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Kissed by Death #3
Descent
Easton doesn’t believe in love. He believes in Death. Darkness. Sin. As a reaper for Hell, it’s all he’s known for over four hundred years. When he gets slapped with the job of training the boss’s daughter, an angel who knows nothing but joy, he knows he’s in for a world of trouble.
Though he’s made it clear he wants nothing to do with her outside of work, Gwen would do anything to get closer to the dark and wounded reaper—even taint her angelic image and join the ranks of her father’s team of reapers. But in all her planning, she forgot to factor in one thing—how far the demons Easton doomed to hell would go to get revenge.
When the dangers of the Hell threaten Gwen, Easton will do whatever it takes to save her. But as the darkness closes in on them both, will he be able to save himself?
Though he’s made it clear he wants nothing to do with her outside of work, Gwen would do anything to get closer to the dark and wounded reaper—even taint her angelic image and join the ranks of her father’s team of reapers. But in all her planning, she forgot to factor in one thing—how far the demons Easton doomed to hell would go to get revenge.
When the dangers of the Hell threaten Gwen, Easton will do whatever it takes to save her. But as the darkness closes in on them both, will he be able to save himself?
320 pages, Paperback
First published June 3, 2014
9 people are currently reading
1165 people want to read
About the author
Tara A. Fuller
8 books478 followersTara Fuller writes books for teens. Some about witches. Some about grim reapers. All about kissing. Author of the Kissed by Death series. Look for DESCENT coming June 2nd, 2015!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
June 2, 2015
(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Entangled Publishing, LLC and NetGalley.)
“You believe everyone can be fixed. They can’t. Some are meant to be forever broken.”
This was a YA story about a reaper who falls in love with an angel.
I don’t really remember Easton from the previous books, which is probably more to do with the fact that it’s about 2 years since I read them. Anyway, Easton came across as a bit of a damaged soul in this story. He worked as a reaper, but really he had a kind heart, and had to harden himself to deal with his everyday life.
“I’d never understood the dead’s longing for what they once were. The flesh. The blood. The feeling of life rushing and burning through their veins. The numbness was something I was thankful for.”
Gwen was an angel who felt too strongly about the humans she tried to help, to the point where she was prepared to do anything to save a soul wrongly taken to hell. She seemed to be able to see good in everyone, even when no-one else believed that there was any good to see.
“As angels of joy, our soul purpose was to bless humans with happiness, to eliminate the dark and give birth to light. I’d done those things for Tyler for two years, and found it impossible to stop caring.”
The storyline in this was about Gwen and Easton going down into hell to rescue the soul of a boy wrongly taken there. There was a bit of flirting and romance between Gwen and Easton, but the relationship seemed to move very quickly for me. I felt like they went from sort-of-friends to kissing the lips off one another in a matter of a few lines, and it was a bit surprising.
“I wanted to kiss her.
I’d never wanted to kiss anyone.”
We did get some sweet and romantic scenes between the pair which were nice, but it did happen rather quickly.
“Because I love you.”
Easton paled and his hands dropped to his sides. He took a step back, and his throat worked as he swallowed. “Don’t say that.”
The ending to this was happy, although it was maybe a little rosier than I expected.
6.5 out of 10
“You believe everyone can be fixed. They can’t. Some are meant to be forever broken.”
This was a YA story about a reaper who falls in love with an angel.
I don’t really remember Easton from the previous books, which is probably more to do with the fact that it’s about 2 years since I read them. Anyway, Easton came across as a bit of a damaged soul in this story. He worked as a reaper, but really he had a kind heart, and had to harden himself to deal with his everyday life.
“I’d never understood the dead’s longing for what they once were. The flesh. The blood. The feeling of life rushing and burning through their veins. The numbness was something I was thankful for.”
Gwen was an angel who felt too strongly about the humans she tried to help, to the point where she was prepared to do anything to save a soul wrongly taken to hell. She seemed to be able to see good in everyone, even when no-one else believed that there was any good to see.
“As angels of joy, our soul purpose was to bless humans with happiness, to eliminate the dark and give birth to light. I’d done those things for Tyler for two years, and found it impossible to stop caring.”
The storyline in this was about Gwen and Easton going down into hell to rescue the soul of a boy wrongly taken there. There was a bit of flirting and romance between Gwen and Easton, but the relationship seemed to move very quickly for me. I felt like they went from sort-of-friends to kissing the lips off one another in a matter of a few lines, and it was a bit surprising.
“I wanted to kiss her.
I’d never wanted to kiss anyone.”
We did get some sweet and romantic scenes between the pair which were nice, but it did happen rather quickly.
“Because I love you.”
Easton paled and his hands dropped to his sides. He took a step back, and his throat worked as he swallowed. “Don’t say that.”
The ending to this was happy, although it was maybe a little rosier than I expected.
6.5 out of 10
June 2, 2015
More Reviews Here: Readers Live A Thousand Lives
I have been waiting for this book for such a long time now and I’m so glad we finally got Easton’s story. This has been such a fun, yet slightly dark, series and I’ve enjoyed following these characters along.
Easton has intrigued me from the moment I met him. He is so dark and kinda scary, but at the same time he always felt like a good guy. He put up a scary front but I always wondered what was underneath that front. I really enjoyed getting to know him. He has a dark past and he has suffered immensely during his years as a reaper for hell. Some of the things he has endured are unspeakable. But despite all of that, he still managed to remain a good person underneath it all and that makes him special.
Gwen is basically Easton’s opposite in every way but you know what they say… opposites attract. Gwen sees Easton for who he is and sees his goodness. She has lived a very sheltered life and when she finally gets out it shows. Her innocence and naivety could be frustrating, but at the same times it’s understandable. Her acting otherwise wouldn’t be believable.
Easton and Gwen together just work and I really liked them as a couple. Easton proves that he is willing to do pretty much anything for Gwen. The pain he put himself through was crazy and he did it because he finally found someone he could love. Easton is special. I couldn’t believe what he was willing to trade just to keep Gwen safe. But the best part is, it goes both ways. Easton spends a lot of time trying to save Gwen. But Gwen isn’t weak. Underneath her innocence is a strong and stubborn girl. And when push comes to shove Gwen can do some saving of her own.
Descent was another good addition to the series (although Blurred remains my favorite) and it was also a lot darker than the first two. Descent stands out in the series because a majority of the book actually takes place in hell and as you can imagine that was rough. There are horrors there and torture and pain. Some of the horrors make my skin crawl just thinking about it. But I actually really liked that this book took place in a completely different realm. At heart I am a paranormal fan, so I love when I get to visit new places, even when those places are terrifying.
Descent was a really enjoyable read and I was able to devour it in one sitting. Fans of the series will not want to miss Easton’s story.
I have been waiting for this book for such a long time now and I’m so glad we finally got Easton’s story. This has been such a fun, yet slightly dark, series and I’ve enjoyed following these characters along.
Easton has intrigued me from the moment I met him. He is so dark and kinda scary, but at the same time he always felt like a good guy. He put up a scary front but I always wondered what was underneath that front. I really enjoyed getting to know him. He has a dark past and he has suffered immensely during his years as a reaper for hell. Some of the things he has endured are unspeakable. But despite all of that, he still managed to remain a good person underneath it all and that makes him special.
Gwen is basically Easton’s opposite in every way but you know what they say… opposites attract. Gwen sees Easton for who he is and sees his goodness. She has lived a very sheltered life and when she finally gets out it shows. Her innocence and naivety could be frustrating, but at the same times it’s understandable. Her acting otherwise wouldn’t be believable.
Easton and Gwen together just work and I really liked them as a couple. Easton proves that he is willing to do pretty much anything for Gwen. The pain he put himself through was crazy and he did it because he finally found someone he could love. Easton is special. I couldn’t believe what he was willing to trade just to keep Gwen safe. But the best part is, it goes both ways. Easton spends a lot of time trying to save Gwen. But Gwen isn’t weak. Underneath her innocence is a strong and stubborn girl. And when push comes to shove Gwen can do some saving of her own.
Descent was another good addition to the series (although Blurred remains my favorite) and it was also a lot darker than the first two. Descent stands out in the series because a majority of the book actually takes place in hell and as you can imagine that was rough. There are horrors there and torture and pain. Some of the horrors make my skin crawl just thinking about it. But I actually really liked that this book took place in a completely different realm. At heart I am a paranormal fan, so I love when I get to visit new places, even when those places are terrifying.
Descent was a really enjoyable read and I was able to devour it in one sitting. Fans of the series will not want to miss Easton’s story.
January 27, 2016
I love this series way too much. Though it wasn't as good as the previous ones in the series, this book was still pretty dang great.
Want to read
November 26, 2013OH LET THIS BE EASTON'S STORY!!! PLEASE MS. FULLER!
I just went to Ms. Fuller's website and guess what????? IT IS EASTON'S STORY!!! WOOOOHOOOOO!!!!
I just went to Ms. Fuller's website and guess what????? IT IS EASTON'S STORY!!! WOOOOHOOOOO!!!!
November 26, 2015
“Love was a product of the work that we did. The kisses, the intimate whispers, the innocent touches that meant more than words could ever express–these were things that I’d never have. Things I was never supposed to want. I was merely the spark to ignite the flame. I was never meant to experience the burn.”
I know I say that I don’t get a chance to read a lot of YA books that often anymore and I think that is something that I need to change. This book is another great example of why I love this genre. I have always been a fan of paranormal romance. I love a good angel/demon story and this one was just fantastic.
Descent follows the story of Easton and Gwen and is told from dual points of view. Easton is the reaper from hell. He doesn’t believe in love or happiness. He’s only known death and darkness for the past 400 years. The last thing he planned on was meeting Gwen. While going to reap some souls, he encounters Gwen and another angel. He’s intrigued by them. They just radiate goodness and are distracting him from doing his job. See not only has he been reaping souls for Hell, he’s also been helping bring souls to heaven. And that’s what he has to do, bring a soul to heaven. Unfortunately, by having to do that, he’s counting on his partner to bring the other soul to heaven. And lets just say, his partner didn’t fully understand what was being asked of him………
Gwen is an angel of joy. She’s lived in a “bubble” for the past 17 years, only seeing happiness and joy. Seeing a soul getting reaped first hand has a lasting effect on her. She wants to know more now. She no longer wants to be shielded from the bad. She wants to see and understand it all. What does that mean exactly? Well, looks like Easton has a new job. Easton is supposed to show Gwen a few reaps and scare her back into the world that she’s always known. Little did he know that Gwen had a different mission in mind. Just how far into Hell is Gwen willing to go to complete her mission? Will she really be safe with Easton? Will Easton be able to protect Gwen at all costs?
I have to say, I was immediately drawn to this book because of it’s cover. Then I read the synopsis and knew I just had to read this book. I was pulled in and captivated by this story from the first page. The plot was so refreshing from what I normally read. One of the things that I loved was the mature feeling of the book. I didn’t feel like I was reading a YA book. I loved the world-building. The author gave such great detail to what her vision of Hell would be. It felt very realistic and was very easy to visualize.
I was intrigued by Easton as soon as I met him. He had a darkness to him. He was so sad, so broken. I just wanted to know why he was the way that he was. I enjoyed watching his character grow throughout the story. He went from unfeeling and not caring about anything or anyone to seeing that maybe he does deserve goodness and love. That maybe there is somethings that are worth fighting and sacrificing for. And Gwen…So curious. Always wanting to fix things and people. Feeling that pull to take ones pain away. Never wanting to give. She was such a strong character. A lot stronger than most people gave her credit for.
Descent was a quick, but enjoyable read for me. The characters so intriguing. The story-line captivating. It made me laugh and swoon. I loved the push and pull between Easton and Gwen. I loved the angst, romance, action and paranormal elements. Overall, I just really enjoyed this story. This is my first book by this author and I’m really looking forward to diving in and reading the first two books!
*I was provided an ARC copy of this book via Entangled Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
My review can also be seen at: http://onceuponabookblog.com/2015/06/...
I know I say that I don’t get a chance to read a lot of YA books that often anymore and I think that is something that I need to change. This book is another great example of why I love this genre. I have always been a fan of paranormal romance. I love a good angel/demon story and this one was just fantastic.
Descent follows the story of Easton and Gwen and is told from dual points of view. Easton is the reaper from hell. He doesn’t believe in love or happiness. He’s only known death and darkness for the past 400 years. The last thing he planned on was meeting Gwen. While going to reap some souls, he encounters Gwen and another angel. He’s intrigued by them. They just radiate goodness and are distracting him from doing his job. See not only has he been reaping souls for Hell, he’s also been helping bring souls to heaven. And that’s what he has to do, bring a soul to heaven. Unfortunately, by having to do that, he’s counting on his partner to bring the other soul to heaven. And lets just say, his partner didn’t fully understand what was being asked of him………
Gwen is an angel of joy. She’s lived in a “bubble” for the past 17 years, only seeing happiness and joy. Seeing a soul getting reaped first hand has a lasting effect on her. She wants to know more now. She no longer wants to be shielded from the bad. She wants to see and understand it all. What does that mean exactly? Well, looks like Easton has a new job. Easton is supposed to show Gwen a few reaps and scare her back into the world that she’s always known. Little did he know that Gwen had a different mission in mind. Just how far into Hell is Gwen willing to go to complete her mission? Will she really be safe with Easton? Will Easton be able to protect Gwen at all costs?
