You remember that movie In Time with Justin Timberlake (it's cool if you don't). Take that concept, add in a lot more fantasy and less heist and you have Everless. Now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The idea of both your life and money being one in the same is pretty clever and can have a lot of potential for addressing social issues and commentary on how we view life. Or it could just be a cool gimmick for a YA story, I don't know. Let's dive in.
Jules Ember grew up the daughter of a servant in the halls of Everless, home of the Gerlings, the richest family in the land. Capable of living for hundreds of years off the time they tax from the locals, the Gerlings are law in the land of Sempera, and their power is only getting stronger when their son is engaged to the Queen's daughter. Life turned very hard for Jules when she and her father were banished from Everless, but now she must return to save her father. Soon, though, she comes to discover that her ties to the Gerlings, the Queen, and time itself run deeper than even she could have imagined.
Now, there were certain aspects of this book that I liked...and some I didn't. Really didn't. But the good stuff first. The mythology and world building in this book is certainly very interesting. As I said, there's a lot of potential in a story were life and money are the same thing. Except, in this story, a person's blood is turned into iron coins and the coins are then melted into tea or soup for others to drink. That's...kinda gross, not gonna lie. Also it just takes one person with a HIV and you're all goners. But that's a nitpick and I know it.
I also liked the route this book took with several of the characters. In many places, several characters would have been pretty easy to throw in the "mean girl" cliche and do absolutely nothing else with them as people. But, for the first time in a long while, there aren't any mean, bullying girls in this book. While they certainly have flaws, nobody is just an outright nasty person for the sake of being an outright nasty person. Even the potential love rivals are nice people. Flawed, certainly, but you don't hold it against them. There's also a clever twist that takes place with the love interest in the book that, I have to say, I was really pleased to see. Again, the author had an easy out and could have taken the stereotypical, done-to-death route, but instead messed with our expectations. Kudos.
But then...sigh...there's the protagonist. We have no idea what she looks like so you can imagine yourself in her place, she jumps to conclusions like it was an Olympic sport (this is not helped by the fact that everyone feels the need to be incredibly cryptic while talking to her), and she's melodramatic as can be! A little personality, legitimate personality, could have gone a long way with this girl. Stuff happens to her, but most of it is out of her control. Even when she does make a decision for herself she can be really stupid about it. First off, she's been freaking banished from this place and yet she gives her real name and, before long, doesn't even hide the fact that she's lived here before. Aren't you here at the risk of your very life!? Shouldn't you even try to be subtle about it? There's also a scene when she breaks through a door that marks her hands if she touches it, so the guards could find her out. She knows this but doesn't do anything to prevent her hands getting stained. Do gloves not exist in this universe? She was by far the toughest thing about this book.
Perhaps the other big part of this story is the mysteries. There are several of them in this book such as parentage mysteries, identity issues, secret plots, and so on and so forth. While they are intriguing and I wanted to know what was going on the payoff was...confusing. Not that I didn't get it, it's just that parts feel so contrived that I was kind of dumbfounded at the answers I was getting. It was a feeling like, "Really? That's what you're going with? But...how in the crap were we supposed to figure that out?" And the ending is such a cliffhanger, you'd swear that they just ran out of time and decided "Duh, here's good!" What I would have given for this to be a standalone....
Final Verdict
The characters are good except for the protagonist, the mythology is good but the mystery isn't, this one was pretty hot and cold for me. Ultimately, my problems with it probably won't bother everyone else. If you like this book or want to read it, go right ahead but maybe save your cash and check it out at our local library.
Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer
Next Time: Two sisters, one hundred halls, so little time....
No comments:
Post a Comment