{Book Review} Into The Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

Book: Into The Still Blue
Author: Veronica Rossi
Series: Under The Never Sky #3
Publisher: Harper Collins (2014)
Format & Pages: Paperback, 392 pages

The earth-shattering conclusion to Veronica Rossi’s “masterpiece” Under the Never Sky trilogy and sequel to the New York Times bestselling Through the Ever Night.

Their love and their leadership have been tested. Now it’s time for Perry and Aria to unite the Dwellers and the Outsiders in one last desperate attempt to bring balance to their world.

The race to the Still Blue has reached a stalemate. Aria and Perry are determined to find this last safe-haven from the Aether storms before Sable and Hess do-and they are just as determined to stay together.

Meanwhile, time is running out to rescue Cinder, who was abducted by Hess and Sable for his unique abilities. And when Roar returns to camp, he is so furious with Perry that he won’t even look at him, and Perry begins to feel like they have already lost.

Out of options, Perry and Aria assemble a team to mount an impossible rescue mission-because Cinder isn’t just the key to unlocking the Still Blue and their only hope for survival, he’s also their friend. And in a dying world, the bonds between people are what matter most.

In this final book in her stunning Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi raises the stakes to their absolute limit and brings her epic love story to an unforgettable close.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

I’m trying to figure out how to put into words my feelings for this novel. On one hand, I am sorely saddened that this series, one of my favourites thanks to its amazing cast of characters, has come to a close. On the other hand, I don’t feel that it is as strong a final book as I would’ve wanted, mostly because I feel that Rossi can do better than this. Just read Through the Ever Night and you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Frankly, I don’t believe I am capable of giving the Under The Never Sky series a bad review. I love the characters and the story too darn much to do that. Though I can’t pinpoint where Into The Still Blue comes short particularly, if I had to sum it up in one word I would say something along the lines of… ‘eh’. You know, the sort of thing you say when something is neither here nor there. I’m sad to say that’s what this third book made me feel. It didn’t excite me or incite as much emotion as the other books did, but that is not to say this was an awful book.

This particular installment reminded me that this series is at its core a romance. There were a lot of sweet Perry-Aria moments probably to compensate for the lack of them in the previous book, but my main problem was my lack of thrill with the events in this book. The second book was written nearly to perfection (thank you, Roar!) so I had some very high need-to-grab-this-from-the-bookstore-right-now expectations for the last book. The pacing here was slightly slower, with some very select unsustained moments that were edge-of-your-seat exciting. There were less in-depth character explorations as well, with the exception of Soren I suppose.  The best part was without a doubt the last eighth of the novel, and while I may complain about this book, many things I love about the previous ones were still present.

Rossi manages to maintain her fluid writing style between Aria and Perry’s narrations, continuing right where she left off in the previous book. The world as they know it is in shambles and their only hope is finding a way to the Still Blue, but it will not be easy while the cruel bloodlord Sable holds the key. What’s interesting to see here is how the Dwellers and Outsiders have begun to become more aware of each other like never before. It’s such an interesting concept to have this divide, where we have the obliviously sheltered living in a pod, and we also have “people in the wild” with special abilities linked to heightened senses.

What makes the whole series work, if you look at it as a whole, is the way Rossi molded her characters. The story is a rather simple one but the characters are the heart and soul of the series. Without Rossi’s unique ability to draw the readers to her characters, without her ability to make us all sympathise and feel so deeply for what the characters are going through, this would’ve been just another dystopian novel alongside a heap of others. Despite the underwhelming third book, I really can’t deny that I still love this series a lot, and I will surely miss the company of Perry, and especially of Aria and Roar.

See my thoughts on Under the Never Sky (Book #1); Through the Ever Night (Book #2).

{Top Book Pick} Champion by Marie Lu

Book: Champion by Marie Lu
Publisher: Penguin (2013)
Format & Pages: Paperback, 353 pages
Series: Legend #3

He is a Legend.

She is a Prodigy.

Who will be Champion?

June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic—and each other—and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps-Elect, while Day has been assigned a high-level military position. But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them: just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities.

This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything. With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Finishing a series of books, especially if it’s a series that came as a surprise like this one always leaves me kind of speechless. If anything, the experience of reading the Legend series was akin to watching a simple bud slowly blossom into a rose. From the first book to this last one, the growth among the characters, as well as the author herself, was tremendous. ‘Impossible to miss’ might be a more apt description. Marie Lu found her stride in Prodigy and it seems like she rode on that with this third book. Her writing style is obviously much more polished, allowing her to explore her characters in a deeper and more moving manner. To say this series has come a long way in all aspects would be an understatement. Each book was an improvement upon the last, and frankly I’ve never been more honoured to bear witness to an author’s growth the way I did as I read each book in this series.

