REVIEW: 'Marked' sent me to another world

'Marked' by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Book 1# House of Night Series
Pages: 348 pages
Star rating: 5 stars

'So the bad news was that I'd have to move into the House of Night, a private boarding school, known by all my friends as the vampyre finishing school, where I would spent the next four years going through bizarre and annumable physical changes, as well as a total and permanent life shake-up. And that's on if the whole process doesn't kill me.

But the good news was that I wouldn't have to take the geometry test tomorrow.'

 

So this was an amazing book... first of all... scrap the crappy view of vampyres we've been fed in the past and think new, funny and absolutely fear-removing teenagers. Now add to that image a group of teenagers... a lost girl who has just been thrown into this strange and deadly world... a country girl with a twang in everything from her sayings to her clothes... twins who are the total physical opposite *one white one African America* who are soul sisters... a young gay boy who speaks like a dictionary and a 'hag from hell'... do you have that image in your head? Are you laughing at some of the conversations that could possibly arise? Good!

 

Now this books isn't all it says on the back... yes Zoey Redbird gets taken out of her overbearing 'People of Faith' family and thrown into the vampyre world full force... when Nyx *The vampyre Goddess* decides not only to Mark (the process at which the change into becoming a vampyre begins) but also to gift Zoey with some extra ordinary powers which doesn't always work out the best for Zoey.

 

Of course everything doesn't always go as smoothly as planned at the House of Night, when her human ex-boyfriend Heath turns up high and drunk with her ex-bestfriend to break her out of the House of Night true vampyresque behaviours ensue and leads to some pretty dire outcomes.

 

Although I have rated this instalment 5 stars there was a problem of insta-love... okay a guy walks in the room takes one look at you and suddenly your in love and by the end of the book your together and playing happy families... if that was only half the story!?!? Meet Erik Night... the usual fall in love guy in these sort of novels... tall, broad and very handsome... okay he has some extra features of course... he's an actor who wins some major kick ass competitions... of and he's 'hag from hell's' ex-boyfriend... which makes everyone's life a total cliché... *sigh*.

 

Although there were elements of problem with the book I loved the genuine knowledge P.C. and Kristin Cast demonstrated when describing some of the rituals and beliefs of other religious factions; especially the Cherokee elements of Lavender and other herbs involved in cleansing. It made me smile deep down in my well-read heart to know that for once the authors did their homework and looked up the small details that really pull a book together.

 

Overall the writing is utterly hilarious... there are moments of pure delight and then moments of raw emotion. You can tell that it is designed to be a long winded serious because there is a lot of set up however its needed for a 10+ book series not including the vast number of novellas and companion novels.

 

 

Now if you like the sound of this book then you should definitely pick it up:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Marked-Number-1-House-Night/dp/034900112X/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425516832&sr=1-4&keywords=marked

The book depository: http://www.bookdepository.com/Marked-Cast/9780312360269

If you decide to read this book and like it... or generally want to read books that are similar to this then I'd definitely check out the rest of the series.

Another series which you may want to check out is Vampire Diaries; although this is aimed at slightly older reading that the first book of the House of Night Series still a delightful read.



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