Destined to Kill

Jourdyn
Kelly
Genre: 
Young Adult

Anala Geil thought she knew what her life would look like. Being an almost six-centuries old Hybrid isn’t anywhere near her vision, but everyone does what they have to do. She used to be a Hunter, born to kill the Cursed Ones.  She trained for it. And then she was bitten. Her parents, Hunters themselves, recognized humanity still remaining in her and kept her alive. She brought death to the Cursed Ones. But the time never quite came for her. Immortality has led her to a high school in California and to a shocking revelation that she hadn’t rid the world of the Cursed Ones after all. The ghosts of her past return as she gathers descendants of Hunters and begins the onerous job of training them. 

The potential for humor in a situation where a centuries old girl trains her teenage friends for combat is certainly fulfilled here! However, too many details prevent this book from being all it could have been. For one, the choice to write everything in the present tense, along with first person point of view makes the reading a bit awkward. Also,  Anala thinks and acts almost nothing like the centuries-old warrior that she is. A few twists do exist to distinguish this story from all the other well-worn themes since “Twilight”, just not nearly enough to push it above them. Finally, the cliffhanger ending is, perhaps, too dramatic and hard to empathize with. On the other hand, however, “Destined to Kill” does a beautiful job of expressing the worth of friendship, and unity is magnificently showcased!   

Mimi Smith