Wow. This was perfect in every way. It had action, romance, vampires, demons, I mean what more could you ask for?  

It was a little slow at the beginning but I was quickly drawn in. The plot was great! The chemistry between the characters was insane. I loved everything about the book~
For someone like myself who hasn't watched anything of Buffy, it was easy to understand what was happening. 

I just wish there was a little more world building.  There were so many questions left unanswered, I feel like there was a HUGE cliffhanger... BUT I cannot wait to read more! This is definitely a book you have to read, whether you've watched the show or not. I highly recommend it!

Reading Slayer was such a fun experience! I was transported back to Buffy's world and didn't want to leave. White did an excellent job of bringing back the old while simultaneously mixing in the new.

If you're a fan of Buffy this is a MUST read. And if you're sitting there going "what, who is Buffy?" please kindly turn to your Netflix account and begin your binge watch. You definitely have enough time to watch it all before Slayer comes out in January.

***I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley*** As a long time fan of Buffy The Vampire Slayer - getting the opportunity to read anything new within that universe, is a gift. I liked this book... I wanted to love it - but it just felt flat throughout, even with the wonderful Buffy references. It follows the newest slayer - who I had me hooked on her voice as a character. The writing was well done, and each chapter kept pushing us forward to the epic climax of the story. A well rounded plot, paced well with action and exposition, so as a reader you didn’t get worn out one way or the other - some sensitive moments, plenty of action filled heart pounding parts. All in all, a good buy for anyone who was a fan of BTVS or who loves a kick-ass heroine. Those women - save the world a lot.

I haven't interacted with anything Buffy related since the series was cancelled, and really looked forward to reading this. The only real downside was that this book took place in the same extended universe as the Buffy comics, which I haven't read since I'd heard they were so bad. Much of the plot focuses on events not in the tv series, such as magic vanishing, and Buffy being an outcast from the defeated watchers, which was confusing to say the least. There wasn't any "here's what you missed" prologue which would have helped immensely. However, most of what I didn't understand I was able to google, and catch up on without reading any of the comics, so if you're willing to do some homework to catch up, you'll be just fine.
The plot was pretty entertaining and easy to follow. Nina is likable, and I liked the link between her and Buffy's first watcher, or that her first watcher was even remembered. Buffy fans will likely enjoy this book, and it gets nowhere near as crazy as the summaries for the comics I've read.

Long before Buffy was the cultural icon of today, she was a cheerleader at Hemery High who was plagued by strange nightmares in Los Angeles. A strange man appeared: he introduced himself as Merrick, he called himself a Watcher and trained her to fight vampires. He also died to keep Buffy safe, and his death drove Buffy to fight the ancient vampire Lothos and prevail.. Afterwards, Buffy and her mother move to Sunnydale and her story begins anew - new friends, new watcher, new vampires.

But for some, the story lies in the old, not the new. Merrick had a family - a wife and twin daughters. His girls knew of Buffy - and they did not see her as a heroine. They see the girl who didn't save him, the girl who broke their world and later even the world of magic. Slayer is their story.

Meet Athena aka Nina the girl who hates Buffy more than anyone else in the world. She's been raised by what's left of the Watcher Council. She's trained to heal. Her sister Artemis trained to fight. When Buffy destroys the Seed of Wonder (the source of all magic on Earth), Nina is zapped by demonic energy and becomes the last Slayer. Suddenly, Nina is facing life and death decisions that her upbringing has not prepared her to answer. She will need to figure out what's happening in the demon underground, who to trust and who to lie to. And if her life wasn't complicated enough, there's a prophecy that she will destroy the world.

Slayer was an interesting addition to the BTVS lore. At first I found it a little difficult to get behind Nina because her view of Buffy was so opposite to my own (having grown up watching the series), but as Nina grew in her powers, her perspective began to change and she was much more likable.

Title: Slayer
Author: Kiersten White
Pages: 416

Released: January 8 2019
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Format: Hardgrave

Genre: Supernatural
Goodreads Rating: 3.84 (of 56 ratings)

Disclaimer: I received this ARC courtesy of Simon Pulse and NetGalley. I am grateful for the opportunity to review an ARC for my readers, but this will not influence my final rating. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and based solely on the book. 

I imagine the drafting process for this novel included a meeting somewhat like this: "Kiersten. You must now make a choice. For Slayer, will you target A) readers who have only watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer or B) readers who have watched BtVS and read the comics or C) the readers who make up your dedicated fanbase but have not touched any Buffy-based media?" And Kiersten White said, "Why not all of them?"

Slayer accommodates new and old Buffy fans alike, but not without a few bumps in the road.  I'm well-versed in all things Buffy seasons one to seven, and White condensed the main facts — why vampires are major icksters, how Buffy got to be the icon she is today, what the heck a slayer is — quite well. I never read the comics, but I got all the important facts as well: Seed of Wonder, no more magic, okay, yes, alright. The issue became less "wait, what does that mean" and more "okay, but can this version actually start?" White spends almost 30% of the book explaining who is who, what is what, and why everything is happening.  The first third of the book is so heavy on info-dumps I started scrolling forwards, eager for the action to begin. Main character Athena (Nina)'s actual actions feel drowned out by the many times she "pauses" to give information to the reader. Considering I skimmed several of these pages, and still understand the entirety of the book, I believe a lot of this info was unnecessary and just weighed down on the plot.

Once I broke through what I loosely refer to as the "introductory section," though, I was hooked. Nina's character arc focuses on understanding her role as slayer: what it means within her family and what it means in relation to Buffy and the many other Chosen Ones. I love that in Slayer, Nine knows about the world of Slayers, that she has seen everything they can do, before she realizes she will be part of that world as well. Not to mention Nina has trained her entire life as a nurse -- as a Slayer, she must fight her instincts to heal. White brought up several points about decisions and how we make them and ... just the scene with Cillian and the decision Nina makes. That scene. If you know, you know. Putting Nina's two worlds up against each other makes for such an interesting read and exploration of Slayer identity!

There are moments in this book for die-hard Buffy fans. No, do not expect Buffy to walk in and start strutting around. This is Nina's story. But there are fun parallels to Buffy's own Slayer journey. Not to mention how amazing the fight scenes were. I swear I was watching a Buffy episode in my mind. White wrote the absolute best fight scenes in this book. They felt so true to BtVS with the moves, the quick thinking, and the inventiveness.

The characters. There are definitely standouts in this book. I liked Nina for her journey and willingness to be herself, even if everyone else (literally, everyone) had already made up their minds on who she should be. A demon comes in later who is the absolute best and so much comedic relief and again: so much BtVS feels. For the most part, Nina and Artemis' relationship was the strong sibling bond we love to see in our books. Rhys and Cillian were good, I just wish they had more page time! As for other characters, well, let's just say there is so much duplicity I don't even know who is who or who to like or what was what. Despite that long intro?

RATING

I'm awarding this book 3.5 crowns. The beginning was just so hard to get into. I put it down three times at the start because the writing was so dry. Then after that "introductory section" it was almost as though a whole other author was in charge and I was flowing forwards with crazy action scenes, witty humour, and so much character enjoyment. Yes, I recommend, but do be aware the beginning takes a moment. 

Review posting on blog (https://bookprincessreviews.wordpress.com/): January 7 2019
Review posting on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2542048524): January 7 2019

As a long time Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan I wanted to love Slayer but sadly it was just ok. That being said I enjoyed the Buffy references as well as the twists that started emerging later in the book. It just fell a little flat over all and had me wishing it had been more.