“The relationship Kylie has with both Lucas and Derek is addicting! How could anyone choose between the two? It's not often that I love a series as much as I have with Shadow Falls. I find myself thinking of nothing else! This has been one of my favorite series of all time!” ―Open Book Society
“I absolutely loved the story. I found it to be a very exciting and entertaining beginning to, what i can only pray to be, an equally amazing series.” ―Mocha Latte Reads
“I loved Born at Midnight! It rocked and was definitely a fun and mysterious read!” ―The Bookworms
“As always, C. C. Hunter never fails to amaze me with her storytelling. I just loved this series. The plot twists were intriguing, there was just the right amount of mystery, tension, laugh out loud moments, romance and very emotional scenes. This is the kind of book that every teenager should read.” ―Fic Book Reviews
“Shadow Falls Camp is a place I would like to visit, and being there with Kylie was an absolute pleasure. This was one of my favorite reads this year.” ―Down The Rabbit Hole
“The Shadow Falls series belongs to my favorite YA series. It has everything I wish for in a YA paranormal series. A thrilling tale that moves with a great pace, where layers of secrets are revealed in a way that we are never bored. It continues a gripping story about self-discoveries, finding a place in the world, friendship, and love. So if you didn't start this series yet, I can only encourage you to do so.” ―Bewitched Bookworms
“TAKEN AT DUSK starts off with action and never loses momentum. C.C. Hunter takes readers on a supernatural thrill ride, full of suspense, drama, laughter and intense emotions from page one all the way through the last page, ending in one of the biggest cliffhangers I've read.” ―Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews
“Ms. Hunter handles this series with such deftness, crafting a wonderful tale that speaks to the adolescent in me. I highly recommend this series filled with darkness and light, hope and danger, friendship and romance.” ―Night Owl Reviews (Top Pick)
“Taken At Dusk has even more drama and answers for Kylie. Jam-packed with action and romance from the very beginning, Hunter's lifelike characters and paranormal creatures populate a plot that will keep you guessing till the very end. A perfect mesh of mystery, thriller, and romance. Vampires, weres and fae, oh my!” ―Romantic Times
“Awake At Dawn was an enjoyable read with a refreshing cast of teenagers with a unique take on the paranormal… The ending took me totally by surprise and I am anxious to see what the next book holds!” ―Night Owl Teen Reviews
“AWAKE AT DAWN is an emotional thrill ride full of suspense, action, laughter, multiple love stories and an intriguing variety of paranormal species. I could not put this book down and can't wait to start TAKEN AT DUSK as soon as I finish this review.” ―Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews
“Recommended this book to people who like the House of Night series, Hush, hush, Nightshade, Fallen and Hex Hall.” ―Flamingnet Book Reviews
“Awake At Dawn is the second book in the Shadow Falls series and it is easily as awesome as the first! There is almost always something new or exciting going on…and readers will easily connect to Kylie and some of the secondary characters.” ―Live To Read Blog
“Awake at Dawn is addicting. Somewhere close to the middle, I knew I had to finish that day or I would not be able to sleep. I needed my answers and I just knew if I waited a little longer I would get some Lucas action….You are going to love Awake At Dawn!” ―Awesome Sauce Book Club
“Born at Midnight is addicting. Kylie's journey of self-discovery and friendship is so full of honesty, it's impossible not to fall in love with her and Shadow Falls..and with two sexy males vying for her attention, the romance is scorching. Born at Midnight has me begging for more, and I love, love, love it!” ―Verb Vixen
“The evolving, not-always-easy relationships among Kylie and her cabin mates Della and Miranda are rendered as engagingly as Kylie's angst over dangerous Lucas and appealing Derek. Just enough plot threads are tied up to make a satisfying stand-alone tale while whetting appetites for sequels to come” ―Publishers Weekly
“This book has it all, and readers wont' ant to put it down. Hunter packs on the twists, and then leaves you handing with an amazing hook ending, just waiting for more.” ―Romantic Times
“With intricate plotting and characters so vivid you'd swear they are real, BORN AT MIDNIGHT is an addictive treawt. Funny, poignant, romantic and downright scary in places, it hits all the right notes. Hightly recommended.” ―Houston Lifestyles and Homes Magazine
“I laughed and cried so much while reading this…I LOVED this book. I read it every chance I could get because I didn't want to put it down. The characters were well developed and I felt like I knew them from the beginning. The storyline and mystery that went along with it kept me glued to my couch not wanting to do anything else but find out what the heck was going on.” ―Urban Fantasy Investigations Blog
“This has everything a YA reader would want…I read it over a week ago and I am still thinking about it. I can't get it out of my head. I can't wait to read more. This series is going to be a hit!” ―Awesome Sauce Book Club
“The newest in the super-popular teen paranormal genre, this book is one of the best. Kylie is funny and vulnerable, struggling to deal with her real-world life and her life in a fantastical world she's not sure she wants to be a part of. Peppered throughout with humor and teen angst, Born At Midnight is a laugh-out-loud page-turner. This one is going on the keeper shelf next to my Armstrong and Meyer collections!” ―Fresh Fiction
“Seriously loved this book! This is definitely a series you will want to watch out for. C.C. Hunter has created a world of hot paranormals that I didn't want to leave.” ―Looksie Lovitz Book Blog
“Born at Midnight has a bit of everything…a strong unique voice from a feisty female lead, a myriad of supporting Supernatural characters, a fiery romance with two intriguing guys - mixed all together with a bit of mystery – making Born at Midnight a sure fire hit!” ―A Life Bound By Books
“Very exciting, taking twists and turns I never expected. The main character grows very well throughout the story, overcoming obstacles and realizing things she never thought possible. And the author masterfully ended it just right.” ―Flamingnet Book Reviews
--This text refers to an alternate
kindle_edition edition.
