Darkest Hour (Cabot)

:"For other uses of the words "darkest hour" see Darkest hour (disambiguation)"

"Darkest Hour" is the fourth book in the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, it was first published in 2001. The book is also sometimes referred as "Young Blood".

Plot summary

Susannah "Suze" Simon is not having the most satisfactory summer. Instead of tanning on the beach, she's been forced by her parents into becoming a babysitter for an exclusive resort in Carmel California. Her charge, whiny Jack Slater, is no ordinary eight year old. He's a mediator like Suze. In addition to mentoring a new mediator, Suze has many, many other problems.

Despite everything she's done to resist it, she's fallen in love with Jesse, the ghost who haunts her bedroom. She's also being pursued by Paul, Jack's extremely hot brother, even though Suze has no interest in him.

And then there's the fact that she was woken in the middle of the night with a knife pressed to her throat. Maria DeSilva is the knife wielding, ex fiance of Jesse. The one who ordered his death. Suze must try and discover more about Jesse's murder.

The plot thickens when Maria tricks Jack into exorcizing Jesse. Suze is determined to get him back, no matter what it takes. But if she tries to bring Jesse back from the realms of the dead, will she end up there herself?

Characters

Jack Slater - Jack is a whiny eight year old who is being babysat by Suze. He is afraid of everything, and never leaves the house. Suze finally pulls him out of his hotel room, and that's when she discovers that Jack is a mediator. He can see ghosts (and is deathly afraid of them), which is why he hates going outside. Suze helps him become a better mediator.

Paul Slater - Paul is Jack's older brother. He is smart, popular, and hot but also deadly with a heart of steal. He also wants to go out with Suze. Suze continually turns him down, causing him to band together with Maria and Diego who want to have Jesse exorcized.

Maria De Silva Diego- Maria is Jesse's ex fiance. She had him murdered so that she could marry a slave runner named Felix Diego. She is now back to haunt Suze and keep everyone from figuring out her dastardly deed.

Felix Diego - Diego is a slave runner who was married to Maria. He was the one who killed Jesse.

Dr. Clive Clemmings PHD - Clive Clemmings PHD is the curator of the Carmel Historical Society museum. Suze and Jack go to visit him so that Suze can deliver some of Maria's old letters that were found in her backyard. Clive Clemmings PHD is of the firm belief that Jesse (or his real name, Hector) was not killed, but instead got cold feet at the prospect of marrying Maria and ran off. Suze gets upset at this. However, Clive Clemmings is unfortunantly murdered by Maria and now roams the spiritual plane.

Returning Characters

Suze Simon - Suze is the heroine of this series. She's a Mediator, which means that she can communicate with ghosts and guide the dead to their "final destination. Suze would much rather be a normal girl, with a normal life and a boyfriend. Instead, she gets a hot ghost haunting her bedroom.

Jesse DeSilva - Jesse is the ghost who haunts Suze's bedroom. He was murdered there over 150 years ago and still has not discovered why he hasn't "moved on". He kisses Suze at the end of the book, but throughout most of it, he is simply a good friend of hers. Jesse is a Spanish rancher's son. His body is unearthed when Suze's stepfather and stepbrothers are digging a hole for their hot tub.

Father Dominic - Father Dominic is a priest, and the principal of Suze's high school. He too is a mediator, and he works with (and argues with) Suze. His approach to dealing with the undead is different than Suze's, though. He is into the "touchy feely" aspect of mediation, while Suze would rather fight it out.

Jake Ackerman - Jake is Suze's oldest stepbrother. She calls him Sleepy because he is always tired from his late night pizza delivery job. Jake is considered a stud by most of the female population of his high school, but in the course of the book, he is going out with a girl from the staff of the hotel where he and Suze work. He thinks Suze is in a gang, but shows a bit more compassion towards her in this book than in any other.

Brad Ackerman - Brad is Suze's stepbrother. He is her age, and she calls him Dopey because he is an idiot. All the girls in his school think he's awesome, but in reality, he is a jerk. Dopey doesn't do much in this book; he ends up with a mouthful of bugs, and he smashes Jesse's skeleton's head open, but other than that, he is not crucial to the plot.

David Ackerman- David is Suze's 12 year old stepbrother. She calls him Doc because he is extremely intelligent. David is away at computer camp in this book.

Andy Ackerman - Suze's stepfather

Helen Ackerman -Suze's mother (although Suze's mother has no official name. When asked Meg said she named all mothers in books she was writing at the time Helen.)