Juliet Immortal

Juliet Immortal #1

by Stacey Jay

"These violent delights have violent ends And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which as they kiss consume."
—Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

The most tragic love story in history . . .

Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Retellings, Fiction, Supernatural

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 9, 2011

About the author

Stacey Jay is a recovering workaholic (or at least working hard at recovering) with three pen names, two small children, and a passion for playing pretend for a living. She’s been a full time mom-writer since 2005 and can't think of anything she'd rather be doing. Her former careers include theatre performer, professional dancer, poorly paid C-movie actress, bartender, waiter, math tutor (for real) and yoga instructor.

Learn more at http://staceyjay.com.

Reviews

[Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ll have to decide: join Romeo or let the specter of my soul take me. I know I should be afraid for my future, but all I can think about is Ben.

This book mocks the original Juliet's weakness, only to have the newly improved Juliet just as fucking dumb as the original.



So the original Shakespeare version, Juliet met Romeo, fell in love, and died for love within three days. In this retelling of Juliet's story, before this book starts, Juliet still ran away with Romeo, and then said Romeo stabbed her and ate her like a zombie. Flesh and blood dripping from his mouth and everything. It was pretty neat.

Flash forward 700 years in which Juliet is older, wiser, more wary of the perils of insta-love? Fucking nope!

One would think a reimagined, powerful, supernatural Juliet would have learned a fucking lesson or two: nope!

This book was terrible. Here is why:

- A stupid, stupid main character who makes the same mistake as the original Juliet, made worse by the fact that she was KILLED the first time. She's ruled by her passions, there is no reason in her behavior.

- Insta-love, a love triangle between the new, improved zombie Romeo and new boy Ben Luna. Ben. Ben. GEE, I WONDER WHO BEN COULD BE?! It's not like he has a character with a similar name in Romeo and Juliet or anything!!!11

- Terrible side characters: basically, the stars of the book are Juliet and Ben. Nobody else need apply.

- Poor setting: The whole we're gonna give you renewed life so you can play Cupid? No.

- Poor female characters: Her best friend, her "mother," both uncaring, cruel, callous bitches, depicted as inferior to Juliet (insta-love Juliet) in every way.

- The premise: weak as Ben and Juliet's insta-love. The idea of a love ambassador is pretty bloody and neat until you take into consideration the fact that it doesn't make any sense at all, and I'm not talking about the suspension of disbelief and the supernatural element. I'm talking about the fact that the reasoning behind the soul mate thing makes no fucking sense.

The Summary:

He turns and our eyes meet, and that sense of knowing him hits, catching me in my empty gut. For a moment, the sadness and pain in his eyes is my pain, and I desperately want to make it better. I want to reach for him, hold him, whisper into the warm crook of his neck that everything is going to be okay, that I’ll make it that way.

(Psst, that's the first time they meet)

Day 0.5 (because it takes place when the day's practically over):

Juliet is awake! Well, kind of. This ain't Shakespeare's Juliet...well, she's the inspiration for it, but the Shakespearean version was a falsehood, told to the dude by the sneaky, conniving son of a bitch that's Romeo. The real Juliet died at age 14, in 1304 Verona. Killed by the man she loved. And now Romeo is kind of a zombie. He reincarnates from one life to another, living constantly on earth as an immortal Mercenary, whereas Juliet only gets to come back to earth once in awhile, as an Ambassador. Think of her as Cupid, she makes sure that a pair of true lovers end up together, or else they will fall prey to the forces of darkness and one of them will die a horrible death like she did. At the hands of Romeo. Did I say that Romeo is a zombie? He's a total zombie.

...flesh in his teeth, blood dripping down his chin.

So now Juliet has been given an assignment, she's given the body of Ariel Dragland, a stunningly beautiful, extremely thin platinum-blonde high school outcast with self-esteem issues and mommy problems. Yeah, an outcast, because she's a little bit scarred from being burned as a child.

So here's Juliet/Ariel. On earth. Almost dead from a car accident, and OH CRAP THERE'S ROMEO, now in the body of a boy named Dylan. Juliet/Ariel runs like fuck, Romeo is chasing after her (he's a fast zombie), and OMG YAY A CAR. She runs into the car, and is struck down by insta-love. The rescuer is a high school boy named Ben Luna. The attraction is immediate.

I’m suddenly very aware of him, as well, of his front warming my back, his thighs shifting beneath mine. I clear my throat, blushing for the first time in so long the strangeness of hot cheeks makes me blink.

Ben is Mexican-American. He likes to uses randomly inserted Spanish words.

“Then this really isn’t your lucky night, chica."

I almost typed "Mexican words" for a moment before I caught myself. Lol. We all have our brain farts.

So crazy zombie Romeo/Dylan is after Ariel/Juliet. They go to the same high school. Hooray! Doesn't matter. What's important is BEN. BEN. She feels such...familiarity with him, she feels an intense longing for him, despite knowing Ben that night for all of 1 hour.She wants to kiss him as he drops her off.

I stay and let him come closer, closer, until I can feel the heat of his lips and imagine just how perfect they’ll feel, how perfect he’ll taste, how—

She can't stop thinking about him for the rest of the night.

I fist the damp wipe in my hand, reining in the part of me that aches for this boy with the big brown eyes.
I might feel an instant connection to Ben, but I don’t matter.

Famous last words.

Ben is Mexican.

"Dulces sueños, Mermaid.”

Day 2: So Juliet's still got a job to do, right? She's got to find the designated couple of soulmates and make them fall in love or else one of them will die a horrible horrible death. Nobody wants that, except for Romeo. Awesome. So where are they? As it turned out, one of the couple is Gemma, Juliet/Ariel's best friend since second grade. The one girl who has befriended Ariel despite the entire class neglecting and making fun of her. There's an aura over her head. Gemma is 1/2 of the soulmate.

And then I turn back to Gemma...lost in the rosy glow surrounding her chest.

And the other 1/2 of the soulmates?

Ben. Something in my gut twists and for a moment I’m dizzy, weightless, as if the floor has been ripped from beneath me, but I don’t know which way to fall.

Well, awesome! Best friend in love and designated to be soulmates with the guy who saved her the other night. What could be better? Well, for starters, JULIET CAN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT BEN.

I shake my head. This has to stop. I can’t go to pieces every time I see his face. I have to pull it together, be a good influence, make sure he commits to the love of his life and lives happily ever after.

But it doesn't. Juliet can't stop thinking about him. Romeo is on her ass. And Ben is still determined to prove to us that he's Mexican.

Ben laughs. “Dios mio. Fine, crazy woman.”

Day 3: GEMMA. THAT BITCH. SHE'S SO NOT WORTHY OF BEN. I'M NOT GOING TO GIVE HER TO BEN.

Gemma’s thoughtless at best, mean-spirited and selfish at worst, and I want so much better for Ben.

What?! Where the fuck did that come from?! Ok, so Juliet's in love with Ben. Romeo's still there declaring his undying (that was a zombie joke) love for Juliet if only she'd give him another chance. And Ben? After three (ok, 2.2?) days of knowing her, this is how he feels.

“I’m not doing this right, and I know I sound crazy, but...I love you. I could see myself loving you for a long time.”

Well, that escalated quickly. Three days. Three motherfucking days.

“I love you. I want to do everything with you. I want to marry you and have kids with you and get old with you. And then I want to die the day before you do, so I never have to live without you.”

NOOOOOOOOOOO. WHYYYYYYYYYYYY. Do your fucking job, Juliet. Need I remind you of what would happen if you don't unite the soulmates?

These two are my job, and if I don’t do it, one of them will die. Either they commit to each other or one of them commits murder and becomes a Mercenary. That’s the way it goes. Every. Single. Time.

Fuck you, Juliet, you stupid bitch. YOU HAD ONE JOB.

Ben is still Mexican.

“Dios mio,” Ben says.

Juliet:

How can I think of loving someone again? How have I let this happen? Even if it weren’t forbidden, haven’t I learned my lesson?

Apparently not. Juliet is a motherfucking moron. She's techniaclly over 700 years old, but she hasn't spent all that time on Earth.

I’ve seen centuries pass, but I died when I was fourteen and have spent less than twenty conscious years on earth.

20 years. That's a long time as an adult. Time spent being Cupid, making soulmates meet. She's been betrayed by love. She's seen the harm love can do. She knows the consequences of destined soulmates NOT falling in love, and she doesn't learn a motherfucking thing. She fell into insta-love with Romeo and elopes. He kills her. One would think she would know better not to fall into insta-love again. After THREE MOTHERFUCKING DAYS. She knows that the soulmates who aren't together will end up in a horrible death. SHE IGNORES THAT FOR HER OWN MOTHERFUCKING INSTA-LOVE. Gemma doesn't deserve him, says Juliet, the worst fucking Cupid ever.

Not only that, she's determined to destroy the only friendship thar her borrowed body, Ariel, has. Gemma is her only friend. Ariel suffers from crippling shyness. Ariel has no other friends. And yet Juliet as Ariel sees fit to steal away her best friend's soulmate.

She and Gemma are so different. It’s amazing they’ve stayed friends for as long as they have.
But they have, and it doesn’t matter what I think. I can’t let Ariel lose this friendship. I could be gone by the end of the day.

That would be such a fucking cute sentiment if Juliet didn't steal away Ben under poor Gemma's nose.

