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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Was hard to read at first with being from NOLA but was really good! Love the story
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book is a unique YA novel set in New Orleans after a devastating storm hits the city. I loved the real-life aspects of post-Katrina life mixed with the voodoo magic and vampires. It’s a wonderful tale and I really connected with the characters. The descriptions made me want to visit NO and explore. You can tell the author really loved the city and the people and knows them well.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not sure why I read these books when I dislike teenage drama so much. I role my eyes more often than I can count when reading YA. I swear some scenes and characters were just thrown in to remind us we were following a teenage girl. They had little if any value to the story and were more distracting than anything.
That said, I do know why I continued to read this particular book and will read the sequel: Historical-ish fiction. I enjoyed learning about the casquette girl custom, exploring post hurricane New Orleans, reading 300 year old journal entries, a new vampire origin story, and the twist ending.
I kind of wish I read the book before visiting New Orleans though. I think I would have appreciated the post hurricane status of the city much more.
That said, I do know why I continued to read this particular book and will read the sequel: Historical-ish fiction. I enjoyed learning about the casquette girl custom, exploring post hurricane New Orleans, reading 300 year old journal entries, a new vampire origin story, and the twist ending.
I kind of wish I read the book before visiting New Orleans though. I think I would have appreciated the post hurricane status of the city much more.
Spoiler
I really, really enjoyed this book. The magic and history that is woven into it is gorgeous. I loved the setting and cast of characters. The switching between French and English felt so authentic and I cannot reccomend the audio book enough because Kate Rudd puts so much personality into each character. You know who she is the moment she starts speaking. The characters are great. I loved them all, pretty much. Adele on ever so slightly annoyed me now and again, just purely because of her obsession with someone so obviously wrong for her (to me anyway). I adored Isaac and Dee and the friendship they built up between them. I have a huge soft spot for Mac!!! Hes so awesome and I hope he finds out more about whats going on in the next book. Thoroughly enjoyed!!
3.5⭐
This was a really fun paranormal story! I listened to this on audio and thought the narrator did an absolutely fantastic job. I was completely engaged with the story and loved how distinct the narration was for each character.
I think the setting and atmosphere really excelled in this book. The New Orleans setting was so vivid and perfect for a creepy paranormal story. I loved the speak-easy, occult shops, boarding school, and general creepy locations.
I also LOVED that this had one of my favorite "tropes" - book inside of a book. You get chapters of diary entries later in the book that I thought added a lot to the story. The gave the reader glimpses of the past or insight into the magic without feeling info dump-y. I thought it was a really smart addition.
I loved the witchy, mystery aspects of this. I thought the mystery plot was really engrossing and I loved how it integrated into the paranormal aspects of this book. This is also had a wild ending that I did NOT see coming.
This book was way too long though. This starts off SO SLOW... The first 150-200 pages dragged on and I felt like not much happened plot-wise. But once the story picked up, I was hooked. I definitely think I will try and continue with this series. I'm curious to see what happens with both the coven and the vampires!
I definitely recommend checking this out if you're looking for a really atmospheric, ominous vampire story!
This was a really fun paranormal story! I listened to this on audio and thought the narrator did an absolutely fantastic job. I was completely engaged with the story and loved how distinct the narration was for each character.
I think the setting and atmosphere really excelled in this book. The New Orleans setting was so vivid and perfect for a creepy paranormal story. I loved the speak-easy, occult shops, boarding school, and general creepy locations.
I also LOVED that this had one of my favorite "tropes" - book inside of a book. You get chapters of diary entries later in the book that I thought added a lot to the story. The gave the reader glimpses of the past or insight into the magic without feeling info dump-y. I thought it was a really smart addition.
I loved the witchy, mystery aspects of this. I thought the mystery plot was really engrossing and I loved how it integrated into the paranormal aspects of this book. This is also had a wild ending that I did NOT see coming.
This book was way too long though. This starts off SO SLOW... The first 150-200 pages dragged on and I felt like not much happened plot-wise. But once the story picked up, I was hooked. I definitely think I will try and continue with this series. I'm curious to see what happens with both the coven and the vampires!
I definitely recommend checking this out if you're looking for a really atmospheric, ominous vampire story!
3.5 stars
Disclaimer: e-Book received from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review
I really enjoyed parts of this book but at the same time it seemed a little all over the place to me.
I enjoyed the characters in this story, particularly Desiree and our main character Adele. I did have a bit of a problem with the romance in this though, the love triangle just seemed a little off too me and I didn't quite understand why Adele's feelings towards Nicco were so strong when she hadn't really spent any time with him at all.
