"Endless Knight" by Kresley Cole

I am in love with Kresley Cole! And I am obsessed with the Arcana Chronicles!!

Jack... I can't help it - I am madly in love with that Cajun.  His bad boy demeanor mixed with his vulnerable soft side that sneaks its way out... *melts*

*SPOILER ALERT:  Don't read the Humble Opinion if you don't want me to give away the book for you!*

Judge a book by its cover

The cover could have been covered in dog poop for all I cared!  I just wanted to read the sequel to Poison Princess!!!

Synopsis

It picks up right where Poison Princess ends.  Jack discovers that Evie isn't as innocent and sweet as he original thought, and he has some issues wrapping his head around that fact.

Matt, Finn, Selena, and Evie have decided to ally together (for now) to defeat Death, but other Arcana start making their appearances - Joules - the Tower; Gabriel - the Archangel; Tess - the World; Lark - the Mistress of Fauna; and Guthrie - the Hierophant - causing the ally to really question each other.  Meanwhile, Jack is left trying to figure out his feelings for Evie and if he handle being a part of a non-human group of kids who ultimately want to kill each other.

Jack and Evie finally admit their feelings for each other and just when everything seems to be going great for them - a betrayal causes Death to kidnap Evie.  At first, you hate Death; then you feel pity for him; then you kinda fall for him... In the end, Evie is left with a HUGE decision, one that won't end well for Jack, no matter which option she chooses.

Humble Opinion
I can't say this enough - OH MY GOD I LOVE THIS SERIES!!!  The emotional roller coaster that Cole takes the reader on is a perfect balance between frustration, swooning, and distrust.  I feel in love with Jack all over again in Endless Knight.  After every he sees, which causes his world to be thrown on its side, he still wants to love and protect Evie. 

And oh dear Lord does it get steamy!!  When Jack confronts Evie in the bathtub and they finally admit their feelings for each other and Jack can barely stop himself from pouncing on Evie... *growl*  And then when Evie and Jack FINALLY do it... Thank you Kresley Cole for actually staying with the sex instead of ending the chapter and letting me pretend how good/awkward/hot it was!!!  Cole touched perfectly on how uncomfortable it is for girls to lose their V-cards, but the way Jack handles it... I'm getting warm just thinking about that scene.

Then when Evie is ripped way from Jack, my heart breaks because they were finally happy and you know that Jack is going to go crazy trying to get to Evie.  But... once Evie is with Death, I found myself warming up to Death; especially after you find out about what Matt and Jack did to Evie.  Pretty soon,  I'm liking the idea of Death and Evie because Death isn't really that bad of guy.  But when you find out that the Empress and Death were married, and the Empress betrayed Death the night of their wedding...  you really want Death and Evie to be together!

I was SO TORN by the end of this book!  I love Jack.  I am OBSESSED with Jack.  I want to have Jack's babies.  However... I really began to like Death.  At first I felt sorry for him, but then... he grew on me, the same way he grew on Evie.  And everything seems to be going great for Death and Evie, and then... Jack gets kidnapped by the Lovers and Evie is now torn between sleeping with Death so he will help her save Jack (which is pretty much rape...) or to leave Jack to the Lovers - a fate worse than Death.

I NEED THE THIRD BOOK AND I NEED IT NOW!!

Final say

Endless Knight - I can't find the right adjective to describe how much I loved this book.  There is a lot of action and sexiness and emotional heartbreak.  It keeps you on your toes.  It does slow down, a little too much, when Evie is in Death's castle.  I understand what Cole was trying to show, but after ACTION-ACTION-ACTION-ACTION, you have a slight lull that is a little irritating.  Those few chapters of Evie trying to convince Death that she wasn't the old Empress and was different, felt like they dragged on a little, but I understand that Cole had to convey that Death wouldn't be convinced quickly or easily.  It just felt like the brakes were on, when I wanted the ride to continue at 90 miles an hour.  But Endless Knight finishes strong and makes me impatient for the third installment.  I'm sure I'll end up reading Endless Knight at least two more times before the next one comes out.

"Reached" by Ally Condie

Judge a book by its cover

I read the first two books of the Matched series, I had to read the conclusion.

Synopsis

Cassia finally reached the Rising with Ky, only to be sent back to Central to work for the Rising from the inside.  Meanwhile, Ky has to stay in the Outer Providences to train as a pilot for the Rising with Cassia's new friend, Indie.