Oh my god, the love. THE LOVE. Juliet is so fucking purple-prosey-lovey-dovey. She can't contain her fucking emotions for Ben, a boy whom, I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but SHE'S KNOWN HIM FOR LESS THAN THREE DAYS. By the end of day 2, she's ready to declare her love. It's pure insta-love. There is no emotion behind it. She feels the familiarity, the desire, that's it. One little word from him is like AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH MOTHERFUCKING CHERUBS SINGING FROM HEAVEN. Juliet is easily impressed.

Romeo might have praised my loveliness with lyrical poetry, but he never made me feel as beautiful as Ben did when he said four simple words.
You matter to me.

Puh-please. Is that all it takes to get her to drop her panties? Be a little better than that. Have more fucking depths than that. Am I to believe that Juliet is a motherfucking Immortal Warrior? Fucking no.

The Girl Hate:

"You’re the one who messed up when you got pregnant when you were nineteen."

Way to be a bitch to your own mother. Well, to Ariel's mother, but it's Ariel who's going to have to live with the consequences.

This book hates women. Juliet/Ariel's mother is a careless person. Unfeeling about her daughter's feelings. Terrible at showing her love, even if Juliet acknowledges that she does love her daughter.

She means that she cares, no matter how bad she is at showing it.

Her best friend Gemma, is also another careless person.

The hard light in Gemma’s eyes fades, and for a second I can see that she cares. Or that she wants to care.

So none of the female side characters in this book is careing and loving and nice at all. To be fair, none of the guys in this book are any good, either, but the female characters are prominent, and I hate the female hate in this book.

Gemma is a bitch. She doesn't deserve the angelic Ben.

Gemma is a vindictive, selfish, spoiled girl who doesn’t deserve Ariel and certainly doesn’t deserve Ben’s love.

Every attempt is made in this book to paint Gemma in a bad light, including making her the beautiful outcast rich girl, to making her a slutty character who plays around with boys like they were toys (and therefore deserves her heartbreak).

Ben! The Abusive Romantic!:

“He was only protecting her.”
“Like he was protecting you today?”
“Ye-es.” Something in her voice makes me certain my answer won’t satisfy her.
“Ariel … violent people usually have a good excuse for why they’re violent. But even a good excuse is just an excuse.”

Oh, I'm sorry, did I accidentally read a New Adult novel? Ben is violent. He's beaten up people before. He's gotten arrested for it. But it's ok, because Ben was doing it for the sake of other people. He only beats up the bad guys ~_~ Therefore his violence is TOTALLY justified.

Ben flirts with Juliet/Ariel while dating her best friend.

I would almost swear that Ben is flirting. With me. Right in front of his soul mate. Which is so bad that bad can’t even begin to describe it.

Uh, yah, you took the words right out of my mouth.

Ben, who speaks with the eloquence of a thousand John Mayers.

“I know you,” he says, with a quiet assurance that threatens to make my tears start all over again. “I know you’re strong and as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside. I know you like to eat and hate Shakespeare—at least the love stories—and would do anything for a friend. I know you’re an artist, and you made a wall of bricks look like it should be hanging in a museum."

Ben, who is Mexican.

“Olvida la escuela,” he says, anger in his eyes.

[Annabelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

FINAL RATING: 1.25 STARS

CATCHALL
I wanted to like this book. I really did. It was one of those books I heard about by random chance and immediately started counting down the days to its release. It looked that good, and was beautiful besides. And when I finally bought it, with its gorgeous cover, I was ecstatic. I dove right in. The beginning was amazing and drew me in right away. And now? I'm embarrassed to admit I own it. Yet another time where I've let beautifully written dust jacket blurbs and lovely covers suck me in.

This review will contain spoilers. Major ones. And profanity, so if that insults you, stop here. Please. However, my clean, profanity-free review can be found on Sparkles and Lightning.

Seriously. There is A LOT of profanity. I'm not sure I've ever used so much in a review before. Or at all, for that matter.

THE HEROINE
Was I supposed to like her at all? Juliet was vapid, shallow, and selfish. Not to mention that she could never stick to a decision. Ever. All she ever did was complain about how she hates Romeo because he killed her, and then near the end of the book she remembers that SHE FUCKING KILLED HERSELF. What. The. Fuck?!? There are no words sufficient to describe the stupidity of this!! "Oops. My bad! You didn't kill me. So I've been hating you all these years for nothing! Shit!" It makes no sense!! Basically, she's wasted her entire centuries of her life. And what was with the whole "I hated myself but I should really love myself" shit? It sounded too thrown in at the last moment, too rushed. There was no real substance and throughout the entire book Juliet felt so false and fake.

THE LOVE INTEREST
Um. So. What about him? Let's see, he's hot, he's dreamy, he's hot, he's dreamy, and, oh yeah, in his past life he was BENVOLIO FUCKING MONTAGUE. This makes absolutely no sense and felt so thrown in! Can you say random? Or how about I have no clue what to write so I think I'll throw this in? It felt like Jay needed to end the book so she made something up at the last minute. Too bad it makes no sense. And what was with his creepy, overprotectiveness? Not to mention his weird, annoying habit of being stupid and obtuse? He annoyed the hell out of me! Where's the good character traits that I'm supposed to fall in love with?! Why was he so shallow? Why does Juliet love him? Answers, please!! There's not even anything good to say about him. He talks too much and when he talks nothing that makes even remote sense comes out of his mouth.

THE VILLAIN
Romeo is the only remotely interesting character in this book. He has a sexy, bad boy attitude that's actually attractive. He's supposed to be evil, at least according to Juliet, but I don't see it. I love the two or three intermezzos (incidentally, I speak Italian. Intermezzo means interval. Which makes no sense. Just saying) when we get to hear the story from his point of view. He has a gorgeous, sarcastic voice and his parts are actually well written.He has more depth than every other character combined. he has regrets, and he made his choices. he has to live by them, but he doesn't have to like them. I love that about him and I wish there were more characters like him in this book.

THE "BEST FRIEND"
Ariel's best friend, Gemma, is so freaking annoying. Talk about a spoiled brat. Although Juliet couldn't seem to make up her mind about her, liking her one moment and hating her the next. So bipolar!! Make up your damn mind. There's not much to say about her, but I wanted to say this, so here goes: what was the point of her, exactly?

THE PLOT
The plot was, like, OMG, amazing.

Wait, that's not right. It sucked.

Juliet is so freaking indecisive, which does not help the plot at all.

I must be with Ben. I love him.
I can't be with Ben. He's supposed to love Gemma.
Screw Gemma! Ben, let's make out.
Go away, Ben! We can't ever be together!
Actually, let's elope.

Or try this one:

Romeo, I'm not working with you.
Oh, Romeo, fine. Let's get it over with.
Just kidding. I want to stay with Ben.
No! Wait! I need your help!
Screw you. I don't want to speak to you again.

And so on and so forth. So the book drags on for pages and pages of unnecessary shit where nothing happens.

Basically, Juliet makes out with Romeo to convince Ben that they're together so he and Gemma can be together. Then she realizes Gemma and Mike are soul mates and Ben is her soul mate. They make out and fall in love. A bit too convenient, don't you think?

Hmm, you're right. Way too convenient.

And what happens? Love. Yep. That pretty much sums up the whole plot. So let's move on…

THE ROMANCE
Romeo and Juliet fall in love in about five days, give or take. The author says she doesn't believe this love was real, and yet she has Ben and Juliet fall in love in three days? It makes no fucking sense. There's no substance to the romance. Seriously, if anyone knows why Ben and Juliet fall in love, please tell me. Because it looks like a serious fucking case of insta-love to me. All they ever do is make out. They never actually have a deep conversation. And let's not mention that Juliet is technically lying to him about who she is. So he's in love with a stranger and doesn't know it. Lovely. How wonderful for them that they can fall in love without knowing one another at all. It seems to me like Juliet is repeating her mistake. How great. What a wonderful message to send to the world.

THE ENDING
Oh my God. ALTERNATE UNIVERSES. Are you fucking kidding me? This feels so thrown in at the last second! Innocent Ariel is lying on the ground. She's going to die, and so is Juliet. But wait! Juliet gets sent to an alternate universe! And Ariel exists in a another universe too, so it's okay! Well, what about this universe?!? I hate this. The damn alternate universe thing is such a damn crutch. Jay is basically saying she had no clue as to how to end the book, so she threw in alternate universes. Where Juliet falls in love with Ben as Benvolio Montague, in her original body. Instantly. And everything is happy and cheerful. Except for the fact that it's completely unbelievable. She gets a new life in the most pathetic way possible. And Ariel can start over. But since she, you know, died in this universe, making everything that Juliet was semi-decent enough to try to do for her, completely fucking pointless! Because she's dead! So the entire book was a waste!! Why not just start at the fucking ending?!? She might as well have!! Everything that happens throughout the entire book becomes irrelevant at the end. Ariel starts out in a new universe as Romeo's second chance. Great! So clean! Except for the major plot hole: where did the fucking alternate universes come from?! And why are the Ambassadors the only one who can use them?! Oh, and what happened to the Mercenaries?! Never mind them! We got our happy ending! Yeah. Sure.

THE WRITING
Juliet is the narrator. 'Nuff said.
No, but seriously, her voice is so annoying. I might've actually enjoyed the book more told from third person P.O.V. or someone else's P.O.V. Romeo's brief chapters, for example, I actually enjoyed. He has a dark, sardonic voice that pulls you in. Juliet, on the other hand, pushes your away. There's really not much else to say. Juliet was irritating and Romeo was not.

WRAPUP
Will I read the sequel? Probably only if it's about Romeo. And even then, only if it has a nice cover. Otherwise, I'd be too ashamed to buy it.