Having had broken essentially every barrier that made me second-guess the first book, I still think the second book is the strongest of the three. However what I love about this book was that it provided me with a satisfactory ending. As we readers are well aware, the ending is always the hardest part to read, and it is also arguably the most critical. It leaves us with an overall impression about the series that lingers in our minds before we permanently tuck the set of books away.

I’m lucky to be a part of the group that found the ending to be just right. Lu has this way of manipulating situations until you aren’t quite sure what to expect next. Most YA novels tend to give you the sense of the ending early on, but this was different. Literally up until the very last page I wasn’t absolutely sure if we were actually going to get the “happy ending”. The epilogue is what actually sealed the deal for me; its bittersweet nature fitting perfectly with the  dynamics of the series as a whole. It was at once sad but still offering an open-ended glimpse to something hopeful.

What I appreciate most about this book is how it culminated with such clarity and force the journey of the characters towards maturity. The epilogue specifically was quite moving. Marie Lu has developed her characters in a believable manner, slowly dragging out their path towards emotional growth alongside their physical ageing. And in the end she finally manages to convince me that Day and June are worthwhile heroes and not mere children who I have a hard time believing can actually pull these insane stunts. They were also somehow more believable as a couple here as well. Somehow their struggles within their relationship feel realistic enough that I almost forgot it was born out of an insta-love situation.

The pacing was consistent throughout the novel, which is to say it keeps you at the edge of your seat all the time. I know the other books in the series were the same way, but in this book you can’t help but feel the same sense of urgency and dread the characters feel. You begin needing to keep reading until you reach the end because the stakes are too high to look away from. All in all, I think Marie Lu deserves a lot of kudos for putting this little series together so masterfully. I’m looking forward to what kind of series she’ll do next!

Now I only got one question for all those who have finished this book/series:

• Did you or did you not like the ending? (Please try not to provide spoilers if you decide to comment. Thank you!)

See my thoughts on Legend (Book #1); Prodigy (Book #2).

{Top Book Pick} Prodigy by Marie Lu

Book: Prodigy by Marie Lu
Publisher: Penguin (2013)
Format & Pages: Paperback, 356 pages
Series: Legend #2

Injured and on the run, it has been seven days since June and Day barely escaped Los Angeles and the Republic with their lives. Day is believed dead having lost his own brother to an execution squad who thought they were assassinating him. June is now the Republic’s most wanted traitor. Desperate for help, they turn to the Patriots – a vigilante rebel group sworn to bring down the Republic. But can they trust them or have they unwittingly become pawns in the most terrifying of political games?

Rating: 4.25 out of 5

I’m happy to report that all the things I loved from Legend that made me gave it 4 big stars despite my qualms about it are still very much present in this book. First of all it’s still as exciting as ever, with a plot and events that chug along like a nicely-oiled train. I also love how more distinct Day’s and June’s voices have become in this book. Using alternate points-of-views to narrate one continuous story sometimes creates this danger of having the characters sound exactly the same, but a more polished effort from Marie Lu in this second book makes it apparent that Day is the more emotional narrator and June the more logical.

The differences in their personalities and the way the think, act, and react were explored more thoroughly, making me very clearly see that June and Day are not at all as similar as I initially thought. Probably the only thing they actually have in common is their deeply-rooted sorrows. I feel sadder when June allows it to wrap itself around her heart because she typically shows so little vulnerability. I also really loved the interactions between Day and June, especially all thoughts of doubt and the way they question each other’s motives and feelings. It really shows me the youth of the two- the lack of maturity you could say- and somehow puts reason to my question of why Marie Lu chose to make them 15 in the story.

In fact, it seems as though all my complaints about the first book were addressed in this second one, starting with the vagueness of the world building when it came to the Republic and the Colonies. I asked for a map, she gave me a map. I asked for a brief history lesson of how the United States of America broke into two, she gave it to me too. I was pretty happy with the scenarios I managed to form in my mind that helped me understand, or at the very least differentiate, the Republic and the Colonies.

Now as I have mentioned before, I simply am NOT sold on the romance aspect. Not only did I have a hard time believing a bunch of 15 year-olds would know what deep, almost-lusty desires were like, it was a bad case of insta-love between June and Day for me. I honestly still can’t find much of a solid foundation for how that happened. BUT the funny thing is Marie Lu addresses that here as well, using Tess as she confronts Day, asking him how he could possibly believe he has fallen in love with a girl he has only been acquainted with for a month or so; who practically represents the elite sector he hates so much. I don’t particularly like Tess but she made so much sense at that moment. I know a lot of other people took issue with the insta-love too so I’m pleasantly surprised that it seems Marie Lu actually took into consideration the stuff we reviewers said.

