***Possible spoilers, you’ve been warned***

The book starts off well and has a good pace and momentum throughout the book. The setting is also well done and small with a handful of characters so it’s simple and makes the reading enjoyable. I particularly liked the dream sequences Mac has with Amy. They can be cliche but it helps move the plot along and adds to the mood.

The werewolf aspect is interesting in the book. The notion of them having a ‘rehabilitation’ camp has a dystopia feel and there’s also Mac trying to solve Amy’s murder. So there’s different characteristics of the book to please YA readers which makes the experience reading this fun and enjoyable.

Of course you need a bit of romance in the story as well right? I’m all for Kyle and Mac being together. I found the love triangle aspect here irritating and forced on. Jason did not have sort of chemistry at all with Mac. It felt forced, awkward, and well...it just didn’t sit well with me (your boyfriend likes your best friend...just. No.) The love triangle just made things so cliche and sappy. The story didn’t need this. It was fine with just Kyle and Mac!

The mystery aspect was good throughout the novel. The crumb trail to figuring out who was behind the attacks wasn’t that obvious until the late third of the book and although it was already known who it was, the action sequence and climax of the story was pretty exciting and a lot of things are revealed. The revelations weren’t the type to blind side you, it fits well into the story and puts the pieces together. Which is fine. I think the action scenes are enough to keep readers interested.

I was happy with the way the book ended and I’ll be picking up the second one. Recommended for YA lovers who just want a good light read with some good action and a readable enjoyable plot.

***This review has also been posted on The Social Potato

Because I didn’t review the previous two books in the series, this review is especially hard to write since I have to say everything I get only one shot to say everything I want to about this amazing seris. Can a review ever be sufficient to express one’s love for not just one book but for an entire series? I don’t think so but I am going to give it a shot anyway.

I put off reading Hemlock for a very long time. I had had my eye on the series for a long time (since 2012 to be precise) but I was too scared too pick it up because of the supposed love triangle (emphasis on the supposed bit). Nick, being lovely, assured my poor nerves that I had nothing to worry about and while that soothed me some, it wasn’t until I saw the final book on Edelweiss that I decided that it was finally time to dive in.

Boy, I had NO idea what I had been missing out on. This series is the PERFECT comfort series. It reminds me of a couple years ago when I went through the paranormal phase and encountered so many great series. The Hemlock books remind me of the Darkest Powers books in particular what with the secret testing and conspiracies.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though. Let’s start at the beginning, with Mackenzie. Mac is a fabulous character and I adore her to bits. She is a strong female lead who won’t back down and is stubborn. Sometimes, her stubbornness is dangerous but I, for one, never felt as though her stubbornness lead her to do things that made me want to shake her. Sometimes, I did think she was a little too selfless but then again, when it comes to the ones you love, you’re going to do whatever you can to keep them safe. I did like that she didn’t push them away though. She didn’t think she could do this all on her own. She asked for help when she needed it. She wasn’t too scared to ask it and let her friends make the choices instead of making them for them and telling them it was too dangerous for them to do something.

Kyle, our love interest, was fabulous throughout the first two books and while he was just as swoon-worthy in this one, I felt like he just didn’t get as much of an opportunity to shine. I would definitely have liked to see a LOT more of him and perhaps see him and Mackenzie function as a couple. This book was definitely Mac’s book and it was more about her than it was about Kyle or Amy or Jason or anyone else.

Going back to the romance bit, you can tell that Mac and Kyle are very much in love and I love that there is very minimal drama in their relationship. There was a certain event that didn’t  do much for me (*secretly rages*) at the end of Thronhill but I feel like there is a certain strength in their relationship because they both know they are the one for each other.  What made me sad was that there relationship wasn’t explored as much as it could be. Considering how fantastic their romance was in Hemlock, I kind of wanted to see more over the course of the books. We had a lot of tender and sweet moments but they didn’t really ‘work together’. The worked to protect one another instead of towards a common goal.

Peacock definitely takes her time developing the plot over the course of the three books and none of the books ever were rushed or developed too slowly. Peacock paced them just right. I never really saw that twist coming when the truth was revealed in this book. It didn’t feel like it was unpredictable, it just never occurred to me that the author might decide to take her story down that road. If there had been a little more clues in the previous two books, it might not have felt so sudden but it definitely worked in context of the story so I didn’t feel like it was out of place which is important.

This book is brutal. There are deaths and we don’t like deaths. They are mean and sucky and I am going to go curl up underneath my bed (that’s my favorite spot if you guys haven’t realized by now).

I was a little disappointed by the epilogue. It felt nice to know where the characters were after the events that would have followed the ending but at the same time, there were still some questions I had and considering there had been a two year jump, a lot more questions so the epilogue, instead of making the series feel complete did just the opposite. 

In the end, this was definitely a great conclusion to the series and if you still haven’t started the series and ventured into the world of Hemlock, I have no idea what you’re waiting for. Get on it and remember, Kyle is mine.

Hello, everyone! I hope this Monday finds you well. Are you anticipating the release of Stone in the Sky by Cecil Castellucci? You should be! Here are my initial thoughts about the book, and stay tuned for my review next month :). In addition to giving away my ARC of the second Tin Star book, I'm giving away hardcovers of Willowgrove (Hemlock #3) by Kathleen Peacockand Twisted Fate by Norah Olson, which I received from the publisher but which I personally will not have time to read and which y'all should get excited for! YAY FOR MORE BOOKS.

Follow link for giveaway!

Mac is a twit in this installment. She spends most of the book derping over Kyle and failing to do simple tasks that will keep her and her friends out of harm's way. I don't know if I can keep going without some SERIOUS character intervention.

Now this was what I wish more YA was like! The story was engaging and tense, and the characters, while young and flawed, weren't eye-rollingly stupid and annoying.

I also liked the paranormal story line. The werewolves weren't all good or bad, and the humans were frequently more dangerous. Even the obligatory love triangle was handled well. I will read the next book in the series. I just hope it doesn't all go to hell in a handbasket in book two.