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For longer than she cares to recall, Nastasya has lived the life of drunken parties, random hook-ups, and drugs. For an immortal to do something longer than she cares to remember how long she's been doing it, is an ungodly amount of time. Now imagine if you will, being part of a circle of immortals, none of whom give a flying fig for you or anyone else, and live only to seek out that next great adrenalin rush. What kind of person or more apropos, what kind of immortal would that make you? Pretty pathetic.
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After living life in such a state for a century, it's only a matter of time before something happens to break the gentle bubble of friendship and trust between Nasty and her friends. So when her bestest BFF commits the unthinkable – tortures a human with dark magick – all while she stands apathetically by, Nasty soon realizes no amount of denial can ever assuage the guilt of her doing absolutely nothing. And that's the moment things become abundantly clear – with an eternity to possibly survive, there has to be a better way to live.
Once the decision to leave is made, Nasty knows there's no turning back, and there's no saying good-bye to her friends. At the very least they would convince her to stay. And at the very worst, well... if her BFF was capable of hurting a human for fun, and with magick that she had no idea he knew, it doesn't bode well for her. Thankfully and unthankfully, asylum comes in a small town in the middle of nowhere. There's a reason immortals flock to cities – life and excitement. But luckily for Nasty, with a handful of immortals living in the sticks comes a good dosage of drama, all of which is centered on a Viking god-like immortal, Reyn. Also, unluckily for Nasty, with immortal drama comes those annoying death threats. Just when Nasty is starting to figure out what she wants out of her life, someone wants her dead. Figures. Just figures.
As a reviewer, I've just come off a long string of young adult (YA) paranormal romances, some faring excellently and others not so much. I had sworn myself off the YA genre for a little while to recharge (honestly, it takes me longer to read YA books, no idea of the mechanics behind the whys), when something compelled me to pick up IMMORTAL BELOVED. Without question, I am profoundly glad that I did. Nastasya's point-of-view is refreshing, fraught with streaming subtle realizations that coincide perfectly with each step of her journey towards redemption and rejuvenation. A 459-year-old immortal who looks like she still belongs in high school, Nasty has the snarky humor and pop culture sarcasm to match her years. And I have no doubt she'll win fans and readers from all walks of life.
IMMORTAL BELOVED is wonderfully well-rounded for a YA paranormal. There were moments of "please don't let them find her?" mystery, thrown in with moments of pure, undiluted passion. Sometimes in the way of love scenes, less is more. And that most definitely is the case between Nasty and Reyn. That said, Nasty and Reyn's scenes felt more like a tease than anything, leaving me insanely ripping my hair out for more. Great love scenes will do that to you.
Other things that I fell in love with... I love that the heroine's nickname is Nasty, and even better that her love interest's name is Reyn. Bone-gripping tension, sexual repression, the idea of them being together being so wrong while feeling so right – it all made for a wondrous read. The ending came all too quick for me, and much like Reyn and Nasty's scenes together, left me aching for more. I hated the cliffhanger, but not because of the writing of it. In truth, the planning and set up for the next book was done so perfectly that I can do nothing but respect it. That, and make a note on my calendar for the next book's release date.
IMMORTAL BELOVED, while a brilliant surprise of a read, is also my next reading addiction. Four and a half Blue Ribbons for the first novel in a very promising series!
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