A SPECIAL NOTE ON THE QUOTE ON THE BACK OF THE DUST JACKET ON THE HARDCOVER U.S. EDITION
That was a mouthful. Anyway, that seemingly romantic quote on the back of the book? Well, not only does it turn out it would've sounded stupid because there was no love between Ben and Juliet that I could see, she doesn't even say it. She just thinks it. How lame is that? Pathetic, I know.

FINE.

Find this review and more on Sparkles and Lightning!

[Emily May · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting beginning... middle had highs and lows... ending was PERFECT...

I appreciate that not everyone is going to like this book. It's very much a Marmite kind of thing - you either love it or you hate it - except, unlike Marmite, I loved it! I think I liked it even more because it was very far from what I was expecting... and I had expected all kinds of possible ways this could go: super luvvy-duvvy romance, melodrama, ultra-angst...

Okay, there was the teensiest, tiniest bit of teen angst but I thought it all worked, it wasn't too much and the words were oh so pretty! I must stress this, I thought the writing was beautiful in that I-must-quote-this kind of way but you find it hard to choose which bit to quote. Like Laini Taylor but not that good.

I read it mainly because I am obsessed with Shakespeare. I went through High School with this ancient but really cool English teacher who taught me how awesome Shakespeare is and was entirely responsible for my good grades in the subject. Now I find myself exasperated and reading the same old takes on Shakespeare's work; Romeo and Juliet must have been re-written into every culture and time period possible by now. But this. Well, this was different. Suddenly, it isn't a tale about the famous star-crossed lovers who sacrificed everything for love.

Oh no. Because the tagline says it all: "The greatest love story ever told is a lie..."

That's right. Romeo is not what we all thought he was... he's a manipulative SOB who betrayed Juliet and over the centuries the two have battled it out against one another, fighting for control of the destinies of soulmates. Sound a bit TRUE-WUV-y?? It isn't. Or I didn't think so. I thought it was nasty and gruesome and really interesting.

And the ending was wonderful. You know, I had the smallest recollection of something in the back of my mind early on that led me to suspect something that I quickly disregarded. But I was right. Certain things are not coincidences and there's more to this story than first meets the eye... excited yet? You should be.

Also, you should know, even though the novel has no sex, there's some not-so-subtle innuendos and girly 'tingling'. Excellent!

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Juliet Immortal was one of my most anticipated books of 2011. I loved Stacey Jay’s Dead on the Delta, and when I learned that she was writing a Shakespeare spin-off involving an original type of paranormal being, it seemed like too much awesomeness in one package. I really wanted to like Juliet Immortal, and it makes me sad that I did not.

Here’s the premise: Romeo and Juliet fell in love in medieval Italy, but their story ended rather differently than the version we all know. Romeo sacrificed Juliet to gain eternal life in a supernatural faction called the Mercenaries. When Juliet died, her soul was claimed by the Mercenaries’ rivals, the Ambassadors. The Ambassadors’ goal is to make sure soul-mate couples get together and commit to each other. The Mercenaries’ goal is to destroy these couples by getting one of the lovers to sacrifice the other, as Romeo did to Juliet. Ambassadors possess the bodies of living people while carrying out their missions. Mercenaries can only possess the bodies of the dead.

As Juliet Immortal begins, Juliet is sent into the body of Ariel Dragland, an insecure teenage girl who is beautiful but can’t see it because of a burn scar on her face. Juliet, while in Ariel’s body, begins to fall in love again for the first time in 700 years, with a classmate named Ben. Trouble is, Ben is one of the soul mates she’s supposed to be helping, and his counterpart is Ariel’s best friend Gemma. Yet Ben and Gemma barely seem to like each other, and between that and Juliet’s growing feelings, she has a difficult task ahead of her. Meanwhile, Romeo is being creepy as usual, but has some troubling information to impart about the Ambassadors and the Mercenaries.

There are scenes in Juliet Immortal that are absolute gems. Juliet’s heart-to-heart conversation with Ariel’s mother is one of them, as is the scene in which Juliet forgives herself for the events of long ago. These scenes reminded me why I like Jay’s writing in the first place, and made me wish even more fervently that I could like the book.

Unfortunately, it bogs down in Juliet’s angst, which is fueled by her missing something that’s obvious to the reader long before Juliet figures it out. (Edited to add: It's not obvious who Gemma's real soul mate is, but it's obvious it's not Ben and that there are actually two pairs running around.)There’s a contrived reason that the biggest piece of evidence is not visible to her, but there are enough other clues that she should have at least considered the possibility that all was not as it seemed. I wanted to shout at her through the pages to stop brooding and think for a minute.

Then, in the later chapters, the metaphysics and the backstory become confusing. Bombshells are dropped regarding the common roots of the Ambassadors and Mercenaries, the real nature of Romeo’s character and of his dastardly deed, where Juliet’s mentor is hiding and what she’s really up to, and alternate universes. Yet none of this is explored or explained as much as it could have been.

The ending added to my frustration. MAJOR SPOILERS: Tragedy strikes, but then both Juliet and Romeo are whisked away into hopeful alternate-universe endings. I felt that I was supposed to be happy for them, but instead I couldn’t escape the thought that in “real” reality, the reality in which most of the book was set, everyone’s lives had just been shattered. About half the main characters were dead and the other half devastated, and all to save a “soul mate” relationship that contains a troubling power imbalance. (I AM NOT UNBIASED. I'm the product of a teacher/student relationship. I wouldn't be here without it, but it was a seriously messed up marriage.) I think I’d have preferred either the sad ending alone, or a happy ending in the “main” reality. However, I did like Juliet’s alternate ending taken in isolation, and would have loved to read a straight 14th-century retelling that ended like that.

Stacey Jay is a good writer and I’m not giving up on her. I’ll definitely keep following her Annabelle Lee books. Juliet Immortal, though, left me more frustrated than satisfied, and I can’t really recommend it despite its originality and some terrific scenes.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published here.

What a beautiful cover. I remember when I first saw it my initial thought was, Oh, please don't let it suck. I know that sounds harsh, but sometimes a cover just calls out to you and you know when you finally hold a physical copy of the book itself you'll just want to stroke it and love it and tell it it's found its home on your shelves. Unfortunately, the innards (as my boy is fond of saying) don't always match the outtards. And then I am forced to cry. Because . . . so pretty. So when a review copy of Stacey Jay's JULIET IMMORTAL came my way, I held my breath. Just a bit. Okay, maybe for the first five pages or so. Thankfully, that's all it took. Because this innovative retelling (of sorts) of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet has teeth. And they sank into me with delicious ferocity. This was my first foray with Stacey Jay, though I know she has a handful of books already out. After this encounter, I look forward to checking out her other work.

Juliet Capulet's nightmare is never going to end. No one knows what really happened to her. Murdered by her true love, Juliet is saved at the last minute by powerful but nebulous forces of good (known as the Ambassadors), who recruit her immortal soul in their timeless battle against the powers of evil (known as the Mercenaries). Filled with grief and hate at Romeo's unforgivable action, Juliet accepts the offer and finds herself pitted against Romeo, who essentially sold his soul to the Mercs for promised immortality. And the two of them face one another over and over and over again. For seven hundred years, they've been racing against the clock and each other to save (in Juliet's case) or damn (in Romeo's) pairs of soul mates, literally slipping into human bodies (in Juliet's case) and dead ones (in Romeo's) in order to sway their charges for good or ill. Each and every time Romeo tries to kill Juliet and Juliet fights back and escapes, though she is forbidden from taking his life as part of her mission for the Ambassadors. But this time--this mission--something is different. And they can both tell. This time more seems to be riding on the outcome than just a point scored for one side or the other. This time it's difficult to tell just who exactly are the soul mates, just who loves who. This time Juliet may not escape with her immortal soul intact.

JULIET IMMORTAL wins because it is both a competent retelling and re-envisioning of the most famous star-crossed lovers of all time, while managing not to forget the ruthlessness, violence, and eerie inevitability of the original. In fact, I thought Stacey Jay's clever explanations went a long way toward fleshing out the characters and events of the play. I certainly loved the life and depth she breathed into both leads. How brave Juliet is. And evil Romeo? Where have you been all my life? There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. This Romeo is evil, he's out for Juliet's blood, and the enmity between them is real. The story starts off with a bang, literally, as Juliet is flung into the body of a girl who has just decided to end it all and drive the car she's in off a cliff, taking her shoddy date with her. It's one of my favorite scenes in the book and the first one to give me real chills. Right after the crash (taken from my uncorrected ARC):

Dylan's eyes flutter open.

Even in the moonlight shining through the ceiling they look dark, peculiar. There's something strange about this boy, something warped inside him. I'm not surprised that he played a cruel trick on Ariel, but I'm curious to see what he'll do next. How will he deal with the fact that she nearly killed them both?

"Ariel?" he asks, his voice slurred. "Are you okay?"

"Ye-yes, I think so." Maybe he doesn't remember how the car crashed? If so, I won't be helping him with his recall. I keep my expression carefully blank. "Are you okay?"

"I think I'm fine. I . . . think I might be . . ." His words fade as he leans closer. He's staring at me. I can feel it, though his chin is tipped down, creating hollows the light through the roof can't touch.

The roof! I look up, and a sigh of relief escapes my lips. Glass. It's made of glass! Thank goodness. Getting out of this car seems like a better idea with every passing second. If Dylan is this disturbing at eighteen, he'll be a serial killer by the time he's twenty.

