Author: Julie Kagawa (Page 1 of 5)

BOOK REVIEW: Legion (Talon #4) by Julia Kagawa

BOOK REVIEW: Legion (Talon #4) by Julia KagawaLegion (Talon #4)
by Julie Kagawa
Purchase on: AmazoniBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

The legions are about to be unleashed, and no human, rogue dragon or former dragon slayer can stand against the coming horde. Book 4 of 5 in The Talon Saga from New York Times bestselling author Julie Kagawa.

Dragon hatchling Ember Hill was never prepared to find love at all--dragons do not suffer human emotions--let alone the love of a human and a former dragonslayer, at that. With ex-soldier Garret dying at her feet after sacrificing his freedom and his life to expose the deepest of betrayals, Ember knows only that nothing she was taught by dragon organization Talon is true. About humans, about rogue dragons, about herself and what she's capable of doing and feeling.

In the face of great loss, Ember vows to stand with rogue dragon Riley against the dragon-slaying Order of St. George and her own twin brother Dante--the heir apparent to all of Talon, and the boy who will soon unleash the greatest threat and terror dragonkind has ever known.

Talon is poised to take over the world, and the abominations they have created will soon take to the skies, darkening the world with the promise of blood and death to those who refuse to yield.

 

“Make no mistake. You will serve Talon, one way or another. We just have to find that breaking point.”

It’s no secret I’m one of the few people (among those I know or follow) who are still deeply involved with this series. I cherish and am obsessed with Garret, adore Riley and the rest of the crew, have a love/hate relationship with Ember, and generally am knee-deep in Kagawa’s perilous fantasy story-telling abilities. The end of Soldier (and all of Soldier, really, in my opinion) was by far one of my favorite endings to a book-ever. But, even Kagawa can’t always be perfect.

Even with all the things I love about this series, this book felt, inevitably, like a filler to me. Not as much passion, not enough action, a little too much of that moron, Dante, and an overall overkill of some things. I say ‘some things’ lightly because I just don’t know how to explain what wasn’t right for me-it just wasn’t. I think there was too much background noise, too much buildup with not enough payoff.

“Though you are beautiful, you know that, right?” I think I blushed, and he smiled, leaning closer. “I didn’t fall in love with how you looked,” he murmured as his hand rose, gently brushing my cheek. “I fell in love with you.”

I liked so many things, as always with the Talon series, in this book, but I’m kind of in a place [with the content of the last book, Soldier] where I can’t say too much. I can say there was a lot of planning for an all-out war. I can say there was a decent amount of, ahem, romance. And I can even say the writing style wasn’t as strong as the last three books, in my opinion. But when you get down to it, I can’t say the things I REALLYYY want to say…because…spoilers lol.
But, hey, let’s recreate some dialogue like Joey from Friends and ALMOST accidentally spoil everything, while talking to Chandler and Ross:

J: Remember how that bastard cheated and went against the oath at the end of Soldier?
R/C: Riighhhttt, okay, so fun, I remember.
J: And then remember how Ember was begging him not to die and…you know…
R/C: Ooohh yeahhh, so cool.
J: And it just ended with Garret View Spoiler » ?!
Rachel: JOEY!!!

HA. Sorry, but I can’t not talk about him!!!!! I JUST CANNOT. WHAT WORLD WOULD I BE LIVING IN IF I DIDN’T GUSH ABOUT ONE OF MY TOP BBF’S FOR LIFE??? Not a good one, that’s for sure.
So, anyway. Take what you will from this review, but just remember these key things:

-By far my least favorite book of the series
-Not my favorite dialogues, almost bordering on cheesy, which Kagawa has never done so I may be overstepping, I don’t know
-Lots of Dante…a big downside for me, because:

A) YAWN
B) BORINGGGGG
C) FUCK HIM

-Not as much action as I remember from the others
-Not as emotional, if you ask me

BUT

-Still some heart-wrenching moments
-Still some swoon
-Still butterflies in my belly
-Still Kagawa…and you ain’t doin’ half bad readin’ a Kagawa book, mmmkaaaaaayyy?

So…whatever. If you read it, read it. If you don’t, don’t. But I’ve done as good as I can keepin’ it real. Go with God.

View Spoiler »

View Spoiler »

***********************

OMG THE COVER OMG MY BOY AHHHH-I LOVE IT *smiling devil face emoji*

****

Ugly Crying like…


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My heart and soul were ripped to shreds at the end of Soldier….and with my horrible book slump, this is the ONLY story that could ease my wounded soul.


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I’m so obsessed with Garret it’s not even funny.


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Which is why I am still a blubbering mess when I think of him…


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and this story…and it’s end…


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and this evil author that I am obsessed with and adore…..


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But I suppose I’ll be fine (UNTIL 2017) ARGHHHHHHH UGHHHHH


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Seriously-Kagawa, you are evil. You wound me.

View all my reviews

BOOK REVIEW+GIVEAWAY: Soldier (Talon #3) by Julie Kagawa

BOOK REVIEW+GIVEAWAY: Soldier (Talon #3) by Julie Kagawa

We are so honored to be one of the hosts for the Soldier Blog Tour! It is absolutely no secret that I adore everything Kagawa-From her vivid storytelling to her absolutely unforgettable characters to her punch-you-in-the-gut endings, there is literally nothing I can resist from this spectacular author. Many of you may know her from either her Iron Fey or Immortal Rules series, but here she has chosen to tackle yet another difficult genre (exceedingly well, I might add)-DRAGONS. For those of you who are skeptical, I find it imperative you give it a try-If not only because Julie Kagawa has the most amazing way with words....and absolutely breathtaking forbidden romances. I obviously adored this book (and so far, this series), so I hope my unabashed love persuades you to give this series a try! Below you can find my FIVE STAR review and a GIVEAWAY for the first three books in the Talon Saga!! Good luck and Enjoy!!

BOOK REVIEW+GIVEAWAY: Soldier (Talon #3) by Julie KagawaSoldier (Talon #3)
by Julie Kagawa
Purchase on: AmazoniBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

A fighter dedicated to saving humankind from dragons in strictest secrecy.

That was what Garret Xavier Sebastian thought he was part of as a soldier of the Order of St. George. What he learned from a fiery dragon hatchling twisted all he believed in and set him on a collision course with certain death-but not without a chance to put things right.

Betrayed and on the run again, Ember and rogue dragon Riley discover an unthinkable truth about Talon and St. George. They'll need Garret's skills and insider knowledge of the Order to negotiate an impossible deal-and if they fail, there will be no way to stop all-out war.

REVIEW:

His fingertips came to rest against the back of my hand, sending a zip of current through my whole body. “I’m done hiding,” he whispered. “Nothing has changed. I know we might not have a lot of time, but what we do have, I want to spend right here.”

That feeling…I know you’re familiar with it…when the air is sucked out of your lungs, when your world collapses beneath your feet, the world ceases to exist as it shatters to pieces around you, and that book you’re holding is all that matters in the world-it’s all I felt as this book came to a close…and for most of the story, really.

It had been her mercy, her refusal to kill a known enemy, that had made me realize the Order was wrong. It was because of her that I was here now, risking my life to protect the creatures I’d once driven toward extinction. Because a dragon had spared the life of a soldier of St. George, and everything had changed.

I’m not going to lie-whenever I get a chance for an ARC by an author I adore, cherish, and have never been let down by before, I feel a lot of pressure. I mean, this is Julie fucking Kagawa we are talking about here-the creator of Ash, the beautiful, deadly, fatal, and loyal Prince of the Fey. Zeke, the unwavering human who fell in love with the thing he once despised-A vampire. And now, here we are again with Ember and Garret (I refuse to acknowledge Riley has a chance-He does, but, no-I won’t support him as a love interest)-A soldier who was brought up to hate Dragons, to destroy them without a second thought, because they are humanity’s enemy-and Ember, the dragon who turned his world on it’s axis, making him fall in love with the enemy…and risk his life for her over and over again, if not only because he is desperately in love with her, but because it’s the right thing to do. Ahhh my beautiful soldier boy. He is just…PERFECTION.

