One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake Book Review

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As many of you know, I am a fan of author Kendare Blake. I interviewed her on my YouTube channel, and she was beyond nice and welcoming. When I found out she was going to release book two of her Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, I couldn’t wait to read it. As soon as I saw her post about getting ARCs of One Girl in All the World, I messaged her on Instagram. She replied, sent me an ARC, and even included a personalized note wishing me luck in my upcoming semester at Harvard. I could not wait to do my One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake Book Review for you all!

One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake Book Review — Have you read anything by Kendare Blake?

I was a little hesitant about reading book two because I enjoyed book one. I never really know how the second book in a series will be. Thankfully, as soon as I started reading One Girl in All the World, I was reminded why I love Blake’s writing style so much. She pulled me head first into this story, and I couldn’t put it down. In book two, we again meet Frankie Rosenberg, Willow’s slayer-witch daughter. Frankie struggles to find her voice as the world’s newest slayer while everyone around her is still reeling from Buffy’s death.

The memory of the explosion at the annual slayer retreat haunts Spike more than he cares to admit. However, when more familiar demons start arriving in Sunnydale, Frankie and the Scoobies (as she calls her best friends: Hailey, Sigmund, and Jake) band back together for this new fight. They are right there beside Frankie, Willow, Oz, and Spike, prepared to battle and figure out what is attracting demons to the town again– demons that Buffy and the others once defeated.

When familiar faces return, Frankie and the Scoobies start to dig deeper into all these new demon appearances, learning that the Hellmouth is no longer dormant. Sigmund puts all his efforts into researching who or what is behind this recent activity, leaving little time for Hailey. Jake struggles to convince Oz to allow him to harness his inner wolf. Meanwhile, Frankie has a lot on her mind when Grim returns and starts to stir feelings between them.

But can Frankie keep her Scoobies together while figuring out who is responsible for trying to reopen the Hellmouth? Better yet, can Willow, Spike, and Oz build this new generation into a team as strong as they were with Buffy? And perhaps the most alluring question is: Will Buffy return to Sunnydale? Find out when you read One Girl in All the World!

One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake

Genre: Fiction/ YA/ Fantasy

One Girl in All the World tells the story of Frankie. We pick up back in Sunnydale where the team of Scoobies must ban together to face an all-new threat.

Review

Rating

Overall, I enjoyed the second book in Kendare Blake’s novel. True to Buffy, it was fast-paced with excellent plotting and had twists I enjoyed. The book kept me turning the pages as quickly as I could read. There were no areas in the book I felt slowed down with the storytelling. Every page had quick wit dialogue and captured the personalities of the six main characters in this book. It is not easy to do either. At first, I thought there were way too many characters (Frankie, Hailey, Sigmund, Spike, Oz, Willow, and, let’s not forget, Sarafina). But Blake pulled it off. I felt like I was right there beside each character the whole time.

heyitscarlyrae with one girl in all the world — Get your copy on Amazon!

The plotting and Buffy vibes were also great. I am extremely picky with books (especially YA with a touch of fantasy). I like reading books where the plot doesn’t feel like it’s been done a hundred times. With the Buffy backdrop in the story, it easily could have been overdone, but it wasn’t. Yes, Blake brought demons into the plot, and we met in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This twist could have easily turned out to be something that didn’t work and felt like a carbon copy of Buffy.

However, how Blake introduced these familiar demons felt truly original. The authenticity of how they were interwoven into the storyline while keeping the voices of Willow, Oz, and Spike true to their characters in the series was great. It was one of my favorite parts. I also enjoyed the plotting of the mystery of who wanted the Hellmouth reopened. The secrecy of the “bad guy” was not kept a secret until the end, but I enjoyed how the person was discovered.

The ending was the only reason I’m not giving this book a 5-star rating. I wanted to see more resolution between Sigmund and Hailey. There was also no resolution for the hell dimension in which Buffy was kept. If we got a few more pages, it would’ve been a satisfying ending to this book. However, if there is a book three coming, I can see why this book ended the way it did.

What do you think of my One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake Book Review?

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