"We'll be fine. We just need to get out." I lift blood-slicked fingers to pry at the latch, ignoring Dylan when he leans even closer.

The sunroof is manually operated. I see that the glass panel can pop out, but the mechanism gives me a bit of trouble. Still, I'll get it open and there will be plenty of room for us to fit through the hole. Me first, of course.

"I'm sorry, could I--" He exhales, his breath hot on my neck. I fight the urge to shudder. "Could I ask you something?"

He wants to talk. Lovely.

I sigh. "Sure." I pull on the hinges, then realize I should have been pushing and sigh again.

"Has anyone told you your hair looks silver in the moonlight?"

I glance in the rearview mirror. My new hair does look silver, like something from a fairy tale. And the rest of what I can see of myself is equally haunting--shocking, really.

Why does Ariel think herself so repulsive? Huge blue eyes dominate my new face, dwarfing my small nose and thin lips. The scars on my cheek and jaw are visible, but they aren't as terrible as Ariel thinks. The face looking back at me is attractive, compelling. There's something about it that makes you want to look twice.

So I do, staring a little too long, giving myself away.

Dylan laughs, his lips suddenly far too close to mine. "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?"

No. It can't be. We've never-- He's never--

"Did you miss me, love?" He kisses me on the cheek, a rough, playful kiss that leaves a bit of wet behind.

Dylan has died after all. And Romeo has found a corpse. It's my last thought before his hands are around my throat.

Yep. Chills. There's also a pretty sweet love story going on within the pages. I was delighted with who Stacey Jay chose for Juliet and how she updated him for a contemporary take. Their initial encounter is another of my very favorite scenes in the book, and my affection for them lasted for the duration the story. So much so that I actually could have done with a little more connection between the modern boy and the one from the play as it would have enriched the bond for me. That part, along with one section in which Juliet sort of uncharacteristically fails to make a few connections, are the only instances that bothered me a bit. Otherwise, the novel's strengths stood out, particularly older-and-wise Juliet herself. She's such a strong character, able to contain a plethora of rich and complex emotions. She is clawing her way toward revenge or peace, whichever comes first. I loved her fire, and I loved how the writing reflected her rage and pain, without marring that original, first love between the two kids from Verona. Rather, it supports its authenticity in all its breathless perfection. Which then only highlights the atrocious betrayal and the loss she feels. It's all very affecting and enjoyable. As is Juliet's foray in young Ariel's body. Her interactions with Ariel's well-nigh estranged mother and her problematic best friend Gemma are nuanced and gripping. Lastly, I do have to say that my favorite thing about this book is that it scared me. There are a couple of scenes in particular that gave me the cold shivers, and I just love it when that happens. All in all, JULIET IMMORTAL is an unexpectedly visceral read. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to handing it around.

[Parvathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not your typical Romeo and Juliet love story. For one thing the starting premise is the one where Juliet did not commit suicide for the sake of everlasting true love as the Bard's version claims but was killed by her lover Romeo who exchanged her life for immortality. But the betrayed and forsaken Juliet did not die according to plan. On the contrary she become an immortal, an ambassador of light whose sole purpose is fight for the sake of true loves across time against her one true love and arch nemesis Romeo. Reborn in to the mortal realm each time soul mates find each other Juliet has to give up the life she inhabits each time her job is completed. But the irony of the matter is Juliet who is destined to bring true loves together herself do not believe in true love. After her experience with true love Juliet wants nothing more to do with it herself. But that is until she meets Ben a kind hearted boy with whom she experiences an instant connection. Now when circumstances urges Juliet to rethink her position Romeo enters the picture and he will do anything to ensure that Juliet remains his for all eternity.

When I first picked up this book I admit I wasn't much excited to read about a YA Romeo and Juliet story. In fact that was the last thing I wanted. But my inquisitiveness got the best of me and I decided to give it a try. Surprisingly I found this book a very enjoyable and interesting read. The concept is fresh and the treatment commendable. The one part worth mentioning is the practicality associated with the story of Romeo and Juliet. Rather than portraying Romeo and Juliet as the symbols of undying love the book makes you think about practical scenarios looking at Romeo as an exiled 17 year old noble with no skill or livelihood and Juliet as a 14 year old innocent girl who never had to face actual hardship in her well pampered life. The book portrays Juliet as a strong and stubborn character who has faced her share of challenges but still moves forward strongly, Romeo as a misunderstood and naive character who is forced to live with the consequences of his wrong choices. Even though Romeo was portrayed as an evil character I couldn't find it in me to hate him. The new character Ben on the other hand is likable and refreshing. It is always a treat to read about characters who are so sure of what they want and do not shy away from expressing it. The premise and settings are well developed and the story manages to engage you in all the crucial points. This book I would recommend to all those readers who are willing to keep and open mind and treat the story from an entirely different point of view. Some readers though may find it difficult to cope with some of the liberties the author has taken with the Romeo and Juliet story but here also open mindedness is the key. But this book like most books is not without its own set of flaws that stick out. For one thing it goes on and on about the concept of love. But if you are willing to overlook such misgivings you might find your self highly satisfied.

[Amanda Ashby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Stacey Jay manages to turn the story of Romeo and Juliet on its head with this haunting retelling. Beautiful!

[Kt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forget everything you thought to be true about Romeo and Juliet's story. It isn't some great tragedy with starcrossed lovers that couldn't bear to be apart. No, it's a story about betrayal. Romeo murdered Juliet in hopes for his own immortality, but in a twist of fate, Juliet was granted the same. Only, she serves on the side of light, whose job it is to protect true lovers from people like Romeo who would tear it all apart. It's been over 700 years of fighting him and his kind every step of the way. All that changes when Juliet starts to fall in love again. It's a forbidden love, and we all know just how Romeo feels about that. Juliet may just lose love again, after it's taken her so long to finally believe again, and then nothing will be able to save her broken heart.

Juliet is truly broken for lack of a better word. She doesn't realize this, but in her quests to ensure couples find their soul mates, her heart just in the task. Yes, she thinks everyone deserves love, but in the end she's really only going through the motions rather than believing in love anymore. In fact Juliet is filled with more anger and hate towards Romeo and her situation to really be able to believe in much of anything. I think this is what made her slow opening of her heart again all the more sweet. Granted the love did seem to come about with nothing to really establish it, but then they do say love at first sight can be real, and this book makes a very good case for it.

I had assumed I would hate Romeo's character based on the description, and in the beginning, I did. However, the more I got to see him, the more I realized that there was so much more than met the eyes. I had thought he was an evil uncaring character, but I couldn't have been wrong. He truly is a tortured soul who has had to live with his mistakes for a very long time. To be honest, I'm not really sure the punishment fits the crime, as in the end he really was only weak rather than evil. Of course that punishment has had such a long time to fester, making him now capable of terrible things. Even though he appears to live to torment, you can see that he hates it all, making me wonder if somehow there is some goodness left deep down inside of him.

To be honest, I never really cared for Romeo and Juliet's story. I just hated the tragedy of it. I just think for something to be considered a great love story, then there should be some happiness there, which we all know just isn't the case. I just found the whole sacrifice thing to be quite sickening to be honest. Love should go on, no matter what. So, when I read the description of this book, I was very excited. I couldn't wait to read something that would turn the original story upside down, and Juliet Immortal definitely did not disappoint in that area. From the moment I picked Juliet Immortal up, I just could not put it down. So if you are like me and would love to see the "greatest" tragedy of all times get a little shake up, or even if you just enjoy reading about second chances at love, then Juliet Immortal is one book you won't want to miss.

[Scott Rhee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stacey Jay’s novel “Juliet Immortal” is categorized as Young Adult (YA) Supernatural or Fantasy Romance. It shares space on the bookstore shelf with Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight”. Having read “Twilight”, I can say that Jay’s novel is far better than Meyer’s novel. But let’s be honest: that’s a lot like saying that a day at the beach is far better than having an emergency appendectomy. I believe the word is “duh”.

Not that Jay’s novel is without flaws. Her world-building isn’t stellar. While she has some interesting ideas in the book, she never fully develops them, and/or doesn't explain them well enough.

But I’ll get to that. Let’s look at what works.

The premise is interesting in a geek-girl fantasy kind of way: The story of Romeo and Juliet, as told by William Shakespeare in his world-famous play, was a lie. In reality, Romeo was a soul-vampire, who seduced Juliet to the altar and then killed her so that he could have eternal life.

At least, this is what Juliet recalls. Upon her death, she was resurrected by a mysterious group of entities calling themselves Ambassadors of Light. They have been waging eternal war with a group called the Mercenaries. Romeo is one of them.

Every century or so, Juliet is given the chance to come back to life by “borrowing” someone else’s body. Her job is to match soul mates with each other, thus strengthening the bonds of love and light that hold the universe together. Or something like that. Think “Quantum Leap” except that rather than righting wrongs in time, she’s playing Cher from “Clueless”.

Romeo, however, is forced to come back, as a Mercenary, to break up relationships and wreak general havoc. He is able to resurrect by jumping into the bodies of the newly dead.

The book starts out in California, present day, when Juliet pops into a teen girl named Ariel. She has just been in a car crash with her date, Dylan, who has died. Romeo takes advantage and pops into the corpse. Ariel escapes and is rescued by a kid named Ben. Ariel’s best friend, Gemma, is, it turns out, the soul mate she is sent to help. She knows this because she can see the glow of love from her chest. Ben also has the glow, which means he’s Gemma’s match. Except, here’s the rub: Juliet, in Ariel, has started falling for Ben.

