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The Guardian #3
The Forsaken
The war with Odette has begun. Cities around the world have fallen and the world as we know it has ended.
It is up to Clare to put things right again.
Worse still is the threat of a darker evil that lingers over her as she searches for a way to end the war for good. Will she be enough to face the growing threat? Can she stop Odette before it is too late?
The Forsaken is book three in The Guardian Series and the continuation of Clare and Daniel's journey.
It is up to Clare to put things right again.
Worse still is the threat of a darker evil that lingers over her as she searches for a way to end the war for good. Will she be enough to face the growing threat? Can she stop Odette before it is too late?
The Forsaken is book three in The Guardian Series and the continuation of Clare and Daniel's journey.
442 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 2, 2014
9 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Lynnie Purcell
25 books169 followersLynnie is an author for young adult and romance novels. You can find her works published on Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Sony, and Apple. She has written five young adult novels and one adult novel. Her passions include reading, watching good movies and TV shows, and writing whenever she can.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 12, 2014
Mindblowing from start to finish.
Lynnie Purcell has created an addictive and compelling series which I could barely lift my head from to make myself a cup of tea! In 'Clare Michaels' the main character, Lynnie uses a sense of humour and kick-ass attitude to create a compassionate, independent and overall empowering main character.
Both the first 'Watchers Series' and then the follow up series 'The Guardian Series' are incredibly refreshing and breath new life into a genre that may sometimes leave you wondering if women can actually rescue themselves! In a world where a mostly submissive character like that of 'Bella Swan' is sometimes looked on as a healthy role model I say 'LOOK OVER HERE!' Clare Michaels would give her a run for her money, and hopefully inspire young women along the way, showing them that they don't need to cower behind men and that they are more than capable of standing their ground and fighting their own battles, with a little help from their friends of course!
I would recommend this series ten times over, if you like young adult fantasy, you will love this! I believe these books are self published eBooks so you can't find them in hard copies, but you can find them in most eBook stores. Best of all the books are incredibly affordable with the first book 'Watchers' book going free.
Check them out!
Lynnie Purcell has created an addictive and compelling series which I could barely lift my head from to make myself a cup of tea! In 'Clare Michaels' the main character, Lynnie uses a sense of humour and kick-ass attitude to create a compassionate, independent and overall empowering main character.
Both the first 'Watchers Series' and then the follow up series 'The Guardian Series' are incredibly refreshing and breath new life into a genre that may sometimes leave you wondering if women can actually rescue themselves! In a world where a mostly submissive character like that of 'Bella Swan' is sometimes looked on as a healthy role model I say 'LOOK OVER HERE!' Clare Michaels would give her a run for her money, and hopefully inspire young women along the way, showing them that they don't need to cower behind men and that they are more than capable of standing their ground and fighting their own battles, with a little help from their friends of course!
I would recommend this series ten times over, if you like young adult fantasy, you will love this! I believe these books are self published eBooks so you can't find them in hard copies, but you can find them in most eBook stores. Best of all the books are incredibly affordable with the first book 'Watchers' book going free.
Check them out!
December 9, 2014
**SPOILER ALERT**
Seven months? Unconscious for seven months? How is that possible? Whose work is this… Farrah, Odette, the angel in league with Odette? There are many more questions than answers. How did things become such a mess in such a short time? It doesn’t really matter at this point.
Clare and Daniel had no choice about what happened to them, yet Clare blames herself (as always). The difference this time is that her friends blame her too. Reaper and Alex have a hard time letting go of the feelings of abandonment. Reaper is especially angry. It almost seems that his anger stems from his own self-blame for letting the situation get so out of hand. After all, he is the leader of the Saints. Initially, Reaper directs his anger and accusation toward Clare. The only reason he truly displays more anger toward Clare than Daniel is because Reaper can’t really face the act of betrayal by a ‘brother’, so he focuses on Clare. Ironically, she is the one person who can’t be blamed.
She knew nothing about her pending stasis nor the apocalyptic conditions to which she would awaken. It is the situation in which she finds herself that bring to the forefront a lot of the power for others to see. The fear she sees in their faces matches her own fear as her power grows… a lot. When a fight is brought to them, Clare is forced to finally, one her own, kills an angel. Under all of her emotions, she does realize that the angel gave her no choice. The truth of her actions however is a heavy weight to carry. There is a definite development of Clare’s attachment to her darker side, one that was jump-started by the sword she destroyed in The Last. She is afraid of the growing hold that darkness has on her, and she worries that killing the angel feeds that darker side. She is more right than she knows.
