Review: 4 Intriguing Stars!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 16, 2014
*I received a free copy of this from the author in exchange for an honest review.*Slight spoilers! Nothing too bad. :)I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from Ephemeral, but I really liked it! I thought the paranormal aspects were unique and the characters all had their own personalities and importance in the book. It was intriguing!Ephemeral was actually a pretty quick read for me. I started out not knowing what to expect, so the intrigue with Tori's gift kept me interested the whole way through. Even when we find out what it really means, what she and Spencer are, it was still mysterious. It had my attention from page one.I liked the main character. Victoria is a strong heroine who just wants to go through life without seeing anymore deaths. It's hard making her friends and family seem like she doesn't care about them when she never hugs them or makes physical connect. Even if it's just a brush of the hand, she'll see someone's death. So, she's always had to be careful, always had to distance herself from everybody she cares about. Except her best friend, Mia, and her new coworker at the library, Spencer. Mia always tells her it's a gift, that she could save people. But what she finds out is far more devastating. It's not a gift, but a curse. Especially when she learns that her grandmother is going to die in a few days. That's when my respect for Tori went up a few notches. I don't know how I could have handled that situation, how I would have been able to tell my grandmother, to spend the day with her knowing that it was a forever goodbye. Her supernatural power is really a curse, but she'll have to figure out what's more important to her.The relationship between Spencer and Tori developed fast, but it never really seemed like insta-love. It makes more sense when you find out that they're a pair of Ani'mari. Ani'mari and their counterparts are a little confusing to figure out at first. But the author never just dumps the information on you in a few, quick sessions. Little by little, Spencer and Tori learn of their heritage, learn that they're reapers, that they try to save people's souls from the Neco'mortis.And one Neco'mortis has been following Tori around, hoping for glimpses of the souls he can take from her. But when Tori comes face to face with this Reaper, she realizes exactly what her mother meant by calling her special. I can't wait to find out more about Cael in the next book, because I have a few theories about him. I need to know if I'm right!Like I said, the Ani'mari was an intriguing concept, and I'm excited to find out more! The only things I disliked about this book were that a lot of Tori's narrative was filled with descriptions, details that didn't have any importance and were kind of irrelevant to the story. I love details, but sometimes they seemed almost too much, like when she was explaining exactly why Spencer's nachos were the best things she'd ever tasted and the backstory of her times with her grandpa. Also, she explained things in great detail, especially the other characters and what importance they were to her. There wasn't much inner struggle with her character, except when she really learns what her "gift" truly is. It's a burden she doesn't know if she can bear. Also, her relationship with her father seemed to change almost too rapidly. It'll take a lot longer than that for him to be redeemable in my eyes, though Tori does seem to be a forgiving person. I also figured out a few of the "twists" during the book. But I always spend a lot of time analyzing a book and trying to figure out the mysteries before I've hit the epilogue. And sometimes I get them right. :)Ephemeral had a cool concept that I can't wait to explore better in the next book. I liked the characters, and the story-line pulled me in until I was finished.