So, there’s the conflict.

Romeo, as Dylan, has also decided to spring a surprise on Juliet. He tells her that the Ambassadors and the Mercenaries have been lying to them both for centuries. Juliet could escape her service to the Ambassadors, just as Romeo can escape his bondage to the Mercenaries, and they can both live out the rest of their lives as mortals again. Juliet doesn’t hate the idea.

Interesting premise, and, for the most part, it works, mainly because Jay is a decent writer who clearly knows how to speak the language of teenage girl.

What doesn’t work? Well, there’s the issue of what the heck is going on with Juliet’s ethereal body running around with Romeo’s rotting corpse. Huh? Supposedly, they are remnants of their earth-bound souls, or something like that. I have no idea. It’s not very clear.

It’s also not too clear about who or what the Ambassadors or the Mercenaries are. Are they angels? Are they demons? Are they humans who discovered immortality centuries ago? Are they extraterrestrials? Either I missed an explanation somewhere in the book, or Jay purposely left it vague.

Frankly, though, none of this really matters in the end. I think Jay does a pretty good job of establishing the budding romance between Ben and Juliet that everything else is merely window dressing.

Is it melodramatic in parts? Absolutely. I can handle melodrama. What I can’t handle is a teenaged girl who mopes around and whines about everything and just lets things happen rather than doing things for herself. If that sounds like Bella Swan from “Twilight”, it’s because it is.

Thankfully, Juliet is nothing like that. Unlike Bella, Juliet has agency. She is strong and self-sufficient. She doesn’t even necessarily buy into the whole “soul mate” or “love will conquer all” bullshit. That’s just a job to her.

When she does fall in love, she’s at first willing to give it up because of the consequences, something Bella never really did.

I liked “Juliet Immortal”, despite its flaws, because Jay has created a pretty likable and believable protagonist, one who transcends her character in Shakespeare’s play as the simple-minded blinded-by-love teen twit who stupidly kills herself over a boy she just met.

P.S. There is a sequel to this book, "Romeo Redeemed", which carries on the story from Romeo's perspective. I liked "Juliet Immortal" enough that I wouldn't mind reading that.

[Nafiza · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Romeo, Romeo, where art thou Romeo?"
"Why, right here, my love!"
"Oh Romeo, whyfore dost thou kiss me so?"
"All the better to suck your soul away, my love."

I couldn't resist, okay! And I know Shakespeare is turning over in his grave (I feel obliged to apologise to Krystle too) but people, Romeo and Juliet! In a YA novel set in contemporary times. How awesome is that? And Romeo and Juliet on opposite side of the spectrum with Romeo batting for the bad guys! Even more awesome. But (and Shakespeare certainly did roll over for this one) Romeo and Juliet are out to annihilate each other. (You can't kill someone who's already dead. You have to annihilate them.) So yes, fantastic premise. I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into it and examine it in great detail and with great delight.

And I liked it. I did. It was very readable and there was only one thing that jumped out at me (which took away two stars) but honestly? As far as entertainment goes, it was very entertaining. Juliet has a strong, clean voice and I appreciated that she made time to work out her body's Mommy issues - and wow, yeah, body, host, you get the idea, right? I liked the atmosphere set, the absolutely chilling feeling that accompanies you when you see a ghost of yourself. Jay does this is all very well and I liked that she did it all very well. The mean girl trope sort of goes through a metamorphosis and changes in ways I'm not sure I approve of but apart from an occasional mutter about the stupidity of it all, it's not as offensive as it has the potential to be. And this is totally girly of me but the love interest? Totally swoon-inducing. At least to me. I thought he was hotness personified which might, in some way, explain this rambling thing that I'm trying to pass off as a review.

But. And you ought to have known it was coming.

The thing that detracted from the novel in a big way, in my opinion solely, is the deus ex machina (which, if you are like I was and clueless about what deus ex machina is, Wikipedia provides a definition: is a plot device whereby a seemingly inextricable problem is suddenly and abruptly solved with the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new event, character, ability, or object). The ending seemed too abrupt, too neat and way too contrived to be satisfying in any degree. It felt forced. I didn't like that. I really didn't. I mean, you go through the book trying to make your brain forget the fact that Juliet is, you know, 14 in a 16 year old's body but mentally more than a 100, wow, it gets convoluted but you make your Brain ignore that and then, the ending. And you are like...

Oh no... what? Where? How? WHY? (It's not a sad ending though.)

However, it seems that Romeo gets to have his own story so we should look forward to that. Well, I am anyway. Looking forward to it, I mean.

[Eve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Upon hearing about Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay- which turns the famous tragic love story on its ear – I was immediately desirous of it. I relished the notion of a kickass Juliet protecting true lovers and battling, rather than mooning over, an evil Romeo. I thought Juliet Immortal would be the novel for all those who had ever sacrificed everything for love only to find out they’ve been cruelly played. Can you tell I’m building up to a “but?”

Juliet Immortal strove for that to some extent BUT fell short of my very hopeful expectations.

I have never been a huge fan of the play. As my son said, it’s “kinda stupid” to kill yourself over someone else. “It’s all that friar’s fault,” he added. I agree.

And yet Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet have been the poster couple for ideal, romantic love for centuries.

"'O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright,' he whispers...

"That horrible play. That contemptible, lying play he helped Shakespeare pen all those hundreds of years ago when he first twisted our story to fit his agenda. It worked far too well. Shakespeare's enduring tragedy did its part to further the goals of the Mercenaries---glamorizing death, making dying for love seem the most noble act of all, though nothing could be further from the truth. Taking an innocent life---in a misguided attempt to prove love or for any other reason---is a useless waste."

Amen, sister! The Juliet of Juliet Immortal is full of anger, still punishing herself for loving a faithless Romeo. Who among us hasn’t fallen for the wrong guy – handsome, persuasive with false sincerity, full of poetic promises of forever? Only in Juliet’s case, the wrong guy got her to kill herself to secure his own eternal life.

Upon her death, Juliet was given a choice by an Ambassador of Light – to fight for their cause, which is to make sure that soulmates on earth come and remain together. Juliet commits herself to waking up every 50 or so years in someone else’s body and assuming her life, in order to protect true lovers. However, working against the Ambassadors of Light and soulmates are the Mercenaries. On their side is the dastardly Romeo, who continues to live – but only if he furthers the Mercenaries’ mission, which is to keep true lovers apart.

The setup is fantastic and our heroine and villain have dynamic scenes that crackle with electricity. Juliet is driven and fiesty, but not so bitter that she doesn’t believe in true love. After all, her sole purpose in the afterlife is to be a sort of avenging angel of lovers. And although strong, she is also portrayed as too self-sacrificing, a flaw which the author spotlights. It is both a comment on the original Juliet and a mirror to suggestive young girls who fall in love too hard, too fast for the first time.

Despite his evil ways, Romeo, like all seductive players, has the charming narcissism that leaves no doubt as to why Juliet fell for him in the first place. By the end of the book, my hatred for him in the beginning, upon seeing the ugly face behind the beautiful poetry, had changed to pity. I was pleased, though, that the author didn’t turn Juliet into the classic victim/heroine by having her fall back in love with Romeo all over again. In fact, Juliet grows from a place of fury and self-hatred to a more enlightened, even stronger person who thinks for herself rather than blindly loving or blindly following the rules.

Another aspect I loved was that Juliet (posing as teenage Ariel) had a parent. That was THERE. You know what I’m talking about, right? Teens in novels with mysteriously absent parents or clueless parents because the authors didn’t know how to write about those pesky parental units. Because in real life, unless you’re an orphan, parents usually get in their children’s business; they rarely stay off scene while their children’s lives are in obvious danger. They usually have at least a clue that something’s up. So thumbs up for Stacey Jay for actually writing about a mother-daughter relationship of depth within this supernatural tale.

Juliet’s blind love and self-sacrifice, the mother-daughter relationship, and the defiance of expectations are themes from the original play that are explored with a fresh take in Juliet Immortal. You’ll enjoy this reworking even without having read the play, but even more so if you have, especially with the clever interspersing of the quotes within the narrative, their original meanings seen in a new light.

So from where do my misgivings stem? I would think that since Juliet Immortal was set up as as an anithesis to the false love in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the love story in it would be more realistic and mature, showing our heroine’s growth. In the play Romeo and Juliet spy each other from across the room and fall in love at first sight. At least Juliet did and look where she ended up. So having learned that hard lesson years ago and being around soulmates for centuries, you would think that when she does fall in love again, it wouldn’t be the insta-love of her youth, right? Wrong. Insta-love part II.

The real tragedy is how YA books promote love at first sight as ideal and a surefire, tell-tale sign of true love. Real, true love takes time to build. Trust isn't, shouldn't be, instantaneous.

The role of the Ambassadors and Mercenaries confused me. I like the ambiguity of whether they were really good vs. evil or neither and just out for themselves. However, the structure and rules of this universe were puzzling.

Finally, the last scene just plain sucked. It was anti-climactic and had none of the beauty of the original play from which the chapter presumably followed.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay reexamines the Romeo and Juliet mythos. You see, Shakespeare gets it all wrong. Romeo and Juliet didn’t die for love. Instead, Romeo killed Juliet to get immortality as promised by these beings known as the Mercenaries. Yet, Romeo’s plans go awry when Juliet doesn’t stay dead and is offered a position fighting for love and soul mates on behalf of the side of good known as the Ambassadors. Over the centuries, Romeo and Juliet find each other in battle in different times and different places. This time, though, is different from all the others. They find themselves in CA, Juliet inhabits the body of an emotionally damaged teenage girl named Ariel. Instead of focusing on her mission, she begins to fall for a teenage boy she meets named Ben. Will Juliet trust her heart and learn to love again?

