Evergreen (Mer Tales, #2)

by Brenda Pandos

[Raven]

Originally posted at arielavalon.com

Ash and Fin are already being separated right after they have bonded. Fin and his family are on the run from their kingdom and heading off to the safe house in Florida. The separation is painful to the both of them, but that is the least of their problems. Between Fin's cousin Colin hanging around Ash and the princess Galadriel hanging around Fin, and the secrets and lies being passed around, their problems are only beginning.

I liked the characters less in this book. The bond was made out to be this horribly painful thing in the first book, and yet here it was made out to be this annoying pest of a thing. It made the characters start to feel whiny. Fin and Galariel's interactions with each other got to me. For Fin's bond to be pestering him so hard, I don't really understand why she kept drawing him in. It made for a plot point that I felt could've been avoided. I know it was testing Fin's commitment, but it felt insulting that it needed to be there at all. Ash lying to Fin about Colin seemed more natural. She thought she could handle it and didn't want him to worry. Was it stupid? Yes, she should've told him, but I at least understand why she didn't whereas his "baby betrayals" weren't explained and didn't need to be there.

I was not a fan of Galariel or Jax, not at all. I know you don't see much of Jax, but there is something about both of their characters that really irks me. There are more secrets there that we aren't seeing. If there isn't then their characters just have annoying personalities.

The story became very very obvious shortly after Fin and his family arrived at the safe house, and even more obvious when Callahan slugged Colin. I know it was a bridge, setting things up for the return to the kingdom, but it was disappointing to have no eyes in the kingdom the entire novel and for it to almost drag along the way it did. The truth about Azor that came out felt a bit sudden. I feel like it should've been built up and hinted upon in the first book, even slightly and I don't recall that being the case.

Or will someone else make the choice for them if they can’t decide?
This was the worst part of the summary. As soon as I read it I knew it would be true. The novel took a nosedive for me after that. Things started feeling anti-climatic. Ash and Fin's little heart-to-heart in the enclave didn't help either. She was so depressed and doubting about things and her emotions just didn't feel genuine. Sure, they made sense, but they didn't feel real enough. Fin's reassurance felt about the same. Afterwards Fin starts talking about the bond and how he feels its more of a mind over matter thing, a way to strengthen real feelings, not a forced feeling like it had seemed to be in the beginning of the book and in the first novel.

As much as all that sounds like I didn't like the book, or that it wasn't well written, I really did like it. I can't help but love the story and the characters and want to see what will happen. I do recommend the series still.