The attachment to her dark side is further fed in The Hunter, as the Hunter seeps inside her awakening her dark side further until she almost gives herself over to it. Clare is terrified that she will fail… give herself over to the dark side when forced to face it again. Whether the others realize it or not, each encounter she has with evil feeds the darkness inside her. At the same time, Clare’s ability to resist is stifled… weakened.
Her next stop, at the Saint’s headquarters, forces Clare to make a choice that she never thought she would face again. Should she share her blood willingly with those Marcus doomed with the blood he had stolen from her? Clare hesitates to doom them in a different way. Not only will they become nightstalkers, they will be connected to her for the rest of her life… no matter what. Whether Clare is eventually swept up by the light or the darkness, those connected to her by blood might be captured by the same. In the end, Clare decides that she must do what she can to save those dying because of her blood. She always recognizes the darkness when she feels it, but never sees the light…like feeling bound to save all those Watchers.
Arrival at the base in New York is not totally angst-ridden however. Clare and Daniel are reunited with Jackson & Margaret. Then, Spider and all of the rest of the kids appear. The reunion is especially poignant for Spider and Daniel. This is the second time that Spider is convinced that his brother is dead. Clare’s joy at seeing her ‘family’ is an additional proof of her light. She loves, is faithful and loyal to a fault. Despite just being brought together with most of the people she loves, Clare realizes that the magnitude of the war necessitates that Reaper, Alex, Spider, etc… can help the effort most by continuing their crusade while she, Daniel and Mathias go in search of the secret city as directed by Farrah.
By this point, both Clare and Daniel feel that there is more going on than they’ve been told, but they feel they have no choice but to continue their mission. Clare must complete a series of tests in order to get the city’s location, which of course is in the sky. Once the find the city, they are nearly killed trying to get to the sword. Clare must make the last leg of the journey to the sword on her own. When she finds ‘Guardians’ who are actually on Odette’s side, she is left to wonder how Odette could have gotten to them. Are they a part of Odette’s manipulation to increase Clare’s rage before she faces the Shield?
The battle to destroy the shield feels very different from the battle to destroy the sword. The sword tried to seduce Clare with its whispers that spoke to the dark place within her. The shield, on the other hand, tries to beat her down with words that annihilate her resolve. She is so close to giving in. At the very last moment though she uses the one thing she has plenty of, irritation, to break back through to her thoughts of Daniel. When she destroys the sword, there are feelings both good and bad that emanate from the wave of light it creates. Also, the destruction of the shield almost kills Clare, and Daniel is already in bad shape.
Once well enough to leave the wreckage that was the city in the clouds, and return to the LA outpost, Clare comes to the realization that she has to see her mother. Ellen is her center… the one who keeps her grounded and tells her the right things. The wisdom Ellen shares is just that. She doesn’t just tell her something to give her a boost, she tells Clare what she needs to do in order to still be Clare. She helps Clare use the logic that has always worked to get her through her problems. It is during this visit that Clare shares the letters from a key. As Clare prepares to leave, Naomi starts to work on the puzzle. This action becomes very significant.
Clare returns to the LA base, she learns that Odette is attacking other outposts. Everyone has been busy trying to save everyone they can. To Clare, it somewhat feels like a distraction to keep them from figuring out her true plan. Either way, Clare knows that they need to help those in trouble. So she and her small band of kick-ass fighters (Daniel, Alex, Fen, Serenity, Anna and Moira) leave for NY to fight the opposing forces, enjoying the excitement of the fight. From there, they travel around the world doing the same… bring the fight to the enemy. Each dead Watcher “that couldn’t hurt another innocent” reminds Clare of Ellen’s words of light.
Reaper catches up to Clare’s group in Poland and says it’s time to come home. Clare is very disappointed that the fight is temporarily over. This is a bad sign. Her reaction goes beyond the excitement of a fight and borders a need for murder and mayhem. They arrive and go to the ‘war room’ to meet up with all of the other Saints’ generals. The discussion revolves around finding Odette until both Clare and Daniel have a vision showing an attack on the settlement where Ellen and the rest live. They immediately disappear to the settlement to find Ellen has gotten everyone out in time. Looking around, Clare finds Naomi’s progress on the key puzzle. Looking through Naomi’s paper, Clare finds the answer carried on the key, “ask Zachariah”.
