Review: The Eternity Cure

Title: The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publication date: April 30, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Source: I recieved a copy by Netgalley in return for an honest review

Rating: 4.5 stars

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Allison Sekemoto has vowed to rescue her creator, Kanin, who is being held hostage and tortured by the psychotic vampire Sarren. The call of blood leads her back to the beginning—New Covington and the Fringe, and a vampire prince who wants her dead yet may become her wary ally.

Even as Allie faces shocking revelations and heartbreak like she’s never known, a new strain of the Red Lung virus that decimated humanity is rising to threaten human and vampire alike.

As far as sequels go, I'm glad to say that The Eternity Cure did not disappoint- which was quite a feat considering how much I loved The Immortal Rules. This book made me feel so many things- from anxiety to anticipation to short-lived joy to heartache- that I'm going to have to break down this review piece by piece.

The Characters
Allie. Badass as ever. She is both fierce and fearsome, which makes for a great vampire, yet she also carries vulnerabilities and insecurities, which makes for a great, relatable protagonist. In this book, Allie is really starting to come into her own, accepting and embracing her new vampire life. I'm really excited to see where Kagawa takes this character in the next book. Especially with the way this one ended.....

Zeke. Bookish bad boys better watch out because Ezekial Cross is making the Nice Guy persona very swoon-worthy. My favorite thing about Zeke, aside from his innate goodness is his unwavering loyalty and faith. In that respect, I think he and Allie complement each other very well.

Jackal. Oh, Ms. Kawaga.... what have you done? I think Jackal just became my favorite character in the series!! I loved how I was constantly guessing whether he would end up a hero or a villain. There are little moments when he proves to be a good ally (and great comic relief) but there is always this understanding that he can't be trusted. I guess I'm just a total sucker for morally ambiguous characters with snark. I also enjoyed his twisted sibling relationship with Allie- it brought some much needed humor and lightness into an otherwise dark story.

Kanin...... is such and interesting character. After two books, I'm still not completely sure what to make of him. Kanin takes a bigger role in this book which was quite nice because I love his demeanor, especially in relation to all the other characters. For me, Kanin is definitely the most intriguing one to read about.

And, in case you were wondering, Sarren is still as twisted and sadistic as ever.

The Plot
As always, Kagawa's pacing was perfect. This book had me hooked from the very first chapter and kept me enraptured all the way up to that jaw-dropping ending. Literally, I openly gaped at the book when I got to the last page. But don't worry, no spoilers for you!

The most notable thing about this book was that there was a lot more gore than in The Immortal Rules. On one hand, this was nice because more action was happening throughout the book- and, really, who doesn't love awesome fight scenes? On the other hand, it did feel just a tad bit excessive. There are only so many pages I can stand of sword-slashing and vampiric dismemberment.

The Romance
This is pretty surprising for me to say, but I was a little unsatisfied with the romance. It's not that I didn't like the romantic development (because I totally support the Zeke/Allie ship) but the initial meeting between the two, namely Zeke explaining why he came after Allie, did not feel very natural to me. I may be in the minority here, but, following the events of book 1, it didn't seem like their relationship was at a point where it was realistic that Zeke did the things he did for her.

All in all:
The Eternity Cure was a very riveting read. Kagawa has hit the character-plot-setting trifecta once again.
Warning: this book ends with one heck of cliffhanger. Unless it's 2014 and the third book is out, prepare junk food on hand to eat away the feelings.

My Book Boyfriend: Ezekiel Crosse

For those of you who don't know, MBB is a weekly meme hosted by Missie over at the Unread Reader--if you're interested in making your own MBB post, check out the intro post here!  


Dear Julie Kagawa,
THANK YOU SO MUCH for creating so many swoon-worthy boys. 
Seriously. They're like fuel for my daydreams...
...but not in a creepy, X-rated way... Promise. 


Sincerely,
~Me

This week, I'm crushing on Ezekiel Crosse from Julie Kagawa's amazing The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) 

He is...

• Ezekiel "Zeke" Crosse
• human
• 17-years old
• named after the angel of death, apparently
• is very lean, with jagged blond hair that falls into his eyes and bright, piercing blue eyes
• is great with kids.... actually scratch that, he's great with everyone
• is a natural leader
• very handy with guns, machetes, arrows....
• is just a REALLY good person--sees the good in just about everyone, very patient, selfless, always keeps hope....etc.

