Mortal Obligation by Nichole Chase (Review and Giveaway)

Title: Mortal Obligation
Series: The Dark Betrayal Trilogy
Author: Nichole Chase
Genre: Urban Fantasy, YA
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Synopsis:

Ree will face the darkest form of betrayal before the year is out.

Seventeen year old Ree McKenna has three goals: get through high school, convince her crush she is more than his best friend’s little sister, and save money for college. Fate, though, has other plans for her. After the untimely death of her older brother, Ree is haunted by dreadful nightmares and terrifying visions. To make matters worse, Ree has started to suspect that something dangerous is stalking her from the shadows.

A night full of frightening surprises leaves Ree with unsettling news. Gifted by the gods with unusual powers, she must devote herself to a battle that could very well lead to not only her death, but the demise of everyone she knows and loves. After all, Ree is the only mortal standing between the Earth and utter darkness.

Set in Savannah, Ga, Mortal Obligation is the first book of The Dark Betrayal Trilogy.

  

Nichole Chase has created a darkly mesmerizing adventure with Mortal Obligation. Vampires and traditional mythology intertwine to breed a fascinating new take on all things vampire. I absolutely love the world Nichole created for this book. Her characters have chemistry, although they are not all that complex. The third person narrative allows a greater understanding of everyone's successes and failures, pulling you along for the ride.

• Ree (Alastriana) - A junior in high school who is charged with the fate of the entire world - when all she really wants to do is enjoy the year, save money for college, and maybe enjoy some one-on-one time with her dearly departed brother's best friend, Paden. Ree is a little odd...she is artsy and tends to daydream a lot. She cherishes the friends she has because they are few and far between. However, her group of friends will prove to be much more loyal than she could ever imagine. Now all she has to do is survive.
• Paden - A super-hot gift from the gods...literally. Marked with the trident of Poseiden and bearing the necklace of Brigid, he is destined for huge things. Brigid's insight led to Paden being made of mixed immortal blood. The only of Ree's guardians to be blessed by two god's, Paden is an invaluable part of her team. The question is...can he be everything Ree needs and wants him to be? He was Ree's brother's best friend and made a promise to look after her.
• Juliette - is a girly-girl with lots of money but she isn't a snob. She is always impeccably dressed but she's not afraid to throw down with the guys either. She and Ree share a mutual dislike for Shannon and Michael...two "friends" of Tristan's. Juliette is one of the few friends that Ree feels comfortable with. Juliette is descended from the Japanese Sun goddess, Amaterasu.
• Bryce - Juliette's boyfriend, who she compares to Adam Sandler. The gods have granted Bryce speed, which comes in handy as one of Ree's guardians. Bryce originates from an African god...Horus. He was one of the first to foresee the need to provide extra protection to Ree. Bryce wears a ring with The Eye of Horus on it. The symbol is said to provide the wearer protection, royal power, and good health.
• Weylin - Another of Ree's illustrious guardians, he is the most hesitant to climb aboard. He is also a descendant of Poseidon's. Poseidon's mark is a trident inside Weylin's and Paden's wrist.
• Melanie - is polar opposite of Weylin. She is a little too excited to join the ranks of the guardians. She is out for revenge and loving every minute of it. The goddess Hecate is where Melanie's history lies.
• Shannon and Michael are well on their way to becoming full blown Dark Ones. They kick up the creep factor drastically. Both attend school with the others and Michael plays soccer with Paden. Everyone seems to feel the same way about this couple...they like them best when they are far away.
• Tristan - As previously mentioned, was Ree's brother. Drugs and drinking became a significant part of his life before he died in a drunk driving accident. He has trusted Paden with his sister's care, though, that may be Tristan's biggest mistakes yet, in the grand scheme of things.
• Roland - A reformed Dark One is the best way to describe this immortal being. He irreplaceable as a trainer for Ree's guardians, although, Paden spares no love for him. I found myself inexplicably drawn to Roland. Probably because he is a reformed bad-boy and we all know how I do love those guys.
• Sophie - Once a guardian herself, is now in charge of training the new Alastriana. She was given the death-touch by her sister and is now able to harness powers only granted to the Alastriana. She is tough but also kind and knowledgeable. She tends to keep secrets that could mean life or death for Ree and her friends.

I loved this book. I absolutely, positively fell head-over-heals in love with all of the characters and the mythology involved. Each of Nichole's words proved to have meaning as I read Mortal Obligation. I would read a line and then 50 pages later realize that the line had more meaning than I ever imagined. The first chapter was extremely well written giving you insight to each character and providing a perfect amount of mystery to keep you reading.

The premise of the books was fascinating to me. Two sets of gods got together and decided on a set number of battles to decide the fate of the world. Each of the battles consist of a single Alastriana, her guardian, and a Dark One. The set number of fights - 101. Battles already fought - 100. Score - tied 50/50. Ree must win or the world is lost to the Dark Ones.  Lucky for her, the rules have changed. She has five guardians plus Sophie and Roland behind her. Not so lucky for her...the Dark One she must battle will cause her more strife and grief than she could ever imagine.

Action played a larger part in Mortal Obligation than anything else; however, there was also a great amount of time spent building potential romances. None of that fall-in-love-at-first-sight-stuff. I am truly interested in seeing where Nichole takes this romance. The different aspects of different relationships she alludes to, promise to make for an interesting storyline as the series continues.

Even though the storyline is rather dark, I was left laughing out loud on quite a few occasions.

If you love vampire stories but are looking for something different...Mortal Obligation is your book. For your chance to win a ebook copy of Mortal Obligation by Nichole Chase...simply fill out the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post. The winner will be announced on 11/18.

 

Also, do not forget to enter for your chance to win one of the grand prize packs as shown below. You may enter by commenting on this and other posts along the way.

*I was provided a free ebook by the author in return for my honest review.