Dark Matter Heart
Author: Nathan Wrann
Short Summary: A new town. A new school. A new beginning. Seventeen year-old Cordell Griffin and his mother move from Los Angeles to the Pacific Northwest to deal with his “allergies,” and start a healthier new life. Cor has one goal: To blend in and be invisible. Unfortunately for him, no matter how far he goes, he can’t run away from his secrets. Secrets about who he is. Secrets about why he’s sick. And secrets about why so many people he meets end up dead, drained of blood. In “Dark Matter Heart”, the origin novel in the “Cor Griffin Bloodsuckers” Young Adult Paranormal Thriller series from filmmaker Nathan Wrann, Cor must uncover the mysteries of his past and conquer the secrets of the present in order to protect the girl of his future, and save himself.
Link:Â Goodreads
Book Review
In public or under the covers?
Dark Matter Heart gets the “in public” approval. Feel free to read this book anywhere you like. I am sending warnings though. Don’t be fooled. I wasn’t feeling tingly because of underlining naughty tension. Nope, my under the covers comes from a different feeling. The scaredy cat part of me was hopping all over the place. Thank goodness I was in my room with only one other person. All the murders had me looking around to make sure the action hadn’t magically entered my confined dorm room. (chills)
What mood?
Wrann created a melting pot of moods. Somehow, he managed to construct a novel that was  suspenseful, tantalizing, humorous, vengeful, romantic, paranormal yet, realistic. Hard to imagine I know. I cringed with the desire to find out who The Creeper was. My heart reached for the tiny clues that pieced together Cor’s persona. Every aspect of the pathetic football team was hilarious. I’d give more examples but I want to save of the mysterious the back cover synopsis provides.
Main Character- nay or yay?
What I will tell you? Cordell Griffin is the sweetest male protagonist I’ve ever experienced. So opposite from how he’d been portrayed. He is suppose to be invisible. To think of it, he is in the spotlight in every scene in the book. Not kidding! Sure he dresses like our average joe. But, think about it. He is tall handsome guy with long hair who drink from juicy juice boxes. Tell me you wouldn’t constantly look at him. Not only would I look at him, we’d be besties. I’m fine with juicy juice boxes. As long as they are white grape, we could be two tall, strikingly beautiful people drinking from toddler sized drinks together.
Getting Over Caitlyn:
Getting over Caitlyn (no last name) will be quite easy. Not just because she’s female. I could get over her for multiple reasons. Caitlyn is Cor’s smart, pure, football player dating love interest. Her name isn’t mentioned because I want you to be surprised at who she really is. There are many secrets hidden within this novel. I found it hard to believe that the same person dating Trace, her lovely boyfriend, would fall so easy with Cor. Upon first meeting, Corr figured that Caitlyn liked to be invisible too. Really!! I don’t see her being invisible with her very public relationship in front of the locker. But, don’t get me wrong, she has good taste in music so, she isn’t all bad. I’m curious to see how acts without her purity.
Character Fever:
My other favorite character is Mr. Gifford. He’s is the coolest cat around. Well, the coolest cat to teach art history. Until, I uncovered the mystery he seemed too cool. I would definitely take his class. I’m being vague about Gifford for a distinct reason. 😉
Crust Factor:
My least favorite character is Cor’s mother. A child needs his mother’s love and approval. Oh, gosh parents who verbally abuse their children are horrible. You would think the crustiness of this book would be the villain. Nope, even the murder was an excellent addition to Dark Heart Matter. His mother made so undeniably upset. She really grinded my gears. <— Family guy reference
Don’t judge a book by its cover:
The cover of this novel almost deterred me from reading. Not that the visuals aren’t fantastic. I tend to chose novels that have fluffy bright images on the front. One would usually call my reading safe. Boy did this cover change the pace. The dark dripping edges symbolizing Cor’s blood was really close to scaring me away. I’m glad it didn’t.
Movie or TV show: how does it stack up?
Let me paint you a picture. Ready? Try to think about this movie. Boy is different from humans. Boy is running from someone trying to murder him. Boy tries to be invisible at his new school. Boy is directly opposite of invisible. Boy meets a guy who becomes his best friend. Boy likes smart-artistic girl who is attached to the popular sports guy. Girl can’t stay away. Girl puts her life in danger. Boy tries to save girl, best friend, and himself. Any guesses? I Am Number Four would be the answer. The two protagonists, Four and Cor, are different paranormal beings but, lead the exact same lives.
Recommendations:
Try reading I Am Number Four. This is pretty exhilarating stuff. I hope you aren’t thinking but, I saw the movie! Shame on you awesome book fanatic. The novel is always better than the film rendition. We realized that with Twilight.
Future Companion Novels:
From Out of Chaos is the sequel. As soon as I publish this, I’m hopping back into bed to read the next.
Overall Rating:
No shocker here but, I am giving Dark Matter Heart 5 stars. Matt Bomer, the cause of women fainting everywhere, is exactly like Corr and DMH. This book crept into my heart and exploded slowly. I want to thank Nathan Wrann for providing both Dark Matter Heart and its sequel. I also chose Matt Bomer because secretly Corr is a Bomer in my heart.