Book Review: Through the Ever Night

Goodreads summary:

It's been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don't take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe's precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night?

In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and dystopian elements to create a captivating love story as perilous as it is unforgettable.

My review:

I love this book.  Love, love, love it.  I was lucky enough to win an ARC of it through a contest on the author's blog, and oh my word, it's so good!  Fans of the first book will not be disappointed.

First of all, there's tons of character growth in this sequel.  The poor characters go through so much.  (And I sobbed my eyes out at a certain scene towards the end.)  Anyway, Perry is Blood Lord of the Tides now, and you can't help feeling for him as he's forced to grow up and take responsibility.  He faces tough decisions - for example, like whether he should do the right thing or do what will please his people. 

And Aria deals with a lot, as the people of the Tides don't accept her right away.  But instead of whining or sobbing endlessly about it, she does her best to earn their trust and support Perry.  I really love Aria.  She's matured  and changed so much from the girl she was in the beginning of Under the Never Sky. 

And the plot?  Amazing.  Absolutely amazing.  With each chapter, the stakes kept rising.  I read this book in one day, staying up late into the night to finish it.  The story ends with a huge action scene and lots of fighting, and I'm so excited for Into the Still Blue, the third book, to come out!

As always, Veronica Rossi's writing is lovely.  She has such a beautiful writing style, full of detail and description, that makes the characters' emotions so vivid and real.  Speaking of characters, I really loved all the characters, even the minor ones, which is saying something for me.  Usually I forget minor characters easily if they don't stick out, but it was easy to remember all the characters in this book; they all played an important role and added to the story.

I want to end by saying how talented Veronica Rossi is at torturing her readers.  I constantly felt bad for the different characters and what they suffered in this book.  They are all so endearing in their own way.  The relationship between Perry and his nephew Talon particularly stuck out to me; it's so heartrending!  And of course Roar and his devotion to Liv is adorable.  I can't spoil the story, but I'm just warning everyone: you will cry at a certain point in this book.  It was so sad and heartbreaking.

I can't wait to see what Into the Still Blue will be like.  Veronica Rossi is a marvelous writer.  I don't care if you like dystopian or not, go read this series!  You won't regret it.

My rating:  10 out of 10 (5 stars)

~ The Bookworm