Every Other Day

Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Series: Stand Alone (so far)

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal

Publisher: Egmont

Released: 27 December 2011

Summary: Every other day, Kali D'Angelo is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to public high school. She attends pep rallies. She's human.  And then every day in between . . .She's something else entirely.  Though she still looks like herself, every twenty-four hours predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon-hunter with the undeniable urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other supernatural creatures. Kali has no idea why she is the way she is, but she gives in to instinct anyway. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism.  When Kali notices a mark on the lower back of a popular girl at school, she knows instantly that the girl is marked for death by one of these creatures. Kali has twenty-four hours to save her and, unfortunately, she'll have to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk that her human body might not survive. . .and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition in the process

For Fans Of: The Butterfly Clues, The Book of Blood and Shadow, and Angelfire

My Review:  So I know that this book is about a girl named Kali, but let me tell you what I will sing praises to Skye until the day I die because that girl is AWESOME.  This was my first encounter with Jennifer Lynn Barnes, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.  Most of the books I have read recently haven’t had a very ‘wowing’ effect.  So much so that I’ve been re-reading some tried and true favorites recently to try and redeem books as a whole because my recent reading selection has been so disappointing.  Luckily Barnes did NOT disappoint.

The dialogue was fast-paced and witty especially the banter between Beth, Kali, and Skye.  Skye dialogue concerning her “favorite brothers” had me laughing pretty hard.  She was the quintessential baby sister in a house full of boys, and I adored that.  Kali’s dark side was completely bad A without being ridiculously over the top.  The girl’s got game and she knows how to use it.  I also loved the slight mystery aspect of Kali learning what she truly was.

But, because I’m a sucker for romance, I’ll let you know that I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that Kali has one love interest.  Not two, not seven, not a horde or a small army.  One.  His name is Zev and I liked him.  He is nice and although the love story does sit on the back burner for most (okay all) of the book, I liked the fact that Kali isn’t some man-treat.  She’s got a lot of stuff to figure out and being pursued by half the boys in school isn’t going to help.

Barnes really impressed me with this novel.  Kali was a well established heroine, and the plot is dense but not too dense.  It’s a nice, lovely young adult read.  Be ready for some tears (just a little) and a really great story about a girl who is figuring herself out, one day at a time. 

Side note: please let there be a sequel!  I will cry if there isn’t.