I have to say, I was immediately drawn to this book because of it’s cover. Then I read the synopsis and knew I just had to read this book. I was pulled in and captivated by this story from the first page. The plot was so refreshing from what I normally read. One of the things that I loved was the mature feeling of the book. I didn’t feel like I was reading a YA book. I loved the world-building. The author gave such great detail to what her vision of Hell would be. It felt very realistic and was very easy to visualize.
I was intrigued by Easton as soon as I met him. He had a darkness to him. He was so sad, so broken. I just wanted to know why he was the way that he was. I enjoyed watching his character grow throughout the story. He went from unfeeling and not caring about anything or anyone to seeing that maybe he does deserve goodness and love. That maybe there is somethings that are worth fighting and sacrificing for. And Gwen…So curious. Always wanting to fix things and people. Feeling that pull to take ones pain away. Never wanting to give. She was such a strong character. A lot stronger than most people gave her credit for.
Descent was a quick, but enjoyable read for me. The characters so intriguing. The story-line captivating. It made me laugh and swoon. I loved the push and pull between Easton and Gwen. I loved the angst, romance, action and paranormal elements. Overall, I just really enjoyed this story. This is my first book by this author and I’m really looking forward to diving in and reading the first two books!
*I was provided an ARC copy of this book via Entangled Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
My review can also be seen at: http://onceuponabookblog.com/2015/06/...
June 1, 2015
Originally posted on City of Books
Descent was the perfect ending to this trilogy. It was pretty much everything I hoped it would be, and I loved getting to know Easton. Moreover, with the dominance of fantasy in the YA genre nowadays, it was nice to get back to a paranormal series I love!
Easton continues to be a Hell reaper, but after Anaya's departure he has to take on her job as well - be a reaper for Heaven. Easton has a colleague, Scout, to help him, but Scout's not Anaya or Finn. And when a job of theirs goes wrong, Easton feels obligated to rectify Scout's mistake. Especially when his boss's daughter, an angel of joy, has the same goal. Easton is supposed to train Gwen, but that turns into a rescue mission in the deepest depths of Hell - a place Easton never thought he'd return to.
Easton's always been my favourite of the three protagonists of the series, so I was super excited to read his story. And it did not disappoint. It was definitely hard to read about everything he's endured, but it made me sympathize with him all the more and admire him for the amazing inner strength he has. Easton is dark and damaged, yes, but it's just made him stronger. He's actually one of my favourite YA characters now, mostly because of how complex he is and despite being what he is, he seems more real to me than most protagonists I read about.
And Gwen, even though she's so different from Easton, complements his character really well. Initially she seems like the typical damsel in distress type as Easton has to protect her from everything in Hell. But Gwen can hold her own, as we see soon enough. She's innocent and naive, but also strong-willed and smart. She's resourceful and loyal, and inherently good - of course she is, she's an angel. I loved seeing Gwen's development as a character.
There are some very dark things in this book, and the imagery is horrific at times. I pictured the entire thing in my head, and it wasn't pretty. I loved that Tara Fuller spared no detail when it came to describing Hell. She didn't gloss over anything, and her version of Hell is something straight out of a nightmare. It's definitely not for the faint-hearted!
The end is all wrapped up nicely and we also get to see what Anaya, Cash, Finn and Emma are up to, which was great. I'm glad Easton finds happiness in this book after everything he's been through, and though Gwen is the newest protagonist to the series, I love her just as much as the others. I'm sad to say goodbye to this series as I missed reading this kind of paranormal stuff. I do hope Tara Fuller will write more, though. Because I will definitely pick it up.
*Thank you to Ellie McMahon and Entangled Teen for providing me with an eARC for review*
Descent was the perfect ending to this trilogy. It was pretty much everything I hoped it would be, and I loved getting to know Easton. Moreover, with the dominance of fantasy in the YA genre nowadays, it was nice to get back to a paranormal series I love!
Easton continues to be a Hell reaper, but after Anaya's departure he has to take on her job as well - be a reaper for Heaven. Easton has a colleague, Scout, to help him, but Scout's not Anaya or Finn. And when a job of theirs goes wrong, Easton feels obligated to rectify Scout's mistake. Especially when his boss's daughter, an angel of joy, has the same goal. Easton is supposed to train Gwen, but that turns into a rescue mission in the deepest depths of Hell - a place Easton never thought he'd return to.
Easton's always been my favourite of the three protagonists of the series, so I was super excited to read his story. And it did not disappoint. It was definitely hard to read about everything he's endured, but it made me sympathize with him all the more and admire him for the amazing inner strength he has. Easton is dark and damaged, yes, but it's just made him stronger. He's actually one of my favourite YA characters now, mostly because of how complex he is and despite being what he is, he seems more real to me than most protagonists I read about.
And Gwen, even though she's so different from Easton, complements his character really well. Initially she seems like the typical damsel in distress type as Easton has to protect her from everything in Hell. But Gwen can hold her own, as we see soon enough. She's innocent and naive, but also strong-willed and smart. She's resourceful and loyal, and inherently good - of course she is, she's an angel. I loved seeing Gwen's development as a character.
There are some very dark things in this book, and the imagery is horrific at times. I pictured the entire thing in my head, and it wasn't pretty. I loved that Tara Fuller spared no detail when it came to describing Hell. She didn't gloss over anything, and her version of Hell is something straight out of a nightmare. It's definitely not for the faint-hearted!
The end is all wrapped up nicely and we also get to see what Anaya, Cash, Finn and Emma are up to, which was great. I'm glad Easton finds happiness in this book after everything he's been through, and though Gwen is the newest protagonist to the series, I love her just as much as the others. I'm sad to say goodbye to this series as I missed reading this kind of paranormal stuff. I do hope Tara Fuller will write more, though. Because I will definitely pick it up.
*Thank you to Ellie McMahon and Entangled Teen for providing me with an eARC for review*
June 3, 2015
I have thoroughly enjoyed Tara Fuller's Kissed by Death series. It was in the first book that we got to meet Easton, and I have been so looking forward to reading his story. He has that dark, broody, silent, badass vibe going on and he just oozes with hotness. He thinks he is beyond hope, but underneath there is so much more than meets the eye. Easton's love interest and new to the series is an angel named Gwen who is able to see past all Easton's walls into the man inside. There is only one problem....Gwen happens to be the bosses daughter. A sort of reap gone bad puts both Gwen and Easton in a precarious position, with Easton being commissioned to train Gwen, and subsequently they both find themselves in the midst of a whole lot of trouble. In the midst of it all and despite his reservations, Easton finds himself actually having feelings for Gwen, something he never thought possible and when hell threatens Gwen, Easton will tear down the gates if necessary to protect her.
I thoroughly enjoyed Easton and Gwen's story. The romance was sweet and had just the right amount of hotness while still being appropriate for teens. I loved getting to see Finn and Cash, who also made appearances as well - I just love those guys. If you enjoy paranormal romance, then you will want to add this to your TBR list.
I thoroughly enjoyed Easton and Gwen's story. The romance was sweet and had just the right amount of hotness while still being appropriate for teens. I loved getting to see Finn and Cash, who also made appearances as well - I just love those guys. If you enjoy paranormal romance, then you will want to add this to your TBR list.
June 8, 2015
**I received this book for free from (Entangled: Teen) via (NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**
*Genre* Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
*Rating* 3.5
*My Thoughts*
Descent is the third installment in the Kissed by Death series. Kissed by Death is a trilogy that looks into the world of reapers, both heavenly and otherwise. It is the reapers jobs to take souls to its final destination. The first book, featuring Emma and Finn, covered a place called the Inbetween. The second book called Blurred, featuring Anaya and Cash, covered a place called Heaven. Now, we get our first look at Fuller's rendition of what hell looks like. I do like the way Fuller writes about Hell. It is very descriptive, scary, and a horrific place to be even for a brief period of time. There is nothing fun about being sent to Hell, not even by accident.
*Full Review Posting @ Gizmos Reviews 06/11/2015* Link to Follow*
*Recvd 05/15/2015 via NetGalley* Published June 2nd 2015 by Entangled: Teen
*Genre* Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
*Rating* 3.5
*My Thoughts*
Descent is the third installment in the Kissed by Death series. Kissed by Death is a trilogy that looks into the world of reapers, both heavenly and otherwise. It is the reapers jobs to take souls to its final destination. The first book, featuring Emma and Finn, covered a place called the Inbetween. The second book called Blurred, featuring Anaya and Cash, covered a place called Heaven. Now, we get our first look at Fuller's rendition of what hell looks like. I do like the way Fuller writes about Hell. It is very descriptive, scary, and a horrific place to be even for a brief period of time. There is nothing fun about being sent to Hell, not even by accident.
*Full Review Posting @ Gizmos Reviews 06/11/2015* Link to Follow*
*Recvd 05/15/2015 via NetGalley* Published June 2nd 2015 by Entangled: Teen
June 9, 2015
I feel like I've been waiting forever for this book! This series has been such fun for me.
Descent is the third installment in Tara Fuller's Kissed by Death series. It features Easton and Gwen - Easton is one of Hell's Reapers and Gwen is an Angel of Joy.
----
I remember Easton from earlier in the series - I remember hoping that he would get a chance to tell his own story. I've been neurotically watching the release date for Descent, seriously every single day for months and months and months, so reading this highly anticipated title has been some of the most fun I've had in a while.
Easton is a Hell's Reaper, which means that when someone dies and is not going to Heaven or the Inbetween, he is charged with escorting their soul to Hell. Unfortunately, he has been doing this same job for almost five hundred years, so he is known for having a little bit of a rough-around-the-edges attitude. I probably would too with that scenery every day, ya know? Easton also has a heavier-than-normal workload right now until more reapers are recruited, and he isn't thrilled about being so busy all of the time. Maybe most importantly, Easton carries around some guilt for things that happened to his family about five hundred years ago - he can't seem to let these feelings go. All of these things add up to make for a not-very-happy-go-lucky Easton, daily.
Gwen is basically the opposite of Easton - she IS filled with joy and happiness all of the time. She is charged with spreading joy to the people of earth and to see the goodness in people and...well, she's an angel, so she does angel-y things.
Their paths cross when they both happen to be at the scene of an accident in which several lives are lost, specifically one person that Gwen happens to be watching over at the moment of death. Easton trusts someone else to take this soul up to Heaven, but there is a misunderstanding and the soul gets taken elsewhere, which causes extreme distress for Gwen. EXTREME DISTRESS. Ya know, because she is an Angel and joy and happiness and Heaven and eternity and all of that. I would be in extreme distress too. Easton and Gwen soon team up to go down into Hell and retrieve this soul so it can be delivered to Heaven for the rest of eternity.
An Angel + a Reaper. An Angel + a Reaper!
This is basically an impossible task because 1) nobody ever really goes down into Hell and comes out the same and here Easton is taking an Angel and WHAT IS HE THINKING? 2) Gwen is super-beautiful and also the daughter of Easton's boss who is hella intimidating so DUDE DO NOT FALL IN LOVE, don't do it. Do. Not.
Ohhh, but just like any great paranormal romance, that is exactly what happens and it's so much swoon. Because you see, Easton doesn't even think he can be loved and he doesn't think that he can love. THIS IS A RECIPE THAT I ENJOYED VERY MUCH. It is during this incredibly stressful time of working closely together that Gwen sees the good in Easton where no one else ever has, she helps him experience a few snippets of happiness where he hasn't in hundreds of years, and she shows him what love is where he had pretty much forgotten it. Gwen gives Easton glimpses of what life could be like if only there is someone in it to love, and suddenly Easton finds himself feeling things for the first time and wanting things for the first time. This same thing applies to Gwen too, see - as an angel, she isn't supposed to experience these things in life for herself! She was created only to give joy to other people. These two help one another and end up falling in love...
...but since a Hell's Reaper and an Angel of Joy can never be together, what will happen after they deliver the soul to his rightful place in Heaven? Is it possible for them to have a life together?
----
I mean, gosh. If there are ever FUN books out there, these are it for me. I remember reading Inbetween when I was in my car on a road trip a few years ago and thinking how much fun it was. And I remember being out-of-my-mind excited when I got my hands on the second book, Blurred. The same thing happened here. I love these reapers to pieces.
This third book is a little bit darker than the first two books, but I expected that given the setting and the characters featured (and even when I judged the covers of the series, see below, which are so great) The darker tone didn't bother me at all and I was still absolutely as stuck on this story as I was with the first two. Naturally since the setting contains a hell-ish backdrop for a portion of the book, there are going to be some darker scenes, with some of them being part of Easton's own backstory. There were even a few times when I shuddered a little but I'm thinking that this was great because going down there to retrieve the soul wasn't supposed to be all green grass and puppy dogs and fun and games. Great imagery, great worldbuilding. Characters that I love from previous books are present in a few scenes but this book belongs largely to Easton and Gwen and their own story.
I recommend Descent by Tara Fuller and the entire Kissed by Death Series to readers that enjoy paranormal romances and stories about reapers. They're just FUN - have I said that yet? I think they're great even for most younger-young adult readers, which is a solid plus at my house. This entire series is very high on my rereads shelf and considering that I didn't reread the first two books before I devoured (seriously, devoured) Descent, I hope I get the chance to reread the entire series soon.
See my full review HERE at Into the Hall of Books.
