Book Review: Into The Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

I always approach sequels with caution. For the most part, the word “sequel” is mostly synonymous with “death wish”. For example, Existence was a great book while its sequels are two of the worst things that I have ever read, and Is This A Zombie?’s first season was miles on top of Is This A Zombie? of the Dead, its horrible sequel season. However, not all sequels are bad. The Empire Strikes Back still holds up today as one of the greatest sequels of all time, Valvrave’s second season was much better than the first, and Captain America- The Winter Soldier is fantastic in my opinion. So, where does Through The Ever Night rank? Sit back, relax, and read on as I review the sequel to Under The Never Sky, Through The Ever Night.

The Setup:

It’s difficult to talk about the setup of this book without delving into spoilers because this is, in fact, a sequel, so I think I’m just going say that this book continues the story from the last one. Not being lazy, just pointing out the facts.

The Characters:

The characters of this book did change from the last book. Aria has officially evolved from a helpless Dweller into someone who can take care of herself, and I enjoyed reading about her. Perry, however, is still my favorite character, and I feel like he went through the most development within this book. A strange thing about these two characters, however, is the fact that they barely spend any time together. With the exception of the beginning and the ending of the book, the two are nowhere near each other, and honestly, it really worked. It helped them both realize just how much they really meant to each other; they were questioning their loyalties, wondering if they could ever be together, and whether or not they were actually right for each other. I felt like this really strengthened their relationship, which worked in the book’s favor because this is a romance novel. As for the side characters, the only ones really worth mentioning are Roar and Liv, but…we don’t talk about Roar and Liv. Other than those two, the side characters did their job, but weren’t really all that memorable.

The Story:

This is where Through The Ever Night ran into a few issues. My main problem with this story is that it is ssssssssssssssllllllllllllllllooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwww. I feel like half of this three hundred page book could have been either cut out or replaced with an actual plot. It’s far from being absolutely unreadable, though; the author just needs to fix the pacing.

The Writing Style/Grammatical Errors:

The situation that this book is within is pretty much the same as the first book; the story is told in third person, it’s smooth and descriptive but gets straight to the point, and gives the book a bit of a whimsical feel to it. I especially liked how it described character emotions, though sometimes it does hammer it into your brain a little too much. As for grammatical errors, there were none that I could pick out.

Final Judgment:

Overall, this book is a mixed bag. If you loved the first book, you’ll probably enjoy this one, and I would argue that the slower pacing allows the characters to develop. However, the story is too slow, and it took me way too long to finish. I give Through The Ever Night a 3 out of 5, and a recommendation to check it out if you liked the first one. Like always, however, it’s up to you to decide your own opinion.
ScoreCard: 

Buy Through The Ever Night: http://www.amazon.com/Through-Ever-Night-Under-Never-ebook/dp/B0089EHI5E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397699193&sr=8-1&keywords=through+the+ever+night

The further recommendations remain the same as the first book.

The next review will be on an anime. Here’s the hint: Don’t lose your way!

See you then!