Everneath by Brodi Ashton Review

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Title: Everneath
Author: Brodi Ashton (Twitter)
Publisher: Balzer & Bray
Publish Date: January 24, 2012
Genre: YA, Paranormal
Pages: 370
Source: Publisher

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

Nikki's been listless and slumbering in Everneath for the past hundred years where the Everlings use their human Forfeits to feed on their emotions and gain both power and strength. But when Nikki wakes, she remembers something - a piece of life and love she had forgotten. So, she decides to return to the real world to say her goodbyes with the little time she has left...just six months until Everneath comes back to claim her again. Nikki wants nothing more than to return home to Jack, but Cole won't let Nikki go without a fight. Does she have what it take to defeat fate and stay with Jack, or will Everneath claim her once and for all.

I've said it time and again, but I suppose it doesn't really hurt to repeat myself. I love mythologically-based stories. That said, so many try too hard to fit a cut and dried mold that they are doomed to fall short. Everneath, however, is a beautiful and dazzling exception to the rule, twisting us into a intricate web of lust and lies based loosely on the story of Hades and Persephone. Brodi Ashton has crafted a sinfully delicious debut, merging a dark and swooning plot with a cast of characters that rage with power and emotion. With a rich and descriptive prose that's both alluring and tinged with darkness, Everneath shows that the classics can be re-made into something entirely new.

The characters are what truly made Everneath for me, above all else. Nikki could very easily have slipped into the humdrum mold of a damsel in distress, but she was fierce. There was a power that emanated from every fiber of her being and resonated through the prose, her relationships and every situation she encountered. Cole was seductive, to be sure. There was a dark beauty around him and a sense of danger that fed (no pun intended) off of Nikki's character. Jack is the most human of the characters in Everneath, adding a measure of predictability that easily helps you swing towards a side in the pseudo-love triangle Everneath creates. That's the other beauty of Everneath, by the way. It only partially buys into the fads of the YA genre. The love triangle isn't all that defined - it wavers into a bit of a square. The love, itself, isn't insta-love. It's slow-burning and it sears throughout the plot, building momentum as the story rages in Everneath. The only part that managed to falter a wee bit for me was the lack of mild intelligence of the adults. I really wish they hadn't so easily written Nikki off. I find that difficult to comprehend.

Overall though, Everneath was surprisingly awesome! It's definitely fresh and original, and it will make you want a second book, like, yesterday. I give it a very strong 4.5 out of 5, and I can't recommend it enough to all YA fans that enjoy paranormal fiction and mythology. Adult fans will also enjoy the darker tone to the story.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

30 comments:

  1. Great review! I've been seeing a ton of reviews for this one lately, I can't wait to read it. I also love anything mythology based and this one sounds so good, not to mention the cover is gorgeous :)

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  2. I was pleasantly surprised by Everneath as well! Nikki and Cole were awesome, and the mythology was SO well done! Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Melissa! :)

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  3. I've been wanting to read this one. Glad you liked it. Despite going into the love triangle realm, at least there's no insta-love. I wish I knew more about mythology.

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  4. This book sounds so good! I can't wait for it to be released over here. I already have it on pre-order.

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  5. I came to think of something, I sent you this review back in the spring because you needed reviews for the fall. Did that happen and I forgot, or did you not use the idea? Honestly I do not know, lol, my mind is a blur

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  6. I love mythology. Particularly Greek. I will definitely have to give this one a chance. I'm a suck for the cover anyways. :)

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  7. Glad to hear this one is good. It's on my list next to read. Grea review!

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  8. Yay!! I was hoping this would be good! Great review and thanks for doing it before the book comes out!!

    Heather

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  9. I LOVED this book! Even stayed up way too late to finish it and had to dose myself with tons of caffeine to get through the day. The twisty incorporation of mythology into EVERNEATH kept me turning the pages. I really liked Nikki and loved to hate Cole.

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  10. YAY!!!!! I adored this one too, I am now currently dying a slow death waiting for the next book. Stunning and insightful review as always, I loved how she set up the love triangle (if you can really call it that) as well, I thought it added a whole new layer of intensity. You rock:)

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  11. I just saw this one on NG and was wondering if I would like it. Great review, as always, Melissa! I like the sound of it not being a cookie-cutter YA.

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  12. I'm so glad to read such a positive review for Everneath! The characters sound amazing, this one is definitely going on my wishlist :)

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  13. Uh, well, WOW. This sounds AMAZING. I LOVE how you've described Nikki. I NEED NEED NEED to read this now!

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  14. i read this book super early, and i suppose because of that, there wasn't much interest in it on my blog which stunk because i loved it so much i was DYING to talk to someone about it.

    mythology-based stories are pretty much my favorites, so i had a GREAT TIME reading this one. the best part, to me, was not only the mythology story but the way the author put her own mythology within the story as well - one of the markings of a truly great writer, i think. it was beautifully written, i thought, and i hope i can re-read it in the not-too-distant future.

    i think this goes into a club with some of the better-written mythologically-based stories of late. just a beautiful, beautiful story.

    as always, loved reading your thoughts melissa. :) glad you seemed to love it as much as i do.

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  15. I just skimmed your review, but so relieved that this one received a great rating from you, Melissa. I can read this more comfortably now. :)

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  16. EEEP! So excited to dive into this book! Your review is awesome!

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  17. I do love a good YA book based on mythology. This one sounds really different then other books out there. I'm off to check it out. :)

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  18. Great review! I agree, I really enjoyed this book. I gave it 4.5 stars as well. I highly recommend it.

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  19. hm I didn't know this was myth based! Thanks for the review.

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  20. Great review! I can't wait to get my hands on this book, I keep hearing such great things about it. Here’s my WoW post! ~ Jen @ A Book and a Latte
    P.S. Have you heard of the 2012 YA Audiobook Challenge? Check it out :).

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  21. How wonderful! Once I finish the three I'm reading this one is next. Might I add, I'm looking forward to it even more!!

    Oh do stop by. My blog has been quiet lonely... lacking on the comment side due to being missing from the blog-o-sphere fro some time. However, I'm trying to jump back into this wonderful world. I do miss it so!

    Mad Scientist @ Steampunkery & Book Reviews

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  22. I'm intrigued by your description of the love story as more square than triangle :)

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  23. I was reading this when your review went up so held off on stopping by until now. But I did like this book as well, I just didn't LOVE it. I had a hard time connecting with Nikki. I did think it was a wonderfully unique and creative story and I loved her style of kind of putting two books in one so it jumped in kind of in the middle. I thought that was great!

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  24. This one is on my to-read-soon list, so I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it!

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  25. Ah, I really enjoyed this one too, Melissa! It was really surprising how much I enjoyed it, especially because my expectations were so low. Great review!

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  26. hmm the darker part you say? Maybe...

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  27. This sounds so cool! I love the time limit in the plot to add that extra tense feeling. Great!

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  28. I'm a fan of paranormal reads and myths and I'm currently reading Everneath. No wonder I love it! Thanks for the awesome review!

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