They decide to wait for the watchers to capture a prisoner in an effort to find out Odette’s plan, which they are able to do. They learn a horrific fact; Odette and Saba plan to wake and free the totally evil, first fallen who the Guardians trapped thousands of years ago. Without delay they burn the dead and transport back to headquarters. Alex and Reaper are waiting and none too happy. In the process of the exchange, Clare is able to get across the horror they have yet to face. She blazes a trail to Zachariah and demands an answer to the riddle of the key. It opens the box that answers the question as to whether or not Clare is right about the future. Farrah confirms that the destruction of the sword and shield help wake the one who forged them, the original fallen…the original evil. She tells Clare that he must be destroyed. Clare must face and defeat him. Farrah also sends Daniel a vision of the location for the epic battle location.
Clare is beyond angry at having been used by Farrah, and at having actually, unknowingly, helped Odette in her plan. Clare knows how much darkness is within her now after having faced the sword, the Hunter and the shield. She doesn’t know that she has enough light left to face pure evil. She does realize that she has all the Saints as back-up. This is a comforting thought for Clare, and Fen’s words to her are not just a battle cry but also very realistic.
Clare is still having trouble with her anger and finds a hideaway near the bottom level to deal with dark thoughts. She tells Daniel she is “trying to see how it’s possible to do something entirely impossible.” He sits with her quietly for a few minutes before divulging the location for the battle… the top of a volcano… the place Clare’s nightmares have warning her about. She is convinced that something awful will happen if she goes. Daniel convinces her that, no matter what, she must go. Realizing he is right, Clare finds a place of tranquility to occupy while most run around getting battle-ready.
Arriving at the scene for the epic battle, Clare heads straight for Odette and Saba. When she catches up with them, she finds herself fighting on two fronts because Odette and Saba split up. Clare is confused because it seems as though they are making an effort not to do her any real harm. As usual, Clare’s instincts are right. Suddenly, she is spellbound by a light. The fallen angel is showing nothing but peace in the light and Clare doesn’t have the strength to do what needs to be done. The angel is stronger. Clare believes Saba is preparing to allow the angel to have his body, but this is yet another trap set by Odette. As soon as Clare touches Saba to destroy him, she is possessed by the angel. She is not strong enough to keep him out or destroy him.
Clare has been intimately in touch with her dark side, each one bringing her closer to this moment. Now she is the vessel for this ancient evil. Now she realizes that she was the endgame all along. Her strength and power are perfect for his plans to dominate Heaven and Earth. Unfortunately, Clare realizes the truth too late. Her nightmare has come true, and she is beginning to take some pleasure in the destruction they are already causing. There is so much more to come.
How is that for a cliffhanger? It is interesting to speculate on what will happen next and how its effect on all the characters.
This is the kind of book I really enjoy. It is fast paced, action packed and driven by Clare (her actions, experiences and self-awareness). I gave this book 4 of 5 stars.
Seven months? Unconscious for seven months? How is that possible? Whose work is this… Farrah, Odette, the angel in league with Odette? There are many more questions than answers. How did things become such a mess in such a short time? It doesn’t really matter at this point.
Clare and Daniel had no choice about what happened to them, yet Clare blames herself (as always). The difference this time is that her friends blame her too. Reaper and Alex have a hard time letting go of the feelings of abandonment. Reaper is especially angry. It almost seems that his anger stems from his own self-blame for letting the situation get so out of hand. After all, he is the leader of the Saints. Initially, Reaper directs his anger and accusation toward Clare. The only reason he truly displays more anger toward Clare than Daniel is because Reaper can’t really face the act of betrayal by a ‘brother’, so he focuses on Clare. Ironically, she is the one person who can’t be blamed.
She knew nothing about her pending stasis nor the apocalyptic conditions to which she would awaken. It is the situation in which she finds herself that bring to the forefront a lot of the power for others to see. The fear she sees in their faces matches her own fear as her power grows… a lot. When a fight is brought to them, Clare is forced to finally, one her own, kills an angel. Under all of her emotions, she does realize that the angel gave her no choice. The truth of her actions however is a heavy weight to carry. There is a definite development of Clare’s attachment to her darker side, one that was jump-started by the sword she destroyed in The Last. She is afraid of the growing hold that darkness has on her, and she worries that killing the angel feeds that darker side. She is more right than she knows.
