Review: Nightshade (en.)

English Cover

German Cover

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‚Nightshade‚
by Andrea Cremer

Nightshade # 1

Synopsis:
Calla is the alpha female of a shape-shifting wolf pack. She is destined to marry Ren Laroche, the pack’s alpha male. Together, they would rule their pack together, guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But then, Calla saves a beautiful human boy, who captures her heart. Calla begins to question everything – her fate, her existence, and her world and the orders the Keepers have asked her to follow. She will have to make a choice. But will she follow her heart if it means losing everything, including her own life? (Source: goodreads.com)

My thoughts about the book:
One cannot explain love; it simply happens and also often contradicts the general laws and rules which one usually obeys. The same happened for me with this book! Some things should have disturbed me or should have stopped my enthusiasm for this book, but this didn’t happen. I love this book, I adore it, and I’m also too amazed about that fact, that I can’t explain it properly.
The story about the guards and about Calla begins in the middle of the action when she saves the life of a stranger whom, we learn to know and to love in the further plot as Shay.

The fact that Calla is a guard, which means in this book that she can change into a wolf, should have deterred me immediately, because I am rather the vampire’s type and usually not a fan of werewolves. Actually, I was a little troubled when the conscious hit me that the book is about werewolves, but to my surprise I found the plot and the background story of the wolves herd in this book extremely interesting and absolute differently told. Moreover I love the wonderful writing style of Cremer. With her writing style one notice that she has studied history and, hence, she puts in also some old knowledge and partially also lovely phrases. But on the other hand she also adds shorter sentences in between which provides a lighthearted and quick read.

And also the characters in this book have completely convinced me and I could immediately build up a connection with them, particularly to the central figures, which are called Calla, Shay, Ansel and in the later also to Renier, in short Ren. In spite of a great number of characters, which are important for the action, Cremer has managed it magnificently to press unique stamps to every character and to show them all different in their personalities, abilities and also quirks. Awesome!
Even if Calla, untouched in sexual regards on account of a strict law because she is the female alpha, reacts sometimes a little bit too much to the touches or to the secret kisses of the two guys and thereby it was irritating at times, but Calla is still likeable and most of the time just great. Here it only disturbed me that there was once again a love triangle, which seems to happen unfortunately now all the time in YA books. Though, in the defense of this book I have to admit that I was also torn between the boys Ren and Shay by myself and, therefore, it wasn’t so annoying like in other books. As I said, at the moment I also don’t know which of this two guys I would choose and I just can’t decide, which only shows the quality of Cremer’s character building.

Shay is good-natured, intelligent, but also a very humorous guy with whom a lighthearted time is conceivable; easily like a spring breeze. By contrast Ren is the passionate, explosive, but not less intelligent male alpha, who hides his insecurity towards Calla behind his macho’s affected behavior. His appearance is more subtle in regard to his feelings for Calla and one note only by the end of the book how important Calla really is for him, while Shay looks at her already from the beginning with lovesick eyes.

Therefore, I am very curious about the next book and I just want to get my hands on the second book as fast as I can to continue my reading in this fabulous new series, which I just LOVE! In my opinion the book has almost nothing that disturbed me but was continuously thrilling, tingling and it was an absolutely addicted-making reading pleasure and it is a book which I will read over and over again with high satisfaction.

Cover:
One of the most beautiful covers I’ve seen for a long time. I like the picture on it which is absolute adorable. And it looks like Calla and how I imagine here, and I also love the highlight of the eye and the letters with the blood drop.

All in all:
An absolutely reading recommendation for all YA and fantasy lovers and also for those who usually don’t like werewolves. It is worth to risk a glance in the book, because the plot and the characters will bewitch everyone.

Rating:
5 of 5 points

Quotes:

Ren: “Tell me you’ll come back for the pack. For me.” His eyes were bright with tears. “I don’t want to lose you.”

Calla: “Ansel, I’m not the sun, stop orbiting and get in here.”

Shay: “You do realize you just mixed Disney metaphors, right? Disney metaphors. Wow, Calla, now I’m just sad for you.”

Shay: “Are you going to apologize for slapping me?‘ 
Calla: ‚No.‘  Shay: „I didn’t think so,‘ he said.”..

Succession:

# 1: Andrea Cremer – Nightshade »
# 2: Andrea Cremer – Wolfsbane »
# 3: Andrea Cremer – Bloodrose

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copyright: Gina Monroe

About the author – Andrea Cremer:

Andrea Cremer spent her childhood daydreaming while roaming the forests and lakeshores of Northern Wisconsin. She now lives in Minnesota, but she thinks of her homeland as the “Canadian Shield” rather than the Midwest.
Andrea has always loved writing and has never stopped writing, but she only recently plunged into the deep end of the pool that is professional writing. When she’s not writing, Andrea is a professor of history at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota.”
Her debut novel is NIGHTSHADE, her first book of a YA fantasy series.
(Source: http://www.andreacremer.com/index.html )

Visit her Website »»

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