Endless Knight by Kresley Cole; Review and Theories!!!!

Endless Knight by Kresley Cole (The Arcana Chronicles #2)

Book received from author (Huge thank you!!!)

On Shelves Now

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Enthralling, Seductive and Heart-wrenching, A series that I wish coud be “Endless"

In this seductive follow-up to Poison Princess, #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole takes us deeper into the dark world of the Arcana Chronicles.

Shocking Secrets

Evie has fully come into her powers as the Tarot Empress, and Jack was there to see it all. She now knows that the teens who've been reincarnated as the Tarot are in the throes of an epic battle. It's kill or be killed, and the future of mankind hangs in the balance.

Unexpected Allies

With threats lurking around every corner, Evie is forced to trust her newfound alliance. Together they must fight not only other Arcana, but also Bagmen zombies, post-apocalyptic storms, and cannibals.

Gut-Wrenching Treachery

When Evie meets Death, things get even more complicated. Though falling for Jack, she's drawn to the dangerous Endless Knight as well. Somehow the Empress and Death share a history, one that Evie can't remember—but Death can't forget.

There are so many words that I could use to describe the magnitude of Kresley Cole’s new series.  I could go one and on with the, as Evie says, “SAT words.”  But instead, let me put it simply.  This is a beautiful story of how love and hate collide, how truth and deception walk hand in hand, and how the past always comes around again.

When I first read Poison Princess last year, I just knew that this was going to be an amazing series; and I am so glad that KC’s second book didn’t fall into the sequel slump.  Trust me on this one, this installment is even more amazing than the first.  There is action in every chapter, betrayal around every turn, and romance that will squeeze your heart and warm your extremities!

Endless Knight starts right where Poison Princess lets off, and right away we see how Jackson reacts to Evie becoming the Empress.  I just love how KC is able to capture the emotion in this scene. 

“This is what I truly am…

Jackson stumbled back from me, making the sign of the cross.  Just as I once predicted.

With that one gesture, he has broken my heart utterly.”  PG 1

I can just feel the pain as the boy she loves stumbles back in fear.  This was such a perfect beginning to the book.  The rain is pelting down, and we know that with the rain comes the darkness, just as Matthew predicted.  And be ready, because with the darkness comes anger, fear, betrayal, and blood.

I just love KC’s characters.  So many books have minor characters that are completely flat, but KC manages to breathe life into each of them.  Good or evil, I feel like I know them; and that just shows you how amazing of a writer she is.  While I really do like many of her characters, one of my favorites remains Matthew, the Fool.  I love how his jibber-jabber is both nonsensical and cathartic at once.  He says so many things that are poetic and disturbing, and if you are like me, you spend much of the book trying to decode each of his messages.  Then when it comes clear, Wham!  It’s like you finally found the missing puzzle piece that has been troubling you.  But then, you discover that another one has gone missing.  I want to go back and re-read this just to hear Matthew’s not so random advice.

There is so much action in this book that you will NEVER get bored.  Page after page is filled with either blood and terror, love and romance, or mystery and deceit.  I was so wrapped up in the book that when it ended, I wanted to tear my heart out because I needed more!  I am dying knowing that I have to wait another year for the next installment.

One of the best parts of this book is the increase in the amount of romance.  I am a romance buff, so when all the kissing started, you can bet I was fully focused!!!!  Minor Spoiler (though not really because the blurb talks of Death’s seduction):  There is a sort of love triangle in this book, but I really loved how it was done.  We see Jack and Evie’s relationship grow, and there are points where you really can see how much Jack cares for her.  But Jack isn’t the sole focus in this book, now we have Death.

Death and Evie share a past (again, not a spoiler as its in the blurb), and let me just tell you—I love the bad guys.   I love the passion that drives them, whether it be from lust, anger, hatred, or whatever.  It’s always so potent, and that just makes their relationships all the more volatile.  This is extremely true when it comes to Death and Evie, and I really loved getting to see glimpses into their past.  Furthermore, you really get to see Death’s true self, and I have to admit, I’m kind of glad I liked him (even with the death threats and what not).

Kresley Cole has a forever fan in me.  This book is nothing short of amazing, and I highly recommend it to EVERYONE!!!  Seriously, go buy this series now because it is a must read.  KC has created the most unique post-apocalyptic world I have ever seen or read about, and I love the idea of people being Tarot Cards.  It’s so utterly distinctive, and there is just so much symbolism and mystery surrounding each of the Arcana.  Her world is bloody and beautiful, and if I were to be plunged head first into an apocalyptic fight to the death, I would certainly want a few of her characters by my side.

Content Warning:  There are some more mature romance scenes in this book.

 

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Favorite Quotes:

Said by Death to Evie:  “Your death is mine, which means your life is mine.”  PG 114

Said by Matthew to Evie:  “You are the card that Death covets.”  PG 195

“Empress?  You awake?—

I’m up.  Matthew, give me some good news.

--The snow hasn’t come yet.—“  PG 210

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And Finally…a few theories I would love to discuss!!!  Let me know if you agree/disagree or if you have your own theories you want to share!!  (There are SPOILERS contained in these theories, so do not read further if you have not read EK!)

