Book Review: Everneath by Brodi Ashton

 

**Received this book from Around the World ARC tours for review**

Synopsis (from Goodreads):  Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

My Thoughts:   Oh, how I loved this book!  It has Greek mythology, great romance and suspense and mystery.  It kept me reading late into the night because I had to get all the answers.  It was simply amazing!

Nikki wakes up in the Everneath after spending a century there bound to Cole.  Through the whole century Nikki has one face that she has kept in her mind though.  Jack's face.  Jack was her boyfriend before the feeding and Nikki couldn't let him go.  Now Nikki is back to her old life for 6 months.  After 6 months, the tunnels are coming to claim her for their own.  Her only other choice is to go with Cole and rule the Underworld as his queen.  The only problem with that is she would have to feed off innocent mortals' souls.  

Nikki was a great character and easily to relate too.  She comes back to the Surface and people are convinced that she is a recovering drug addict.  It is the only explanation that makes sense.  She disappeared and reappeared, is emaciated and weak and has withdrawn from everyone.  Who would believe that Nikki had been in Everneath for 100 years being fed off of?

Nikki reconnects with Jack, her boyfriend from before the feeding.  Jack is so sweet and even though Nikki hurt him, he is willing to give her a second chance.  His love for Nikki is so intense (but not psycho weird).  He does what he can to help her and even when you think he's totally mad at Nikki, he is still there for her.  

Cole is your typical dark, brooding guy.  He says he has no feelings but there is something there for Nikki.  He wants her to rule the Under with him as his queen but there is something more to it than that.  I can't wait to read the second book to find out more!

I loved the mythology!  My son and I just finished studying Persephone and Hades and the Roman myth of Pluto and Proserpina so I was very familiar with the myths.  It was fun to read a new twist on these myths that did not mess with the original myths too much.  

I also liked how the love triangle was not your usual love triangle.  There is love between Jack and Nikki but the relationship between Cole and Nikki is not one of love.  They are bound together though and this makes it very interesting.  I also liked the tense relationship between Cole and Jack.  It wasn't just a competition between the two.  They were both fighting for Nikki but Cole knows that Nikki doesn't love him and Jack knows that Nikki doesn't love Cole.  

Some small things that bothered me is the way Nikki reappeared.  She shows up after just disappearing months ago and no one questions where she was or what she was doing.  Nikki's father is the mayor and yet there is no apparent investigation into Nikki's disappearance.  Let me tell you, if my child just completely disappeared one night with no note, no reason for running away (up until that point, Nikki was a responsible teen) and no clues as to why she disappeared or where she disappeared to, I would be calling the police in a heartbeat!  When Nikki returns it is just like everything is back to normal only with the occasional drug test thrown in.  

The ending was not my favorite.  It was a great ending, don't get me wrong, and it sets the next book up perfectly but I was very sad.  I am hoping that it will be resolved but it's going to kill me to wait to read the next in this series.