Review: Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Infinity~The Chronicles of Nick #1~

Written by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Available NOW!! (released May 19, 2010)
Published by St. Martin's Griffin



Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter (adult) series is one of my all-time favorites and I have read every single one of them!  Nick Gautier has been one of my favorite characters throughout the series and I have always wanted him to have his own book.  You can imagine my excitement when I found out that he not only had his own book coming out, but his own ya series!!  Woot! Woot!! 

Summary from Goodreads:

"At fourteen, Nick Gautier thinks he knows everything about the world around him. Streetwise, tough and savvy, his quick sarcasm is the stuff of legends. . .until the night when his best friends try to kill him. Saved by a mysterious warrior who has more fighting skills than Chuck Norris, Nick is sucked into the realm of the Dark-Hunters: immortal vampire slayers who risk everything to save humanity.

Nick quickly learns that the human world is only a veil for a much larger and more dangerous one: a world where the captain of the football team is a werewolf and the girl he has a crush on goes out at night to stake the undead.

But before he can even learn the rules of this new world, his fellow students are turning into flesh eating zombies. And he’s next on the menu.

As if starting high school isn't hard enough. . .now Nick has to hide his new friends from his mom, his chainsaw from the principal, and keep the zombies and the demon Simi from eating his brains, all without getting grounded or suspended. How in the world is he supposed to do that?"

My Thoughts: 

I knew I would love this book before I even cracked it open!  I am a long-time reader and huge fan of Sherrilyn Kenyon's adult Dark Hunter books.  Nick Gautier is one of my favorite characters from that series and he is the central figure in Kenyon's new ya series titled the Chronicles of Nick.  Infinity is the first book in the series and introduces the young adult readers to Nick at the age of 14.  Those that have read the adult Dark Hunter books will see this book as a look into the past, back to the start of Nick's journey towards his destiny.  For those new to the Dark Hunter world, this is an action-packed introduction featuring shapeshifters, Gods, demons, dark hunters, vampires, zombies and more!

This was a fantastic read for me, but I may be a little biased!  I have been a fan of Nick's for a long time!  I think that having prior knowledge of the characters and world that Sherrilyn Kenyon so masterfully created in the adult series, enabled me to see character and plot connections that may go unnoticed by someone who is new to this world.  I can see where some characters and their connections to Nick were touched on, but not fully explained and some of the terms common to the world were not really well defined.  I don't think new readers will really notice anything as lacking or missing, but some characters, such as Uncle Ambrose, and some relationships, like Nick and Archeron's, would have had more depth and foreshadowing if you had read the adult series first.  That being said.... I am not implying that you must read the adult series to fully enjoy Infinity!!!  On the contrary, the adult series is just that...ADULT!  Although some of the characters are the same, the writing is very different.  Sherrilyn Kenyon did a great job making Infinity age appropriate.  The language, situations, and romantic references were all handled in a way that made it enjoyable and PG.  I am so excited to see this exciting world made available to teen readers!

The pace of the book was great- no slow spots!  There was exciting action on just about every page mixed with plenty of laugh out loud moments (usually courtesy of Bubba and Mark).  There were also moments that made your heart ache for Nick.  He is such a lovable character!!  I enjoy and appreciate his sarcasm and admire his fierce loyalty to family and friends.  I love that he is a street smart, tough as nails guy but so good hearted and vunerable underneath it all!  The plot of the book was fun (brain eating zombies!) and should appeal to guys and girls alike!  I would recommend this to fans of the ya supernatural genre and anyone who loves a good ole' good versus evil smackdown!!  I really enjoyed reading it myself and can't wait for the next in the series!  Nick's destiny is pretty incredible and should make for an incredible series!  I doubt anyone will read this and not be TEAM NICK when they are done!!!  Check out the trailer....