Hold Me Closer, Necromancer

Sam is perfecting the slacker lifestyle. He dropped out of college after one year and is now slinging burgers at a fast-food joint in his hometown of Seattle. However, a chance encounter one evening brings him to the attention of the most powerful necromancer in the area and Sam suddenly discovers

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that he's a necromancer too. Now his life is really screwed up and his chances of surviving the next week look increasingly slim.

A darker YA fantasy novel, this book definitely has a fun element as well. Sam and his group of friends have an authentically sarcastic sense of humour that makes the book a delight to read. I enjoyed McBride's stylistic choices of making chapters about Sam first person while any other perspectives were done in limited third person. She also creates a fascinatingly dark supernatural fantasy world that will have a definite appeal for adults. In addition, she crafts a decently suspenseful plot that it was easy to get caught up in. The book resolves all of the main plot points but leaves an opening for a continuation of the narrative, which I would definitely take a peek at.

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This is a fantastically fun romp of an urban fantasy, and delightfully original for the genre.

Sam is a college drop-out who flips burgers for a living and has always felt a little lost. When a foreboding man stops by for dinner, he finds out why: he's a necromancer, and with Douglas Montgomery's

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entry into his life, he finds himself in an entirely different - and very dangerous - world.

McBride's writing is quick-paced and filled with enjoyable wit. Her characters are lively and interesting, and her world promising. There are a few nitpicks here - some of the solutions to problems feel a bit too easy if you think about them too hard, and Sam (and his friends) seem to fall into this new world with an amazing acceptance - but for the most part the ride is enjoyable enough that it's hard to let them bother you much.

I liked Sam a lot, and I like McBride's version of necromancy even more. I'd love to see more in this world. There's a lot to be mined here if she chooses. Room to talk about the nature of what makes a person good or evil, the role of a soul, and how one deals with immense power without becoming corrupted. I hope she comes back and touches on these - I'll definitely be reading it if she does!

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I really wanted to like this book but as I read this book it couldn't help but feel it was an introduction to a series and I was being introduced to the characters and their abilities. The snarky humor started to grate on my nerves like the chapter names taken from songs. (Everybody Was Kung Fu

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Fighting was the title for the chapter with the big fight scene.) I hope the next book of the series is better.

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This was just so clever and great. The main character Sam (Samhain) is just ridiculously good and kind and an unsuspecting necromancer. He's funny, too. And so are his slacker friends and lovable family members. I want to go hang out with them right now. Even though that would probably put me in

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terrible danger. The bad guy is also sufficiently scary, and now I want to read the following one.

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Sam is a college drop-out & is going nowhere fast in the fast food industry and that's how he likes it. When Sam accidentally busts a tail light of a car playing potato hockey with his friends, the car owner responds by sending Sam a box containing a human head. This is how Sam learns he's a

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necromancer - and he has one week to learn how to use his powers and take down the most powerful necromancer in the Seattle area (or die trying!) An exciting read filled with witches, werewolves, ghosts, fairies and fast food. Oh, and beware of the lawn gnomes. The writing is humorous, the action fast and there is just enough suspense to keep you up at night. The author appears to left herself room to create what hopefully will become a series for Sam. I personally can't wait!

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The title of this book caught my eye and made me giggle. The story is part gory horror and part comedy, with never a dull moment.

Sam –Samhain Corvus LaCoix- is a college dropout working at a fast food joint with his friends Ramon, Brooke and Frank. He lives a typical slacker life and has no

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reason to think he is anything special, until a game of spud hockey in the parking lot breaks the tail light of a Mercedes. When Douglas, the owner of the car, comes into the restaurant bent on revenge, he recognizes Sam as a fellow necromancer and all hell breaks loose. Next thing Sam knows, he’s being beaten by one of Douglas’s henchmen, Brooke is an animated severed head, and he has one week to join Douglas or die. And that’s only the beginning of the weird stuff.

It would be easy to dismiss this as just another entry in the exploding field of YA paranormal novels, but this one has a lot more going for it than most. It’s funny, for one thing. There is no Mary Sue, for another. It’s an action story, not a romance. And the cast of paranormal characters doesn’t restrict itself to the usual vampires and werewolves; there are plenty of other magical races populating this book. The characters are engaging and the story never slows down a second once it gets going. And the ending sets it up for a sequel, which I’ll be eagerly waiting for.

