Jamie Carpenter's father died under the bullet of a subatomic machine gun after strange things surrounded the Carpenter house. Jamie's mother was kidnapped after a strange girl tried to kill him in the park. Now Jamie's the only Carpenter left, and it's his turn to go after the biggest, baddest vampire since Count Dracula, and, of course, to rescue his mother. Luckily, he'll have the power of Department 19, Britain's top secret vampire-hunting agency, at his back -- Only if past grudges can be put aside, and Jamie makes it out to the hunting grounds alive.
If you liked "The Slayer Chronicles," featuring Joss McMillan (Vlad Todd's, like, arch-enemy/best friend) by Heather Brewer, you will love Department 19. It's crazy fast-paced action full of twists and turns that you'll never see coming.
The plot is very intricate. Trying to follow it is like trying to untie a length of fishing line that has been nested in by a bunch of animals all winter long. And then dragged through the woods. Only after someone deliberately tied knots in it. But, through all those tangles, you could never see the plot twists coming, which is a bonus. It's the first time in a long time that I've been surprised by a book. That, like, never happens. So I was duly impressed.
Of course, even the best action-thriller has it's problems. First off, there are too many people. Or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I don't know. But I know I got the "Blacklight" operators mixed up so many times that I couldn't remember if the people who died had any significance (oops, sorry, spoiler . . . but you knew it was going to happen). Also, it jumps back and forth in time. This could be considered a plus, because it gives you back story and more information on characters, but it gets a bit confusing at times. So, the main problem with this book is that it's confusing until you get to the mid-point. After that, you're over the hump and it's smooth sailing.
Also, I just don't get the character of Jamie Carpenter. He changes from a listless boy who's still mourning his father to an angry young man who can kill vampires in the space of, like, 60 pages. And 25 of those pages are devoted to telling about a man who was in New York City in 1928. So, where's the transition for Jamie Carpenter? In a dynamic character, the change generally happens over the course of the book. In this character, this book, the change happens, nearly in the turn of a page. He watches a video on Blacklight, and boom!, he's a vampire slayer. Okay, then . . .
I do enjoy the character of Larissa, though. Plenty of books try to go against the grain by pointing out that vampires aren't bad, they're just tortured souls. She is a good-ish vampire, and she doesn't try to deny it. That's nice for a change, that a vampire can flinch while sucking down blood, but still does it anyways. Because all of these contemporary vampire types were getting me worried-- do we have to be perfectly in control of ourselves all the time? Quite frankly, do we have to be perfect all the time? If Larissa heard that question, I'm pretty sure she would say "no" too.
There are also several random characters. I won't say names (uh, Kate) but they were random. And didn't really add anything to the plot. Yeah, sure, they step in and save the main character a few times, but that wasn't really necessary.
It is advised that you have prior knowledge about the book "Dracula," Bram Stoker. The classic one, yes. This book ties into that one. In fact, it might be considered a bit of a modern day sequel. I've never read the classic book, so I wouldn't know, but . . . As one of the Blacklight operators ( I finished it two days ago, and I've already forgotten which one it was) says, "The book 'Dracula,' isn't fiction. It's a history lesson." Yeah, okay. There is a very interesting back story on Bram Stoker, though . . .
I bet that I will read the next book when it comes out. I mean, it was a very engaging story, full of blood and gore and all that good stuff. So, Jamie Carpenter, I will remember you and read you again for your vampire-slaying skills and pure adrenaline rush. Not your literary significance.
The website is department19.org The video is overly dramatic, but, whatever. It's pretty hard to make an action video for a book like this without actually injuring someone . . .
If you liked "The Slayer Chronicles," featuring Joss McMillan (Vlad Todd's, like, arch-enemy/best friend) by Heather Brewer, you will love Department 19. It's crazy fast-paced action full of twists and turns that you'll never see coming.
The plot is very intricate. Trying to follow it is like trying to untie a length of fishing line that has been nested in by a bunch of animals all winter long. And then dragged through the woods. Only after someone deliberately tied knots in it. But, through all those tangles, you could never see the plot twists coming, which is a bonus. It's the first time in a long time that I've been surprised by a book. That, like, never happens. So I was duly impressed.
Of course, even the best action-thriller has it's problems. First off, there are too many people. Or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I don't know. But I know I got the "Blacklight" operators mixed up so many times that I couldn't remember if the people who died had any significance (oops, sorry, spoiler . . . but you knew it was going to happen). Also, it jumps back and forth in time. This could be considered a plus, because it gives you back story and more information on characters, but it gets a bit confusing at times. So, the main problem with this book is that it's confusing until you get to the mid-point. After that, you're over the hump and it's smooth sailing.
Also, I just don't get the character of Jamie Carpenter. He changes from a listless boy who's still mourning his father to an angry young man who can kill vampires in the space of, like, 60 pages. And 25 of those pages are devoted to telling about a man who was in New York City in 1928. So, where's the transition for Jamie Carpenter? In a dynamic character, the change generally happens over the course of the book. In this character, this book, the change happens, nearly in the turn of a page. He watches a video on Blacklight, and boom!, he's a vampire slayer. Okay, then . . .
I do enjoy the character of Larissa, though. Plenty of books try to go against the grain by pointing out that vampires aren't bad, they're just tortured souls. She is a good-ish vampire, and she doesn't try to deny it. That's nice for a change, that a vampire can flinch while sucking down blood, but still does it anyways. Because all of these contemporary vampire types were getting me worried-- do we have to be perfectly in control of ourselves all the time? Quite frankly, do we have to be perfect all the time? If Larissa heard that question, I'm pretty sure she would say "no" too.
There are also several random characters. I won't say names (uh, Kate) but they were random. And didn't really add anything to the plot. Yeah, sure, they step in and save the main character a few times, but that wasn't really necessary.
It is advised that you have prior knowledge about the book "Dracula," Bram Stoker. The classic one, yes. This book ties into that one. In fact, it might be considered a bit of a modern day sequel. I've never read the classic book, so I wouldn't know, but . . . As one of the Blacklight operators ( I finished it two days ago, and I've already forgotten which one it was) says, "The book 'Dracula,' isn't fiction. It's a history lesson." Yeah, okay. There is a very interesting back story on Bram Stoker, though . . .
I bet that I will read the next book when it comes out. I mean, it was a very engaging story, full of blood and gore and all that good stuff. So, Jamie Carpenter, I will remember you and read you again for your vampire-slaying skills and pure adrenaline rush. Not your literary significance.
The website is department19.org The video is overly dramatic, but, whatever. It's pretty hard to make an action video for a book like this without actually injuring someone . . .
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