I read this to the end in the hope that something might happen that would encourage me towards books 2 and 3 - but no. It was readable, I didn't hate it hence finishing it but I read so much YA of depth and this one was shallow, predictable and a little simplistic. Also the main character (Luce) didn't really have much too her. She did what girls in this type of YA are supposed to do but with a distinct lack of flair. In fact she was somewhat irritating as were the rest of the cast.

I liked the premise, but the group dynamic was a little too cliche, nothing really happened that you couldn't see coming on page one. The writing is fine, its just not special. I know this series has a lot of fans and I can see why in one way but it wasn't for me. There was a lot of wandering around and filler, a lot of wide eyed angst but little else in the way of substance.

Okish. I have the other two books and they look beautiful (in fact probably one of the stars I give this is for the cover) so maybe they'll encourage me back in one day. But for now I think I'll leave Luce and the rest to their shallow love in.

I’m grateful my friends told me to stick with this series, because I definitely liked this book better than Fallen. There was still a lot of teen angst, which I guess you have to expect from a book like this, but the story was more believable, which I appreciated.

With all the stuff that’s going on, Luce is finally becoming a little less whiny and helpless and is taking charge of her own life. Thank goodness! I wanted to see this in the first book, but I’m glad that it came about eventually. One thing I didn’t like about her was that she seems to be a bit stupid at the beginning. I mean, she just went through this huge battle with people trying to kill her, yet she doesn’t listen when Daniel and Cam tell her to stay at the school where she’s safe. This cluelessness on her part is an attempt at conflict, I think, but it just irritated me.

Another thing that bothered me was the tension between Daniel and Luce. Again, I feel it was forced. Daniel using phrases like, “Don’t disobey me!” to Luce doesn’t make any sense to me. He knows her personality and knows how she’d react to that. And why can’t he just explain things? It doesn’t help the suspense at all, because the reader pretty much knows what’s going on and it bothered me a lot.

Despite that, I really did like this book. I liked the new characters we were introduced to, though Miles is a bit annoying. And Shelby is definitely my new favorite. Seeing children of angels and demons and learning what they can do was a highlight. It was also strange to see how popular Luce is in the angel/demon world. Kind of a Harry Potter moment for her.

The story itself was fast-paced and interesting. I kept wanting to know what would happen next and what Luce would figure out about her past that would shed some light on what’s going on in the present. I loved the ending and how it gave enough information to satisfy my curiosity, but not so much that we now know all that’s going on. It answered some questions, and made me ask a few more. I thought the final battle at the end was a little unrealistic — really, nobody saw that? But I can get over it.

If you found yourself on the fence about Fallen, don’t give up on the series! Definitely give Torment a try before you decide not to like it.

Anyone else excited for this? It's been so long since I've read the book I don't remember much so a reread will be in order before it comes out.

This book was a depressing conclusion to this duology.  I did not like the ending at all and the main character started to annoy me a little bit.  I usually love every single word of Lauren Kate's novels, but something about this one just annoyed me.  I didn't like the main characters choices on how to resolve everything and she was constantly thinking that she could do everything without any help.  The ending just really made me mad.  If you have read this than you probably understand why.  There is a bit of a love triangle in this duology and she did not end up with who I wanted her to be with.  There were some good parts in this book, but a lot of it was overshadowed by the stupidity of the main character.  I was not impressed with this book at all.  

I'm going to make a few posts this week and next about books I can't stand.  So let's start with the basics.

part 1: Books with Abusive Male Romantic Leads

The Lux Series: This was Twilight with aliens. And the main man was a bipolar narcissus. 

Anything Cassandra Clare: Every book I ever read by this woman involves a man that treats his lady like garbage and still gets the girl. I hate it. Plus her writing is derivitive and juvenile.

Twilight: Edward isn't so much abusive as he is stalker creepy. He knows everything Bells does. That's not healthy. Plus, Bella's whole life becomes dedicated to suicide and boning a vampire. Not a good role model.

50 Shades: Do I really have to explain this one? He practically rapes Anna, he buys the seats next to her on the plane so nobody can get near her, and he stalks the crap out of her. 

Hush hush: Again, a Twilight rip-off. Patch is a soulless psycho. He only gets close to Nora to kill her. He's mean, cold and violent.

Fallen: I haven't given this book the time of day because the reviews from my trusted circle is so bad I won't even bother. A guy calls you names and is down right ugly to you, so you fall for him? What sense does that make?

To sum this up, I can't stand that young girls find these books romantic. They're terrible. And I think this sort of thing is exactly why there is such a high level of domestic violence in young couples. Because authors romanticize the abuse as men just not knowing how to express their love. It's bullshit, and it's not good for teens.