Zodiac Rising

Gr 8 Up–Immortal warriors, stolen artifacts, prophecy, prison breaks, and a fairy-land heist manifests in Manhattan. Long ago in ancient China, 12 houses were called down to rid the world of horrifying monsters. But when colonizers came and stole pieces of their magical relics, the warriors were morphed into supernatural beings, mutating their magic, cursing them with immortality until the relics were returned. Back in modern New York City, Evangeline, one of those cursed warriors, now a vampire, calls upon her werewolf ex, fox spirit best friend, and a mysterious mind-reading mortal to steal the relics back and restore the warriors to their former glory. Plucky humor and a packed storyline keep the pages turning in this urban fantasy. While the character development and worldbuilding is lacking, the abundance of unresolved plotlines, as well as a cliff-hanger ending, promises much to come in the sequel. The complex politics of the warrior houses tighten the already taut tension, with the sinister appearance of dark beings threatening even higher stakes on the horizon. Dynamic relationships, both romantic and not, are a subtle highlight as the characters try to suppress decades of unresolved issues and find a way to work together.