Book Review: In Every Generation by Kendare Blake

By georgelthomas on 13 Jun 2025 • ( 0 )

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well. Today is Friday, and it’s time to get stuck into another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of In Every Generation by Kendare Blake, the first in her series, Buffy: The Next Generation.

In Every Generation was initially published in 2022 by Disney-Hyperion and is 400 pages long.

The Plot
Set in the iconic Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe, In Every Generation introduces us to Frankie Rosenberg: the next in the line of Slayers. But, plot twist—Frankie, as well as being a slayer, is also a witch and the daughter of Willow Rosenberg. While the fate of Sunnydale hangs in the balance, Frankie grapples with newfound responsibilities while coming to terms with her origins and worrying about the whereabouts of her aunt Buffy.

Characters
Frankie Rosenberg
Frankie is our central character. She is the daughter of one of the most powerful witches the world has ever known and is quite happy using her magic in little ways to clean up the planet when, after an explosion seems to have wiped out all the surviving Slayers, she wakes up to find she is the new Chosen One, a side effect of her mother’s original spell to share the Slayer power with all the potential Slayers.

Willow Rosenberg
Willow is Frankie’s mother. After learning she was (mystically) pregnant after taking the power of the Slayer line into herself temporarily, she gives birth to Frankie after an extended gestational period. Willow shares her magical gifts with Frankie, but after many years of not using magic, she has become wary of it.

Spike
For staunch Buffy fans, Spike needs no introduction. It’s comforting to know that even decades after the original series, Spike is still Spike—complete with vampiric bad-boy charm. While he’s matured quite a bit (don’t worry, he still has the biting wit and sarcasm along with his human soul), his role this time is more mentor than chaos agent. Now a Watcher, Spike takes Frankie under his wing—he even takes up residence in the library of the newly rebuilt (again) Sunnydale High.

Oz
Oz is the Buffyverse’s original werewolf ally and longtime friend to Willow. In this story, Oz has moved back to town to raise his cousin, Jake. Even after all these years, he’s still the same old lad back Oz we know and is, like always, ready to lend a supportive hand to Willow and Frankie.

Jake Osbourne
Jake is the cousin of the original Scooby werewolf, Oz, and has grown up alongside Frankie. Beyond his mellow werewolf status (he inherited a bit of that family curse), Jake becomes part of Frankie’s support system when she’s activated as the Slayer.

Hailey
Hailey is the younger sister of Vi (one of the potential Slayers/active Slayers from the TV series’ final episodes). When Vi disappears with the rest of the Slayers, Spike finds Hailey and brings her to Willow to help keep her safe. Immediately, Hailey becomes friends with Frankie and Jake and works with them to learn what happened to Frankie’s aunt Buffy, Vi and the others.

Sigmund DeWitt
Sigmund is a half-human Sage demon and the son of one of Willow Rosenberg’s good friends. He specialises in portal magic and helps the gang search for the missing Slayers.

Writing Style
There’s a conversational ease to Blake’s prose, which makes this novel so engaging. She brilliantly balances tension with whip-smart dialogue—yes, some of that trademark Buffy humour is alive and well here, especially from Spike. I caught myself chuckling more than once at the banter between the characters and Frankie’s inner monologue.

The book is paced quite well and more or less mirrors the show’s episodic flow while still building tension and character arcs that will draw you in and keep you, which is great because there are another two books in the series.

The action scenes (trust me, there are many) are fast-paced without becoming chaotic, giving you the perfect burst of adrenaline while keeping the flow smooth and still allowing time for dialogue-heavy scenes so the gang can take a breather, getting to know one another and strengthening their bond.

If I had to nitpick—and there’s nothing I love more—I think Willow’s character wasn’t very Willow-y. I get that the story is set years after the TV series, but people don’t change that much. Oz and Spike were pretty much as they are in the show, but I feel a little let down by Willow’s depiction. I also thought Willow accepted that Frankie was the new Slayer a little too quickly; since she knows too well how dangerous a Slayer’s life is, I’d have liked her to have had more trepidation about it.

Final Thoughts
Overall, In Every Generation is a good story. It gives longtime Buffy fans lots of nostalgic nods to everything that has come before while still offering newcomers a good jumping-on point without the risk of them getting lost; there’s enough explanation of the background to make sense of the Buffyverse.

Although I had one or two minor quibbles with some character development, I did enjoy the book.

I am giving In Every Generation a 6/10.

Have you read In Every Generation or either of its sequels? Let me know what you think.

Thank you, as ever, for stopping by to read my review.

Until next time,

George