Born at Midnight

by C. C. Hunter Narrated by Katie Schorr

Overview

Don't miss this spectacular new young adult fantasy series from C.C. Hunter! Born at Midnight will steal your heart and haunt your dreams. Welcome to Shadow Falls camp, nestled deep in the woods of a town called Fallen...

One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever. Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls-a camp for troubled teens, and within hours of arriving, it becomes painfully clear that her fellow campers aren't just "troubled." Here at Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, witches and fairies train side by side-learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world.

Kylie's never felt normal, but surely she doesn't belong here with a bunch of paranormal freaks either. Or does she? They insist Kylie is one of them, and that she was brought here for a reason. As if life wasn't complicated enough, enter Derek and Lucas. Derek's a half-fae who's determined to be her boyfriend, and Lucas is a smokin' hot werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past. Both Derek and Lucas couldn't be more different, but they both have a powerful hold on her heart.

Even though Kylie feels deeply uncertain about everything, one thing is becoming painfully clear-Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs...

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Sixteen-year-old Kylie Galen wants to believe it was a case of wrong place, wrong time that landed her in the Shadow Falls Camp for juvenile delinquents. She'd rather focus on big issues like her grandmother's death, her parents' divorce, and her ex-boyfriend's betrayal. Instead, she is surrounded by "freaks," who she's asked to believe are vampires, werewolves, and fairies. Kylie's ability to see ghosts doesn't make her a supernatural creature, too, does it? Hunter, who writes romance novels as Christie Craig, treads familiar territory by using a camp-cum-school for misunderstood magical youth as the setting for her first YA novel, which kicks off the Shadow Falls series. After the info-dump beginning, the story settles into an entertaining series of romantic quandaries and breathtaking revelations that propel Kylie on her quest to discover whether she is, indeed, human. The evolving, not-always-easy relationships among Kylie and her cabin mates Della and Miranda are rendered as engagingly as Kylie's angst over dangerous Lucas and appealing Derek. Just enough plot threads are tied up to make a satisfying stand-alone tale while whetting appetites for sequels to come. Ages 12–up. (Apr.)

From the Publisher

“Born at Midnight is addicting.  Kylie’s journey of self-discovery and friendship is so full of honesty, it’s impossible not to fall in love with her and Shadow Falls..and with two sexy males vying for her attention, the romance is scorching.  Born at Midnight has me begging for more, and I love, love, love it!” –Verb Vixen

“There are so many books in the young adult paranormal genre these days that it’s hard to choose a good one. I was so very glad to discover Born at Midnight. If you like P.C. and Kristin Cast or Alyson Noel, I am sure you will enjoy Born at Midnight!” –Night Owl Reviews

“I laughed and cried so much while reading this…I LOVED this book. I read it every chance I could get because I didn't want to put it down. The characters were well developed and I felt like I knew them from the beginning. The storyline and mystery that went along with it kept me glued to my couch not wanting to do anything else but find out what the heck was going on.” –Urban Fantasy Investigations Blog

“This has everything a YA reader would want…I read it over a week ago and I am still thinking about it. I can't get it out of my head. I can't wait to read more. This series is going to be a hit!” –Awesome Sauce Book Club

“The newest in the super-popular teen paranormal genre, this book is one of the best. Kylie is funny and vulnerable, struggling to deal with her real-world life and her life in a fantastical world she's not sure she wants to be a part of. Peppered throughout with humor and teen angst, Born At Midnight is a laugh-out-loud page-turner. This one is going on the keeper shelf next to my Armstrong and Meyer collections!” –Fresh Fiction

“Seriously loved this book! This is definitely a series you will want to watch out for. C.C. Hunter has created a world of hot paranormals that I didn't want to leave.” --Looksie Lovitz Book Blog

“Born at Midnight has a bit of everything…a strong unique voice from a feisty female lead, a myriad of supporting Supernatural characters, a fiery romance with two intriguing guys - mixed all together with a bit of mystery – making Born at Midnight a sure fire hit!”  --A Life Bound By Books

“Very exciting, taking twists and turns I never expected. The main character grows very well throughout the story, overcoming obstacles and realizing things she never thought possible. And the author masterfully ended it just right.” –Flamingnet Book Reviews

“Born at Midnight is a thrilling new young adult story with a wide array of paranormals to choose from, a love triangle that will make your heart beat a little faster and a mystery that will keep you guessing.” –Fiktshun, Strictly For Fiction Blog

“I absolutely LOVED it. Wow, it blew me away.” –Nina Bangs, author of Eternal Prey

