Angel Arias

Angel Arias (Night Creatures #2) by Marianne de Pierres
Release Date: October 3, 2011
Random House Australia
ISBN13: 9781742751016
If you haven't heard of the Night Creatures books yet, Burn Bright is the first book in this stand-out, intoxicating series which is currently only available in Australia. Which is incredibly unfortunate, because it is a fabulous series, and one of my favourites in YA.

Warning: Since this novel is a review of the second book, there may be some spoilers. If you're curious, you should check out my review for the first book, Burn Bright which is INCREDIBLE.


Goodreads Synopsis:
Retra - now called Naif - has escaped from Ixion, the island of ever-night. She doesn't know if her friends on the island survived the battle between the Ripers and the rebels. But she does know that she must return home, behind the sealed walls of Grave, to find out why the Ripers have been seen there talking to the councillors. What links the two worlds?
First she must convince Ruzalia to help her. The fierce pirate captain saves those who face terrible fates on Ixion, but that doesn't guarantee their gratitude. Instead, she faces a revolt - and Naif is caught in the middle.
Naif will need all her courage to survive. For Lenoir, who wants to keep her safe, for her friends Suki and Rollo, if they live, for Markes, who has secrets of his own, and for the new friends she will make on this journey.
The fate of worlds depends on it.

The first thing I did after finishing Burn Bright, was I went online and pre-ordered Angel Arias. I was completely sucked in to this creative world, and thoroughly impressed with Marianne de Pierre's writing and this unique story.

I really don't know of anything like the Night Creatures series. And Marianne has done it again with Angel Arias! I really believe she must be brilliant to come up with a story like this one.

1. You're a fan of dark YA:
   Marianne does not shy away from making things extraordinarily creepy and disturbing in these books. The evil is just so twisted, and we only experienced a hint of it in Burn Bright. That continues in Angel Arias, but it really makes for some interesting characters as we begin to unravel what some of the horrors taking place are. But at the same time, it isn't graphic- much of it is written in Marianne's subtle way, and there were points when I wondered at first if I was even understanding the insinuation properly. (Turns out that I was.)
2. You want ANSWERS, damnit!:
   
   If you read Burn Bright, then you're aware of some shocking discoveries on Ixion. Angel Arias seeks out to pursue those questions we were left out, and we finally (FINALLY!) get an idea of what the heck is going on. We also get some great insight to familiar characters, like Markes! Oh, Markes. I didn't know how I felt about you in Burn Bright, but he has officially grown on me and he feels like such a real boy now. Plus, we're given more information as to the kind of world Grave and Ixion are a part of.
3. Well-developed plot lines:
   
   The mystery behind Ixion and various people in Night Creatures always remains the focus, it is the constant drive behind the story. I appreciate a story where the romance doesn't overwhelm everything else going on, and this is done very tastefully and thoughtfully in these books. There's just enough action, just enough twists, and enough answers and MORE questions to leave you feeling satisfied.

I have to admit though, that this one took me a little bit longer to get through becuase I found the beginning to be paced much slower than Burn Bright was. You're thrown right back into the world, and I confess that I forgot some of the details and confused some of the characters which really isn't surprising when you realize just how much is happening.

And it did seem to me that it lost some of its charm without Ixion. The outside world just isn't as much fun - literally. But I understand that we had questions to be answered, and had to venture away to get that done.

But can we say, KILLER ENDING?! I'm going to have to re-read both of these books before Blaze Dark comes out in Fall 2012!

Now, because this is an Australian book and the rights haven't been sold over here yet, my Book Depository link is actually to the e-book. If you're happy to read e-books, then I HIGHLY recommend you try out this series! The link to Burn Bright is on my reivew of it. But you can also find these books available from Australian retailers, and Fishpond (free shipping worldwide).