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I was really excited when I first read about this novel, something about it just intrigued me. And, much to my delight, it did not disappoint in the least. One thing that did surprise me was that this is far more mature than a lot of teen paranormal novels. It's a good, clever, fun and sometimes

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difficult read (there's some violence), but I totally loved it. Also, there was less of a focus on the romance, which worked really well. Not that there wasn't one, there was and it was pretty great. But it was more coming of age than romantic (though it was definitely much more sexytimes, which was hilarious and fun). Overall, loved it and I want more.

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A quick, fun read. Don't worry, there's not as much romance as the title suggests.

Sam LaCroix, college drop-out and fast-food burger flipper, learns that he has special talents that his parents hid from him as a child. Sam is a necromancer, and a very powerful one at that. Sam also finds out that there is more to his hometown of Seattle than meets the eye. Now that Sam has had

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his eyes opened to the supernatural, he and his friends must learn fight for their lives against a rogue necromancer.

Comments:
This is the first YA book I have read with a male main character. I enjoyed reading something from a different perspective than boys, clothes and prom. The book, however, isn’t as complex as I would have hoped. The plot and character development were very surface. There was far too much unnecessary detail. I can see the target audience getting bored and putting it down before they get half-way through.

The story was somewhat interesting, but not as great as the catchy title would suggest. There was some suspense, an epic battle scene of good versus evil, and lots of supernatural characters from the necromancer to werewolf-fey hybrids and satyrs. This book brought all the freaks out of the woodwork and plopped them all down in the middle of Seattle.

I don’t think the book was very well written. I believe the author’s intention was to write the story from Sam’s perspective, but trips up throughout the book by changing characters chapter by chapter, and not fully identifying who is speaking. Another thing that really bothered me was the shortening of werewolf to just ‘were’. There were several times I had to re-read passages because they just didn’t make sense…I thought there was a typo…then I realized that the author was talking about a character mentioned two paragraphs before.

School Media Extensions
Outside of leisure reading, I don’t see this book fitting into curriculum anywhere. As leisure reading, though, I might recommend it to a reluctant reader in either a public or school library setting, as the main character is sort of an alternative young adult that they might relate to, as well as it being a somewhat easy read. There aren’t any complicated interwoven storylines to contend with in this book.

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Slacker Sam’s suddenly cosy life is shattered when he discovers he’s a necromancer (fancy word for someone who is able to raise the dead), now poor Sam is introduced to a whole new world he never knew existed whilst trying to deal with a crazy power hungry necromancer, a talking head, a locked

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up hybrid werewolf cross faerie and a baby faced wise beyond her years harbinger, what’s a slacker to do? Hold Me Closer, Necromancer is a darkly funny, action packed debut novel from Lish McBride which will leave you asking ‘will there be a sequel Lish?’

Poor Sam he’s not having the best week but somehow getting threatened by some weirdo in a suit is the least of his worries as his week is only getting worse what with a talking head that used to be his friend hanging around and being attacked by this crazy guy with exceptional strength who can remove a car bumper with their hand. Apparently Sam is a necromancer and a powerful one at that - someone just forgot to mention that to Sam- suddenly Sam is wanted by one of the most powerful necromancers around for being a threat and you don’t want to get on that mans bad side, believe me.

I loved this book which I wasn’t expecting at all, actually I had no idea what I was getting into when I picked up this book, it just turned up one day from the wonderful folks over at Penguin Australia and boy am I happy it did because from simply reading the blurb alone I probably wouldn’t have picked it up otherwise (that sounds bad doesn’t it? But it’s true).

From the very first chapter I knew I would love Sam and I did, he was very funny, he had this great deadpan humor going on with a touch of sarcasm which I am especially fond of (I am exceptionally versed in the subtle art of sarcasm, just ask my parents). I especially loved his sharp witty banter with the other characters in the book especially Ramon his best friend and co-worker at Plumpy’s (is that not the best name for a fast food restaurant ever? Plumpy’s it just rolls off the tongue). Lish also wrote some really intense scenes with Sam and his mother which were very realistic, I really felt for poor old Sam, I be pretty ticked off too especially considering the secret she was keeping from him.

Apart from getting Sam’s perspective we also delve into the heads of three other characters, Ramon, Sam’s best friend and Plumpy’s grill cook extraordinaire, Douglas Montgomery, an exceptionally powerful sadistic necromancer, and Brid, a hybrid werewolf cross faerie who has been captured by Douglas for one of his creepy experiments.

