Book Review: Department 19 (ARC)

Department 19 (ARC)
Department 19 #1
Author: Will Hill
Pages: 540 pgs
Reading Level: YA
Published: March 31st 2011
Review Source: Penguin Young Readers Group
Available: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Borders

Summary: (from goodreads) Jamie Carpenter's life will never be the same. His father is dead, his mother is missing, and he was just rescued by an enormous man named Frankenstein. Jamie is brought to Department 19, where he is pulled into a secret organization responsible for policing the supernatural, founded more than a century ago by Abraham Van Helsing and the other survivors of Dracula. Aided by Frankenstein's monster, a beautiful vampire girl with her own agenda, and the members of the agency, Jamie must attempt to save his mother from a terrifyingly powerful vampire.

Department 19 takes us through history, across Europe, and beyond—from the cobbled streets of Victorian London to prohibition-era New York, from the icy wastes of Arctic Russia to the treacherous mountains of Transylvania. Part modern thriller, part classic horror, it's packed with mystery, mayhem, and a level of suspense that makes a Darren Shan novel look like a romantic comedy.

I received this book for review from the publisher and I was very excited when I saw the cover and the description. I began reading it and well it just never took off as I was expecting. The pace was a bit slow for me for some reason, you think a book dealing with military and Vampires it would be fast paced but not for me at least. The author uses names from classic novels such as Dracula, Frankenstein and Van Helsing which honestly distracted me from the book. Every time I read Frankenstein, I giggled. I did however like the Frankenstein character the most out of everyone. Its a good book full of conspiracy theories and I think it would really appeal with the young male readers. There are tons of military and weapons descriptions. The authors describes every location with such exact detail, it does help visualize the scene very well. Plot wise it is different but with such common names thrown in the story , you tend to think its relating to them. 

Jamie is the main character w follow, that as a young boy his father was killed in his front lawn by these military personal. That night though Jamie also noticed things in the trees and even a young girls face. Then Jamie's mom relocate s them and its not easy every time they move. The towns people tend to find out their story very easily. Then one night Jamie's mom is captured by Vampire and that is the night Jamie's life is turn inside out. He remember the faces from the night his father was killed. So Jamie is transported to this secret Department called Department 19. He sets off to find his mother from the Vampires with the help of his guardian (you can call him that) Frankenstein. So be ready to dive into history, horror and romance. Will Hill wrote a good start to a new series. Can't wait to read what happens next.