Many teenagers' worries involve grades, sweethearts, and their successes or failures in extra-curricular activities. Not so for Chance Fortunato, unless peddling under-the-table black magick counts as an extra-curricular activity. "Apprenticed" (sold to) to a demon at a young age, he's more worried about incurring his master's wrath and the state of his soul than whether he'll "make the team".

The Demon's Apprentice is a fast-paced, first person perspective urban fantasy adventure. The main character, Chance, is well-developed and I had no difficulty understanding (and cheering for) the choices he makes.

Chance's struggle against being defined by machinations, prejudices and assumptions of others is reminiscent of the a similar challenge of self-determination everyone faces in their life. With Chance, it is dramatically complicated by demons, mages and sorcerers all of whom want their share of his hide--preferably decorating their trophy wall.

The main character faces and overcomes challenges himself. Ben Reeder avoids the "...and someone swoops in at the last and saves them all." trap, a pitfall that many young adult fiction novels fall victim to.

The antagonists have plausible motivations--once we learn what those motivations are. They each stand out as distinct characters with their own reasons for doing what they've do. However, I think I'd enjoy the book even more if we saw more than just their primary agendas.

I have the same concern about the supporting characters. Reeder succeeds in making each of the supporting characters distinct and believable, but I'd love to know more about them. Admittedly, this is a first person story, so there's limits to what we can learn. I'm hoping for a sequel that offers us opportunity to get to know them (at least, those that survive) better!

If you enjoy urban fantasy, where the magical meets, mixes with, and makes vain attempts at hiding from the mundane so-called "real" world, you'll enjoy this book.

Despite being enslaved/apprenticed to a demon, Chance Fortunato is an intelligent and likeable kid, not at all corrupted by his connection to his demon master (a bit jaded and cynical, perhaps, but definitely still a good kid).

His father - as detestable from the get-go, as Chance is likeable - gave Chance at the tender age of 7 to the demon. Like any normal human, he chafes at his enslavement and wants very much to escape. With a very simple plan in mind, Chance bides his time until he can use Dulka's own method of gaining power against him.

However, a fast-paced escape from his demon master is just the beginning of Chance's adventure. Reunited with his mom, and getting to know the sister he never met, he tries to settle into a normal life. Of course, nothing can ever be normal again once a person has been involved with demons. ;)

Naturally all hell (har har) breaks loose when a teacher at his high school is murdered, and Chance is at the center of it.

I won't continue to recount the plot, but rather share my thoughts on the story.

It's funny that I liked this so much, because male main characters and super kick-ass action is not generally my cup of tea. But I was definitely up for a change of pace after reading far too many YAs that I DNFed lately... Maybe because they are all too similar?

The main character here is definitely a pleasure to get to know, because he is determined to break free from his enslavement. He has a sharp mind and wit, and he is proud without being arrogant. The story is perfectly paced: a good balance of narration, dialogue and action.

"The Demon's Apprentice" certainly is *not* like anything that is popular in YA these days and, by virtue of that, I think it will gain many, many more fans.

I bought all four books together so if you see this same review for each, please forgive! But honestly, this book was a lot of fun to read. Great character to follow, right from the start. Chance Fortunato is simultaneously tough yet fragile, funny but sensitive, determined but still prone to self-doubt. Basically, he's a great portrayal of a teen who is figuring out how to move forward in life, despite some serious trauma. Oh yeah, and don't forget the distracting effects of hormones on a teen boy. How it plays out to serve the storyline, from its impact on his relationships to how it drives his choices is really well done. There might be a little over-reliance on where people fall out on the character spectrum (outsiders/goths = good, elitist conformists = bad), but the mystery-solving and overall narrative makes up for it. From a fantasy perspective, the magic system and how it's brought to life is well done, and shows a great awareness of global traditions. Ultimately, I'd call this a page turner, and I really, really look forward to the next installment.

Although starting a bit dark, a steady road to a better life for the young MC. Good writing, characters and plot. Will keep reading though the series.

A recylced version of the teenage supernatural genre where our main character goes to a new school trying to start a new life only to get dragged into the world he ran away from. Throw in demons with issues, a bunch of wizards who think they are crusaders, a rogue werewolf pack and you got yourself the gist of the book. I don't mind the whole warlock thing as it is a nice change in plot for all the other stories I have read that revolved around high school and the main character being magical. What I do mind is that there is no clear picture of what our main guy is capable of. He's a warlock trained by a duke of hell great. But you would think as a warlock he would have some more things to make him seem more impressive besides making charms, a couple infernal spells which seems all he has in offensive magic and a couple other knick knacks that don't seem to do much. I understand there are more books and he has taken a teacher so he might get better but I wish things would speed up.