Being only half-vamp in a high school like Carpathia Night makes you a whole loser. But Danny Gray manages to escape the worst of the specists at his school. Thanks to genetic treatments he had as an infant, most people assume Danny’s other half is human. Which is a good thing.
Ever since the development of synthetic blood – SynHeme – vamps have become society’s elite, while wulves like his father work menial jobs and live in bad neighborhoods. Wulves are less than second class citizens; once a month they become inmates, forced to undergo their Change in dangerous government compounds.
For Danny, living with his vamp mother and going to a school with a nearly all-vamp student body, it’s best to pretend his wulf half doesn’t even exist. But lately Danny’s been having some weird symptoms — fantastic night vision; a keener-than-usual sense of smell; and headaches, right around the full moon.
Even though it’s easy to be in denial, it’s hard to ignore evidence. There’s only a month until the next few moon, and Danny’s time is running out.
Peter Moore speaks to adolescents in a voice that will have them laughing, set in a world that will get them thinking.
This is a completely different take on the vampire/werewolf legend. No sparkles here, although the vampires are considered the superior race. And that is where the problem really begins. Vampires are more intelligent and more attractive than humans, but the societies are well integrated. The fact that vampires only drink synthetic blood probably helps.
Werewulves (not a typo, that’s how they spell it) however, are not even second class. They are slightly higher than animals. They are considered the least intelligent and are required to register before their first turning. If they don’t, they are “moonrunners” and can be shot on sight. Every month during the full moon, all registered wulves are shipped to compounds and many of them never return. Many vampires and humans believe they should be exterminated, or at the least, should not be allowed to associate with “civilized” people.
I kept thinking of blacks in America before the civil rights era and Japanese containment camps during World War II. There is even a mention of Nazis and it is not in a negative way.
I would recommend this book simply on the basis it was a good read. The addition of the societal aspects make it even more compelling.
Elaine Reads . . . constantly! 