Read the rest of my review here

[Marla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this a really interesting concept. Juliet keeps going into bodies to help two soul mates to find each other. She has been doing it for 700 years. Romeo is on the other side and tries to take one of the soul mates to the dark side. This story is dark and creepy. I will say that Juliet drove me crazy at times. I read where several people hated the ending. I didn't mind it. I thought it made sense and set the story up for the second book. I think either you really like this story or you don't. You will have to decide.

[~Tina~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Oh this was so good! I haven't met a Stacey Jay book that I didn't like. All her books seem to have that spark that I crave in a good read. I've been so curious about this book for awhile now, I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to get to it.
Juliet Immortal would have to be one of my favorite retelling of the classic tale of Romeo and Juliet. I absolutely love the twist! Romeo and Juliet don't get a peaceful afterlife. Juliet is apart of the Ambassadors and Romeo is Mercenary. Juliet takes over the soul that she was sent to help while Romeo steals the bodies of the dead. She ensures that her assigned soul-mates find each other while He tries to rip them apart. But this shift seems different from all the rest. Former lovers turned sworn enemies who's been fighting each other through countless centuries find themselves in a new situation.
If Juliet can love Romeo again, will they find a way to turn their fate around and find happily ever after?
Only problem is, Juliet is already in love....

I had such a great time with this book!
It was so exquisitely moving. Ben and Ariel/Juliet's connection was breathtaking. I will admit that yes, after only three days this was a bit rushed, but I found it acceptable since it felt like it went along the same theme as the original story, so I didn't mind how fast it was. I just savored on the fact that it was forbidden and inevitable and achingly romantic.
Dylan/Romeo is so different then what I thought he would be about. I never expected such hatred and cruelty but I think I liked that spin the most. It was absolutely fascinating to see where this story would take us. I couldn't stand Gemma. At all and I'm glad that this book wasn't mostly about her.
My only slight issue I had was the ending. It was a good ending but it kinda of confused me as to why Juliet would get sent back in her own time to find happiness. I wished that it could have ended in the time she was already in. This isn't a huge deal and didn't stop me from loving this, but it made me frown none the less.

All in all, I loved this book! It's beautifully told with characters you want nothing but happiness for.
I'm really looking forward to diving into Romeo's story next in;
Romeo Redeemed!

[Jasprit · Rating 3 out of 5]

I seem to be going through a “selective book slump” (is that even possible???) where the only books I seem to be able to get into at the moment are Aussie Books. With everything else I’ve either struggled to get into or struggled to finish. The latter case was apparent with Juliet Immortal, it started off really well; Juliet finds herself in the borrowed body of Ariel Dragland covered in blood. She can remember from Ariel’s memories that she’s been in some sort of accident and that the guy she was out with; Dylan seems to be dead; but this isn’t the case she soon realises that Romeo has actually taken over Dylan’s body (Romeo as he is a mercenary of the apocalypse can take over bodies of people who have died, whereas Juliet as an ambassador of light can only take over the body of a living person.) With Romeo finding her so quickly in her new temporary body she knows she has to escape otherwise he will kill her. So then begins the chase, I must admit the chase had me excited for a little while, but after it was over for me the book kind of went downhill.

The whole idea of souls taking over different bodies and trying to kill each other initially reminded me a lot of My Name is Memory (which is one of my favourite books!) so as you can imagine I think I got a little too excited at the beginning of the book, because the rest of Juliet Immortal kind of let me down.; the way things panned out was a little too farfetched for me and the whole returning corpses just took it to a whole another level.

Sadly I didn’t enjoy Juliet Immortal as I’d hoped, Stacey Jay has produced a story with an interesting premise, but unfortunately (in my current state!) it was just not for me. Now all that’s left for me to do is get back to my Aussie books!

A big thank you to Emily for lending me her copy!

[starryeyedjen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Interesting spin on the original story, I suppose, but it never made all that much sense to me...or else I just didn't care? Plus, the insta-love. Oh, and it's narrated by Justine Eyre, though that aspect didn't bother me as much as it normally would, maybe because I sped up the playback so much that I couldn't hear that breathiness her performances usually hold.

I didn't really enjoy this one, and yet I still find myself wishing the sequel was on audio. Oh, well. Since it's not, I won't worry about it for now.

[TheBookSmugglers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally Reviewed on The Book Smugglers: http://thebooksmugglers.com/2011/08/b...

For centuries, Romeo and Juliet have been the ultimate symbol of tragic romance; the embodiment of love at any cost, the couple has been a touchstone for star-crossed lovers across countless generations. But what if the love that claimed the lives of these young lovers was actually a lie? What if, instead of killing themselves for love, there was a more sinister, supernatural plot afoot? What if Juliet was actually betrayed by her beloved and slain by his hand, an innocent sacrificed so that Romeo could achieve immortality? For the past seven hundred years, Juliet Capulet has fought against her former husband for the souls of pairs of lovers, because Romeo’s plan didn’t quite go as smoothly as expected. While Romeo willfully killed his bride in order to achieve immortality and entrance into the Mercenary ranks as an emissary of darkness, Juliet was also enlisted to the Ambassadors, those guardians of light diametrically opposed to the Mercenary cause. The pair are thrown into the bodies of mortals and are locked in a never-ending battle against each other: Romeo tries to convince soul mates to kill one another thus winning their souls for his cause, while Juliet does everything in her power to keep the soulmates safe and in love. Unfortunately, Romeo always seems to prevail.

Their latest assignment, however, is different than the countless others. This time, Juliet finds herself in the body of a teenage girl named Ariel – a girl with low self-esteem, only one friend, and an overbearing, critical mother. Ariel has just had the worst date of her life (after intercepting a text message from her date Dylan, who it turns out was only dating Ariel to win a bet to get her to sleep with him), and in her anger Ariel has caused a fatal car accident. Juliet takes over Ariel’s body just as she drives off the road, and, as fate would have it, Romeo takes over the body of her date Dylan after he is killed in the crash. As Juliet/Ariel desperately tries to flee Romeo/Dylan’s gleeful violence, she finds help in the form of a teenage boy driving a passing car. Instantly, Juliet feels a connection to this boy, Ben, but she knows better than to let herself get distracted from her mission. And yet, there’s something about Ben that she cannot ignore. When she finally discovers who the pair of soulmates are, however, Juliet’s job becomes infinitely harder – because the pair she must protect is her troubled best friend Gemma…and Ben. Added to this emotional turmoil, Juliet senses that there’s something very different this time around, and she begins to listen to Romeo’s warnings that their time is almost up. As Juliet questions the Ambassadors and the mission she has dutifully carried out for centuries, she also finds herself in the middle of another star-crossed romance, as the relationship between her and Ben blossoms into true love.

Phew. Juliet Immortal, the new novel from YA author Stacey Jay, is a complicated ode to true love, despite all obstacles. Let me just reiterate how cool the concept of this book is. I loved Juliet’s characterization, and this unique spin on one of the Bard’s most prolific tragedies. Take Juliet’s words to heart:

That horrible play. That contemptible, lying play he helped Shakespeare pen all those hundreds of years ago when he first twisted our story to fit his agenda. It worked far too well. Shakespeare’s enduring tragedy did its part to further the goals of the Mercenaries – glamorizing death, making dying for love seem the most noble act of all, though nothing could be further from the truth. Taking an innocent life – in a misguided attempt to prove love or for any other reason – is a useless waste.

Awesome, right? The interesting thing is, for all that Juliet Immortal is based on Juliet’s rage at having been duped by Romeo in a whirlwind romance that culminated in her death, it’s a little odd to see that in this book, 700 years in the future, the same pattern repeats itself. Again. Juliet falls almost instantly in love with Ben (who also falls almost instantly in love with her). I don’t hold that against the book, though – this simply was not what I was expecting when I picked up Juliet Immortal (I was thinking more of an urban fantasy, fight to the death, epic battle sort of thing). Instead of truly turning Romeo and Juliet on its head or denouncing the play, this novel cleverly subverts its source material by reinterpreting the players and rewriting the ending. Ultimately, Juliet Immortal finds a way to take the impulsive, all-consuming romance of Romeo and Juliet and reinterpret it for a contemporary era with a wiser, stronger heroine. Unlike her fourteen year old counterpart, this version of Juliet knows that the relationship she had with Romeo was starry-eyed adoration fueled by obsession and not real love. She has grown and has learned from her mistakes. This time around, Ms. Jay gives Juliet a chance at true love, but allows her to make different choices – she involves her mother and confesses her feelings (YAY for present parents in YA), she doesn’t go along with half-cocked plans of elopement, and, most importantly, both Juliet and Ben fall in love with each other as equals and true soulmates. It’s all very meta, really (there’s even a school play within this book, in which Romeo and Juliet play characters – West Side Story, naturally).

