THE DEEPEST NIGHT by Shana Abe

The Deepest Night
Shana Abe

Rating: A+
Release Date: 08/13/13
Synopsis:
A rich portrait of post-Victorian England, The Deepest Night seamlessly blends thrilling romance with riveting history and adventure—perfect for fans of Libba Bray and Lauren Kate.

It’s 1915, and sixteen-year-old Lora Jones is finishing up her first year as a charity student at Iverson, a prestigious, gothic boarding school on England’s southern coast. While she’s always felt different from everyone around her, now she finally knows why: She is a drákon, a rare, enchanted being with astonishing magical abilities.

As war hits Britain’s shores, and Lora reels from an unimaginable loss, she finds that her powers come with grave and dangerous responsibilities. At the request of Armand Louis, the darkly mysterious boy whose father owns Iverson, Lora will spend her summer at his lavish estate. To help the war effort—and to keep Lora by his side—Armand turns his home into a military hospital, where Lora will serve as a nurse. For Armand is inescapably drawn to her—bound to her by heart-deep secrets and a supernatural connection that runs thicker than blood.

Yet while Lora tries to sort out her own feelings toward Armand, fate offers an unexpected surprise. Lora discovers there is another drákon, a prisoner of war being held in Germany. And that only she, with her newly honed Gifts, will be able to rescue him.

With Armand, Lora will cross enemy lines on an incredible mission—one that could bond her to Armand forever, or irrevocably tear them apart.

Beautifully written, deeply romantic, and filled with daring adventure and magic, The Deepest Night is a mesmerizing novel of the enduring pull of destiny, and the eternal strength of love.

Do not read this review if you haven't read The Sweetest Dark! It contains spoilers for the first book.


My thoughts on the book:
The Deepest Night is a beautifully written and captivating masterpiece. I loved The Sweetest Dark and couldn't wait to get my hands on its sequel. I had high hopes for this book, and I was not disappointed. Abe is a fantastic writer, and she creates lovable, real characters. Mix Abe's sophisticated prose and wonderful characterization with bittersweet romances, a suspenseful plot, and a dark and captivating world, and you have The Deepest Night. Fans of modern paranormal romances, as well as fans of Jane Austen and the Brontes, will absolutely adore this series. 

I really admired Lora's strength in this novel. Yes Jesse is dead, and yes she is mourning, but she doesn't lay down and die. She may want to be left alone, and she may want to lay down and die, but she still does what she has to do. The amount of grief when she talks about Jesse is heartbreaking, and the parts written from Jesse's perspective (he's now a star, watching over her) almost crushed my soul. However, she does what's right and goes to rescue the prisoner of war instead of feeling sorry for herself. Bella Swan could take a few lessons from Lora. Anyway. Armand really won me over in this novel. There is more to his personality than I originally thought, and I enjoyed getting to know him better. He's still a bit ignorant about the world, but he's trying to grow, and that means something. He does change quite a bit in this installment, and I really am rooting for him and Lora now. The secondary characters don't stand out much, but they each have their own personalities, at least, so they seem like real people. 

The plot is intriguing and full of action and suspense. Poor Lora has a lot going on, and there were moments when I wasn't sure that any of the characters were going to make it out of this book alive. In order not to spoil anything, I'm going to leave it at that. Also, Abe details the horrors of war in great detail, which shows that she did her research. Furthermore, Abe plays around with the idea of destiny and fate, which is interesting. The love between Lora and Jesse is heartbreaking, as I previously mentioned, and the budding maybe-maybe-not romance between Lora and Armand is sweet, but also sad because of other things that happened in the book. The ending ties things up nicely, but the epilogue opens the door for the next sequel, which I can't wait for. 

Overall, I'd recommend this book and series to almost anyone. This series is much more sophisticated than your normal YA fare, and it definitely has heart. Abe's writing is outstanding, and the setting is historically accurate. This is one series you don't want to miss. If you've already read and loved The Sweetest Dark, then you will surely adore this book as much as I did.

Pre-order The Deepest Night today!