Wolfsbane

Wolfsbane (Nightshade #2) by Andrea Cremer
Release Date: July 26, 2011
Penguin ~ Philomel
ISBN13: 9780399254833

Goodreads Synopsis:
When Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the Searchers, her sworn enemies, she's certain her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer, one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack and the man she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must decide which battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.

I really, really love these books so much. They're easily becoming some new favourites, and I am shocked that it took me this long to read them.

The Nightshade series combines all the things I really love in books, and makes me fall in love with YA all over again. Fascinating characters, difficult choices, intoxicating romance, and themes that make you question your own ideas. And Wolfsbane is an excellent continuation in each of these regards.

1. Strong Characters:
   I don't just mean strong in the physical and emotional sense (which they are as well), but strong as in ALIVE. Andrea Cremer gives such complexity and human qualities to her characters that you could almost swear you know them. They are written with such a contagious familiarity that you're invested, as a reader, in their lives and the outcome. And that is something I find to be rare these days.
2. Full realization of the richness of this mythology:
   Nightshade only gives you a small preview of the creative lengths Andrea has gone to in order to create this world found in Nightshade, just enough to wet your tastebuds. But if Nightshade is the climb up the mountain, then Wolfsbane is the peak where you finally get a chance to see everything surrounding you. And you finally get to see what some of the stakes are and exactly what it is Calla is fighting for. Because it's bigger than even she realized at first. The first half of this book seems to be just bursting with background information and details, but don't let that fool you- it's portrayed in such a way that these rather long explanations are appropriate for the story and the pacing.
3. Excellent love triangle:
   I was really pleased with how well I liked the love triangle in Nightshade, and I was even happier to see that this continued into Wolfsbane. Really, I cannot reiterate enough how well Andrea does this, to the point that I can understand and sympathize with how difficult of a decision it is for Calla. And it's never overdone. And this is something truly so rare (in YA) right now, that this deserves to be applauded.

Wolfsbane seemed to be broken up into two chunks for me: the first half is largely made up of background information and answers to what the heck is going on here?! The second half is when they finally decide to do something about all this new-found information and is seriously, absolutley action-packed. But this makes it an excellent sequel, right up to par with Nightshade and works as a complimentary sequel; one that really works as series, rather than dragging things out.

If you haven't read this yet, I'd almost recommend that you hold on reading it until Bloodrose is out. I ended up being really thankful that I was able to read all three right after each other.