Moonshine by Rob Thurman (Cal Leandros series: Book 2)

10/10

I was born a monster.

No big deal, right? Monsters are everywhere in this world. But I am not talking your sweaty pedophile or your serial killer with a cold and silent harem buried in his crawling space. No I am talking about the real deal. Creatures that scuttled across the surface of this world when the air was sulphuric acid and the night time moon all but blocked out the sky.

This is the second novel in the Cal Leandros series. I recommend reading it in the right order.

So if you’ve managed to get your hands on this book without knowing this is the second in the series, please read the review about Nightlife. If you’re interested after reading that review please continue reading Thurman’s Cal Leandros novels because you’ll not be disappointed.

Sometimes a sequel doesn't meet the expectations. It happens, but not with this story. If you have read Nightlife you’ll certainly enjoy this story. It starts with as little ‘pre-information’ as possible, before building straight to the same ‘page turning’ pace Thurman managed to create in the first book.

In the first book Cal and Niko survived and won against all odds, but not without scars. Where the first book surprised me often with its unexpected twists, this sequel is even more unpredictable. The first part of the book has a way more relaxed feel to it, with Cal not having a constant sword of Damocles above him there is still a certain thrill. This thrill expands towards the end.

Well now, reasons to read this book. Because Thurman has already laid a solid foundation for her world she had more room to expand certain parts of the story. First, the characters really develop. This doesn't only add to their credibility but also gives a brilliant scope on their character and the group dynamics. Second, the plot is not only unpredictable but also interesting while adding layers to the story. Third, I just really love Thurman’s humour. It’s often raw and harsh, which really suites the characters.

Another author (Patrick Rothfuss I believe) once said that one of the hard parts of writing is not getting too involved in your ‘world’. ‘It is a classical error to pour all the love and information into a book.’ I must say that I agree, but it is a debatable subject. But getting back to this story, even I was slightly unsatisfied with the lack of information about some parts of the story. There were multiple parts, like the Kin and the working of the werewolf-community that I really wanted to know but that just felt slightly neglected. But perhaps this will all be part of the following books, which just adds to my expectations...