There's a new slayer in town and her name is Damali Richards. No relation to Buffy, this girl is part of the hip-hop generation. She has her own band of 'Scoobies' but this is all far more serious than Buffy has ever been.

Damali is protected by Marlene who seems to function very much like a Watcher. She only feeds her certain information when she is deemed mature enough to handle it. Damali is approaching her 21st birthday and it's a crucial time in the world when either light or darkness will prevail.

Then there is Carlos, an old friend of Damali, who is deep in the darkness already. He runs clubs, drugs, anything to make money. When his family are brutally killed by unknown assailants he has to make a stand. He just doesn't know whom he is dealing with. Which side will he take in the battle?

Enter the third player, Fallon Nuit, a vampire with the strength of demons and power in the mortal world. Despite holding much wealth he wants something more that only Carlos can give him.

The book offers a sense that we have walked into an on-going story, although the prologue offers some short detail on the history of both Damali Richards and Fallon Nuit the bulk is explained through the story itself. Much of what Damali learns about herself is introduced to the reader at the same time.

Descriptions of the physical changes of the vampires are very powerful. The gross changes when the hunger strikes are gruesomely depicted. Vampires in this story also have shape-changing capacity and the power to travel swiftly. It is a worthy successor to Bram Stoker's ‘Dracula’.

The story is short at 296 pages and here is the catch, the final 20 pages are a sample of the next book in the series. Although short it is potent and I feel the sequel will do the characters more justice as the ending opens up the inevitable clash between Damali and Fallon Nuit. This book will appeal to the younger audience of ‘Buffy’ but also those readers of the Ann Rice who are looking for a fresh angle.

Sue Davies