Elitist Book Reviews

By now most of you faithful readers should have picked up a copy of Jasper Kent's novel, TWELVE. If you are like me, TWELVE completely blew you away with its terrific blend of Historical Fiction and Horror. I mean, come on, that ending? That was freaking awesome. And the twist made it even more horrific and awesome. TWELVE easily became one of my favorite books last year. The sequel, THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, was awesome in its own way, but fell juuuuuuust short of its predecessor.

And now we get book three, THE THIRD SECTION.

The third entry in the Danilov Quintet has us following Aleksei Danilov's two children (who don't know they are siblings), Dmitry and Tamara. Naturally this novel follows their (re)discovery of the vampires, and the machinations of the Aleksei's nemesis, Iuda (now known as Vasily).

The first thing that stood out was how different Dmitry is. This novel starts in 1855, thirty years after the events of the previous novel. Aleksei is in exile, and thus not a PoV character. Yet Aleksei's legacy still has such an enormous impact on the two main characters. Dmitry has been molded and changed by the past 30+ years, and it paints a starkly different picture of his persona. For Tamara, the quest to find out who her father really is (Aleksei was exiled before she was old enough to realize what was going on) leads her right into the crossfire of the vampires.

These characters are so refreshingly different from those in the prior two novels. Don't get me wrong, I loved Aleksei's PoV, but I think this is one of the main failings of series fiction. Far too often we follow story after story of just one character, and if the author isn't careful the characters get dull. Kent has avoided this issue entirely, and has handled it expertly.

The way Kent handles the historical facts is awesome, unsurprisingly. The action is terrific. The pacing is great. None of these should surprise you. All the same, it is a relief to me that Kent has managed to remain so consistent from novel to novel.

Here's the thing. If you have read the first two novels in this series, you know what to expect. If you haven't read the first two books, I'm a little unsure why you are reading this review. Quit fooling around and go treat yourself. So the only thing I want to mention is how INCREDIBLE the last quarter of THE THIRD SECTION is. This novel is batter than book two, and has me debating on whether it is better than book one. And this is all due to the ending. It blew me away. If you had any doubt or fear that THE THIRD SECTION wouldn't live up to the standards set in the first books, take my word for it.

Seriously, just go out and buy the book.

Recommended Age:b 17+
Language: Some, and it can get strong.
Violence: Remember, these vampires don't try to sparkle you to death.
Sex: A lot of references and some scenes that border on being really detailed.

Buy this whole freaking series! It is completely awesome!

1 - TWELVE
2 - THIRTEEN YEARS LATER
3 - THE THIRD SECTION

A while back I was given my first exposure to Jasper Kent's TWELVE. In short, TWELVE completely blew my mind. A mixture of Horror and Russian historical fiction, Kent's first novel, in my opinion, was nothing short of brilliant. I'm still extremely upset that it didn't end up on the Hugo ballot. If you haven't read TWELVE, stop reading this review of the sequel. There are some unavoidable spoilers for book one in this review. Do yourself a favor and go buy the first book. You will love Jasper Kent for all eternity. I sure do. My wife may or may not be jealous.

Seriously, this is your last warning.

When I took a vacation to England earlier this year it won't come as a shock to most of you that one of the first things I did was find a bookstore. I don't think I passed a bookstore without going inside to browse over the course of the entire trip. One of the many books on my shopping list was Kent's THIRTEEN YEARS LATER. The novel takes place--wait for it--thirteen years after the first novel in the midst of the Russian Revolution. Aleksei Danilov is older, but he is still a spy. He has put himself in position to out the entire network of people who wish to overthrow the current tsar, Aleksandr the First.

And then Aleksei comes across a message from his long dead friend Maks. His friend who died at the hands of the vampires in the prior novel. The suspense and mystery that made the prior novel so good are both injected into the novel right away. The vampires from the prior novel were of the non-sparkling variety, and were freaking terrifying. So the instant they were reintroduced in THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, my heart started beating just a bit faster.

What makes this novel great isn't just the promise of Horror elements being mixed with Historical Fiction. The skill with which Kent writes his characters and handles the historical information is the key to the success of this novel. Aleksei is brilliant. To see how much he has changed from that character we were all introduced to in TWELVE is exactly what we like to see in a series. It is an odd sort of progression. He is more hardened from his experiences with the vampires (much more cold-blooded in some ways), yet at the same time he is much more soft-hearted due to his children. Speaking of, his son, Dmitry, is a welcome character. The inexperience of his youth is so well portrayed.

