Title: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown
Author: Holly Black
Publication Info: Little, Brown, and Company September 2013
ISBN: 978-0-316-21310-3
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
I know one isn't supposed to judge a book by its cover, but this beautiful cover is the second thing that persuaded me to read this book (Possibly because blue is my favourite colour and is that not a wonderful blend of blues?), the first being that it's written by Holly Black, a familiar name to me.
I don't regret a second I spent reading this book and finished it in about a day. I seriously could not escape the hold this story had on my attention until I was at the very end and wishing for more. Unfortunately, however, this tale is not a part of a series.
This YA novel is a vampire novel like no other vampire novel I've read.
The world Black created is sort of dystopian in nature, with humans having to deal with the presence of vampires among them. When you are bitten by a vampire and are infected, you become 'Cold'. If, however, you can resist the urge to drink human blood for 88 days, then you are pretty much cured. After the outbreak of vampires, 'Coldtowns' were created - enclosed areas where all vampires are sent to live in exile, along with anyone else who wants to live there, Cold or not.
No one can leave a Coldtown unless they have a marker.
No one can get a marker unless they capture and turn in a vampire and are not a vampire him or herself.
The story begins by introducing the main character, Tana, a teen-aged girl who attends a party and wakes up the next day fully-clothed in a bathtub in a house full of corpses. (What a way to start the day, huh?) She soon discovers that all the party goers are dead, the only exceptions being herself, her infected ex-boyfriend Aidan, and a vampire, Gavriel, that she finds chained in the same room as her ex. It's almost sunset, which means the other vampires that are still in the house will soon be able to finish up what they started. Knowing this, Tana quickly thinks up a plan of escape, threatens her ex to beat him with a tire iron if he tried to bite her, and then shoves the still-chained vampire into the trunk of their escape vehicle.
She doesn't mention that, just before she made it out the window during their escape, one of the vampires giving chase had scraped her with its teeth.
Together this unlikely trio make their way to the nearest Coldtown. Tana, upon recognizing that she is going Cold, resolves to remain quarantined there until she has sat out the requisite 88 days in order to fight her infection.When they get there, it's revealed that there's more to a Coldtown than the never-ending party that a few of the glamorous vampires show to the world via live Internet feeds.
One of the things that make this story a bit more different is that, though there was some romance between Gavriel and Tana, it is not the main focus. In the end, their relationship remains pretty much ambiguous. There were a few moments that made me go 'awhh' between them - but not much.
In terms of characters, Aidan was rather annoying in the story, and didn't show much development or growth towards the end of the tale. Gavriel was the most complex character, and I thought his moments of insanity were very well portrayed.
The story begins by introducing the main character, Tana, a teen-aged girl who attends a party and wakes up the next day fully-clothed in a bathtub in a house full of corpses. (What a way to start the day, huh?) She soon discovers that all the party goers are dead, the only exceptions being herself, her infected ex-boyfriend Aidan, and a vampire, Gavriel, that she finds chained in the same room as her ex. It's almost sunset, which means the other vampires that are still in the house will soon be able to finish up what they started. Knowing this, Tana quickly thinks up a plan of escape, threatens her ex to beat him with a tire iron if he tried to bite her, and then shoves the still-chained vampire into the trunk of their escape vehicle.
She doesn't mention that, just before she made it out the window during their escape, one of the vampires giving chase had scraped her with its teeth.
Together this unlikely trio make their way to the nearest Coldtown. Tana, upon recognizing that she is going Cold, resolves to remain quarantined there until she has sat out the requisite 88 days in order to fight her infection.When they get there, it's revealed that there's more to a Coldtown than the never-ending party that a few of the glamorous vampires show to the world via live Internet feeds.
One of the things that make this story a bit more different is that, though there was some romance between Gavriel and Tana, it is not the main focus. In the end, their relationship remains pretty much ambiguous. There were a few moments that made me go 'awhh' between them - but not much.
In terms of characters, Aidan was rather annoying in the story, and didn't show much development or growth towards the end of the tale. Gavriel was the most complex character, and I thought his moments of insanity were very well portrayed.
Tana was my favourite - she seemed just like any other teen girl. Not all of her choices were good ones or clear ones, but her stubbornness and desire to save whoever she can save makes up for that.
I admired that she retained all her good qualities even in the face of the harsh realities of Coldtown, and that she didn't give up in what often seemed like a hopeless situation.
Out of 10, I give this an 8.
Favorite Quote: "Every hero is the villain of his own story."
This book can be found for sale online on sites like Amazon , Barnes & Nobles and Kobo, to name a few.
