Book Review : Twelve by Jasper Kent.

Rating:
3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: 

Autumn, 1812. Napolean's triumphant grande Armee continues it's relentless march into Russia. City after city has fallen and now only a miracle can keep the french from taking Moscow itself.
In a last desperate act of defiance, a group of Russian officers enlist the help of twelv mercebarues who claim they can turn the tide of the war. It seems an impossible boast but it soon becomes clear that these strangers from the outer reaches of christian europe are indeed quite capable of fulfilling their promise... and more.

But the fact that so few seem able to accomplish so much unsettles one of the Russians, Captain Aleksei Ivanovich danilov. As Winer closes in, he beings to comprehend the true, horrific natire of the twelve and the nightmare he has unwittingly helped to unleash...

My Review.
This book was given to me and to be reviewed for the Transworld Book club.
This was a book I wanted to read for a while after catching it on a BBC TV show about books that are bought in read in Airports, which was part of a series for World Book Night. Vampres and Historical fiction. What more could Catwoman ask for?

I struggled with this book to begin with. It was slow. I struggled to get any feel for the characters apart from the man character who I didn't particularly like. As for the vampires. A little more discription would have helped.  For the first 200 pages I could barely read 20 pages a time. I physically groaned picking up the book hoping at some point it would actually kick start with something interesting and if it wasn't for that the fact I was given the book to review I would have put it back on the shelf. But if you are thinkig about getting this book. I would recommend but with the advice to persevere!!! IT DOES GET BETTER! The ending has a fantastic twists which does leave it nicely for the next in the series.

Overall the second half of the book is good and I will at some point pick up the second hoping it doesn't start like the first.