I really loved this book. Strangely enough, I enjoyed this second installment even more than the first!

I liked that we got to see more of this world and the political and social intricacies of the world.

The biggest surprise for me was my reaction to Helene. I did not like her in the first book. I felt that her character lacked empathy, which made it difficult for me to connect with her. But in this book, I loved her. I really enjoyed reading from her perspective because I got to see her growth as a character. She really does have the most difficult time in this book because she is being forced to carry out orders for people she despises against people she cares about. She is definitely a complex character. She is trying to protect and fight for a system that is corrupt and oppressive, even while she herself isn't either of those things. We get the sense here and there that she really does question the will of the Empire, but her family's motto (Loyal to the end) and the fact that Marcus is threatening her family makes it impossible for her to go against him, even should she wish to.

I liked her interactions with Harper, and his character in general. I hope we get more of these two in subsequent books.

There were some reveals in the book that took me completely by surprise. There were events that I am trying to figure out how they will be resolved, and I just have no clue. I think that's one of my favorite things about this series. I don't find it predictable at all.

I just saw that the next book in the series isn't set to come out until 2018...that is simply NOT OKAY WITH ME! I need it!

This book was a satisfying conclusion to a seriously addicting series.
I don't know if this was the BEST book in the trilogy. I felt like the second book was just so good. But this book came very close.
I liked that we finally got to know some of Aria's friends from Reverie, but I still feel like they could've been utilized a little more, and I wish we'd seen a little more of the arc regarding the Dwellers and the Outsiders coming together.
I wish Cinder had gotten a little more to do in this book, and I wish that he'd gotten a little more recognition in the end from everyone. They decided to name their new settlement after him, and that's great. But after the buildup, his sacrifice felt just a little anti-climactic for me.
On that note, the ending felt slightly rushed for me all around. I really wish we'd had a better scene of Aria and Perry reuniting. After all, she thought he was dead and then he just pops back up, alive...it felt like people weren't really that surprised.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book and this series as a whole. I would give this series a solid 4 stars as a whole, and highly recommend it to anyone who like post-apocalyptic stories with great characters and plenty of action.

I have to admit, I was a little disappointed after reading 'Under the Never Sky'. It wasn't that I didn't like the book, because I did. It was just that I had heard amazing things about this trilogy and bought the whole set before beginning to read, because I was sure I was going to binge these books in a day. However, after I finished 'Under the Never Sky', I didn't feeling a pressing urge to pick this book up. I still liked the first book and knew I wanted to read the whole series in a shortish time span, but I wasn't as obsessed as I'd hoped to be.

I wish I could go back to a few days ago and tell myself to just jump right in, because 'Through the Ever Night' was wonderful. I was hooked from the very first page, and it didn't let me go. I read this book in about three and a half hours, and that was with me taking a break to make and eat breakfast. It is such an enjoyable read.

Things I liked-

The Friendships: I love that friendship plays such an important role in this book. Perry and Roar's friendship is really great, but I think I actually prefer his relationship with Aria. They bond over the fact that they are both Auds. They have such amazing chemistry, and it is not romantic at all, which I really appreciate. It would've been so easy for Rossi to turn that into a love triangle, but she respects her readers, her characters, and their love story enough not to go there.

The Romance: Aria and Perry make a great team, and their romance is written very well. I was nervous for a minute near the end of the book because I thought Rossi was going to introduce a different love interest for one of the characters, but thankfully that didn't last long. I also loved Roar and Liv, and wanted more of the two of them.

The Side Characters: One thing I feel that this book did much better than the first was introduce side characters. In the first book, we are told the names of many of Aria's friends from home, but aside from Paisley, who is only in the book for a couple of chapters, we don't really learn any kind of backstory for those characters. Now, I still feel that this book could've delved a little deeper into some of Aria's past relationships with the people still back at the Reverie, but there was a little bit more information in this book. I'm hoping that the third book will explore those characters more fully. But what this book DOES do is introduce a whole cast of side characters who live in the Tides. Many of these characters were not mentioned in book one, so the fact that they all feel wholly unique and yet fit in to the story so seamlessly was very satisfying for me. I also, surprisingly, liked the reemergence of Soren in this book. I will be interested to see what his story arc is in the third book.

The World-building: This is still a little bit of a shaky area for me, but I feel like it was much improved over book one. We finally got an explanation as to what caused the aether. Unless I totally missed it (which is possible, since I had a hard time concentrating during the early parts of book one), I don't remember the cause of the aether sky ever being explained. There were a few other cases of this happening as well. It wasn't info-dumpy at all, but just solidified parts of the world in my head.

Things I didn't like:

This is tough. I honestly found myself extremely satisfied with this book. If I'd read these as they were coming out, I'd probably say the end because I need the third book NOW...but I have the third book sitting right next to me...

