House of Night Series

I recently struck a great bargain in purchasing the first 6 books in the House of Night series for $5 each in hardcover! I love me a good deal. Anyways, I was a bit skeptical at first being that A) this was yet another vampire series and B) it was in the teen section which brought out alarm bells involving Twilight silliness but I was pleasantly surprised. Each novel is well written and extremely engaging which kept me wanting to read more. I think this is thanks to the fact that PC Cast enlisted her daughter Kristin's help with all of the teen talk which is surprisingly similar to how a lot of my friends talk. Although I did find that for something in the 12+ section of Chapters these books were slightly inappropriate, personally I wouldn't let anyone under the age of 14 read them unless they were already having sex in which case whatever... point being is that there are a lot of mature themes and scenes in these books that I don't remember reading when I was that age but times are changing I guess I'm just a little old fashioned.

Marked: Starts out just as any other day at school, worried about a math test talking with your BFF, then it hits you smack dab in between the eyes, literally. Zoe, our young heroin, has been marked with the outline of a half moon on her forehead by a tracker as a fledgling vampire and must now adjust to her new life in a new world at the House of Night. Giving up some of your past and getting used to new found powers is a lot to handle but throw in some new friends (Stevie Rae the country bumpkin, Damien the linguistically apt and lovable gay, and Shaunee and Erin the twins who are shall we say "brothers from another mother" except sisters)  and the adventure awaiting gets a whole lot more fun.

Betrayed: Jocks Zoe knew in her old life have been found dead and drained of blood, could it have been a vampire or fledgling from her House of Night? While trying to figure out a relationship with her on-again-off-again boyfriend Heath from her old life and the mysterious human death's in the neighbourhood another bomb is dropped on Zoe, the death of her best friend Stevie Rae. Promising never to forget her, Zoe continues to get to the bottom of the mysteries plaguing Tulsa.

Chosen: With the discovery of the undead dead fledglings Zoe finds herself trying to help Stevie Rae hold on to her humanity. Unexpectedly, Aphrodite, a previously made enemy when Zoe took over as the lead of the Dark Daughters a club at school, is the only person Zoe can trust to help. To top off all the chaos in her life vampires start showing up crucified and her friends are becoming alienated from her. How can she deal with all of it, by having a reliable boyfriend, or three, to turn to.

Untamed: War has been declared on humans by the headmistress, Neferet, of the school and Zoe is now feeling like an outcast without the comfort of her friends or any boyfriends for that matter. Only Aphrodite, now unmarked and only human?, and Stevie Rae, who is undead, are there to comfort her that is until a hot transfer student arrives. James Stark seems like a good distraction for Zoe until he too dies in her arms. What is going on, why are all these fledglings dying? Then when things couldn't get any weirder an ancient immortal is released from the earth and, essentially, all hell breaks loose.

Hunted: Reunited with her circle of friends and currently holed up in tunnels underneath the city Zoe must discover a way to banish Kalona, an immortal who is tainted with evil, from this world. Plus what is she to do about these undead fledglings? Are they safe or just bloodthirsty? And will anyone believe the evil that is hidden in plain sight back at the House of Night? With some help from very comical nuns and an old grandma who can kick butt like no other Zoe is ready to take on the challenge.

Tempted: Although Neferet and Kalona have been banished from Tulsa, the web of lies they left behind still holds most of the House of Night under its spell. People are keeping secrets and telling lies, Zoe and Stark are trying to recover from almost dying, and Zoe is trying to keep Kalona out of her dreams. Will a bit of peace and quiet ever reach these guys?

Burned: Zoe's soul has shattered and she is trapped in the Otherworld until her friends are able to save her. Traveling to the Isle of Skye in Stark finds the true meaning of being Zoe's protector and warrior while trying to bring her back to the real world. Along the way Stevie Ray finds herself trying to hold done the fort back in Tulsa and is finding it difficult to keep up with all her lies. Maybe facing the truth will help her trudge on through.

Awakened: Finally back from her trip to the Otherworld and soul all in one piece, Zoe feels reluctant to return to the world of chaos that awaits her back at the House of Night. As the death of a close friend happens and is impossible to link to the evil Neferet, Zoe is forced to come home to comfort the friends she had neglected and move on from the death of Heath. Stevie Rae is finally forced to reveal her final and most personal secret to all. Cornily as it may sound love is the guiding factor that helps good to prevail over evil in this rollercoaster ride of vengeance and power seeking.

Destined is the title of the ninth book in the series which is coming November 2011 and personally I am hoping that our heroine finally kicks Neferet's butt once and for all and we get a new antagonist...
PC Cast - House of Night