I can't believe this amazing series has come to an end. No more Vi, no more Linc, Pheonix, Steph, Spence, Onyx, Dapper, Griff, Salvatore, noooo.
BUT, I AM satisfied. If you were disappointed with the endings of books such as Allegiant (Veronica Roth) and Requiem (Lauren Oliver) where they leave you scratching your head or bawling your eyes out, well 'Empower' will not be one of those. Jessica Shirvington does well in tying off loose ends, and you can happily move on with your life after turning the last page. Well, you may have some Lincoln withdrawals, but still, I'm happy, content. This is the kind of series that I would read again, knowing I will be heartbroken over and over, but then I will also be rewarded for the emotional trauma I allow Jessica to put me through. Don't get me wrong, people die, and those who don't may not entirely get their happy ending, but it all makes sense. Everything ends the way it should, and we can accept it without wanting to stalk and haunt Jessica (I am still mad with you Veronica Roth).
Just like the other books, this is fast-paced, emotionally taxing, but also funny and light where it needs to be. I LOVE the secondary characters, they really are one of the best bunch of secondary characters in any YA I've read. Each and every one of them have definitive personalities that jump off the page and make you wish they were YOUR best-friends.
There are some things however, that annoy me about Violet. I know know, I started off by raving about her in the first books, but over the course of the series, she has started to annoy me. She has always been bad-ass, but in this one in particular, she becomes pretty heavy on the bad-ass. She's cold. She's bitter, she's negative, she's broken. I get that after what she has been through, it would change anyone. But the affect that this has in the book is that in what are supposed to be romantic scenes, it's a little awkward because she has no warmth to give, and it's like Lincoln has to do all the work, even though he hasn't done anything wrong, he wasn't the one to abandon her. All he ever did was protect her and love her unconditionally, and she punished him for that, and she continues to do so. I found myself screaming, "Pull your s*** together princess!" at Violet. A lot. That's not to say the romantic scenes aren't delicious, because they are. Jessica has a gift of being able to really make the emotions the characters feel come to life. Lincoln is INTENSE. Everything about him is intense. Mostly his feelings about Violet are super-duper intense. And not once does that intensity drop or wane in any of the books, this once included. He is super hot! His emotions bounce up off the page in generous amounts, and I just couldn't get enough.
I know this is starting to sound like a mixed review. I wasn't planning on it, because I was happy with it when I finished. But as I write this, I am realizing, or remembering the things that annoyed me. Like Violet's cynical attitude toward the existence of God. I mean, she freakin' meets all the angels, she IS half-angel, she rescued her mom from hell (in previous book), and there's all that talk about balance, so if there's a hell then there's obviously a heaven, yet she questions the existence of one and when she can find out for sure, she refuses to in a very snobbish and cynical manner. I mean, helloooo, ignorance at its best? Her absolute flippant and ignorant attitude on this really grates on my nerves. These are some of the things that didn't make sense, and were a little silly to be honest. There is something else, like how she is special and all that, but when you think about it, there really isn't much that's special about her, nothing that makes her deserving of all the praise and hero-worship she receives, I mean, everyone fights equally hard and make sacrifices. She's no prophet! You'll know what I mean about this when you finish the book.
I don't want to sound like I didn't enjoy it, because I was able to ignore the niggly things and appreciate it. I love this series. But mainly because of the unique nature of the intense emotions that exist between Lincoln and Violet, and even her relationship with Pheonix. That is genius, imo, that the author is able to shoot right into you with only a few words, stirring all sorts of emotions.
If you still haven't gotten onto this series, and you are into YA angel books, then get on it already ;-) Because seriously, of all the angel series' I've read, this is one of the best.
4/5
Buy your copy!
Nora xoxo
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