There is one moment in the book that pretty much devastated me. I had to go back and re-read it to make sure I'd read it properly because I wasn't expecting it. I definitely didn't 'like' that, but it's not like it was a weakness in the book. I actually think it made the book more believable. It raised the stakes.

I am so excited to jump right into 'Into the Still Blue'. I hope that the conclusion will be as satisfying as this second installment was.

2.5 stars. This is a tough one for me. On one hand, there was some lovely writing in this story. However, there were times where the overly-flowery, highly-metaphorical language was confusing as a reader.

The character of Dani, the main protagonist of the book, is very difficult to connect to, mostly because she has totally checked out after her mom's passing. She is totally numb, and her character shows no emotion for a large chunk of the book.

I liked Paulo. He was my favorite character in the book, and his backstory was so sad.

Dani's arc felt very strange to me, pacing-wise. The first half drags on and on with her being completely void of ambition or determination. Then there is a small part in the middle where we see her relationship with Paulo progress. But then end was kind of a mess for me, beginning with the flashback to see her Aunt's and mom's backstory I was bored silly by this passage in the book. I get that we are supposed to see Ruby in a new light because if this...but it doesn't work for me at all.

I feel pretty disappointed by this book because I think the concept has merit. Between that and the lyrical writing style, this story had major potential. Unfortunately. The execution was lacking.

I have been increasingly interested in historical fiction set during WWII in the last year or so. The Book Thief, Between Shades of Grey and Salt to the Sea were all wonderful books that took place during this time and all three were among my favorite books of 2016. If I'd read Projekt 1065 a couple months earlier, it definitely would've joined those books.

Michael is 13 years old. His father is the Irish ambassador to Germany, in the middle of the Second World War. Michael and his mother are working in Irish intelligence to aid the Allied Powers during the war. As a part of his cover, Michael belongs to the Hitler Youth.

This book is quite interesting. Michael was a very relatable character, even in the fantastic circumstances in which he finds himself. It is told first person through his perspective, and I really enjoyed his voice. Some have criticized this book because Michael continually talks about what would happen to him if he were caught. My response: if you were 13 years old and living as an undercover spy in Nazi Germany, what else would you be thinking of?! If it were me, I wouldn't be able to think of anything else. I felt like his worry about what will happen if he is caught is very authentic.

The pacing of this book is very good. I read it in just a few hours. The chapters are very short, which can be hit or miss for me. I feel like it works in this book. And even when the situation isn't scary, there is a tension that lies just under the surface throughout this book. You know that at any time, he could slip or be caught or just be inadvertently killed by something that has nothing to do with the fact that he is a spy.

I really want to check out Alan Gratz's other works now. This was my first time reading a book by him, but it won't be the last.

This book was difficult for me to rate. There were some things I really appreciated about the book, and others I didn't.

Things I liked:
At first, I was nervous to read a story about a blind protagonist as it was written by a sighted author. I wasn't sure if the representation of a visually-impaired character would be authentic. And to be honest, I'm still not quite 100% sure. However, it was obvious in reading the book and from the author's note at the end, he did a vast amount of research in crafting this story, and it seems like he tried very hard to write an authentic book. I really liked all of the conversations about depth perception and perspective and concepts that sighted people take for granted, like colors and shapes.

Will was an interesting protagonist, even though he could be a little petulant at times. Maybe it's because I'm older than the desired demographic of readers for this book (and also a mother), but I actually found myself siding with his mom on some of their arguments. Don't get me wrong, she definitely rubbed me the wrong way, especially early on in the book, but I got it.

I liked the friendship between Will and Cecily. I don't know if I was ready for the big 'I Love You' at the end of the book, but I liked their relationship for the most part.


Things I didn't like:
Will's friends, especially Nick. He was better near the end of the book, but there was a whole conversation about Will's dad being a urologist that I thought was totally unnecessary and added nothing to the story. Ion and Whitford were pretty bland. Cecily was the only friend with a decent personality.

I didn't like Will's attitude when he found out that he's been lied to about Cecily's looks. So he can forgive all of the friends, who said she was stunning and a 'hot babe', but Cecily, who never actually lied to him, he shuns. Kind of a dick move.

I also had a problem with the ending. It felt a little rushed to me, as though the author wasn't quite sure how to end it. And then to add a last chapter where we find out that he apparently is going to retain his sight? What was the point of saying he might lose it just to find out in the last chapter that no...just kidding! He's fine!!

All in all, this was a quick read, and I would be interested to see what the author comes out with in the future.

"I wonder if
they've forgotten compassion.
If the feeling was flushed to the sea
with freedom.
with opinion.
With Choice."

