Department 19 by Will Hill

This is the first book in a YA, young adult series.

     When I came across the summary for this book, it peeked my interest. Paranormal, supernatural tale about vampires, and other creatures that roam the night. I really had hopes for this book. Sadly, I will not be reading this series.

     Let me start out with the things I disliked with this book, and I'll end with the things that I did like.

1. I couldn't connect with the main character Jaime. I have read other YA books and could connect with the character, even if I didn't have much or anything in common with them. There were times that to me Jaime felt fake. Sometimes it was inner thoughts, and other times his actions. They didn't seem to fit Jaime at all.

2. Part of my connection problem was the way the story shifted from the present and past. The transition to Larissa's tale was well done and didn't disrupt the flow of the story. There's another part of the past that should have been told back to back, in two chapters, and wasn't. I also didn't enjoy the jumping into other places where certain things happened, that really could have been summed up, considering it had no real bearing on what was going on in Jaime's life.

3. This is just a personal dislike thing. Why in a paranormal or supernatural book, must the love story be between a normal human and someone who is other? It seems to happen a lot. Are there not any normal like humans that are available for romance?

4. Larissa's fate isn't mentioned. By the end of the story we know what is going on with everyone else, but not Larissa. Why? There's not a point in leaving her fate out.

     There were a few things I liked.

1. A good mix of fiction and historical fact.

2. Though a more common idea of a secret organization that fight the creatures of darkness, I like the way the organization was set up and who did it.

3. I enjoyed the tales from the past, though they did interrupt the flow of the story.

     Overall, it wasn't a bad read. Just not good enough to make me want to read more about Department 19.