Once the Plague breaks out, the Rising begins.  The Pilot makes himself known, and the Rising provides the cure for everyone in the Society.  The transition from Society control to the Rising seems to be going smoothly.  Cassia begins working with the Archivists so she can stay in touch with Ky.  While trading, Cassia discovers that there is a need for people to express themselves through art, poetry, and songs, so she starts the Gallery, where people can gather to show off their creations, something that was never allowed in the Society.

But things can't stay good for long, because the Plague mutates and the cure doesn't work anymore.  More and more people are being still, and without a cure, are beginning to die.  Indie goes "rogue" and picks up Cassia and Xander on her ship and brings them back to Camas where the Pilot and Ky are; however, she did it for the Pilot, not Ky.  

The Pilot takes Xander, Cassia, and Ky to the outer villages to find the cure for the mutation.  Xander because he's a physic and the Pilot believes he can find the cure; Cassia because he thinks she holds the secret to the cure; and Ky because he's the most recent victim on the mutation and they need fresh samples.

Of course, Cassia finds the missing clue that is needed to make the cure so Xander can make it and save Ky, and then the rest of Society.

Humble Opinion

I really enjoyed the first two books, Matched and Crossed, but Reached seemed to go really slow.  I think Crossed was the best because it kept you in suspense and you just wanted Ky and Cassia to get together and finally reach the Rising, but with Reached,  there isn't much that goes on.  There's a Plague, but it's taken care of rather quickly.  Ky wants to steal a ship and get Cassia, but he never does. A mutation happens, but not really exciting happens with it.  Even when Indie picks up Xander and Cassia and she takes them to Ky, it's not very eventful.  It doesn't get eventful until Xander is accused of destroying the cure and killing Oker that things become interesting, but even that doesn't very last long.

Final say

I felt like Reached was a disappointing conclusion to a great series.  The story had to be wrapped up, but it just seemed to drag out.  There is a lot of waiting and internal monologues in Reached, but no real action.  I really liked the series, but the last book was a snoozefest.

Read Matched and Crossed, but then just know that Ky and Cassia end up together, and Xander finds love with a new girl, Lei.  The end.

"Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices)" by Cassandra Clare

Judge a book by its cover

My sister and I read the Mortal Instruments series when it first came out, and we LOVED them; so of course we started reading the Infernal Devices series.  Cassandra Clare never disappoints.

Synopsis

There is so much that goes on and I can't possibly touch on everything!

Clockwork Princess picks up right were Clockwork Prince left off.  Tessa Grey is special, and Mortmain wants her as her bride, but the Shadowhunters can't figure out WHY Tessa is so important to Mortmain.  

Jem is engaged to Tessa, and while Tessa loves Jem, she also loves Will.  Will is in love with Tessa but hides his feelings because he doesn't want to hurt his parabatia Jem, because if Jem knew he loved Tessa, Jem would sacrifice his happiness for Will's.  Jem is slowing dying but when Mortmain cuts off the supply of yin fin to manipulate Tessa into giving herself in order to save Jem's life, you see just how complicated the love triangle between Jem-Tessa-Will actually is.

Tessa gets kidnapped during an attack on the Institute and is taken to Mortmain's hiding place in Cadar Idiris, in Wales.  Since Jem has fallen deathly ill during the attack on the Institute, only Will can save Tessa.

There is also a story line involving the Lightwood brothers, Charlotte, and the Consul Wayland.  But let's all admit - Tessa-Jem-Will is the main focus.

Humble Opinion

The best book that Cassandra Clare has written yet!  It's been a while since I've read the Mortal Instruments and the first two books of Infernal Devices, so I could have just forgotten how good the previous books were but... I loved this book.  Even through there were several story lines going on at once, I never got confused or felt like they were just "filling" as you grow to like the Lightwoods, and hate Consul Wayland.  

But the main story, between Jem-Tessa-Will is heartbreaking!!  My sister cried three times.  Maybe I'm not as sensitive as her, because I didn't cry until the end, but my heart did break several times through the book.  I actually said, "Oh my God my heart!!" twice, but it was the final scene/epilogue that brought me to tears.  Damn you Cassandra Clare!

There were a few moments that made me confused because of events that happen in the Mortal Instrument series that pertain to events in Infernal Devices.  My sister cleared them up for me, since she had googled the answered after she read the book, but I'm still left wondering...

Final say

Clockwork Princess is the perfect ending to the Infernal Devices series.  It wraps up everything I wanted wrapped up.  It breaks your heart, keeps you on your toes, then breaks your heart all over again.  If you want a heartbreaking, yet satisfying conclusion to the best love triangle of all time - this is the book for you.  JUST READ THE FIRST TWO INFERNAL DEVICES FIRST!!