Changes

Cliffhangers aside, I don't have a bad word to say about ''Blood Beast''. It's tense and exciting. It's chilling. It's full of betrayals and distrust and fear. However, underneath all the schlock horror, there's a solid base of morality in which friendship and family ties can redeem us all, if only we establish who it is we can trust and then trust them implicitly. Shan seems to understand his audience completely. He knows children are bloodthirsty little beasts. He appreciates that there is no such thing as too much gore. But he also knows when to stop. There's enough camp and enough high-spirited joy in the telling of a story to keep his readers feet (and fears) firmly on the ground.

My thanks to the kind people at Harper Collins for sending the book.