"Fun and compulsively readable, with a winning heroine and an intriguing cast of secondary characters” –Jenna Black, author of Glimmerglass

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—P.C. Cast meets Rick Riordan in this new series. Shadow Falls Camp is a place for supernatural kids to learn how to deal with who they are and help them to blend into "normal human" society. Witches, werewolves, fairies, shape-shifters, vampires, and a ghost whisperer, this place has them all. There's even a branch of the FBI assigned to maintain surveillance and order among the supernatural races. Kylie goes there at the recommendation of the psychiatrist her parents have sent her to in order to help her deal with their divorce. Kylie thinks that she's normal and doesn't even know that supernaturals exist, but after arriving at camp, she gets a crash course and a wake-up call to who and what she may be. Although the first two chapters are awkward, with phrases like "I don't give a flip what you do" and "but blast it, look where being good had gotten her," things are rolling by chapter three and the characters start to sound more like actual teens. While this genre may be crowded, there's definitely room for this novel, and once readers make it past the bumpy beginning, they won't want to put it down. The love stories, the new and interesting powers, and how these supernatural beings integrate into society make for an engaging read.—Genevieve Gallagher, Charlottesville High School, VA

Kirkus Reviews

Kylie, 17, doesn't want to learn that she's supernatural when she's sent to a camp that's purportedly dedicated to serving troubled teens but is actually a support group for vampires, werewolves, witches, shape-shifters and other magical teenagers. She is, though: Kylie has a problem with a persistent ghost, "Soldier Dude," who won't leave her alone. She recently dumped her boyfriend and finds herself attracted to two very different hottie boys at the camp. Derek reminds her of her ex and can read and manipulate others' emotions, so Kylie isn't sure she trusts him. She remembers Lucas, a werewolf, as an old enemy who killed her cat when she was six years old. Yet she finds herself attracted to him too, even as he appears to be pursuing her. Hunter (a pseudonym for romance author Christie Craig) keeps her characters one-dimensional but odd enough to remain interesting. She focuses as much on the romance as on the supernatural aspects of the story, as Kylie spends the first 350 pages struggling with her parents' divorce, her possible love life and her fears of supernaturalism. Suspense and a new plot scenario erupt in the final 50 pages. Readers suddenly learn more about Soldier Dude, and a vaguely defined threat to the camp at last comes to the fore until (surprise!) the plot turns 180 degrees, setting up sequels. Fun for those who like the genre. (Paranormal romance. 12 & up)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169138702
Publisher:	Macmillan Audio
Publication date:	11/13/2012
Series:	Shadow Falls Series , #1
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	1,089,085
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One

"This isn't funny!" her father yelled.

No, it wasn't, Kylie Galen thought as she leaned into the refrigerator to find something to drink. In fact, it was so not funny she wished she could crawl in beside the mustard and moldy hot dogs, shut the door, and not hear the angry voices spewing from the living room.

Her parents were at it again.

Not that it would go on much longer, she thought as the mist of the fridge seeped out the door.

Today was the day.

Kylie's throat tightened. She swallowed a lump of raw emotion and refused to cry.

Today had to be the suckiest day of her life. And she'd had some pretty sucky days lately, too. Acquiring a stalker, Trey breaking up with her, and her parents announcing their divorce—yup, sucky pretty much covered it. It was no wonder her night terrors had returned full force.

"What have you done with my underwear?" Her father's growl spilled into the kitchen, snuck under the refrigerator door, and bounced around the hot dogs.

His underwear? Kylie pressed a cold diet soda can to her forehead.

"Why would I do anything with your underwear?" her mother asked in her oh-so-nonchalant voice. That was her mom all right, nonchalant. Cold as ice.

Kylie's gaze shot out the kitchen window to the patio where she'd seen her mom earlier. There, a pair of her dad's tighty-whities dangled half out of the smoldering grill.

Just great. Her mother had barbecued her father's shorts. That's it. Kylie was never eating anything cooked on that grill again.

Fighting tears, she shoved the diet soda back on the rack, shut the fridge, and moved into the doorway. Maybe if they saw her, they'd stop acting like juveniles and let her be the kid again.

Her dad stood in the middle of the room, a pair of underwear clutched in his fist. Her mom sat on the sofa, calmly sipping hot tea.

"You need psychological help," her father yelled at her mom.

Two points for her dad, Kylie thought. Her mom did need help. So why was Kylie the one who had to sit on a shrink's sofa two days a week?

Why was her dad—the man everyone swore Kylie had wrapped around her little finger—going to move out today and leave her behind?

She didn't blame her dad for wanting to leave her mom, aka the Ice Queen. But why wasn't he taking Kylie with him? Another lump rose in her throat.

