Tiger's Curse

Gr 9 Up—Many years ago, two Indian princes fell in love with the same woman. Her sorcerer father took advantage of the brothers' rivalry to gain control of the magical amulets they possessed. The girl was killed, and the brothers were transformed into tigers. More than 300 years later, Kelsey, an American orphan who has just graduated from high school, takes a temporary job working with a circus. There, she develops an inexplicable bond with a white tiger named Ren, and she is asked to accompany him to a wildlife preserve in India. There he transforms into a handsome young man and reveals that only Kelsey can help break the curse he is under. She must embark upon a journey where she is in danger of losing her heart, her life, or both. Houck has clearly done a great deal of research on Indian culture, and she is adept at including details that allow readers to understand the story's setting. Unfortunately, that detail is too elaborate in many places and bogs down the Indiana Jones-esque action. Also, the characters are flat, with little nuanced behavior or dialogue; for example, Ren is a 300-year-old prince, and yet based on his behavior he is indistinguishable from a modern American teenager. Kelsey's redeeming character component is that she is self-aware and reluctant to succumb completely to Ren's eager romantic advances. Twilight (Little, Brown, 2005) fans will appreciate the supernatural, star-crossed romance.—Heather M. Campbell, formerly at Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO