BOOK REVIEW ~ ENDLESS KNIGHT BY KRESLEY COLE

Title: Endless Knight (The Arcana Chronicles, Book Two)
Author: Kresley Cole
Release Date: October 1, 2013

Reviewer purchased own copy of ebook for review


In this seductive follow-up to Poison Princess, #1 New York Timesbestselling author Kresley Cole takes us deeper into the dark world of the Arcana Chronicles.

Shocking Secrets

Evie has fully come into her powers as the Tarot Empress, and Jack was there to see it all. She now knows that the teens who've been reincarnated as the Tarot are in the throes of an epic battle. It's kill or be killed, and the future of mankind hangs in the balance.

Unexpected Allies

With threats lurking around every corner, Evie is forced to trust her newfound alliance. Together they must fight not only other Arcana, but also Bagmen zombies, post-apocalyptic storms, and cannibals.

Gut-Wrenching Treachery

When Evie meets Death, things get even more complicated. Though falling for Jack, she's drawn to the dangerous Endless Knight as well. Somehow the Empress and Death share a history, one that Evie can't remember—but Death can't forget.

Book Review

Holy Shitcakes!

I love it when you are sucked into a book--another world, basically--and you don't want to emerge from your kindle in order to go to bed. To eat. To feed your kids. 

Kresly Cole has done it again. Her unique Arcana Chronicles kicks ass. 

It's definitely a book to be read in order, as the world can be a tad confusing. There are so many layers, players, and twists and turns, you practically have to read it twice (Ahem, I plan on doing just that myself) so as to not miss any important details. 

Endless Knight starts off where The Poison Princess leaves off--on a bloody battlefield. Jack has just witnessed Evie turn into the Empress and take another life. Creatures called Bagmen are gaining on Finn, Matthew, Evie, Selena and Jack. With time running out, the small group form an alliance, their solitary goal to kill Death. 

Before he kills them.

Expect to sit on the edge of your seat during high-adrenaline action scenes, so tense you're afraid to blink your eyes, least you miss something.

Expect your toes to curl as Jack seduces me...er, the reader...with his sexy Cajun accent and expressions:

"Doan you dare talk like that, bebe." He gripped my nape, a move that was at once protective and possessive. "I'm not goan to let anything happen to you, no."  

"Mercy me, Evie."

"Up you go, bebe." 

"I'm all in, peekon." 

Expect to fall for Finn's charms, as his sense of humor takes away some of the building tension and provides some much needed comic relief:

"So three Bagmen and a slaver go into a bar..."

"You guys humming my balls, right?" 

"Checking perimeters? Is that what the Louisiana kids are calling it these days? Hey, Lark, can I check your perimeter?"  

And expect to confused as hell. I seriously thought I could never be swayed to feel sympathy for Death. But Cole has made me see Death in a totally different light. So who the hell do I root for now?

"I stroked your face, intending to end you. Yet you never fell ill. I can still remember how shockingly soft your skin was. How warm." He seemed to get lost in the memory. Voice gone hoarse, he said, "I shuddered to feel it against mine." 

 

And expect a major cliffie, while totally freaking out because you have to wait another year until the next book in the Arcana Chronicles.

Kresley Cole, I loathe and love you at the same time.

BOOK REVIEW ~ POISON PRINCESS BY KRESLEY COLE

Title:  Poison Princess (Book One, The Arcana Chronicles)

Author: Kresley Cole

Release Date: October 2, 2012

Blurb from Goodreads

She could save the world—or destroy it.

Sixteen year old Evangeline “Evie” Greene leads a charmed life, until she begins experiencing horrifying hallucinations. When an apocalyptic event decimates her Louisiana hometown, Evie realizes her hallucinations were actually visions of the future—and they’re still happening. Fighting for her life and desperate for answers, she must turn to her wrong-side-of-the-bayou classmate: Jack Deveaux.

But she can’t do either alone.

