The Dusk Society

The eponymous society is a team of scientific and spiritual masters, formed in the early 20th century to combat a dark sorcerer conveniently named Pierceblood, just in case you forget he's the villain. Working with Pierceblood is a team of classic literary villains, including Frankenstein's monster and Dracula. The story takes place in the modern era at a smalltown high school and focuses on four students. Barbara, Nick, Ronnie, and Ishita%E2%80%94a psychic, a hacker, a slacker, and a chemistry whiz, respectively%E2%80%94are chosen by a mysterious Dusk Society recruiter, Miss Raven, to fight against Pierceblood. Ishita is the only memorable one in the bunch thanks to her quirky personality; the rest feel like the sort of cookie-cutter teen personalities you see in educational videos. In fact, the story's tone has an air of middle school library fiction. What's worse is that the all-star cast is never used effectively, with Dracula and the monster barely getting any face time. On the bright side, Kumar's artwork is enjoyable, and the characters are likable in spite of their flatness. Tweens stuck on a long car ride may find this serviceable fare. (June)