DESCRIPTION:

Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780312360269
ISBN: 0312360266
Label: St. Martin's Griffin
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 320
Publication Date: 2007-05-01
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: 2007-05-01
Studio: St. Martin's Griffin


SIMILAR ITEMS:

• Betrayed (House of Night, Book 2)
• Chosen (House of Night, Book 3)
• Untamed (House of Night, Book 4)
• Hunted (House of Night, Book 5)
• The Host: A Novel


CUSTOMER REVIEWS:

Customer Rating:
Summary: Not my cup of tea
Comment: "Marked" is the first book of the "House of night" vampire series for young adults. Not to be punny, but it sucks. I won't be reading any more of them, and since I bought the first four at the same time, i have to decide how to get rid of them. Maybe I'll burn them in a cleansing ritual.

I would compare this first book to the Harry Potter series. Vampyres in this world are a publically-known species that excell in the arts...most actors and musicians are vampyres, like Shania Twain and Brad Pitt. The main character is a teen girl who is "marked" to become a vampyre. She must move to the "house of night" boarding high school for vampyres or she will die. Her family is upset, like Harry's family... They dont want a vampyre as a daughter; the rigid Christianesque stepdad in particular. We quickly learn how special she is (a la Harry; while all vampyres have a blue tattoo-like cresent moon on their forehead, hers is special too) ... her powers develop too rapidly, etc. She is taken under the wing of the schoolmistress because she's so special (a la Dumbledorf). Her roomate is a weirdo (a la Ron Weasley), and before you know it a cat familiar has chosen her. And then we meet the villan of the series, Aphrodite (a la the Draco kid, but here Aphrodite is a much larger character). Rounding out the friend-gang are a gay guy vampyre (a la Hermione?) and two girls that act like they are twins. While the plot isn't that stellar and the writing is vapid (the adult author says that she had her teen daughter co-author so that the speaking would be realistically teen-speak enough), my main objection is how native american and wiccan rituals are described in detail and lifted up as wonderful while Christianesque religion is ridiculed at every turn. While Harry Potter is explicitly about witchcraft, at least it is vague or even just fantasy wand waving and latinized words. I'm not interested in reading about wicca under the name of vampyres.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Terrible, Terrible.
Comment: I could not stand the main character of this book. She's terribly Mary Sue, and the entire book follows suit in the sense that it is cliche and melodramatic. I'm not sure if I would like this book had I been as young as 13 when I read it; it's that juvenile.

The dialogue is completely unrealistic of modern teenagers, something that surprised me because the book was written by an English teacher and her teenage daughter.

The plot is predictable, and it seems the author had to make too much of an effort to keep the characters from seeming plain by pouring on odd, cliche, and ridiculous "quirks."

Also, the author is from Oklahoma, as am I, and the view she portrays of the inhabitants of our state through the main character's roommate are degrading and unrealistic. It seems as though she tried to fit the word "y'all" in this particular character's dialogue as many times as possible, sometimes making the sentences very awkward. Her clothing, as well, is ridiculous. I'm sure there are a few teenager girls out there who would choose to wear Wranglers, girly plaid, and cowboy boots, however, I have yet to meet one. This character is portrayed as the average Oklahoman girl--and this unrealistic portrayal is an insult.

I wanted to like this book. The story has potential. However, fans of vampire literature have been let down once again, something that has been happening far too often lately.

Customer Rating:
Summary: So much promise wasted
Comment: Reading the back of the book, I thought this would probably be pretty interesting. Ohhh how I was wrong. It starts out horribly, picks up a little once Zoe finds out she's going to the House of Night, then quickly becomes horrible again. The concept had so much promise but was utterly wasted by authors who create hyperbolic teenagers. Zoe actually made me miss Bella from Twilight. At least Bella had a consistent (even if rather dimwitted) personality; Zoe goes from moments of emotional depth to moments of out-of-character immaturity at random.
Bottom line: This is mental popcorn, at best.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Have you been Marked?
Comment: This book was so fun after all the suspenseful, thrill ride books I have been reading. I really enjoyed reading the tale of Zoey and how she becomes a vampyre and all the neat things she gets to experience along with it. It was at times reminiscent of the Harry Potter series while learning about the school and all the cool classes and information there. Zoey is a strong and willful character that any teens can relate to. She tries to do the right thing and not to get anyone into harms way. Which leads to a great lesson on allowing others to help you when you need it and not being to prideful to ask for help.
One point of the book I really enjoyed was that it does a wonderful job of mingling the Cherokee beliefs with wicca and ancient pagan beliefs. I know some will shy away from this book due to that but if you are going to read a paranormal novel I believe some of the ideas and beliefs of the ancient religions have t be considered and awed at. There I go with the open-mindedness again.

Who would like this: This is a wonderful book for openminded teens or adults over 13. (Some swearing and mild sexual content included)

Customer Rating:
Summary: Depends on the audience.
Comment: When I first picked up this book, the premise showed a lot of promise. A tantalizing new world was being unveiled along with a different sort of vampire. The story had a lot of potential... but it didn't quite deliver.

There were some things I did like about the novel. The concept of the "Change" was clever and new. The threat that any student could simply drop dead because their body rejected the change was an ever present threat. The House of Night, the vampire training school, was reminicent of Hogwarts, but with enough differences that it was entertaining. Also, the element of paganism (the worship of Nyx, the goddess of night, use of the elements in rituals) was an interesting touch. The climax of the story, which I won't say here, was creative and interesting.

However, I had serious problems with this book. I'll just list the main ones:
First, the main character, Zoey, suffers deeply from "Mary Sue Syndrome": A character with flaws that end up making them perfect. She has a native american heritage which could have been put to a better use than giving her a superior background than the other students. She also immediately in accepted into a group of outcasts who essentially are merely tools to emphasize how amazing Zoey is. Zoey also has a natural affinity for everything, and I mean everything, she does. From magic to horseback riding, she's good at it all. It makes for a shallow lead character.

At home, she is under the suppressive rule of her step-father, a bit of a two-dimensional character who is an "Elder of the People of the Faith", cruel and domineering with a deep hatred of anything that clashed with his own beliefs and order. Now, I'm all for religious tolerance, but tolerance is a door that swings both ways. I don't know if the Casts are members of a Pagan religion, but their portrayal of Christianity is almost sickening. Yes, there are some nutty Christians out there but there are a lot more tolerant, caring, GOOD Christians too. However, to emphasize Zoey's plight, her mother is a submissive servant to her "evil" step-father's will. Personally, I thought it would be a little more effective if her parents were heavily religious, but CARING. It would have at least stayed away from the stereotypes.

Finally, the language used is not only childish, but it becomes irritating quickly. Going from the words "S***" said by one character to "poopy" is laughable. I understand wanting to tone down cursing, but "poopy"? Really?

Overall I found this book to be a bit immature for my tastes. A teenager would likely love this book as it appears to be written for them. However, the issues I have with this book are too many that I think I'll leave this series on the bookshelf.

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