And while I appreciate the addition of the storm into the plot, I am not entirely sure it was necessary. It takes a good portion of the beginning part of the novel and I actually thought it was going to be revealed that the storm had taken place as a result of some kind of supernatural battle.
I really did enjoy this book though. For some reason, and this has never really been a thing with me, I would really enjoy sitting down and fancasting this movie as I see all the characters really vividly and actually think this would work great as a movie.
Another reason I appreciate this book, is that it really made me aware of how much I really do enjoy reading about 'voodoo'. I need to check out more books in this area.
Overall, this story is very enjoyable and I'll definitely check out the next book in the series.
P.S. This book has one of the best book trailers i've ever seen, check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av4hg18sh7s
Disclaimer: e-Book received from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review
I really enjoyed parts of this book but at the same time it seemed a little all over the place to me.
I enjoyed the characters in this story, particularly Desiree and our main character Adele. I did have a bit of a problem with the romance in this though, the love triangle just seemed a little off too me and I didn't quite understand why Adele's feelings towards Nicco were so strong when she hadn't really spent any time with him at all.
And while I appreciate the addition of the storm into the plot, I am not entirely sure it was necessary. It takes a good portion of the beginning part of the novel and I actually thought it was going to be revealed that the storm had taken place as a result of some kind of supernatural battle.
I really did enjoy this book though. For some reason, and this has never really been a thing with me, I would really enjoy sitting down and fancasting this movie as I see all the characters really vividly and actually think this would work great as a movie.
Another reason I appreciate this book, is that it really made me aware of how much I really do enjoy reading about 'voodoo'. I need to check out more books in this area.
Overall, this story is very enjoyable and I'll definitely check out the next book in the series.
P.S. This book has one of the best book trailers i've ever seen, check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av4hg18sh7s
Read this and other reviews on my blog The Library Princess
**This review is based on an ARC from Netgalley, release date 11/17/15.
I have not had much time to read lately, so forgive me for this review being so far after the release date; but, I had to write one for this book.
Adele returns to New Orleans after a horrible hurricane has hit and destroyed the city. She was sent to live with her mother in Paris while her father sought shelter in Florida. Upon return, Adele is horrified to see how sad her city has become and vows to stay and help it become what it used to be, even though she will have to attend a school she will hate. She also meets some new people who are there looking for family members and another who is helping rebuild the city. While dealing with a bit of a love triangle, she discovers that she has accidentally helped to break an age-old curse that has released vampires into the city. She discovers a journal from an ancestor named Adeline, and also that she has some “witchy” powers. She uses the information gained from Adeline’s journal to help restore the spell that will contain the vampires so that they can no longer wreak havoc on the city.
I was basically obsessed with this book from the beginning, because I am obsessed with New Orleans. It provided so much history of the city, while still being entertaining and not reading like a book of facts. It did take me a while to get through the book, but that’s only because I have been extra busy this past week. I still made time to read every day, just not as often as normal. There was some romance involved in this book, but it was definitely not the main focal point and I liked that. There was no easy, insta-love (we know how I feel about that! Ugh!). This book was more supernatural/paranormal than anything, but did not seem too unrealistic. Adele was an interesting, easy-to-like character; as were most of the others. I will be recommending this book to my students and waiting impatiently for the second one.
**This review is based on an ARC from Netgalley, release date 11/17/15.
I have not had much time to read lately, so forgive me for this review being so far after the release date; but, I had to write one for this book.
Adele returns to New Orleans after a horrible hurricane has hit and destroyed the city. She was sent to live with her mother in Paris while her father sought shelter in Florida. Upon return, Adele is horrified to see how sad her city has become and vows to stay and help it become what it used to be, even though she will have to attend a school she will hate. She also meets some new people who are there looking for family members and another who is helping rebuild the city. While dealing with a bit of a love triangle, she discovers that she has accidentally helped to break an age-old curse that has released vampires into the city. She discovers a journal from an ancestor named Adeline, and also that she has some “witchy” powers. She uses the information gained from Adeline’s journal to help restore the spell that will contain the vampires so that they can no longer wreak havoc on the city.
I was basically obsessed with this book from the beginning, because I am obsessed with New Orleans. It provided so much history of the city, while still being entertaining and not reading like a book of facts. It did take me a while to get through the book, but that’s only because I have been extra busy this past week. I still made time to read every day, just not as often as normal. There was some romance involved in this book, but it was definitely not the main focal point and I liked that. There was no easy, insta-love (we know how I feel about that! Ugh!). This book was more supernatural/paranormal than anything, but did not seem too unrealistic. Adele was an interesting, easy-to-like character; as were most of the others. I will be recommending this book to my students and waiting impatiently for the second one.