My only major peeve about the book really is how my favourite character gets effing killed off! I think my mouth stayed in an O-shape of shock until about 5 pages after the fact. I could not believe what had just happened. And then at the end is another explosive revelation that basically makes me want to pull my hair out in another fit of WTF– you sly Marie Lu, you! All I can say is that I am relieved beyond words that I decided to wait for book 3 to get released before I decided to buy both books together. I had a feeling this would happen, and to be fair the ending of book 2 wasn’t even an actual cliffhanger. It tied up that chapter of the Republic’s history rather nicely, setting the reader up for the next phase of things to come. And yet there still is that element of a cruel surprise.

That aside, I thoroughly enjoyed this for being a quick, exciting read. It’s the kind of book you can and would want to finish in one sitting. Neither June nor Day allowed themselves to lose sight of their personal goals despite having thoughts of each other at the back of their heads, making the societal unrest the centre of the story rather than the romance (thank God).

It’s too easy to love a novel where the characters are interesting, the pace is electric, and the story actually has a point. But beyond the story, the novel speaks to me a lot about the characteristics of society. It shows how most people are just soooo quick to believe whatever glittering words are fed to them just to escape the unhappy reality of their discontentment, they don’t even bother verifying the facts. In a more shallow level, it also establishes how crazy politics actually is. As a dystopian novel, this does its job. But then you insert the exciting fight scenes, chase scenes, flying scenes, and you’ve got yourself one hell of an edge-of-your-seat action-driven novel that is just soooo hard to put down!

Now a couple of questions for ya’ll who have not yet read the third installment:

•  Do you find Tess endearing, annoying, or just plain creepy with how aggressive she is with Day? I mean, what is she– 12? 13? And as a follow up question to that…
•  Would it have made any difference with the romance aspect within the story if the characters were made a little older?
• Ages aside, do you ship the Day X June tandem, or do you, like myself, kind of think that June X Anden make a better couple? What about Day X Tess?
• Do you actually trust Anden or do you think he will show some sort of hidden nature the moment June and Day let their guards down?
• Lastly, does anybody know if Hollywood is thinking of making a movie out of this? ‘Cause they have made adaptations out of bad books and REALLY bad books before but the Legend series would make a really great series of movies if done right.
• Really really lastly, who would you pick to star as the main characters? I don’t know that many young actors so I would love to hear your ideas. Here are my picks for the starring roles from my very limited list (mixed up the heritages of the characters didn’t I?):
  

See my thoughts on Legend (Book #1).

{Book Review} Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta

Book: Froi of the Exiles
Author: Melina Marchetta
Series: Lumatere Chronicles #2
Publisher: Candlewick Press (2013)
Format & Pages: Paperback, 608 pages

Three years after the curse on Lumatere was lifted, Froi has found his home . . . or so he believes. Fiercely loyal to the Queen and Finnikin, Froi has been taken roughly and lovingly in hand by the Guard sworn to protect the royal family, and has learned to control his quick temper with a warrior’s discipline. But when he is sent on a secretive mission to the kingdom of Charyn, nothing could have prepared him for what he finds in its surreal royal court.

Soon he must unravel both the dark bonds of kinship and the mysteries of a half-mad princess in this barren and mysterious place. It is in Charyn that he will discover there is a song sleeping in his blood . . . and though Froi would rather not, the time has come to listen.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

I adored Finnikin of the Rock, from its characters to its imagery to the concepts it tackled. I loved how the scope of its story of how a people finally found their way home was so profound. And I loved the emotions it conveyed and stirred in me. I adored Finnikin and grew to love Evanjalin. I loved the dynamics of the relationships among the characters. I fell in love with the world Melina Marchetta introduced to me. And it was maybe this attachment to Finnikin and Evanjalin and Lumatere that ultimately made me feel like Froi of the Exiles fell short.

Don’t get me wrong, I like Froi. This boy without a past used to be a street rat I despised but soon enough became endeared to me, and I like him even better now after reading this book. He did a lot of “uncharacteristic” things in this book (and I mean that in both a positive and negative sense). He showed me his vulnerabilities, but in my eyes it only made him more human. He made decisions based on his heart and not on his training as a soldier or assassin, and sometimes he struggled with the task at hand. He has changed so much from the beastly Froi of the past, even proving that beyond his intimidating exterior is a very good heart. Unfortunately Froi’s spotlight was snatched away by the jarring character that is Quintana. She’s very hard to miss.

My general problem sometimes when it comes to what might have been a good book is when I dislike one of many of the main characters. For me characters play a huge part in my enjoyment of a book and it ruins my experience greatly when I dislike or am mystified by a supposed main character. I don’t know if it’s only temporary but I simply don’t get Quintana. I don’t even understand Froi’s actions and motivations when he is around her. I mean, I could understand how Froi would be reluctant to leave his newly found father and mother no matter how cold or harsh they may seem to treat him outwardly, but his falling for Quintana was just beyond me.

