Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything—including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?
Review:
I've been dying to read Nightshade for the longest of times, because not only did I love the cover but the premise looked very promising. Thankfully, while Nightshade did have somewhat of a slow start, in my opinion, it quickly became a spellbinding and incredible book about one girl and her fight for love and freedom.
Nightshade tells the story of Calla Tor, a normal teen girl exact for several things. For one, she's a part wolf, and since she's the alpha of her pack, she'll become the mate of Ren Laroche, the other alpha wolf of the rival pack, soon after she turns 18. But while for most teen girl's marriage and pack problems aren't the normal things to have to worry about, Calla's okay with this....that is until Shay lands in her path. Shay is like no one she's meet before, and before Calla knows she begins to fall for him and consider his questions and ideas- ones that could lead to Calla not only out of the the pack but the arms of Ren. Will Calla be able to betray the pack she's known since birth for a boy? And is everything as it appears? Only time will tell in this deeply thrilling novel of love, loyalty, and wolves...
Calla was a fierce narrator, and a character I absolutely loved reading about. One of my favorite parts about her was that she would go to end of the world to save someone, even if it meant major trouble on her end, because it showed just how nice of a person see is. Better yet, I loved that while she is a part wolf, she still has the average problems teens have-boys, friends, etc. It made her more relatable, in my opinion. Adding to this, Andrea did a great job of making her feelings over the Ren and Shay, as well as the uncertainty of her future, realistic and in a way that didn't make her seem like another whiny type of MC. I also loved the side characters in this, such as Ren and Shay, who both had there good and bad points, as well as Calla and Ren's packs, which Andrea did a great job of developing as the story progressed.
As mentioned before, one of the main reasons I read this book was because of the premise, and thankfully, the execution of it was up to par, because while I did have a hard time getting into this story, after the first 100 or so pages I was hooked on Calla's story of love and betrayal and hard decisions. Especially when new dire plot turns and twists were introduced into the story.
In all, Nightshade is a strong paranormal debut- one that has me eager to see how Andrea, as well as the world of Nightshade, will grow and develep over time.
Grade: B+
Nighshade is now out!
Source: Unsolicted review copy provided by Penguin
Book Trailer:
I thought this was a fantastic paranormal (in a sea of so-so paranormals!) Great review!
ReplyDeleteI loved this book. Like you, I really struggled to get into it - I put it down for a few weeks and only picked it up again b/c it got so many good reviews. Once I was into it though, it was great. I loved how the relationships btw Shea, Calla, and Ren developed. I love how Ren went from being a crass guy to someone more layered. I liked how the author used Shea as a vehicle to explain the paranormal world without making it seem didactic - and how Shea functioned as the catalyst for change.
ReplyDeleteThis was SO much better than I expected. The second one is excellent too!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed it so much. Calla is still sitting on my bookshelf waiting for me to get time to read her. I am looking forward to that time arriving very soon!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you enjoyed this one, Lauren! I absolutely loved it...despite my reservations. Fabulous, balanced review!
ReplyDeleteI'm not crazy about werewolves but I've wanted to read this one since I first heard about it. Sounds like such a good read!
ReplyDeleteIt's one of my favorite paranormal/werewolf reads last year and I'm glad you liked it too.
ReplyDeleteGreat review! It's on my TBR pile and I tried to read it once and couldn't get into it. I'm glad to know it finally worked for you; I'll wait for when I'm in the right mood and try to hold on for more than 30 pages!
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