Elegy by Tara Hudson [Review]

4 out of 5 Robots!

  

Elegy by Tara Hudson
Series: Hereafter #3
Genre: YA Paranormal
Release: June 4, 2013
Hardcover: 400 Pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
My Copy: Purchased
Reviewer: Shannon
Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Summary:

A stalker ghost, misguided Seers, and spellbinding wraiths—Amelia Ashley has faced them all. Now her greatest hope is to spend the rest of her afterlife with her living boyfriend, Joshua. But the demonic forces return to give her an ultimatum: turn herself over to the darkness or watch them murder one living person per week until she does.

Amelia fears she might really be doomed, until the forces of light give her another option. She can join them in their quest to gather souls, with a catch: Once she joins them, she can never see Joshua again.

Faced with impossible choices, Amelia decides to take her afterlife into her own hands—and fight back.

Shannon's Thoughts:

Elegy is the final book in the Hereafter trilogy.  It is a bittersweet ending, but considering the odds stacked up against Amelia and Josh, it is unsurprising.  Amelia is stuck between a rock and hard place.  The demons want her, the forces of light want her and neither offers the solution she truly wants, which is to be with Joshua.  Amelia decides she has had enough and starts to take matters into her own hands.  This puts a strain on Joshua and Amelia's relationship.  Amelia knows what she needs to do, but Joshua is unwilling to let her go.  Joshua's seer cousins make a reappearance, along with his grandmother Ruth in a desperate bid to save the town from the Netherworld once and for all.

The plot definitely ratchets up the crazy-pants factor.  It gets increasingly unbelievable (for a ghost story, that is) and some of the things that happen barely make sense.  But it is better if you just sit back and don't think about it too much.  I will say that it is pretty action packed, especially at the ending at the big showdown. I found the ending to ultimately be satisfying, if not a little heartbreaking.  Fans of the series will definitely not want to miss this final installment!

Other books in this series in the order that they should be read:
1. Hereafter
2. Arise
3. Elegy

Hereafter by Tara Hudson [Review]

4.5 out of 5 Robots!

  

Hereafter by Tara Hudson
Series: Hereafter #1
Genre: Paranormal YA
Release: June 7, 2011
Hardcover: 404 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
My Copy: Purchased
Reviewer: Shannon
Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Summary:

Can there truly be love after death?

Drifting in the dark waters of a mysterious river, the only thing Amelia knows for sure is that she's dead. With no recollection of her past life—or her actual death—she's trapped alone in a nightmarish existence. All of this changes when she tries to rescue a boy, Joshua, from drowning in her river. As a ghost, she can do nothing but will him to live. Yet in an unforgettable moment of connection, she helps him survive.

Amelia and Joshua grow ever closer as they begin to uncover the strange circumstances of her death and the secrets of the dark river that held her captive for so long. But even while they struggle to keep their bond hidden from the living world, a frightening spirit named Eli is doing everything in his power to destroy their newfound happiness and drag Amelia back into the ghost world . . . forever.

Thrilling and evocative, with moments of pure pleasure, Hereafter is a sensation you won't want to miss.

Shannon's Thoughts:

I enjoyed Hereafter much more than I expected to.  I was worried after reading some reviews, because paranormal YA can be such a gamble.  There are a few that are really good, a bunch that are terrible and then most are just ok.  I think part of the problem is if you read enough Paranormal YA, you will start to see some of the same troupes over and over.  And while Hereafter does not escape these troupes entirely, I still found that it had some "freshness" to it.  I loved Tara Hudson's writing style.  It was descriptive, without being overly flowery or too angsty.  I thought it to had a lovely ethereal quality to it, especially at the beginning when Amelia lacks her memories. 

I also though Joshua and Amelia's relationship was very sweet.  They have an immediate connection when Amelia awakens from the void enough to save his life when his car drives off a bridge.  The act of saving Joshua's life "wakes" up Amelia even further and she finds herself curious about Joshua.  Joshua, also remembering some of the details of his rescue, finds himself looking for his mystery girl.  Amelia is surprised to learn Joshua can actually see and hear her.  As Amelia and Joshua begin their relationship, Amelia begins to remember more about her past.  Of course, there are a lot of other complications - including Joshua's family heritage and the mysterious Eli.

