Seizure

November 15, 2011
Tory Brennan, 14, and her friends are still trying to determine exactly what happened to them following the events of the series opener (Virals, 2010). The teens have been exposed to an experimental virus that altered their DNA, giving them characteristics comparable to wolves, enhancing their natural senses and creating a human pack. Hardly has this novel started when her father, Kit, drops a bomb. Due to the economy, funding has been pulled on his research project, necessitating a change of job and a move away from South Carolina and her pack mates--but not before she debuts into Charleston society, at her father's girlfriend's insistence. Determined to stay together, Tory, Ben, Hi and Shelton band together to search for the long-lost treasure of America's most famous female pirate, Anne Bonny. It's not long before things go awry, and they learn that they aren't the only ones on the hunt. They're going to need all their abilities just to survive. Dodging bullets, slipping out after curfew, following obscure clues into underground tunnels, not to mention Cotillion duties and snarky classmates, are just part of the adventure. Will this be their last? Reichs taps into the angst of teens, fear of separation and the uncertainty of today's economy and wraps it all in an entertaining yarn of history, pirates and modern technology. These characters are keepers. (Thriller. 12 & up)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

January 1, 2012

Gr 6-10-This sequel easily lives up to the promise of Virals (Penguin, 2010). When exposure to an experimental parvovirus led to enhanced senses and strengths, Tory and her friends were both frightened and exhilarated by their newfound abilities. As this novel opens, their powers seem to have stabilized and their lives have returned to relative normalcy. But financial woes threaten the closure of Loggerhead Island Research Institute where most of their families work. As their parents begin making plans to move elsewhere in search of employment, the four teens realize that they may be separated for good. When they stumble across a lead to the long-lost treasure of pirate Anne Bonny, they devise a daring plan to save the foundation and stay together intact. With its meld of science, intrigue, high-tech sleuthing, treasure hunting, and daring midnight adventures, this novel is hard to put down. The complete cluelessness of the adults may annoy some older readers but teens will be amused and pleased to know that what they've always suspected is, in fact, true.-Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2011
Grades 6-9 Tory Brennan and her viral friends, who contracted heightened, wolflike senses during an experiment gone wrong (Virals, 2010), attempt to find a female pirate's buried treasure in this second outing. The quartet is motivated to seek the booty when budget cuts threaten their parents' university jobs in Charleston, South Carolina. Afraid their pack will be split apart, they steal maps, explore hidden booby-trapped caverns beneath the city, and decrypt codes leading to a spooky, uninhabited barrier island, even as they are pursued by nefarious fellow treasure seekers. The action is nonstop and will keep readers glued to this satisfying mystery.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2012
Detective story meets Goonies-style treasure hunt in this second book featuring Tory Brennan and her fellow Virals. The teens use their wolflike abilities to track a fabled pirate treasure in hopes of keeping their parents' lab running and their group together. Though this Virals sequel has (disappointingly) less forensic science than the previous novel, its suspense and fast-paced adventure will hook readers.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)