Book Review - Through the Ever Night

Through the Ever Night
Author: Veronica Rossi
Series: Under the Never Sky #2
Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopian | Young Adult
Release Date: 8th January 2013
Publishers: Atom
Pages: 341
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 
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Aria has struggled to build a life for herself outside Reverie. It hasn't been easy adjusting to life in the wilderness but that struggle has been worth it with Perry by her side. But Perry has other challenges. His people are looking to him for answers. Answers about what happened to his nephew and what's happening to their world. And they don't trust the priviledged Aria, one of the enemy, in their midst.

Soon he'll be forced to chose between the tribe that looks to him for leadership and the girl that looks to him for love. Can Perry make that decision, and can he trust Aria?

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

I get books recommended to me quite often these days, whether that be from people on Twitter or close blogging friends, 'you should read this book' is a phrase I hear ringing in my ears, so every so often, I listen to those recommendations and find a novel or series that really is worth the shouting that person did. Under the Never Sky was recommended by Charnell and after reading Under the Never Sky, I can understand why she liked it, but reading Through the Ever Night enlightened me as to why she would recommend it. As sequels go, it had it's weaknesses, but it far from cursed with middle-book syndrome.

After finally learning more about this world in Under the Never Sky, getting back into it with the characters I came to care for was extremely easy. Rossi took an easy and calm route into the beginning third of the book, working on the dynamics between Perry, Aria, Roar and the Tribe, and I really enjoyed this aspect, it complimented the way Rossi had left the relationship between Perry and Aria in the first novel, and Aria and Roar's friendship which was definitely developed throughout this novel, but what impressed me most about the first third was the more information I gained on the world. I complained a little in my review for Under the Never Sky about how long it took to get some details on the world and my issue with it was the lack of knowledge surround the Aether, but my complaining clearly paid off, as I was given a better background the beginnings of the Aether, how it came to be, how it works and the rumours surrounding it which gave the world that much more depth and made it feel more realistic to me, and from a dystopian/fantasy point of view, that is vital.

What really was great about this novel though was the dynamics between the characters. I have become something of a character snob, if I don't like how they work together or their personalities, it affects the entire reading experience, but what Rossi developed within the characters was positive and really improved them as people, as important plot devices too. While the relationship between Aria and Perry was explored in the first third, what I enjoyed most in this installment was the relationship between Aria and Roar. Many dystopian/fantasy novels will focus on developing the relationship, while friendships and parent figures tend to get lost within the plot, but not in this series, Aria and Roars friendships is one of the most beautiful and most honest friendships I've read since Skulduggery Pleasant. They compliment and understand each other so well, they bounce off each others humour and feelings almost perfectly and they confide in one another about the people they love, the fears they have, and what the future might hold. They really have such a wonderful, blossoming friendship that it's an absolute god-send that Rossi decided to keep the relationship between them completely platonic and not introduce a romantic angle, I cannot thank the lord any more for that feature. Yet, while Aria and Roars friendship was developing, I did miss the lack of interaction between Perry and Aria when they were separated. I can see it from a development perspective how they both had to learn more about themselves on the journeys they took, how they needed to have faith in one another, but also, with themselves. They needed to prove that they were capable of so much more than the other may have thought possible, and I think it's this feature that does develop the relationship between them into a much more realistic format, much like you'd find in our everyday lives, I did miss the lack interaction, which I confess, resulted in a small lack of enjoyment.

Through the Ever Night did have plenty of 'oh my gosh!' moments, and definitely had me swearing through both surprise and shock on some occasions, while there were some scenes that probably should have given me some tears, unfortunately, none did. There were also moments when the world building took a nose dive and I felt a little lost or confused, and while they were not too often, they also, did affect my enjoyment. I said earlier, this is far from a middle-book syndrome novel, it has plenty of features I thoroughly enjoyed in Under the Never Sky and took some characters I had few feelings for and developed them hugely throughout, but it also wasn't as strong in plot and romance as Under the Never Sky, however, this does not encourage me to leave this series behind. I want to know where my characters end up and I demand happiness for Roar, and Perry and Aria, but I also really want the series to end positively, and with the mixture of good and bad review for Into the Still Blue, you can colour me wary..