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Goodreads Summary: Now that Nikki has rescued
Jack, all she wants is to be with him and graduate high school. But Cole
tricked Nikki into feeding off him, and she’s begun the process of
turning into an Everliving herself... which means she must feed on a
Forfeit soon — or die.
Terrified for her survival, Nikki
and Jack begin a desperate attempt to reverse the process using any
means possible. Even Cole, who they expected to fight them at every
turn, has become an unlikely ally — but how long can it last? Nikki
needs to feed on Cole to survive, Cole needs Nikki to gain the throne in
the Everneath, Jack needs Nikki because she is everything to him — and
together, they must travel back to the Underworld to undo Nikki’s fate
and make her mortal once more. But Cole isn’t the only one with plans
for Nikki: the Queen has not forgotten Nikki’s treachery, and she wants
her destroyed for good. Will Nikki be forced to spend eternity in the
Underworld, or does she have what it takes to bring down the Everneath
once and for all?
**Do NOT read this review if you have not read the first TWO books. There are SPOILERS!**
My Review: The
final third of this book is what decided the rating. Had my rating been
based on the first two-thirds, I'd have given it a 3.5 or 4 stars. This
book ended perfectly, first of all. I still say that the second book
was my favorite of the trilogy, because it's the one that shocked me and
grabbed me the most, but the ending to this book was heartfelt, sad,
yet appropriate at the same time.
We
pick up with the decision of Nikki deciding she needs to destroy the
Everneath because Cole tricked her into beginning her transformation
into an Everliving. Throughout this entire book, I was suspicious of
Cole yet I enjoyed him at the same time. I kept wondering what he had up
his sleeve now that Nikki and Jack knew what he did. But then Brodi
Ashton decides to throw me a curve ball and give Cole something quite
big to deal with throughout the entire book. When I found out about
Cole's situation, I was PISSED! I couldn't believe that Ashton would
even allow me to be confused over how I was feeling about Cole. I mean, I
will continue to say that he was the best developed character of the
entire series, but that didn't mean I had to like him. Or feel sorry for
him. But Ashton has me questioning.
Having Jack back in the
picture was great, but at times I felt like he was a little too much.
Especially when Nikki had to feed off of Cole, which we all knew was
necessary in order for her to stay alive. Jack needed to chill. Just a
little.
Then Nikki, having been through hell & high water with
the Everneath and with Cole, still made a few rash decisions that had
me scratching my head. But by the end of the book, I honestly just
settle in the fact that this was who she was. She's a compassionate
person, and sometimes even when you've been scorned, you can't help
having that compassion, even if you could potential get burned again.
Can
I just say that I love Will? That's all. No particular reason, other
than I just love how dedicated he is and how he is always willing to
help.
For
me, the middle of the novel dragged a bit. Especially when Nikki &
Jack are trying to deal with Cole. Once again, there's the struggle with
the decision to trust Cole or to not trust Cole. And I was struggling
with it too.
Throughout the entire series, regardless what Cole
has done to Nikki, you can tell that he cares about her. But he's also
acting out of his own selfish desires. You see it in Everneath, you see
it in Everbound, and you see it in Evertrue. It's just obvious. He loves
her, which means he wants her happy, but he's also selfish.
The
queen -- she was boring to me. In the previous book and this one. The
Shades were scarier than she was. I kept thinking "Can you just die?
Please? I'm over you." I think the queen could have been written a
little better. I always expect more out of female characters, so I just
wasn't feeling this queen.
My favorite scene in the entire book?
Not the romance, not the fighting, not anything Cole-related. Nope. It
was the frickin' BEETLE scene! Can you say EWWWWWW???! I cringed as I
read that scene. The fact that Nikki had to walk across a bed of
beetles, each the size of half of her foot?? What the hell, man?! I
would have just laid down to die. I couldn't do it. That scene gave me
hives just thinking about it!
Overall, this was a great story.
There are things within the entire series that I wish were written
better, but I am not going to nitpick over this trilogy. I'm just glad
that Ashton ended the story in a way that was satisfactory. At least for
me, and I'm sure for others as well.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5!