Descent is the third installment in Tara Fuller's Kissed by Death series. It features Easton and Gwen - Easton is one of Hell's Reapers and Gwen is an Angel of Joy.
----
I remember Easton from earlier in the series - I remember hoping that he would get a chance to tell his own story. I've been neurotically watching the release date for Descent, seriously every single day for months and months and months, so reading this highly anticipated title has been some of the most fun I've had in a while.
Easton is a Hell's Reaper, which means that when someone dies and is not going to Heaven or the Inbetween, he is charged with escorting their soul to Hell. Unfortunately, he has been doing this same job for almost five hundred years, so he is known for having a little bit of a rough-around-the-edges attitude. I probably would too with that scenery every day, ya know? Easton also has a heavier-than-normal workload right now until more reapers are recruited, and he isn't thrilled about being so busy all of the time. Maybe most importantly, Easton carries around some guilt for things that happened to his family about five hundred years ago - he can't seem to let these feelings go. All of these things add up to make for a not-very-happy-go-lucky Easton, daily.
Gwen is basically the opposite of Easton - she IS filled with joy and happiness all of the time. She is charged with spreading joy to the people of earth and to see the goodness in people and...well, she's an angel, so she does angel-y things.
Their paths cross when they both happen to be at the scene of an accident in which several lives are lost, specifically one person that Gwen happens to be watching over at the moment of death. Easton trusts someone else to take this soul up to Heaven, but there is a misunderstanding and the soul gets taken elsewhere, which causes extreme distress for Gwen. EXTREME DISTRESS. Ya know, because she is an Angel and joy and happiness and Heaven and eternity and all of that. I would be in extreme distress too. Easton and Gwen soon team up to go down into Hell and retrieve this soul so it can be delivered to Heaven for the rest of eternity.
An Angel + a Reaper. An Angel + a Reaper!
This is basically an impossible task because 1) nobody ever really goes down into Hell and comes out the same and here Easton is taking an Angel and WHAT IS HE THINKING? 2) Gwen is super-beautiful and also the daughter of Easton's boss who is hella intimidating so DUDE DO NOT FALL IN LOVE, don't do it. Do. Not.
Ohhh, but just like any great paranormal romance, that is exactly what happens and it's so much swoon. Because you see, Easton doesn't even think he can be loved and he doesn't think that he can love. THIS IS A RECIPE THAT I ENJOYED VERY MUCH. It is during this incredibly stressful time of working closely together that Gwen sees the good in Easton where no one else ever has, she helps him experience a few snippets of happiness where he hasn't in hundreds of years, and she shows him what love is where he had pretty much forgotten it. Gwen gives Easton glimpses of what life could be like if only there is someone in it to love, and suddenly Easton finds himself feeling things for the first time and wanting things for the first time. This same thing applies to Gwen too, see - as an angel, she isn't supposed to experience these things in life for herself! She was created only to give joy to other people. These two help one another and end up falling in love...
...but since a Hell's Reaper and an Angel of Joy can never be together, what will happen after they deliver the soul to his rightful place in Heaven? Is it possible for them to have a life together?
----
I mean, gosh. If there are ever FUN books out there, these are it for me. I remember reading Inbetween when I was in my car on a road trip a few years ago and thinking how much fun it was. And I remember being out-of-my-mind excited when I got my hands on the second book, Blurred. The same thing happened here. I love these reapers to pieces.
This third book is a little bit darker than the first two books, but I expected that given the setting and the characters featured (and even when I judged the covers of the series, see below, which are so great) The darker tone didn't bother me at all and I was still absolutely as stuck on this story as I was with the first two. Naturally since the setting contains a hell-ish backdrop for a portion of the book, there are going to be some darker scenes, with some of them being part of Easton's own backstory. There were even a few times when I shuddered a little but I'm thinking that this was great because going down there to retrieve the soul wasn't supposed to be all green grass and puppy dogs and fun and games. Great imagery, great worldbuilding. Characters that I love from previous books are present in a few scenes but this book belongs largely to Easton and Gwen and their own story.
I recommend Descent by Tara Fuller and the entire Kissed by Death Series to readers that enjoy paranormal romances and stories about reapers. They're just FUN - have I said that yet? I think they're great even for most younger-young adult readers, which is a solid plus at my house. This entire series is very high on my rereads shelf and considering that I didn't reread the first two books before I devoured (seriously, devoured) Descent, I hope I get the chance to reread the entire series soon.
See my full review HERE at Into the Hall of Books.
August 20, 2017
I absolutely LOVED this book! Why did it take me so long to buy? I hated how short it was, but holy wow! The chemistry between Gwen and Easton was heart wrenching and infuriating and totally swoon worthy. (Especially when Easton finally admitted to himself that he actually likes her.) Although I feel like Tara could have made this book longer, it was written beautifully and is now one of my (many) favorites. Looking forward to whatever Miss Tara Fuller writes next, that's for sure.
December 17, 2015
*eARC provided for the blog tour*
My Review!
I’ve been waiting for this book for TWO years, ever since I read Blurred. I couldn’t wait to read Easton’s story, a character I grew to love in the few scenes he was in during the first two books. And let me tell you, it was definitely worth the wait (even if it wasn’t my favorite in the series).
It’s a short book, and not much feels like it happens, but it’s more character-driven than about the plot. It’s more about two characters who grew up with different worldviews and who are the complete opposites. One who grew up sheltered from all the bad, a Heaven’s angel who spreads joy to people who need it. And one who only knows Hell and death, pain and torture.
I loved Easton in the first two books, and that didn’t change in this one. If anything, I fell even more in love with him, with his quiet shield, his soft heart, his caring nature. He likes to believe that he’s just like any other Hell reaper, that he belongs there. But he’s not. Even when he has to do his job, he does it differently. He cares. He’s just… closed himself off, locked his heart away, because anything else would just cause him pain. He remembers everything about his past, and it haunts him. But Gwen shines, and her inner beauty and light brings joy into his life, his heart. He starts to hope, to believe, to love again. It was a beautiful journey to watch, seeing this tough-as-nails character take off his armor and find peace.
I also loved Gwen, the newest addition to this series. She was such a wonderful character, one who was inherently kind and sweet and joyful. Someone who loved making others happy, and who believed in humanity and the people in it. When she has to go into hell with Easton to save someone, she’s forced to face ugly truths. That not everyone is good. That not everything is all sunshine and rainbows. But her views before weren’t necessarily naive; she’d just never seen the dark side. Not like this. And you know? She still powered through it, with strength and determination and bravery. But most of all, with hope.
Their romance developed quickly, very quickly. And normally I don’t like insta-lovey romances, but there are times, and there are books where it doesn’t matter how long the two main characters have known each other. What matters is that I believe it. And I did believe it with Gwen and Easton. They made each other’s lives better, and they formed a lasting connection after all they go through in this book (which is a lot).
I would have loved more of the secondary characters, though! I was missing them, especially Cash (my love). ;) I wanted more of their interactions, especially with Easton and his fellow reaper friends, though we do see them all near the end. The plot was a little predictable, in that I knew it would end happily so nothing made me on-the-edge when it came to the characters’ lives. But that’s totally okay! I was just SO HAPPY with the story and with the ending. It was so much fun to read, and I’d really missed these characters, and I kind of don’t want it to all be over. CAN THERE BE MORE, PLEASE, TARA? MAYBE A SCOUT NOVELLA IN OUR FUTURE?
Descent was well worth the wait! It was intense, and a little heartbreaking, but the journey these two characters go on was so beautiful to read about. :)
Rating: 4 Paw Prints!
My Review!
I’ve been waiting for this book for TWO years, ever since I read Blurred. I couldn’t wait to read Easton’s story, a character I grew to love in the few scenes he was in during the first two books. And let me tell you, it was definitely worth the wait (even if it wasn’t my favorite in the series).
It’s a short book, and not much feels like it happens, but it’s more character-driven than about the plot. It’s more about two characters who grew up with different worldviews and who are the complete opposites. One who grew up sheltered from all the bad, a Heaven’s angel who spreads joy to people who need it. And one who only knows Hell and death, pain and torture.
I loved Easton in the first two books, and that didn’t change in this one. If anything, I fell even more in love with him, with his quiet shield, his soft heart, his caring nature. He likes to believe that he’s just like any other Hell reaper, that he belongs there. But he’s not. Even when he has to do his job, he does it differently. He cares. He’s just… closed himself off, locked his heart away, because anything else would just cause him pain. He remembers everything about his past, and it haunts him. But Gwen shines, and her inner beauty and light brings joy into his life, his heart. He starts to hope, to believe, to love again. It was a beautiful journey to watch, seeing this tough-as-nails character take off his armor and find peace.
I also loved Gwen, the newest addition to this series. She was such a wonderful character, one who was inherently kind and sweet and joyful. Someone who loved making others happy, and who believed in humanity and the people in it. When she has to go into hell with Easton to save someone, she’s forced to face ugly truths. That not everyone is good. That not everything is all sunshine and rainbows. But her views before weren’t necessarily naive; she’d just never seen the dark side. Not like this. And you know? She still powered through it, with strength and determination and bravery. But most of all, with hope.
Their romance developed quickly, very quickly. And normally I don’t like insta-lovey romances, but there are times, and there are books where it doesn’t matter how long the two main characters have known each other. What matters is that I believe it. And I did believe it with Gwen and Easton. They made each other’s lives better, and they formed a lasting connection after all they go through in this book (which is a lot).
I would have loved more of the secondary characters, though! I was missing them, especially Cash (my love). ;) I wanted more of their interactions, especially with Easton and his fellow reaper friends, though we do see them all near the end. The plot was a little predictable, in that I knew it would end happily so nothing made me on-the-edge when it came to the characters’ lives. But that’s totally okay! I was just SO HAPPY with the story and with the ending. It was so much fun to read, and I’d really missed these characters, and I kind of don’t want it to all be over. CAN THERE BE MORE, PLEASE, TARA? MAYBE A SCOUT NOVELLA IN OUR FUTURE?
Descent was well worth the wait! It was intense, and a little heartbreaking, but the journey these two characters go on was so beautiful to read about. :)
Rating: 4 Paw Prints!
June 4, 2015
After all this time, we finally get Easton’s story! And I have to say, it was a pretty good story. Yay! Easton was exactly the kind of broken, bad boy I suspected and I loved that it took someone as pure and good as Gwen to make him realize the good in himself and his ability to love. It’s been awhile since I’ve read a good Paranormal YA, and even longer since I’ve been in this reaper world. We’ve seen the Inbetween and also the heavenly side of things and now it was time to dive into the true horrors of hell. Tara surprised me with how vivid and detailed she was with all the horrors of hell. That was easily my favorite aspect of the book as most of the time authors tend to gloss over the finer, horrific details and then Hell doesn’t really feel like Hell. That’s not the case here at all and I loved it!
Easton was every bit as damaged and tortured as I thought he was. More even. It was sad learning of all the things that happened to him while he was alive and also all the years he’s been a reaper. He truly thinks he’s a bad guy, undeserving of love and care. Yes, he’s rough around the edges, but not in an overly jerky way. It also sucked having to shoulder the burden that Finn and Anaya left behind after they went after what they each wanted, not that I faulted them for it. That, of course, leaves an over-worked and bitter Easton.
Gwen has lived a sheltered life as a heavenly angel. She’s never seen the true horrors of the world or of hell, but when fate makes her path cross with Easton’s, he’s about to show her the worst of it, whether they both want to or not. What I liked most about Gwen was her need to help others. She has a gift where she can absorb the pain and negative emotions of those she touches and she sees so much pain and sorrow in Easton, she’s inherently drawn to him. I will that their romance is a bit off with regards to pacing and such. I couldn’t exactly pinpoint when these two truly fell in love with each other, but it felt a little too fast for me. Yes, they’re good together and after all the “I Love You’s” are said their romance is pretty touching, but their romance on the way to the “I Love You’s” felt a little off. Also, the resolution between Gwen, Easton, and Gwen’s father was a kind of anticlimactic.
It’s been awhile since I’ve read the other books, but I think this one might be my favorite. Easton just stole the show with his tortured, yet loving soul. Even if the romance itself wasn’t a total winner, the story as a whole was great and I really loved Tara’s version of Hell. Descent is a quick and fun read. I really enjoyed Tara’s writing style and her cast of characters.
Easton was every bit as damaged and tortured as I thought he was. More even. It was sad learning of all the things that happened to him while he was alive and also all the years he’s been a reaper. He truly thinks he’s a bad guy, undeserving of love and care. Yes, he’s rough around the edges, but not in an overly jerky way. It also sucked having to shoulder the burden that Finn and Anaya left behind after they went after what they each wanted, not that I faulted them for it. That, of course, leaves an over-worked and bitter Easton.
Gwen has lived a sheltered life as a heavenly angel. She’s never seen the true horrors of the world or of hell, but when fate makes her path cross with Easton’s, he’s about to show her the worst of it, whether they both want to or not. What I liked most about Gwen was her need to help others. She has a gift where she can absorb the pain and negative emotions of those she touches and she sees so much pain and sorrow in Easton, she’s inherently drawn to him. I will that their romance is a bit off with regards to pacing and such. I couldn’t exactly pinpoint when these two truly fell in love with each other, but it felt a little too fast for me. Yes, they’re good together and after all the “I Love You’s” are said their romance is pretty touching, but their romance on the way to the “I Love You’s” felt a little off. Also, the resolution between Gwen, Easton, and Gwen’s father was a kind of anticlimactic.
