Book Review- Claire de Lune

I just finished reading Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson for an Around the World Tour.

From Christine Johnson's website:

Hanover Falls hasn’t had a werewolf problem in over one hundred years. Seattle, Copenhagen, Osaka–they’ve had plenty of attacks. But when humans begin dying in Claire Benoit’s town, the panic spreads faster than a rumor at a pep rally. At Claire’s sixteenth birthday party, the gruesome killings are all anyone can talk about. But the big news in Claire’s mind is the fact that Matthew Engle–high-school soccer god and son of a world-renowned lycanthropy expert–notices her. And flirts with her. A lot.

That night, Claire learns that she is the latest in a long line of Benoit werewolves, and that contrary to popular belief, all werewolves are female. Killing humans is forbidden by the code of the pack, but a rogue werewolf has been breaking that law, threatening the existence of Claire’s new pack. As the pack struggles to find and fight the rogue werewolf and Claire struggles with her lupine identity, her heart and her loyalties are torn in two. Claire must keep her new life a secret from even her best friend–and especially from Matthew, whose father is leading the werewolf hunt…and with whom Claire is impossibly and undeniably falling head-over-paws in love.

While I have seen this book on many blogger's WoW posts or Wish List posts, I hadn't read any reviews of the book so I went in reading the story with no idea of what it would be like.  And that was kind of refreshing for a change.

There wasn't too much action in this book--mostly just little snippets at the beginning of some chapters and towards the end.  I definitely think its a book driven by characters. There is some suspense and wonder who the rogue werewolf is, but it's mostly about how Claire deals with learning about her future as a werewolf and about dealing with a first love.  I really liked both Claire and her boyfriend, Matthew.  They both seemed like such real teenagers. 

When you get to the end of the book, there is two ways that the story could go.  One that would be heartbreaking and one that would be a happily-ever-after.  I won't give away what happens, but I like the choice that the author made.

I gave this book a rating of 3.5/5.

Claire de Lune will be released on May 18, 2010.

This book fulfills items in the following challenges:
2010 100+ Reading Challenge: 21
2010 Young Adult Reading Challenge: 16
2010 Debut Author Challenge: 7
TwentyTen Reading Challenge: Who Are You Again? #2
ARC Reading Challenge 2010: 15

*FTC Disclosure: I was given this book for free for an honest review as part of the Around the World Tours.