Ramon is a friend anyone would want as were Sam’s two other Plumpy’s co-workers, Frank and Brooke, they were all willing to do anything to help Sam. I especially loved how the boys were really protective over Brooke even after her little incident with Douglas and a sword, they took it all so well and were very caring towards her.

Now what can I say about Douglas, I don’t think I can sufficiently put his creepiness into words, all I can say is that man is one twisted necromancer. The scenes where he was trying to train Sam in his necromancer abilities showed just how much of an evil sod he was. On the flip side we have Brid who was a kick ass heroine, she was so strong even after everything that happened to her. I really loved how we got to see through Brid’s flashbacks her interactions with her close knit family which gave us a real insight into her character. Also fear not romance lovers there’s a little bit of lovin’ that goes on between Brid and Sam.

From the get go the story progresses at a quick pace and doesn’t really slow down until the end and speaking of the end I really hope there’s going to be a sequel, its definitely possible with the ending, so here’s hoping!

So if you’re looking for a YA book with a darker tone that’s also exceptionally funny this is most definitely for you, bravo Lish McBride for writing such an entertaining read!

* I thought I should mention that the book is a tad violent, has some colorful language and a sex scene so for those of you who are a bit sensitive perhaps you should give this book a miss, its definitely a book for older YA readers as the main characters are in their late teens and in college *

Rating

4.5 out of 5

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Hold Me Closer, Necromancer is a hilarious book, but it's still horror. When I was thinking about this review, I knew I wanted to include a quote that showed both at once. I found this one by opening the book to a random spot near the beginning. That's how much the humor and terror go hand in hand

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throughout the novel. The hilarity keeps the book from getting too too scary, but the story still never loses it's dark and serious edge. It's awesome.

For me, though, the funny stuff won. I laughed out loud (on a quiet commuter train, no less) while reading this book. Sam's a smart and introspective college drop-out, Brooke's a manipulative smartypants (and I mean that in the most flattering way possible) in a cheerleader's body, Ramon's still in college and living on Sam's couch, and Frank's the new kid that they're all trying to break and/or befriend. What they have in common is their cynicism, irreverence, and fast food employer. They are masters of biting and witty one-liners, exactly my kind of humor. Ramon, Frank and Brooke do their best to make sure that Sam stays firmly grounded in his regular life even though he's being pursued by creatures he's not sure he even believes exist.

And that's where the horror part kicks in. The evil guy, Douglas Montgomery, is a ridiculously powerful necromancer, and he thinks Sam is a necromancer too. The guy in the quote above? Sam isn't quite sure WHAT he is, but he's left huge cuts down Sam's back that could only have come from a knife. Only no one saw a knife. Within the first 50 pages, someone we already care about is dead. Without getting too spoilerly, let me just say that necromancers are not the only magical/paranormal beings to grace these pages. There are werewolves, fae, witches, vampires and more. Oh, and Douglas's house comes complete with a magical cage and basement torture chamber.

This is one that I think is more suited to older teens. Sam is out of high school and has already nixed college, and his "normal" life problems reflect that. That's not to say that the average high schooler won't love this book. It is darkly humorous, scary, and Sam and co. exhibit the kind of sarcasm and cynicism to which many in high school aspire (myself included, at that age). And Sam is stuck in the stage of life where he is trying to find himself, something that is highly relatable for many teens and twenty-somethings. He's just got the added pressure of "to raise the dead or not to raise the dead" making everything more interesting. I loved it.

Book source: Philly Free Library

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I still see "Hold me Closer Tiny Dancer" every time I look at the cover, but that's besides the point. This book taught me not to fall asleep while reading. What a lesson! Seriously though, there's so much packed into this debut novel that you really can't be falling asleep while attempting to get

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through it. You miss important parts of the storyline and it's all over. I did myself a favour and re-read and then it all made sense. There is really enough in here for several more books, but we'll see if McBride has any intention of pursuing this storyline (she'd be crazy not to, the movie version was already coming together in my head as I was reading it). Anyways! This is a story of how my life got flip turned upside down and I'd like to take a minute just sit right there, er, I mean, this is a story of a guy who finds out he's a necromancer. As in, he can summon the dead. When we first meet Sam, he's at Plumpy's working his crummy job with his best friends. He quickly gets into a great deal of trouble, finds out all sorts of scandalous family secrets, and is forced to go up against the most powerful necromancer. There are so many side stories going on in this book, I don't know where to begin, so I think I just won't. I am so confident that this will turn into more books that I will just wait to review those. Also, if you haven't picked up the song reference yet, I will point out that each chapter is cleverly summed up with the title of a song. This book won't be loved by all, but it certainly won't be loved if you fall asleep while reading it. SO WAKE UP and enjoy.

