Synopsis: Lanore McIlvrae is the kind of woman who will do anything for love. Including imprisoning the man who loves her behind a wall of brick and stone.
She had no choice but to entomb Adair, her nemesis, to save Jonathan, the boy she grew up with in a remote Maine town in the early 1800s and the man she thought she would be with forever. But Adair had other plans for her. He used his mysterious, otherworldly powers to give her eternal life, but Lanore learned too late that there was a price for this gift: to spend eternity with him. And though he is handsome and charming, behind Adair’s seductive façade is the stuff of nightmares. He is a monster in the flesh, and he wants Lanore to love him for all of time.
And so begins the second book of The Taker TRIOLOGY!
Now, two hundred years after imprisoning Adair, Lanore is trying to atone for her sins. She has given away the treasures she’s collected over her many lifetimes in order to purge her past and clear the way for a future with her new lover, Luke Findley. But, while viewing these items at an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Lanore suddenly is aware that the thing she’s been dreading for two hundred years has caught up to her: Adair has escaped from his prison. He’s free— and he will come looking for her. And she has no idea how she will save herself.
THE DESCENT—the finale in The Taker Trilogy is coming in 2013
Review: Last September, I reviewed the first book in the series, The Taker. I was happy to discover I had called it right, and that a sequel was underfoot! But to find out there would be a trilogy? Wonders! I had every intention of taking my time with this book, but found myself finishing it in 2 sittings, as I could not wait to see what was going to happen!
This book differs, from The Taker, in that it is set 200 years later, in present day, so the historical richness of the first book, is not as evident in this one. But like the first, it takes what we think of as an 'immortal tale' and flips our 'common knowledge' on it's proverbial ear and winds you down a breathtaking path, as it asks the eternal question "what is the true meaning of love"? Does someone who has lived for 400 years know the answer to that question? Does the answer change? Does time and place matter, or is the true meaning of love everlasting?
Katsu takes us on another wild ride, where we think we know the answers, but don't. All is NOT what it appears, as she shows how the baseness of man is eternal. I would bet that no one can read these books without picturing the characters on the big screen, and knowing this would be the ADULT version of Twilight, it's intellectual older sibling, wiser and more nuanced. Kudos to Katsu for bringing us another Summer treat! Pick this one up and you won't want to put it down, be warned!
Happy reading!
About the Author: Alma Katsu likes to write stories that pull the reader through a journey that is sweeping in scope, a little dark and a little magical. The TAKER was her debut novel. She lives in the Washington, DC area, has a MA in fiction from Johns Hopkins University, once studied with John Irving, and counts fairy tales among her greatest influences. You can find out more about at www.almakatsu.com
Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book, free of charge, from Gallery Books, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it.
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