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Changeling by Steve Feasey
The Blurb On The Back:
Is he a boy or is he a beast?
Trey thinks he is an ordinary teenager. THen he meets Lucien Charron - a mysterious stranger with eyes that seem flecked with fire, and skin that blisters in sunlight. Suddenly Trey finds himself living in a luxury penthouse at the heart of a strange and sinister empire build on the powers of the Netherworld - vampires, demons, sorcerers, djinn. And Trey discovers his own secret: a power that's roaring to break free.
Meet the last hereditary werewolf. One thing's for sure: Trey Laporte will never be ordinary again ...
Trey Laporte lives in a children's home following the death of his parents in a car accident. The day he wakes up to discover his bedroom trashed and belongings shredded coincides with the day that Lucien Charron visits the home. Lucien claims to know the truth about Trey's family and gives him an heirloom, an amulet that Trey must wear around his neck. Initially distrustful of this mysterious stranger with his strange eyes and aversion to sunlight, Trey nevertheless soon finds himself living in a stupendous London apartment where he discovers that vampires, demons, and sorcerers are real and that as the last hereditary werewolf, he has tremendous powers of his own, powers mentioned in an ancient prophecy. While trying to come to terms with the fact that Lucien is a vampire and fighting his attraction to Lucien’s attractive sorceress daughter, Alexa, Trey is pitched straight into a fight with the evil vampire Caliban, who seeks domination over the world and is prepared to do anything to secure it.
Breezily told, this is an entertaining novel that is bound to appeal to boys and has solid character development. Feasey is particularly good at conveying Trey's confusion as he is caught up in events that quickly spin out of his control. The conflict that Trey feels between enjoying his powers as a werewolf and the urge that he has as a werewolf to kill and destroy is deftly handled and sets up a good dilemma for the series. Also well handled is his attraction to Lucien's daughter, Alexa, a sorceress and shopaholic (although as a character, Alexa at times crosses into being a caricature). Lucien falls into the trope of the redeemed vampire seeking to atone for his past, but has some good lines and is ably assisted by Tom, his tough, no-nonsense human Irish sidekick.
Although Feasey gives the story a cracking pace, there are times when he head-hops between characters within scenes, which can be jarring and it's a shame that a key scene involving Alexa's kidnap is kept off-page. In addition Caliban is a caricature of a villain and could do with some more motivation and the book ends on a cliff-hanger that's a straight set-up for book 2, which some readers may find frustrating.
There’s a helpful guide to the creatures of Feasey’s world at the back of the book, which is very entertaining.
The Verdict:
Although the characters sometimes slip into caricature, there's much to enjoy in this novel and while it's a shame that Feasey uses a cliffhanger as a reason to get readers to continue with the series, the story and world-building is strong enough to appeal to boys and girls alike.
Trey thinks he is an ordinary teenager. THen he meets Lucien Charron - a mysterious stranger with eyes that seem flecked with fire, and skin that blisters in sunlight. Suddenly Trey finds himself living in a luxury penthouse at the heart of a strange and sinister empire build on the powers of the Netherworld - vampires, demons, sorcerers, djinn. And Trey discovers his own secret: a power that's roaring to break free.
Meet the last hereditary werewolf. One thing's for sure: Trey Laporte will never be ordinary again ...
Trey Laporte lives in a children's home following the death of his parents in a car accident. The day he wakes up to discover his bedroom trashed and belongings shredded coincides with the day that Lucien Charron visits the home. Lucien claims to know the truth about Trey's family and gives him an heirloom, an amulet that Trey must wear around his neck. Initially distrustful of this mysterious stranger with his strange eyes and aversion to sunlight, Trey nevertheless soon finds himself living in a stupendous London apartment where he discovers that vampires, demons, and sorcerers are real and that as the last hereditary werewolf, he has tremendous powers of his own, powers mentioned in an ancient prophecy. While trying to come to terms with the fact that Lucien is a vampire and fighting his attraction to Lucien’s attractive sorceress daughter, Alexa, Trey is pitched straight into a fight with the evil vampire Caliban, who seeks domination over the world and is prepared to do anything to secure it.
Breezily told, this is an entertaining novel that is bound to appeal to boys and has solid character development. Feasey is particularly good at conveying Trey's confusion as he is caught up in events that quickly spin out of his control. The conflict that Trey feels between enjoying his powers as a werewolf and the urge that he has as a werewolf to kill and destroy is deftly handled and sets up a good dilemma for the series. Also well handled is his attraction to Lucien's daughter, Alexa, a sorceress and shopaholic (although as a character, Alexa at times crosses into being a caricature). Lucien falls into the trope of the redeemed vampire seeking to atone for his past, but has some good lines and is ably assisted by Tom, his tough, no-nonsense human Irish sidekick.
Although Feasey gives the story a cracking pace, there are times when he head-hops between characters within scenes, which can be jarring and it's a shame that a key scene involving Alexa's kidnap is kept off-page. In addition Caliban is a caricature of a villain and could do with some more motivation and the book ends on a cliff-hanger that's a straight set-up for book 2, which some readers may find frustrating.
There’s a helpful guide to the creatures of Feasey’s world at the back of the book, which is very entertaining.
The Verdict:
Although the characters sometimes slip into caricature, there's much to enjoy in this novel and while it's a shame that Feasey uses a cliffhanger as a reason to get readers to continue with the series, the story and world-building is strong enough to appeal to boys and girls alike.