Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Review: Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts

Title: Blood Brothers
Series: Sign of Seven
Author: Nora Roberts
Read copy: Mass Market Paperback
Published: November 27, 2007
Publisher: Jove
ISBN: 0515143804
ISBN-13: 9780515143805

In the small village of Hawkins Hollow, three best friends who share the same birthday sneak off into the woods for a sleepover the evening before turning 10. But a night of pre-pubescent celebration turns into a night of horror as their blood brother oath unleashes a three-hundred year curse.

Twenty-one years later, Cal Hawkins and his friends have seen their town plagued by a week of unexplainable evil events two more times - every seven years. With the clock winding down on the third set of seven years, someone else has taken an interest in the town's folklore. Quinn is a well known scholar of local legends, and despite Cal's protests, insists on delving in the mystery. But when the first signs of evil appear months early, it's not only the town Cal tries to protect, but also his heart.

My rating:

Three boys who shared their birthday, Caleb, Fox, and Gage, decided to celebrate their tenth birthday at the Pagan Stone, a strange, altar-like stone in the middle of the woods surrounding Hawkins Hollow, the village where the three grew up.

A simple vow to always be friends sealed with their blood, unleashed an entity that‘s been haunting them ever since.

Every seven years, for seven days in the seventh month, the small town of Hawkins Hollow descends into madness. Strange accidents happen; neighbors turn against neighbors, husbands against wives… When the Seven is over, no one remembers anything.

Except the three blood brothers.

Now, twenty-one years later, the three boys turned men know the time might have come to end it. It has grown stronger, but so have them. And they’re not alone anymore.


The first story in the Sign of Seven trilogy focuses on the oldest of the men born on the same day, Caleb Hawkins, the descendant of the founders of the village. He feels responsible for what is happening, because he was the one who suggested the blood bond between friends. He’s also the one with a mystical connection to the man who trapped the entity under the Pagan Stone.

Quinn Black is a writer, specialized in paranormal phenomena. She thinks she’s seen it all, heard it all. But when she arrives in Hawkins Hollow, this young woman will realize what she’s seen so far, what she’s researched so far, was only an appetizer for what’s to come.

These two people will form a strong bond, the first of the three that might eventually conquer the evil living in the woods.


This is Nora Robert’s first book for me and I must admit I wasn’t expecting much. Unlike many other out there, it does not start slow. The reader is immediately hip deep in battle between good and evil.

The details are sprinkled into the bigger picture slowly and leisurely, so we’re kept at the edge of our seats.

IMHO the romance had much to be desired. It wasn’t felt and a little unbelievable. Even if we take into consideration the dire circumstances, bonding in time of peril, it still seemed a little rushed.

The descriptions of the manifestations [the grinning boy] are goose-bump worthy, and I loved the interaction between the leads. The dialogues were smart, funny, and fast-paced, and there is just an appropriate hint of humor toward the end to let the reader have a breather before all hell breaks loose.



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