Review: The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman

The Book of Blood and Shadow

Author: Robin Wasserman

Genre: YA Thriller

Release Date: April 10, 2012

Review Source: Random House Children's via Edelweiss

Format: eGalley

Description: It was like a nightmare, but there was no waking up.  When the night began, Nora had two best friends and an embarrassingly storybook one true love.  When it ended, she had nothing but blood on her hands and an echoing scream that stopped only when the tranquilizers pierced her veins and left her in the merciful dark.

But the next morning, it was all still true: Chris was dead.  His girlfriend Adriane, Nora's best friend, was catatonic. And Max, Nora's sweet, smart, soft-spoken Prince Charming, was gone. He was also—according to the police, according to her parents, according to everyone—a murderer.

Desperate to prove his innocence, Nora follows the trail of blood, no matter where it leads. It ultimately brings her to the ancient streets of Prague, where she is drawn into a dark web of secret societies and shadowy conspirators, all driven by a mad desire to possess something that might not even exist. For buried in a centuries-old manuscript is the secret to ultimate knowledge and communion with the divine; it is said that he who controls the Lumen Dei controls the world. Unbeknownst to her, Nora now holds the crucial key to unlocking its secrets. Her night of blood is just one piece in a puzzle that spans continents and centuries. Solving it may be the only way she can save her own life.


Review: Where do I begin with this book? I literally could not put this book down. Any time I had a spare second - I would be reading this book. This was hands down one of the best books I've read so far this year. It's like a YA Da Vinci Code. I loved the mysterious plot that kept you guessing - there were so many twists and turns. Wasserman keeps you on your toes until the last page. The story is very well-written and is original - especially in the YA genre. The characters are complex and deep - you feel the pain and confusion that Nora goes through so easily. It was like I was inside her head - but it felt authentic, not scripted. Like the things the characters did and said would actually occur in real life - it wasn't phony at all. The story takes place in the U.S. and in Europe - which gives it a good feel of setting - especially with all the historic background that goes into the plot. The book flows really naturally and well - it's a fast-paced mystery that had me struggling to pinpoint the "bad guy" and trying to understand what could possibly be going on. Overall - READ THIS BOOK! You will not regret it.