Also posted at A Bookish CompulsionThis was a fast and fun read. Taking up just a little bit after Paranormalcy left off it brings us through the trials and tribulations of Evie attempting to be “normal” in both a very paranormal environment, and with her own personal differences. It is a very teen oriented viewpoint, but well written enough, I feel, to be enjoyable to all ages. The pendulum swing from enjoying the before un-tasted “normality” to the realization that sometime—even with a locker—everyday high school life can be a bit boring (especially if one is used to chasing after vampires, hags, and tangling with the fay) was a nice inverse, and I think it allowed Evie to find her own balance.
The character conflicts, interactions, and development in this offering ranged the gamut, from the teen angst of fear of losing your boyfriend, to the classic finding of roots, it played up the strengths in our characters and revealed their weakness, making them feel quite real; if not always wise. I did miss some of the interaction that was so well done in the first book. Lend especially got the fuzzy end of the lollypop in this book, flattening a before rounded character, due in part to Evie’s insecurities and his lack of involvement in the plot due to distance. I also felt that there was no good substitution for Lish; while I feel that the attempt was made to have Arianna fill that gap, it was an incomplete fit for me.
The world that was already introduced into this series gets expanded and fleshed out in this book, both the physical landscape and the sociological concepts that I feel make this work so compelling. This is not a book of black and whites, but shaded with all variations of lovely gray. The new characters introduced into this volume both exemplify and defy this concept of gradient; and while I can’t really say I was surprised at the end, I did feel that this book was well-woven.
One of the impetuses behind picking up this series again is that the third and final book in this trilogy is coming out July 24th 2012, and as great as I remembered the first book to be, I hadn’t gotten around to reading the second. I am very glad I rectified that situation and look eagerly forward to the conclusion, Endlessly, even while I mourn the ending of such a wonderful series.
This book made five stars for me.