Dad swung around and saw her, then shot back into the bedroom, obviously to pack the rest of his things‚minus his underwear, which at this moment sent up smoke signals from the backyard grill.

Kylie stood there, staring at her mom, who sat reading over work files as if it were any other day.

The framed photographs of Kylie and her father that hung over the sofa caught her attention and tears stung her eyes. The pictures had been taken on their annual father and daughter trips.

"You've got to do something," Kylie pleaded.

"Do what?" her mom asked.

"Change his mind. Tell him you're sorry you grilled his shorts." That you're sorry you've got ice water running through your veins. "I don't give a flip what you do, just don't let him go."

"You don't understand." And just like that, her mom, void of any emotion, shifted her attention back to her papers.

Right then, her dad, suitcase in his hand, shot through the living room. Kylie went after him and followed him out the door into Houston's stifling afternoon heat.

"Take me with you," she begged, not caring if he saw her tears. Maybe the tears would help. There'd been a time when crying got her whatever she wanted from him. "I don't eat much," she sniffled, giving humor a shot.

He shook his head but, unlike her mom, at least he had emotion in his eyes. "You don't understand."

You don't understand. "Why do y'all always say that? I'm sixteen years old. If I don't understand, then explain it to me. Tell me the big secret and get it over with."

He stared down at his feet as if this were a test and he'd penned the answers on the toes of his shoes. Sighing, he looked up. "Your mom . . . she needs you."

"Needs me? Are you kidding? She doesn't even want me." And neither do you. The realization caused Kylie's breath to catch in her lungs. He really didn't want her.

She wiped a tear from her cheek and that's when she saw him again. Not her dad, but Soldier Dude, aka her very own stalker. Standing across the street, he wore the same army duds as before. He looked as if he'd just walked out of one of those Gulf War movies her mom loved. Only instead of shooting at things or being blown up, he stood frozen in one spot and stared right at Kylie with sad, yet very scary eyes.

She'd noticed him stalking her a few weeks ago. He'd never spoken to her and she hadn't spoken to him. But the day she pointed him out to her mom, and Mom hadn't seen him . . . well, that's when Kylie's world slid off its axis. Her mom thought she was making it up to get attention, or worse. With the worse being that Kylie was losing her grip on reality. Sure, the night terrors that had tormented her when she was a kid had returned, worse than ever. Her mom said the shrink could help her work through them, but how could she do that when Kylie didn't even remember them? She only knew they were bad. Bad enough to have her wake up screaming.

Kylie wanted to scream now. Wanted to scream for her dad to turn around and look—to prove that she hadn't lost her mind. At the very least, maybe if her dad actually saw her stalker, her parents would let her off from seeing the shrink. It wasn't fair.

But life wasn't fair, as her mom had reminded her more than once.

Nevertheless, when Kylie looked back, he was gone. Not Soldier Dude, but her dad. She turned toward the driveway and saw him shoving his suitcase in the backseat of his red convertible Mustang. Mom had never liked that car, but Dad loved it.

Kylie ran to the car. "I'll make Grandma talk to Mom. She'll fix . . ." No sooner had the words escaped Kylie's lips than she remembered the other major sucky event she'd had plopped into her life.

She couldn't run to Grandma to fix her problems anymore. Because Grandma was dead. Gone. The vision of Nana lying cold in the casket filled Kylie's head and another lump crawled up her throat.

Her dad's expression morphed into parental concern, the same look that had landed Kylie at the shrink's office three weeks ago.

"I'm fine. I just forgot." Because remembering hurt too much. She felt a lone tear roll down her cheek.

Dad moved in and hugged her. The embrace lasted even longer than his usual hugs, but it ended too soon. How could she let him go? How could he leave her?

His arm dropped from around her and he physically set her back. "I'm just a phone call away, Pumpkin."

Swiping at her tears, hating her watery weakness, she watched her dad's red convertible get smaller as it buzzed down the street. Wanting to be alone in her room, she started to run inside. Then she remembered and looked back across the street to see if Soldier Dude had pulled his usual disappearing act.

Nope. He was still there, staring, stalking. Scaring the bejeebies out of her and making her angry at the same time. He was the reason she had to see a shrink.

Then Mrs. Baker, her elderly neighbor, toddled out to get her mail. She smiled at Kylie but not once did the old librarian glance at Soldier Dude taking up residence on her front lawn, even when he stood less than two feet from her.

Weird.

So weird it sent an unnatural chill tiptoeing down Kylie's spine, the same kind of chill Kylie had gotten at Nana's funeral.

What the hell was going on?

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