Publishers Weekly
It's not hard to see Twilight in the DNA of this novel: Zara's stepfather has died, her mother isn't capable of caring for her, and she has been sent to live with her grandmother in a small remote town in Maine. When her car spins out of control (Calling Stephenie Meyer!), she's rescued by sexy Nick (who turns out to be a werewolf), and something might be cooking with her overachieving classmate Ian. Too bad she's being followed by someone dark and dangerous-a pixie king. This pixie is no harmless sprite: "when not mated with a queen for an unspecified amount of time," Zara learns, "the pixie kings will demand... young human men, who they kill after using them for their blood-hungry pleasures." Will Zara sacrifice herself to this vampire stand-in or let him destroy everything she loves? Jones (Love {and Other Uses for Duct Tape]) easily wins readers to Zara's side, portraying her as a funny, globally conscious teen who also "collect[s} fears like other people collect stamps" (obscure phobias serve as chapter titles). Genre fans will enjoy the sizzle between Nick and Zara as well as the paranormal cast. Ages 12-up. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
School Library Journal
Gr 7 Up—Move over Edward Cullen (Twilight)—there's a new boy in town. Carrie Jones's terrific fantasy/romance/thriller (Bloomsbury, 2008) is sure to be a crowd pleaser. Zara White flies to Maine to live with her grandmother after her stepfather dies in her arms. At the airport, she notices a mysterious man pointing at the plane and—it seems—at her. Could this be the same man she has seen around her South Carolina hometown? When he shows up in tiny Bedford, things turn really creepy. Zara begins to realize that the townspeople are hiding monumental secrets: young boys are disappearing and nobody—not the head cheerleader, the star athlete, or even Zara's grandmother—are who they claim to be. Zara joins forces with new friends Issie, Devyn, and the mysterious Nick, and romance blooms as they race to outwit Zara's stalker. Narrator Julia Whelan deftly captures Zara's youthful Southern twang and the harder-edged Northeastern accents of the other characters. This is a taut, satisfying thriller. Don't be put off by the provocative cover—the writing is gentle enough for younger teens. A sequel, Captivate, is planned for early 2010.—Tricia Melgaard, Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK
Kirkus Reviews
Leaving behind her warmly quirky realism to jump on the supernatural-romance bandwagon, Jones leans too hard on overly recognizable motifs. Zara's mother sends her to a remote, frigid Maine town to regain her spirit after her father dies. Boys immediately adore her, but only one electrifies her in return: Nick, an inhumanly fast runner. Polite Ian's also inhumanly fast, but new friends Issie and Devyn seem to favor Nick, despite his faintly dangerous vibe. A strange man stalks Zara, and she admits that he's been lurking in her life since the day of her father's fatal heart attack. He's a pixie, needing a queen to enhance his power lest he kidnap boys to drink their blood. Several scenes seem illogically manipulated for plot tension; choppy continuity undermines readers' ability to distinguish awkward prose from Zara's valid grief. A sense of the derivative outweighs welcome flashes of wit and humor. This one's for readers already hooked on smug supernatural males and incurious heroines less informed than anyone around them. Twi-lite. (Fantasy. YA)