With his mile-long rap sheet, wicked grin, and bad attitude, Jack is like no boy Evie has ever known. Even though he once scorned her and everything she represented, he agrees to protect Evie on her quest. She knows she can’t totally depend on Jack. If he ever cast that wicked grin her way, could she possibly resist him?
Who can Evie trust?

As Jack and Evie race to find the source of her visions, they meet others who have gotten the same call. An ancient prophesy is being played out, and Evie is not the only one with special powers. A group of twenty-two teens has been chosen to reenact the ultimate battle between good and evil. But it’s not always clear who is on which side….

Holy Hell!

This book sucked me in and grabbed me by the ovaries and shook me hard. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it.

It is official, Kresley, baby ~ You now have penned 2 books as my all time favorite reads for 2012.

First, you sucker punched me with Lothaire, (still recovering, thank you very much) and now--Jack has blown me away with his Cajun accent, dark looks, and intensity that left me breathless. I want my own Jack Deveaux.

One thing that confuses me is that I found this book in the Young Adult section. Um....I am not so sure about that. Maybe 17 or 18...definitely NOT 10 -12 year olds. There is swearing and sexual overtones that put this in a much older young adult category in my honest opinion. And the hottest almost nekked pool scene I have read in quite awhile...

When his gaze dipped, his lids went heavy and his Adam's apple  bobbed. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Mercy Me."

I'd never been looked at like this, had never been utterly certain that a boy was gazing my body--while imagining how he wanted to touch it.

I really don't know where to start with this review-I was so blown away. But I think that quote about sums it up for me, lol.

Okay, first off--this is refreshingly different. The characters of Cole's book are supposed to represent  key characters found in Tarot cards used by fortune tellers. We are introduced to The Fool, The Moon, The Hermit, The Magician, and The Empress in her first book, Poison Princess. How friggin cool is that? Not a were, vamp, or fae in sight! 

Evie Green is the popular cheerleader at a very posh school, where the rich mingle and drive their fancy-smancy Porsches, Bennies, and what have you.  She has the pretty boy football hero as her beau and life is grand, right?

Meh...not so much. Evie is keeping a secret. She has just returned from Atlanta where she was a patient at Child's Last Chance-- a behavioral clinic for children. Evie had horrible visions that she drew in a journal that depicted violent and disturbing images that spilled over into her nightmares until Evie couldn't tell real from delusions.

Returning to school, Evie hoped to put all that behind her, with her friends never the wiser to where she really spent her summer. All she wanted was her life to return to normal. To be normal.   

But five new kids show up the first day of school at Sterling High, riding in on their motorcycles, and so very different from their richer class mates. They are from the bayou; Cajun, poor, and with attitude a plenty. One of them, Jackson Deveaux, stirs conflicting emotions inside Evie with his sarcasm,rudeness and potent sexual charm -- as well as sigh-worthy sexual innuendos.

He wrapped one of his arms behind my back, cupping my chin with his free hand. "Evangeline, I'm goan kiss you until your toes curl, until we're breathing for each other." ---fave line EVER!

 

Swoon.

And Evie's visions come back with a vengence. Bloody, dark visions that cause Evie to question her sanity.

When she's faced with just how real her visions are and their link to what has happened and WILL happen, will Evie finally lose everything she has strived so hard for?

Kresley has created an original new world in the paranormal genre that has an engaging plot line, a supremely interesting ( and very sexy ) hero, and a relatable heroine to totally root for while you bite your nails to the quick to see what happens next. Oh, and some FREAKISHLY AMAZING secondary characters that just tickled my funny bone:

Some of my most memorable and funniest quotes:

"But if they're together, then why does he keep staring at you? Like he hasn't deposited enough mental images into his spank bank by now?" --Mel

"I finally understand who buys vajazzling kits."--Mel

"Dude. It is raining hot ass today. --Finn

"Smoking body on that one--but shy a few teeth. Still, I'd do Hickette with a flag over her face." --Finn