When you discover an author--especially an insanely successful author--it can be exciting, but it can also be daunting. There's just so much to read. And insanely successful authors get insanely successful because they're usually fantastic authors.
Of course, I'm talking about Sherrilyn Kenyon and she fits the above description. I just finished the first book in the Chronicles of Nick series called Infinity.
In Infinity, we meet Nick Gautier, fourteen, smart, funny, and about to enter a world of supernatural beings where vampires roam the streets and zombies are taking over his classmates. Kenyon creates in Nick a person who, even though he comes from very humble beginnings, a strong personal code drives him to face nightmares that could bring stronger, older non-teenagers to their knees where they flee in fear.
Nick is smart, but not too snarky as to become annoying, which happens a lot when I read many YA novels. Some YA books (even middle-grade...) have such annoyingly smart protagonists that it can distract from the story. Nick has a great blend of knowing when to say very funny things at the right time. I laughed several times as the story unfolded.
The Chronicles of Nick series is an off-shoot of Kenyon's Dark-Hunter world. In including Nick's adventures into a world she created for adults, she's engaged the off-ignored male-reading YA audience, something I applaud. There's eight books in the Chronicles of Nick. Eight more chances to get to know the young man as he fights more evil, escapes more traps, and learns how to survive in both worlds. After that, I've only got several dozen Dark-Hunter books to occupy my time.
Like I said, exciting, but daunting.
I heard her speak at a Utah Romance Writers event. She writes like 20 hours a day. Amazing!
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