Demon Thief (Demonata Series #2) » (Reprint)

"I was born in London in 1972 and moved to Ireland when I was 6 years old, where I've lived ever since. I always wanted to be a writer - I've loved telling stories since I was a child. I started out writing books for adults, and managed to get a couple published. One day, on a whim, I decided to try a book for children. The result was Cirque Du Freak. Much to my surprise, it took off, and I became a de facto children's author! Since then I've used my ill-gotten gains to buy lots of comic-strip art and travel the world. When I'm not working or traveling, I like watching movies.

Kernel Fleck has always known he's weird. He sees lights. Strange, multi-colored patches of light, swirling through the air. But it's not until a window opens into a demon world, with horrific consequences, that Kernel discovers his powers. As a Disciple, his mission is to hunt vicious, powerful demons to the death...

VOYA

Travel between dimensions and back in time with Cornelius, aka "Kernel" Fleck, the bald, eccentric youth whose only friend is his little, razor-toothed brother Art. Although Kernel has seen plenty of dark times, including the death of his little sister, Annabella, and a friendless existence at school, he is perhaps the only boy on Earth who has never seen physical darkness. Why? Kernel is plagued by mysterious, puzzle-shaped patches of pulsing light-his constant companions. When Kernel's parents take a mini-vacation and Art is kidnapped by a gruesome demon, Kernel finds himself catapulted into the Demon's universe on a mad search to rescue his brother. Fans of Lord Loss (Little, Brown, 2005/VOYA October 2005) will be thrilled to see a nose-ringed, purple-spiked-haired younger version of Uncle Dervish Grady, a punk-rocker with a mission to destroy evil, one of the "Disciples" of Beranabus, the great magician. And not to be outdone, Lord Loss makes a grisly appearance as Kernel's nemesis. It does not take long for Kernel and Dervish to become loyal friends and for Kernel to learn that the omnipresent lights are a magical tool with which to be reckoned. Although littered with putrid scenes that at times become repetitive and over-the-top even for this writer, the book skillfully addresses the themes of family loyalty and the devastation of betrayal without moralizing. With a twist ending that borders on tragic, Shan leaves plenty of room for another piece of Kernel's story-a piece for which fans will search in order to complete the puzzle of the Demonata world.