The Awakening: 09/22/13

The Awakening is by Kelley Armstrong is the second of the Darkest Powers trilogy. In the last few weeks Chloe gone from being a fairly average high schooler to being a powerful necromancer. She's on the run from Lyle House and the Edison Group

As with so many trilogies — especially one that involves a final fight-or-flight show down in book three — the second book ends up being the transition from the initial state (unsuspecting hero at home) to the final battle grounds. In Chloe and friends' case, that means hiding out in various abandoned places and a lengthy bus ride. If this were The Hobbit (which wasn't originally a trilogy — but hey! — this wold be Biblo et al in the forest, the spiders, the getting captured and escaping in barrels, with Smaug and his horde being the tantalizing bit of adventure before the all out war).

So Chloe Baggins still not sure how to use her ring (necromancy) accidentally summons bats, dead homeless folks, various roadkills and whatnot. Meanwhile Derek seems to be suffering from dramatic werewolfism. Rather than follow a lunar schedule, he seems to fall into the throws of transformation whenever it's dramatically inconvenient. Bad guys coming? Quick — try to transform. Zombies on the prowl — quick transform!

Despite the goofy plot, I did enjoy the plot. (I also like The Hobbit for similar goofy reasons). I think it's more flawed than the Darkness Rising trilogy but it's still fun. For fans of this trilogy, I also recommend the anime/manga Is this a Zombie?

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