Monday, February 27, 2017

Arcana Rising by Kresley Cole ~ Review


Title: Arcana Rising (The Arcana Chronicles #4
Author: Kresley Cole
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopian
Length: 280 pages
Publisher: Valkyrie Press
Release Date: August 15, 2016
Source: Purchased
Reviewed by: Jasmyn

Losses mount and deadly new threats converge in this next action-packed tale of the Arcana Chronicles by #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole. 

When the battle is done . . . 
The Emperor unleashes hell and annihilates an army, jeopardizing the future of mankind--but Circe strikes back. The epic clash between them devastates the Arcana world and nearly kills Evie, separating her from her allies.

And all hope is lost . . . 
With Aric missing and no sign that Jack and Selena escaped Richter's reach, Evie turns more and more to the darkness lurking inside her. Two Arcana emerge as game changers: one who could be her salvation, the other her worst nightmare.

Vengeance becomes everything.
To take on Richter, Evie must reunite with Death and mend their broken bond. But as she learns more about her role in the future--and her chilling past--will she become a monster like the Emperor? Or can Evie and her allies rise up from Richter's ashes, stronger than ever before?


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Things are going really crazy here! Evie is on her own. Jack seems to be dead, and she is swept away from Arik by a monster wave courtesy of Circe. I liked seeing her on her own a little. She was able to really explore her capabilities and test the limits of not just her power, but of what she was willing to do with it.

In Day Zero, the novella sharing the beginnings of the Arcana, we meet the rest of the deck, and they begin to make their appearance here. They are a twisted lot, some more than others, and some just doing whatever it takes to stay alive. As Evie encounters each one, the decisions she's forced to make on her own have major consequences for everyone. There are new enemies, new friends, and some that I'm just not quite sure of yet.

The love triangle style of romance really comes to a head here after Richter washes Jack away in a sea of lava. Evie no longer has to choose, but that doesn't seem right to her. She wants what she can't have, and she wants what's still around to have. She want's her past, and she wants her present. Another big decision Evie will have to make on her own.

There's a lot of growth and development in the Arcana in this book. They are all forced to look at their lives and their plans for the future, adapting as things change faster than they can really keep up. I'm interested to see what the Fool has up his sleeve, and how it will change the game in the next book - which is supposed to be coming pretty soon!


The Arcana Chronicles

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