Rowan and Clara Radley don’t know they’re vampires. Their parents, Helen and Peter, have kept the family secret for seventeen years, abstaining from their old, instinctual practices and raising their children as if human blood is not a part of their natural diet.
And everything is fine, until Clara decides to become a vegetarian, forsaking the meat that keeps her base desires at bay, until one moment, at a high school party, when she commits a devastating and life-changing act.
As funny as it is clever, The Radleys is fast-paced, heartfelt, and unique. The darkness here is lighter than in Haig’s fantastic previous novel, The Dead Father’s Club, but his talent for rummaging around in the shade shines through nevertheless.
A quick read, but a worthwhile one, The Radleys shows just how intimate and complex – how bloody – the hidden corridors of the human heart can be.
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This book was published by Free Press in December in 2010. For more information, visit the author’s hilarious website. If your natural instinct is to purchase this book from an independent bookstore, as an affiliate of IndieBound who makes no money whatsoever from this gig but continues nonetheless, I encourage you fulfill that urge here. As always, happy reading.
FTC Disclosure: This review was based on a copy of the book that I received from the publisher.
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Oooh! This sounds like one vampire novel I wouldn’t roll my eyes at. ;)
I enjoyed his web site – thanks for including that link. I wish I wasn’t feeling crushed by the weight (real & perceived) of my unread books. I’ve put myself on a “no more book acquisitions!” regimen. {grumble, grumble} But that’s not to say I won’t add it to my list for when I’m feeling a bit more caught up.
Pssst! I’m willing to send and ARC of THE RADLEYS to anyone who responds to this comment. Since we’re far from fancy around here, it’s good old-fashioned first-come, first-served.
I have to admit I wasn’t totally sold on The Radleys (http://tinyurl.com/3veqxet). I do look forward to the movie coming out though, sounds like they have some good people working on that already.
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