Hemlock Review

Title: Hemlock

Author: Kathleen Peacock

Date of Publication: May 8, 2012

Formats Available: Hardcover, E-Book

Synopsis: Amy was Mackenzie's best friend, along with Amy's boyfriend Jason and Jason's best friend Kyle the four of them were inseparable. Now Amy is dead, killed by a werewolf and all three of them are having trouble dealing; Jason is constantly drunk, Mac is having nightmares, and Kyle is constantly caught between them. Looking for some peace of mind Mac and Kyle start investigating, only to draw the attention of the Trackers, werewolf hunting madmen who threaten everything Mac hold dear. As Mac and Kyle get drawn in deeper to Amy's killing they learn that there was much about Amy that they didn't know and that the Trackers seem to know more than they're letting on.

My Review:

I flew through this novel in one day, hardly able to put it down. Hemlock was a gripping novel, once I started it was almost impossible to stop. Full of suspense, mystery, and a healthy amount of action Hemlock is a stand out novel in the crowded werewolf genre, this book is an incredible first novel.

Hemlock is such a stand out novel because it offers a new take on werewolves, instead of being welcomed into society or kept secret as in most novels they are shunned, given no rights, forced to live in camps where they have few rights. The Trackers are terrifying villains, hurting more people than necessary to fulfill their crazy and twisted sense of justice. Hemlock isn't just a werewolf story with a love triangle; it's a story about loyalty, believing in yourself, and doing what is right.

Each of the characters have their weaknesses, but they are possess inner strength. Mac tries to hold everyone together while she lives in fear of everyone abandoning her like her no good parents, despite Jason abandoning both Mac and Kyle he comes through and goes against what he has been tricked into believing to save them, Kyle lives in fear of what he could do to Mac and Jason yet he stays anyway because he knows they need him.

With a riveting storyline full of suspense and characters so real its hard to believe they don't exist, this is a book that should not be missed. Hemlock is so much more than a love story; its a story of the battle between friendship and peer pressure, the battle between what is right and what society leads us to believe. Hemlock is a book that should not be missed.

4/5