Product details:
Publisher: Atom.
Paperback, 451 pages.
Release date: January 5th 2012.
Rating: 3½ out of 5.
Ages: 14+
Source: Purchased.
Allie's world is falling apart...
She hates her school. Her brother has run away. She's just been arrested. Again. And now her parents are sending her away.
But instead of hating boarding school, Allie is happy. She's making friends. And there's Carter, a brooding loner with whom she feels an instant connection.
Cimmeria Academy is no ordinary school. Her classmates - and maybe some of the teachers - are hiding secrets. And soon it begins to fell like a very dangerous place...
Troubled teenager Allie Sheridan
has really blown it this time. Ever
since her adored older brother Christopher disappeared from her life without a
trace, Allie’s gone totally off the rails.
But with this, her latest arrest, Allie’s parents have finally called
time on her shenanigans and shipped her off to an exclusive boarding school two
miles left of the middle of nowhere. Cimmeria Academy’s long list of rules and
regulations are as archaic as its décor and bad girl Allie expects to be bored
out of her mind in no time at all.
That’s until she discovers that Cimmeria is no ordinary school…
I know what you’re thinking –
Boarding School Paranormal. Right? Wrong.
C.J. Daugherty’s Night School
looks like a typical boarding school paranormal, and at the outset it feels
like one too. It’s pretty clear right
from the start that Cimmeria is no ordinary school – not only because computers
and mobile phones are banned and not even because every student comes from an
insanely wealthy and privileged background. Well, all except Allie that
is. No, it’s not any of those
things. Cimmeria is different because of
Night School. Now, what Night School is, nobody apart from a select few, know. In effect, what happens in Night School stays
in Night School. I can’t divulge the
secrets of Night School, of course, but I can tell you that if you’re anything
like me, your first thought will be vampires, closely followed by werewolves.
You’d be wrong on both counts. Way off,
in fact. Night School is way more
interesting than creatures of the night that drink blood for fun or spend all
their time howling at the moon.
As far as pacing goes, Night School is pretty slow to
start. However, the book held my
interest despite this mainly because I enjoy reading about the everyday ins and
outs of boarding school life. If you
don’t though, you might find this one little difficult to get in to. However, it’s worth sticking with, because as
soon as we arrive at Cimmeria
Academy’s
much-anticipated summer ball, the action really kicks off. And by action, I
mean murder. It’s only then that Allie
realizes that whatever Night School is, maybe it’s not all fun and games. It’s time for Allie to find out what’s really
going on behind those closed doors at Cimmeria. No more secrets, no more lies.
Allie is a kick-ass, feisty
protagonist. I didn’t totally warm to
her at first, but just like this book, she is a grower. Despite her bad attitude, Allie is not really
a bad girl at heart. She’s a product of her circumstances, and like many of the
students at Cimmeria she’s been through some tough times. Finding common ground with a number of
students means Allie makes friends fast.
She also catches the eye of not one but two potential suitors. By the time the summer ball rolls round Allie
is dating Sylvain, aptly named because his best friend is his mirror. As soon as Allie hears Sylvain’s French
accent, she pretty much turns to goo at his feet, but where Allie finds Sylvain
suave and sophisticated, I just found him all round slimy. A far better prospect for Allie is the dark
and intense Carter West, a.k.a. the brooding tragic hero of this piece. Sign me up for more of him! Carter forever,
Sylvain never!
C.J. Daugherty’s Night School is a fun read full of
mystery, intrigue and an irresistible dash of romance. Night
School left me with a whole lot of questions, and I’m looking forward to
finding out some answers when Legacy
(Night School #2) releases in January
2013.
*****
U.S readers, did you know that Night School is coming your way? Night School will release from HarperCollins in May 2013 and you can see the cover art below. The publishers have gone for a very different look for the US Night School release, but I have to say I'm really liking it! I also love the UK cover, though. It's pretty difficult to choose between the two for me. What do you think?
And that's not all! C.J. Daugherty revealed the cover for Legacy (Night School #2) on her blog a few weeks back! This one will release from Atom in January 2013.