The attachment to her dark side is further fed in The Hunter, as the Hunter seeps inside her awakening her dark side further until she almost gives herself over to it. Clare is terrified that she will fail… give herself over to the dark side when forced to face it again. Whether the others realize it or not, each encounter she has with evil feeds the darkness inside her. At the same time, Clare’s ability to resist is stifled… weakened.
Her next stop, at the Saint’s headquarters, forces Clare to make a choice that she never thought she would face again. Should she share her blood willingly with those Marcus doomed with the blood he had stolen from her? Clare hesitates to doom them in a different way. Not only will they become nightstalkers, they will be connected to her for the rest of her life… no matter what. Whether Clare is eventually swept up by the light or the darkness, those connected to her by blood might be captured by the same. In the end, Clare decides that she must do what she can to save those dying because of her blood. She always recognizes the darkness when she feels it, but never sees the light…like feeling bound to save all those Watchers.
Arrival at the base in New York is not totally angst-ridden however. Clare and Daniel are reunited with Jackson & Margaret. Then, Spider and all of the rest of the kids appear. The reunion is especially poignant for Spider and Daniel. This is the second time that Spider is convinced that his brother is dead. Clare’s joy at seeing her ‘family’ is an additional proof of her light. She loves, is faithful and loyal to a fault. Despite just being brought together with most of the people she loves, Clare realizes that the magnitude of the war necessitates that Reaper, Alex, Spider, etc… can help the effort most by continuing their crusade while she, Daniel and Mathias go in search of the secret city as directed by Farrah.
By this point, both Clare and Daniel feel that there is more going on than they’ve been told, but they feel they have no choice but to continue their mission. Clare must complete a series of tests in order to get the city’s location, which of course is in the sky. Once the find the city, they are nearly killed trying to get to the sword. Clare must make the last leg of the journey to the sword on her own. When she finds ‘Guardians’ who are actually on Odette’s side, she is left to wonder how Odette could have gotten to them. Are they a part of Odette’s manipulation to increase Clare’s rage before she faces the Shield?
The battle to destroy the shield feels very different from the battle to destroy the sword. The sword tried to seduce Clare with its whispers that spoke to the dark place within her. The shield, on the other hand, tries to beat her down with words that annihilate her resolve. She is so close to giving in. At the very last moment though she uses the one thing she has plenty of, irritation, to break back through to her thoughts of Daniel. When she destroys the sword, there are feelings both good and bad that emanate from the wave of light it creates. Also, the destruction of the shield almost kills Clare, and Daniel is already in bad shape.
Once well enough to leave the wreckage that was the city in the clouds, and return to the LA outpost, Clare comes to the realization that she has to see her mother. Ellen is her center… the one who keeps her grounded and tells her the right things. The wisdom Ellen shares is just that. She doesn’t just tell her something to give her a boost, she tells Clare what she needs to do in order to still be Clare. She helps Clare use the logic that has always worked to get her through her problems. It is during this visit that Clare shares the letters from a key. As Clare prepares to leave, Naomi starts to work on the puzzle. This action becomes very significant.
Clare returns to the LA base, she learns that Odette is attacking other outposts. Everyone has been busy trying to save everyone they can. To Clare, it somewhat feels like a distraction to keep them from figuring out her true plan. Either way, Clare knows that they need to help those in trouble. So she and her small band of kick-ass fighters (Daniel, Alex, Fen, Serenity, Anna and Moira) leave for NY to fight the opposing forces, enjoying the excitement of the fight. From there, they travel around the world doing the same… bring the fight to the enemy. Each dead Watcher “that couldn’t hurt another innocent” reminds Clare of Ellen’s words of light.
Reaper catches up to Clare’s group in Poland and says it’s time to come home. Clare is very disappointed that the fight is temporarily over. This is a bad sign. Her reaction goes beyond the excitement of a fight and borders a need for murder and mayhem. They arrive and go to the ‘war room’ to meet up with all of the other Saints’ generals. The discussion revolves around finding Odette until both Clare and Daniel have a vision showing an attack on the settlement where Ellen and the rest live. They immediately disappear to the settlement to find Ellen has gotten everyone out in time. Looking around, Clare finds Naomi’s progress on the key puzzle. Looking through Naomi’s paper, Clare finds the answer carried on the key, “ask Zachariah”.