It’s been awhile since I’ve read the other books, but I think this one might be my favorite. Easton just stole the show with his tortured, yet loving soul. Even if the romance itself wasn’t a total winner, the story as a whole was great and I really loved Tara’s version of Hell. Descent is a quick and fun read. I really enjoyed Tara’s writing style and her cast of characters.
June 1, 2015
Descent is supposedly 320 pages long, but it felt a lot shorter as I finished it in a little over two hours. Talk about a fast read. I think this was mostly due to the writing style, the simpler sentences and word use. It was very clear that this is a Young Adult novel.
It’s the first book in the series I’ve read, and you can easily read them separately. Each story follows a different couple, and while some other characters are mentioned, it’s not hard to figure how it all connects.
Easton and Gwen are opposites in pretty much every way. He’s a grim reaper, travels through hell on a daily basis and has a bad attitude. While Gwen is an angel of joy, her mere presence is uplifting for the people around her, and her touch takes away your sorrow.
When they accidentally meet, Gwen is drawn to Eaton’s darkness. Next thing you know, Eaton is tasked with Gwen’s training to become a reaper. Suddenly they’re stuck in hell, and everything is absolutely not going well. They will need to battle many enemies to make it out alive.
The pace of the story is fast. From the action to the love, and to me at times too fast. I could understand the attraction between the characters, and their trip to hell was exciting. The love felt a bit too instant for me, though technically they’re teenagers so I could get in the mindset of that first love.
A fun and fast read for all teenagers. The bad boy grim reaper will appeal to many girls, and Gwen’s goodness is inspiring for all. Descent had plenty of action and fans of the series will definitely love it.
*I received a copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
It’s the first book in the series I’ve read, and you can easily read them separately. Each story follows a different couple, and while some other characters are mentioned, it’s not hard to figure how it all connects.
Easton and Gwen are opposites in pretty much every way. He’s a grim reaper, travels through hell on a daily basis and has a bad attitude. While Gwen is an angel of joy, her mere presence is uplifting for the people around her, and her touch takes away your sorrow.
When they accidentally meet, Gwen is drawn to Eaton’s darkness. Next thing you know, Eaton is tasked with Gwen’s training to become a reaper. Suddenly they’re stuck in hell, and everything is absolutely not going well. They will need to battle many enemies to make it out alive.
The pace of the story is fast. From the action to the love, and to me at times too fast. I could understand the attraction between the characters, and their trip to hell was exciting. The love felt a bit too instant for me, though technically they’re teenagers so I could get in the mindset of that first love.
A fun and fast read for all teenagers. The bad boy grim reaper will appeal to many girls, and Gwen’s goodness is inspiring for all. Descent had plenty of action and fans of the series will definitely love it.
*I received a copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
March 26, 2016
2.5
Descent is a story of forbidden love between an angel and a reaper. Easton is a 400-year-old reaper doesn't believe in happiness or love or anything of the sort. Gwen is a 17-year old angel who's naive, sweet and everything Easton isn't. They were an interesting pairing. Easton was a broken man, and despite how much it's sad to see, but I love a broke character. They make things much more interesting, don't you think? And Gwen was just what he needed, someone to light a flame in his heart.
I didn't have the build up of anticipation for Easton's book like most readers did because this is the first book I've read from the series. As always, I prefer reading the whole series because you get the whole background, but it was a great stand alone novel.There wasn't a time where I felt as if I was missing out on anything.
The beautiful cover was there, the gripping storyline was there...but the execution wasn't. Emotionally it was a let down. Descent was very one dimensional, the surface was great but if you wanted anything deeper there wasn't another level. It's frustrating, because it had a great storyline and as I was reading I could see the potential.
It was a short fast-paced novel which made it easy to read in one sitting (which I just love), and I enjoyed very much that we got both sides of the good and bad sides of the scale with Easton and Gwen. If you're partial to fast growing love, angels and reapers and quick reads, then you'll like this one.
http://www.onceuponatwilight.com/2016...
Descent is a story of forbidden love between an angel and a reaper. Easton is a 400-year-old reaper doesn't believe in happiness or love or anything of the sort. Gwen is a 17-year old angel who's naive, sweet and everything Easton isn't. They were an interesting pairing. Easton was a broken man, and despite how much it's sad to see, but I love a broke character. They make things much more interesting, don't you think? And Gwen was just what he needed, someone to light a flame in his heart.
I didn't have the build up of anticipation for Easton's book like most readers did because this is the first book I've read from the series. As always, I prefer reading the whole series because you get the whole background, but it was a great stand alone novel.There wasn't a time where I felt as if I was missing out on anything.
The beautiful cover was there, the gripping storyline was there...but the execution wasn't. Emotionally it was a let down. Descent was very one dimensional, the surface was great but if you wanted anything deeper there wasn't another level. It's frustrating, because it had a great storyline and as I was reading I could see the potential.
It was a short fast-paced novel which made it easy to read in one sitting (which I just love), and I enjoyed very much that we got both sides of the good and bad sides of the scale with Easton and Gwen. If you're partial to fast growing love, angels and reapers and quick reads, then you'll like this one.
http://www.onceuponatwilight.com/2016...
Want to read
May 14, 2014OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!
THANK GOD I OPENED THIS!
I REALLY WANTED TO KNOW EASTON'S STORY SO BAD!!!
I THINK THIS ONE IS GONNA BE THE BEST STORY EVER!!!
SINCE HE IS A BADASS IN EVERY WAY! HELL REAPER AND ALL! XDDDD
THANK GOD I OPENED THIS!
I REALLY WANTED TO KNOW EASTON'S STORY SO BAD!!!
I THINK THIS ONE IS GONNA BE THE BEST STORY EVER!!!
SINCE HE IS A BADASS IN EVERY WAY! HELL REAPER AND ALL! XDDDD
November 11, 2017
I went into this book thinking I wasn't going to enjoy Easton's story, like Finn's and Cash's but, again Tara wrote another great book! It was just as riveting, nerve-wracking, sexy, even sweet moments. When the other MC's came around it made me happy, just to see how they're doing. When they got together, it was always hilarious with their smart ass comments. Seriously fell in love with Scott too! I would have really like to see his story as well. He was loveable, laughable and when you needed him the most he was there. This book had both POV's. Gwen had so much love & joy to give but when one of her "projects" goes terribly wrong she is thrown into a situation where she has to be brave and strong. They had several sexy moments, in spite of being in hell, which kind of surprised me but still, there was no sex. It was a bit darker like Cash's story was maybe even more so. So good and a series I would read again.
September 4, 2015
“You believe everyone can be fixed. They can’t. Some are meant to be forever broken.”
Title: Descent
Author: Tara Fuller
Series: Kissed by Death # 3
Publication: June 2, 2015 by Entangled Teen
Pages: 320
Source: Netgalley
Summary:
Easton doesn’t believe in love. He believes in Death. Darkness. Sin. As a reaper for Hell, it’s all he’s known for over four hundred years. When he gets slapped with the job of training the boss’s daughter, an angel who knows nothing but joy, he knows he’s in for a world of trouble.
Though he’s made it clear he wants nothing to do with her outside of work, Gwen would do anything to get closer to the dark and wounded reaper—even taint her angelic image and join the ranks of her father’s team of reapers. But in all her planning, she forgot to factor in one thing—how far the demons Easton doomed to hell would go to get revenge.
When the dangers of the Hell threaten Gwen, Easton will do whatever it takes to save her. But as the darkness closes in on them both, will he be able to save himself?
My Thoughts:
Descent is the third and newest release in Tara Fuller's Kissed by Death series. Now, I want to point out that I have never read any of the other books in the series, so believe me when I tell you that you don't need to in order to enjoy this book. I can also tell you this, after finishing Descent, I now plan to go back and devour every other book in the series just to make the world last a little bit longer.
Since I had not read any of the other books, though they now hold a special place on my TBR shelf, I had no prior knowledge about the mythology of this world or who any of the characters were. I didn’t find myself fangirling over special cameos because I completely missed out on the books leading up to this, but it in no way changed how I felt about this book. Descent can be read entirely as a standalone and you will be perfectly fine. I did figure out what was going on, what some connections were, and how this world we are thrust into works - Fuller doesn’t lay it all out in a pretty spreadsheet, but you learn the lay of the land pretty darn quickly because of how well she develops everything throughout the book. I am sort of distraught over the fact that I hadn't read any of the other books, I completely missed out on the excitement that came with the main male protagonist of this story. I wish I had known more about him before I started reading, it would have made it that much more special than it already was.
Easton, our main man candy, is what they call a reaper. He takes souls to their final resting place, and instead of working for Heaven, he works for Hell. He has been involved in the other two books, but I don’t know the extent of that so I couldn’t really get down and dirty with analyzing his character development. But, even in this novel alone, I could still see the way his character shifted. I did love him, it was sort of hard not to if I were to be completely honest. I really loved how the book was told through his point of view along with that of Gwen's, our female protagonist. The contrast between the two of them and they way the thought about the world was very intriguing and it only made me want more of what was going on. Being able to peak into his head was a real treat, it gave us some wonderful insight to the reasons behind his actions and why he chose to work for Hell instead of Heaven. Gwen, our other main character, is an angel of joy. She brings hope to those in the midst of their darkest moments. She takes their pain and suffering away by making it her own and giving them some of her happiness. I also thought reading from her point of view was sort of special. A lot of the time in Young Adult books, we have a female heroine who is inherently a "Mary Sue", but Gwen was different. She had to be good, pure, and kind simply because of what she was. She was an angel for crying out loud, how could she be anything but? But, she also had her own dark moments, impure thoughts, and destructive tendencies. Fuller took a character that should have been perfect and untouchable by any human standards of emotion and she made that character as real as you or I.
Now, as for the plot. Based off the general make up of an angel meeting someone that works for Hell and falls in love - it ended up being that same overdone trope of "good girl meets bad boy and wants to heal him" blah blah blah. But, it fit with the mythology behind the story - so it wasn’t a problem. Gwen wanting to heal Easton was a main component of her character arc, and it makes a more sense when you read it than the way I am describing it. I guess I can just put it this way. Hell is horribly graphic. The place is horrific, it isn't cozy, it isn't comfortable, and it made me on hundred percent positive that I never want to end up there. Gwen's angelic nature is the antithesis of this mess. She is a welcome change, the light and the end of the tunnel. She made suffering through the chapters in Hell and reading through the graphic torture descriptions worth it.
All in all, Descent is a delightful book full of redemption, love, loss, and the meaning of justice. How far would you go for revenge if someone hurt the people you loved? Gwen and Easton are wonderfully multidimensional. They prove that being the bad boy doesn’t necessarily guarantee that he is bad or incapable of being good and that being a good girl can want to experience the bad just to want to have a greater understanding of the world - no love needed. I recommend this book for any fans of Hush Hush, Fallen, or The Mortal Instruments books. If you love angels, demons, and everything in between, then go and find yourself a copy of this book and devour it as soon as possible.
Title: Descent
Author: Tara Fuller
Series: Kissed by Death # 3
Publication: June 2, 2015 by Entangled Teen
Pages: 320
Source: Netgalley
Summary:
Easton doesn’t believe in love. He believes in Death. Darkness. Sin. As a reaper for Hell, it’s all he’s known for over four hundred years. When he gets slapped with the job of training the boss’s daughter, an angel who knows nothing but joy, he knows he’s in for a world of trouble.
Though he’s made it clear he wants nothing to do with her outside of work, Gwen would do anything to get closer to the dark and wounded reaper—even taint her angelic image and join the ranks of her father’s team of reapers. But in all her planning, she forgot to factor in one thing—how far the demons Easton doomed to hell would go to get revenge.
When the dangers of the Hell threaten Gwen, Easton will do whatever it takes to save her. But as the darkness closes in on them both, will he be able to save himself?
My Thoughts:
Descent is the third and newest release in Tara Fuller's Kissed by Death series. Now, I want to point out that I have never read any of the other books in the series, so believe me when I tell you that you don't need to in order to enjoy this book. I can also tell you this, after finishing Descent, I now plan to go back and devour every other book in the series just to make the world last a little bit longer.
Since I had not read any of the other books, though they now hold a special place on my TBR shelf, I had no prior knowledge about the mythology of this world or who any of the characters were. I didn’t find myself fangirling over special cameos because I completely missed out on the books leading up to this, but it in no way changed how I felt about this book. Descent can be read entirely as a standalone and you will be perfectly fine. I did figure out what was going on, what some connections were, and how this world we are thrust into works - Fuller doesn’t lay it all out in a pretty spreadsheet, but you learn the lay of the land pretty darn quickly because of how well she develops everything throughout the book. I am sort of distraught over the fact that I hadn't read any of the other books, I completely missed out on the excitement that came with the main male protagonist of this story. I wish I had known more about him before I started reading, it would have made it that much more special than it already was.