“The mighty hunter,” I quipped as we snuck out the backdoor, escaping into the yard. “He can take down vicious rabids and rampaging boars, but one old lady can make him flee in terror.”
“One scary old lady,” he corrected me, looking relieved to be out of the house. “You didn’t hear what she told me when I got up — you’re so cute I could put you in a pie. Tell me that’s not the creepiest thing you’ve ever heard.” His voice climbed a few octaves, turning shrill and breathy. “Today for dessert, we have apple pie, blueberry pie and Ezekiel pie.” 

He smiled, a real one this time, though his voice remained teasing. “So, what do you think I am?” 
Naive, I thought at once. Naive, brave, selfless, incredible and much too kind to survive this world. It’ll break you in the end, if you keep going like this. Good things never last.

"I know you're scared," he continued in a quiet voice, still close enough that I could feel his breath on my cheek. The Hunger stirred, but it was weaker this time, sated for now. "I know we just met, and we're all strangers, and you keep yourself apart for your own reasons. But I also know I haven't...felt this way about anyone before. And I think...I hope...you feel the same , because that was really hard for me to say. So..." He reached out again, taking my hand. "I'm asking you to trust me."

“He suddenly leaned in, and his fingers brushed my cheek. Warmth flooded my skin, and I frozen, waiting for him to pull back. 
He didnt. The tips of his fingers lingered on my cheek for a moment. Then, very slowly, his hand slipped forward, the palm brushing my skin. Frozen, I stared at him, watching his face as his fingers moved from my cheek to my forehead to my chin, like a blind man tracing someone's features to see them in his mind. 
"What are you doing to me?" he whispered.”

Review: The Immortal Rules

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)
by Julie Kagawa
Published April 24th 2012 by Harlequin Teen

In a future world, vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity."Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.
Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of "them." The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked--and given the ultimate choice. Die...or become one of the monsters.
Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.
Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend--a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.
But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what--and who--is worth dying for.
-goodreads

Rating: 5 stars
Review:

At long last!
Since Twilight, I honestly cannot remember any other vampire book in which vampires were the super-scary-blood-sucking-monsters that they used to be before they were sparkly, swoon-worthy, tortured love interests.
Thank you Julie Kagawa for rectifying this!
The Immortal Rules was everything I could have asked for in a vampire novel--and more!
I freaking loved Kagawa's writing in the Iron Fey series--her world-building, her characters, her plot, her pacing, everything. And she's done it again! She's made me fall head-over-heels in love with another story, another set of characters!

As I read this book, I couldn't help but constantly keep the Iron Fey series in the back of my mind, occasionally comparing them. Obviously, the two stories are TOTALLY different, but if anything, this "comparison" made me realize just how talented and versatile Julie Kagawa is!
The worlds and characters are so different, but equally captivating!

The new world that Kagawa has created it very dark and grim--rightfully so because vampires basically rule the cities and rabids roam the rest of the area! And oh my goodness freaking gracious, those rabids are pretty darn frightening! The way Kagawa handled vampires, a very very overused idea now, is really a breath of fresh air! Very original. Also, they do not sparkle. The sun actually can kill them.

Allie, the protagonist, is so kicka$$ and I LOVE it! She's super tough after years of living on the fringe, and very independent and cynical and jaded. Yet despite all of that, she's also fiercely loyal and selfless towards the people she cares about. She's got her flaws and I loved that! Even though she hates vampires with a fiery passion, when faced with her own mortality, she still wants to live, which I thought was very human and realistic of her. Even as a vampire, I could relate to her internal struggle over hating what she's become and the desire to live.
All in all, Allie has become one of my favorite YA heroines of all time. I honestly could not help but love her!

And of course, I have to mention Ezekial "Zeke" Crosse. He was great--almost like a shining beacon of hope and goodness in this dark and dangerous world that Kagawa has created. He's super sweet--but extremely swoon-worthy! He complemented Allie perfectly and I wish I could've read more about him!

I even liked all the "villains" in the novel! I'm telling you: Julie Kagawa is just that talented.
But Ruth, on the other hand.... wow. I have never wanted to smack a character upside the head, hog-tie her, and stuff her in a closet the way I wanted to with Ruth! That girl.... ugh just don't even get me started!

If there were any doubts as to Julie Kagawa's ability to write, let them all be eradicated now, because she has definitely proven that the talent she had when writing the Iron Fey is alive and well and in large supply. As soon as I started reading this book, I just couldn't put it down! Everything about this book is just SO gripping! Believe me, when you finish, you will be craving book 2!
I know I am.