Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Pages: 452

Publisher: Philomel

Perspective: First Person

Age Group: Young Adult

Challenges: 350 Page Challenge

Release Date: October 19, 2010

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?

Stars: 4.5/5

Cover: A+

Plot:

I had heard sooooooo much about this book before reading it. So, as it should be, I had extremely high expectations about this book, which it definitely met.

Now, I'm not completely obsessed with the series and everything like a lot of people are, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced, steamy, and action-packed. I also really liked how there was a bit of mystery tied into everything, also.

The only reason I gave it 4.5 stars instead of 5 was because for the first seventy pages or so, it was a little slow for me. But once I got past the beginning, this book literally flew by. It seemed like a two-hundred page book instead of a four-hundred page book because of how fast-paced it was.

I also loved the set-up of everything, and how instead of the characters just being werewolves, they had a whole governmental system set up amongst them, and they had purpose.

Characters:

I loved the main character, Calla. She told the story through her eyes exceptionally well, and she made the story all the more enjoyable. I respected her skills as a very fierce and loyal warrior, but also that she stood up for what she believed it, even though there was a ginormous potential to get her into a lot of trouble.

I also really liked Shay. He was wonderful for Calla, and he had that innocent-but-I-could-still-kick-your-ass thing going on for him. As for Calla's other "love-interest", Ren, I didn't like him at first. In fact, I hated him! It felt like, to me, he did not want what was best for Calla, and that he was only concerned about himself and his rank as alpha. I must say, though, as the book went on, I started to like him more and more. 

Writing:

I find it extremely hard to believe that this is Andrea Cremer's debut book. The writing is so beautiful, and it flowed extremely well. The beginning was a wee bit slow for me, but overall the book had magnificent pacing. 

Ending:

The cliff-hanger in this book is to die for! I am extremely excited to see what will be happening in the sequel.

Cover:

The hardcover is GORGEOUS. Like, seriously, it's probably one of the prettiest book covers I've seen in an extremely long time. The image is beautiful, yet fierce, and the cover appears to have pretty glitter everywhere. 

I must say, I am not a fan of the new covers. I think they in NO way catch the eye as well as the original cover. 

The Final Verdict:

I'm sure you've heard of this book before, and all of the great things people have had to say about it. So WHY haven't you read it yet?! I seriously suggest you go pick this one up ASAP, or add it to your Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Holiday book list.

FTC: Bought.