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melissaraereads 's review for:
Never Fade
by Alexandra Bracken
I don’t usually review a second book in a trilogy. But I can’t stop myself. I just finished this book, turned the last page of that last chapter. And I feel like a small piece of me is now ripped apart because of that last damn chapter!
This book was a perfect second installment to the Dark Minds series, I mean it had everything a good book needs right? It had amazing action sequences that just made you want to go out and punch someone. It had those fluffy romantic scenes that left you feeling all warm and gooey inside like a marshmallow melted inside of you. It had our favorite cast of characters from the first book, except Zu. And it even had a new bunch of characters that made you just love the book even more! I mean let’s just all appreciate how kick ass Vida is, and the obvious chemistry she has with our beloved Chubs? It even had a lovely dose of the guy we all love to hate, Mr Fancy Clancy himself.
Let’s all appreciate the bad ass version of Ruby though. I mean this chick went from being all unicorns and rainbows to this dark and, let’s admit it now, slightly twisted main character. This must have been my favorite change in the character development for Ruby, I mean it’s a pretty spot on description for the way in which war changes someone. Especially if it’s a war they really shouldn't have to be fighting. I feel bad for Ruby, but then again I realize that if it was the old Ruby she would not have been able to do half the shit she does in this book. She has the new fearlessness that makes you wonder what the hell she’s going to do next, I think she adopted this trait from Vida though.
But now I have to talk about the part that is on everyone’s mind. That moment when you felt your heart crack just a tad.
As readers (Especially if you are like me and are used to the way authors just kill off characters without really worrying about their emotions of the readers, *Cough* Veronica Roth *Cough*) we tend to almost build up a thick skin, where we hope the death of fictional characters no longer really influences us. Or so we like to delude ourselves into thinking. Cause every now and again we will read a book and then *BAM* character death! And we are a walking pile of emotion for hours. Some of us are lucky and only have to cry in the comfort of our bedrooms. However, for the not so lucky few, like myself, we have to try really hard not to cry in public. And when you end up bawling your eyes out in public, your varsity lecturer sends you out to ‘compose’ yourself. Bitch please! My favorite fictional character in this book just died! I shall not be composing myself for a while!
I almost was hoping that I would be able to get through this book without someone dying, hell I was basically praying for it! But then there was the last few chapters that took my hope and crushed it into tiny little crumbs of dust to throw to the wind. So let’s talk about this death.
Jude was this innocent fourteen year old who had these idealistic views. He was always trying to make friends and was maybe one of the sweetest characters I have ever read about. He was just a pure ray of sunshine. He was the stray ray of sun coming through the dark clouds after a storm. And I felt that he brought the innocent part to this story. I mean he was like the little brother Ruby didn't have, the person who had to protect because you didn't think he could protect himself. And that’s what Ruby did. She tried to protect him throughout this whole book.
And then there is that small moment of time, where she wasn't watching out for him. That brief period where she thought he was okay because he was right behind her. And when we as readers realize that he didn't make it out the tunnel, I think we all somehow knew. We knew that he wasn't going to just climb up that ladder shouting out “Roo!”
We knew he wasn't just lost and quivering in the dark silent tunnel, because we knew that he would never stay in the dark for longer than he had to. We knew what his fate was long before Liam and Chubs confirmed it for us. And I think this is what hurts the most. Because we knew that he was never coming out of that tunnel that he was just going to be lost under all that debris like all the other lost kids. And this is what I hate. Because his death actually means something to the plot of the story. I hate that it wasn't just because the author felt like killing him off. But because it was part of the development of the trilogy.
Jude, who was the ideal image of innocence and purity and lost childhood, died. The same way that Ruby’s innocence died. Him dying was showing us as readers that war is not a pretty thing where people come out alive even if they are pure of heart. War is where people die, where families are ripped apart and where innocence is forever lost. Jude dying was the symbol of how cruel war can be. And this rips me up even more.
I loved this book. I really did. And I am fully intending on reading the final installment. However I feel like I need to pause in my binge reading, and just take a breather to mourn this ending. Thank you Alexandra Bracken, for shedding the light on an issue that can easily be connected to today’s world.