But I would not break. I would not give up Ember’s location, or Riley’s underground. The next few hours might have me wishing I was dead, but I would not betray the girl I loved to the organization. They would have to kill me.

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But I digress-Onto my point: Kagawa is the MASTER of forbidden romance. She is the queen of making love triangles almost bearable, making friends out of foes fighting for the same girl’s love. To think… I have finally gotten one of her coveted ARCs-something I have worked to earn for years…and I was super nervous-SO MUCH PRESSURE! But then, like always, I opened up this story and the world of dragons and forbidden love and stolen kisses totally enraptured me…and I was a GONER.

Helpless, I clenched my fists against my back, well aware that every mile, every minute that ticked by, took me ever farther from getting to them in time and closer to losing the red dragon forever.

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What pressure is there, really, when one of your favorite authors is in the driver’s seat? From the minute I started reading about my boy, nothing else mattered. But then a different kind of pain surfaced, one that us avid readers know about all too well: The feeling of messy love. The feeling of falling for two different men, with two different styles, with two different ways of winning the heroine’s love. And, for once, Kagawa isn’t making it obvious who Ember is going to end up with…and it might be killing me inside.

“I couldn’t,” he finally whispered. “You were the one who taught me to live, to take chances. For a while, I convinced myself that we were too different, and that it was better to let you go. But now, I’ve come to the realization that my life is probably going to be very short. And I want to spend it doing something that matters. With someone that matters. I don’t want to regret that I gave up without a fight.”

So let me address the, ahem, dragon in the room (har har, I’m so clever). Yes, there is a love triangle. And YES, I like both men. Riley is Ember’s equal in dragon form. He is protective and ambitious, and he is working hard to right the wrongs of Talon by saving as many young dragons as he can. But along the way, he fell for a fiery, red-haired hatchling…while she was in the middle of falling in love with a soldier of St. George-their sworn enemy from as long ago as they can remember.

“Your friends are…interesting,” she said, making me snort. “I would hate to see your enemies.” She looked back at me, black eyes assessing. “You did not mention that one of the ‘friends’ you risked your life for was desperately hoping he could rip your head off.”
“I was a soldier of the Order,” I said wearily. “He’s the leader of a rogue dragon underground. I’m sure I’ve killed a few of his dragons in the past.” I’m also stupidly in love with the girl he considers his, and we both know it.

Should be simple, right? A human couldn’t possibly be in love with a dragon. It’s simply impossible. Weird. Unheard of-They don’t have a chance. WRONG. You are SO wrong. Garret, my loyal soldier, would do anything for this girl who changed his whole belief system. He’d go to the ends of the earth to keep her safe, even at the cost of his own life (How many times do I have to say this before it gets old? I DON’T CARE). His mission was simple: Kill the hatchling…but instead he slowly fell in love with her, even if he didn’t want to. Now, here we are with Garret, Ember, Riley, and Wes  doing what they can to bring down the corrupted Talon and to show St. George everything they have been taught and know is a lie. But when more sinister problems arise, things become complicated. How are they going to get to the top of St. George to bring this to light? Who will they have to trust? How much are they willing to bargain? And who will make the ultimate sacrifice?

*flashback*

Our enemies-my enemies-wouldn’t win. The demon lizards had hurt me for the last time. Now, they had a new foe, and I would make sure they remembered my name when I destroyed them on the battlefield.
I would work hard.
I would excel.
I would become the perfect soldier.

To say this was my favorite installment of the series would be an understatement. Yes, book one is so close it’s unreal, because I enjoy when the love interests begin to fall in love, slowly losing their mind to something they can’t control. I love it when things are at the beginning and aren’t complicated with cliffhangers and deaths and perilous moments that test everything they possess in themselves to stay alive and stay together. I’m side eyeing you, Kagawa. But there is just something so sickeningly satisfying and…primal…about watching two guys duke it out for one girl, throwing it all out on the table for her love. There’s something so appealing about declarations of love as the world burns to ashes around them…even as the cries of love are too late. I. CAN’T. HELP. IT. I am a slave to peril and Julie Kagawa is my puppet master pulling my strings this way and that, ripping my heart to shreds with each new installment in each new series she creates. I’d say I hate her for making this crazy, annoying, obsessive, psycho fangirl…..but that would make me a liar, too.

