Book Review: Hunted by P.C. and Kristen Cast

Hunted
P.C. and Kristen Cast
Genre(s): young adult, paranormal, fantasy
Published: January 1st 2009
Pages: 439
Rating: 3 stars

“The good news: Zoey’s friends have her back again and Stevie Rae and the red fledglings aren’t Neferet’s secrets any longer. The bad news: Ancient evil with the face of an angel has been let loose—that and various other nasties (whose faces aren’t so angelic). Grandma Redbird is in trouble. Heath is in trouble. The House of Night is in trouble. Okay, let’s face it—Zoey’s whole world is in trouble! But when the trouble comes from a being who appears to be beauty personified, will the world believe it? Especially when only a teenager and a group of misfits are the only ones who really understand the danger he brings. Will Zoey have the strength and wisdom to reveal the truth? Especially when, in the House of Night, the truth is often hard to come by...”

The House of Night series isn't great, I have no problem admitting that (or admitting that I don't really enjoy it), but Hunted wasn't bad.

Okay, yeah, it wasn't amazing either, but it wasn't totally awful like some of the other books have been (I'm looking at Marked and Chosen when I say this). It's definitely more filler material than actual plot development, but it was a nice change of pace.

The writing meant that it was incredibly quick to get through, as even though it's not the best or the most complex, it's gripping. Mainly because it's so simple, but also because there is a lot of suspense throughout the series. Unfortunately, a lot of that suspense is ruined if you're particularly good at guessing what happens next. But whatever, Hunted's still a quick read.

A lot of new characters are introduced in Hunted as well, mainly more red fledglings, but the old characters we've come to know (and either love or hate) don't really get any more development. Maybe that's just down to the filler-y nature of this book, or just because they're pretty bland characters, I don't know. What I do know is that it's annoying.

I thought that by re-reading this series I'd not only remember everything for when I come to read books 10 and onwards, I'd come to fall in love with it again. Sadly - or maybe not sadly - I haven't. Perhaps it's because when I first read these books I was only about 13 that I loved them. Now, with a whole bookcase of other books under my belt, I can see the faults. I don't know. I just feel rather disappointed and annoyed with this series.

My point is, Hunted (as well as many other House of Night books) is a quick, easy and enjoyable read if you're a young adult that likes vampires - sorry, vampyres - and bad dialogue. If you don't, it's still a quick, easy read, but it'll most likely end up annoying you or turning into that series that you love to hate.