant movie franchise because of how well written the world and the action sequences are.  They kind of read like a movie, and you become very involved.  This book took me maybe a day and a half to read because I found it impossible to put down; if I had, I would have had a knot of anticipation in my gut until I was able to pick it back up.  The story was great, and I always felt an intense need to know what was going to happen next.  The Nayeris delivered in spades; they provided plausible answers that often opened up other questions.  The conclusion, however, was extremely satisfying.  It wasn't too neat and it didn't feel at all rushed.  It was exactly the type of ending a series like this should have.

The characters were mostly the same as those in Another Faust.  There were a couple of new ones, judging from the dialogue,  that I think were from Another Pan, but their roles were rather small, so I didn't feel like I needed their story.  Madame Vileroy, of course, is a central character, but the main character in this book is Belle's boyfriend from book #1, Thomas.  Madame Vileroy manages to marry his billionaire father, and becomes his stepmother.  The things she has in mind for Thomas are not pretty.  She's as manipulative and evil as ever, but she's also in a weakened state and desperate to regain her full power.  From the wedding until the end of the book, she turns Thomas's world upside down, while making it look to everyone else, including Thomas, like he is slowly descending down a drug-addled path to madness.  We do see the original Faust children a few times, but this story is not really about them, and their main purpose is to serve as backstory to people who may not have read Another Faust.

I can't say that this is the best book of three, because I haven't read Another Pan yet (I fully intend to, so stay tuned), but I can say, that I feel like the Nayeris outdid themselves over Another Faust.  This series is a brilliant modern-retelling of an old tale woven together with some classics, and I hope lots of people will pick it up.

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ½ 

Grade Level Recommendation:  This book has a lot of recreational drug use (along with a strong cautionary message), a good bit of violence (a la Mr. Hyde), and some allusions to sex.  That said, I don't think it would be inappropriate to upper-Middle School age students because of the consequences to all of the actions described.  Honestly, I think they would gain from reading this modern retelling.  Grades 8 and up (ages 13+).