Sunday, December 15, 2013

GUEST REVIEW: THE UNDYING (Hayle Coven, #16) by Patti Larsen

Title: The Undying
Series: Hayle Coven, #16
Author: Patti Larsen
Publisher: Self-published
Publication Date: April 16, 2013
Genres: YA, Paranormal
Reviewed by: Ellen Fritz
Source: Received from author for review
Ellen’s rating: 5/5

SUMMARY

Storm Rising

Syd! Liam's mental voice lurched against mine, his touch so strong I saw him standing in the dark basement of town hall, eyes wide, whole body shaking. The Sidhe. He let me feel his fear. Something is wrong.

—Decay. Crumbling death. Loss. Crushing me, pulling at my breath, my strength, the very earth beneath me weak and failing as Shaylee cried out in pain—

Syd has enough on her plate, being leader of her coven and becoming maji while trying to keep the world safe from evil sorcerers. Finding out she has to get married by her twenty-first birthday just adds to the pressure on her shoulders. That pressure doubles when the Sidhe contact her, their realm under attack by the Brotherhood. And the only way to save them is to find her own balance between the Light and the Shadow. A balance she needs her nemesis Ameline to achieve.



REVIEW

This action packed, never-a-dull-moment page turner had me in compulsive reading mode right up to the very last page. With the increasing malicious influence and attacks of the brotherhood, Syd is fighting fires and doing damage control on all fronts. From Sidhe world to demon plane; from magi city to enforcer fortress, Syd hits the floor running despite the threat of council justice should she break one more of their laws.

Although Syd and her mother are now almost enemies and, apparently, on different sides of the fight, Syd is growing more self-confident. In fact, she is so self-confident and her temper so volatile that I feared for her safety all the time. Fortunately she still has her family and closest friends to support, help and look out for her. 

In The Undying the author imaginatively expands her already incredibly well crafted world of the supernatural. New planes of existence are explored and Syd discovers a few new means of magical travel. When Syd and her companions enter a plane, they often undergo a change in appearance to suit the mood of the specific world. I thought this to be an extremely original and imaginative touch.

Apart from all the excitement in Syd's life, there still remains the fact that she must, according to witch law, marry before she is 21 if she wants to remain a coven leader. Given her extremely complicated romantic life, it remains to be seen how she will manage to make this choice.

The Undying is filled with action and nail-biting suspense but it also contains some thoroughly sad, deeply touching and gentle romantic scenes. I highly recommend this book but urge readers to read the whole series to be able to read The Undying in context. A standing ovation and five stars to a wonderful book and brilliant author.




PURCHASE LINKS


ABOUT the AUTHOR

My official bio reads like this: Patti Larsen is an award-winning middle grade and young adult author with a passion for the paranormal. But that sounds so freaking formal, doesn't it? I'm a storyteller who hears teenager's voices so loud I have to write them down. I love sports even though they don't love me. I've dabbled in everything from improv theater to film making and writing TV shows, singing in an all girl band to running my own hair salon.
But always, always, writing books calls me home.
I've had my sights set on world literary domination for a while now. Which means getting my books out there, to you, my darling readers. It's the coolest thing ever, this job of mine, being able to tell stories I love, only to see them all shiny and happy in your hands... thank you for reading.
As for the rest of it, I'm short (permanent), slightly round (changeable) and blonde (for ever and ever). I love to talk one on one about the deepest topics and can't seem to stop seeing the big picture. I happily live on Prince Edward Island, Canada, home to Anne of Green Gables and the most beautiful red beaches in the world, with my very patient husband and four massive cats.

AUTHOR LINKS

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