With so many vampire novels on the market, it’s tough to stand out. But Susan Hubbard’s THE SOCIETY OF S does, approaching the whole idea from an entirely new way.
On the cusp of womanhood, Ariella Montero lives with her father in an appropriately Gothic home where he works as a blood researcher. He can’t venture outdoors because, he says, he has lupus, and Ariella herself is confined to an insular life within their walls, home-schooled and having no friends.
But one day, with Mr. Montero’s blessing, Ariella’s caretaker Mrs. McGarrit takes the youth to her home so she can play with her children. One of the things they do is watch a vampire movie on TV. It horrifies Ariella and literally makes her sick – not so much because it’s scary, but because the movements of the bloodsucker onscreen remind her of her dad.
This revelation drives the 13-year-old to delve into her parents’ past – both the secrets held by her Poe-loving father and the disappearance of her mother many years ago. What she finds out forces her to leave the confines of her home and on the road – partly inspired by Jack Kerouac – making for a thrilling, terrifying journey toward the truth of who she really is and what she could become.
Hubbard tells this engrossing story through Ariella’s viewpoint. And because she’s barely a teenager, this means the language – though literary – is a bit simplistic. One would assume this is intentional, and it only takes a few pages to get used to. Couple that voice with Ariella beginning to menstruate and the book exploring issues of self, and one could peg SOCIETY OF S as a young-adult novel. This isn’t truly the case, but doing so sheds a whole other light on the story, adding another level of subtext.
Even still, what Hubbard has written is a book that reawakens the vampire genre with class and inventiveness. Despite countless tales of vampires having already been told, this one is unique, weaving strong threads of mystery and suspense into its tense message of identity. It may not have the awareness of other buzzworthy books this season, but it’s worth adding to your summer to-do list for a sharp chill. –Malena Lott
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Sigh, I’m tempted – very tempted – to buy this book. I’ve seen it around a number of times but I’ve put it back down every time. I think I’m still suffering from the disappointment of The Historia. The story was good but the ending was just such a let down. I think I’ll be waiting for the paperback on this one.