bookstress.blogspot.com

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I guarantee you, if you read this book: (1) You will laugh; and (2) You will want to eat some waffles. I have eaten three waffles in the past two days just because of this book. (Fine, it was also because someone else made waffle batter and it takes a minute to make once all that work is done:))

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But in all seriousness, this book is buckets of awesome. Samhain Corvus LaCroix (Sam) is a Seattle college dropout working at a fast food restaurant with a few of his friends and generally slacking it up in his off-time. After an unfortunate potato hockey accident behind the restaurant, Sam comes into contact with an intimidating man who recognizes Sam for what he is—a necromancer. Clueless, Sam is faced with an ultimatum before he even comes to terms with his dead-controlling ways. Craziness ensues.

Author Lish McBride uses short song snippets as the titles for the chapters and they are fabulous. I think my heart just about exploded when I got to the one entitled “Make A Little Birdhouse in Your Soul.” (My first concert besides Raffi and the parentally-enforced-you-must-love-being-Irish Chieftains concerts I went to with the family was They Might Be Giants, which I think is a totally respectable first concert, no?) Anyway, I loved every single one of them. It might be a little annoying to some people but I thought it went well with the overall campiness. Crowinator got there before me but she is dead-on that this book reminded me of a mixture of Buffy’s fun and the snarkiness of Dead Like Me. Sam very much reminded me of George from Dead Like Me—a sarcastic yet compassionate slacker working at a just-for-the-money job, only Sam is far nicer than George ever was. And he has his kickass friends, one of whom is a head in a bag. Yeah, you read that right. A head. In a bowling bag. The sense of humor is dead-on and the story was fun in the same way that Paranormalcy was. It felt fresh in a genre where originality can be hard to come by.

This book has it all, and I almost feel like Stefon from SNL could do a wonderful recap of what this book has to offer: Crazy garden gnomes that want to kill you, a talking cat that is really a dragon, sexy werewolves, a head in a bowling bag, medicine bags that make people invisible to supernatural radar, a Catholic schoolgirl harbringer that loves waffles, sex in a cage, and ZOMBIES. You get the idea. The pacing is quick but unhurried and the story arc is complete at the end yet leaves itself open to future books that I really hope will exist despite a lack of parenthetical series markers. It would be a huge shame if this was a standalone.

This is actually more like 4.5 stars but I'm gonna leave it at 4 instead of 5 for differentiation purposes.

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When I first started reading this book, three things came to mind: 1) Hello, Elton John, I can see you’ll be taking up residence in my head until I finish this book – please be kind; 2) This book takes place in Seattle, so it better not disappoint; and 3) Any book that can make me chuckle four

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times in the first eight-and-a-half pages has great potential. I’m happy to report that this book does, in fact, live up to the initial potential I saw.
I’m pretty picky when it comes to reading about male friendships because, as both a sister who expertly spied on her brother and his friends and the quiet girl in school (read: easily overlooked), I want the conversations to sound authentic. This is, of course, purely subjective, because what sounds authentic to me might come across as totally false to someone else based on experience, but that’s a can of worms I don’t want to get into right now. My point is this: the friendships in this book rang true to me and they managed to be thoroughly amusing as well. Sam didn’t really verbalize the fact that he cared about Ramon (and Frank, but to a lesser degree), but his actions showed it to be true.
Though the paranormal genre is large, this is the first book I’ve read with necromancy at the forefront (though it’s not the only one out there). Since Sam himself was unaware of his own power for most of his life, he is forced to learn what that power means. This was good for me, as pretty much everything had to be explained to Sam. Unfortunately for him, powerful necromancer Douglas is not the nicest of teachers but has appointed himself as Sam’s personal tutor in the ways of necromancy. Though Sam is new to the game, the people in his life are willing to put their own lives at risk to help him escape from Douglas’s grip.
This is an entertaining story filled with laughter and bloodshed, which everyone knows is the most desirable combination in any book.

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Boy who doesn't know what he really is... circumstance that forces him to discover his gifts... powerful werewolf female who ends up attracted to this boy...evil, powerful protagonist who wishes to kill them both...
Fast paced, humorous, and very enjoyable.