I’m not saying it’s a completely hopeless case, but from what I’ve read so far, there are no endearing qualities to be found in Quintana. She is demented beyond describing, and she is bipolar (tripolar?), always referring to herself as we. One day she is Princess Indignant, other days she is the Ice Queen, and on other days still she crouches on the edge of a ravine snarling like an animal. Her hair is constantly a mess. She wears dresses that even men find distasteful. She has teeth like a little savage animal… Basically she is depicted in a horrible light throughout the novel. I couldn’t really connect with her and in the end I didn’t find myself being moved by her or her story.

I actually found it difficult to connect with Charyn as well. It’s so bizarre. From the dark concept of Charyn and its curse I was expecting myself to devour this book, and yet I did not get the same kind of feeling with the Charynites like I did for the Lumaterans. I couldn’t find that emotional tug I got as I read about the struggles of the Lumaterans. I didn’t feel any sorrow or grief, but maybe a little anguish over what the Charynites have subjected Quintana to. Maybe it was because as I read the book my impression was that the focus of the curse was mostly on how it affected Quintana. The effect the curse had on the rest of Charyn was only strongly established near the end of the book by the Charynites camped out at the edge of Lumateran Mountains. In Finnikin of the Rock, we got a very real glimpse of the lives of Lumateran exiles. The very strong feelings of grief for her people Evanjalin brought to the pages was very pronounced and even contagious. This would’ve been an equally painful read if I had at all any emotional investments. And it’s because I didn’t that I felt the book spent too much time unraveling itself, often skirting between finally revealing the truth and holding its breath repeatedly, teasing the reader on and on. For instance, the moment I finally think Froi is about to put his plan to assassinate the Charynite king in motion, he gets distracted by something else until I finally felt he spent a little too much time in the Charynite palace not exactly getting anything done.

On the other hand, Quintana did fascinate me in the sense that I kept wanting to find out how she became this way. I was intrigued when I was given some hints of why she believes there are others living in her head. I felt pity for her because of what she had to put up with all her life– being repeatedly raped and whored to supposedly save Charyn. I guess there is no other consequence to that kind of life other than losing your mind, but clearly Quintana was a different sort of demented. She was intelligent enough to survive through execution and civil war. She could plot and play the game of courts and crowns like the best of them. One has to wonder if she in fact knew exactly what she was doing, or if perhaps her madness has given her some sort of brilliance after all. Either way, Quintana is one of those characters who remain a gigantic question mark to me. I still don’t feel strongly enough for her to want to cheer for her.

I seriously don’t understand how or why Froi fell in love with her. I just don’t see any reason why he would like someone like Quintana, and in such a short period of time no less. Was it pity? Marchetta explicitly mentions that Quintana touches the hidden parts of Froi that are pure and raw and savage, but I wasn’t quite convinced. I wasn’t convinced every time he talked himself out of heading home to Lumatere because of this girl. There is still a difference between being told and being shown, but I am inclined to believe that Froi does feel a great amount of lust for her. The way Marchetta expresses his sexual needs when he is around her is very effective. Towards the end, when Froi risked his life to save Quintana, was the only time I began to feel that maybe he did really fall in love with her after all.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s hard for Quintana to compete against characters like Finnikin and Isaboe, and even Froi.

Speaking of, I did not quite feel any significant moments between Finnikin and Isaboe in this story, but I did like that Marchetta has not completely closed the book on their story. On one side she is showing a little happy ending for the two of them in the form of little Jasmina. They deserve it after all they went through in the first book. But on the other end, Marchetta is telling us that life isn’t that simple. Despite gaining back the kingdom and Isaboe returning to her rightful place, all is not perfect in Lumatere. There are still internal conflicts they need to address, fears of losing this home they had just returned to. And then there are the threats of an impending war thanks to the mess that is now Charyn. Related to that, I thought Marchetta set the ending up for the next book nicely. The epilogue is about three pages long, but it manages to make readers anticipate the events in the next book. Personally I am glad that it seems like Finnikin and Isaboe are finally coming back into more significant roles.

There’s a little bit more of many things in this book compared to the first: more action, more darkness, more adult themes, more sex, more mystery and suspense. Those are some of the driving forces that kept me turning page after page despite my qualms. This book was a tome, mind you. Not at all a quick or easy read. Honestly there were parts I wish could’ve been shortened, but on one side I understand they were put there to explain who the characters really are. Fortunately Marchetta is very good with her words and the story is a solid one that kept me reading. I didn’t skim or skip parts at all. However it sometimes felt taxing to see how far off I am from the end of the book. I had some moments of confusion regarding Quintana, and a LOT of confusion regarding Froi’s actions in relation to her. Thankfully I had the foresight to order the next book ahead of time. I’m hoping that will mend my relationship with this odd and deranged girl.

See my thoughts on the stellar first book here.