Find out the latest indie author news. For FREE.

ADVERTISEMENT

Vampyrian Gateway
For two years now, teenagers Peter and Andie Bridges have been the ones chosen by the Universe to meet with all the secret supernatural creatures on planet Earth. And for two years now, these interactions have been cordial, if not friendly. This weekend, all that changes. Saturday starts with a babysitting job and the only real catch is that Hope, the child being tended, is a vampire. Soon after the mother leaves, the baby is kidnapped. Searching for the toddler leads Peter and Andie to the Friends of Bram Stoker, a vampire hate group. When a new line of clues leads to Vampyria, a separate world attached to Earth that is inhabited solely by vampires, Peter and Andie discover FOBS is preparing to invade and slaughter the inhabitants. Will Peter and Andie arrive in time to stop the interplanetary crisis and eventually reunite Hope with her parents?

Quarter Finalist

Plot/Idea: 10 out of 10
Originality: 10 out of 10
Prose: 10 out of 10
Character/Execution: 10 out of 10
Overall: 10.00 out of 10

Assessment:

Plot: Sixteen-year-old twins Peter and Andie Bridges are human emissaries to the supernatural figures on earth – ghosts, monsters zombies and the like – in this imaginative, quirky YA novel. Fortunately Peter and Andie have a toolbox of supernatural skills that they are still learning to use to their advantage, telepathy and magic among them, as they struggle to protect a baby from the Friends of Bram Stoker, a group that has murder on its mind. The adventure/fantasy aspects of Vampyrian Gateway notwithstanding, the real pull of this novel is in the relationship between Peter and Andie and their approach to the challenges with which they are presented.

Prose/Style: Wonderfully fresh, inventive prose and the colorful banter between the siblings makes this a sit-down-and-don’t-get-up read. Christensen has a profound understanding of teenage language and manages to make it work for adults too.

Originality: Christensen has created a complexly-imagined world full of the unexpected and presented it from a teenager’s point of view, with all of a young adult’s hubris, fearlessness and attitude intact, while at the same time making Peter and Andie infinitely sympathetic characters we are glad to get to know. Christensen is adept at creating an internally cohesive, fascinating world in which his protagonists can discover their own strengths and limits.

Character Development/Execution: Amidst all the banter, put-downs, and niggly criticisms, Peter and Andie show immense respect and, yes, love for each other.

Blurb: This imaginative, quirky YA novel exploits Christensen’s sensitivity to teenage language and realities to present a can’t-put-it-down read so entertaining that teens and adults will be clamoring for Book 2 of his Attached World series.

Date Submitted: August 07, 2021

ADVERTISEMENT

Loading...