“Darkness Rising, Book 2″ Harper, 2012. Hardcover. 326 pp.
In this second book of the Darkness Rising trilogy, Maya and her friends find themselves lost in the middle of a forest. The helicopter which was supposed to have rescued them from their burning town was actually manned by a kidnapper who was killed when the helicopter crashed. Maya, as usual, is clueless to Daniel’s feelings towards her, despite the loss of Rafe in book one, and finding him again in book 2.
The kidnappers know they’ve survived, and have rigged the crash site to appear as if everyone died so no one in the outside world, including their parents, would question their disappearances when they are captured. As the kidnappers sweep the forest looking for their prey, Maya and her friends struggle to stay ahead of capture and find their way back to their parents and their old lives. While they run for their lives, Maya transforms into a cougar for the first time, while Corey’s symptoms hint at something much darker. Despite their attempts to regain their freedom, the St. Cloud Corporation has other plans for them that don’t include a happy reunion.
Once more Kelley Armstrong has kept me and students from grades 8-12 glued to the edges of our seats eagerly awaiting book 3, which is supposed to be released sometime in 2013. My fingers are crossed that I won’t have to reread this book when it’s finally released.