Easton, our main man candy, is what they call a reaper. He takes souls to their final resting place, and instead of working for Heaven, he works for Hell. He has been involved in the other two books, but I don’t know the extent of that so I couldn’t really get down and dirty with analyzing his character development. But, even in this novel alone, I could still see the way his character shifted. I did love him, it was sort of hard not to if I were to be completely honest. I really loved how the book was told through his point of view along with that of Gwen's, our female protagonist. The contrast between the two of them and they way the thought about the world was very intriguing and it only made me want more of what was going on. Being able to peak into his head was a real treat, it gave us some wonderful insight to the reasons behind his actions and why he chose to work for Hell instead of Heaven. Gwen, our other main character, is an angel of joy. She brings hope to those in the midst of their darkest moments. She takes their pain and suffering away by making it her own and giving them some of her happiness. I also thought reading from her point of view was sort of special. A lot of the time in Young Adult books, we have a female heroine who is inherently a "Mary Sue", but Gwen was different. She had to be good, pure, and kind simply because of what she was. She was an angel for crying out loud, how could she be anything but? But, she also had her own dark moments, impure thoughts, and destructive tendencies. Fuller took a character that should have been perfect and untouchable by any human standards of emotion and she made that character as real as you or I.
Now, as for the plot. Based off the general make up of an angel meeting someone that works for Hell and falls in love - it ended up being that same overdone trope of "good girl meets bad boy and wants to heal him" blah blah blah. But, it fit with the mythology behind the story - so it wasn’t a problem. Gwen wanting to heal Easton was a main component of her character arc, and it makes a more sense when you read it than the way I am describing it. I guess I can just put it this way. Hell is horribly graphic. The place is horrific, it isn't cozy, it isn't comfortable, and it made me on hundred percent positive that I never want to end up there. Gwen's angelic nature is the antithesis of this mess. She is a welcome change, the light and the end of the tunnel. She made suffering through the chapters in Hell and reading through the graphic torture descriptions worth it.
All in all, Descent is a delightful book full of redemption, love, loss, and the meaning of justice. How far would you go for revenge if someone hurt the people you loved? Gwen and Easton are wonderfully multidimensional. They prove that being the bad boy doesn’t necessarily guarantee that he is bad or incapable of being good and that being a good girl can want to experience the bad just to want to have a greater understanding of the world - no love needed. I recommend this book for any fans of Hush Hush, Fallen, or The Mortal Instruments books. If you love angels, demons, and everything in between, then go and find yourself a copy of this book and devour it as soon as possible.
October 11, 2015
So I just finished the book. It's really a quick read..but I was busy and there were some things that turned me off from reading(Gwen).
Honestly, I didn't like the ending much. I liked the dark and dangerous Easton, and by the end of the book..the whole story was mush. So cheesy I was cringing from their proclaimed love. What did Gwen do to you, Easton!?whyyyyyy,...I honestly wish that the outcome was what Gwen was asking to give up.
That would have been a great one! If she weren't an angel of joy, maybe she wouldn't be so freakin annoying and reckless and naive. Have I ever told you guys how much i find naivete annoying? Especially on a teenager/almost adult. Gwen was like a stupid bratty little child chasing butterflies. Easton was like this mature late 20s/early 30s guy stuck with a kid. Honestly, aside from the good writing during the romance part, their romance was just..meh. What does this mean? It means, i don't really see them lasting...They fall in love in like..a few days. Books Ones romance was real. We had 2 characters who fell in love and fought for each other for years....book 2 had 2 characters who had literately loved each other for centuries. Epic love? Book 3 was downhill..which is disappointing..since Easton is my favorite character.
His story didnt do him justice. The little tidbits about his life/family was tragic and I wish we got more into that. It's like every time I was in Eastons head, I liked the story, when Gwens turn came, I was bored or annoyed or angry. Even her last good deed pissed me off. I get it, you dont want him hurt, but she basically put his everything he worked for to keep her safe in the trash and did her own thing. Very selfish and pathetic. She never learned her lesson. EVER. That's what bugged me. Throughout the whole damn story she kept putting her life on the line for stupid things..and even at the end..she doesnt learn her lesson. And Easton, he doesn't need to learn a lesson. Hes perfectly messed up. Which is how I liked him. lol. OH well..hes still his imperfect self inside those white clothes.(bleh).
On the upside..hell was a very creative and interesting and messed up setting. I loved it. Great job on creating that world. I never doubted that the author could make hell a realistic and scary place....i just wish she paid some attention on Gwen. like A lot of attention.
Easton I knew from book 1 and loved....Gwen I just met her, and she has had the worst first, second, third...etc. impressions in the history of impressions.
I'm going to ignore how sappy their love was near the end...for the sake of Easton..and move on. 3 stars because of Easton..Deduced 1 whole star because of Gwen and her reckless stupid self. All she had to do was just freakin listen to Easton...she's a child.
Something to keep in mind: Easton looks like a teen, but hes been alive for about 500 years..so that makes him mature and realistic and a "cynic" for good reason. Gwen is an angel of joy, literately made to please her father with her happy-go-lucky attitude..and even in angel years..shes still 17...but i still thought she acted much younger. My 12 year old sister would act more mature than her in those situations, I kid(ha, get it) you not.
I just feel like Easton deserved a better story and a better romantic interest. Would be cooler for him to meet another reaper....sigh..we can't have everything...or at least a less annoying angel. Im sure there are some out there! Whatever..I'm going to hope that Easton changes Gwen to some degree.......
Note: We sorta get a guest appearance from Finn(mention of Emma) and Anaya(wish her bf was here too) near end of book.
final rating:
setting/plot: 1
Easton: 2!!!!!!!!!
Gwen: (-1..this could have been a 4 star rating!!!!!)
Recom: Read for Easton, drink a lot of tea to be calm when Gwen starts getting on your nerve. Or pretend to not hear her. lol. BUT I recommend for people who like a light romance with a thick later of hell as a setting. Prepare to be tortured. Muahaha.
---------------------------------------
Quick rant:
Honestly..I love Easton..I really do...but as usual...he suffers from "bad taste in women"...like..almost all men!lol..i think the first 2 books had decent female characters, the second book having a more interesting female character...but this book..Gwen irritates the fuck out of me.
First it was the river of souls who basically sucked her under, before then it was something else..and now its the freakin mom/baby intervention in hell. Honestly, can this bitch keep her feelings intact and mind her own business?!!!!!!!!
I love Eason, I'm saying it again, but he's got bad taste in women. I don't even know what he sees in her. I really dont. I'm sick of being nice to men whom i love for choosing annoying morons as love interest. I wish there was another cool character like him...dammit. We are stuck with this annoying goody-two-shoes bitch, Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
I'm not even done with the book. I stopped reading it a while back..and now I have decided to finish it..but I can't seem to get over how annoying Gwen is. This book is probably going to get a rating of 3 all thanks to Gwen.
-before finale review above
Honestly, I didn't like the ending much. I liked the dark and dangerous Easton, and by the end of the book..the whole story was mush. So cheesy I was cringing from their proclaimed love. What did Gwen do to you, Easton!?whyyyyyy,...I honestly wish that the outcome was what Gwen was asking to give up.
That would have been a great one! If she weren't an angel of joy, maybe she wouldn't be so freakin annoying and reckless and naive. Have I ever told you guys how much i find naivete annoying? Especially on a teenager/almost adult. Gwen was like a stupid bratty little child chasing butterflies. Easton was like this mature late 20s/early 30s guy stuck with a kid. Honestly, aside from the good writing during the romance part, their romance was just..meh. What does this mean? It means, i don't really see them lasting...They fall in love in like..a few days. Books Ones romance was real. We had 2 characters who fell in love and fought for each other for years....book 2 had 2 characters who had literately loved each other for centuries. Epic love? Book 3 was downhill..which is disappointing..since Easton is my favorite character.
His story didnt do him justice. The little tidbits about his life/family was tragic and I wish we got more into that. It's like every time I was in Eastons head, I liked the story, when Gwens turn came, I was bored or annoyed or angry. Even her last good deed pissed me off. I get it, you dont want him hurt, but she basically put his everything he worked for to keep her safe in the trash and did her own thing. Very selfish and pathetic. She never learned her lesson. EVER. That's what bugged me. Throughout the whole damn story she kept putting her life on the line for stupid things..and even at the end..she doesnt learn her lesson. And Easton, he doesn't need to learn a lesson. Hes perfectly messed up. Which is how I liked him. lol. OH well..hes still his imperfect self inside those white clothes.(bleh).
On the upside..hell was a very creative and interesting and messed up setting. I loved it. Great job on creating that world. I never doubted that the author could make hell a realistic and scary place....i just wish she paid some attention on Gwen. like A lot of attention.
Easton I knew from book 1 and loved....Gwen I just met her, and she has had the worst first, second, third...etc. impressions in the history of impressions.
I'm going to ignore how sappy their love was near the end...for the sake of Easton..and move on. 3 stars because of Easton..Deduced 1 whole star because of Gwen and her reckless stupid self. All she had to do was just freakin listen to Easton...she's a child.
Something to keep in mind: Easton looks like a teen, but hes been alive for about 500 years..so that makes him mature and realistic and a "cynic" for good reason. Gwen is an angel of joy, literately made to please her father with her happy-go-lucky attitude..and even in angel years..shes still 17...but i still thought she acted much younger. My 12 year old sister would act more mature than her in those situations, I kid(ha, get it) you not.
I just feel like Easton deserved a better story and a better romantic interest. Would be cooler for him to meet another reaper....sigh..we can't have everything...or at least a less annoying angel. Im sure there are some out there! Whatever..I'm going to hope that Easton changes Gwen to some degree.......
Note: We sorta get a guest appearance from Finn(mention of Emma) and Anaya(wish her bf was here too) near end of book.
final rating:
setting/plot: 1
Easton: 2!!!!!!!!!
Gwen: (-1..this could have been a 4 star rating!!!!!)
Recom: Read for Easton, drink a lot of tea to be calm when Gwen starts getting on your nerve. Or pretend to not hear her. lol. BUT I recommend for people who like a light romance with a thick later of hell as a setting. Prepare to be tortured. Muahaha.
---------------------------------------
Quick rant:
Honestly..I love Easton..I really do...but as usual...he suffers from "bad taste in women"...like..almost all men!lol..i think the first 2 books had decent female characters, the second book having a more interesting female character...but this book..Gwen irritates the fuck out of me.
First it was the river of souls who basically sucked her under, before then it was something else..and now its the freakin mom/baby intervention in hell. Honestly, can this bitch keep her feelings intact and mind her own business?!!!!!!!!
I love Eason, I'm saying it again, but he's got bad taste in women. I don't even know what he sees in her. I really dont. I'm sick of being nice to men whom i love for choosing annoying morons as love interest. I wish there was another cool character like him...dammit. We are stuck with this annoying goody-two-shoes bitch, Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
I'm not even done with the book. I stopped reading it a while back..and now I have decided to finish it..but I can't seem to get over how annoying Gwen is. This book is probably going to get a rating of 3 all thanks to Gwen.
-before finale review above
June 7, 2015
Easton's book! At last!
It's felt like ages since I'd read the first two books in the series ( Inbetween and Blurred )--really, not quite two years--and as I read the long-awaited third book, I found myself wishing I'd had time to re-read the first two first. Not because I needed their details in my mind to enjoy or understand Descent--it absolutely worked fine as a standalone; Finn and Emma and Cash and Anya are mentioned a few times and make brief appearances toward/at the end--but just because I wanted their stories and them fresher in my mind as I read. I remembered loving Easton in those books, but couldn't remember the details.
Too many books under the bridge, I guess.
It didn't keep me from loving him again here, or from enjoying his story--I just wanted to remember more from before for me. Which I guess makes my point become that this works fine on its own, but if you're going to read the series anyway, do it all at once or at least with less than two years Inbetween titles. (See what I did there?)
Easton's story literally drags the reader to hell and back--he's a reaper for hell. He's jaded. He's breaking in a new partner, and he's less than thrilled about it. He's still missing his best friend (Inbetween's Finn) and now he's feeling a degree of resentment, having to do much of Anya's (Blurred) job as well.
Not to mention he's dealing with a tad bit of jealousy.
Not that he acknowledges it, really. Or that he believes he deserves even a sliver of the happiness that his friend(s) and former co-workers have. He's firmly in the Easton-has-made-his-horrible-bed-and-now-he's-going-to-lie-in-it-for-another-470 something-years-plus camp.
Until he meets Gwen.
She's an angel. She's a do-gooder. She's the boss's (Balthazar's) daughter. She somehow inspires him to make a promise--which he never does--and when his partner accidentally delivers a soul that Gwen's been working with to the wrong final destination, he becomes saddled with the pain-in-the-butt, too-gorgeous-for-her-own-good and definitely too-good-for-the-likes-of-him angel as a temporary "recruit".
Really, her father expects Easton to keep Gwen in one piece while giving her a brief taste of hell that will quickly scare her back to her safe existence of (literal) rainbows and (not-so-literal, sadly) sparkly unicorns.
What Balthazar doesn't expect is Gwen's determination to save the lost soul. What Easton doesn't expect is her ability to blackmail him into helping her do it. Or the amazing strength she'll show as they descend into the pits of hell and back.
Or how much he'll come to love her in the process.
Because Gwen's the first person to see the essential core of goodness that the readers suspected Easton had all along...and it draws her to him like a moth to flame. Or an angel to shimmery light, as it were.
Their journey will keep you on the edge of your seat, and what you'll learn about Easton's past will make your heart hurt just a bit. He'll have to confront a (again, literal) demon from his past, and, even worse, his boss after realizing that he'd fallen in love with his only daughter.
