Marked

Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast

My rating:  4.5/5
Summary (from Goodreads):  The House of Night series is set in a world very much like our own, except in 16-year-old Zoey Redbird's world, vampyres have always existed.  In this first book in the series, Zoey enters the House of Night, a school where, after having undergone the Change, she will train to become an adult vampire--that is, if she makes it through the Change.  Not all of those who are chosen do.  It’s tough to begin a new life, away from her parents and friends, and on top of that, Zoey finds she is no average fledgling.  She has been Marked as special by the vampyre Goddess, Nyx.  But she is not the only fledgling at the House of Night with special powers.  When she discovers that the leader of the Dark Daughters, the school's most elite club, is misusing her Goddess-given gifts, Zoey must look deep within herself for the courage to embrace her destiny--with a little help from her new vampyre friends.

This book didn't quite drag me in immediately, but it definitely did eventually.

I'll admit, I had no idea what was going on in the first few pages of this book.  When Zoey Redbird gets Marked in the beginning, I had no idea what that meant.  I didn't realize until a while later that she was then a fledgling vampyre.  The way that they put it, it made absolutely no sense to me.

The House of Night was a cool place; I would want to go to school there.  The House of Night is a school for fledgling vampyres, where they'll learn about the change to becoming a full vampyre, and lots of other things that anyone would regularly learn in school.  It didn't seem like a school though, and that's the main reason that I like it.  It was more like a castle, dark, in some parts eerie, and, in my mind, made of stones.  I would find that an amazing place, even if the mortals despised me.

My favourite character was Stevie Rae, Zoey's roommate, and closest friend.  She never gawked at Zoey's strange Mark, or pressured her.  She was encouraging, all the time.  She had a quirky taste.  She had a western style to her; wearing cowboy boots, jeans, and the same themed shirts. 

I didn't like Aphrodite, leader of the Dark Daughters.  The Dark Daughters are a group of fledglings who perform rituals for their Goddess, Nyx.  She was self centered, cruel to anyone that didn't immediately draw her attention.  As leader, she was the one that everyone followed, but they weren't given a good example from her.


Zoey had to overthrow Aphrodite, because of the heartless way that she acted towards all the younger fledglings in the Dark Daughters.  That lead to a huge seen at the end, where Zoey's friend from the mortal world, is in danger, because of one of Aphrodite's rituals gone wrong.


I have to say that I really didn't expect the way that this book went, I thought it would have more to it than what was there, but I still loved it all the same!