My heart seemed to stop. Garret paused, as if gathering his thoughts, or his courage, then took a deep breath. “I know I’ve made mistakes,” he continued, shaking his head. “But there’s still the chance for me to fix them. I shouldn’t have walked out that night.” His brow creased, a flicker of pain and regret going through his eyes. “Ember, I know you can’t feel what I do,” he said. “I get that. But…I want to be with you. And if that’s not possible, I’ll be content just to be close. Fighting Talon with you and Riley, helping people, saving other dragons from the Order-there is nothing I want more. And nowhere else I want to be.”

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I’m sorry, but I would not be ME if I didn’t obsess about MY choice in this race before I closed this review out. Garret is at his best: Declaring his love, using all the skills he possesses to keep his new-found friends safe, trusting with all his heart, even as danger lurks around every corner, so he can get the information he needs, and becoming an-even more-unforgettable BBF. And here is what I hope all of you will take from this: I may be someone who loves all kinds of boys in books, but Kagawa creates some of the most daring, tortured, beautiful, unforgettable male leads ever. If ever you wanted to read a book about a boy who falls madly, deeply, forever in love with the heroine of the story-despite dire consequences-look no further. If ever you wanted a story that is engrossing, deep, creative, vivid, imaginative, out of this world addicting, Kagawa is your woman. She creates a combination of worlds, plots, and men that make it impossible not to love at least ONE of her series, thus making her one of the most popular authors EVER, simply because her reach knows no bounds. I shudder to think of the day when a Kagawa book won’t have me gasping for breath, clutching my iPad/pillow, and sobbing uncontrollably into the dark as I close the final pages within one of her stories where a cliffhanger has killed me slowly from the inside out-once again. I SHUDDER to think.

One hand traced small circles against my back, and I pressed closer to him, listening to his heartbeat. “I used to think that having nothing to live for made you a better fighter,” he murmured. “Turns out I was wrong on a lot of fronts.”

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She is the author that brought me out of my comfort zone, the one that taught me it’s okay to love out of this world things like fey and dragons (Dragons…DRAGONS! Really?? I’d have never thought), and not to be ashamed of letting my freakish fangirl flag fly, and I will be forever grateful that she led me to so many outlandish, wonderful series I am obsessed with today. If not for her, I don’t know that I would have stepped so far out of my comfort zone. And if I had, I don’t know that I would have liked it. She writes in a way that captures your soul, even if you are fighting it, and makes you beg for more. For anyone who has not given this woman a chance, I dare you to try her Iron Fey series and not fall in love with Ash. Or to read the Immortal Rules series and not fall for the good boy gone bad, Zeke. And now, I dare you to not get butterflies when Ember falls in love with the boy at Crescent Beach one carefree summer….Or, I GUESS, her Dragon guy, Cobalt/Riley, who would also risk it all for Ember, as well. See? That was hard for me-I really do like all the guys she creates, which is saying something. HOWEVER-this is my disclaimer-DON’T FUCK WITH MY HEART, KAGAWA-Don’t take advantage of my good-natured, and begrudging, like for Riley. I’m totally pointing an emoji finger at you!

We stared at each other, a thousand emotions simmering below the surface. My thoughts and feelings were a tangled mess, woven around each other until it was impossible to separate them. Garret stood there, wounded and beautiful, the shadow of the boy staring out through the soldier’s mask, and guilt settled in my stomach like a lead ball.

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Lots of laughs, heartache, and heart dropping, soul-crushing moments invade this story, and if you liked the previous two stories, I know you will adore this addition. I also forgive Ember for the last book (You hear that, Ember? You are forgiven! However…you better keep my guy safe, or else). So, as I finished bawling at the end of the book on a lazy Sunday night, unexpectedly losing my shit and having to contain myself-again-lest I get thrown out of the house by a very angry husband as I silently shook and sobbed beside him in bed, I began to smile and slowly fall asleep, floating in feels.