Spoiler
For one can an author NOT kill off my favorite character? Just once please???This book was a perfect second installment to the Dark Minds series, I mean it had everything a good book needs right? It had amazing action sequences that just made you want to go out and punch someone. It had those fluffy romantic scenes that left you feeling all warm and gooey inside like a marshmallow melted inside of you. It had our favorite cast of characters from the first book, except Zu. And it even had a new bunch of characters that made you just love the book even more! I mean let’s just all appreciate how kick ass Vida is, and the obvious chemistry she has with our beloved Chubs? It even had a lovely dose of the guy we all love to hate, Mr Fancy Clancy himself.
Let’s all appreciate the bad ass version of Ruby though. I mean this chick went from being all unicorns and rainbows to this dark and, let’s admit it now, slightly twisted main character. This must have been my favorite change in the character development for Ruby, I mean it’s a pretty spot on description for the way in which war changes someone. Especially if it’s a war they really shouldn't have to be fighting. I feel bad for Ruby, but then again I realize that if it was the old Ruby she would not have been able to do half the shit she does in this book. She has the new fearlessness that makes you wonder what the hell she’s going to do next, I think she adopted this trait from Vida though.
But now I have to talk about the part that is on everyone’s mind. That moment when you felt your heart crack just a tad.
As readers (Especially if you are like me and are used to the way authors just kill off characters without really worrying about their emotions of the readers, *Cough* Veronica Roth *Cough*) we tend to almost build up a thick skin, where we hope the death of fictional characters no longer really influences us. Or so we like to delude ourselves into thinking. Cause every now and again we will read a book and then *BAM* character death! And we are a walking pile of emotion for hours. Some of us are lucky and only have to cry in the comfort of our bedrooms. However, for the not so lucky few, like myself, we have to try really hard not to cry in public. And when you end up bawling your eyes out in public, your varsity lecturer sends you out to ‘compose’ yourself. Bitch please! My favorite fictional character in this book just died! I shall not be composing myself for a while!
I almost was hoping that I would be able to get through this book without someone dying, hell I was basically praying for it! But then there was the last few chapters that took my hope and crushed it into tiny little crumbs of dust to throw to the wind. So let’s talk about this death.
Spoiler
One word. Jude.Jude was this innocent fourteen year old who had these idealistic views. He was always trying to make friends and was maybe one of the sweetest characters I have ever read about. He was just a pure ray of sunshine. He was the stray ray of sun coming through the dark clouds after a storm. And I felt that he brought the innocent part to this story. I mean he was like the little brother Ruby didn't have, the person who had to protect because you didn't think he could protect himself. And that’s what Ruby did. She tried to protect him throughout this whole book.
And then there is that small moment of time, where she wasn't watching out for him. That brief period where she thought he was okay because he was right behind her. And when we as readers realize that he didn't make it out the tunnel, I think we all somehow knew. We knew that he wasn't going to just climb up that ladder shouting out “Roo!”
We knew he wasn't just lost and quivering in the dark silent tunnel, because we knew that he would never stay in the dark for longer than he had to. We knew what his fate was long before Liam and Chubs confirmed it for us. And I think this is what hurts the most. Because we knew that he was never coming out of that tunnel that he was just going to be lost under all that debris like all the other lost kids. And this is what I hate. Because his death actually means something to the plot of the story. I hate that it wasn't just because the author felt like killing him off. But because it was part of the development of the trilogy.
Jude, who was the ideal image of innocence and purity and lost childhood, died. The same way that Ruby’s innocence died. Him dying was showing us as readers that war is not a pretty thing where people come out alive even if they are pure of heart. War is where people die, where families are ripped apart and where innocence is forever lost. Jude dying was the symbol of how cruel war can be. And this rips me up even more.
I loved this book. I really did. And I am fully intending on reading the final installment. However I feel like I need to pause in my binge reading, and just take a breather to mourn this ending. Thank you Alexandra Bracken, for shedding the light on an issue that can easily be connected to today’s world.