Beautifully written, Marcus Sedgwick has an amazing talant. The book intrigued me and I couldn't stop reading. All of Marcus Sedgwick's books are just as good. however, this one does stand out because of the feelings, the atmosphere and the charecters he has suceeded in creating. Amazing.

Chloe gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I thought it was going to be good with all the has to find his father, but the story tottaly collapsed as he added vampires, Imortal men and Shadow queens. In short it was a really bad book. It was a disaster and a complete waste of my time. I feel sorry for the tree's used in this production.

Joshua gave The Kiss of Death 1 out of 5.

This book is a real mystery and if you like that sort of stuff than this is the book for you. This book is about a boy who is looking for his father and ends up with a girl who is looking for her dad who has gone missing and geuss what happens next.....

Karina gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read Scared to Death.

This book is good and the plot flows and keeps you resding, but the end is really boring.

Belinda gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5.

Kiss Of Death written by Marcus Sedgewick is set in Venice back in the 18th century. It is about a young boy named Marko who receives a letter from his supposedly dead father and goes off to Venice to find him. It is not until he meets a strange girl named Sorrel that he starts to realise that things may be different to what they seem...
I liked the Kiss Of Death because it is slightly different to many other books in which I have read. My favourite character however is Sorrel as she has to go through a lot and I believe that many people could in a way relate to her. The book is set for a teenage audience of both boys and girls and is filled with mystery and suspense. Although I liked the book very much I feel as if something was missing and I can’t quite put my finger on what it was. I felt like the ending was rather rushed and not as good as the rest of the book. Apart from that it was a very good book in which I would highly recommend.

Jenny gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5.

This book was a little hard to follow at parts but it was quite thriling and scary at parts! However i couldn't read all of it as it got more boring towards the middle. It may of made more sense if i had read my sword hand is singing. This book just wasn't realy my type!

Roshni gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

This is my second best book, the plot flows and you just can’t stop reading, but the ending is very boring. Marko’s father has gone missing in Venice, while he was there on business helping Sorrels father, who has got a disease which means he can’t sleep, which will eventually lead to his death. Marko and Sorrel try to find Marko’s father, accompanied by Peter who saved their lives twice. They discover a disturbing secret about the ‘Shadow Queen’ who rules over a group of vampires in Venice. Peter has been following her for many years, and she is responsible for the disappearance of Marko’s father.

Belinda gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

Personally I found the plot of this book very confusing but still it was a very good book I really liked the way the author described the settings in the story especially the buildings at the start it took me quite awhile to get into the pattern of what was happening it was only at the last 20 pages I realised what was happening it was let down by the plot as I had already said and some of it didn’t go into much description I would rate this book 7/10

Christopher gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5.

this was cool but not as cool as My swordhand is singing but Marcus Segwick always manages to make his books enthralling.

langa gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I looked at the front cover of the book and amideatlely thought, well that looks dull and boring, but in fact I was wrong. This book was the total opposite, which just goes to show, never judge a book by its cover. It was a fantastic read which I thoroughly enjoyed, and I didn't really mind the few faults I though the story had e.g.
It really rushed you into the storyline at the begining which left you thinking, hang on, whats happened there? This left you having to go back and reread paragraphs and chapters, but once you did fully understand what was going on, it was a really entertaining read. I also though that the death of the Shadow Queen went extremely quickly. I mean it only lasted the last 3 pages of the book which I think was really stupid. It should have gone into more detail in my opinion. Overall it was an extremely brilliant book, but went a little to fast for me. I shall definetely read more by Marcus Sedgwick though!!

Alex gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5.

This was one of my favourite books on the shortlist, it had a good storyline (though sometimes hard to follow) and characters, and was a great read. I couldn't put it down!

Daniel gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5.

With the kiss of death i got a bit confused the story line was a bit hard to follow but overall i really enjoyed the book i liked the way that the author wrote about all the different buildings and allyways and canals i really felt that i was actually there in venice and i was travelling through them, there were a few things that i didn't understand because i haven't read my swordhand is singing but overall i think this book waas really good and exiting!

Ella gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5.

This book is a thrilling and scary book I did not finish it even though I tried over and over again. It was just not my sort of book. I am not a fan of scary books but I would like to try this book again in a few years time. Of what I read was fantastic, it was really well written and had a great storyline(so far). I think Marko's character is friendly and suspicious. I suppose after living in the country for many years going to another country would be quite a suprise.

Harriet gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I thought Kiss of Death was a good book, the plot made a lot of sense and the story worked well, I thinki it is a possible winner but not a major threat. It had little chance for the characters to really develop but provided both suspense and an interesting ending.