SPOILERS!

It is mentioned that there are 2 Arcana immune to Evie’s poison.  We find out one is the Ogre, but what if the other one is Death??  They both have water on their cards, and Evie is immune to Death’s touch—it only makes sense, he would be immune to hers.

It is also mentioned that there is an Arcana that will not be activated until he/she kills another Arcana.  What if that’s Jack, and that is why he is drawn to them and Evie?

Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

eARC received from Margaret K. McElderry Books

Release Date:  5-7-2013

Reveiwed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Amazing new idea, but needs more world building

Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful—and most hunted—girl in England.

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

I was so happy to be approved to read an early copy of Chantress!  I’m always looking for something new in the ya paranormal genre, and women who wield magic through song is definitely something different.  I’m a music lover—I love how a melody or a chorus can take hold of your heart and embed itself into your world.  I love how it can flow around you melding your moods and your desires, and mostly, I love how it is music that can so thoroughly describe the nature of man.  So, it only seems fitting that music could contain hidden power.  I loved how Amy Butler Greenfield gave everything a song in her world, and how those songs could be used to wield unimaginable power.

This story starts off with a bang when Lucy unknowingly sings herself across the seas to London.  She is immediately thrust into a dangerous and duplicitous world where everyone and everything can betray you.  The intensity of Amy’s story held me tight, and I could feel the treachery flying on the wind.  But it wasn’t just the tension and danger that made Amy’s world unique and beautiful; I loved that it was set in the late 1600s when the fear or witchcraft was already rampant.  It felt fitting that this story was set so long ago instead of in modern times, and it really added to the fear that controlled the people in London in Amy’s world.  I just wish there would have been more focus on the world building, as we truthfully didn’t get to see much of it.

For the most part the action was well placed, although somewhere in the middle the action did start to lull.  When Lucy starts to practice the magic of a Chantress, she is locked up underground for months, and it was here that I began to want the plotline to move along.  I felt like we saw too many of the basic lessons, when just a few paragraphs about her struggle would have sufficed.  I wanted to see more happen outside, and we didn’t see any of this because the story is written in Lucy’s pov.  I wish there would have been dual perspectives or something done so we could see through another’s eyes out into the word that is ravaged by the dangerous Shadowgrims (magical ravens who can read minds and destroy you from the inside out).

I like Nat, the scientist who eventually becomes Lucy’s relationship interest (although nothing really happens at all).  However, he didn’t really blow me away, but again, if we could have seen his perspective, I think I might have been more drawn to him.  He holds horrible secrets about his past, and seeing glimpses into this would have informed his character more, and would have added to the desperate tone of the book.

I wish we could have seen more of the evil characters, too.  I felt like most of the story, the evil and dangers were just described, not experienced.  I wanted more close calls and out of breath moments as a result of living on the edge of danger.  Unfortunately, these only came at the beginning and at the end.  This might have added to the lulls in action I was frustrated with in the middle.  The evil characters had such potential, and I just wish they would have been explored more.

Overall, Chantress was a great read, and I am definitely looking forward to reading the next one.  I loved the musical aspect that the power was centered around, and I love that everything in the world has its own unique song, and it is just floating on the wind, waiting to be discovered.  I’m excited to see what new magic awaits Lucy in the future.

Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Release Date:  10-2-2012

ARC received from Simon & Schuster at ALA

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say: 

Copy of How to Survive the End of the World As We Know It:   $11.56 on Amazon

Survival Kit including backpack, water, liquor, energy bars:  $39 on Amazon

Trekking across a post-apocalyptic wasteland with a gorgeous Cajun:  Priceless

 #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole introduces The Arcana Chronicles, post-apocalyptic tales filled with riveting action, the dark mysticism of Tarot cards, and breathtaking romance.She could save the world—or destroy it.

Sixteen year old Evangeline “Evie” Greene leads a charmed life, until she begins experiencing horrifying hallucinations. When an apocalyptic event decimates her Louisiana hometown, Evie realizes her hallucinations were actually visions of the future—and they’re still happening. Fighting for her life and desperate for answers, she must turn to her wrong-side-of-the-bayou classmate: Jack Deveaux.

But she can’t do either alone.

With his mile-long rap sheet, wicked grin, and bad attitude, Jack is like no boy Evie has ever known. Even though he once scorned her and everything she represented, he agrees to protect Evie on her quest. She knows she can’t totally depend on Jack. If he ever cast that wicked grin her way, could she possibly resist him?

Who can Evie trust?

As Jack and Evie race to find the source of her visions, they meet others who have gotten the same call. An ancient prophesy is being played out, and Evie is not the only one with special powers. A group of twenty-two teens has been chosen to reenact the ultimate battle between good and evil. But it’s not always clear who is on which side….

Words cannot describe the amazing-ness of this book!  It is by far my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE of 2012!  And…I get to meet her at ATBF next week!  *Dances around the room singing You know you make me wanna SHOUT!* Prepare yourself for an insane amount of gushing.

