
Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Hero archetypes
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Synopsis
When August’s brother disappears before his sophomore semester, everyone thinks the stress of college got to him. But August knows her brother would never have left her voluntarily, especially not after their mother so recently went missing. The only clue he left behind was a note telling her to stay safe and protect their remaining family. And after August is attacked by a ten-foot-tall creature with fur and claws, she realizes that her brother might be in more danger than she could have imagined. Unfortunately for her, the only person with a connection to the mysterious creature is the bookish Virgil Hawthorne…and he knows about them because he is one. If he doesn’t find a partner to help control his true nature, he’ll lose his humanity and become a mindless beast—exactly what the secret society he’s grown up in would love to put down. Virgil makes a proposition: August will join his society and partner with him, and in return, he’ll help her find her brother. And so August is plunged into a deadly competition to win one of the few coveted candidate spots, all while trying to accept a frightening reality: that monsters are real, and she has to learn to master them if she’s to have any hope of saving her brother.
Is Mastery of Monsters appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 14 and up.
Teen fantasy with moderate monster violence and horror elements. Features a girl searching for her missing brother while navigating a secret society of people who transform into beasts. Contains action sequences with ten-foot creatures and themes of family loss.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include death of parent, violence, and abandonment (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Teens will be drawn to the mystery of the missing brother, the dangerous competition, and the partnership with someone who transforms into a monster.