CLICK BELOW TO ORDER SOLDIER NOW!!

LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Indiebound | iBooks | The Book Depository

 

ABOUT JULIE KAGAWA:

8ecb9863-5331-4922-89fa-3835b5a338d0Julie Kagawa, the New York Times bestselling author of the Iron Fey and Blood of Eden series was born in Sacramento, California. But nothing exciting really happened to her there. So, at the age of nine she and her family moved to Hawaii, which she soon discovered was inhabited by large carnivorous insects, colonies of house geckos, and frequent hurricanes. She spent much of her time in the ocean, when she wasn’t getting chased out of it by reef sharks, jellyfish, and the odd eel.

When not swimming for her life, Julie immersed herself in books, often to the chagrin of her schoolteachers, who would find she hid novels behind her Math textbooks during class. Her love of reading led her to pen some very dark and gruesome stories, complete with colored illustrations, to shock her hapless teachers. The gory tales faded with time (okay, at least the illustrations did), but the passion for writing remained, long after she graduated and was supposed to get a
real job.

To pay the rent, Julie worked in different bookstores over the years, but discovered the managers frowned upon her reading the books she was supposed to be shelving. So she turned to her other passion: training animals. She worked as a professional dog trainer for several years, dodging Chihuahua bites and overly enthusiastic Labradors, until her first book sold and she stopped training to write full time.

Julie now lives in Louisville, Kentucky, where the frequency of shark attacks are at an all time low. She lives with her husband, an obnoxious cat, an Australian Shepherd who is too smart for his own good, and a hyper-active Papillion.

 

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Week 2:

BOOK REVIEW – The Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3) by Julie Kagawa

BOOK REVIEW – The Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3) by Julie KagawaThe Forever Song (Blood of Eden #3)
by Julie Kagawa
Purchase on: AmazoniBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

VENGEANCE WILL BE HERS

Allison Sekemoto once struggled with the question: human or monster?

With the death of her love, Zeke, she has her answer.

MONSTER

Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren, the psychopathic vampire who murdered Zeke. But the trail is bloody and long, and Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions—her creator, Kanin, and her blood brother, Jackal. The trail is leading straight to the one place they must protect at any cost—the last vampire-free zone on Earth, Eden. And Sarren has one final, brutal shock in store for Allie.

In a ruined world where no life is sacred and former allies can turn on you in one heartbeat, Allie will face her darkest days. And if she succeeds, triumph is short-lived in the face of surviving forever alone.

Review:

*Spoilers for The Immortal Rules & The Eternity Cure*

The Forever Song was an epic conclusion to the Blood of Eden trilogy!  It was filled to the brim with devastation, peril, hope, and I cherished every single page.   Even if I had tears in my eyes through parts of those last few chapters.  But I didn’t want it to end since it contained so much of what I loved in the first two books.  Luckily, I know that this series will continue to infiltrate my thoughts for a long time to come.

Humans meant nothing to me, not anymore. They were food, and I was a vampire. I was done pretending that I was anything less than a monster.
But I would kill Sarren.

Allie is a broken, dark, devastated mess, and the ties to her humanity have been shredded.  With the death of Zeke, she can no longer be the same girl she was in the past.  While refusing to mourn, she gets on the road with her brother, Jackal, and her sire, Kanin.  Because while they listened to crazy vamp, aka Sarren, torture Zeke, they heard Zeke give away details to Eden’s location.  And with Sarren already on the road headed towards the humans safe haven, they have to hurry.  If he gets there before them, all hell will break loose and no one will be safe.  But the road to Eden is filled with horrors only Sarren could create.  And none of them contemplated how much more sick and twisted he could get, because they haven’t seen anything yet!

“Hey, vampire girl,” Zeke whispered, his voice slightly choked. “I knew…you’d come for me.”
* * *
This…can’t be real.