I just loved Kresley Cole’s world—bathed in desire and passion, filled to the brink with unknown forces, and laced with poison and death; Kresley’s post-apocalyptic world won’t just bring you to the edge of a cliff—it will throw you right over, straight into a game of chess.  A game where checkmate means much more than game over.

I have never read anything like Poison Princess.  This book centers around the end of the world, but its not global warming or an alien invasion or the like that caused this catastrophe.  No, it’s much more than that…and it’s happened before!  That’s all I’m going to say about the “apocalypse” because you’ll have to find out for yourself.  But what’s even more unique is that certain characters are the embodiment of tarot cards.  Yes, that’s right—you have Death, the Empress, the Magician, The Fool and so many more!  I just love that she has brought these cards to life—given them a driven purpose—one that will drive them all to complete and utter desolation.

The prose was perfect!  I wouldn’t change a thing.  Kresley was poetic when she needed to be, yet rugged and grotesque when the moment required.  My absolute favorite part of the book was when someone said (I won’t tell you who), “The last two monarch butterflies are thousands of miles apart and flying away from each other.”  ARC pg. 280.  I just love this quote because it shows how delicate our world is—how one decision, which way to fly, which road to take, which boy to kiss—can destroy you, or save you.

Evie, the heroine, is probably my favorite ya heroine!  At first she’s this little rich girl who is slightly curious about the rugged Cajun that just enrolled in her school.  But as the world quickly goes to hell, she builds a rugged shell and becomes the tough, in your face, Empress she is destined to be.  It was so much fun to see her grow into a warrior.  Kresley does such an amazing job using words to mold her into something more than a girl—an Arcana.  Forever changed by loss, immersed in a world full of secrets, and forced to come to grips with her heinous future;  Evie’s journey to truth will sweep you away.

And

The

Cajun.

“At that moment, I was dying for the Cajun boy to kiss me…I had to know what the look in his eyes promised.”  ARC, pg. 75

Jackson is so unbelievably rugged.  Translation:  HOT!!!!!  Another translation:  Heart-breaker.  Another translation: Savior?  He shows up just as Evie’s world plummets into an abyss, and he manages to drag her up and out of it.  His raw sexuality just oozes off the page, and there were so many moments when I wanted to snap my fingers and trade places with Evie!  He is charming, not so romantic, but 100% pure bad-boy.  His body language is smoldering with heat, his words are dripping with sex, and his actions are obsessed with protecting Evie.  He’s perfect—in every way!

Have I gushed too much?  Don’t judge me!  Just a bit more.

And

Then

There

Was

Death.

One of the many “evil” Major Arcana make their appearance in this book, and I’m sure the rest will show up in Book 2.  I loved Death—revenge, hatred, anger, passion, darkness—all rolled into the ultimate killing machine who has only one goal:  KILL THEM ALL.  He will send a shudder down your spine and your heartbeat with quicken whenever this Arcana is near.  And now—Death’s vengeful eye is fixed…on Evie.  And let me tell you, this makes for some amazing scenes and visions!   And his words—laced with threats and hints of what the future holds!  He’s such a great villain, and I love that he’s not the only one!

So….I’ll wrap it up!  This book had the most unique concept I have ever come across in YA.  Every chapter held a new surprise and the ending left me speechless.  But not for long—within a day of reading it, I had loaned it to my neighbor (who LOVED it) and then my mother (who also LOVED it).  The ending is a cliffhanger, but not one that will make you angry or frustrated.  It’s one that will make your pulse quicken with excitement for what’s to come.

This book was perfect!  Perfect I say!

 

Teaser Tuesday: Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading!

To participate all you have to do is:

•Grab your current read

•Open to a random page

•Share "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)

Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Simon and Schuster
October 2, 2012

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"'If you touch me like that again, Evangeline,' he began in a husky tone, dropping to his seat once more, 'in the space of a heartbeat, I will have you off this bike and onto the closest horizontal surface.  And I woan be picky, no.'" ARC, pg. 226

"Suddenly, Matthew shot upright, face paling.  'Death sends his regards.'  At once Selena turned down the music.  I saw Jackson's eyes narrow in the rearview mirror.  Matthew asked, 'Why aren't you preparing for death, Evie?  You know what the future brings."  ARC, pg. 297

"The red witch stood atop a raised dais overlooking a crowd of shadowy figures.  Villagers.  They cowered before her.  Aggression sizzled through her veins as she surveyed them.  She would destroy them all, every last one, her wratch unfathomable."  ARC, pg. 139

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This book was beyond words!  I'm going to even go futher and say that it is my favorite book I have read so far this year.  I loved that the plot and the characters were nothing....I mean nothing! like I have ever seen before.  They were fresh and full of life (or death).  Her writing sent chills down my spine--good chills from the hot and angry Jack and bad chills from the terrifying characters that haunt the apocalyptic landscape!  The entire story was on a whole different level of new!  Kresley Cole is a master at creating a dark world where even monsters might find themselves afraid!  Do not miss out on this one!