Review: Incredibly cleverly written
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 5, 2013
This is an urban fantasy set in the Japanese capital Tokyo involving teenager Lexie Carpenter who is forced to move to Tokyo after her executive father lands a posting.  It's the latest in a series of moves which has seen her education disrupted as she is forced to move from country to country. When she arrives in Tokyo, she quickly becomes the target of school bullies and seeks solace through the Fear Club which she discovers on line. Taken in by the fabulous parties and seemingly wonderful characters she meets at the club,  she starts to enjoy life before again becoming the victim, this time of three so-called friends who are really monsters and the membership fee of your soul on demand becomes payable when Lexie becomes the raffle prize. The rest of the book charts her journey along the roller coaster ride involved in recovering her soul from her tormentors. She meets authentic Japanese monsters, other assorted ghouls, and even a half demon rock star along the way, together with plenty of blood and guts, lust and even romance all thrown in for good measure.The prologue sets the scene quite cleverly, and the first few pages add to the reader's understanding of how Lexie came to be involved in the Fear club scene.  Suspension from school and an argument with her father give her the impetus to seek out friends- real friends like she had before in Paris. This is where the problem starts of course and the Fear Club becomes her solace from the trouble of her real world.  And by chapter ten, she is well and truly snared by the mysterious Vanessa.  The story moves on quickly from here.Will Lexie get back the three pieces of her soul before it's too late? That is the question the rest of the book will answer should you accept the challenge and read it. I did, and enjoyed it immensely, reminded by this book that sometimes it's good to move out of your reading genre comfort zone and try something a bit different or more edgy.