EgmontUSA; Reprint edition, 2011
ISBN: 978-1606842355
Available: New and Used
The Lost Saint is the second book in Bree Despain’s YA werewolf series. It is the sequel to The Dark Divine, and takes place ten months after the events that close Despain’s previous book. The book tells the story of Grace Divine, who is in a relationship with Daniel Kalbi, the mysterious young man with whom she became involved in the previous book. As readers of The Dark Divine know, Daniel is an Urbat – a human being ‘cursed’ to share his body with a wolf demon. Should an Urbat lose control and give in to his wolf (by committing a predatory act against a human) he will be damned to live as a werewolf. At the end of the first book, Grace attempted to ‘cure’ Daniel of his curse, leaving her ‘infected’ and her brother Jude a werewolf.
Despain’s book picks up Grace and Daniel’s story and shows them struggling to come to terms with Grace’s infection and Daniel’s cure. New dangers threaten their relationship, and old problems (like Grace’s brother) refuse to go away. The book also brings Gabriel Saint Moon, the legendary Urbat whose letters featured in The Dark Divine, into the action, and reveals more about the history of the Urbat.
Despain’s novels are unusual amongst YA fiction for their portrayal of the werewolf as a wholly monstrous creature. The werewolf state is a negative one, which all Urbat are supposed to avoid. Unlike the werewolves in books by Maggie Stiefvater, Andrea Cremer and Stephenie Meyer, the werewolves (as opposed to the more controlled Urbat) are not noble, sympathetic or in touch with nature or primitive forces. Grace must learn to come to terms with her new existence, but also to be aware of its potentially deadly consequences. This interesting take on lycanthropy was one of the real strengths of the book.
I felt that The Lost Saint was even stronger than the first book of the series. The development of Grace’s character, and the new challenges she faces (particularly as she learns to deal with the ‘wolf’ inside her) were compelling. The first person narrative allows readers to really identify with Grace, and to understand the story from the teen heroine’s perspective. More focus is given to Grace’s religious beliefs (though this does not overshadow other elements of the story), and I felt this was well-handled and believable.
I recommend this book; it will appeal to fans of YA dark romance, particularly books by Maggie Stiefvater, Andrea Cremer and Jennifer Lynn Barnes. However, I would advise reading The Dark Divine before reading The Lost Saint. The third book in the series, The Savage Grace, will be out in March 2012.
Contains: some violence
Reviewed by: Hannah Kate