BEC (The Demonata, #4)

by Darren Shan

Darren Shan's acclaimed "Demonata" series continues with more shocks, demons and thrilling twists in the chilling, Bec. "I'm almost through the door when something breathes behind me, 'Beccccc...' I turn. I can't see anything but I know I'm not alone. I want to call for help but I can't. Then, in a blur, claws dart out of the darkness...a twisted face...fiery eyes...rows of teeth...the demon grabs me!" As a baby, Bec fought for her life. As a trainee priestess, she fights to fit in to a tribe that needs her skills but fears her powers. And when the demons come, the fight becomes a war. Bec's magic is weak and untrained, until she meets the druid Drust. Under his leadership, Bec and a small band of warriors embark on a long journey through hostile lands to confront the Demonata at their source. But the final conflict demands a sacrifice too horrific to contemplate...

• ISBN10: 0606106960
• ISBN13: 9780606106962
• Publish Date: 1 April 2008 (first published 2 October 2006)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 6 April 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Turtleback Books
• Edition: Bound for Schools & Libraries ed.
• Format: Hardcover (Library Binding)
• Pages: 241
• Language: English

Reviews

[celinenyx]

While this book is often shelved as children's book, it comes with a warning: this series is Seriously Scary. And it definitely deserves this label. Darren Shan is a master in writing true horrifying stories.

Set in times where Christianity is rising and destroying the Old Fait, Bec doesn't know who her parents are. She is the sixteen-years-old priestess of a small town. When their town is being attacked by demons over and over again, she joins a small group of warriors sent off on a mission that is destined to fail.

The Demonata books are gory. There is a lot of detailed demon-slaying, and in Bec, also quite some casualties on the human side. An example of this you can find here. This really isn't a fluffy tale to read to your child as bedtime story. Unless you want him to stay awake the whole night of course.

Even for a violent book as this, the overall tone is very dark. Bec is on a mission that no one thinks will ever succeed. You start to feel for these people, their despair. Their home is raided again and again by demons, without any hope that they will stop coming. The tale of Bec's ancestors is so sad. Poor Bec.You can't help but feel sorry for the girl.

Bec is not a book that will make you bounce happily through the house when you've finished it. But it's brilliantly written, and so, so gripping.