Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Reading level: Young Adult
Publisher: Philomel
Release Date: October 19, 2010
Source: BEA 2010
Language: English

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything--including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?
Nightshade was so astonishingly well-written, so well-crafted that I'm wondering how could this possibly be Andrea Cremer's debut? Every single detail about this novel, from the fantastically awesome main character to its world building and beyond, was flawlessly executed; there is never a lull in the story, never any moment where I, as a reader, wanted to take a break and stop reading--I was, simply put, addicted to this story.

Calla, as I mentioned before, is an awesome main character; she is fierce, intelligent and extremely loyal to her family and friends. As a reader, I appreciated her strength but I really admired her devotion to her family and pack. As the alpha, she has a lot of responsibility placed on her and she never takes this lightly: she has a no-nonsense attitude which was very commendable. The hierarchy of Calla's world was fascinating to read about--there was a political vibe to it which really caught my attention and as the story progressed, the menacing undertone, coupled with Calla's increasing fear for her situation, really helped moved the story along. Cremer also wove mythology and philosophy into the book which really added to the mystery (and the promise of more danger to come).  

Oh, and how can I forget the romance? Cremer knows how to write a good love triangle: The two boys she presents are so deliciously sexy that even I'm torn as to which one is better suited for Calla. Ren and Shay both stand a good chance of winning Calla and since there's no definete idea (so far) of what's going to happen to these three, I'm even more anxious to get my hands on the sequel.

Addictive and sizzling with power, Nightshade was a stellar debut. Cremer has tremendous potential as a writer; I sense that her new take will be a welcome change among all of the usual werewolf stories. Fans of Blood & Chocolate should pick this up without fear of being disappointed; Nightshade truly delivers.

Rating: 5.0

11 comments:

  1. I've got an ARC of this that I need to read. Calla sounds like a really awesome character and I'm glad to hear you never wanted to put it down as this is a long book so it's going to have to be awfully darn exciting for me to finish it in a timely manner. lol. Awesome review! :D

    ~Briana

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  2. Addictive and sizzling? Nice! Great review :)

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  3. Love your review! I totally agree with everything =)

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  4. Thanks for the review! I've heard so many great things about this novel but I'm really glad to see you stressed the fact that it's good writing and Cremer's debut. Can't wait to get my hands on it.

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  5. Can't wait to get a hold of this book! Fantastic review. I'm a sucker for werewolf novels and this seems to have a different take on them than the other books you come across. I LOVE strong, independent heroines, too.

    Happy reading!!

    -Amelia

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  6. I need to get a hold of this i have been eagerly awaiting for it for months!!

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  7. Oooooh - this review has me wanting to get my hands on this! Really compelling and sounds exactly like my kind of thing!

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  8. Excellent review! I've seen various opinions on this one but I think I need to read it and see if I belong to the group who loves Nightshade or not :)

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  9. I've seen a lot of press for this one, so I'm glad to hear that it's living up to the hype. Part of me feels like the two boys one girl love triangle is getting a little tired, but this one really does sound promising. Nice review!

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  10. Oh man! I want to read this one! It sounds so good. I love me a good love triangle and never-a-dull moments. Ah! You make this sound so good! Thanks for your review! :D

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