Review Detail

I was worried that Everbound was going to suffer from Middle of a Trilogy syndrome, and that Nikki would never get close to saving Jack from the Tunnels, but my worries were completely unfounded. Everbound is much better than Everneath! The story kicks off right away, and we get to enter the Everneath almost immediately! There’s next to no waiting around for the action to start, which was great, since I had no idea what to expect from this. Nikki is determined to get Jack back at any cost or die trying. She even attempts to travel the Everneath without Cole to help her! Needless to say, that’s a bust, so Cole agrees to take her himself to help ensure that she doesn’t get herself killed within minutes.

I loved this extended tour of the Everneath! Sure most of Everbound is spent in the labyrinth, but we also get glimpses of one of the Commons, a market, and a human sacrifice. Not a pretty site. There’s also more about how the Everneath is powered and a little on its history, which is all interesting. Probably the more interesting addition (aside from the labyrinth) are the Wanderers. They’re essentially the Everling equivalent of zombies, only scarier. Of course, Nikki and Cole had some run-ins with these creatures. I’m purposely not saying anything about the labyrinth. You’ll just have to read Everbound and discover it for yourself! It’s a pretty strange place.

There’s only a couple of issues that I had with this sequel. At first I was a bit frustrated with Nikki. Her determination to go after Jack was a little over-the-top. Her whole “I’d rather die than live with this guilt” attitude was annoying and selfish. If she’s dead she definitely can’t help him, and she doesn’t really think about what that would to her father. She essentially says he’s survived without her before, so he can surely do it again. Selfish. The second problem was all of the flashbacks. They’re necessary to keep Nikki connected to Jack, but I really didn’t care about how their love came to be.

The labyrinth and the very ending is where Everbound really shines! Cole’s admission at the end…I was not expecting that! I seriously did not see it coming! I had no idea how this would end so that there could be a third book, but that ending certainly does it! Finally Nikki stands up for something that actually makes sense, so I cannot wait to get my hands on the final book!