This was my first time to read a book by Heather Hildenbrand and all I can say is WOW - What an awesome author!!!
I will start out by saying that I have never been a big werewolf fan, but Heather has done an amazing job of creating a world full of werewolves that I loved! It hooked me with just the first few pages and before I knew it, I was finished and wanting more!
Tara Godfrey is just a normal girl until something happens that changes her life completely! Tara breaks up with her boyfriend and sends him home - only thing is she doesn't have a ride home. On her walk to the bus stop, she comes across a girl in distress (or so she thought) - when she tries to help the girl, something totally out of the norm happens. The girl changes into a wolf and attacks Tara. Tara is totally surprised and caught off guard but somehow Tara manages to survive. From this point on Tara's life changes - she finds out things about herself, her family and more. I am not one to spoil books for people so I will leave the rest for you to find out for yourself. But this leaves her with tons of questions and only one person who can give her answers. Wes arrives after the attack has happened and can't believe that Tara handled the situation so easily.
Tara is a likable character with enough flaws to make her seem real. She comes off a bit whiny at times, but I imagine that I would be too if I was suddenly cast in the role of warrior-peacekeeper by a bunch of people who refused to tell me anything.
I always like a mythology with a well-developed back-story, and the werewolves and hunters have a long history of mutual animosity. This is complicated by the addition of a third side, the Cause, who ultimately wants the two races to live in harmony, though they acknowledge that their goal will take some violence. The Cause has its own tragic history, but events seem poised for our heroine to step in and return goodness to the world, after some hardship, of course.
The characters in this book are well developed and the plot is smooth and quick-paced. I love the writing style of Heather and found this book hard to put down!! I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
Excerpt from Blood Rule:
I pulled the single, empty chair alongside the bed and sat down. The fake leather was cold against the back of my bare legs. Everything about hospitals seemed cold to me.
“Hey, sleepyhead,” I said into the silence.
Alex’s doctor insisted coma patients had been known to wake up claiming to hear the voices of those who’d visited while they were under. He’d said I should talk as often as possible. Sometimes, I felt silly doing it, but other times, like today, it was nice to be able to vent without judgment.
Other people’s reactions had a tendency to weigh heavily. I was already carrying an entire pack’s worth of emotion. I didn’t need any more. And this way, I could tell Alex absolutely anything, including things I’d never say if he were awake.
So while I sat, I told him about all that had happened in the last few days: Nick, Vera’s collapse, my expulsion, and the growing certainty that Steppe wanted to do more than dissolve a peace treaty and kick me out of school.
“It’s building toward something,” I said. “And I don’t know what it is, but it’s … close. Like it’s right around the corner.” I looked down at my hands and realized I’d been twisting them together. I freed my fingers and reached out, wrapping my fingers gently around Alex’s.
“Honestly, I’m afraid to look around that corner. I know whatever’s waiting is going to be bigger than me. Bigger than I’m capable of. And it would be so much easier to handle if you were awake. At least then your sarcasm would make me determined to beat whatever this is. But with you like this… I need you to wake up, okay?”
And I need to know I didn’t kill you.
Heather Hildenbrand
Author, YA and NA Fiction
Dirty Blood / Imitation / Across the Galaxy
Whisper / DreamKiller / A Risk Worth Taking
View all my titles at: www.heatherhildenbrand.
"Helping writers become authors."
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