McBride, Lish "Hold Me Closer, Necromancer" ended up being a quite good story. I enjoyed the beginning, where we meet fast food cook Sam and his friends Ramon, Frank and Brooke. They are bored as always at the restaurant and this leads to an interesting game of potato hockey...which in turn leads

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to some grave consequences. Sam finds out he is necromancer. Soon he is involved with a bigwig necromancer named Douglas, who really likes to do BAD things.

The humor is sarcastic and quite funny. Sam and his other dead beat friends are endearing and quickly the whole group managed to worm their way into my heart. The characters seem to be a make or break point with me and my fondness for them will certainly lead me to read future novels in this series.

The book isn't perfect. The pace drags a little in the middle of the book. While there were things I thought unique and interesting to the tale, there were also instances of 'been there, done that'. I thought the ending wasn't nearly complicated enough and I thought the entire existence of his ghostly guide was a little too easy. Also what ends up happening to Brooke; yeah it was also too easy. The realistic thing would have been to let that whole situation be. But then again, realism doesn't always cut it in this kid of story.

This book was unique in that its told primarily from a boy's perspective and a lot of the main characters are boys. That is a huge plus as we don't see it often enough in YA literature. I am hoping this book will appeal as much to the young men out there as it does to the ladies.

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Playing frozen potato hockey out behind the fast food restaurant where he works, Sam busts a taillight on the local necromancer's car. Unfortunately, that lets the dangerous man know that Sam exists, and soon he has his friend's reanimated head in a bowling bag, and Sam is caged in the

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necromancer's basement with a hot, naked, werewolf.

Why I picked it up: Clever title. And because of Johann Cabal, I'm into the funny necromancer stories.

Why I finished it: It's quick, and I came to care about Sam, Ramon, Brid, and the rest. I nearly gave it up in the middle, during the lengthy chapters of exposition about Sam's birth and power binding.

I'd give it to: Greg, and some of the other unlikely Twihards that I've encountered.

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HOLD ME CLOSER, NECROMANCER, by Lish McBride, is an exceptional story about a seemingly normal boy with an extraordinary gift that is both powerful and dangerous. Sam has always felt out of place and down on his luck until a very powerful necromancer senses him. Sam has just days to unleash his

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power or he will meet his demise.

I loved this book! I have read a handful of necromancer books and this one stood on its own quite successfully, due to the fact that a necromancer was not the only supernatural being present. McBride picked a wide-range of supernatural characters and placed them strategically in the book to make a well-orchestrated paranormal feast!

Sam is extremely likable. He may feel like a loser because he is a college drop-out, working in a fast food joint, and living in a less than desired apartment; but he is extremely honest with himself and has a fantastic group of friends. Ramon, Frank, and Brooke were probably the best friends anyone could ask for, especially in the whirl-wind situation Sam found himself in with Douglas. They researched, , and even lost part of themselves (you will understand when you read the book) in the fight to keep Sam alive. And Brid was also a great match for Sam. He broke down her hard exterior to understand her inner wolf. They were incredibly adorable even though the circumstances that brought them together was interesting to say the least.

With this amazing cast that McBride created the surprises just kept on coming. I laughed a lot and nearly cried while reading this book, and I think anyone who loves paranormal will have a great time reading this one.

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College dropout & fry cook gets involved in wacky supernatural hi jinks. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next installment.

Surprisingly good. I've seen this book on the shelf and been tempted, how could you not with the title. It rises above the other paranormal/supernatural lit out there for teens right now. It also has characters in that just after high school period which is just as interesting a time as HS itself.

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And although I liked the song lyric chapter titles they tended to get the songs stuck in my head. But still a very fun read.

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Sam is one of those lovable losers who has fallen off the yellow-brick road college path and landed in the poppy field, better known as the world of fast-food. But his life takes an unexpected turn when a very scary business man type (is there any other kind?) enters the restaurant and seems to

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know more about Sam than he does. He knows it's serious when a mutant thug assaults him in the parking lot and one of his best friend's head is delivered to his door the next day- and it can still talk.

Sam is one of the more sympathetic characters I've met in YA lit for a long time. although a little lost in terms of his own future, he's kind, funny and not inclined to torture himself over things that he has no control over (see Jace from the Mortal Instruments series or Twilight's Edward). He's vegetarian and tries very hard not to do any harm. Unbeknownst to him, he's also a necromancer, a fact his witch mother (also unbeknownst to him) has magically hidden from him and the rest of the world for his own good.