The reason why Juliet Immortal truly works, though, is because of the strength of its heroine. This is another character-driven novel, in which an angry, bitter Juliet finds a way to believe in love again and come to a sense of self-enlightenment by learning to forgive. Over the course of the book, it becomes clear that Juliet’s rage and anger is not solely directed at Romeo, and the strength of this revelation is an incredibly empowering message. As much as this is a novel about falling in love against all odds and logic, it’s also a book about self love and acceptance. That, dear readers, is really, really cool. I also loved that Romeo is given enough dimension to make him seem real and not a villainous/evil character for evil’s sake. Rather, Romeo is charming and dangerous, selfishly narcissistic, and yet there are redeeming qualities to his character (as misguided as he might be). The only character that I felt needed more development was Ben, Juliet’s new love interest. While we are given glimpses of his past, his falling in love with Juliet seemed a little too quick, and his character a tad undercooked.

The other faltering aspects of the book lay with the worldbuilding and plotting, especially as the book builds to a dramatic ending. From a worldbuilding point of view, I love the ideas of Mercenaries and Guardians, however these two warring factions remained mostly anonymous and undefined throughout the book. Big Boss level Mercs and Ambassadors finally show up late in the novel (mostly to propel the plot and lead the book to said dramatic conclusion), but we don’t learn much more about them, why they exist, or what their real goals are. There is some discussion of ulterior motives all around, but it all felt rather underdeveloped. Also, though I loved the choice that Juliet ultimately makes at the book’s climax, I really wasn’t a fan of her last chapter. Although I loved the spirit of the chapter, I hated the cheesiness. I should note that in contrast, Romeo’s last chapter was pretty awesome.

Though not without its weaknesses, Juliet Immortal managed to surprise me and, ultimately, win me over. Although the book isn’t quite what one would expect given the premise of the novel, it’s a beautiful story of self-discovery and the ability to love, even in the face of impossible adversity. Easily the best paranormal YA romance that I have read in a very long time, I wholeheartedly recommend Juliet Immortal to lovers of romance, and to those who long for a more empowered heroine in this very popular genre.

[Hannah McBride · Rating 5 out of 5]

To say that this book completely blew me away in surprise is such a gross understatement that I hesitate to even say it. I figured this book would be something the romantic in me would enjoy, but by the end I had positively swooned. I never wanted this end. Stacey Jay took the story of Romeo and Juliet and twisted it around completely—and in the best way possible.

I almost feel like I need to include a little warning label because there is quite a bit of sexuality in this book. I probably wouldn’t hand this book to a thirteen-year-old, but a sixteen-year-old? Absolutely. It’s a great way to get teenagers interested in Shakespeare and more involved in their classes (most public school in the U.S. cover Romeo and Juliet in high school). This is a fantastic book to recommend to teens and adults alike.

Juliet is a devastatingly caring girl. Tasked with uniting lovers and protecting love itself, she almost seems like the eternal optimist. I loved her from the start. She is such an easy character to adore. Centuries later, the betrayal she still feels from Romeo’s actions, is visceral.

And Romeo, Romeo. From his first interactions with Juliet, I was mesmerized. I had such a hard time hating him because his actions were not as cut and dry as the synopsis makes them out to be. There are so many layers to him and a depth I didn’t imagine possible. I was torn the whole book between cheering for him and wanting him to fail miserably.

This is a book for romance lovers. It is lyrical and magical and I simply could not get enough. I could have read this book forever.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looks like I'm the black sheep amongst my friends. Alas.

[mich · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quantum Leap meets Match.com

So...this was a hard book to rate - some aspects of this story are great, but the bad stuff is really, REALLY bad.

I love the whole idea of Romeo and Juliet being enemies. The scenes where they were trying to kill each other in the opening chapters were awesome! Romeo was so very psychotic, I loved that. I liked Juliet's character for the most part as well - a girl betrayed by her former love, she is serious and driven and now lives only to fulfill her duties.

And her duties are...to help people find true love (a little lame, but whatever. Fits into the whole Romeo & Juliet theme). So every 50 years or something like that, she "shifts" into a stranger's body, assumes that person's identity, guides that person to find their soul mate, then shifts out with the person coming back into their own body to live happily ever after with their true love. And Romeo magically pops up each time to try to thwart her efforts. Except this time, there's something odd about the shift, and both Romeo and Juliet know that nothing will ever be the same again.

So, not bad right? Pretty interesting premise, good characters, tolerable plot. But here's where it gets bad for me -- the ending. Was so dumb. Seriously dumb. I was very unhappy with Juliet's happy ending - it came about in an unbelievably unbelievable way. Alternate universes? REALLY?? Such a cop out! Such a CHEESY cop out. In addition, all the other plot elements disintegrated into a jumbled mess.

Well, it's got a beautiful cover, with a lovely title. I waited until this came out on paperback to buy it instead of doing my normal kindle purchase. Looks pretty on the bookshelf, but wish this cool idea had been executed better. Won't be reading the sequel.

[Nihan D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sonu mutsuz biten bir aşkın daha da trajik olabilmesi için ne gerekir? Sanırım bedenlerinden ayrıldıktan sonra ruhlarının başına gelenlerin anlatılması... Romeo ve Juliet için karanlık bir ölümden sonrası hayal etmiş yazar. Anlatımı beğendim ve çeviriden kaynaklı anlam bozukluğu olsa da akıcılıkla bir sorun yaşamadım. Ben'de güçlü bir karakter ama Romeo benim için her zaman asıl kahraman olarak kalacak.

[Cory]

Never in a million years would I have thought I'd put a retelling of R+J on my TR list. This better be good because it sounds awesome.

Plus, the title isn't half bad. And I like the cover, despite the font.

[Rachel (The Rest Is Still Unwritten)]

Sounds like a very different, twisted take on Romeo and Juliet. Can't wait!

[Danielle]

Another book due in September (do publishers want returning students to ignore their studies???) Sounds quite intriguing, and the few reviews on this site liked it.

[Susana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark, original and romantic
A very original idea that the author developed. Beautiful writing in a story that doesnt let go, until you have finished it. It was the last book that i read on 2011, and a story that i wont soon forget.

On the cover you can read:" The greatest love story ever told is a lie."

Juliet Capulet didn't kill herself, she was killed by her husband, Romeo Montague. Whom, in a way to achieve immortality decided to sacrifice Juliet. What he wasn't expecting, was that the same thing would be granted to Juliet.

In this book there isn't a God, or angels or even demons. There's two factions: The embassadors of light where Juliet belongs and the Mercenaries where one can find Romeo. For centuries now, the two ex-lovers have fought one another. She in the hope of saving soul mates destined to meet one another, and Romeo trying to do exactly the opposite. Trying to destroy them as he did, with is one true love.
But this time everything is different. For starters those two are completely alone on their mission without any kind of support, and also their powers have been greatly reduced.

So, this time Juliet is Ariel, a disturbed young lady who in a moment of anger decides to throw her car down a cliff. Aries isn't killed, but temporarily her body will be taken over by Juliet who will try to make her life a little better, while at the same time will try to join a couple of soul mates.
Alongside Ariel in the car, was Dylan, who dies, allowing Romeo to take his place...so once again, the fight between the cursed lovers will start all over again.

But this time while being Ariel, Juliet will get to know Ben. Ben who is everything Romeo isn't. Ben with whom, Juliet will fall in love breaking all the rules that the embassadors of light have to follow.

But when faced with a last chance to break the curse he condemned himself to, Romeo will do anything in his power to get Juliet back. Even if that means killing her.

I loved reading about Juliet/Ariel, she was determined and strong, a perfect character.

About the ending,i have to say that i was not expecting it _ so,..... so much the better!
I'm looking forward to the next book "Romeo Redeemed".



Na capa lê-se: A maior história de amor alguma vez contada é uma mentira". Juliet Capulet não se matou, foi sim assassinada pelo seu marido Romeo Montague. De modo a obter a imortalidade Romeo sacrificou Juliet. O que não esperava era que também ela obtesse a imortalidade. Neste livro não existe um Deus, ou anjos e demónios. Existem duas facções: _ Os Embaixadores da luz a que Juliet pertence, e os mercenários onde Romeo se conta. Durante séculos os dois amantes tem-se combatido. Ela na esperança de salvar almas gémeas destinadas a se encontrarem, e ele tentando-as destruir como fez com o seu próprio amor. Mas desta vez tudo é diferente. Os poderes que ambos possuem diminuiram consideravelmente e pela primeira vez não têm ajuda de ninguém. Desta vez Juliet é Ariel, uma jovem perturbada que num momento de raiva atira o carro onde segue por uma ravina. Ariel não morre, mas temporariamente será Juliet que irá ocupar o seu corpo, tentando melhorar um pouco a sua vida, até que aquela regresse, enquanto ao mesmo tempo tentará juntar um casal de almas gémeas. No carro com Ariel seguia Dylan, que ao morrer permite a Romeo ocupar o seu lugar. E mais uma vez a luta entre o casal amaldiçoado continuará. Mas agora enquanto Ariel, Juliet conhecerá Ben. Ben que é tudo o que Romeo não é. Ben por quem Juliet se apaixonará, quebrando todas as regras daquilo que a faz ser uma Embaixadora da Luz. Mas face a uma última oportunidade de quebrar a maldição a que se condenou, Romeo tudo fará para recuperar Juliet. Nem que a tenha de matar. A autora tem uma escrita e uma imaginação que nos enreda e só nos liberta após o término do livro. Adorei. Agora só falta aguardar que o livro "Romeo Redeemed" saia no próximo ano.

[Torzilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since I am running on zero hours of sleep as I write this review (woo hoo all nighter!!), I'll leave the "intelligent" blabbering for another day. It's bullet point time.

**PLEASE NOTE: There are some spoilers mentioned in this review, but I have made it obvious where these points are so you can skim past and continue reading the non-spoilery segments**


PROS
1) The cover and back cover blurb intrigued me enough to actually *want* to read this book without researching it in advance (read: checking any and all available reviews before requesting it).