There is some lack of plausibility (outside of the fact that a dead girl is dating an alive boy) such as if no one can see Amelia, how does no one notice Joshua talking to thin air?  They aren't that careful about it.  The book also starts out a little slow, but by the end things are full steam. Overall though, I thought it was a very well written and exciting book with a sweet romance at the center.

Other books in this series in the order that they should be read:
1. Hereafter
2. Arise
3. Elegy

Arise by Tara Hudson [Review]

3 out of 5 Robots!

    

Arise by Tara Hudson
Series: Hereafter, #2
Genre: Paranormal Young Adult
Release: June 5, 2012
Reading level: Ages 13 and up
Hardcover: 416 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
My Copy: Publisher
Reviewer: Rex
Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Summary:

Amelia—still caught between life and death—must fight for every moment of her relationship with the human boy Joshua. They can hardly even kiss without Amelia accidentally dematerializing. Looking for answers, they go to visit some of Joshua’s Seer relatives in New Orleans. But even in a city so famously steeped in the supernatural, Amelia ends up with more questions than answers…and becomes increasingly convinced that she and Joshua can never have a future together.

Wandering through the French Quarter, Amelia meets other in-between ghosts, and begins to seriously consider joining them. And then she meets Gabrielle. Somehow, against impossible odds, Gaby has found a way to live a sort of half-life...a half-life for which Amelia would pay any price. Torn between two worlds, Amelia must choose carefully, before the evil spirits of the netherworld choose for her.

My Thoughts:

Arise by Tara Hudson is the eerie, heartbreaking sequel to Hereafter. The best part of Arise is that the romance has terrific strain, big obstacles to overcome- it isn't all lovey dovey perfection. And actually, I am quite sad that Amelia is not with Joshua for quite a bit of this book for his own protection. Don't worry though, there are enough cutesy Amelia and Joshua moments. Regardless, Arise is much darker and mysterious than Hereafter, which I think is brilliant.

The beginning of the book is slow and I felt like I needed to start skimming. I'm glad I didn't though because Hudson introduces us to a new character- Gaby. She's a perfect addition and an even more perfect friend for Amelia. The plot also starts spinning and will pull at your heartstrings at this point. If only Amelia could find all her answers and the darkness would stop following her! She does figure out a lot about being a ghost, which is fascinating. Ah, and I couldn't help but root for Amelia and Joshua by the time the book comes to an end. 

Though it is an enjoyable, satisfying read, the Hereafter series is not one of my favorites and it takes me awhile to read these books. They're just okay for me. I do highly recommend them to fans of ghost stories and young adult romance.

Arise Blog Tour! Character Word Associations: Joshua!

Arise by Tara Hudson

Series: Hereafter, #2

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Release: June 5, 2012

Buy this Book: Amazon

Reading level: Ages 13 and up
Hardcover: 416 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen 

Book Summary:

Amelia—still caught between life and death—must fight for every moment of her relationship with the human boy Joshua. They can hardly even kiss without Amelia accidentally dematerializing. Looking for answers, they go to visit some of Joshua’s Seer relatives in New Orleans. But even in a city so famously steeped in the supernatural, Amelia ends up with more questions than answers…and becomes increasingly convinced that she and Joshua can never have a future together.

Wandering through the French Quarter, Amelia meets other in-between ghosts, and begins to seriously consider joining them. And then she meets Gabrielle. Somehow, against impossible odds, Gaby has found a way to live a sort of half-life...a half-life for which Amelia would pay any price. Torn between two worlds, Amelia must choose carefully, before the evil spirits of the netherworld choose for her.

 

Character Word Associations: Joshua! 

What is the first thing that comes to mind for each, Joshua? 

True Love 
Amelia, of course
 
Social Media
Jillian.  As if anyone wants to read her tweets about what she had for breakfast, right?
 
Chaos
Kind of my love life, right now
 
Happiness
Freedom and peace: two things Amelia and I don't really have right now
 
Danger
Everything.  It seems like everything we do or say could hurt one of us
 
Mountains
Home.  I don't think I'd want to live somewhere you can't see mountains
 
Ghosts
Just people, except a little different.  Not necessarily something to fear.
 
Candy
No thanks.  Now, sunflower seeds - those are the snacks of the gods
 
Super Hero
Have you seen Amelia's glow?  Kind of super hero-like, if you ask me
 
Food
Something I wish Amelia could try.  She'll be missing out, when we go to New Orleans this Christmas...