Sel and the gang are back. Set five or six months after the events of Bite Risk, this sequel finds out what happens once the resiedents of Tremorglade have been liberated and the rest of the world has learned about the Rippers – those who turn into werewolves once a month. While some people liken it to a pandemic, many have found that Turning is nothing to be afraid of. This is how Sel feels at the start of the novel. He’s now a social media hit who advises people on the facts and origins of Turning. Ingrid helps him to make the videos. Pedro and Elena have moved away from Tremorglade with their Dad.
Everything seems safe until Modern History teacher Mr Costa is bitten and soon after attacks a student. Then Sel and Ingrid find something horrific in their neighbour Olive’s fridge. Their concerns about Sel’s eleven year-old neighbour Mika who collects surveillance of Rippers. She has spotted that Olive lead Mr Costa into the woods on the night he was bitten. When she spies Olive leading Ingrid away she races out to to help and discovers something horrific – there is a massive beast, similar to the Rippers but twice the size and totally terrifying. It is attacking the Rippers. Howl Night is no longer safe.
Meanwhile something called the Immutable Alliance has set up whose aim is to stop Turning altogether. They are taking an interest in the beast too. They call it a Revenant.
Sel and Mika must figure out what everyone is up to in time to end the attacks.
This series has serious Stranger Things vibes. It is perfect for younger teens and for children at the bottom of secondary school who may be a bit young for the YA sci-fi and horror titles that have been popular since Stranger Things and Wednesday emerged on Netflix. The characters are relatable to this age group as they are dealing with being both kids (who get nagged by adults and have to abide by rules) and teenagers (who share problems with their friends before they talk to parents). It was lovely to see a younger character introduced to the action. Where a book is aimed at readers in secondary school younger readers inevitably follow and it is nice for older primary kids to see themselves as part of the action if they do join in.
It was great to see the series continued so smoothly. When I read the back of the back of the book I wondered if the two books would be too similar but I couldn’t have been more wrong! If anything the setting has changed in that the outside world now knows about Tremorglade and this means that many different stances have been taken on whether Turning should be allowed to continue. This sets us up to meet a new antagonist. Throw in the Revenant and we have a new and brilliant story of strange occurrences and wolfish characters. What’s particularly interesting is that readers are left to figure out who the bad guys are – and it isn’t necessarily the person with the nasty surprise in the fridge!
The pacing of this book is fantastic with enough moments that make the reader jump but not so many that tension isn’t allowed to build or mysteries to unfold.
Another hit from S.J. Wills that makes their name as a brilliant writer for the teenage and older pre-teen audience. With shrieks and howls and sinister stirrings this will be a massive hit with readers. It is the kind of book that demands to be talked about and shared so that the reader can share those ‘could you believe it when …’ moments with other readers. Just don’t read it too late into the night. Not unless you want to sleep with the light on!
- Bite Risk Caught Dead by S.J. Wills is available now from Simon And Schuster UK LTD. RRP. £7.99 (Received as part of a promotional blog tour)