The thing I was the most excited about, because it gave me hope and I need hope,  was that Allie and Zeke had to meet again.  Well, I at least hoped that much was true.  Their love stuck with me because it was pure, dangerous and oh so sweet.  I fell madly in love with Zeke and I flew through the pages trying to get to him.  But I was scared for their future.   Because do you remember the last line in The Eternity Cure?  I sure couldn’t forget it, and it haunted me.  I tried my hardest to figure out what Sarren was up to, and while I got part of it right, I wasn’t even close to the other part.  Sarren was the perfect villain and while I appreciate the crazy twists he took this story, I kept hoping he would die a miserable death.

“You are so bloody frustrating!” he roared, back fisting another rabid with the axhead. “Do you really think the cure is worth this? You think I’d be here now if that’s all I wanted?” He turned and sliced his weapon through the air, beheading one rabid and sinking it into another. “Get your damn head out of your ass, sister!” he seethed. “And give me a little fucking credit. That’s not why I’m here.” – Jackal

But ironically, one of my favorite things about this book was the family aspect between Allie, Jackal and Kanin.  I started out the series only liking Kanin and loathing Jackal, but while in the midst of this book I found myself caring for both of them.  Deeply.  You see, while Jackal and Allie spent time together in The Eternity Cure, he would make me laugh and smile.  I didn’t want to admit it, but I slowly warmed up to him and his charismatic self.  And I loved how him and Kanin treated Allie like family throughout the story.  Jackal would bicker and pester Allie, as an older brother should,and Kanin was the parent who would threaten or reprimand them to get along.  I can’t believe how much their little family made me so happy and warmed my heart.  But then I wanted to kick myself because now I cared deeply for Jackal and Kanin and I was terrified what their fate could be!

“It is…a very heavy weight to carry, Allison, the damnation of a world. I want you to be very certain, before we go any further. Is it worth it? Is he worth it?”
His words chilled me, but I already knew my answer. It was selfish, it was unreasonable, and I knew it was the wrong choice. But I looked up at Kanin, into his impassive face, and whispered, “Yes.”

I’m so sad to see these characters go, but thankfully each of them got the ending they deserved.  No matter how heartbreaking or happy it made me, I was thrilled with the way the story ended!  This is the second series I have fallen in love with by Julie Kagawa!  So it’s safe to say that yes, she has become one of my favorite authors.  And an author that is now on my auto buy list because her stories are emotional, devastating, heartwarming and I can’t wait to see what all of her future books hold!

Reading Order & Links:
Amazon (click on covers), iBooks (click on titles) & Book Depository (click on book #)
The Immortal Rules Julie Kagawa
The Immortal Rules #1
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the eternity cure julie kagawa
The Eternity Cure #2
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the forever song julie kagawa
The Forever Song #3
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea

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BOOK REVIEW – The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) by Julie Kagawa

BOOK REVIEW – The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2) by Julie KagawaThe Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2)
by Julie Kagawa
Purchase on: AmazoniBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

In Allison Sekemoto's world, there is one rule left: Blood calls to blood

She has done the unthinkable: died so that she might continue to live. Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allie will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever—and possibly end human and vampire existence.

There's a new plague on the rise, a strain of the Red Lung virus that wiped out most of humanity generations ago—and this strain is deadly to humans and vampires alike. The only hope for a cure lies in the secrets Kanin carries, if Allie can get to him in time.

Allison thought that immortality was forever. But now, with eternity itself hanging in the balance, the lines between human and monster will blur even further, and Allie must face another choice she could never have imagined having to make.

Review:

*Spoilers for The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)*

Eternity Cure was hauntingly dark and I found myself easily lost in this twisted world that had me terrified for what was to come.
Because let me tell you, I love to guess how a book is going to proceed, and I came nowhere near close to a few of the unexpected events that happened.  So I’ll clue you into a fun little fact before you venture into this book – while Eternity Cure was addicting, it was also devastating at times.  It honestly felt as though someone reached into my heart and crushed it until there was nothing left.  And while it hurt so bad, my dark side loved the utter perfection of how the story proceeded.  Because the peril and that ending?!  Oh my gosh, this is the type of story that will undue me every single time.

