Review: Rampant

Title: Rampant
Author: Diane Peterfreund
Pages: 406
Rating: 5/5

Forget everything you ever knew about unicorns . . .

Real unicorns are venomous, man-eating monsters with huge fangs and razor-sharp horns. Fortunately, they've been extinct for a hundred and fifty years.

Or not.

Astrid had always scoffed at her eccentric mother's stories about killer unicorns. But when one of the monsters attacks her boyfriend—thereby ruining any chance of him taking her to the prom—Astrid finds herself headed to Rome to train as a unicorn hunter at the ancient cloisters the hunters have used for centuries.

However, at the cloisters all is not what it seems. Outside, the unicorns wait to attack. And within, Astrid faces other, unexpected threats: from the crumbling, bone-covered walls that vibrate with a terrible power to the hidden agendas of her fellow hunters to—perhaps most dangerously of all—her growing attraction to a handsome art student . . . an attraction that could jeopardize everything (www.bn.com).

This book is amazing! This is probably my favorite read so far this year. I read this book in one sitting, only moving from my seat to refill my wine glass, and go to the bathroom! I'm pretty sure my hubby thought I grew roots into the chair. Once I started, I could not put this book down. It was too good! I cannot wait to read the sequel.

Our main character Astrid, is thrown into the world of unicorn hunting when her and her then boyfriend, are attacked one night in the woods. Astrid comes from a long line of unicorn hunters, and throughout the novel, we learn her history and the history of her family. Astrid's mom is a little wacked out, and the one drawback to the novel, but not enough for me to give the book less than five stars.

One reason why I think I really loved this book was the fact that it was unique. So many of the young adult novels today revolve around vampires, werewolves, and fairies. Not that I don't love those books too, but unicorns was something different. Plus, I had always pictured unicorns as My Little Ponies with a horn. Boy, was I wrong.

Another thing that is really cool about this book, is all of the research that author, Diana Peterfreund put into it. Check out her website here. It is chocked full of information about unicorns, plus a summary of the next book in the series.