Book Review: Night School by Mari Mancusi ~ THE BOOK BUTTERFLY

NIGHT SCHOOL (BLOOD COVEN 5) BY MARI MANCUSI
Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Berkley Trade (January 4, 2011)
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indiebound

Vampires, Slayers and…FAIRIES? Sunny and Rayne McDonald are about to get SCHOOLED.

After their parents’ shocking revelation about their fae heritage and an attack on their lives, the McDonald twins find themselves on the run—forced to hide out at Riverdale Academy , a boarding school for vampire slayers, deep in the Swiss Alps. With no cells, no internet, and no way to contact their vampire boyfriends—the twins are on their own.

Being a vampire stuck in a school full of slayers isn’t easy. Especially with no blood substitute stocked on campus. Soon Rayne finds herself succumbing to her bloodlust and losing control—especially around the arrogant, but devastatingly handsome Corbin Billingsworth the Third—who isn’t sure whether he wants to kiss her…or kill her.

But when Sunny starts acting strange, Rayne realizes Riverdale Academy may be hiding some deadly secrets of its own—leading to a showdown in Fairyland that may cost the twins their lives.

Book Opening:

~~"My name is Rayne McDonald and I am a fairy princess.~~

Argh! I can't even say that without feeling sick to my stomach! I can't be a fairy princess—I'm the antithesis of a fairy princess. "

Notable Quotes:

"Then suddenly, I hear it: a weirdly familiar buzzing sound. At first I can't place it. It's low-pitched and burning, almost like the beating of—

Oh my God. I look over at Sunny, who, I realize, is looking back at me with terrified eyes. They've found us. Somehow, some way, they've found us. "- Page 83

"I hang my head, not blaming him one bit for his anger. He feels betrayed and confused—and deserves to feel all that and more. But, at the same time, all this emotion is wasted energy.

We have to work together to get out of here. For his own good as well as mine. How can I convince him of that?"- Page 143

The Short Version:

Vampires, slayers, fairies—OH MY!

Night School, the 5th installment in the Blood Coven series by Mari Mancusi, was a heck of a lot of fun! There's never a dull moment in The Blood Coven series and Night School was no exception.

The Long Version:

After the twins find out about their shocking fairy heritage and the danger it poses to their safety, their parents ship them off to a vampire slayer boarding school to lay low. But as the girls soon learn, Riverdale is not the safest of places and it seems as if they are in worse danger than ever before. If they don't figure out a plan- and quickly- they might never leave at all.

The always amusing, clever Rayne is the narrator of Night School. And let me just say, Rayne is the reason I keep coming back to the series. This is a zany character who has undergone more transformations than you'd think possible (even for a paranormal book), yet she does it with such wit, likability and dark humor, that it all seems to make sense. I adore Rayne's twin sister Sunshine, but my favorite books are the ones told from Rayne's point of view. With her tongue-in-cheek distinct brand of sass, Rayne always elevates this series up a notch with her constant misadventures. While on the young side of the vampire YA spectrum, I do enjoy these books and look forward to each installment. At times, Rayne reminds me of a goth Buffy the Vampire Slayer (if Buffy was also a vampire that is). As for Sunny—well Sunny is like the quintessential Barbie girl that has it all, except for an uncanny ability to get herself into the craziest situations that only Rayne can ever get her out of.

The only thing I have to note about Night School is that I found the romantic angle lacking—the scenes with Rayne and Jared felt rushed and somewhat forced to me. However, the twist with Corbin did turn my head in the right direction toward the end. I loved the precarious position Rayne was in at Riverdale with being unable to acquire any blood. What happened with her and Corbin was great—I loved his back-story too. Things took a dangerous turn at the end and I can't wait to find out what happens in the next book.

The Blood Coven series is a light-hearted, Young Adult vampire series that will appeal to young readers or those who prefer their vampire books to be served up less on the bloody side. So if you are looking for a dark vampire series with tortured souls, mature romantic situations and gory details, this is probably not the vampire series for you. I think of it more as "Blood Lite" or "Vamp Candy". I would rate them as being skewed to older of a crowd than Ellen Schrieber's Vampire Kisses, but younger than P.C. and Kristin Cast's House of Night series if that helps.

It's always a riot to revisit with Sunny and Rayne- I'm interested in what crazy direction their lives with take next with Blood Ties, scheduled to release in August 2011.