Evernight Review

I kept hearing my best book pal go on about how much she loved this book and with the upcoming release of the third book in the series “Hourglass”; I knew I had to check out Evernight by Claudia Gray. I was initially a little reluctant (as I usually am with book series’) as they *HAVE* to be good for me to invest both the time and money in them. Thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed.

Evernight is about a girl called Bianca who lives with her teacher parents at a secluded boarding school. Now it’s her time to enrol and she hates the place. That is until she meets Lucas and then her entire world changes. Not only does she discover herself but also the secrets behind Evernight Academy and the real reason she is there in the first place.

I accidentally read someone else’s review of Evernight as I was reading the book and unfortunately for me, the review contained a *major* spoiler that I was about a chapter away from revealing for myself. From then on, I promised that I would never do that to a reader even if that meant my reviews were on the vague side. Therefore, I’m not going to reveal any of the details as I want you to reveal them for yourself. Let’s just say that there is more to Evernight Academy than meets the eye ;)

In terms of the main characters, I really liked the contrast between Lucas and Balthazar, the two main competitors for Bianca’s affections. Lucas is the guy who stands up for himself and others, never straying from his principles and beliefs even if this makes him unpopular. Balthazar on the other hand is the ultimate gentleman oozing charm and sophistication without being cheesy. How I would love two guys like that lusting after me! Lucas being more of the ‘bad boy’ of the two makes him irresistible as far as Bianca is concerned and for reasons I cannot reveal (see previous disclaimer) I’m aching to see if the relationship between Lucas and Bianca has a chance because at the moment I just don’t see how it can.

Bianca’s parents are loving and ever present throughout the book which makes for a refreshing change as in so many YA books lately, the parents are either majorly dysfunctional, unloving or barely present at all.

Evernight was an enjoyable read with plenty of hooks to make me want to read “just another chapter”. As soon I started reading again, I was pulled back into the world of Evernight (maybe it helps that I was reading late at night in a cold, dark room *shrug*). I loved the fact that the ending was not predictable but slightly frustrated at it being left wide open for the sequel. I’m only frustrated because I want to see how it all turns out but this is a good way of keeping the reader hooked and ensuring they read the sequel!

The aforementioned sequel to Evernight, entitled Stargazer is out now and Hourglass is released in the UK on 15th march 2010 and 9th March in the USA. The fourth and final book “Afterlife” will be released in March 2011, according to Claudia. If *THAT* wasn’t enough for you, she says that HarperTeen will be publishing a fifth, stand-alone book all about Balthazar, which will come out following Afterlife. I just KNEW there was more to Balthazar and I’m definitely going to put that book on the wish list. In the meantime, look out for future reviews of Stargazer and Hourglass (when I finally manage to get my hands on a copy).

Claudia Gray is the pseudonym for Amy Vincent. You can contact her through her website http://www.claudiagray.com. She is also on facebook and Twitter.