Tuesday 25 June 2013

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

“There are no good choices, Allison," Kanin offered in a quiet voice. "There are only those you can live with, and those you can work to change.”

Eternity cure picks up a few weeks after the events of the last book with Allie following the call of her sire Kanin who has been taken hostage and is being tortured by a seriously deranged vampire known as Sarren. On her long journey to find Kanin, Allie finds herself partnering with her 'brother' Jackel who is also trying to find Kanin and together they try to free Kanin albeit with different motivations. This is an action packed sequel that definitely doesn't suffer from second book syndrome, full of twists and turns that we leave you wanting more. Kagawa isn't afraid to push the boundaries and she will have you screaming in frustration by the end of this book.

Once again Allie was the tough girl, sometimes she comes across as heartless but with everything that she has had to suffer through I can forgive her for this. She hasn't had an easy life and it doesn't get any easier in this book. She is struggling to hold on to the small piece of humanity left inside of her but life as a Vampire for Allie seems awfully a lot like life as a Fringer, trust no-one and look out for number one. The only times Allies human side comes out is when she is with Zeke, he is the only light left in the dark world she now lives in. Their relationship is sweet and tender and faced with so many obstacles its hard to see them overcoming them all. Kagawa also explored Allies relationship with Kanin a lot more thoroughly  in the first book he was her sire and I understood that she felt some loyalty towards him and so that's why she went searching for him but throughout the Eternity Cure I felt like he was more like a father-figure to Allie she looks to him for guidance and understanding. In the end both these relationships are tested with heartbreaking conclusions.

One of the more surprising aspects of this book was Jackals character, we saw him in the first book as the King of the Raiders trying to find a cure for the rabids. Jackal teams up with Allie in order to help him find Kanin who he believes knows the secrets for the cure. What's surprising about Jackal is that like Allie I found myself warming to him, he was comical and teasing and would often make me laugh during very dark moments in this book. I had to keep reminding myself that I wasn't supposed to like him but I suppose its a testament to Kagawas wiring that she can turn the villain of one book into the comical bad boy of another. The real villain of this book and I suppose the entire story arc is Sarren, an extremely psychotic vampire hell bent on riding the world of all humans and vampires so that civilisation can start again. Kagawa has created a wonderful villain and because he has a few screws loose you know he is capable of anything which makes these books even more thrilling and compelling.

This book had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish, the story moves along at a great pace and never lets up on the action. Its a dark and deadly world and such an original concept, Kagawa is able to mix vampire and dystopian fiction together seamlessly. This book will leave you breathless, its bloody, violent with just a sprinkling of romance. The jaw dropping ending will have you wishing the next book was already out. 

My Rating: 4

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