Asunder
To be perfectly honest, I read this book rather grudgingly. Although I was intrigued by the first novel in the trilogy, Incarnate, I was in a bit of a hurry to get through this so that I could get to some other things on my to-read list. That said, this book was a brilliant sequel in a world filled with lackluster sequels, and while I am still not completely sold on this world or this plot, my uncertainty is entirely based on personal preference, not any lack of demonstrated skill on the author's part.For me, the highlights of this book were:
Ana. Ana took some time to grow on me in the first book, but now I love her and she is wonderful.
Cris. *insert tears here*
The uniqueness of this world and plot (genuinely, I don't think I've read or heard of anything like it ever before).
Meadows put together a realistic and enjoyable supporting cast (which is something I desperately hoped would happen in my review of Incarnate!) There are still some characters I simply don't like (freaking Stef) but also many that I adore (Sarit!) and, in general, supporting characters exist now. In the first novel, it often felt like Ana and Sam were the only two people on the planet, and in a world founded on the premise of one million souls existing and everyone knowing everyone else, that was a bit unrealistic. While I think there is still room to flesh out more characters, I am pleased with Meadows' progress on this front.
On the flip side, Sam annoyed me to no end for huge chunks of this book (although he annoyed Ana too, at least), and the plot became....infinitely disturbing. I actually did not see the twists (if you can really call them twists? The big reveals, anyway) coming, which is always nice, but at the same time I'm not sure I like the direction things went in. The ending seemed abrupt and unsatisfying (so was the ending of Incarnate, though) but it set itself up nicely for the finale novel, which I look forward to reading.
In short, if these books sound fascinating to you, or if you're a fan of YA paranormal fantasy with a hint of dystopian flavor mixed in, you should definitely give them a try. They're not ranked among my all-time favorites, but they're still an entertaining and intriguing reading experience.
