Twelve years ago, Lupine Syndrome was finally acknowledged by the government. Whenever an infected person is found, they are thrown into internment camps. Forever. 
 That grim idea looms over "Hemlock," the first book of a trilogy that takes an unusually realistic look at how lycanthropes would be treated by "regs." At times the teen drama gets a little overwhelming (which Kathleen Peacock even acknowledges), but the murder-mystery and the clash between werewolves and Trackers makes it a fascinating read. 
 For the past few years, Mac has been inseparable from her best friends Kyle and Amy, and Amy's boyfriend Jason. But one night, Amy is brutally killed by a werewolf that has been terrorizing Hemlock -- and her senator grandfather calls in the Trackers, a bunch of racist violent thugs who devote themselves to hunting werewolves. And the increasingly disturbed Jason is interested in joining them. 
 But Mac knows what kind of people the Trackers really are. When two of them start savagely beating her, a werewolf suddenly appears to rescue her -- and it turns out to be none other than Kyle. 
 Obviously this is a shock for Mac, especially since she must now keep his true nature a secret. Her only hope is to find the white werewolf that killed Amy, so the Trackers will leave. But she begins to suspect that there was more to Amy's murder than just a werewolf going wild, and that the cruel Tracker leader may be at the heart of it... 
 Honestly, the love triangle between Jason, Mac and Kyle is probably the least interesting part of "Hemlock," and to her credit Kathleen Peacock seems aware of this (" It was official: my life belonged on the CW"). It has the usual love triangle, tormented hotties, but Peacock shows a deft cleverness in not falling into the usual pitfalls (ie, not "fixing" a sexy yet tortured boy, whose torturedness comes out in ugly ways). 
 No, the fascinating parts of the story are how Peacock sculpts a semi-realistic portrait of a world where werewolves actually exist, how "regs" react to them, and the violent fearful hate that the "other" can inspire. Much of the story is actually a murder mystery, with Mac trying to balance out her investigation into who murdered Amy and why, even as she tries to keep herself, Kyle and Jason safe from the Trackers. 
 And Peacock has a strong writing style, very visceral and smooth, with hints of blood, dirt and cold night air. A few parts of the story could be tightened up a little (Derby just... snuck into a hospital room?!), but she evokes a feeling of dread and slow-burning fear over the whole story. 
 Mac is pretty different from the usual pampered suburban protagonists of paranormal fiction -- she's the child of a drifting criminal who abandoned her in Hemlock, and she still has some demons from that. At times she seems too gullible (she NEVER noticed that her closest guy friends were attracted to her?!), but she's a likable, strong young heroine. 
 Jason also seems like an inversion of the usual love interests -- he's sexy, brooding and possessive, but he's also kind of an idiot, and he instantly signs onto an openly racist, violent gang of people merely because they hate werewolves. Kyle needs a bit more fleshing out, but the supporting cast of Serena, Trey and Amy (hallucination/ghost!) round it out nicely. 
 "Hemlock" needs a wee bit of tightening up, but the story is gripping. And best of all, it has a semi-realistic look at how a world with werewolves might turn out -- something you don't often find.