Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Destined by PC Cast and Kristin Cast


Title: Destined
Series: House of Nights #9
Author: PC Cast and Kristin Cast
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
November 8, 2011

Synopsis:

Zoey is finally home where she belongs, safe with her Guardian Warrior, Stark, by her side, and preparing to face off against Neferet – which would be a whole lot easier if the High Counsel saw the ex-High Priestess for what she really is. Kalona has released his hold on Rephaim, and, through Nyx's gift of a human form, Rephaim and Stevie Rae are finally able to be together – if he can truly walk the path of the Goddess and stay free of his father's shadow…

But there are new forces at work at the House of Night. An influx of humans, including Lenobia’s handsome horse whisperer, threatens their precarious stability. And then there’s the mysterious Aurox, a jaw-droppingly gorgeous teen boy who is actually more – or possibly less – than human. Only Neferet knows he was created to be her greatest weapon. But Zoey can sense the part of his soul that remains human, the compassion that wars with his Dark calling. And there’s something strangely familiar about him…

Will Neferet’s true nature be revealed before she succeeds in silencing them all? And will Zoey be able to touch Aurox’s humanity in time to protect him – and everyone – from his own fate? Find out what’s destined in the next thrilling chapter of the House of Night series.
 



Destined may be my favorite House of Night books to date. The wait for it was unbearable after all that happened in Awakened. October and November have been filled with so many great book releases that it was hard to choose what I would read and when. Lucky for me, Destined, won the vote.

I have seen review after review complaining about Heath being thrown back into the mix. If you read Awakened then you knew this was going to happen. I loved his role as Aurox and can't wait to find out what happens next. Like every House of Night book, there was a huge cliffhanger causing much pain and nail-biting until the next release.

As the book begins, we find Zoey and Stevie Ray getting ready to return to the House of Night with their entourage. If you know anything about this series, you know that this cannot be a good thing for anybody. Nyx has stepped in and forced Neferet to let this group of misfits return to the school. Neferet is up to her usual no good. To amp up her usual trouble making, Neferet decides to throw a few humans in the mix. It is about time for her to get caught with her hand in the cookie jar. She continues to get away with too much. This book focuses on exactly that.

As the story progresses, we learn a lot more about Rephaim and his relationship with his father, Kalona. This may be one of the biggest surprises to come out of the House of Night Series. Stevie has a really hard time accepting the fact that Rephaim still loves his father even though he really doesn't want anything to do with him. 

There is not a lot of action in this book. There is a lot of turmoil between the group leading up to a ritual that takes place at Grandma Redbird's farm. One of the things I love about these books is that there are laugh-out-loud moments scattered among cry-my-eyes out moments. Ms. Cast uses an unusual approach with the point of view. If we are seeing Zoey's point of view, that part will be written in first person. When she shifts the point of view to someone else, she writes it in third person. I personally love this technique. I love the fact that we are able to see the story from so many points of view.

Anywhoo...I loved this book as I have every other in this series. Go forth and enjoy.





6 comments:

  1. Glad to see that you enjoyed it too. :) I absolutely love the House of Night series and Destined was absolutely fantastic! I also like the fact that someone besides me is complimenting P.C. Cast on her POV technique rather then complaining. The fact that all of the characters matter so much is one of the things I love most about these books. For instance, the relationship between Stevie Rae and Rephaim would have been impossible to do justice to without it, and they are one of my favorite pairings ever.

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  2. I agree completely. I love Stevie Ray and Rephaim. I even enjoyed Aurox's point of view even though he was a "new" character. Seeing the world from his eyes was necessary to the story; otherwise, we would have just had to depend on Neferet's words. Eeks! LOL! Thanks for stopping by!

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  3. I did a review on Destined as well. I loved it! But I was a bit disappointed to be honest. I was expecting a lot more action in this installment, but i didn't get that. I did love how we got to see a soft side of Kalona though, I didn't even know such things existed! Also, the book focuses more on erin and shaunee's relationship. Loved that! They become two people instead of 1. So it was great :)
    http://understandingshaestory.blogspot.com

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  4. Your review is pushing me to read this book. If you say that it is your favorite of this series, than it must be good. I lost a little the interest over time, but I think I'll give this one a shot!

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  5. Shae, I agree that there could have been a bit more action but I did love the different views on the relationships. I think Erin and Shaunee will become stronger now...I just hope they can hold on to their friendship. Thanks for stopping by!

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  6. Em, there are some bad reviews of Destined out there as well...just don't hold me to my word. I really did love this book so much. You get to see different sides of the characters and you get to see some things happen that we have waited a long time for. Thanks for stopping by.

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