This book was very surprising for me. I'd seen some decent reviews, but also some very mixed reviews. And those critical reviews definitely have merit. This book will not be for everyone. Half of the book, written from the perspective of Sudasa, is told in verse. It took me a minute to become accustomed to this structure, but once I did I really loved it. It wasn't overly flowery or difficult to understand at all.
The world-building in this book is a little sketchy, but I do feel like you get the gist of the story. Would more detail have been nice? Sure, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story.
I really enjoyed the characters in this story. They are complex and compelling, and I enjoyed the few interactions we got from the two main characters. I also really appreciated that this wasn't a romance story. That wasn't the focus of the book at all. Actually, it was kind of the exact opposite of what the focus was, which for me was being comfortable in your own skin and taking charge of your own life and well-being.
I actually wish that the book had been longer. I was very interested in the story and what happened afterwards. If I had one complaint, it would probably be that I wanted more time in that story.

So I bought this book from Book Outlet. It was the cover that first intrigued me, and when I read the synopsis, I was further intrigued. A Civil-War-era Wuthering Heights re-telling? Yes please. Unfortunately, I did not end up enjoying this book in the slightest.

Things I disliked:

1. INSTA-LOVE: I have read several 'love at first sight' type books. This has them all beat on the absurdity scale. Catrina finds a naked, feverish man in the middle of a field. He's essentially unconscious. And yet, she immediately feels connected with him and wants to be with him. Ummm...what?! They never, throughout the entire course of the book, have a real conversation that isn't just about how much they love each other and spouting poetry to one another. They also have a psychic connection that allows them to communicate telepathically...this is established while he is still unconscious and they have 'known' each other for literally minutes. When they are parted after only knowing each other a couple of weeks, Catrina has a full-on manic breakdown...which leads me to my second issue.

2a. CATRINA: Catrina is crazy, but we are obviously supposed to be rooting for her. After she and Stonefield are separated, she goes freaking nuts. The people around her think she has a demon inside her (remember this is the 1860s we're talking about) and so they tie her to a bed and call for the local minister. It is obvious from the writing that we are supposed to be on Catrina's side, understanding her position. But her behavior is completely erratic. She rips her clothes off and rips them to shreds. She hysterically screams Shakespearean insults at a horrified preacher. He supposedly doesn't know who Shakespeare is, which I assume is supposed to be an amusing moment, but I was so done by that point. Later on she makes a dress that is cut above her knees (again, in the 1860s, when that just WOULDN'T happen) and cuts Stonefield's name into her skin until it bleeds. I really feel like this character is mentally unstable, and being in her head actually made me feel sick to my stomach. It all became a little too 'Fatal Attraction' for my liking.

2b. STONEFIELD: His character is not at all fleshed out. This can mostly be attributed to the fact that they have no real conversations. It's all the two of them frolicking around the forest reciting poetry. We learn his backstory later in the story, but I just didn't care. Then, after he tells Catrina that he is going to find his people and she freaks out on him for abandoning her, his character does a complete 180. I guess we're supposed to be all twitterpated because he gets all intense and moody, but I just can't. When they take Lu and Catrina from the church and later when we find out that Frank raped Lu and none of the gang (which included Stonefield) did anything to stop it, I was so done. He is a scumbag, and no amount of Shakespeare or Whitman can change that.

3. ANACHRONISMS: This mostly relates to Catrina and the way she reacts to the world around her. She seems to be completely oblivious to the challenges presented in an interracial relationship, both between her and Stonefield and also her brother and Effie. She is genuinely shocked that Effie (a black woman) would refuse her brother's offer of marriage, even though they are in love. I'm sorry, but that is just not historically authentic. Even an idealistic daydreamer like Catrina would see that society would view their marriage as unseemly.

Things I liked:

1. Effie. I would love to read a story about her character. I just don't know if I trust this author enough to craft a decent character/story. I know that sounds harsh.

At the end of the day this book, while beautifully covered, was a big miss for me.

When I began reading this book, I was just expecting a sweet, fluffy little YA romance. And for the first couple chapters, I got pretty much what I expected. But as I continued to read, this book really crept into my heart. I ended up thoroughly engaged in this book.

I really enjoyed the characters and the friendships in this book. The friendships of the girls, in particular, seemed very genuine and authentic. I also liked their dynamic with the boys and the fact they could all be friends without a bunch of angst drama...Okay, there is a LITTLE angst toward the end, but this is YA we're talking about. Angst drama is almost a pre-requisite.

I also like the fact that all of the characters are, at their core, good people. I've read so many books recently where the characters are so unlikable. Now, I don't need to like every character in a story, but feeling some sort of a connection or at least empathy is nice...so I actually CARE what happens to them.

The romance was very sweet. I also liked the fact that it wasn't insta-lovey and super intense. It was built on friendship, which resonated with me on a very personal level.

This book also does a good job dealing with grief and the aftermath of a traumatic event. Again, I've used this word a couple of times in this interview, but it felt very authentic to me.

I guess that is what I take away from this book. It has authenticity. It has truth. It isn't ostentatious or pretentious. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to read another from Emery Lord.