Chapter One
Kylie Galen stood on the porch outside the Shadow Falls office, panic stabbing at her sanity. A gust of late August wind, still chilled by her father’s departing spirit, picked up her long strands of blond hair and scattered them across her face. She didn’t brush them away. She didn’t breathe. She just stood there, air trapped in her lungs, while she stared through the wisps of hair at the trees swaying in the breeze.
Why does my life have to be so damn hard? The question rolled around her head like a Ping-Pong ball gone wild. The answer spun back just as quick.
Because you’re not all human. For the last few months, she’d struggled to identify the type of non-human blood that rushed through her veins. Now she knew.
According to her dear ol’ dad, she was … a chameleon. As in a lizard, just like the ones she’d seen sunning themselves in her backyard. Okay, so maybe not just like those, but close enough. And here she’d been worried about being a vampire or a werewolf because it would be a little hard to adjust to drinking blood or shape-shifting on full moons. But this … this was … unfathomable. Her father had to be wrong.
Her heart pounded against her chest as if seeking escape. She finally breathed. In, and then out. Her thoughts shot away from the lizard issue to the other bad stuff.
Yup. In the last five minutes she’d been slapped with not one, not two, not even three, but with four oh-crap eye-opening revelations.
Well, one thing—Derek’s confession that he loved her—couldn’t completely be called bad. But it sure as hell couldn’t be called good. Not now. Not when she considered them history. Not when she’d spent the last few weeks trying to convince herself that they were just friends.
Her mind juggled all four disclosures. She didn’t know which to focus on first. Or maybe her mind did know. I’m a freaking lizard!
“For real?” she spoke aloud. The Texas wind snatched away her words. She hoped it would take them all the way to her father—wherever the dead who hadn’t completely passed over went to wait. “Seriously, Dad?”
Of course, Dad didn’t answer. After two months of dealing with one spirit or another, the whole ghost-whispering gift and its limitations still managed to piss her off. “Damn!”
She took another step toward the main office’s door to unload on Holiday Brandon, the camp leader, then stopped. Burnett James, the other camp leader and a cold to the touch but hot to look at vampire, was with Holiday. Since Kylie couldn’t hear them arguing anymore, she figured that meant they might be doing something else—like sucking face, swapping spit, doing the tongue tango. All phrases her bad-attitude vampire roommate Della would use. Which probably meant Kylie was in a bad mood. But didn’t she deserve a little attitude after everything that had happened?
Clenching her fists, she stared at the office’s front door. She’d inadvertently interrupted their first kiss and she didn’t want to do the same with their second. Especially when Burnett had threatened to resign from Shadow Falls. Surely Holiday could change his mind. Couldn’t she?
Besides, maybe Kylie needed to calm down. To think things through before she ran to Holiday in bad-attitude hysterics. Her thoughts shifted to her latest ghost issue. How could a ghost of someone who was alive appear to Kylie? A trick, right? Had to be a trick.
She glanced around to make sure the ghost had really gone. The cold had vanished.
Turning, she shot down the porch steps and headed around to the back of the office. She started running, wanting to experience the sense of freedom she got when she ran, when she ran fast, ran non-human fast.
The wind picked up the black dress she’d worn to Ellie’s funeral and sent the hem dancing against her thighs. Her feet moved in rhythm, barely missing the Reeboks she usually wore, but when she arrived at the edge of the woods, she came to an abrupt halt—so abrupt that the heels on her black dress shoes cut deep ruts into the earth.
She couldn’t go into the woods. She didn’t have a shadow—the mandatory person with her to help ward off the evil Mario and his rogue buddies if they decided to attack.
Attack again.
So far the old man’s attempts at ending her life had proved futile, but two of those times had resulted in the death of someone else.
Guilt fluttered through her already tight chest. Fear followed it. Mario had proven how far he’d go to get to her, how evil he was when he’d taken his own grandson’s life right in front of her. How could anyone be that wicked?
She stared at the trees and watched as their leaves danced in the breeze. It was a completely normal slice of scenery that should have put her at peace.
But she felt no peace. The woods, or rather something that hid within, dared her to enter. Taunted her to move into the thick line of trees. Confused by the strange feeling, she tried to push it away, but the feeling intensified.
She inhaled the green scent of the forest, and she knew.
Knew with clarity.
Knew with certainty.
Mario wouldn’t give up. Sooner or later she would face him again. And it wouldn’t be serene, tranquil, or peaceful. Only one of them would walk away.
You will not be alone. The words echoed deep within her as if to offer her peace. No peace came. The shadows between the trees danced on the ground. Calling her, beckoning her. To do what, she didn’t know.
Trepidation took another lap around her chest. She dug the heels of her shoes deeper into the hard dirt. The heel of her right shoe cracked—an ominous little sound that seemed to punctuate the silence.
“Crap!” She stared down at her feet. The one word seemed yanked from the air, leaving nothing but a hum of eeriness.
And that’s when she heard it.
Someone drew in a raspy breath. While the sound came only at a whisper, she knew that the owner of this breath stood behind her. Stood close. And since no chill of death surrounded her, she knew it wasn’t from the spirit world.
The sound came again. Someone fed life-giving air into their lungs. Odd how she now feared the living more than she feared the dead.
Her heart thudded to a stop. Much like the grooves left in the earth by her three-inch heels, her growing dread left ruts in her courage.
She wasn’t ready. If it was Mario, she wasn’t ready. Whatever it was she needed to do, whatever plan or fate she was destined to follow, she needed more time.
Copyright © 2012 by Christie Craig
--This text refers to an alternate
kindle_edition edition.
![Whispers at Moonrise (Shadow Falls Book 4) by [C. C. Hunter]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51Wk5p5kWVL._SY346_.jpg)
