REVIEW: Once by Anna Carey

Once (Eve #2)  by Anna Carey
Publication Date: July 3, 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins
Source: Book Purchased by Reviewer
Buy it at: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, IndieBound

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

In the second book of this thrilling dystopian adventure, Eve will come face to face with the King who has been ruthlessly hunting her and learn the shocking truth about who she really is.

Having managed to evade the soldiers hunting her, Eve finally reached Califia, a haven for women determined to live outside the oppressive rule of the King of New America. However, Eve's freedom came at a price: she was forced to leave Caleb, the boy she loves, wounded and alone at the city gates. When Eve learns that Califia may not be as safe as it seems she sets out once again in the hopes of being with Caleb only to fall into a trap that sends her to the City of Sand and directly into the hands of the King.

Once at the stronghold of the King, Eve will uncover the real reason he was so intent on her capture, and the unbelievable role he intends her to fill. When she is finally reunited with Caleb inside the city wall, Eve will risk everything to be with him.

For some crazy reason, the first book in this series, Eve, gave me a severe case of The Feels. So you can imagine my disappointment when I pick up Once, and find that I am just a tad bit unimpressed with the outcome.  I mean come on, there should be a rule written in a place that only authors can find telling them that filling a book with tons of cliché’s is a mega “no-no.”

That being said, I still love the idea of the story and all the possibilities of what can happen next, in Rise, that I'm still fangirling over it a just little bit…does that make sense??? Yea I know, I'm weird like that lol

In Once, I think that Eve’s character has lost some fire. She seemed so strong willed in Eve, that I have to wonder what happened. I understand that she’s on the run, I understand that she’s being hunted, and I understand that she’s worn out…but I cannot, for the life of me, understand why she’s weakened over time. Until she hears news of Caleb, she is completely worn down and sad and depressed and everything else that someone would feel in her situation…but she SHOULDN’T be feeling it…it sounds like the only thing to give her inspiration is when she hears about Caleb. I don’t think that any woman should only be inspired when a man is involved. I think this book was the perfect opportunity for Anna Carey to really make Eve grow as a person. Instead she made her seem weak, needy, and totally dependent.

Getting that off my chest, I do have to admit that I really did enjoy the love scenes between Eve and Caleb. The love between those two is so beautiful and strong to me that I have to believe that something great will come of it, of them. With all the drama that’s happening there has to be some sort of happy ending for those two seemingly star-crossed lovers (::spoiler:: because they ARE lovers now! ::spoiler::)

And that ending…………….. I literally died. Dropped dead right there on the floor. OHMYGAW!! That ending was so perfect…perfectly wicked, perfectly cruel, and perfectly heartbreaking. I mean of course I knew things would take a turn for the worst at some point but I never imagined that things would end JUST.LIKE.THAT!!! I can’t  believe she did this to me, to Eve, TO CALEB…looks like after all that junk in the middle there just might be hope for the finale of the series, Rise…

And dare I say… I CANT WAIT!!!

REVIEW: Eve by Anna Carey

Eve (Eve #1) by Anna Carey
Publication Date: October 4, 2011
Publisher: Harper Teen
Source: Book Purchased by Reviewer
Buy it at: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, IndieBound

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her. 

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

Let me start by saying that this book definitely shocked me in more ways than one. The only reason I read this book is because I went to a book signing that the author was at. I was there for another author, but Anna Carey spoke so well during the event, I knew I had to buy it. Later, I was a little iffy before reading it, thinking that I may be a waste of time. So I read a few reviews for the book to see what other people thought. After reading  reviews, it was clear to me that my suspicions were right! Turns out, there were plenty of unflattering reviews for the book and the author (to my shock) but I decided to read the book anyway….and boy am I glad I did!!!

There were many things about the book that I absolutely LOVED. For one, the author wrote two extremely emotional scenes that literally brought me to tears. Now, I have to tell you that I am NOT a crier! But the author wrote those two particular scenes so well that every emotion was brought out in me…tears HAD to be shed!

Another thing I loved about the book are the characters. Though Eve is not a particularly deep character, she did portray (towards the end) a sort of sorrow for the line of bodies she left in her wake. It seems throughout the entire book, while I was screaming at her to wake up and stop being so selfish with all these people trying to protect her, she actually heard my pleas and GOT IT TOGETHER! Yayy for her (lol)

Caleb was a bit more together than Eve. I felt drawn to him from the moment he saved her life from the bear. The connection that grew between them was so beautiful to me and I definitely felt every tingle involved. It was also, however, a bit too fast. I feel like Eve was raised in a world where she was made to believe that all men were evil and unloving, so for her to fall in love so fast with Caleb was a bit off to me. But the love connection was definitely beautifully written.

But my absolute FAVORITE characters in the book were definitely Benny and Silas. I completely fell in love with those two little boys from the moment Eve met them in the dugout. They captured my heart in every way possible and my heart completely broke when the girls were taken away from them. Watching that scene (in my head) was so devastating. At that moment I felt all the pain that Benny and Silas felt while running after Eve, screaming that they loved her. I realized that at that moment they fully understood what it meant to truly love someone and that was something that Eve taught them.  

Though I did love the book, of course there were a few small flaws. For one, as I mentioned, the love connection bloomed too fast considering that Eve was taught to hate men. Also, I feel like the extreme environment (ie: plague that takes out 98% of the world) was a bit undeveloped. I wish there would’ve been more explanation, more detail, more anything! And lastly, #1 pet peeve of the book….LEIF!!! He truly was such an a-hole!!! When he had that “moment” with Eve at the piano, I thought something really changed in him, like he finally opened up and you would finally see the good side to him that Caleb talked about. But for him to do what he “tried” to do to Eve was despicable!!! He should’ve been stoned, or beaten, or castrated!!! I mean honestly, come on…he’s a d-bag. Enough said!

So overall, I absolutely LOVED this story and can’t wait to read the next installment of the series, Once