The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title: The Demon's Covenant	Loved it	Graded
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Genre: Paranormal
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Elements: Demons
Series: Book 2 of The Demon's Lexicon trilogy

Mae Crawford always thought she was in control. Now she's learned that her little brother Jamie is a magician and Nick, the boy she'd set her heart on, has an even darker secret. Mae's whole world has spun out of control, and it's only going to get worse.

When she realises that Jamie has been meeting secretly with the new leader of the Obsidian Circle and that Gerald wants him to join the magicians, she's not sure how to stop Jamie doing just that. Calling in Nick and Alan as reinforcements only leads to a more desperate conflict because Gerald has a plan to bring Nick down - by using Alan to spring a deadly trap.

With those around her torn between divided loyalties and Mae herself torn between her feelings for two very different boys, she sees a chance to save them all - but it means approaching the mysterious and dangerous Goblin Market alone...

It is rare that I give high ratings to books by the same author. It is even rarer when the books are in a series. And the best part? It's the second book in a trilogy. What's the big deal about The Demon's Covenant being the second book in a trilogy, you ask?

These are the basic rules for a trilogy:

Book 1 - Set up the storyline. Build the reader's relationship and get them invested in the characters. Make them immersed in the world building. Once the strings are fully tied around the reader's heart, pull them. Hard. Give a complete resolution for the plot, which turns out to be part of THE BIGGER PICTURE.

Book 2 - Development of THE BIGGER PICTURE. A series of disconnected events that will be explained in book 3. Conflicts between main characters. A lot of loose ends. Let disillusioned readers moan about the fact that the third book comes out about, what? A LONG TIME LATER.

Book 3 - Tie things up tightly in an adventure and action filled package. People die. Have a heartwarming but tear wrenching EPIC FINALE EVENT. Bittersweetly ever after.

In the event of a fourth book:

Book 4 - "What?! I thought this was a trilogy!" The cries of broke readers can be heard all around the globe. Readers who invested in the box set of the first three books. Which, just, ouch. A sort of "What happens after 'Happily Ever After' phase. Gives the readers more of the world they want. Somehow doesn't live up to the trilogy and EPIC FINALE EVENT.

I really dislike the second book phase. This is where I usually get disappointed with the characters, their motivations and the series in general, and thus impacts my feelings for the final book.

The Demon's Covenant is different because while it does the the things in the Book 2 phase well, it's also a story that can stand on its own without the reader having to read The Demon's Lexicon beforehand. Re-reading this will be such a pleasure, with little details popping out and giving different meaning to the storyline.

Readers are treated to a gentler version of the dark humour in TDL. Told from Mae's point of view, it continues from the events in TDL in a warmer, human tone. Brennan truly excels in enhancing the importance of family dynamics and the role it plays in the motivations of the main characters. Mae's relationship with her brother is the focus here, with the relationship with their mother on the fringes. It draws parallels between Nick's life and her own, but while Olivia loves Alan half as much as she hates Nick, Annabel is the doting absent mother trying to make up for her workaholic ways.

Mae and Jamie grew on me. Where once I thought of them as secondary characters, they now play a big part in my TDL trilogy psyche. The series truly will not be the same without them. At times I would get frustrated with how reliable Mae was as a narrator, but not as a participant of what was happening in the book. It was as if all the focus was on the world, and not Mae's internal concerns and angst. But there it is: in that world, there's not a lot of time for fretting and worrying about what ifs. They're all too busy trying to stay alive. She was reactive for the first half, reminiscent of the Mae in TDL. My admiration for her surfaced when she started being more pro-active in the seconf half. While I don't like the 'girl between brothers' plot arc, I thought it was executed well. Mae's comeuppance? Well played and deserved.

Nick would approve. He and Alan are coping with the after effects of TDL, dealing with Olivia and Black Arthur's deaths and their exile from the Goblin Market. Having read TDL just before TDC, it is painfully obvious how it would affect Nick, who loves the market. And yet it is unsaid. It doesn't need to be said, because with every carefully worded sentence, Brennan delves deep into the characters and show the readers their lives, love, fears. I love how every little nuance let the reader care so much about these characters and follow them on their painstakingly vivid journey with anxiety and excitement. These are smart, horribly human characters indeed, and they deserve every bit of your attention. The makeout scenes deserve more than a passing mention, because wowzers, fans of Mae+Alan and Mae+Nick given a treat.

THIS. Is why Sarah Rees Brennan has a fan club of her writing. Along with a fan club of the TDL series. Her writing, guys.

This is the best 2010 book that I've read, and that's saying something when you consider the fact that 2010 is a golden mine of books from published and debut authors. Harry Potter is at the top on my list--and yet The Demon's Lexicon has surpassed it. It's time for HP to pass the mantle on to another series. That's the best praise you'll ever get from me.

I am speechless with wonder and exhilaration. I don't think I've quite recovered from reading it. My first instinct would be to hold a copy of The Demon's Covenant up high and yell "YOU MUST READ THIS!" But that would not do the book, series and the author justice. In fact, this review does not do it justice.

Now I just need a great movie adaptation that stays true to the soul of the series, and a fantastic third book that will surpass my expectedly skyrocket expectations. But I'm not worried.