SLAY
by Kim Curran
Publisher – Usborne Publishing
Release Date – May 3rd 2018
Buy – Amazon | Book DepositoryMeet SLAY – SLAY do two things and they do them well: they play killer music and they slay killer demons.
When Milly, the lonely daughter of a world-famous opera singer, arrives home to discover that her mum has been taken over by something very evil, she finds herself in mortal danger. But the last people she expects to rescue her are the hottest boy band on the planet…
Enter SLAY: playing kickass gigs in the spotlight, and saving the world from demons in the shadows… Suddenly, Milly’s on the road with JD, Tom, Niv, Zek and Connor, racing against the clock to stop the demons who killed her mum… One thing’s for sure, it’s going to be a hell of a show!
When I first heard about this book it was pitched as “If you love Buffy…then you’ll love this”. It had me written all of this book. Slay kind of bashes all of the best things about demon hunting, history combined with music, hit boy-bands with an array of characters to boot.
Slay follows Milly, a young girl who’s overshadowed by her famous mum, an oprea singer. So after they move to LA for her career, Milly, feels very disconnected from the life she once had in another country. One night she stumbles in on her mums manager, summoning a demon into her mother. It’s not until badass demon-hunters smash her door down that she knows she’s in a whole heap of trouble and danger. SLAY brings together the lost boys of society, their vocals only as a cover for what they really do to fight back against the demons that have been spilling through the crack of the Neatherland and one particular Demon, the Big T wants to bring the demon world crashing onto the humans and Slay needs to stop them.
Slay was born! But where does Milly fit, she’s there to find her mum and be rid of the thing living inside of her. She finds herself conflicted with emotions for her mum, how should she take Slay, what is really happening between her and JD? All these questions and no answers. Milly struggles to find herself, she’s been locked away in this luxury with her mum that she honestly doesn’t know what her life will take her? She’s lost and SLAY might be the only way to finally answer those questions. That’s what I loved about this book, the demon-kicking and heroics is the fun side of the story that only touches the surface of the book. There is so much more at the root of it. SLAY are a family, finding trust, solace, friendship, and a place to be truly themselves and Milly is in the perfect place to be.
I’d say this is one book band that you wish was real because they have the right amount of personality to make it, their persona really shines through the book. So we have the broody leader of the pack, JD who instantly reminded me of Angel in Buffy. Niv and Zek twin brothers, one is a silent partner and the other is certainly loud enough for the both of them, quite the comedians in their own way. Milly really identified with Zek. I loved how Kim incorporated sign language with the fluency and familial connection he has with Milly and the band. She adds a texture to their friendships, even if they appear different they are more connected than you know. Tom is the poster boy of the group, the one that all the girls fall for, but behind that, he is so down to earth and has such empathy with people, I think that’s why he great at interviews and including Milly as part of the group. Last but no means least is Connor, you find him quite the surprise, a moody band member between stupid and smart. He’s unafraid of blurting whatever comes to mind. Other characters like Gail, the manager of the group who is kickass and strong even if she does have one leg and one eye and Diaz, who is basically the Giles of the story they really made the story come together.
“What? Oh, no, I much prefer my books. In fact I am going to go home and consult them.”
Kick-ass, funny, laugh-out-loud book about a boy band that slays demons! It’s classic cheesiness and that’s the best thing about it. Slay is one of those that is like guilty pleasure with a mixture of Mission Impossible action and gadgets, with the twist and badass of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Rating – ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to Usborne for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.
