Dark Within Us, The

Seventeen-year-old Kal's life is upended when the monsters featured in her mother's crazed ramblings become real. Very real. And the list of everything-she-thought-she-knew-but-really-didn't only grows when her best friend, Jan, reveals that he isn't who he claimed to be. He's not even human. He belongs to an ancient race that has protected earth for countless years. But now, they need her help instead. His world is crumbling under the grip of evil embodied and the beasts that Coerce weaves from the Nalii's Dark emotions. The last one called to defeat Coerce failed, abysmally, and Kal is tasked with succeeding where they failed. It's a lot to expect from a scrawny girl equipped only with wit, two fists, and a strange spell-carrying bracelet, but she journeys with Jan to do what only a human can do. Oh, and his people don't like humans, so they would prefer if she were killed, which is a horrible way to show gratitude if you ask her. In her struggles, Kal soon discovers that the fate of this strange, hostile world not only depends on her, but on a past that belongs to her. Even if she can't remember it. With the existence of two worlds in the balance, what else is a girl to do but try?