Between The Spark and The Burn: Review

Synopsis:

The conclusion to Between the Devil and The Deep Blue Sea, this gothic thriller romance with shades of Stephen King and Daphne du Maurier is a must-read for fans of Beautiful Creatures andAnna Dressed in Blood.
Freddie once told me that the Devil created all the fear in the world.
But then, the Devil once told me that it's easier to forgive someone for scaring you than for making you cry.
The problem with River West Redding was that he'd done both to me.

The crooked-smiling liar River West Redding, who drove into Violet's life one summer day and shook her world to pieces, is gone. Violet and Neely, River's other brother, are left to worry—until they catch a two a.m. radio program about strange events in a distant mountain town. They take off in search of River but are always a step behind, finding instead frenzied towns, witch hunts, and a wind-whipped island with the thrum of something strange and dangerous just under the surface. It isn't long before Violet begins to wonder if Neely, the one Redding brother she thought trustworthy, has been hiding a secret of his own . . .

***

While Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea is mostly about Violet and River, this book mainly focuses on Violet and Neely. I'm really happy and pissed this happened. 

Happy, because I really, really like Neely and I wish he showed up sooner in the first book that Violet will actually see someone that actually cares about her more than himself. Neely is not as selfish as River and has a much better attitude than River as well. He will make a good protagonist and a regular character in this duology.

Pissed, because while I love Neely, we can't erase the fact that the first book is more about River, and there's not enough River in the sequel. The plot is split. So split-up that they can actually be standalones if not for the fact that there's a sort-of cliffhanger ending in Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea. The base plot is ignored for quite some time.

Disregarding the fact that there's a big hole between the two books, the sequel is still slightly better. It wrapped up nicely at the end, and the ending is probably one of the weirdest (not in a bad way though). There's actually hope at the end of the book, which is quite different from the HEA (which can be typical or pure elation depending on the series), or the evil dying ending that rip our hearts out *cough *cough Allegiant *cough. It kind of reminds me of Champion by Marie Lu, where the end is the new beginning.

I can't really say I like the book, but I definitely enjoy it at some point.

Rating: 6.5/10

Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea: Review

Synopsis:

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town…until River West comes along. River rents the guesthouse behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery...who makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

Blending faded decadence and the thrilling dread of gothic horror, April Genevieve Tucholke weaves a dreamy, twisting contemporary romance, as gorgeously told as it is terrifying—a debut to watch.

***

So it's a Gothic story set in modern days. I have to say I have mixed feelings about the whole theme. On one hand I love the darkness of Gothic stories and it's often really beautiful, but on the other I hate the slow-paced plot and the time it takes to create the whole atmosphere. And the whole book is like this. There are something alluring about this book, yet I can't like it whole-heartedly because of some fatal flaws.

So this is about a story in which Violet White, who lived in a broken mansion in a small town called Echo, meets River West, the mysterious and handsome guy who wants to rent their guesthouse. And then weird stuff happened and people are whispering about the Devil. The atmosphere of suspense is set up well, I guess. Because people whispering about the Devil is anything but normal and it kind of gives a creepy edge to this book. But when the truth comes out, I was kind of disappointed because I was expecting a true Devil. I mean, I know the Devil can't be an honest-to-god demon. But maybe I was really expecting it because I keep dreading to see a red-eyed Devil but it never happened. So yeah, maybe it's just me, but I'm disappointed.

I won't say the character part is a fail, but none of the characters impresses me. First is Violet. I will say Violet is a really typical girl, to the point that she's not remarkable. She knows to do the right things when it's time. But that's what people normally do. And her personality is nothing impressive or remarkable. River is slightly better. I think I get the whole point about the author trying to make a dark and complex yet caring and soft character out of River, but I just can't feel it. Though I appreciate the attempt. The supporting characters are just nothing memorable enough to impress me. All the characters fade easily to the back of my mind. Possibly even farther.

The words are beautiful though. There are a lot of meanings behind those words, especially the ones Freddie said to Violet. They can be some sort of motto I guess. And the rest are quite poetic as well, which fits the theme of the book. Although some of the words in this book kind of makes things rocky, I'd say the words are one of the best parts in the book.

After reading Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea, I think I'm down for a sequel. But I guess this is just a story I read when I really have a lot of time to kill. And not something I will burn down the world to have. 

Rating: 5.5/10