Kernel is a teenager with an odd talent -- he sees pieces of colored light floating in the air, and if he concentrates he can put them together like a jigsaw puzzle into a window shape. But everything goes horribly wrong when a demonic face jumps out of one of the windows and draws the boy into another dimension. When Kernel reappears in his own world, he doesn't quite remember all that happened, but figures out that his baby brother was also kidnapped by the demon. The family moves to a new town, but there is no escape from the horror that has entered their lives. Demon Thief follows Lord Loss (Little, Brown, 2005), the first volume in this grim and very gory series from the author of the "Cirque du Freak" books (Little, Brown). Readers who love the ghastly and demand a fast pace will be asking for more.