That confrontation with Balthazar? So. Good.
Everything wraps up nicely--and rather quickly--in the end, but given the wretchedness of Easton's first almost-five-hundred years and all the hellish scenes the two had already gone through up to that point, it was a relief to finally have everything settled. A nice and tidy HEA was definitely deserved by both.
And, yay! An HEA for Easton--at last!
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A-
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
It's felt like ages since I'd read the first two books in the series ( Inbetween and Blurred )--really, not quite two years--and as I read the long-awaited third book, I found myself wishing I'd had time to re-read the first two first. Not because I needed their details in my mind to enjoy or understand Descent--it absolutely worked fine as a standalone; Finn and Emma and Cash and Anya are mentioned a few times and make brief appearances toward/at the end--but just because I wanted their stories and them fresher in my mind as I read. I remembered loving Easton in those books, but couldn't remember the details.
Too many books under the bridge, I guess.
It didn't keep me from loving him again here, or from enjoying his story--I just wanted to remember more from before for me. Which I guess makes my point become that this works fine on its own, but if you're going to read the series anyway, do it all at once or at least with less than two years Inbetween titles. (See what I did there?)
Easton's story literally drags the reader to hell and back--he's a reaper for hell. He's jaded. He's breaking in a new partner, and he's less than thrilled about it. He's still missing his best friend (Inbetween's Finn) and now he's feeling a degree of resentment, having to do much of Anya's (Blurred) job as well.
Not to mention he's dealing with a tad bit of jealousy.
Not that he acknowledges it, really. Or that he believes he deserves even a sliver of the happiness that his friend(s) and former co-workers have. He's firmly in the Easton-has-made-his-horrible-bed-and-now-he's-going-to-lie-in-it-for-another-470 something-years-plus camp.
Until he meets Gwen.
She's an angel. She's a do-gooder. She's the boss's (Balthazar's) daughter. She somehow inspires him to make a promise--which he never does--and when his partner accidentally delivers a soul that Gwen's been working with to the wrong final destination, he becomes saddled with the pain-in-the-butt, too-gorgeous-for-her-own-good and definitely too-good-for-the-likes-of-him angel as a temporary "recruit".
Really, her father expects Easton to keep Gwen in one piece while giving her a brief taste of hell that will quickly scare her back to her safe existence of (literal) rainbows and (not-so-literal, sadly) sparkly unicorns.
What Balthazar doesn't expect is Gwen's determination to save the lost soul. What Easton doesn't expect is her ability to blackmail him into helping her do it. Or the amazing strength she'll show as they descend into the pits of hell and back.
Or how much he'll come to love her in the process.
Because Gwen's the first person to see the essential core of goodness that the readers suspected Easton had all along...and it draws her to him like a moth to flame. Or an angel to shimmery light, as it were.
Their journey will keep you on the edge of your seat, and what you'll learn about Easton's past will make your heart hurt just a bit. He'll have to confront a (again, literal) demon from his past, and, even worse, his boss after realizing that he'd fallen in love with his only daughter.
That confrontation with Balthazar? So. Good.
Everything wraps up nicely--and rather quickly--in the end, but given the wretchedness of Easton's first almost-five-hundred years and all the hellish scenes the two had already gone through up to that point, it was a relief to finally have everything settled. A nice and tidy HEA was definitely deserved by both.
And, yay! An HEA for Easton--at last!
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A-
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
September 8, 2016
I would have rated this a 4.5 or a 5 and maybe I'll change the rating one day. Reminder, this is my personal experience and ranting of the book, I've tried to keep spoilers to a minimum by hiding them, feel free to comment any thoughts or feelings about the book.
This is beyond my favourite of all the books in this series. Easton is on my boyfriend list and Gwen is definitely on my hot, sweet and painkiller-like girlfriend list. The person saying that they wouldn't want anyone like Gwen is LYING, or just like Gwen, a sucker for pain.
Sitting here and thinking about what the book was about is making my head spin, what wasn't it about?! We have a guy who is so broken he doesn't know where his suffering begins and hell's end, he believes that pain is all he deserves and nothing good will ever come of him. Then we have the angel who is much more angel-like than the rest of the angels, she is stubborn, compassionate and selfless, she wants nothing more than to see others happy, no matter if its causing her pain. Isn't that one of the praises of Heaven? To be self-sacrificing when others are in need?? Apparently not if you're an angel...makes no sense...
Gwen feels guilty for causing an accident and persuades Easton to take her to Hell to right a wrong. And while Hell is his domain, no one really wants to be there longer than necessary. I pictured the Hell landscape from the movie Constantine and maybe Easton as John Constantine himself, the parallels were on point though with the darkness .
There are some steamy scenes in here that made my heart flutter.
We get to see a new side of Balthazar that we haven't seen before, now it's his own daughter playing the field of darkness vs light. He's struggling from keeping his daughter from harm and from the harsh reality of human, and soul's suffering. It makes him more human, and that was the whole point of giving him Gwen, she was supposed to keep his humanity going.
This is beyond my favourite of all the books in this series. Easton is on my boyfriend list and Gwen is definitely on my hot, sweet and painkiller-like girlfriend list. The person saying that they wouldn't want anyone like Gwen is LYING, or just like Gwen, a sucker for pain.
Sitting here and thinking about what the book was about is making my head spin, what wasn't it about?! We have a guy who is so broken he doesn't know where his suffering begins and hell's end, he believes that pain is all he deserves and nothing good will ever come of him. Then we have the angel who is much more angel-like than the rest of the angels, she is stubborn, compassionate and selfless, she wants nothing more than to see others happy, no matter if its causing her pain. Isn't that one of the praises of Heaven? To be self-sacrificing when others are in need?? Apparently not if you're an angel...makes no sense...
Gwen feels guilty for causing an accident and persuades Easton to take her to Hell to right a wrong. And while Hell is his domain, no one really wants to be there longer than necessary. I pictured the Hell landscape from the movie Constantine and maybe Easton as John Constantine himself, the parallels were on point though with the darkness .
There are some steamy scenes in here that made my heart flutter.
We get to see a new side of Balthazar that we haven't seen before, now it's his own daughter playing the field of darkness vs light. He's struggling from keeping his daughter from harm and from the harsh reality of human, and soul's suffering. It makes him more human, and that was the whole point of giving him Gwen, she was supposed to keep his humanity going.
June 3, 2015
To see the full post and review click the link below
http://misslittlebookaddictya.blogspo...
I'll start by saying I haven't read the first two books in this series, which turned out to be okay because I didn't feel lost or confused by anything that happened. I love it when I'm able to pick up a book in a series and start reading it, no matter which number in the series it is.
The whole concept of this series grabs me, even though I am NOT a fan of angel books (probably comes from growing up in a strict catholic house............)
I've seen the AMAZING covers for this series and always wanted to read them, so when Entangled Teen started offering ARCs of this one I jumped. The blurb, as you saw above is like, WOW.
Gwen and Easton were some of the best characters I've read on the last few months!
She's this pure, joyful angel and he's this complex, tortured bad boy Hell reaper.
It sounds like your typical set up, but the way the romance comes down is so different. Gwen, being an angel is supposed to spread happiness and want nothing else in her life. Easton is warped and broken from spending four hundred years taking people to hell and being exposed to the tortures that go on there. He is beyond terrified of ruining Gwen with his darkness; but neither of them, despite what they are supposed to feel, can resist one another.
Yes it is insta-lov-ie but we all know I like that so..........no biggie for me.
Easton is like the perfect passionate, strong yet flawed YA hero for me. He had me swooning and fanning myself. Gwen was a lot of fun to read about and I liked her personality and how strong she was.
DESCENT was filled with tons of action and romance and many good things. The world building was great and I enjoyed the pacing and style of Tara Fuller's writing.
Then why only three stars if there was so much I liked?
I am VERY squeamish. All the scenes, the graphic descriptions of what went on in Hell.............I am still cringing just thinking about it. I had to skip over those parts all together because I just couldn't handle them.
This is NOT a book for the faint of heart or those who are squeamish or uncomfortable with dark violent things.
***Raises hand****
This definitely makes me even more interested in reading the first two books, I just hope that they don't have the same graphic content as DESCENT.
There were a few other aspects of this book that got to me, like I wanted more from Easton's other reaper friends and I would have liked to know more about Gwen's world. But at the same time I feel like if there had been more goodness, it would have taken away from the impact of the book.
Outside the disturbing visuals, I was disappointed that I had to skip over so much of the book, because I couldn't handle the content. I can't tell if it's a good thing or bad thing that I still got the story perfectly even without all the other details.........
Overall I would recommend this book to older teens and even adult YA fans. But I DO NOT recommend you let teens younger than 16 read this without the parent first reading it and deciding if it's something they want their young child reading.
Thanks Entangled Teen!
~Dynomoon
http://misslittlebookaddictya.blogspo...
I'll start by saying I haven't read the first two books in this series, which turned out to be okay because I didn't feel lost or confused by anything that happened. I love it when I'm able to pick up a book in a series and start reading it, no matter which number in the series it is.
The whole concept of this series grabs me, even though I am NOT a fan of angel books (probably comes from growing up in a strict catholic house............)
I've seen the AMAZING covers for this series and always wanted to read them, so when Entangled Teen started offering ARCs of this one I jumped. The blurb, as you saw above is like, WOW.
Gwen and Easton were some of the best characters I've read on the last few months!
She's this pure, joyful angel and he's this complex, tortured bad boy Hell reaper.
It sounds like your typical set up, but the way the romance comes down is so different. Gwen, being an angel is supposed to spread happiness and want nothing else in her life. Easton is warped and broken from spending four hundred years taking people to hell and being exposed to the tortures that go on there. He is beyond terrified of ruining Gwen with his darkness; but neither of them, despite what they are supposed to feel, can resist one another.
Yes it is insta-lov-ie but we all know I like that so..........no biggie for me.
Easton is like the perfect passionate, strong yet flawed YA hero for me. He had me swooning and fanning myself. Gwen was a lot of fun to read about and I liked her personality and how strong she was.
DESCENT was filled with tons of action and romance and many good things. The world building was great and I enjoyed the pacing and style of Tara Fuller's writing.
Then why only three stars if there was so much I liked?
I am VERY squeamish. All the scenes, the graphic descriptions of what went on in Hell.............I am still cringing just thinking about it. I had to skip over those parts all together because I just couldn't handle them.
This is NOT a book for the faint of heart or those who are squeamish or uncomfortable with dark violent things.
***Raises hand****
This definitely makes me even more interested in reading the first two books, I just hope that they don't have the same graphic content as DESCENT.
There were a few other aspects of this book that got to me, like I wanted more from Easton's other reaper friends and I would have liked to know more about Gwen's world. But at the same time I feel like if there had been more goodness, it would have taken away from the impact of the book.
Outside the disturbing visuals, I was disappointed that I had to skip over so much of the book, because I couldn't handle the content. I can't tell if it's a good thing or bad thing that I still got the story perfectly even without all the other details.........
Overall I would recommend this book to older teens and even adult YA fans. But I DO NOT recommend you let teens younger than 16 read this without the parent first reading it and deciding if it's something they want their young child reading.
Thanks Entangled Teen!
~Dynomoon
May 20, 2015
This is a paranormal romantic read full of angels, demons, and everything in-between. With crazy ups and thrilling lows, this page-turner is a FIVE STAR read.
Humans worked so hard to hang on to life, when in the grand scheme, the thing they valued so much was nothing more than a grain of sand in the sea of eternity.
Schwartz Synopsis
Gwen is an angel of joy, spreading her healing touch wherever she goes. When she meets Easton, a Hell’s reaper, she wants to spread her magic touch to him as well. But Easton is broken, shattered, and unfixable. He’s been traveling to and from Hell for half a century and he can’t be fixed. His only fear now? Gwen. He’s deathly afraid of tainting her with his darkness. But will Gwen stay away? Or is she just too stubborn for her own good?
One look at him should have sent me running in the other direction, but when he lifted his gaze, his strange violet eyes connected with mine. Something in me flickered to life. The void inside pulsed, pushing me forward.
Schwartz Thoughts
It is no secret that I’m a paranormal addict. I love all things otherworldly. When the impossible comes to life on my pages. So when I picked up this book to read, I was fairly certain it would be a winner with me. Angels, reapers, and a trip to a Hell full of horrors and demons? Wicked fun to read!
The love story was fairly predictable in the beginning. I knew who would be involved before they even met. That is probably because of the style of the book. You will be reading through two perspectives. Gwen and Easton. Therefore, as a reader, it is obvious where the romance of this story will be. But that being said, it was NOT obvious on the HOW. The rules made it clear that Gwen was forbidden from wanting anything. As an angel, her job was to spread joy. Nothing more and nothing less. So it was really interesting to see how it all developed.
My emotions went on a roller coaster ride with this novel. I had my ups where I was silently giggling. I had moments of shock where ‘I didn’t see that coming’ moments struck me. I was rooting for my main couple. And I even had moments of sadness. I didn’t cry. I didn’t!
I think that this book is appropriately titled. It is always awesome when the reader can see where the title comes from. It fits this darker paranormal romance perfectly. With most romances you just know that it will end with a happily ever after and with this one it was really interesting to read because it was a huge question mark on just how that would happen that at points you didn’t think it would!
All in all, it was a very entertaining read.
“I’ll always save you, Gwen,” he said, without hesitation. “As long as I have you, I mean.”
Recommendation
I would recommend this to the romance lovers. If you enjoy a great page-turner full of forbidden love…then this is a book for you. Enjoy, I know I did.
The earth rumbled, cutting off Sky’s words. The chatter filling the coffee shop quieted. Black tendrils of fear curled through the room like smoke. Sky turned to me, eyes wide, and just like that the world around us lit up in an explosion of glass and flames.
Humans worked so hard to hang on to life, when in the grand scheme, the thing they valued so much was nothing more than a grain of sand in the sea of eternity.
Schwartz Synopsis
Gwen is an angel of joy, spreading her healing touch wherever she goes. When she meets Easton, a Hell’s reaper, she wants to spread her magic touch to him as well. But Easton is broken, shattered, and unfixable. He’s been traveling to and from Hell for half a century and he can’t be fixed. His only fear now? Gwen. He’s deathly afraid of tainting her with his darkness. But will Gwen stay away? Or is she just too stubborn for her own good?
One look at him should have sent me running in the other direction, but when he lifted his gaze, his strange violet eyes connected with mine. Something in me flickered to life. The void inside pulsed, pushing me forward.
Schwartz Thoughts
It is no secret that I’m a paranormal addict. I love all things otherworldly. When the impossible comes to life on my pages. So when I picked up this book to read, I was fairly certain it would be a winner with me. Angels, reapers, and a trip to a Hell full of horrors and demons? Wicked fun to read!
The love story was fairly predictable in the beginning. I knew who would be involved before they even met. That is probably because of the style of the book. You will be reading through two perspectives. Gwen and Easton. Therefore, as a reader, it is obvious where the romance of this story will be. But that being said, it was NOT obvious on the HOW. The rules made it clear that Gwen was forbidden from wanting anything. As an angel, her job was to spread joy. Nothing more and nothing less. So it was really interesting to see how it all developed.
My emotions went on a roller coaster ride with this novel. I had my ups where I was silently giggling. I had moments of shock where ‘I didn’t see that coming’ moments struck me. I was rooting for my main couple. And I even had moments of sadness. I didn’t cry. I didn’t!
I think that this book is appropriately titled. It is always awesome when the reader can see where the title comes from. It fits this darker paranormal romance perfectly. With most romances you just know that it will end with a happily ever after and with this one it was really interesting to read because it was a huge question mark on just how that would happen that at points you didn’t think it would!
All in all, it was a very entertaining read.
“I’ll always save you, Gwen,” he said, without hesitation. “As long as I have you, I mean.”
Recommendation
I would recommend this to the romance lovers. If you enjoy a great page-turner full of forbidden love…then this is a book for you. Enjoy, I know I did.
The earth rumbled, cutting off Sky’s words. The chatter filling the coffee shop quieted. Black tendrils of fear curled through the room like smoke. Sky turned to me, eyes wide, and just like that the world around us lit up in an explosion of glass and flames.
May 30, 2015
Originally posted on Gaga Over Books.
I was lucky enough to get this early release review copy for the final book in the Kissed by Death series. So, I haven't really read the first two books. I always wanted to start on with it but never got round to it. I shouldn't have read this book but I read it anyway and I am glad I didn't suffer much from the not knowing what happened previously.
I am quite surprised by how much I liked this instalment. If I had read the earlier books I think I would have been crazy dying to read this final chapter. I really loved the descriptive scenes about the whole reaper business and soul deliveries and all those punishments. I also found it to be darker than I thought it would be. And I loved it for the harshness.
I loved the writing that is for sure. And also the characters. I got to like Easton and he is apparently a beloved bad boy from the previous books. And I think I will someday read the first two books cos I don't think I got that spoiled about the characters. Like I got the final chapter but I am quite fine cos I don't really know how it all led to this final chapter. *winks* So what I really wanted to say was I would like to know how Easton got this beloved. And so I will read the first two books.
Okay, so Gwen was quite sweet and whatnot but I guess Easton is my fav character from the duo. I loved the duo together but if I had to choose I would go for Easton.. xP This book was told in dual POV and I loved both of their narrations for sure. But Easton, my man. Haha.
And I loved that this was a relationship between a reaper and an angel. Tehehe.
I read this in a week cos I was sick or I would have read it in a day or two. As I was quite hooked and loved the pacing and [Gwen's transition into a human form (you will understand what I mean by this weird thingy after reading :p)] and what not.
So I definitely enjoyed this book and I am sure all the fans for the first two books will dig it more. Cos well, not having read the first two books I could have felt lost and what not and not really like it. And I will stop rambling now. You know what I am trying to say. ''/
You will definitely love it. I hope. *winks*
For the suspense, perfect world building, fantastic descriptions and top notch writing. Read this book. ;) As I think it can be read a stand alone cos of different protagonists each book obvi. :p
Teaser:
I would like to thank Entangled Publishing for this review opportunity.
Descent comes out June 2nd. Be sure to get your copies. ;)
I was lucky enough to get this early release review copy for the final book in the Kissed by Death series. So, I haven't really read the first two books. I always wanted to start on with it but never got round to it. I shouldn't have read this book but I read it anyway and I am glad I didn't suffer much from the not knowing what happened previously.
I am quite surprised by how much I liked this instalment. If I had read the earlier books I think I would have been crazy dying to read this final chapter. I really loved the descriptive scenes about the whole reaper business and soul deliveries and all those punishments. I also found it to be darker than I thought it would be. And I loved it for the harshness.
I loved the writing that is for sure. And also the characters. I got to like Easton and he is apparently a beloved bad boy from the previous books. And I think I will someday read the first two books cos I don't think I got that spoiled about the characters. Like I got the final chapter but I am quite fine cos I don't really know how it all led to this final chapter. *winks* So what I really wanted to say was I would like to know how Easton got this beloved. And so I will read the first two books.
Okay, so Gwen was quite sweet and whatnot but I guess Easton is my fav character from the duo. I loved the duo together but if I had to choose I would go for Easton.. xP This book was told in dual POV and I loved both of their narrations for sure. But Easton, my man. Haha.
And I loved that this was a relationship between a reaper and an angel. Tehehe.
I read this in a week cos I was sick or I would have read it in a day or two. As I was quite hooked and loved the pacing and [Gwen's transition into a human form (you will understand what I mean by this weird thingy after reading :p)] and what not.
So I definitely enjoyed this book and I am sure all the fans for the first two books will dig it more. Cos well, not having read the first two books I could have felt lost and what not and not really like it. And I will stop rambling now. You know what I am trying to say. ''/
You will definitely love it. I hope. *winks*
For the suspense, perfect world building, fantastic descriptions and top notch writing. Read this book. ;) As I think it can be read a stand alone cos of different protagonists each book obvi. :p
Teaser:
I would like to thank Entangled Publishing for this review opportunity.
Descent comes out June 2nd. Be sure to get your copies. ;)
June 7, 2015
I totally enjoyed this story, even though I have not read the first two. I've been wanting to for a long time, but when I had the opportunity, I jumped on reading this one. And boy oh boy, I am fascinated. This series is awesome, if only because this book is great!! It's dark, and yet full of hope and light. It's got a little bit of everything. And the main characters, as well as the side characters, they make the story amazing.
Easton, well, he's the beautiful broken bad boy. He wants no love, or feelings, or to do anything other than his job. He works with the demons, he brings the bad souls to them. He knows all the bad things that happen down there because he's been there, many times, and even been their victim before. I wanted to hug him, and slap him, and drool on him all at the same time. And the cute little angel got under his skin, is was just great. So, when a boo boo makes Easton take that cute little angel into the main parts of hell to rectify their mistake, he learns that he's still willing to die for others, he has feelings no matter what he tells himself, and he can fall in love and be loved in return. He made me cry, then cheer like a school girl :) Oh and he's really not the bad boy, he just does the bad things to keep things in order, so he's a good guy just hiding it really well.
So we meet Gwen, she's the angel of hope and joy. She gives people joy to find their way from bad things. She's also the daughter of the big guy upstairs who's in charge of all souls and where they end up. She is Easton's Ying to his Yang. And she's just so good. She wants more than just being an angel of joy. She loves bringing joy to the humans but she wants to feel that joy herself. I loved the relationship that Gwen and Easton built. Well, it was more along the lines of a love/hate relationship until halfway through LOL And they really do work well together. But Gwen won't back down, and Easton is willing to sacrifice everything for her, so it proves for a crazy adventure.
I absolutely love the writing. I am so impressed with how easily I read this story without any problems from not having read the others previously. And I just happened to love the plot. I loved that it was dark and gritty, but full of hope. A candle lit in a vast darkness. It was mostly in hell, so there's some horror feel to it without being a horror story. It has an amazing feel and atmosphere to it. I promise I will be getting books one and two asap now :) with that said, I really do hope there's more to come, because this is a magnificent world to be in. 5 PAWS!!!
Easton, well, he's the beautiful broken bad boy. He wants no love, or feelings, or to do anything other than his job. He works with the demons, he brings the bad souls to them. He knows all the bad things that happen down there because he's been there, many times, and even been their victim before. I wanted to hug him, and slap him, and drool on him all at the same time. And the cute little angel got under his skin, is was just great. So, when a boo boo makes Easton take that cute little angel into the main parts of hell to rectify their mistake, he learns that he's still willing to die for others, he has feelings no matter what he tells himself, and he can fall in love and be loved in return. He made me cry, then cheer like a school girl :) Oh and he's really not the bad boy, he just does the bad things to keep things in order, so he's a good guy just hiding it really well.
So we meet Gwen, she's the angel of hope and joy. She gives people joy to find their way from bad things. She's also the daughter of the big guy upstairs who's in charge of all souls and where they end up. She is Easton's Ying to his Yang. And she's just so good. She wants more than just being an angel of joy. She loves bringing joy to the humans but she wants to feel that joy herself. I loved the relationship that Gwen and Easton built. Well, it was more along the lines of a love/hate relationship until halfway through LOL And they really do work well together. But Gwen won't back down, and Easton is willing to sacrifice everything for her, so it proves for a crazy adventure.
I absolutely love the writing. I am so impressed with how easily I read this story without any problems from not having read the others previously. And I just happened to love the plot. I loved that it was dark and gritty, but full of hope. A candle lit in a vast darkness. It was mostly in hell, so there's some horror feel to it without being a horror story. It has an amazing feel and atmosphere to it. I promise I will be getting books one and two asap now :) with that said, I really do hope there's more to come, because this is a magnificent world to be in. 5 PAWS!!!
June 11, 2015
Book Review- Descent by Tara Fuller
Easton is the Reaper for Hell. He is exactly where he belongs and is getting what he deserves. Unfortunately since Anaya left to become a guardian he has been covering her territory to Heaven. He feels completely out of place when he is there and tries not to linger any longer than he has to.
Gwen is an Angel of Joy. She goes to Earth and absorbs the pain of humans and replaces it with joy. However she gets too attached to her cases. In fact her latest, Tyler, is about to have the happiness he has been searching for and Gwen is determined he gets it. She influences his actions to ensure a happy ending.
Unfortunately something unexpected happens and Gwen comes face to face with death and Easton. She is drawn to his pain but keeps her distance. She promises Tyler he will see his love again when his soul is delivered to Heaven, but there is a mistake and he is delivered to Hell instead. Gwen is determined to find a way to save him. She finds a way to place herself at Easton’s side so she can go into Hell and help save Tyler.
Easton has guilt over the mistake even though he didn’t deliver the soul, it was his careless words. He has plans to find Tyler himself and get him out of Hell. Of course he had no idea he would be babysitting an Angel of Joy and his boss’ daughter. Hell is difficult enough to survive. It should be a complete picnic with the pure soul of an angel next to him as demons chase them throughout Hell.
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this YA book. A Hell’s reaper and an Angel of Joy meet and join forces to right a wrong and save a pure soul. Easton is tough, numb and broken. He broods and snarls throughout the story. I love when Gwen knocks him on his butt. He fights his feelings because he thinks he doesn’t deserve anything close to joy or happiness.
Easton becomes protective of Gwen as they travel into Hell. Things changes for him as she worms her way through the walls he has built, a great love story. The storyline involving their journey into Hell to retrieve the lost soul is full of danger and torture. The demons all want Gwen because she is an angel and a pure soul. The author creates a treacherous land that includes a city of sin. The main characters have to face their greatest fears and survive the demons wanting to capture them.
It was a good story that held my attention throughout the whole journey. The author did a great job. I give it a 4 out of 5.
Easton is the Reaper for Hell. He is exactly where he belongs and is getting what he deserves. Unfortunately since Anaya left to become a guardian he has been covering her territory to Heaven. He feels completely out of place when he is there and tries not to linger any longer than he has to.
Gwen is an Angel of Joy. She goes to Earth and absorbs the pain of humans and replaces it with joy. However she gets too attached to her cases. In fact her latest, Tyler, is about to have the happiness he has been searching for and Gwen is determined he gets it. She influences his actions to ensure a happy ending.
Unfortunately something unexpected happens and Gwen comes face to face with death and Easton. She is drawn to his pain but keeps her distance. She promises Tyler he will see his love again when his soul is delivered to Heaven, but there is a mistake and he is delivered to Hell instead. Gwen is determined to find a way to save him. She finds a way to place herself at Easton’s side so she can go into Hell and help save Tyler.
Easton has guilt over the mistake even though he didn’t deliver the soul, it was his careless words. He has plans to find Tyler himself and get him out of Hell. Of course he had no idea he would be babysitting an Angel of Joy and his boss’ daughter. Hell is difficult enough to survive. It should be a complete picnic with the pure soul of an angel next to him as demons chase them throughout Hell.
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this YA book. A Hell’s reaper and an Angel of Joy meet and join forces to right a wrong and save a pure soul. Easton is tough, numb and broken. He broods and snarls throughout the story. I love when Gwen knocks him on his butt. He fights his feelings because he thinks he doesn’t deserve anything close to joy or happiness.
Easton becomes protective of Gwen as they travel into Hell. Things changes for him as she worms her way through the walls he has built, a great love story. The storyline involving their journey into Hell to retrieve the lost soul is full of danger and torture. The demons all want Gwen because she is an angel and a pure soul. The author creates a treacherous land that includes a city of sin. The main characters have to face their greatest fears and survive the demons wanting to capture them.
It was a good story that held my attention throughout the whole journey. The author did a great job. I give it a 4 out of 5.
December 30, 2015
If you want a series to end on a great note- look no farther than a Tara Fuller series! Descent starts off several weeks after the events of Blurred. It seems that everyone got their Happily Ever After-Emma and Finn, Cash and Anaya- everyone that is but Easton. What can you truly expect for a reaper who has been on the job for 400 years? Not only did Easton not get his happily ever after- now he is paying the price of his friends happiness. Yepper, he is reaping for three people now not just his zone but Finn’s and Anaya’s. This seems well a little unfair- especially since Anaya’s angel friends hate the sight of him. Which by the way isn’t very angelie if you ask me.
Easton was my favorite character in the first two books- yes, even though he was a secondary character. Easton is well… pragmatic, logical and practical. He does his job and he does it well. He follows the rules and knows he has to atone for what he did on earth. Although, once you find out why- you may be on Easton’s side. The one time he gives a heavenly soul to his apprentice Scout- he screws up. The soul ends up in Hell and it is up to Easton and the soul’s angel of joy- Gwen to save him. To do this Easton will have to fight the demons in Hell- both personal and the one’s he delivered.
Gwen as an angel of joy wants to help Easton as well as her charge. She tries to help him but he keeps pushing her away. So what is a gal to do but ask her daddy to show her the ropes of well Hell. Balthazar will only put her with the best reaper, who just happens to be Easton. For an angel, Gwen is well kinda manipulative, even if it is for the betterment of society.
Easton is only supposed to scare Gwen away from her daddy’s line of work. But Gwen has some gumption to her. Once she finds out that her charge was not taken to heaven well honey this is one angel that will move heaven and earth- even risk the depths of Hell to return him to his love.
I just love a forbidden love story- I love how Easton fights his attraction to Gwen with every fiber of his being. I love how Gwen doesn’t understand what her love for Easton means. Pretty much I love this book. Regardless of the romance they both keep their eye on the ball- retrieving the soul from Hell. Gwen’s determination and Easton’s protectiveness is a perfect combination.
The Reading Cave
Easton was my favorite character in the first two books- yes, even though he was a secondary character. Easton is well… pragmatic, logical and practical. He does his job and he does it well. He follows the rules and knows he has to atone for what he did on earth. Although, once you find out why- you may be on Easton’s side. The one time he gives a heavenly soul to his apprentice Scout- he screws up. The soul ends up in Hell and it is up to Easton and the soul’s angel of joy- Gwen to save him. To do this Easton will have to fight the demons in Hell- both personal and the one’s he delivered.
Gwen as an angel of joy wants to help Easton as well as her charge. She tries to help him but he keeps pushing her away. So what is a gal to do but ask her daddy to show her the ropes of well Hell. Balthazar will only put her with the best reaper, who just happens to be Easton. For an angel, Gwen is well kinda manipulative, even if it is for the betterment of society.
Easton is only supposed to scare Gwen away from her daddy’s line of work. But Gwen has some gumption to her. Once she finds out that her charge was not taken to heaven well honey this is one angel that will move heaven and earth- even risk the depths of Hell to return him to his love.
I just love a forbidden love story- I love how Easton fights his attraction to Gwen with every fiber of his being. I love how Gwen doesn’t understand what her love for Easton means. Pretty much I love this book. Regardless of the romance they both keep their eye on the ball- retrieving the soul from Hell. Gwen’s determination and Easton’s protectiveness is a perfect combination.
The Reading Cave
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 11, 2015
GENRE: Young Adult
THEME: Romance, Paranormal, Angels
RECEIVED: Tour
BLOG: http://seeingnight.blogspot.com/
REVIEW:
I loves story with good vs. evil, and was so excited to read Fullers take on good and evil falling in love. Who would of thought that readers would be rooting for a reaper and an angel to find some happiness. I love the dark take on this type of story but it still kept the sweet romance and the aspects of young adult. I haven’t read the first two in the series but I had an easy time stepping into this world without being introduced to the characters beforehand.
The two leads are very much opposites. Easton is a reaper and escorts souls to hell. He doesn’t know happiness and has been dealing with the darkness of hell for over 400 years. He is also not a happy camper, a little rough around the edges. Where Gwen who is sweet and joyful, she brings happiness to others and will do anything for those who she watches over. I loved how different they were, it made it even more interesting to see how they would end up together. So when Gwen and Easton meet at an accident, they are dealt with something Easton wasn’t prepared for. His partner sent the soul of the one Gwen was watching over to hell instead of Heaven. Now Gwen and Easton need to bring that soul back, Gwen is determined to see it done.
I loved that Gwen wasn’t afraid of what Easton does (reaping) she was more interesting to learn more and see what she hasn’t known or understood. Gwen is also the daughter of Easton’s boss, so I knew there was going to be even more challenges for these two. The longer they are with each other Easton and Gwen the more their feelings began to grow. Easton changes so much, he realizes what it is to care for someone and becomes very devoted to Gwen. The romance is a little on the insta love side, which I’m usually not a fan of, but I’ll give this one a pass since I adored the character development.
Overall this was a great paranormal romance for young adults, it had all the romance and sweet moments with the main pair as well as the darker elements of the paranormal world. It was also a quick read as the writing and length made it easily read in one sitting. For those who are new or old to Easton story this is a must read, I cant wait to read the past books to see how Easton was introduced.
THEME: Romance, Paranormal, Angels
RECEIVED: Tour
BLOG: http://seeingnight.blogspot.com/
REVIEW:
I loves story with good vs. evil, and was so excited to read Fullers take on good and evil falling in love. Who would of thought that readers would be rooting for a reaper and an angel to find some happiness. I love the dark take on this type of story but it still kept the sweet romance and the aspects of young adult. I haven’t read the first two in the series but I had an easy time stepping into this world without being introduced to the characters beforehand.
The two leads are very much opposites. Easton is a reaper and escorts souls to hell. He doesn’t know happiness and has been dealing with the darkness of hell for over 400 years. He is also not a happy camper, a little rough around the edges. Where Gwen who is sweet and joyful, she brings happiness to others and will do anything for those who she watches over. I loved how different they were, it made it even more interesting to see how they would end up together. So when Gwen and Easton meet at an accident, they are dealt with something Easton wasn’t prepared for. His partner sent the soul of the one Gwen was watching over to hell instead of Heaven. Now Gwen and Easton need to bring that soul back, Gwen is determined to see it done.
I loved that Gwen wasn’t afraid of what Easton does (reaping) she was more interesting to learn more and see what she hasn’t known or understood. Gwen is also the daughter of Easton’s boss, so I knew there was going to be even more challenges for these two. The longer they are with each other Easton and Gwen the more their feelings began to grow. Easton changes so much, he realizes what it is to care for someone and becomes very devoted to Gwen. The romance is a little on the insta love side, which I’m usually not a fan of, but I’ll give this one a pass since I adored the character development.
Overall this was a great paranormal romance for young adults, it had all the romance and sweet moments with the main pair as well as the darker elements of the paranormal world. It was also a quick read as the writing and length made it easily read in one sitting. For those who are new or old to Easton story this is a must read, I cant wait to read the past books to see how Easton was introduced.
May 28, 2015
Check out my full review on Bookaholics Not-So-Anonymous.
Note: This ARC was provided by Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Descent is the third and latest release in the Kissed by Death series by Tara Fuller and fans of the series finally get their chance to learn more about Easton, the reaper of souls destine for Hell who has captured our imagination and attention from book one onward. He was there when Finn needed help with Emma in book one and when Anaya needed help with Cash in book two, and while the guy may have been one of Hell's reapers, he certainly had a good heart, especially when it came to those he cared about. Learning his back story helped to shine a light on why he was a reaper for Hell but that his actions while still alive were motivated by painful and traumatizing events. I liked that he was paired up with someone like Gwen, a totally new character, someone who was so different from him but was able to see the goodness that still lay beneath the black clothing and darkness lingering around him whenever he delivers a soul to Hell.
This book lives up to the expectations and standards set by its predecessors, Inbetween and Blurred, but has an original love story, with an angel and a reaper for Hell falling for each other. It's also a good story about redemption and how we sometimes do certain things in the name of justice or revenge for those we love. While Easton and Gwen may seem like the poster children for what they supposedly represent, i.e. Hell and Heaven, they are multi-layered, proving that a bad boy doesn't necessarily mean that he isn't capable of being good and that a good girl may want to experience what's considered bad in order to have a better informed understanding of the world around her. An added bonus was Easton's two touching moments with Finn, his best friend and former fellow reaper. I'm not sure if Descent is the final book in the series, because I am curious about Scout, but if it is, it certainly ended on a high note! Five stars! ♥
Note: This ARC was provided by Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Descent is the third and latest release in the Kissed by Death series by Tara Fuller and fans of the series finally get their chance to learn more about Easton, the reaper of souls destine for Hell who has captured our imagination and attention from book one onward. He was there when Finn needed help with Emma in book one and when Anaya needed help with Cash in book two, and while the guy may have been one of Hell's reapers, he certainly had a good heart, especially when it came to those he cared about. Learning his back story helped to shine a light on why he was a reaper for Hell but that his actions while still alive were motivated by painful and traumatizing events. I liked that he was paired up with someone like Gwen, a totally new character, someone who was so different from him but was able to see the goodness that still lay beneath the black clothing and darkness lingering around him whenever he delivers a soul to Hell.
This book lives up to the expectations and standards set by its predecessors, Inbetween and Blurred, but has an original love story, with an angel and a reaper for Hell falling for each other. It's also a good story about redemption and how we sometimes do certain things in the name of justice or revenge for those we love. While Easton and Gwen may seem like the poster children for what they supposedly represent, i.e. Hell and Heaven, they are multi-layered, proving that a bad boy doesn't necessarily mean that he isn't capable of being good and that a good girl may want to experience what's considered bad in order to have a better informed understanding of the world around her. An added bonus was Easton's two touching moments with Finn, his best friend and former fellow reaper. I'm not sure if Descent is the final book in the series, because I am curious about Scout, but if it is, it certainly ended on a high note! Five stars! ♥
May 19, 2015
I read the first book in this series, "Inbetween", a while ago and I remember really enjoying it. I actually never got around to reading the second book in this series, but I thought this book sounded really interesting. I went into this book not really remembering much from the first book, and it turned out that I was not lost at all while reading this book. I do think this book could be read as a stand alone if that is what people would want to do.
I found this book to be a really fun and quick read. I felt like there was never a dull moment in this book. I found the paranormal aspect of this book to be so interesting and addictive. Tara's writing in this book kept me hooked from the first page. I really hope that Tara continues to write books in this series, because I definitely want to see more of the world she created.
The romance in this book was about a bad boy and a good girl falling in love. That is my favorite kind of romance to read about! The romance was as adorable as I was hoping. Some of the scenes made my heart flutter because they were so precious. Even though the romance was cute, I thought it escalated way too quickly. This book had insta-love vibes. I wish the romance would have been developed more through out the book. The development just seemed unrealistic to me. When Gwen said she was in love with Easton, I was mainly confused. I didn't understand how she fell in love so quickly. I also didn't understand how quickly Easton fell in love with her.
Other than the insta-love, I really enjoyed this book! Easton was extremely swoon worthy, Gwen was adorable, and the plot was addictive. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a young adult paranormal romance.
4 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given in exchange for an honest review*
I found this book to be a really fun and quick read. I felt like there was never a dull moment in this book. I found the paranormal aspect of this book to be so interesting and addictive. Tara's writing in this book kept me hooked from the first page. I really hope that Tara continues to write books in this series, because I definitely want to see more of the world she created.
The romance in this book was about a bad boy and a good girl falling in love. That is my favorite kind of romance to read about! The romance was as adorable as I was hoping. Some of the scenes made my heart flutter because they were so precious. Even though the romance was cute, I thought it escalated way too quickly. This book had insta-love vibes. I wish the romance would have been developed more through out the book. The development just seemed unrealistic to me. When Gwen said she was in love with Easton, I was mainly confused. I didn't understand how she fell in love so quickly. I also didn't understand how quickly Easton fell in love with her.
Other than the insta-love, I really enjoyed this book! Easton was extremely swoon worthy, Gwen was adorable, and the plot was addictive. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a young adult paranormal romance.
4 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given in exchange for an honest review*
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