Author: Kaitlin Bevis
Publisher: Musa Publishing
Released: May 16, 2013
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Series: Daughters of Zeus #3
Source: ebook for review
Life is hell for Persephone. Zeus will stop at nothing to gain access to the living realm and the Underworld, and as the only living god with a right to both, Persephone’s in trouble. Captured and tortured beyond the limits of her resolve, Persephone must find the power to stand against Zeus. But will she be strong enough? Meanwhile, Hades contemplates desperate measures to rescue his queen. Persephone never thought of herself as dangerous, but there’s a reason gods never marry for love. A being with the power to destroy all of creation shouldn’t place more value in one individual than the rest of the planet. But Hades...Hades would break the world for her. To save the world and stop both Hades and Zeus, Persephone must make a difficult choice. One that may cost her everything.
What a powerful whirlwind end to this section of the series! There's such a sense of movement throughout the whole book, as the gods speed around the worlds, both in reality and in dreams.
The heightened danger and urgency is helped along by the varying points of view in each chapter. At first, I was thrown off by the changing perspectives, but once I got into the rhythm, it made the pace lightning fast while still showing each event really clearly. That's part of what adds to the sense of movement also, as each character is in a different place for each event.
Persephone's torture is horrific to hear about, but thankfully we actually see it only the first time and only hear about it after that. Any questions about Persephone's strength and right to Hades' admiration are laid to rest by the way Persephone stands strong, and then again by the way she reacts to Aphrodite's offer to help get her out of the torture.
Hades' love is such a powerful force, and I was glad that we got to see inside his mind this book. I love how all the gods are so clinical in their quest to stop Zeus while Hades is full of emotion and recklessness - much the way Persephone behaved in the previous books!
There's so much heartbreak in this book. So much emotion. A great book!
Author: Amy Garvey
Publisher: HarperTeen (HarperCollins)
Released: May 22, 2012
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Series: Yes #2: Glass Heart
Source: Bought Kindle
Be careful what you wish for. . . .
When Wren's boyfriend, Danny, died, Wren decided that what she wanted—what she had to do—was to bring Danny back. And so, in a heartbroken fury, armed with dark incantations and a secret power, she did.
But the Danny who returns isn't the boy Wren fell in love with, and she must hide him away while her life unravels around her. Then Gabriel transfers to her school and somehow he knows what she has done—and he wants to help make things right.
But Wren alone must undo what she has wrought—even if it means breaking her heart all over again.
Danny and Wren's love is shown mostly through flashbacks and memories, and some of Wren's ruminations. But even though the current situation is far from what their love truly is, I felt like I really got what their relationship was like, and it totally made sense for Wren to want it back, to feel like if she didn't have it she couldn't go on living. It's the kind of love that insinuates itself into every part of your life, breathing new life and vitality into everything. Can you blame Wren then?
And then there's Gabriel - very different from Danny, but just as good for Wren. Gabriel's mysteriousness at the beginning of the book colors the way I see him even though he's pretty much an open book for most of the story. The way he's described is totally gorgeous, so even without the physical descriptions, I would have been imaging a tall, slim guy. Though I would have had him with dark hair. The constant mention of his gray eyes is striking, and adds to the creepiness and thrill of how he can see more than the regular person.
Wren's growing catastrophe builds and builds really credibly throughout the book, and her emotions and responses escalate with the mounting tension. There never really is a big moment, since everything with Danny happens gradually. There is, of course, the way she tries to put things right at the end of the book, but even that felt sort of anticlimactic to me. Though I'm guessing the reason it's so abrupt is that it continues with whole new twists in Glass Heart.
And I'll find out soon enough, because the characters and tone of the book make me crave more of this story!
