Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Early Book Review: The Demon Catchers of Milan


Author: Kat Beyer
Publication Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: EgmontUSA

Mia's ordinary life is disrupted in the most horrifying way possible when she is possessed by a hungry and powerful demon--and only saved by the arrival of relatives from Italy, the country her grandfather fled many decades ago. Now her cousins Emilio and Giuliano say the only way to keep her safe is for her to come back with them to Milan, to live, to learn Italian, to fall in and out of love, and to master the family trade: fighting all demons with the lore of bell, book, and candle. Milan is not what Mia expected, but it will change her forever, in this stunningly well-written novel about an American girl who, fleeing an ancient evil, finds her only salvation in her ancestral home.




Ok so I am not crazy about any kind of horror movie or book that involves anyone being possessed by a demon. I don’t know it just has never been my thing and it really freaks me out. But this book is not anything like a Stephen King thriller and when I discovered that it was actually a YA fiction novel I was so shocked because this is different from anything I have ever read in the YA genre. The candles on the front cover are my favorite part especially when you learn that there is actually magic in them and they are used to help rid off demons!


 
The story drops the reader in the middle of Mia’s life and in the middle of a demon possession, hers! Mia soon learns that her family is rooted in Milan and consists of a bunch of demon hunters and the only way that she will be safe is to move to Italy with them and learn their language and culture. I loved Mia’s attitude and her willingness to embrace the fact that she was being attacked by a demon and that she now had to uproot her life and learn how to ward it off. The story was full of action the entire time and sometimes I will admit that it became confusing. I am looking forward to see if other bloggers and reviewers agree with me on that statement because I feel like it was easy to get lost at times and have to back up and re-read a few paragraphs.

What I did absolutely love was the Milanese culture and background that Beyer provided. Mia was forced to learn Italian and the ways of life were so different from her own in America that it was an interesting transition to read about how Mia handled her new life. My favorite part of reading this book was Mia’s depictions of the history and life of family in Milan. Beyer obviously did her research here! The family tradition of demon hunting was also something that was well written as well. I loved how they all worked together as a family and every cousin, brother, sister and aunt had a task to perform in an exorcism. They were always very family oriented, but I believe that most Italian families receive that rep. Another interesting aspect, as I mentioned before, was the candles. Mia soon learned that there was more to the candle than ambiance. They were supposed to leave the candles burning at all times and the candles actually gave them signs as far as demons were concerned.

My only complaint with this book is that sometimes I was as clueless as Mia to what was going on. For the longest time after Mia arrived in Milan she was not allowed to venture outside or anywhere other than their home for fear of another demon attack. Yet, no one really answered a lot of Mia’s questions. In the midst of an exorcism I was often left as puzzled as well. I was like wait what just happened?! The writing is creepy and weird at times and will completely leave you in the dark and that is so frustrating. Once I get to the end of the book I would like a few answers, if you know what I’m saying?! I honestly just never felt the spark from this book. I wanted to love it but I had nothing to hold onto.

***A copy of the book was provided for me from Southern Book Blogger Tours for review purposes***


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