They decide to wait for the watchers to capture a prisoner in an effort to find out Odette’s plan, which they are able to do. They learn a horrific fact; Odette and Saba plan to wake and free the totally evil, first fallen who the Guardians trapped thousands of years ago. Without delay they burn the dead and transport back to headquarters. Alex and Reaper are waiting and none too happy. In the process of the exchange, Clare is able to get across the horror they have yet to face. She blazes a trail to Zachariah and demands an answer to the riddle of the key. It opens the box that answers the question as to whether or not Clare is right about the future. Farrah confirms that the destruction of the sword and shield help wake the one who forged them, the original fallen…the original evil. She tells Clare that he must be destroyed. Clare must face and defeat him. Farrah also sends Daniel a vision of the location for the epic battle location.
Clare is beyond angry at having been used by Farrah, and at having actually, unknowingly, helped Odette in her plan. Clare knows how much darkness is within her now after having faced the sword, the Hunter and the shield. She doesn’t know that she has enough light left to face pure evil. She does realize that she has all the Saints as back-up. This is a comforting thought for Clare, and Fen’s words to her are not just a battle cry but also very realistic.
Clare is still having trouble with her anger and finds a hideaway near the bottom level to deal with dark thoughts. She tells Daniel she is “trying to see how it’s possible to do something entirely impossible.” He sits with her quietly for a few minutes before divulging the location for the battle… the top of a volcano… the place Clare’s nightmares have warning her about. She is convinced that something awful will happen if she goes. Daniel convinces her that, no matter what, she must go. Realizing he is right, Clare finds a place of tranquility to occupy while most run around getting battle-ready.
Arriving at the scene for the epic battle, Clare heads straight for Odette and Saba. When she catches up with them, she finds herself fighting on two fronts because Odette and Saba split up. Clare is confused because it seems as though they are making an effort not to do her any real harm. As usual, Clare’s instincts are right. Suddenly, she is spellbound by a light. The fallen angel is showing nothing but peace in the light and Clare doesn’t have the strength to do what needs to be done. The angel is stronger. Clare believes Saba is preparing to allow the angel to have his body, but this is yet another trap set by Odette. As soon as Clare touches Saba to destroy him, she is possessed by the angel. She is not strong enough to keep him out or destroy him.
Clare has been intimately in touch with her dark side, each one bringing her closer to this moment. Now she is the vessel for this ancient evil. Now she realizes that she was the endgame all along. Her strength and power are perfect for his plans to dominate Heaven and Earth. Unfortunately, Clare realizes the truth too late. Her nightmare has come true, and she is beginning to take some pleasure in the destruction they are already causing. There is so much more to come.
How is that for a cliffhanger? It is interesting to speculate on what will happen next and how its effect on all the characters.
This is the kind of book I really enjoy. It is fast paced, action packed and driven by Clare (her actions, experiences and self-awareness). I gave this book 4 of 5 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2014
Total cliffhanger
Lynnie Purcell has mastered the art of ending on a cliffhanger so if that's not your thing, you may want to steer clear. Having said that I am totally hooked and can't wait for the next installment to this series. This is a classic tale of good vs evil, right vs wrong on an epic scale that leaves the reader wondering if Claire is strong enough to overcome her own fears and self doubts. After all she is part human and we all struggle with this on a daily basis. Only with Claire the fate of the world rest entirely on her and after everything she has been thru the true test of how she will choose is yet to come. In my opinion, Daniel will have to step up in the next book if Claire has any hope of surviving this next battle. I was somewhat disappointed in Daniel in The Forsaken so I hope that he can redeem himself in the next book to be what Claire needs going forward. Can't wait to read how this will all turn out.
Lynnie Purcell has mastered the art of ending on a cliffhanger so if that's not your thing, you may want to steer clear. Having said that I am totally hooked and can't wait for the next installment to this series. This is a classic tale of good vs evil, right vs wrong on an epic scale that leaves the reader wondering if Claire is strong enough to overcome her own fears and self doubts. After all she is part human and we all struggle with this on a daily basis. Only with Claire the fate of the world rest entirely on her and after everything she has been thru the true test of how she will choose is yet to come. In my opinion, Daniel will have to step up in the next book if Claire has any hope of surviving this next battle. I was somewhat disappointed in Daniel in The Forsaken so I hope that he can redeem himself in the next book to be what Claire needs going forward. Can't wait to read how this will all turn out.
April 12, 2014
Holy cow!! This book was amazing!! I love it from beginning to end. Can't wait to read the next one. I hope it comes out fast. :)
April 27, 2014
OMG!!! Need a finale already!!! Please???
March 21, 2023
This series gets weird
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews