This much anticipated sequel to the New York Times Bestseller Impossible a fantasy full of suspense, mystery, and romance will appeal to fans of Beautiful Creatures, Raven Boys, and Wicked Lovely.
Fenella was the first Scarborough girl to be cursed, hundreds of years ago, and she has been trapped in the faerie realm ever since, forced to watch generations of daughters try to break this same faerie curse that has enslaved them all. But now Fenella’s descendant, Lucy, has accomplished the impossible and broken the curse, so why is Fenella still trapped in Faerie?
In her desperation, Fenella makes a deal with the faerie queen: If she can accomplish three acts of destruction, she will be free, at last, to die. What she doesn't realize is that these acts must be aimed at her own family and if she fails, the consequences will be dire, for all of the Scarborough girls.
How can she possibly choose to hurt her own cherished family not to mention the new man whom she’s surprised to find herself falling in love with? But if she doesn’t go through with the tasks, how will she manage to save her dear ones?
Nancy Werlin writes young adult fiction: New York Times–bestselling fantasy, Edgar-award winning suspense, and National Book Award-honored realistic novels.
Nancy's newest book is the comedy ZOE ROSENTHAL IS NOT LAWFUL GOOD.
I'm giving this book a low score. Not because it is badly written, but because it was so hard to read a book where the main task is to destroy everything. In Impossible, we fell in love with that family and their love and strength as they worked together to break the curse. Why would I want to read a book that tears that all apart? Short answer: I don't.
I didn't love Impossible. I read because I love Scarborough Fair and I thought it would be awesome (it wasn't). And I read this one because I hoped it would be better (and also because I won it).
This book was almost amazing. I loved Fenella. She was so single-minded (a lot like me) and willing to do almost anything to get what she wants. I also loved Ryland, mostly for his snarky cat comments.
I did have a problem with it. A really big problem.
It was the romance. Why do authors so consistently ruin a good book with a crappy romance? Remember what I said about Fenella being single-minded? She was--right up until she saw some hot guy and went running after him. It drove me crazy. It almost ruined the book completely for me. (And it was borderline inappropriate. I get that Fenella is four hundred years old and all, but that scene in the woods totally creeped me out.)
My other nitpick was the second task. I hated the way she resolved it. The dog would have been perfect.
And OH MY GOSH that stick scene?! HAS THE WOMAN NEVER SEEN A STICKSHIFT? She only mentions the clutch once and then Fenella kills it--once--in third gear. What in the world?
And, while I know I'm probably the only one in the world (major but incredibly predictable)
Unthinkable is the companion to Nancy Werlin's Impossible, and the third novel she has written that revolved around the fairy intrigues she started in the first one. I'd like to first off say that I was a huge fan of Impossible. It has been a long time since I read it, enough to where I'm actually slightly hazy on what exactly about it was so amazing, I just remember being entranced. When I found out there was a sequel I was very excited t read it, but I'm sad to say that I was very disappointed.
It was interesting I'll give it that. I had only a little trouble getting started with it and then I finished it in a few days. However, I was not blown away as I was with it's predecessor.
I thought Fenella was dumb frankly, dumb and selfish. I mean after everything that family went through to break the curse, and then she almost screws everything up on an impulse because she wants to die? I wanted to slap her from beginning to end. I mean seriously? Male a deal with fairies and agree before even knowing the full stipulations. I mean come on! She didn't even have a right to be upset when it bit her in the ass. Especially considering the queen of the fairies OFFERS to let her go back to earth and live out her abnormally long existence surrounded by her family, and then when Fenella still says no warns her that she might want to be more careful about agreeing.
I suppose there could be some in between the line comment on how selfish and destructive suicide is in refection on how it effects the people you leave behind, but I'm not really buying that. In any case I never got to liking Fenella.
*WARNING* *SPOILERS AHEAD* *TRIGGER WARNING: discussion of rape*
When she wavered on her path of destruction, not wanting to hurt her family because she cared for them, I almost liked her. But all that was ruined by the intimate moment between her and Walker. First off why? Was it really necessary in the middle of everything that was going on? It was like she felt entitled to him just because she thought she was going to die, which last I checked isn't the way it works. The whole event was random and awkward;y placed and I think the novel could have done without it. Secondly, there was way too much NO being stated in that scene for me to be comfortable with. The whole thing was made out to be romantic, but it just felt wrong. After all the emphasis on how wrong Padraig was for his forcing himself on all the Scarborough women, there mentally or physically, and yet it's suppose to be okay when Fenella does it? As they say, no means no. No matter what Walker felt for her, or how attracted they were, she basically forced herself on him when he wasn't ready or in any mind for that step. Yes, at the last moment she waited for consent, but that was after ignoring the first dozen times he implicitly told her no. If he hadn't consented, as far as I'm concerned that would be rape. As it was it was still showing that pushing someone into loving you is okay. To bring the fiasco of a moment full circle, afterwards he intimates that he doesn't want it to be real, or to count and doesn't matter. To me those are not the words of someone who wanted sex. Her defensive replies that he wanted it and that he enjoyed himself just nailed it home for me. Those weren't words of someone who is your lover, those are words of an aggressor, an assailant, a rapist. How many suffering victims of abuse or sexual assault have had to hear someone say that they wanted it? Too many. If the role was reversed and it was Walker doing this to Fenella it would totally not be alright, but because Fenella is a woman, her abusive behavior is somehow overlooked.
Now, I'm not saying that Fenella did rape Walker. In the end he did consent. I just feel like the whole tenor of the moment was wrong. Something like forcing yourself on someone shouldn't be romanticized, especially in a YA book. Everyone has their kinks, and there are books out there to satisfy that, but a book like this geared towards a young and easily influenced audience is not that place. Let's not forget that because of a certain series I shall not name, a generation of young people think extremely controlling partners to the ppoint of stalking, is something attractive and hot. Going into someone's house as night and watching someone sleep is not hot, it is scary and wrong. Having sex with someone who is clearly not ready for it and says no is not hot, it is scary and wrong.Many people still believe men cannot be abused by women, and moments like in this story back that up. Not only that, but it throws a soft light on date rape, and rape in relationships. Those things can and do happen more than anyone wants to admit to, and portraying it as romantic love.
So yeah, there isn't much that speaks on behalf of Fenella, and the fact that the plot glosses over and excuses her many many transgressions in the story just makes it worse. She was dumb and impulsive to begin with, which caused the whole mess that supplies the story for the novel. At best she was self-serving, at worst unstable and abusive. I like flawed character as much as the next reader, but that only works if the writing is up front about the problems. If the writing acts like it is not a problem, readers can get the impression that it isn't a problem. The responsibility is with the writer to understand what they are putting into the world and the consequences that holds. This is even more important when writing for young audiences
On a lesser note, I would also like to as that the Walker plot device and the loophole it consequently presented was really weak and slightly outlandish. I could see the author had set it up from the beginning, so I wasn't blindsided by it, but it was still a bit much. You know when you lose the believability of your reader during a fairy tale, you're doing something wrong.
Gah. I'm just gonna say that I hated this book. Seeing the old characters brought back from Impossible was nice, but Fenalla was just plain annoying. I could understand why she did all this and all that, but I still hated her. And her whole thing with Walker, puhleeeaase, that just made me "fast-forward" several pages. I don't need to read stuff like that, and I thought he was being really dumb too. The only thing I liked about this book was Ryland being stuck as a cat. That was fricking hilarious!!!! XD And also awesome payback I thought from Extraordinary.
After having recently read Impossible Impossible, I decided that I might as well read Unthinkable since I happened to spot a copy of it in my local library. And man did I regret starting on this book because there's really nothing here that makes this book likeable at all. Somehow I managed to finish the book but I seriously regretted the hours that I spent on it.
Unthinkable is a sort of prequel, sort of sequel to where we left off from Impossible Impossible, in that we get to meet the Scarborough ancestress Fenella, who was the first girl who was ever cursed. However, due to a twist of events, Fenella is still alive (unlike the other Scarborough girls) and will remain eighteen for a long time. Having lived through so much, Fenella's understandably pissed off at this deal and wants to die. However, in order to do so, she will have to complete three tasks. The consequence for not finishing what's she started? The old curse gets reactivated and all the girls from her family will have to serve as the creepy, creepy Pradaig Seely's consort, as they had in the past.
I will start with the good points first: (1) That the focus is very much on completing the tasks in this book. In the first book there were times when I was wondering when/whether the tasks were even going to be completed because the whole tasks thing seemed to be more of a subplot to the relationship-stuff that was going on. (2) I liked the Werlin included the characters in from the first book as well as Mallory and Ryland from Extraordinary Extraordinary. It was pretty cool how she linked together the different strands from these three books. I really liked Fenella's interactions with Ryland (when he got turned as a cat) as well, it was cute and funny.
HOWEVER, there are so many problems with this book. The major one being that I found Fenella to be a totally flat character, whose attention span seems to be that of a goldfish or something. She gets sidetracked by Walker, a cute veterinarian student who's close to the Scarborough family, gets weirdly into automobiles and how they work. All the while being angsty over the fact that the tasks that she has to do will hurt the family that she's recently returned to. Despite all that angst though she doesn't seem to put a great deal of thought into the tasks that she wants to do.
Fenella's backstory was very sympathetic however. The first encounter that she had with Pradaig was so deliciously sinister and the fact that she really had no idea what she had gotten herself into was so poignant and sad. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like she's grown from that encounter. Despite having lived for centuries Fenella doesn't seem to have grown up at all and her train of thought (as I mentioned earlier) still seems very simplistic and so flawed.
The romance was so strange and seemed so tacked-on. I didn't get Walker's fascination with Fenella and I really hated the way that the relationship developed.
The ending seemed like a cliffhanger as well, with Werlin leaving so much left to be resolved and open to the reader. I guess I would've been okay with such an ending if the rest of the book didn't let me down so much :(
Hmm. .. not sure what to say about this one. (Besides, high school friends: don't read it--not appropriate, imo.) Torn between 2 and 3 stars. Gave it 3 because I did stay up until 2 am to finish it.
Basically, take everything you love about Impossible and destroy it.
Fenella, the first Scarborough girl,has been kept alive by another spell cast by Padraig and has been forced to watch her descendents suffer and fail to break the curse for 400 years. When Lucy breaks the curse, Fenella expects to die and is looking forward to it. When she realizes she is not just going to pass away quietly, she feels angry and misused. (Part of the spell is that she cannot kill herself, no matter how hard she tries.) So misused that she engineers a audience with the new queen of faerie to beg her for death.
The queen tells her that the spell is complicated, and can only be undone if Fenella undertakes another bargain: this time, she must perform three acts of destruction to counterbalance the original curse's three acts of creation. Fenella agrees instantly, without waiting to hear all the terms. The twists: all three acts must be carried out against her own family, and if at any point she fails, she will be returned to Padraig to be his slave once again.
Back in the mortal realm, and with a transformed troublemaker prince in tow (and in disguise as a cat), Fenella is immediately welcomed by Lucy and her family.
From the author's notes, it is clear that this book came about as a combination of several separate ideas. I think the main problem is not the two ideas she cites but the attempt to modify Fenella's story (not saying if it's for good or ill). From the first, the problem of a 400 year old character in an 18-year-old's body is problematic. I just didn't buy Fenella as someone that old. For starters, you'd think she'd either gain some wisdom or be totally insane. Instead, she felt pretty much like a "typical" worldly teenager with raging hormones.
Anyway, parts of this book worked well, and I did like seeing all the backstory elements. But the modern-day parts just had you wanting to shake her by the shoulders and knock some sense into her. I would say I was compelled to finish it, but mostly I just needed to know that the author was not going to do anything else horrible to our characters. There was a direction I was hoping she'd take it, but she didn't. Also, the first two ideas Fenella had for the tasks were ones that popped into my mind as soon as I heard the task. I feel like they should have been more subtle or something.
Four hundred years ago, Fenella was to become the first Scarborough girl to be cursed and trapped in Faerie. For generations, her female decedents tried to break the same curse and now that Lucy has done the impossible and broken the curse, Fenella wants to know why she is still stuck in Faerie. She makes a new deal with the faerie queen. If she can complete three acts of destruction, then she will finally be free and be able to die. Unfortunately, after she agrees to the new deal she learns that the acts of destruction must be aimed at her family in order to count. If she fails, it will also affect all of the Scarborough girls.
Unthinkable is not only a great sequel to Impossible, it is also a companion story to Extraordinary. The tie in between the novels is accomplished seamlessly. Readers of Extraordinary will delight in the underlying meaning of certain references, but these references will not deter from the story if the reader has only read Impossible. Werlin shows the reader why the original Scarborough curse occurred and takes the tale to a whole new level. Fenella failed the first time and cursed her family for generations. Will she find the strength within herself to succeed in this second challenge? I highly recommend this novel to readers of faerie fantasies and fairy tale retellings.
I did not like this one as much as Impossible, mostly because I did not like Fenella and her choices as much. Lucy had no choice but to fight the curse, and she had to create to do that - Fenella chose to destroy, selfishly, and chose the worst way to do it. Particularly since she could have just walked away. I couldn't really get over that choice, the rejection of the offer to be free and not hurt anyone, especially as her later choices did not get much better. This story does end with hope, but that hope could have been a true happy ending if not for her own selfish stupidity.
Cleanreaders: One none-explicit sex scene, an aborted seduction, deliberate destruction (arson, car accident)
Okay so when I found out there was a sequel I was a little worried because Impossible was perfect but it did leave me with some questions. So I go on a mini vacation and come back to Unthinkable in my mail box and I start jumping for joy because no more school and no more reading for classes so I would be able to enjoy it straight away. I had to read another book first and that was okay because that book was epic and then when I finished that book I started on Unthinkable and man oh man can I say that Nancy you have done it girl! You have written a GREAT sequel and I devoured it in eight hours. I sat there glued to the pages laughing one minute and then screaming the next because there were so many things going on that I could not keep up and then oh man there was this one scene that had my blood boiling and I just wanted to jump through the book and slap someone right upside the head.
So enough rambling on about the story and let's get to the review. So we already know that Lucy has broken the curse and she and Zach and their daughter are safe but are they? Remember reading about Lucy's descendants who did not break the curse well Fenella was the first Scarborough daughter to fail at breaking the curse and she is pissed off because she is still stuck in faerie land. If the curse is broken what is the problem why is she still away from her family. Upset Fenella goes to the faerie Queen and makes a deal with her to do three bad deeds in exchange for her freedom. The queen agrees and Fenella is finally happy but when she realizes that the deeds she has to do are to her own family she is pissed off that the queen tricked her. She will have to do three acts of destruction towards her family. Will Fenella do it? Or will she stay in Faerie land?
This sequel had me on the tip of my seat waiting to see what would happen to Lucy and Zach and their daughter and the whole Scarborough clan because Fenella made a deal with queen and she will have to follow through with it or else........
I was anxiously awaiting this sequel to "Impossible" because "Impossible" captured my imagination and drew me in more than I expected it would! In the sequel, the story follows Fenella, Lucy's great-great-great (etc.) grandmother - the first Scarborough girl and the one on whom the original curse fell on. Because Lucy broke the curse in "Impossible", Fenella is no longer enslaved to Padraig. Unfortunately, Fenella was also cursed with a long life. She is currently 400 years old and will live for a few hundred more. She lives in the world of faerie, even though she is human. She desires to die and find peace and persuades the Faerie queen to give her three tasks in order to break the other curse. She finds herself living with Lucy's family, but must follow the three tasks of destruction or the original curse is once again placed on the Scarborough girls. Fenella tries to find ways to complete the tasks but finds herself falling in love with her family and learning about the human realm. I liked the concept of this book, even though I normally don't read paranormal/fantasy/faerie type of stuff. I didn't connect with Fenella's character and I felt that this book was much more plot-driven than character-driven like the first book. The original characters are back, but only in background roles. The world of the faeries was much more prominent. The writing was incredible once again, and the world created was beautiful.
5 incredibly long years ago, I picked up Impossible by Nancy Werlin and fell under it's intoxicating spell. The wait for Unthinkable was torturously long, and I had all but given up hope of ever getting more of the story. Thankfully just when I'd given up, Unthinkable popped up on the YA scene. I thought I was going to explode with giddiness!
The Scarsbourough Fair elements and song tie ins had me so hooked and completely invested in Impossible and this series. To be honest, Unthinkable is quite different from Impossible, probably because the focus of the story is on a different character. But nonetheless I enjoyed it. And the elements that I loved from the first book, were all still there!
Just like Impossible I stayed up way too late reading it so I could find out how it would end. I read it all in one sitting and was blown away all over again by Nancy's incredible gift for writting. I can't recommend this series enough! And I will be waiting on the edge of my seat for the next book!
This wasn't my favorite of the series, but I did like seeing how books 1 and 2 actually fit together. I thought they were totally unrelated, but this book shows how they actually weren't.
I prefer the original story with Lucy, simply because it's about hope and creating and not destruction. I see what the author was going for, but I also wish it could have been different. I did, however, really enjoy the way things worked out in the end, so if it were possible, I'd give it 3.5 stars.
I think fans of the previous two books will likely feel the same as me, liking how it all ties together while also being dismayed at how things transpire in the book. I think they will enjoy the new characters and the returning ones.
Didn't like it nearly as much as Impossible. While Impossible's theme was about the power of love to overcome evil, this one used intentional destruction to teach someone a lesson about love and sacrifice. Took her long enough to learn it, and I didn't like that the most loving people in the world were hurt by it. Just didn't sit right with me.
I would have much rather had Fenella either sacrifice herself early on, once she figured out the import of the challenge, or have her family help her think out of the box and fulfill the tasks in an original way.
A couple of things were kind of hokey, and thrown in to fill holes in the plot, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone.
Lucy, the main character if Impossible, was likable. I despised Fenella, the first Scarborough girl and the main character of this book. She was selfish and stupid.
After four hundred years among the fairies, she should have known that the offer made by the faerie queen (complete three tasks so she can finally be free to die) would have included twists and tricks. And then to choose to go forward with those three acts of destruction when she learned they must be aimed at her family? Everything she did was selfish and destructive. I couldn't stand her.
Yes, another twist was thrown in after the second task (if Fenella failed, not only would she be returned to Padraig, but the original curse would be reinstated) that was probably supposed to justify her completion of the tasks, thus making her seem less selfish and more likable. But I didn't feel that way at all; I still hated her. I only finished the book because I wanted to make sure Lucy's family was okay.
Fenella burned down their house. Leo was seriously injured when Fenella hit him with Walker's truck. She tried to seduce Zach using a combination of opportunity, flirting, and magical perfume--fortunately he was able to snap out of it and get away. She used Walker, and it seemed like she was going to rape him. She kidnapped Dawn--yes, she brought her back, but still. The list goes on. But at least the family is resilient and none of them were killed, no marriages destroyed. I would have been bitter.
We don't find out if Fenella is forgiven. Honestly, I don't care if she is.
I figured out what the three acts of destruction would be pretty quickly, along with what Fenella would specifically try to destroy: safety=their house; love=Zach & Lucy's marriage, which she luckily abandoned after Zach fled from her; hope=kidnapping Dawn. So it was a bit predictable.
Although the idea of Unthinkable is really quite clever as a balance to Impossible, I wish this book had been a sequel about Lucy and Zach--I actually liked them.
Note: Maybe some mild swearing? I can't remember. Attempted seduction. Possible implied sex, though it may have been extreme making out--honestly, I don't know.
I was intrigued that this book was not only a sequel to "Impossible," but it's also a prequel (which was the part I loved best) as well as a companion/sequel-ish to "Extraordinary." I had so many issues with "Extraordinary," so I was surprised and pleased to find myself so taken by Ryland's part of the story. (Very pleased with that outcome, though the last little bits of it coming together seemed a bit rushed and tumbled.)
The hardest part I had with this book is I didn't really like Fenella. She certainly has strength and what she has to face is not easy. She had my sympathy overall, but I it was coupled with my frustration and annoyance of her, her thoughts, her actions, and much more. For someone who is over 400 years old, I expected her to not act so much like an impulsive teenager. I could have looked over that part if she's been frozen "as is" when the curse took place. But it states in the very first chapter how much experience and knowledge and all that she has from her many centuries of captivity. Well, you could have fooled me.
Plenty of issues I have with this story as well, particularly in actins of characters (most of that being Fenella's). I also did not get the beauty of the writing in this book as I did in the other two. It read fast, and I pushed myself to finish as quickly as possible because I wanted to be done with Fenella as a character, but I wanted to know what happened with the characters from the other two books. Still some strong cheesy moments that made me want to gag. ("Beloved?" Honestly? Barf.) But overall a good conclusion to the books--and I actually hope we're done with this world and these characters.
I got this as an ARC for review. I hadn't read any of Werlin's other books, including the book this is a sequel to (or the side book in the same universe this references), but I thought I would jump in anyway.
What a pleasant surprise! I really loved this book. Looking over reviews for her other books, I see they're pretty divisive. I don't know what it was that clicked with me as a reader, but this was definitely up my alley and there's no question I'll go back and read the others in this series soon and probably all of Werlin's other books, too!
Sometimes I didn't like Fenella, but there were reasons for what she did, and I think that was part of what I liked so much about the book: a woman trying in vain to NOT CARE about life and everything else because of what she intends to do, but even when she does something unlikeable, you still at least sort of like her. I thought the romance in this book was perfectly paced and sweet. I liked all of the characters, although some of them got shafted (they probably appeared more in the other books). And I'm a huge cat lover, so bonus points for the cat being important in the book. ^^
And I'm a big fan of the Byronic trope. I have a feeling Padraig was more important in the first book... But I also love how it's handled in this book. Some Byronic guys are just too foul to be acceptable as an eventual love interest, so none of that here. Even when she thought him handsome, she kept her head.
I hope everyone who read the other books in this series will give this a read when it comes out! (Or do what I did and start with this book!)
Nancy Werlin has cleverly managed to interweave both a prequel and a sequel together in one story, which will delight fans of the original ‘Scarborough Girls’ story – ‘Impossible’. In ‘Impossible’, the heroine, Lucy, has to break a family curse which dooms all the girls born to the family to be taken away to live under the captivity of the manipulative fey – Padraig. She has to achieve this by completing three apparently impossible tasks.
In this story, the plot focuses on Fenella, the girl who first attracted the attention of Padraig, and incurred the family curse. Though the curse no longer affects the future Scarborough Girls, Fenella, who longs to die, having lived in torment for hundreds of years, still finds herself trapped in the land of the Fey. Begging the queen for death, she is given a way to break the bond between herself and Padraig. This ‘release’ comes at a great cost, for she must carry out three acts of terrible destruction against her own descendents.
‘Unthinkable’ is an intriguing and well paced read. The reader’s sympathies are tugged in different directions as Fenella looks for ways to complete her tasks. This is no ‘black and white’ story. It is even possible to feel some empathy for the apparently evil Padraig at some points in the plot. I would recommend ‘Unthinkable’ to mid to older teen readers, mainly because of some sexual references (though these are certainly not gratuitous). I would also recommend the story to older readers who enjoy ‘traditional’ fairy tales, as the novel contains many elements of this genre.
Fennella Sarborough's sad tale was weaved into Werlin's novel IMPOSSIBLE, and her story ended with death and madness. But somehow, in the Farie world, Fenella has survived, and has been living for hundreds of years. And now she wants to die. As an immortal, she is under the hold of the man who kidnapped her and tried to make her love him hundreds of years ago, Padraig. The Farie queen informs her that to die, she must first wreak three tasks of destruction in the human world. Along with the queen's brotherRyland who is in the form of a talking cat, she winds up in the human world, and finds shelter with Lucy, the protagonist of IMPOSSIBLE, Zack, Leo, Soledad, and their baby Dawn. In the human world, she also meets Walker, a man who desperately wants to understand and know her. But Fenella still has to destroy three things, and doing so will ruin everything her ancestors, including Lucy, have fought to achieve.
In a romantic and engaging sequel to IMPOSSIBLE, which has always been one of my favorites, Fenella's story is a magical mix of Alex Flinn's A KISS IN TIME, ELLA ENCHANTED, and even a hint of THE LITTLE MERMAID. Fenella and Walker's romance was a bit unbelievable at times, but her quirkiness and Ariel-like curiosity mixed with the power and anguish of the curse made UNTHINKABLE an entertaining and thoughtful backstory/sequel to a YA classic.
I'm a little impartial here. I won a YALSA fund raiser auction to have my name used in one of Nancy Werlin's books and so my last name shows up in the hunky love interest character, Walker Dobrez, who is a vet in training and drives a red pickup truck. But, that aside, fans of Impossible (and there are many)will enjoy this companion novel. And the cat...I love the cat. Full review at Bookends Blog: http://bookends.booklistonline.com/20...
