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The Savage Grace

The Savage GraceTitle: The Savage Grace
Author: Bree Despain
Series: Dark Divine #3
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Spice: 0.5 / 5
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 488
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Dark Divine, The Lost Saint
My Thoughts

When I read THE LOST SAINT last year, it was a serious emotional roller coaster for me. I don’t do well with love triangles, so I was a little worried about how everything would turn out with THE SAVAGE GRACE and whether I could handle the roller coaster I was sure to experience. Fortunately, I survived and I loved the book. I thought it was a perfect ending for the series.

I loved the book so much because the ending was a good fit for the series. It went exactly where it needed to go with the happy and the sad. I cried several times because some bad things happened to characters I was hoping would come out unscathed. The ending didn’t feel contrived or unrealistic. I also liked that Bree didn’t tie up all the loose ends.

I especially loved all the themes explored in this series–redemption, forgiveness, love, power, selfish love, etc. It added to the depth of the story. I also loved the characters. I loved that Grace grew into her powers and didn’t rely on the guys to do everything for her. I also loved that the guys around her, including her father, trusted her and didn’t try to stop her from getting involved and using her powers. They encouraged her to be strong.

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Crossed

CrossedTitle: Crossed
Author: Ally Condie
Series: Matched #2
Genre: Dystopian, Romance, Young Adult
Spice: 0.5 / 5
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 367
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: Matched, Reached
My Thoughts

Just like with MATCHED, I really enjoyed reading CROSSED. I love Ally’s writing style. It’s so poetic, beautiful, descriptive, and concise. The descriptions of the setting were so vivid. I could actually imagine being in Southern Utah, her inspiration for the setting. And, even though her writing doesn’t lend to a fast-paced or action-packed story like other dystopian novels, I think her story is much more thought-provoking, which lends to more intriguing discussions and thoughts about oppressive governments.

While the previous book was told only from Cassia’s POV, this one was told from both hers and Ky’s. (It has me wondering whether we’ll get Xander’s POV in the next one.) I loved getting inside of Ky’s head, getting to know him better. He’s so much deeper than I had already gathered from only Cassia’s view of him. It was also nice to learn what he really thought of Cassia. And, at the same time, knowing his thoughts of Cassia is more heartbreaking since she’s still uncertain about Xander.

I don’t want to wait for the third book. I want to know who Cassia chooses and what happens to the Society and everyone involved now. Needless to say, I’ll be anxiously awaiting for the third book’s release next year.

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Everneath

EverneathTitle: Everneath
Author: Brodi Ashton
Series: Everneath #1
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Spice: 0.5 / 5
Format: ARC
Pages: 370
Reason Read: Received for Review, SLTA Party
Rating:

Also in this series: Everbound, Neverfall, Evertrue
My Thoughts

I loved EVERNEATH so much. It was interesting, intriguing, sad, happy, moving, every emotion imaginable. Interspersed with a retelling of the story of Persephone and Hades, I felt as if I was there, living what the characters lived.

I was anxious the entire time I was reading the story. It wasn’t a bad anxious. It’s just that I was hooked from the very beginning so I wanted to know what was going to happen to Nikki. There was no way I could possibly understand what she was going through, but I could feel her pain. I was invested in her character and I wanted her to feel happy again.

I really liked Nikki. Even though she came back to the Surface drained of all her emotions, I thought she still came across as strong. Although she was sad and wished she hadn’t gone to the Everneath, she owned her part in it. She didn’t blame her family or friends, even though other teenagers in her stead probably would’ve. That made her a very likable protagonist.

I absolutely loved Jack, Nikki’s boyfriend before she went to the Everneath. I don’t know exactly what to say about him other than he’s a strong, selfless, and unconditionally loving character. I loved how loyal he was to Nikki and that he’d go to any lengths imaginable to help her.

I normally hate love triangles, so I wanted to hate Cole but I couldn’t. I also wanted to love him, but I couldn’t. I had a very strong love / hate relationship with him. Even knowing from the beginning that he was an Everliving, I was unsure of his motives. I’m excited to see what there’s in store for his character. I’m also super excited to see how my feelings for him change if they even do.

I love how the book ended and I can’t wait to see what happens in the sequel. There’s so much potential for this story.

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The Lost Saint

The Lost SaintTitle: The Lost Saint
Author: Bree Despain
Series: Dark Divine #2
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Spice: 0.5 / 5
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 404
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Dark Divine, The Savage Grace
My Thoughts

THE LOST SAINT was an emotional roller coaster for me. The book or story wasn’t bad in any way. I just couldn’t handle the angst between Grace and Daniel or between Grace and Talbot. Bree is a master of angst. I loved how she handled the whole love triangle situation. It was different than most of the books I’ve read. I really appreciated it because I normally hate love triangles. I loved the pace of the book.

Even though all my questions weren’t answered from the previous book and a whole new set of questions / problems were introduced in this book, I felt like the ending had some closure. Hopefully, it will help tide me over until I get my hands on the third book.

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The Clockwork Three

The Clockwork ThreeTitle: The Clockwork Three
Author: Matthew J. Kirby
Genre: Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 395
Reason Read: Received for Review
Rating:

My Thoughts

It took about 100 pages for me to get into THE CLOCKWORK THREE. While the story started really slow, I ended up enjoy it quite a bit. I rooted for each of the three main characters and wanted them to succeed in having a better life. I liked watching them become friends and struggle together. I also liked that the story doesn’t work out exactly how each of them plan but in a way that was good for them. Even though there are fantasy elements woven into the story, it felt and ended realistically.