Vampire Book Pick: Marked (House of Night Book 1)

In Zoey’s world, humans and vampires co-exist. So it’s not completely out of the ordinary when Zoey is “marked” by a vampire tracker one day at school. You see, humans with special abilities are selected in their teens to become vampires. Once marked, the teen is removed from human society and taken to a special boarding school called The House of Night. When Zoey is marked she tries to avoid the inevitable, but the longer she puts off going to the new school, the sicker she becomes. Zoey’s home life (in particular, her relationship with her stepfather) isn’t great so she’s not too unhappy to be leaving her old life.

Zoey’s first day at the House of Night starts out fairly well. She meets Nefret, a beautiful and extremely kind teacher (and High Priestess) at the school who decides to be Zoey’s mentor. Nefret, although a vampire, also has special intuitive powers. She immediately recognizes that Zoey is a special vampire fledgling and decides to take her under her wing.

Zoey quickly makes friends with several students. However, she soon meets Aphrodite, another student at the school who’s part of the “in” crowd. Do you remember the movies “The Heathers” or “Jawbreaker”? Aphrodite is like the leader of those girl groups. She’s beautiful but extremely cruel to her fellow students. She’s also the president of The Dark Daughters, an elitist group of female vampire fledglings at the school who engage in acts that aren’t completely ethical. Aphrodite initially shows some interest in being Zoey’s friend but eventually turns against her when she thinks a former boyfriend is interested in Zoey. Zoey doesn’t let Aphrodite get to her but she makes it her mission to expose Aphrodite’s actions to the school.

Meanwhile, Zoey quickly adjusts to her new life, classes, and her teachers. She makes new friends, is “chosen” by a temperamental cat to be its new master, and meets a handsome young guy who seems genuinely interested in Zoey as a person. Sure, it seems odd sleeping during the day and attending classes at night but after awhile it becomes second nature.

It’s important to note that not every teen that’s Marked actually becomes a vampire. Some kids don’t survive The Change and die.

Or do they?

I really liked this fantasy book, which is the first installment in the House of Night series. The storyline as written by P.C. and Kristin Cast (mother and daughter respectively) is nicely paced and thoroughly engrossing. It’s clear early on that Zoey is developing unusual powers. We’re not entirely certain what they are, but that’s part of the attraction of this book. It makes us want to learn more about Zoey and what lies ahead for her.

This is very much a young adult, coming of age fantasy book but it written such that it works well for both young and older adults. Because of a graphic scene near the start of the book it’s probably not appropriate for teens younger than 16 but it’s a great read for the older crowd. While reading the book I couldn’t help but think of the Harry Potter series (which also centers around a strong character at a boarding school with special powers, whose fate isn’t entirely known during the first books) however that’s where the similarities end. The book stands alone as a solid new addition to the young adult vampire book category and is sure to appeal to fantasy book lovers at large. Check prices