Now without any further ado, let's get started!
Nara Collins is an average sixteen-year-old, with one exception: every night she dreams the events of the following day. Due to an incident in her past, Nara avoids using her special gift to change fate…until she dreams a future she can’t ignore.
After Nara prevents a bombing at Blue Ridge High, her ability to see the future starts to fade, while people at school are suddenly being injured at an unusually high rate.
Grappling with her diminishing powers and the need to prevent another disaster, Nara meets Ethan Harris, a mysterious loner who seems to understand her better than anyone. Ethan and Nara forge an irresistible connection, but as their relationship heats up, so do her questions about his dark past.
LUCID: BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS, BOOK 2Once Nara combines her prophetic ability with Ethan’s power to outsmart Fate at his own deadly cat-and-mouse game, she’s more determined than ever to help Ethan learn the meaning behind the raven sword tattoo that suddenly appeared on his back after their confrontation with Fate.Read an excerpt
During her quest to uncover the tattoo’s secrets, Nara enlists the help of some new friends and discovers her own surprising connection to Ethan.
While Nara digs deeper into the mystery, her desire for answers leads her down a dangerous path full of powerful and ruthless enemies. Swept into an age-old battle, Nara quickly learns that keeping one’s enemies close can be a necessary evil, making an intangible enemy she can control far more preferable to the human enemies she can’t.
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ABOUT P. T. MICHELLEP.T. Michelle is author of the young adult series BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS. When P.T. isn’t writing, she can usually be found reading or taking pictures of landscapes, sunsets and anything beautiful or odd in nature.LINKS: Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Newsletter
Now let's move on to my review of LUCID!
(I realize that some things, like Lucid's synopsis, are going to be appearing more than once. Blame my OCD.)
(I realize that some things, like Lucid's synopsis, are going to be appearing more than once. Blame my OCD.)
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Lucid (Brightest Kind of Darkness, #2)
P. T. Michelle
Publisher: P. T. Michelle
Release Date: July 9, 2012
Source: Author
Once Nara combines her prophetic ability with Ethan’s power to outsmart Fate at his own deadly cat-and-mouse game, she’s more determined than ever to help Ethan learn the meaning behind the raven sword tattoo that suddenly appeared on his back after their confrontation with Fate.
During her quest to uncover the tattoo’s secrets, Nara enlists the help of some new friends and discovers her own surprising connection to Ethan.
While Nara digs deeper into the mystery, her desire for answers leads her down a dangerous path full of powerful and ruthless enemies. Swept into an age-old battle, Nara quickly learns that keeping one’s enemies close can be a necessary evil, making an intangible enemy she can control far more preferable to the human enemies she can’t.
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CATCHALL
Sadly, Lucid did not quite capture my heart the way Brightest Kind of Darkness did. I still really, really liked it, but it didn't have the feel as the first one did. It was wholly enjoyable. I breezed through it and when I was done I definitely was left breathless. Somehow, despite all this, it didn't really grab me the way that Brightest Kind of Darkness did. This review may seem a bit harsh, but I really did adore this book.
THE HEROINE
NARA
Nara is a wonderful heroine. She's strong and fun. And also very, very relatable. Nara becomes determined to do something useful instead of just sitting around and waiting. She wants to take action, and I love that. She can be a bit naïve, but mostly she's careful not to put herself too much at risk. I loved her in this book almost as much as I did in the first book. My main problem with her in this book is that she gets a tad whiny and pathetic and desperate and those are pretty much never attractive qualities.
THE LOVE INTEREST
ETHAN
Ethan really wasn't in this book a whole lot. I absolutely fell in love with him in the first book, but what we see of him in this book I'm not sure I like, let's be honest. The way he demands that Nara cease her research is just…no. It's not even the request itself, it's the way he says it. I hate the way he says it. It's far too controlling for my taste. And he totally overreacts at the dumbest things! By the end of this book I was forced to concede that I no longer love Ethan and he's going to have to impress me a lot in the next book to win me back.
THE EXCHANGE BOY
DRYSTAN
Drystan is the sexy, smoking-hot boy who Nara hangs out with in Ethan's absence. He has a gorgeous exotic name and a hot accent. In this book, he's the one I fell head over heels for. Sadly, it's clear early on that he isn't really a love interest. Even so, I adore him. He is so sweet. So so so so so sweet. And he's very protective of Nara, but he doesn't smother her. He's intensely loyal and seemingly would do anything to keep her safe.
THE PLOT
The plot is where this shines, as always. Patrice wove a beautiful world in Brightest Kind of Darkness, and it's only continued to develop in Lucid in the most lovely way. As the story unfolds, we learn more and more about their world and get drawn further and further into it until before you know it you're tumbling headlong into it and not looking back.
Nara wants to solve the mystery of Ethan's tattoo, and the world she's pulled into is dark. Someone wants her dead, but she doesn't know who. Someone doesn't want her finding out what Ethan's tattoo might mean and will do anything to keep her from finding out.
Even so, she doesn't let it stop her. With Drystan at her side for a lot of it, Nara sets out to find out what she needs to know. It's not an easy journey. There is some hurt involved, and some pain, and a whole lot of mystery and suspense since we don't know anything about who is trying to hurt Nara.
I really, really love the suspense. There's a ton of action, and you're never sure what is going to happen next. What is Nara going to find out next? How much closer is she getting to the one thing that will connect everything? What's happening with Ethan? Does Drystan have secrets too? The questions are endless, but in a good way. They kept me guessing and anticipatory.
I mean, I loved the plot! Just like that of the first book, it's brill. It's entertaining and more than just a shallow surface plot. It really digs in deep and settles under your skin, but in a delicious, warm kind of way.
THE ROMANCE
Ah, the romance. Well, it's difficult support a romance I've decided to stop liking one-half of (only for now, hopefully). The romance was nice, I guess, but I couldn't love it. Nara's whole attitude towards it just reeks of desperation and I hated that, and Ethan doesn't deserve Nara anymore anyway as far as I'm concerned since he apparently decided that it's cool to act like a jerk. Yes, I'm a little bitter. I'm allowed to be.
THE WRITING
I absolutely love Patrice's writing. Nara's voice is very open, honest, with no pretenses. Even at her whiniest she doesn't try to be someone she isn't and I have to appreciate that. I also greatly appreciate the gorgeous description. It's like literally being in Nara's world, if only for a little while. And just everything about the writing is artful and dressed to impress.
THE ENDING
The ending was a bit anticlimactic, but it worked for this book. It probably wouldn't work for every book, but in this one, well, it did. I thought it ended on the perfect note, actually. A lot of change was made in this book, and it just didn't need to go out with a bang to make an impact. It instead went out quietly but left its mark. A lot more is ahead, but there is still what has already been left behind.
WRAPUP
Lucid is very much a second book, but I'll definitely be picking up the third with total confidence that I'll love it. It was up and down for me but I see no reason not to continue this series when it has so much potential. Every time I fall a little deeper into Nara's world, and every time it's a little harder to get out. I really do recommend this series highly, and suggest that you pick it up! It's fun and unique and basically overall appealing.
FINE.
***FINAL RATING: 3.35 RED ROSES***
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And now for the giveaway!
So, what can you win?
10 ebooks of BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS/LUCID (INTERNATIONAL)
1 SIGNED paperback of BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS (US ONLY)
"http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/fcfe5d124/"
Well, good luck, darlings! I really hope that you win, and think about picking up this series. It's truly awesome and I absolutely love it. It comes with my high recommendation, so at least think about it, dear roses of mine? Love you all. xx
Lovelovelove,