“Come on then, bitch,” the man beside me said, and grabbed my other arm, his face mean and eager. “Let’s do this. I can go all night.”
I smiled. “Can you now?” I said quietly.
And lunged at him with a roar, sinking my fangs into his throat.

What I want to talk about the most, sigh, I really can’t spoiler – View Spoiler ».  So much of this book contains spoilers, but those spoilers are so insanely good!  So I’ll stick to what I can talk about, like Allie.  If you loved her in the first book, she is even better in Eternity Cure.  She has grown and learned so much from all of that life has thrown at her.  Allie is still the smart, compassionate, kick-ass heroine that I love!  While she tries her hardest to stick to her human morals while fighting her vampire demons, it was fascinating watching her struggle to hold onto her morality!  And she is tested time and time again because she embarks on a journey that seems almost impossible at times!  She’s on the hunt for psycho vamp (best nickname ever…well besides the one she earns later on in the book) aka Sarren because he is holding Kanin captive.  But in her search for Kanin and Sarren, there are twists thrown at her. Such as a character that I easily despised at first.  But when my feelings changed from black and white to grey I was livid.  Because I started to laugh and even smile towards this character, and I didn’t want to at all.  The characters she creates are so multi-faceted and real, it’s easy to grasp their many sides unfortunately haha!

I didn’t want to be in this underground labyrinth of death, with this vampire I didn’t like and certainly didn’t trust. Because watching him fling himself at the rabids, grinning demonically as he tore them limb from limb, reminded me too much of myself. That thing that I kept locked away, the beast that goaded me into raw animal rage and bloodlust. The part that made us dangerous to every human we encountered. The part that kept me from ever being with Zeke.

Probably one of my favorite things about this book, besides the characters I dearly love, was the jaw dropping peril.  I couldn’t believe some of the things that happened.  Many times I would pause staring at my kindle thinking no way.  No way she took the story in that direction.  I thought I had to have read it wrong.  But nope, she did take it in those directions.  I got to a scene where I desperately tried my hardest to turn off my feelings.  But it was too late.  I was too invested, and I went right along with Allie and her feelings.  Because Julie Kagawa dangerously weaves together despair and a beautiful story.

Zeke was a brilliant light that cut through the evil and darkness and bloodlust, down to that tiny part struggling to stay alive. I’d been clinging to his memory, that small piece of hope, ever since I left Eden, and I couldn’t let it go.

Oh, I couldn’t let it go either!  So yeah, I am officially addicted to this series.  I love the world that she has created that is ruled by vampires.  And I love all of the characters who invoke such strong feelings in me!  Well love is too strong of a word for a character I definitely despise.  I kept hoping that fate would deliver this character a brutal case of death and you probably will too!  So if you haven’t read this series yet, it’s a definite must!

Reading Order & Links:
Amazon (click on covers), iBooks (click on titles) & Book Depository (click on book #)
The Immortal Rules Julie Kagawa
The Immortal Rules #1
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the eternity cure julie kagawa
The Eternity Cure #2
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the forever song julie kagawa
The Forever Song #3
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea

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BOOK REVIEW – The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) by Julie Kagawa

BOOK REVIEW – The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) by Julie KagawaThe Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)
by Julie Kagawa
Purchase on: AmazoniBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

To Survive in a ruined world, she must embrace the darkness…

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a walled-in city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten. Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them—the vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself dies…and becomes one of the monsters.

Forced to flee her city, Allie must pass for human as she joins a ragged group of pilgrims seeking a legend—a place that might have a cure for the disease that killed off most of civilization and created the rabids, the bloodthirsty creatures who threaten human and vampire alike. And soon Allie will have to decide what—and who—is worth dying for…again.

Enter Julie Kagawa's dark and twisted world as an unforgettable journey begins.

Review:

Dark and enchanting, The Immortal Rules pulled me in quickly and held me in a death grip through parts of the story.  It was so easy to slip into this messed up world.  The writing had a way of making me become easily lost in the pages and caring for our heroine and the companions that she finds.  But I honestly had no clue what I was getting myself into.  Reading the blurb over a year ago, I decided to step blindly into into this series.  My only knowledge was that it contained vampires.  Julie Kagawa already made me fall for her Iron Fey Series, and I was hoping that I would fall in love with this series too.  I never should have hoped.  I should have known it was inevitable, and that I would be left begging for more!

