Forbidden came out a few years ago, back when it was way easier for a story to completely ensnare me. Unfortunately, the book had an open ending, hinting at a sequel to come, which would take all this time to get published. I truly, truly, loved Forbidden when I first read it so I knew I needed some closure and finally get to read what happened next!
The authors were kind enough to add a free copy of the first book along with the sequel. It was a superb idea on their part since, granted, I could use the remembering. So, today I bring you a double review!
Forbidden by Syrie James Series: Forbidden series #1
Published by Harper Collins ISBN: 9780062027900
on January 24, 2012
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Romance, Paranormal
Pages: 416
Read it as: eBook
Source: Netgalley
My rating:
Check it out in Goodreads
Synopsis
When Claire Brennan begins to get psychic visions and mysterious warnings that she’s in danger at the start of her junior year, she isn’t sure what to think. But the truth is stranger than anything she could have imagined.
Alec MacKenzie has fled his duties as a Watcher angel and come to L.A. in search of normalcy. He never dreamed he would find a half-angel at his school, or that he would fall in love with her.
My first thoughts were, ‘oh no, I shouldn’t have done this‘. Maybe it’d have been better to just leave it as a fond memory and move on. But I needed to know where the authors had taken the story.
Claire is pretty much a Mary-Sue
From the get go, it’s not hard to pick up on the clues. What really settled it was a part where she was considering her own appearance and described her hair color -brown- as boring.
Can we please stop with that?
She’s convinced she’s such a plain jane, and I had to stop reading for a second to take a deep breath. I mean, she goes to a highly prestigious school, has friends, a roof over her head… I think it’s entirely possible for someone to be unhappy even if they seem to have everything on the surface. But, this was not that kind of situation.
That said, I’ve read about much worse main characters so, as far as mary sueish goes, Claire doesn’t rank that high up. But the details were enough to make following her journey a bit annoying at times.
The romance wasn’t fulfilling
This was such a letdown because I remember being absolutely nuts for the dynamics between Claire and Alec once upon a time. I felt their pain for not being able to be together and the sacrifices they’d have to make.
I felt none of that now.
The chemistry was just missing for me. I’d have liked to see more real bonding between the characters. I believe there was potential there but it just felt very superficial. Which wouldn’t have been bad at all, if they weren’t so sure they were completely made for each other so quickly.
At least, Alec’s feelings didn’t ring very realistically. He’s a 100+ year old angel, so I’d have expected him to think things trhough more carefully. And for the most part, being in his head did convey that message. But at the first sight of Claire, rational thought flees his mind. It’s cute, but not very beliavable.
I’d have like to see more resistance, more personal stakes between the two, to really bring that relationship to life.
The plot is entertaining
Forbidden has an entertaining plot, it’s just that it kinda gets lost with a bunch of innecessary stuff. It could have been way more streamlined.
Surprisingly enough, I didn’t hate this book, even though it seems like I’m just complaining about it! It just made me realize how our tastes change over time, and that it doesn’t necessarily mean a book is horrible, or that we’re wrong for our tastes. That’s why I don’t believe in shaming people for liking any particular book.
This book in particular, even though it’s so old YA has the benefit of not promoting very unhealthy behaviors. The love interest never seemed creepy or dangerous to me, and that’s definitely a plus. I’m so here for all the books that feature love interests that don’t need to be assholes to be appealing to teenagers.
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I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Embolden by Ryan M. James, Syrie James Series: Forbidden series #2
Published by Independently Published ISBN: 9781718014459
on August 10, 2018
Genres: Young Adult
Pages: 336
Source: Netgalley
My rating:
Check it out in Goodreads
Synopsis
The world is trying to tear them apart.
Will they stand together and fight back?After a season of psychic visions and super-powered drama, Claire Brennan and her angel-gone-AWOL boyfriend Alec MacKenzie can finally be together. Under the protection of Claire’s grandmother, they are trying to lead a normal life, going to high school at Emerson Academy and hanging out with their friends.
But jealous teenagers, vengeful enemies, the city’s new Watcher, and even the school play threaten to break them apart. Not to mention Claire’s surprising second power, which could sabotage the trust of everyone she holds dear. And just when they need to stick together, they finally get a lead on where Claire’s missing father might be.
The threats, which come not only from without but also from within, will test the strength of Alec and Claire’s relationship. Is the love they share enough to keep them safe? If they want to stay together … can they learn to fight together?
This book was so much easier to review because it’s like a clean slate for me. There’s basically two things that stood out, one good and one bad. Because I’m a positive ray of sunshine, I’ll go with the good first.
There’s more happening in this book
I don’t know if I’d have noticed this if I hadn’t read the books back to back. But yeah, with Forbidden the focus was more on the romance, and well, here too, but we have a bit more action and power to balance things out, which was a welcome change.
The power Claire has, the mystery of her father, and how they would really find the way to be together and be safe are the key conflicts here and they are much more clear and to the point than in the first book, which was kinda lackluster in that regard.
The dialogue wasn’t working for me
Claire’s lines in particular. It seemed every line of dialogue that belonged to her was some dumb question that had an obvious answer. The other characters had pretty much the same feel than in the first book. But where then, our main character had just seemed naive, now she just sounded outright dumb. And you have to wonder why the 100+ year old angel even hangs out with her, which in turn doesn’t help to make the romance more realistic.
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Overall, the two books are a case of the things we’re willing to overlook for an entertaining story. Once upon a time, the forbidden romance and stakes were enough for me to not give a second thought to dialogue and structure. But now, not so much.
I think I’d have enjoyed the second one more if the first one had set up the romance better. Because I wanted to feel that all consuming love they were supposed to share, I just wasn’t getting it.
I remember having this book on my tbr so long ago, when angels were all the rage with Fallen and Hush Hush. I think I removed it already, but it’s nice to see you still at least liking the series 🙂
Tasya @ The Literary Huntress recently posted this awesome thing…October Wrap Up & November TBR // It’s almost December???
Not surprised! It’s oooold. They were not THAT bad. They’re just underwhelming compared to other books I’ve read since. And you’re right this is right along Fallen and Hush Hush XD