Children's Literature - Erin Darr and Marilyn Courtot

Move over, Catwoman! Here comes Chloe King! Chloe was a responsible student who liked hanging out with her friends, argued with her mom, and had a part-time job. Her whole world changed, however, on the day before her sixteenth birthday. She died, and then came back to life. It does not take her long to discover that she is undergoing some changes, changes that are a bit different than those caused by normal teenage hormones. For one thing, she can now run at a superhuman pace and not get winded. She can jump high and fall from heights and land on her feet. Oh, and another thing: she now has claws. With her newfound powers, Chloe becomes more confident and she finds herself torn between two suitors—one who represents what the human Chloe wants and the other what the cat Chloe wants. In addition to her problems as a human cat with romance issues, someone is trying to kill her. In the second story, The Stolen, Chloe's mom has been kidnapped by the Order of the Tenth Blade. Chloe's friends come up with a plan to help Chloe's mom and enlist Brian, one of Chloe's suitors. Chloe learns that she is more powerful than she thought and that she might be next in line to rule her group of Mai. In the third installment of the series, The Chosen (following The Fallen and The Stolen), Chloe King, a not-so-typical teen, becomes the "Chosen One" of a group of cat people called Mai. Chloe grudgingly accepts her role as the spiritual leader of the Pride and works to protect and defend her fellow Mai from the Order of the Tenth Blade, a clan of assassins bent on destroying them. At the same time, as this age-old struggle wages on, Chloe must make a hard choice between her two boyfriends, Alyec and Brian. Alyec is a fellow Mai and the rest of their Pride are already hearing wedding bells for them. Brian is the human son of the leader of the Order of the Tenth Blade and, by all accounts, should be her mortal enemy. Things are not just confusing for Chloe, either. Her best friends, Amy and Paul, are going through a difficult period in their relationship. Her new Mai confidant, Kim, is desperately trying to fit in with her human friends and, finally, Chloe's adoptive mom is still trying to wrap her brain around the fact that her daughter has claws and supernatural powers. Lots of action and angst in this one, folks! This is not a stand-alone book and should be read in conjunction with the others. Fans of the series will definitely enjoy this volume, as it is the best yet. Readers will watch as the characters continue to develop, especially Chloe, who grows a lot as a person (and as a cat) this time around. This is an entertaining series that has fast-paced action and quirky twists. With its mix of romance, fantasy, and humor, it will be addicting for fans of the whole "teens with magical powers" scene. Thomson's creative ideas and use of Egyptian mythology are a winning combination. Fans will eagerly await the next volume. The books contain mature language and sexual situations and are perhaps best suited for high school students. However, the three individual stories have been compiled together due to the creation of an ABC Family Original series for TV and it will be interesting to see how certain aspects may change. To learn more visit www.TheNineLivesofChloeKing.com. Reviewer: Erin Darr and Marilyn Courtot