Darren gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

'I have only one wish now...one desire. I want to be near you. I wan, I need, to reach out to you across the dark water that divides us and touch you. I want to be close to you once again. Surely you can let me get close to you one last ti,e? You owe me that, and you can't be afraid of me, why not let me come and see you?...'

I really like this letter!!!! The book was awesome, and the letter at the beginning instantly drew me in! I thought it was quite well written, and i would recommend it to any of my friends!

Rhiannon gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5.

Leeds Book Awards Book Review- Kiss of Death Plot I loved the plot of the Kiss of Death; I thought it was exciting and original and I enjoyed the surprises and tense parts of the storyline. Moreover, I think that maybe, with the ace and unique storyline that the author could’ve dragged the plot out a bit more to make several books about the Shadow Queen and Sorrel and Marko. (Loads of people were saying that the plot was hard to follow but they’re all just copying each other’s reviews! Don’t they have any of their own, different opinions?) Anyway, the setting: 1600s Venice was a really interesting and original idea, and I really liked it. Overall, the plot was great; no loose ends of the story unsolved; easy to follow and great action and suspense and happy bits too! Characterisation The characters in the book were very believable and real. In particular, I liked the way that Sorrel (a girl in the story) was sad at first as a result of all that had happened to her, but opened up more as the story went on. I also liked the old man with the sword because he was mysterious and interesting. I think the personalities and features of the characters were told really well. Writing Style Again like everything else, the writing style was really good; descriptively told, but in a clear way! This was nice to find because with some other books, the writing style wasn’t very detailed or descriptive; but I enjoyed reading this book partly because of the great writing style! Well done author! Final Comments So, no surprises, but yes, I really did enjoy this book; I liked the setting, the characters, plot and writing style although as said earlier, I think maybe he author should’ve made the book into like a sort of chronology of books about what “Kiss of Death” was about. Despite this, the book was great and I will be voting for it for the Leeds Book Awards! Marks out of 20: 19

Clare gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5.

it was a very confusing plot and a ver week story, coud not finish it

Emma gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

It was quite confusing at the start but as I got into it,I began to understand what was happening.overall it was a good book.

Jess gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

A very boring start and finish in my opinian, with no twists or shocks in the book. Not my taste ...

Sonia gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

This was a great book but had a let down because it didn't tell me how the shadow queen died-Detailed.

Lizzy gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I think that this book is great and keeps you thinking. Although i didn't like it much, i still think that it was fantastic and enjoyable to read.

Will gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

This was a very well written book and I understood the characters really well. I was just a bit disappointed at the start as it took a long time for me to get into the story, but overall it’s really worth reading.

Georgi gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5.

I wasn’t too keen on this book because the plot was too hard to follow. It was beautifully written but hard to follow and I didn’t feel the characters were quite real enough so I found it hard to step into their shoes. The only character I could vaguely relate to was Sorrel but even then she didn’t seem quite real enough.
I did quite like that the book wasn’t too predictable so it kept you guessing what was going to happen. I think that you need to be very imaginative to read this book and enjoy, so you could create your own version of the feebly described characters and settings.

Ellie gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5.

boring

Beverley gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

it was a very hard book to follow, but the stroy plot was good and syimple

emma gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

The Kiss of Death is a great book. It only takes a couple of lines for you to be hooked onto it. I couldn't stop reading. This is a truly magnificent book. The storyline is clearly well thought out, and planned with great detail. I would happily read this book again anytime.

Georgina gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

It was good but I didn't understand occasional areas. Overall it was good.

Ann-Marie gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

Personally, I really didn't enjoy this book. It seemed to lack structure and I couldn't find a plot to follow. The author didn't create 'real' enough characters for me, so I also found this book a little boring and, unlike some people, I wasn't on the edge of my seat. Part of my opinion s formed by the fact that I don't enjoy books of this genre, but I really couldn't follow the words on the page because they didn't make sense(or perhaps that just happens when you are reading late at night!). I didn't feel any emotion whilst reading this book. If the characters had been better described I might have felt empathy and really wanted to know what happens next.

HOWEVER - I would recomend that anybody reading this book for the first time approaches it with an open mind and gives it a chance. I didn't do this because I already have a favourite on the shortlist(the book i nominated!) and nothing could change my opinion. The title might seem a little scary but I think you need to get past that and into the book. I think you need to be in an imaginative mood when reading this book - picture the characters and settings.