What I appreciate the most about THIRTEEN YEARS LATER is Kent's ability to make me enjoy the history of the setting. He doesn't the reader over the head with unimportant details. Even better than that? This made me want to pick up some history books and brush up on some Russian history. Not only that, but Kent's ability to lend some much needed freshness to the vampires themselves is so refreshing.

In my mind, TWELVE scores an easy 9.8 on my "Books Completely Filled with Awesome" scale. THIRTEEN YEARS LATER didn't quite capture the lofty score of its predecessor. In only scores a 9.7. I know. How can Jasper Kent live with himself?

THE THIRD SECTION is the next novel in the series. I honestly can't think of any novel I'm more excited for.

Recommended Age: 17 and up.
Language: Some fairly strong language at times
Violence: Some of the creepy stuff Kent pulls off is simply astounding.
Sex: Talked about, but never graphically.


Buy this whole freaking series! It is completely awesome!

1 - TWELVE
2 - THIRTEEN YEARS LATER
3 - THE THIRD SECTION

We apologize for the delay of this review. It somehow fell through the cracks, and no one is more upset about this than us. Why? Because TWELVE is an amazing, amazing novel. Jasper Kent, the author, has given us in the US (all you UK readers have known this forever) one of the best books of the year.

Call it Alternate History, Alternate Historical Fantasy, Fantasy, Horror or Alternate Historical Horror...it doesn't really matter. All you need to do is read it and enjoy it for what it is:

Completely awesome.

TWELVE is set during Bonaparte's invasion of Russia in 1812. That's your historical context. The story itself follows Alexei Danilov, a spy for the Russian army, as he and his fellow spies attempt to disrupt Bonaparte's incursion. The group of spies turn to a group of twelve mercenaries whom they call the Oprichniki to wage a covert and bloody war against the French. Obviously they have their own agenda, and Alexei has little trust for them.

The story is told in a first person narrative from Alexei's PoV. The style of storytelling is immediately engaging and reminiscent both of a memoir and a translated work. This serves both to put readers in a Stoker state of mind as well as help the reader more easily buy-in to the story. Kent is quick to show the flaws of every character--something you readers know is extremely important to us. Alexei isn't a white knight, and much of the novel revolves around his involvement with his mistress/prostitute.

The twist involving the Oprichniki is not a twist at all. It shouldn't be surprising to anyone that they are vampires--no this isn't spoiling anything for you. Kent does an exceptional job at helping the reader suspend his/her disbelief, and helps the reader accept that it isn't our discovery of the monsters that is important, but Alexei’s discovery. This element is handled extremely well, and we truly feel his growing horror as it plays out.

We love Kent’s use of description from Alexei and his team, to the Oprichniki, to Russia itself. The historical events are told without feeling like we are being kicked in the face by historical detail. Kent’s pacing is smooth the entire novel. The actions of the characters are believable.

But here is what this book does best. Towards the end of the novel, a point is made about how having ALL the information means you really have nothing. Having all the information means you have the lies as well, thus crippling your ability to discern what is true. Throughout the novel, Kent saturates the reader with differing opinions and takes on the transpiring events putting you in the exact same position of the narrator, Alexei. This was executed impeccably, and sets it above nearly every other novel we read during 2010.

A few nitpicks? Yeah we have them. Once it becomes clear to Alexei who/what the Oprichniki are, we couldn’t help but wonder why Alexei didn’t alter the way he hunted them. Also the dialogue grew a bit melodramatic at times. But that’s it.

The ending of the novel with its corresponding twist and final showdown is fantastic. It caused us to forgive and (nearly) forget the few issues we had. It is a deeply personal ending that perfectly fits the tone of the novel.

TWELVE is one of the better novels we have read in years. Characters in shades of gray mixed with well-described Russian history and darkly-violent Oprichniki…what more can anyone ask for? With the sequel, THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, coming out soon, now is a good time to grab your copy of this tremendous first novel.

Recommended Age: 16 and up.
Language: Very, very infrequent, but strong when it occurs.
Violence: Yep. Described perfectly and brutally.
Sex: Alexei has taken up with a prostitute. Noting is ever described in detail, but it is insinuated and mentioned very frequently.


Buy this whole freaking series! It is completely awesome!

1 - TWELVE
2 - THIRTEEN YEARS LATER
3 - THE THIRD SECTION