Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Review: Through The Ever Night and Into The Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

Title: Through The Ever Night 
Author: Veronica Rossi
Series: Book Two in the Under the Never Sky Trilogy
Published By: Harper Teen (January 8, 2013)
Source: Purchased
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: 4 Stars!

Book Description:
It's been months since Aria learned of her mother's death. 

Months since Perry became Blood Lord of the Tides, and months since Aria last saw him.

Now Aria and Perry are about to be reunited. It's a moment they've been longing for with countless expectations. And it's a moment that lives up to all of them. At least, at first. 

Then it slips away. The Tides don't take kindly to former Dwellers like Aria. And the tribe is swirling out of Perry's control. With the Aether storms worsening every day, the only remaining hope for peace and safety is the Still Blue. But does this haven truly exist?

Threatened by false friends and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night? 

In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and sci-fi elements to create a captivating adventure-and a love story as perilous as it is unforgettable.











I was dying to start this after finishing Under the Never Sky.

As some of you may know, it took me a while to warm up to it but by the time I was done I was in love. I loved the writing, the story and most of all the characters. How could I not after all?

I was right to be excited about this one because I loved it even more than the first. 

I love Roar, I love Perry and I really do love Aria (way more than I expected). It seems, once I warmed up to them, that was all it took to get me hooked.

There was just a little bit more in all of this. More romance, more fun, more action, more drama, more adventure, just more. And how can you go wrong with more?

This was a fabulous sequel and honestly, I could end this review there and be done, be satisfied with it.

It didn't suffer from second book syndrome or lacking dialogue or lack of character growth or connections. It didn't lack in anything. Nothing at all and if we are being honest with ourselves, how often does that really happen with second books in trilogies or even series these days? Not nearly enough. 

So yeah, I am not going to say anything more about this one other than you need to start this series if you haven't because it really is a stand out series. It really is a different read and it really is worth it. 

I am so glad I listened to all my friends and just went with it and finally dived in. 


There is harshness and sadness and anger and frustration and dangers everywhere but there is also so much hope for new beginnings in the Still Blue, and love and friendship between the friends and tribe. So much left to do and left unsaid and left to uncover. I am so very nervous about starting that last book but once again, I know it will be worth it.















Title: Into the Still Blue
Author: Veronica Rossi
Series: Book Three in the Under the Never Sky Trilogy
Published By: Harper Teen (January 28, 2014)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: 4 Stars!

Book Description:
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.

Within the confines of a cave they're using as a makeshift refuge, they struggle to reconcile their people, Dwellers and Outsiders, who are united only in their hatred of their desperate situation. Meanwhile, time is running out to rescue Cinder, who was abducted by Hess and Sable for his unique abilities. Then Roar arrives in a grief-stricken fury, endangering all with his need for revenge.

Out of options, Perry and Aria assemble an unlikely team for an impossible rescue mission. 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 earth-shattering Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi raises the stakes to their absolute limit and brings her epic love story to an unforgettable close.






Where do I start with this review?

Maybe where I start with all reviews that are about the ending of a series. I can tell you how the ending is always bittersweet How I never really want it to be over. How I always enter into it with so much nervousness and trepidation that my stomach is usually in knots. Will I like it? Will I love it? Will the author ruin it all or give it the ending I think it deserves?

So many what ifs it really is nerve wracking. 

I very deliberately didn't start this series until I knew it would be over because I didn't want to have to wait for the last book. I didn't want to forget anything and I wanted the ending now, on hopefully, my terms, for good or bad.

So I guess the big question is, did I get everything I wanted? Did I get the ending I was hoping for?

And to answer, I am still not sure.

Am I happy with it all, yes. Could there have been more? Again, yes. But can I live with it and be okay with it? Absolutely. 

I have come to really care about Roar, Perry and Aria as well as a few secondary characters that surprised me along the way as well, (Brooke, Cinder, Marcus, Soren, Willow) and I think for the most part (with one glaring exception) they all got what I was hoping for in the end. 

It wasn't perfect and it was messy and wasn't without heartache but it was something that I could live with and think about with a smile on my face afterward. 

Rossi set the bar high in her other installments and while this maybe wasn't as strong as the others, it still showed why most people are calling this series a masterpiece. Why her writing is engaging and enthralling and something to be talked about and paid attention too.

It was a good conclusion, and a  good good-bye. 







*All thoughts and opinions were my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

26 comments:

  1. Yeah, I need to finish this series too. I skimmed b/c I've only read book 1, but I'm glad book 2 was solid, and book 3 concluded nicely. I hate it when a series I really like ends in an unsatisfactory way.

    Jessica @ Rabid Reads

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    1. Me too Jessica, it is the worst feeling when that happens.

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  2. Wow Ali you consumed this series. The characters sounds amazing, as you know I have book one and really need to open it up. Fantastic reviews and I am so glad you enjoyed these despite the rough start.

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    1. I really did enjoy them! It helped motivate me when I got an ARC of Into The Still Blue. ;)

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  3. Ahhh! Yet another series I'm behind on! I loved the first book, so I'm glad to see the rest of the series was so successful for you Ali, even if the final book maybe wasn't as strong as the previous too. I can't wait to get back to Aria and Perry, and particularly Roar, so I need to make time for these! So glad your friends' recommendations didn't lead you astray!

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    1. Me too Jenny! I hope you like them as well when you get to them. :)

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  4. I didn't love the first when I was reading it but it really stuck with me and I realized that since I was remembering so much and really wanting more that I liked it more than I thought. I bought the second on release but still haven't read it! I guess now I can read them back to back, or at least close together. So glad you enjoyed this series!

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    1. The second is way better than the first for sure, I bet you will like it better as well Candace.

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  5. I felt exactly the same way about these two books! Book two was a huge success for me, an emotional rollercoaster, but I still don't feel that I got a well-rounded, satisfactory ending with Into the SB. It wasn't enough and it wasn't what I hoped for.

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    1. Yeah I think it is hard when you invest so much time to not always want just a little bit more. ;)

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  6. I think the second book was the best in the series which never happens. I know what you mean, the ending was good but it lacked a bit of something. Still it was satisfying and I can't complain. I am glad to see you finally catching up on old series, too.

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    1. I agree, that hardly ever happens but it totally was the case this time.

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  7. Girl this is one of the series that is really high on my to-read list. I'm so glad you enjoyed both of these and hopefully I'll get to them soon. Great reviews, Ali :)

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  8. The 2nd book rocked so hard. They all rocked, but the 2nd rocked the hardest. I'm so glad you ended up loving the whole trilogy though.

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    1. I agree, it really was the best and so emotional!

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  9. Great reviews. I haven't started this series yet, but I've been wanting to. It is good to know the second book doesn't lack anything and is really good. I am glad you liked the ending and were satisfied with the conclusion of the series. I am finding myself wanting to wait to read more book series until they are complete so I don't have to wait. Glad this one was worth your while. Makes me want to start it soon.

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    1. I have been doing that more and more lately as well Ellen, it is nice not having to wait until the next one comes out.

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  10. I loved the first book in the series, but can't make myself pick up the next one. I think Under the Never Sky was so good, I'm afraid the other books will be disappointing. But, it sounds like I need to keep reading this series :)

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    1. You really should, the second book was fabulous and even better than the first!

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  11. I'm glad to hear then that it wraps up well especially since I haven't even read the first but I picked them all up!

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  12. lovely reviews. Glad to hear you warmed up to this series, with lots of lovely reviews of it out there I bought book 1. Should probably start it soon huh?

    Also wonderful to know that the conclusion was great.

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