4/5 stars
Delacorte Press, 2012
365 pages
YA Paranormal
Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
After enjoying Juliet Immortal last year, I was pleased to discover this sequel especially since I found Romeo quite reprehensible in that outing. How would Jay strengthen his character to make him palatable as the center of attention?
Well, Jay gave him a chance at redemption. In an alternate world, he is returned by the mercy of an Ambassador to once again woo Ariel who is in full possession of her body this time; Juliet is not there this time. She had worked with Juliet previously but is willing to give Romeo's wretched soul a chance to win Ariel over to the cause of light and protect the world from the devastation she could unleash if the evil Mercenaries won her to their cause. However in the three days Romeo has to accomplish this, he learns more about the two sides and how they are maybe not as dissimilar as they would claim. He also remembers what being in love can be like while Ariel grows leaps and bounds in confidence and in her willingness to be vulnerable, which I think is a key aspect to being in love.
Although I'm not usually into goopy love stories, this one mostly won me over. Seeing Ariel and Romeo's inner thoughts where they were nervous and feeling so much charmed me. Yeah, there was a lot of thinking about the other's appearance and the kissing scenes weren't entirely my cup of tea. But I rooted for those two crazy kids.
However I still am not entirely sure I "get" the Ambassadors and Mercenaries nor do I understand the many alternative worlds that are posited in this book-they would have to be innumerable. I'm also not super thrilled with the setting of the conclusion. I don't want to spoil anything so highlight to read: why do they have to live back then? Who would choose that time of disease over contemporary America? Her world > his world.
But overall this was a fun adventure and one you'll definitely want to check out if you enjoyed the first book (you should read that one first).
Cover: Love the blues and I actually really like this cover. It's not my usual (why are they making out in the surf?) but I find it very striking.
I just finished this over the weekend. I agree with you about the two factions -- they confused me in book one and that didn't change in book two. But I really enjoyed reading these!
ReplyDeleteI love the covers of these novels! While I haven't read Juliet Immortal yet it has been on my TBR list for a long long long time.
ReplyDeleteI've heard great things about this series but the alternate worlds sounds a bit confusing. I'm all for a fun adventure and at least Romeo gets a chance for his own story.
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