Book Review: Everbound by Brodi Ashton

Everbound by Brodi Ashton
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication date: January 2013
Pages: 368
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: Everneath, Book 2

Summary from goodreads: *Spoilers are inevitable for the first book*

Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.

Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.

Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.

Things I Liked:
I really loved reading about the sweet romance that developed between Jack and Nikki.  This was only shown through memories that Nikki shares part way into the book, but it really was my favorite part.  For most of the book, I thought it was all kind of blah and I couldn't make any sense or pattern to the things that happened or to the levels of the Everneath or really anything.  What kind of made the whole thing more interesting and would have convinced me to read it again if it wasn't already late at the library, was the ending.  It was completely surprising to me and kind of made the rest of it make more sense.  Interesting and entertaining and a unique take on mythology and the underworld.  I'll definitely be back for the next installment.

Things I Didn't Like:
It really felt a bit slow and kind of meandering in places.  Nikki seems to learn not to do something and then go ahead and do it a few times anyway.  Which kind of seems pointless - why learn it in the first place?  Still, it was quite entertaining to read.

Read-alikes:
Maybe a bit like The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe one or two mild ones

mrg-factor:none

v-factor:->
maybe a little bit, nothing gory

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage