Review: Amber Smoke by Kristin Cast

Title: Amber Smoke 
Author: Kristin Cast
Publication Date:  June 9th, 2015
Publisher: Diversion Publishing
Source: Borrowed from Library
Where to find: Goodreads / Amazon / Book Depository

Summary: 

There is a world that runs parallel to our own, a world in which the souls of the damned are caged, where they are looked over by the Furies, and where they spend eternity in torment, mirroring the devastation and mayhem they created when alive.

Someone has opened the cage.

The worst of terrors has crossed the barrier that separates our world from theirs, and the Furies send a great, albeit untested warrior—their only son, Alek—to try to bring those souls back. He is young and handsome, headstrong and impulsive, and he won’t be able to do it alone.

Eva has grown up, beautiful and beloved, but surrounded by secrets. First, she will be hunted in an ancient feud that will threaten her life. Then, she will become the hunter.

With the police closing in and two worlds on the verge of crumbling around them, Alek and Eva must find each other, discover the limits of their powers, and work together to save everything they hold dear, including one another. Blending elements of mythology with the dazzling storytelling that her fans have devoured through the House of Night series, Kristin Cast weaves a spellbinding and passionate tale that starts a thrilling new series with an explosive charge.

“Not all of your foes will appear in their true form. You must learn to trust your instincts.”

So this book. I do not know what I was expecting going into this, but I am not really sure it matched the expectations. I am not a fan by any means of the House of Night Series. Eventually I want to read them all, but I am in no rush. For me, the downfall to that series is its length and mediocre writing. This book reminded me of the same things that irk me when it comes to HoN.

The writing in this book left much to be desired. There is nothing spectacular about it and the plot and characters are not exciting enough to make up for it. I cannot pinpoint exactly what it is about the writing style that does not work for me, but I just know it is not my cup of tea.

As for the actual story and characters. I did not fall in love with any of the characters. Alek and Eva have this ridiculous insta-love stemmed from fate and destiny, but we do not even see any of that romance. It was such a strange concept for me.  We have them talking about love and needing each other after only spending like an hour together. I was expecting this book to be a paranormal romance and what I got was set up of a journey with a whole lot of destiny and backstory. 

Speaking of backstory, the one thing I really enjoyed with this book is the level of backstory we got on the Furies and why Alek and Eva have to save Tartarus. I also enjoyed the sisters fussing over Alek. As for plot this whole book was a drawn out forty-eight hours or so. Parts that were supposed to be suspensful and thrilling left me indifferent. I was not pulled into this story and what was happening. Typically when a character is being threatened and hurting you want to see them get better and have that small voice in the back of your head that questions if they will really make it out of this okay. I did not feel any of these thoughts or feelings at any point in this book. I just did not have a connection with the characters that comes with experiencing the story.

I have the sequel Scarlet Rain also checked out from the library, but I am not sure I even want to continue with this series at this point. But on the other hand, these are short books, so it is not a huge time commitment to read them. However, I am not at all invested in this story. I am a little curious to see what happens to Tartarus but I am not entirely motivated to continue.