Synopsis: Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together forever. But that’s not quite how things have worked out. For starters, well, Nick is dead. Supposedly, he’s been taken to a mythic place for warriors known as Valhalla, so Zara and her friends might be able to get him back. But it’s taking time, and meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But how to get to Valhalla? And even if Zara and her friends discover the way, there’s that other small problem: Zara’s been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn’t turned into just any pixie. . . She’s Astley’s queen.

First off, let me say that this book made the second one worth reading. I was hoping this would be the case and I was not dissapointed! I think Jones is maturing as an author and Entice really showcases that.

The pace of this book was much better than the first two. Book two especially was really slow to get going and then ended quite abruptly. Entice kind of starts and stops a lot but the action is spread out throughout the book and makes for a much better reading experience.

I’ve complained about the secondary characters in both previous reviews but they really get filled out in Entice. Astley plays a large role in this book and I really like him now. The relationship that develops between Astley and Zara is very sweet. It feels very reminiscent of Edward and Jacob with the whole love triangle, but sometimes I think Twilight is so ingrained in our collective minds that it’s hard to not see parallels in other YA fantasy.

Zara really comes into her own in Entice. She’s strong and powerful and willing to sacrifice herself to protect the people she cares about. She’s figuring out her place in the world and really stands on her own two feet. I found myself going “Go Zara!” a couple of times. I really like the way she’s matured through the series and I like her as a character even more now.

Really looking forward to book #4 which is scheduled for 2012.

TL;DR

  • Title: Entice – Amazon site
  • Author: Carrie Jones - Author’s Website
  • Genre: YA Fantasy
  • Length: 288 pages in paperback
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Is it worth purchasing?: Yes, but I’d recommend getting the whole series used since the first two are a little rough.