The Blood Moon Chronicles were originally 5 short stories but have been put together as a collection in this book.
While staying with her Grandparents in Athens Sophie has what she thinks is a dream about a handsome stranger who visits her room at night. He tells her she is pregnant with a baby girl who she is to name Zelenia. Sophie is shocked when she realises the dream is real, too ashamed to tell her parents about the pregnancy she goes away to give birth and has the baby adopted. On Zelenias 18th birthday the girl becomes aware of unusual changes in herself. She is exceptionally strong and her eyes turn red, when she has the sudden urge to bite her boyfriend for a taste of his blood she realises something is very wrong, and decides to go in search of her birth mother for answers.
Although the premise is quite interesting, the overall story is very disjointed and we have to assume things rather than having important information confirmed. Random people are brought into the plot without proper introduction making it difficult to keep them straight without thinking you have missed a page. I had to keep going back to see what I'd skipped only to realise that I hadn't missed anything the information just wasn't there.
I wasn't totally comfortable with the `list' like writing style, it made me feel like I was being told what was happening when what I wanted was to `feel' the story. I could not believe in any of the characters even though I tried really hard to connect with them. It is unusual to have names beginning with `Z' yet we had four in this book, Zelenia, Zeeb, Zira and Zoraida, which for me was annoying.
In short I found The Blood Moon Chronicles to be a difficult read that left me a little confused and unsatisfied.
Copy supplied for review.
