The Rising: A Department 19 Novel (Department Nineteen)
Gr 8 Up-The countdown has begun. "Zero Hour" is a mere three months away. Unless Jamie Carpenter and the rest of Department 19, the supersecret British government agency that fights supernatural threats, can do something before then, Dracula will be resurrected and humankind will be doomed. As if the impending end of the world weren't bad enough, Jamie has family problems (his mom is a vampire, locked in a cell in Department 19 headquarters), girl problems (he is dating fellow agent and vampire Larissa), and professional problems (his mentor and protector is missing and presumed dead). But just as things begin to seem hopeless, an offer of help comes from a most unexpected quarter-Valentin Rusmanov, one of Dracula's three generals. Can he be trusted? Why is he so interested in Jamie? Will his help be enough to tip the scales? Hill does a good job of establishing a sense of desperate tension, and there are plenty of exploding vampires and heads being torn off bodies. Rusmanov is creepily charming and provides a nice counterpart to the militaristic staff of Department 19. Frequent flashbacks provide necessary information but make for a nonlinear story line that might confuse some readers, and the teen melodrama is a bit overdone. But overall, this an exciting read that fans of Department Nineteen (Penguin, 2011) will eat up.-Anthony C. Doyle, Livingston High School Library, CAα(c) Copyright 2011.  Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc.  No redistribution permitted.