This was better than the first if I do say so myself. I think it is interesting the way that this book weaved together the elements of a prequel and a sequel. Fenella is a very unique character and at times I thought she was mad. Especially towards the end. Plus, the tasks that she had to complete were literally "unthinkable" to me. Werlin is a good author and this series was a success in my book.
I liked how this book brought together the 2 previous books. I also enjoy how unique the fey are in this book. They aren't just beautiful humanoids, they are all kinds of different creatures and shapes. The tasks and their consequences were also pretty interesting. I thought I guessed things regarding them but was pleasantly surprised. My issues with this are mainly with the romance and characters. Many of the characters were pretty flat. Fenella had some interesting qualities, but they werent developed enough. The romance in this was weird. What was with that park bench part? The ending also happened rather abruptly. I would have liked a little more resolution. I know the book was already long but just a little more would have been better. A pretty decent sequel.
My overall reaction to this is, "meh". I didn't enjoy it as much as Impossible. Fenella is a very hard character to like (ok, I hated her and thought she was an awful person), and her motivations didn't justify the terrible things she did. As for the other characters...they just seemed flat to me. The best thing about this book is its pretty cover. Beyond that, I wouldn't recommend it.
Didn't hold my attention the way Impossible did. I was disappointed in Fenella. Even though she's 400 years old and has seen many, many Scarborough girls come and go, she didn't learn anything? It was hard to swallow.
Great story and excellent follow-up to impossible. Werlin is a wonderful writer, and her heroine in this is far more complex. You don't always agree with her, but can always empathize.
i probably should have read book one first but my attention didnt hold after she went to the human realm. I got bored. Maybe someday ill pick up this book and the previous....
This is one of those trilogies that I wish I hadn't continued. I want to just ignore everything but book one. That book was amazing, book two had nothing to do with book one and just didn't grab me the same way, then book three was just terrible.
This book brought the horrible Fae characters in book two back and tied them in to the plot and characters of book one. Fenella, the original Scarborough girl, agrees to a second set of tasks from the Fairy Queen. She wants to die because Padraig made her immortal, whatever, it's not important . . . The point is, she agreed to the three tasks without asking nearly enough questions. After 400 years with the Fae, you'd think she'd know better, but whatever. They are 3 tasks of destruction, and guess who she's sent to destroy?
Zach and Lucy and their family! I was excited to see my lovebirds again, but not like this. I read with a sense of absolute dread fearing for my sweet cupcakes and their baby. I think it goes without saying that dread is not an emotion I want to feel when reading. It took me way longer than it should have to read this book because I dreaded picking it up.
Then there's Ryland. There is no character I wanted to see again less than this sociopathic, controlling, abusive predator. The Fairy Queen turns him into a cute cat to "assist" Fenella in her destructive tasks. If this was the author's way of trying to get me to like him, it failed. I will never sympathize with a character who seduced a minor against her will and then mocked her for being too fat when he first saw her naked, then mocking her further when she felt too self conscious to have sex with him. Yeah, that happened in book two. So no, I still hate Ryland, even in cat form.
Overall, the victim blaming is off the charts in this book. Fenella, who endured 400 years of rape at the hands of Padraig, is transformed into a villain against her will. Even worse, Fenella starts to feel pity for her abuser when she finds out he was abandoned and neglected by the Fae. As if that excuses his 400 years of raping all the Scarborough women. I'm getting nauseous remembering it. Then there's the part where Fenella muses that she should have treated Padraig better when she first met him, and then maybe things would have been different.To which Ryland agrees because of course he does. It may be a fairy tale, but it's the whole "you should have been nicer" thing to excuse rape. This is a YA novel, and it sends a really bad message to teenagers to suggest Fenella messed up when she said, "no thank you, I don't want to go dancing with you." Repeatedly the book says Fenella caused all the women in her family to be cursed. Excuse me, what? At times it even seemed to imply that Lucy was spoiled and that's why she broke the curse. I. Can't. Even.
As if all that weren't enough, the book just abruptly ended. The final scene was just weird. I turned the page expecting more, and there was just . . . Nothing.
Why am I giving it two stars then? I don't know. Because it was decently written, I guess. The flashbacks to when Fenella met Padraig were well done. I guess. Overall, I don't recommend anyone reading this entire trilogy. Just read Impossible and call it a day.