2) I stayed up all night to finish reading JULIET IMMORTAL. There was a reason for me pulling an all-nighter--I found candy at about 1AM, got a super bad sugar rush, and the next thing I knew, I was 3/4 done with the book and it was 4:30AM. Awesome that time flew by, and it was even better that JI was a quick and relatively painless read.

3) The writing redeemed the weaknesses of the book. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for future works by Stacey Jay.


CONS
1) The logic in this world is severely lacking. I won't reveal any spoilers, but Juliet's death raised a red flag for me. Likewise, Juliet's ability to see auras (or not see them at certain times), could have been developed further. By the end, I was left feeling incredulous... Juliet is how old? Shouldn't she be a bit more experienced with seeing this kind of stuff by now?

2) There were a few cop-outs--particularly by the ending, which I was not entirely satisfied with. What was the point of the story if the "gods" could simply transport the characters to an alternate universe in the end? That was too convenient for me.

3) Too many "I love yous." If I had to read that line one more time... To make it worse, the "instant connection-that's-more-like-I-LOVE-YOU-EVEN-THOUGH-I-JUST-MET-YOU" I dread in books played a prominent role in JULIET IMMORTAL. Juliet and Ben's relationship wasn't very convincing for me. An instant connection at first sight, followed by true love after three days with minimal interactions between the two? Romeo and Juliet interacted more than Juliet/Ben did. And then by the end of the book where she remembers Ben, but he doesn't remember her... and yet he can't keep his hands off her, despite the fact that he knew she married Romeo? My head is spinning just thinking about this.

4) Romeo would have been more interesting had he been kept a villain. I wasn't entirely convinced of his transformation into a "redeeming" character. The ending was also... I suppose it set the scene for a second book in this series, and while Romeo was an intriguing character otherwise, I'm not buying his sudden swap.


Despite the complaints, JULIET IMMORTAL was not a bad read; Juliet was a great character to follow, which I think was more important for me. Because I was able to connect with her, I breezed through the novel at a supersonic speed. I also loved how the author took Romeo & Juliet's story and made it her own. Some parts of the execution could have been better, but this YA was a lot more enjoyable compared to a lot of the other releases out in the market right now.

I'd recommend this book to most fans of the YA genre. JULIET IMMORTAL is a fun twist on the Romeo & Juliet story that I think a lot of readers will enjoy. As for those who are a bit more... critical of YAs as of late, if you can overlook the cons I listed, you may enjoy this; otherwise, I would suggest borrowing a copy from a friend or from the library if you want to read it that badly.

[♥ Rebecca ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review can also be found on my blog: A Match Made in Heaven

I really didnt expect to enjoy this as much as I did. I am usually not a fan of retellings. But this book was crazy intense! As you can probably guess from a book that deals with love and death. And all the supernatural elements were almost overwhelming in there awesomeness. It was one of the most surprisingly original books I have read in a long time. Just change the names from Romeo and Juliet to something else and you wouldnt even be able to tell it was a retelling. If you love YA romance with intense emotions and life or death situations, this is for you!

I also love all the characters. Ben most of all, of course. I love a guy with a protective temper. And Juliet. And even Ariel even though we hardly got to know her but we saw the life she lived through Juliet. And Romeo. I could not stop myself from falling for Romeo a little bit too, even though he is a psychopath. His life had just been so sad and miserable. He was a tad pathetic at times but I cant really blame him after everything he's been through. Maybe I should be blaming him, but I dont.

But there were several things I didnt understand. Why didnt Nurse appear to explain things to Juliet earlier ? When she finally did, she said it wasnt happening quickly enough, and I still dont know what she was talking about or what Juliet was suppose to be accomplishing. And then Nurse showed her how she died the first time, and I dont understand what really happened. What were the circumstances surround her death and how did she end up in the tomb? Why was Romeo pretending to be dead and what did he expect to happen?

The ending was good but not perfect, but maybe I am being too picky. They were better off where they ended up, where no one knew where they were and no one was after them. But I wish things could have been different where Ben is concerned. And I guess that might be another thing that I didnt fully understand. What exactly happened to Ben? Was that the same person? They had a lot of chemistry throughout the book, but I think they hit it off a little too quickly in the end. It felt forced compared to the first time they met in Ben's truck, where you could really see the sparks flying. But I guess that moment isnt everything. I have the proof of all the book up to that point that they are meant to be. There is no denying their chemistry, Ben's intensity, or Juliet's pure devotion. And I cannot wait to see more of this world in Romeo Redeemed and more of the great supporting characters.

[Kavanand (Reading for Two) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Juliet Immortal is an interesting twist on the story of the world's most famous star-crossed lovers. In this version of the tale, Romeo killed Juliet so he could become immortal. But Juliet survived and became an Ambassador, an immortal being who brings soulmates together and protects them from the forces of darkness, the Mercenaries, who want to drive a wedge between soulmates and bring them over to the dark side.

Juliet exists in a misty place outside of time, except for when she's sent back to Earth to help soulmates preserve their love. Unfortunately, Romeo is always there, seeking to destroy her once again. When he traded her life for immortality, he became a Mercenary. Juliet wakes up in the body of Ariel Dragland, a shy, scarred teenager. Romeo has found a body too, becoming Dylan, the handsome but cruel boy who's been tormenting Ariel.

As Ariel, Juliet tries to find the soulmates she's been sent to protect before Romeo can get to them. But this time, things seem different than her previous missions. She's lost her connection to the Ambassadors, and she's met a young man who might just be her soulmate, if she can save him and herself from Romeo and the Mercenaries.

This is a really interesting take on the story of Romeo and Juliet. I had some minor issues with the Mercenaries and Ambassadors, as the world building felt a little weak in places, but the overall story worked very well. Juliet is a sympathetic heroine, and I liked the way the author has taken a well-known story and twisted it to make it something entirely new. It's a very original story, and I really enjoyed it.

(I received a copy of this book from Amazon Vine.)

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never been the biggest fan of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, so that might be why I actually liked this book. I just loved the unique twist to the classic story, and it kept me thoroughly entertained. And that ending! It made me smile. I flew through book, and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in the series.

4 stars

[Parajunkee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Juliet Immortal

As a new trend goes, retellings come and go in fits and starts...we've recently gone through a mass retellings of fairy-tales, then Greek mythologies, but one that seems to stay with us a lot are the retellings of Shakespeare stories. Might as well right? Better than another retelling of Dracula. And from a retelling POV this one was original. At least they just didn't recycle the story and put it in modern times...it just well was a retelling. Where my blasé attitude stems from, I'll put it in perspective via an analogy, which I so love. It's like a remix of a great song, think BLACK EYED PEAS – The Time (Dirty Bit) which is sampling of Time Of My Life by Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes. We've gone from “Don't put Baby in the corner...” an endless love to drunk escapades and some sl*t puking in the corner. The song may hit, I might want to jump around the house like a lunatic when it comes on – but the BLACK EYED PEAS don't own it. It didn't manifest out of their genius – and the beat might hit, it won't chime endless in the consciousness of a generation. Yeah, yeah, I know big words, some are probably thinking “stuff it”. Yet, I must say IMHO, you can't be EPIC with a retelling.

The story of Romeo and Juliet is retold in JULIET IMMORTAL. Dark forces are pitted against the light as the dark strives to end the love of soul mates by turning one soul mate against the other in pursuit of eternal life. The story of Romeo and his young bride Juliet in reality was much different. Young lovers, from rival households they did fall in love, against the wishes of their family and they did marry – but shortly after their wedding vows, Romeo killed Juliet in pursuit of eternal life. As Juliet bled to death, she cursed Romeo's name and was given the task, by the light, to reverse all the damage he would try to do as an agent of the dark. Her ultimate goal – bring soul mates together in true love and not have their stories end like hers. You would believe it to be easy, but Romeo is determined to bring souls over to his side and he doesn't play fair.

When Juliet is brought to life this last time – something is different. She is having trouble contacting her handler, a woman she calls Nurse and she doesn't seem to have the powers she is usually imbued with. On top of the strange environment, she also is helped along by a very handsome young man who she is instantly attracted to even though she knows she must fight her feelings. There is no way she can have feelings for a boy, she isn't even in possession of her own body and his aura might hint that he is one of her soul mates...nothing is going as it should for Juliet – even Romeo is acting strangely and hinting at them working together. Romeo her sworn enemy, her soul mate.

First let me tell you what I liked about Juliet Immortal, I did like the twist, I thought it was rather sick and not all flowers and petticoats. I liked Juliet's character, I thought she had spunk. I thought the story line was compelling and I was flipping through the pages to get to the end. The author also kept me on my toes with twists in the plot. I think she did do an excellent job.

What I didn't like about the book was the underlying concept, it wasn't as believable as I would have liked. Just in the end it didn't click, it was just like all of a sudden the dark side was like WHOOSH and over whelmed everything and gave up on their pursuit without a real explanation. Just a few more t's had to be crossed – and the ending was just, well, aligned. My overall thoughts are, while this book was entertaining and kept me going, it was shallow without a properly flushed out plot.

Recommendations:
For language and sexual references along with violence it is recommended that readers have a bit of maturity before partaking. Recommended for fans of Romeo and Juliet and retellings in general. This might be a good transition from contemporary young adult romance to paranormal romance.

Like this Like That:
Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini
Everlasting (Immortals) by Alyson Noël