Darkest Fear

Gr 9 Up—Tiernan wastes no time delving into the action in this new series. Within 25 pages, 18-year-old Vivi's parents have been viciously murdered, with her father's heart ripped from his body by what Vivi and her aunt Juliana can only assume was one of their own kind. Their own kind being Haguari, or the "Jaguar people." Vivi has spent the majority of her life denying her heritage, but with the mystery shrouding her parents' deaths and her newfound family in New Orleans, immersing herself in the Haguari way of the life may be the only way to solve the murders. The narrative moves swiftly, engaging readers with a rich backstory of the Haguari people and the omnipresent fear and apprehension that accompanies Vivi throughout the story. This is no Shiver(Scholastic, 2009) by Maggie Stiefvater, although the writing is equally strong. Darkest Fear is not a paranormal romance. Rather, this is about family, self-discovery, and accepting one's differences whether they are inherited or self-determined. Those looking for interspecies love will likely be disappointed, though the groundwork is certainly there for a love interest or two in the next installment. Libraries in which paranormal romance and fantasy are circulating strongly would be wise to purchase.—Jennifer Furuyama, Pendleton Public Library, OR