Tonicha gave The Kiss of Death 1 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

Slow and mysterious start left me uninterested and frustrated; 15-page predictable ending; link to potion selling on stalls in street that never really linked to anything. This is why I gave it a 3/5 score. However it did have a decent story and characters were good and the book was well written. I think this would appeal to some readers than to others. It's just not the sort of book I like to read.

Sam gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Scared to Death.

I thought this was an awesome book, it was beautifuly written and the plot was really interesting and inriguing. It flowed really well and I liked the way it sort of had two stories being told at the same time, one within the other. The characters were brilliantly described and you could really imagine yourself in the book. The only promlem is it has put me off visiting Venice forever!

Maddy gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5.

This book was ok it had a good and tense story line however it was quite weird because of all the strange characters and sometimes the plot got a little confusing.Overall the book was readable but i believe it should be a bit confusing.

Stephen gave The Kiss of Death 3 out of 5 and now plans to read Invisible City.

Many stories in one, usually i enjoy spooky and mysterious genres but this was very morbid.

sophie gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I gave this book a 2/5 as I did not like it. It was strange and had unexpected little twists that mixed with fairytale withches and heroes. It was strange that a women was making someone from the same household every century mad and taking their power. It was weird they made hypnotized people think that they were vampires with glass teeth.
It had an unexpected ending were the hero and the witch died.

Steven gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I thought this book was fantastic and extremely well written and it flowed beautifully. The storyline was awesom and the characters described beautifully completely un-put-down-able!!

Zoe gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

This isn't the type of book i like to read, so unfortunately I didn't read all of the book. I found that from the beginning the story jumped from place to place and was very complex to understand.

Hannah gave The Kiss of Death 1 out of 5 and now plans to read Blood Ties.

I think the author really builds up suspense and it had a really good plot but I think it had some really confusing parts e.g. the extra stories I didn't understand but eventually it all added up.

Manisha gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5.

It was ok itn wasn't really my sort of book and a bit wordie it also dragged on a bit

Eloise gave The Kiss of Death 2 out of 5.

it is a wonderful writen book to read and you just feel that you can't put it down.

Melissa gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

Marcus sedgwick may be a good author but I thought his book lacked any intresting Qualities.The words are not very intresting.this was absolutly brainhurtidly boring.
If You like Long words that nobody at the age of 12 has ever heard of or you like boring long paragraphed books i reccomend you read this book

Tomas gave The Kiss of Death 1 out of 5 and now plans to read Scared to Death.

The way that this book was written made it mysterious and easy to get into after the first 50 pages or so. It also has a good story which also gets you into it. It is the kind of book that I would normally read- vampires and supernatural stuff!!! Is a beautifully written story which is very good, but in my opinion it isn't as good as the declaration and blood ties.

Rianne gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5.

Marcus Sedgwick is a brilliant author and I was really looking forward to this book. Having read "My swordhand is singing" when it was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal, I was full of hope for this second story featuring Peter and I wasn't disappointed. The cover of the book was as enticing as the cover of the first too. It's an unusual sequel with Peter being much older and, because of this, it means that you can read this as a story on its own. However, I think you would get much more out of it if you have read the first book. Having visited Venice last year, the author evokes the atmosphere of this wonderful city so well and I could really imagine all the little alleyways, canals and buildings. A great plot, believable characters and a stunning setting - what more could you ask? Do you think the ending gave us the hope of a third book?

Mrs O gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

The Kiss Of Death is wrote absolutely beautifuly, in my opinion and I love the way Marcus Sedwick writes. He has set out this book fabulously and completely great. I love how he tells the story of the shadow queen and builds up loads of suspence. Great!

Charlotte gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read Invisible City.

The book was fantastic if you like mystery then this is the book for you. Its about a boy whos father has gone missing and he goes and searches to see if he can find his father and take him home but on the way he meets a woman who is also a daughter of his dads who lives in a creepy house and helps the boy to find their father but they are in italy and there is no help from the police as if you were caught asking the police then................. you will have to read the rest to find out what happens.

Karina gave The Kiss of Death 5 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

I THINK THE STORY WAS GOOD. THE AUTHOR BUILDS UP SUSPENSION BY TELLING THE STORY OF THE SHADOW QUEEN IN PARTS

AZHAR gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.

I did enjoy this book but at times it could be quite depressing. It follows the journey of a boy called Marco to find his dad. He meets an unusual old man and a grumpy girl. It is written really well and is very descriptive. You feel like you are part of the story and I would recommend this to my friends.

Emily gave The Kiss of Death 4 out of 5 and now plans to read The Declaration.