This is a fun read for those of you who would like to taste the fantastic world of witches, vampires and werewolves (werewolves play a big part in this book) with a generous helping of humour but without any of the angst-rich sauce.

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Sam (short for Samhain)has never felt like he belonged. At loose ends, he lives in a crummy apartment and works at a fast food place. After meeting a dangerous stranger, he discovers that he is a necromancer, his mother is a witch and he is in a very bad situation.

This was awesome! Sam is a college dropout, content in his crap fast-food job, as it gives him plenty of time to hang out with his best friends. However, when he discovers that he's a necromancer - and that a very scary fellow necromancer is VERY interested in Sam's powers - Sam and his friends are

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in major trouble.

Sam's a charmer - funny, easy-going and smart, he is of course wigged out over the discovery that the world isn't quite what it seems, as witches, werewolves, ghosts and necromancers are a bit unexpected. His friends are also a delight, as is the bad-ass werewolf girl he meets.

This is a fun, exciting supernatural read for those who want more action and funny than lovey-dovey - and Sam reminds me of a young Harry Dresden (Jim Butcher's series), which is a very good thing... And major bonus points to the author for the music lyric chapter titles. Like the book title, many are *slightly* altered, but all of them fit their chapters perfectly!

Highly recommended!

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The Scoop:

Meet Sam LaCroix, college drop-out, fast food worker, and, oh, yeah, necromancer. Meet Douglas, head of the Council and all-around powerful necromancer. As we start the story Sam doesn't know he's a necromancer until he gets busted for smashing the tail light of Douglas's car during a

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rousing game of potato hockey. Douglas threatens Sam because he hasn't "registered" with the Council for the region. Sam is clueless about having any powers because his mother, a witch, and his uncle, a fellow necromancer, had his powers bound when he was a baby. Douglas doesn't care and decides to take matters into his own hands by kidnapping Sam, throwing him into a cage with Brid, a fellow abductee who happens to be a were-hound, and forcing him to learn the trade of necromancy. How will Sam get out of this jam in one piece? Along the way he is helped by his friends, Ramon, Frank and poor, be-headed Brooke, his mother and sister, and a waffle-loving harbinger named Ashley. Sam learns about his powers and finally finds some focus in his life after drifting along and not really feeling like he had a place in the world.

My Thoughts:

This was a book that I listened to instead of read--my job includes a lot of driving so audiobooks keep me sane in the insane traffic of the Seattle area. Speaking of which, one of my favorite aspects of this book was the many, many mentions of Seattle weather. Now there may not be a lot of variety in the weather of this area--well, unless you count the different types of rain (light, heavy, misting, sprinkles, showers, downpour, etc., etc.)--but we really do talk about it a lot. There's always the caveat of "if the weather allows" tacked on to the end of every plan for outdoor activities. But, enough about the weather (but, for crying out loud, it's almost July and it has yet to reach a high of anything over 65!). Oh, and, for sure, no Seattle native goes around with an umbrella because the rain really can come at you sideways and you're soaked anyways and having to tote around an umbrella, too.

So, right, audiobook review--that's what you're here for. Ok, for me, the most important part of an audiobook is if the voice matches how I think the character should be. In this case I think Todd Ross and Chris Sorensen did an excellent job of portraying Douglas and Sam, and their viewpoints (respectively). Douglas was clearly evil and power-hungry and the throaty, whispery voice was just the right portrayal. Sam was the confused, unsure, scared and snarky teenager and the goofy, sometimes sweet and unsure voice was just the right touch.

As for the story itself, I thought that relationship between Sam and Ramon was very well portrayed and they always had each others back. Sam's quick connection with Brid came from a dangerous situation and very close quarters but seemed very sincere. The humor woven throughout the story kept it from being an emo-type teen paranormal book. For example, Brooke had her head chopped off and sent to Sam as a warning to cooperate with Douglas but she didn't stay all weepy about it, she saw the humor (and I say that loosely because she did lose her life in the process) in the fact that she was only a head yet she could eat and drink and blow her hair out of her face.

I'm very excited to learn that this book is the beginning of a series because I enjoyed it very much and there was a lot left dangling at the end of it--not a cliffhanger but definitely a jumping off point of further adventures. As much as I enjoyed the story I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that it reminded me so much of the television show, Reaper, where the main character was named Sam, he had a Latino friend and his supernatural "boss" was a very powerful person in the paranormal realm (in this instance he was the devil) and there was a bit of wisecracking going on during the danger, as well.

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