4 out of 5 Ok so be warned, I'm about to churn out a whole series separately simply because it doesn't do these books justice to be a complete review, but they will be a bit shorter. Now this first book I actually haven't reread like I have the others like 7 times because this is the only one I have in hard copy (others are ebooks) and it's in German. Now reading it in German is extremely hard and boring so I won't do that to myself. However, despite that I absolutely loved the beginning of this fantastic series and how it was all set up. I don't exactly recall majorly specific events from this book because it is so difficult for German books to be descriptive because of the very limited vocabulary. So basically one night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, wrong people - 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.” At Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, witches and fairies train side by side—learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world. |
So basically this is a super epic start to a majorly epic book, I read it about 3 years ago now, and it still remains my go-to series when I can't decide what to read. I can probably quote all the books line for line, page for page for hours :)
It really is a super descriptive and imaginative concept which I found extremely relatable and refreshing. The concepts and legends behind each 'species' is perfectly integrated into the typical YA, teenage 'high school' drama without it being burden - factor in some swoony guys, cool powers and an evil family and an epic book is produced.
I felt as if this book flawlessly laid out a very solid foundation for the rest of the series and allowed a lot of ideas and concepts to simply seed themselves - they are further explored and cultivated throughout the series, making it a super strong chain because it isn't a series that constantly changes plot. Subplots and characters sometimes change, epiphanies are made and secrets are revealed but it always centres around a very central goal and idea that really adds meaning and depth to the story because it is so strongly built in this first book.
Read on in my review of 'Awake at Dawn' (Book 2)
Hayley xx