Tantalize: Kieren's Story [Paperback]

Cynthia Leitich Smith (Author), Ming Doyle (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: August 23, 2011 | Series: Tantalize (Book 1)

Illustrated by hot new talent Ming Doyle, Cynthia Leitich Smith's TANTALIZE is reimagined as a graphic novel-- seen through Kieren's werewolf eyes.

As a hybrid werewolf, Kieren is destined to join an urban Wolf pack and learn to master his shift. Soon, he'll leave everything behind: home, school, his family, and Quincie, his human best friend . . . who's beginning to be a whole lot more than a friend. For years, Kieren has managed to keep his desires-- and his wolf-- at bay. But when the chef at Quincie' s family restaurant is brutally murdered, Kieren resolves to be there for her, even if it means being framed. Even if it means watching Quincie's beloved restaurant morph into a vampire lair. But when the new chef begins wooing her, how long can Kieren control his claws? How long can he protect Quincie-- and himself? In an elegant graphic edition featuring cinematic sequential art by debut artist Ming Doyle and lush, romantic cover art by Sam Weber , bestselling author Cynthia Leitich Smith re-envisions her delicious dark fantasy through wolfish eyes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is the graphic novel version of TANTALIZE so it's a book that might appeal to reluctant readers and to people who really are visual thinkers. It's gothic, it's dark. But it also has humor. There's romance, very sweet romance, and there's controversy and there's justice issues and bad boys don't always get away, but you're not quite sure.
—NPR Tell Me More

This format- and genre-blending story delivers on several counts as a vampire-werewolf adventure, a mystery, a romance with teeth and claws, an authentic look at diversity (both ethnic and species), and a darn good read.
—Booklist

Leitich Smith, who first published TANTALIZE as a young adult novel, provides a face-paced, twisty, enjoyable ride and compelling characters who develop as the story unfolds. Doyle's illustrations capture the intensity of the emotions between the star-crossed couple.
—Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Cynthia Leitich Smith is the acclaimed author of the prose novel of TANTALIZE as well as ETERNAL, a New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller, and BLESSED, all set in the same fictional universe. She says of TANTALIZE, "An unjust accusation. A true love in peril. It's enough to make you open your teeth and howl." A member of the faculty at the Vermont College MFA program in writing for children and young adults, she lives in Austin, Texas.

Ming Doyle was born in 1984 to an Irish-American sailor and a Chinese-Canadian librarian. Since earning her BFA from Cornell University in 2007, she has depicted the sequential exploits of zombie superheroes, demonic cheerleaders, vengeful cowboys, and dapper mutants. TANTALIZE marks her first full-length graphic novel as well as her first encounter with a were-opossum. She lives in Boston.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick; First Edition edition (August 23, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763641146
• ISBN-13: 978-0763641146
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.5 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #895,658 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Well done February 6, 2012

By Steven R. McEvoy TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

Over these past 2 years, Cynthia Leitich Smith has become one of my favorite authors. The world she has created in her main series and the characters, their interaction, dialogue and flare are incredible. I was a little leery when I heard that one of her books out in 2011 was going to be a graphic novel. I love her writing style and craft as a story teller. So I approached this book with both a little anxiety and a lot of excitement because it was her new book. I should have just trusted that her name would not appear on anything not of great quality.

The thing that took me most by surprise was the appearance of Kieren and Quincie, though to some extent they look as I had pictured them. While reading Tantalize, there was something more. Ming Doyle has captured the essence of the shifter world that Cynthia has created in her previous three novels. The story is well told in word and art. It was a good read and added to the story we already know and love. Well done.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Not For Me February 12, 2012

By M. Kelly

Format:Paperback

They say there's a reader for every book, unfortunately this book just didn't work for me.

In his own words, Kieren Morales is an "Irish-Mexican American. Werewolf-human. Texan. Son, brother, friend. Murder suspect." All of these descriptors make him someone I'd like to read about, but unfortunately Tantalize just didn't work for me.

This graphic novel tells the male side of the love story between Kieren and Quincie, his best friend and the protagonist of the novel this book accompanies. People who have read the novel will probably be more invested in their relationship, but those who are starting the series here don't have enough happy times with the couple to care about the trials they face.

My real issue was with the illustrations. While I prefer color in my graphic novels, I don't mind when the illustrations are engrossing. Unfortunately, the drawings in Tantalize are too rough and almost scribbly for my taste. The characters looked unattractive and it detracted from the storyline.

Fans of Cynthia Leitich Smith's series will probably like this book; I recommend others look elsewhere to meet their werewolf needs.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Romeo and Juliet are a Werewolf and Vampire November 25, 2011

By Christina E. Taylor

Format:Paperback

Tantalize: Kieren's Story is the graphic novel adaptation of Smith's young adult noire fantasy by the same name--told from the perspective of Kieren, a mixed-blood werewolf. Kieren's senior year of high school finds him awakening to the realization that he is in love with his best friend Quincie who clearly returns his affection. Unfortunately, he is reluctant to act upon these feelings because to-date he is unable to control the beast within and thus fears harming her. Moreover, any day now, he will leave to join an urban pack and learn the ways of his kind. When the murder of the chef at Quincie's ancestral vampire-themed restaurant appears to have been committed by a werewolf, Kieren is compelled to clear his name and save his best friend from all that threatens her--including herself. Doyle's illustrations extend the text by expressing what Kieren can't, or won't, in the halting tight-lipped narration that is so representative of an adolescent male struggling with serious emotions. The stark contrast of the black and white depictions ensure that the audience is ever mindful of the protagonist's conflicting allegiances to the best friend he loves and to his kin and kind, making it a natural companion piece for William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful work of art! September 26, 2011

By Nathan Camp

Format:Paperback

Let's face it: teen werewolves and vampires are in. But do they all have to be boring and look the same? Of course not. Within the constraints of this rapidly cloned genre, Kiernen's Story manages to shine in its own way, especially through the magnificent work of artist Ming Doyle. This work really shows that it is a magnificent work of adaptation by bridging the gap between prose novels and graphic novels with lush and enticing illustration. This book may not be for everyone but you should definitely give it a try, if for nothing else than for the art alone.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars "Tantalize: Kieren's Story" Review August 26, 2011

By Nicole's YA Book Haven

Format:Paperback

If I'm being fair, the story itself does deserve 3 stars...the graphics, however, I'd say probably two and a half stars. It's not that they were bad, they really weren't, its just I think they could have been much better.

Now onto the actual story.

"Tantalize: Kieren's Story" is the graphic novel version of "Tantalize", which was released in 2007 by Candlewick Press. As the title suggests, the graphic novel tells the story of Kieren, as opposed to the novel which tells the story of Quincie.

This is definitely a nice companion to "Tantalize", in fact I think it may actually be better than the original novel - story wise. Then again, that may be because I found Kieren's story to be more interesting. With Quincie, I couldn't understand her choices before. With this graphic novel, and the story being told by Kieren, you get a much better feel for what's truly going on.

Overall, the graphic novel is definitely worth checking out.

If you haven't read "Tantalize" yet, in my opinion, I wouldn't say it's mandatory to do so in order to read the graphic novel - it works pretty well on its own.