Vampires had no souls, no emotions and no empathy to appeal to. If the bloodsucker wanted to drain me dry and leave me here to rot, there wasn’t anything I could say that would stop him. But I’d give him one hell of a fight.

Allie lives in a world that is run and owned by the vampires, whom she loathes.  They have walled off the cities to protect their human cattle from the mindless despicable creatures that  wanders the land, looking for their next kill.  In exchange for a “safe” place to live, they have been branded and are forced to supply blood to the Vampire King and his followers.  But Allie is one of the people who refuses to be branded and in exchange for living in the Fringe, between the city and the wall, she has to search and scavenge for her food.  And each day is a fight to stay alive.

“All we have left is our faith.” His voice dropped even lower as he looked toward the horizon. “And sometimes, I wonder if that will be enough.”

Upon the beginning scene, I knew that I liked Allie Sekemoto.  She had to be tough to survive this type of life, which I respected, but she had such an amazing heart and conscience.  She also scavenged for her friend, Stick, who was too terrified to search for his own food.  And as her daily struggle became something I absorbed with a morbid fascination, I watched and listened to Allie be extremely blunt and realistic (at times) to herself.  I couldn’t help but love her voice!  She was someone who had me rooting for her to beat the odds.  But life in that world could be horrific at times, and Allie was forced to make a choice.  Die or become a thing that she despises with her whole heart.

Nothing lasted in this world; it was everyone for himself. Allie the Fringer knew that; Allison the vampire just needed the reminder.

This story became brutal in the last third. But the best kind of brutal!  In case you’re not familiar with her work, she writes such a well crafted novel filled with peril so horrific that it makes me want to curl into a ball and sob.  And, well, I did just that.  But it’s worth every single tear and held breath!  Because it feels as though I’m watching my friends go through these moments.  I swear they are real!  And here lies the real danger in her writing – she makes me care for people that I should just write off.  Yet I don’t.  And then I am left struggling, making incoherent sounds, finding myself caring for too many of these characters and scared out of my mind for their fate.  Bad move on my part.  Bad, bad move.

As I smiled back and followed him to where he had set up watch, I couldn’t help thinking that this boy—this helpful, friendly, genuinely nice human being—was probably going to get me killed.

There were a few slower parts in the middle of the book, but after reading and falling madly in love with The Iron Fey Series, I get it now.  I am sucked into the beginning of the first book and it’s ending left me clutching my heart wondering if I safely made it through all of the angst, grief, and horror.  But the middle part that runs a little slower, it works.  Because I found myself being pulled further into the hearts of all of the characters.  And do you remember what I said above?  That’s dangerous territory.

“I’m not like you. I’m not like the vampires in the city. I might be a monster, but I can be human, too. I can choose to be human.” Reaching back, I gripped my sword and drew it out, a bright flash of steel in the darkness.

So yes, please devour this book!  Even with my heart in a holding pattern and knowing that the future events will most likely have me freaking out for who she will graciously spare and keep alive, it’s a must read.  You must meet Allison and the future characters that I want to scream my head off about.  Ok I will for just a tiny second….there’s this human named Zeke, sigh doesn’t it always end up with me and falling for a guy, and he made me want to sneak into this horrific world to see him for myself.  He was that beautiful of a person inside and out. I could write paragraphs about him and his little group, but I won’t because that’s something you must learn for yourself. Now don’t mind me as I try my hardest to shake off the sadness that is stuck to me and jump head first into the second book!

Reading Order & Links:
Amazon (click on covers), iBooks (click on titles) & Book Depository (click on book #)
The Immortal Rules Julie Kagawa
The Immortal Rules #1
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the eternity cure julie kagawa
The Eternity Cure #2
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
the forever song julie kagawa
The Forever Song #3
Reviews:

Jen
Chelsea
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