Weresisters: A Novel for Young Adults

John Patrick Kennedy started his career as a writer with a deliciously controversial book, PLAGUE OF ANGELS. Brooklyn born of Irish ancestry, he seems to have inherited the Irish genes for wild tales and has the courage to make his own stories challenging to the conservative readers with such a flair for showmanship that the result of his courageous wanderings through myth, religion, and those oh-so-sacred stories that form our concept of a universe that makes sense (read `creationism') in such a way that within the scope of a prologue and first chapter he has everyone testing his talents assured that here is a new writer of style that is uniquely his own. There is not much in the way of biographical data about this movie star good-looking young man except for the following, gleaned from his blogs: `I enjoy art (painting and illustrations are my favs), reading other authors, cooking, writing (obviously), tennis [a former Wimbledon champion!], fitness, and almost anything that doesn't involve politics. I've gotten about 300 messages about who I am. I'm just the guy who wrote awesomely sick book w/evil angels. Read it if you like angels :).' Now he steps into another arena - the Young Adult novel - with author friend Shelley Stoehr and together they have composed WERESISTERS, a novel about werewolves! The imagination these two talented artists focuses on twin werewolf sisters who were separated, one raised human, the other raised werewolf.... The flavor of his Young Adult novel is enhanced by illustrators/designers Damonza and Alex Negrea.WERESISTERS is divided into two parts Part 1 is Kyra, Part 2 is Selene. The story is complex (delightfully so) and the authors' synopsis helps to grasp the scope of the story before beginning. Butte, Montana - `Sixteen-year-old Kyra is odd. She can "mind-speak" with her adoptive father. She has no recollection of anything about her life before age ten. One leg is so badly damaged she has to walk with a brace. And all she wants in her junior year of high school is to be cool. Instead, she becomes a werewolf. Suddenly, a madman is hunting Kyra with plans to use her as his lab rat. A big grey werewolf is killing humans in her town. And worse, her adoptive father might be dating her biological mother. Torn among allegiances to her father, her newly discovered family, and the werewolf pack, Kyra must learn to control the beast within and find a way to stop the madman who threatens to destroy them all. Selene is a beautiful, tough punk-rocker leader of the meanest gang in school--and a werewolf through and through. She is on the top of the world and plans to stay there. Then Selene kills a human and unleashes her bloodlust: a murderous rage that threatens to turn her into a mindless, violent beast. Terrified of what she might become, Selene runs away. Now, far from home in the company of killer werewolves, Selene must run again. She must find a way to regain her humanity and defeat the bloodlust before it overwhelms her. What happens when they come together again? Covert black ops, gypsies - a riveting tale full of action and emotion.'The pleasure of reading this werewolf fantasy should not be cycled only to young Adults - the writing is so fine that for once a tale about this netherworld subject seems just a variation of normal human behavior. Not that it doesn't explode with terror and bizarre incidents that make you keep the lights on at night, but the characters are so well molded that we as readers sense their motivations and agree with their responses. THAT is where those of us who are not committed devotees of books of this genre usually lose interest. WERESISTERS holds us in place - as well as any well-written novel. This book expands John Patrick Kennedy's audience and, in special awards category, shows us he has the strength to `co-write' a novel. More steps toward wide public synergy. Grady Harp, December 14

Synposis:This novel is divided into two parts.Part 1 is from Kyra's perspective and Part 2 is from Selene's. Sixteen-year-old Kyra is not your average teenager. She can telepathically communicate with her adoptive father and she has no memories before the age ten. On top of the normal trials of acceptance and wanting to be cool, she also has to wear a brace for a leg impairment. After an incident that occurs on the bus, she finds out she is a werewolf, she has a mother and sister and there are other werewolves in her school. She is trying to come to terms with these discoveries when an insane werewolf hunter is pursuing Kyra with plans to use her as his lab rat. Selene is beautiful, tough,stylish and the leader of the meanest gang in school. Then Selene kills a human and unleashes her bloodlust: a murderous rage that threatens to turn her into a mindless, violent beast. Terrified of what she may become, Selene runs away with Farren, her pack leader from Wyoming, in hopes that she will learn how to control the bloodlust before it overpowers her humanity. Far from home, Selene finds she must run again because she is being hunted by a psycho reporter.It started out a little slow but quickly picked up the pace with action and mystery. It was attention grabbing and the bond between the sisters shone through despite their personality differences and backgrounds. I am not a young adult enthusiast so it usually takes a lot for me to get into a young adult novel but not this time. I look forward to reading the next book in the series. Overall, great read for lovers of action and supernatural.

I love when authors use supernatural situations to help their characters mature. I’ve always felt that it more accurately defines what it feels like to grow up than realistic “everyday” plots. You don’t quite feel human when you’re in junior high and early high school. You definitely feel like you don’t fit in anywhere. As a result, I’ve always been drawn to supernatural stories.What I loved about this book was the unique twist on the werewolf genre. With the plot being split in half between Kyra and her sister Selene, you see sisters who were raised is complete opposite ways. Both sisters are dealing with maturing and their own internal struggles—Kyra’s because she doesn’t know who she truly is or that she’s being tracked and Selene’s because she’s been manipulated and is resisting the consequences of protecting her sister.All the characters are well written and the dialogue flows smoothly, which are both important characteristics to me. I really enjoyed reading this and was surprised at how quickly I flew through the book. Very entertaining read.

I have a hard time getting into werewolf novels sometimes because lately they seem to be driven in a direction that doesn’t even echo their abilities. This is especially true when it comes to YA novels where romance seems to drive everything. This luckily isn’t the case with Weresisters though.Instead, the reader is presented with an exciting two part story that follows the life of sisters split up at birth. They both know they’re different but can’t place how until they hit a certain age. Suddenly they’re both battling newly found powers as werewolves which try everything they once know. Each sister deals with the problem differently, but in both cases they’re followed by an unknown person who aims to kill them.The story is both exciting and complex which makes it a great read for all ages. I can’t wait to hear more about the sister as I believe their characters and story are just starting out. I am especially eager to see how these two might work as a pair. I’d recommend this to YA fans, as well as anyone looking for a story that isn't driven by romance.

Interesting, a really good read so far. Half way through the book and can't put it down.

Not one to embrace paranormal yarns of fantasy, especially those involving the werewolf subgenre, I began reading Weresisters with a certain amount of skepticism. However, the skepticism was soon forgotten as the personality of Kyra began to leap off the pages. Fiercely independent and envious of the more-confident Selene, Kyra’s eagerness to be recognized and accepted by her peers for her sense of self – rather than for the brace holding together her crippled leg – resonated with the young, socially-awkward girl still buried inside me. Admittedly, there was an Incredible Hulk flashback when Kyra’s angry confrontation with Selene on the bus caused her to morph into a formidable werewolf, much like Bill Bixby’s mild-mannered character morphed into the raging Hulk in that late seventies show, The Incredible Hulk. However, Weresisters is no formulaic ode to a seventies television show. The book is in two parts; the first part tells Kyra’s story and the second tells Selene’s story and each one’s is as different as their respective personality. The book has both momentum and imagination and best of all – it doesn’t fall victim to the many clichés that usually plague the werewolf subgenre. Overall, a good YA read – and certainly a must-read for those who love the werewolf subgenre.