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A review by narteest
Evermore by Sara Holland
4.0
After originally receiving Everless as an ARC, and of which I had immense pleasure reading, I desperately waited for the sequel. And I am glad to read it. The ending ties up well, and I liked how it accumulates together to give meaning behind the Sorceress and doesn't make the Alchemist an all round good or bad guy.
I want to say that I enjoyed this full stop. Although I feel the flow of Everless was somewhat better than Evermore - Evermore seems to contain more chasing after threads, but what's strong about Evermore is the ending. And it's not painful getting there. I liked Holland's writing. Jules is somewhat relatable - her fears are real, even if her actions are sometimes questionable.
What I didn't like about Evermore however, is that indeed, Jules tended to repeat herself several times on introducing herself. She did it at least twice, dropping a big announcement on main characters. But it wasn't too bad, I could overlook it. I think I also like that Everless and Evermore retain it's fantasy roots. Despite Evermore taking on a more kill the sorceress root that is very typical of its genre, the characters are not your usual hero or fool adventuring out. Jules is not good, but she's not bad either. The sorceress is presented as bad, but her stories has true roots.
I think what drags me to loving this duology more is that it's unique (the two together), the worldbuilding is a bit in-your-face but it's different. And, this is a world where we see the magic system stand out (while restricted to a certain field, in this case, time) in it's beginning and it's end.
Overall, I think this is an adequate end to Everless, given the focus of the book. I really did enjoy it after suffering through some not-so-great fantasies in YA, and still half avoiding the more hyped up series.
**Side note that I thought of hours after I read this. I like this too for its comfortable place in YA fantasy that manages to begin unique and new and interesting without bending too far out of expectations and also without crossing into other categories like NA and the like.
I want to say that I enjoyed this full stop. Although I feel the flow of Everless was somewhat better than Evermore - Evermore seems to contain more chasing after threads, but what's strong about Evermore is the ending. And it's not painful getting there. I liked Holland's writing. Jules is somewhat relatable - her fears are real, even if her actions are sometimes questionable.
What I didn't like about Evermore however, is that indeed, Jules tended to repeat herself several times on introducing herself. She did it at least twice, dropping a big announcement on main characters. But it wasn't too bad, I could overlook it. I think I also like that Everless and Evermore retain it's fantasy roots. Despite Evermore taking on a more kill the sorceress root that is very typical of its genre, the characters are not your usual hero or fool adventuring out. Jules is not good, but she's not bad either. The sorceress is presented as bad, but her stories has true roots.
I think what drags me to loving this duology more is that it's unique (the two together), the worldbuilding is a bit in-your-face but it's different. And, this is a world where we see the magic system stand out (while restricted to a certain field, in this case, time) in it's beginning and it's end.
Overall, I think this is an adequate end to Everless, given the focus of the book. I really did enjoy it after suffering through some not-so-great fantasies in YA, and still half avoiding the more hyped up series.
**Side note that I thought of hours after I read this. I like this too for its comfortable place in YA fantasy that manages to begin unique and new and interesting without bending too far out of expectations and also without crossing into other categories like NA and the like.