Review: The Demon Catchers of Milan

The Demon Catchers of Milan
by Kat Beyer
Published August 28th 2012
by EgmontUSA
ARC from Netgalley

Summary from Goodreads:

Mia's ordinary life is disrupted in the most horrifying way possible when she is possessed by a hungry and powerful demon--and only saved by the arrival of relatives from Italy, the country her grandfather fled many decades ago. Now her cousins Emilio and Giuliano say the only way to keep her safe is for her to come back with them to Milan, to live, to learn Italian, to fall in and out of love, and to master the family trade: fighting all demons with the lore of bell, book, and candle. Milan is not what Mia expected, but it will change her forever, in this stunningly well-written novel about an American girl who, fleeing an ancient evil, finds her only salvation in her ancestral home.

Thoughts:
I immediately jumped at the chance to read this when I find out that the story is about a family of demon catchers set in Milan. And the first chapter just jumped right into the action when Mia is unwittingly possessed by a mysterious powerful demon for four days until her relatives from Italy came to rescue her with their demon fighting skills.

I would have very much preferred if the story focussed more on that very aspect but sadly the book is more about Mia adapting to living with her relatives in Milan rather than becoming this awesome demon catcher. It become very tiresome to read when all she did is learning Italian, eating  and making some Italian food and ogling that unattainable gorgeous Italian cousin who already has a girlfriend by the way.

And as much as I love the Milan setting, it is kind of wasted here since Mia is coped up in the house as she is forbidden to go out for fear that the demon will returned and possessed her once again. And the demon fighting skills is kind of lame in my opinion. It consists mainly of standing around, chanting and ringing bells for a long long time.

Nothing gets resolved in the end which is kind of surprising because I expected Mia to learn how to properly banished the demon who is hunting her. So instead of an epic showdown between the Del Torres family and the powerful demon pursuing Mia, we get some mildly creepy encounter with a tragic ghost and a history and culture lesson about Italy.

Verdict: 2 stars.
Available on: Amazon