Emily Wren has found her soul mate, or has she? Reeling from the betrayal of his treacherous mentor, the super immortal who watches over her hatches a devious yet daring plan of his own in the domain between reality and the tangible. He'll give her the soul mate she's supposed to have. But can it work? Can the Paragon and his Luminary companion really un-mate a living soul? When his scheme goes horribly awry due unforeseen complications, Emily is left with an impossible choice that no one saw coming. Read Beacon, the second book in the Luminary Saga by P.S. Meraux.
P.S. Meraux writes books about paranormal chaos, sassy heroines, and creatures who are just a little unhinged (in the best way). She's an Indie and Amazon bestselling author—which sounds fancy until you realize it just means she drinks too much coffee and argues with fictional people for a living. Her stories mix sci-fi, mystery, romance, and a generous helping of “wait, did that just happen?”
P.S. has a thing for supernatural oddballs, morally gray weirdos, and badass women who save themselves (and occasionally punch vampires in the face). Her idea of worldbuilding is "let's break everything and see what grows back."
Originally from South Carolina, she now lives in Atlanta, Georgia, where her backyard is suspiciously full of fireflies and dubiously English for someone not living in a BBC period drama. There may or may not be faeries. There is definitely sarcasm.
Book Title: Beacon (The Luminary Saga #2) Book Author: P.S. Meraux Source: Gifted by the author in exchange for an honest review Rating: 5 stars
SPOILER ALERT
Before I get to the review…. Can the author email me book 3? Yes, dear readers, the series is still gripping! ^_^
To remind you, this book is about different groups of individuals – the Paragons, the Luminary, shape shifters, immortals, and humans. The first book was predominately written from Wicus's point of view, this book (second in the series) is predominately written from Waxine's. It was interesting getting inside her head. The author is consistent with the characters and the point of views from the humans are fantastic!
We don't know anything more about the evil plot, though we do know more on the vampires... and that Wicus's favorite mortal has more soul mates than originally needed.
Confession 1: I hate love triangles. There's something about them that makes me cringe and put down a book. I like how love blossoms between the two main characters and all of the twists that authors come up to tell the same story. But, when a third person is there, it breaks the balance so in a way, I totally agree with Ozel- how would Emily choose???
Confession 2: The love triangle didn't make me cringe! And that's a first. I think it's maybe the story line itself or that the book is written predominately from a third party who is not in the relationship. The third party is there to watch and do its job as watching out for soulmates to meet each other and I think that's real hook right there.
The book has a good ending and a preview into book 3. I would recommend it to older teens of 16 and older.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I had just finished reading Luminary and now that I finished Beacon, I think I may actually like it even better than the first one - not an easy thing to do. We meet Emily again as well as David, Josh and Charlie. The Paragon in charge of Emily Wren's soulmate is trying to undo some of the wrong that had been done, but suddenly the humans in this little act start to alter the course and in doing so, create a 4 sided love triangle (I realize that might not make sense, but that's what it is). Even though there are elements pulling and trying to wield outcomes, Emily is the one who will have to decide who she wants to love and along the way, there are some very real issues with each of the men she could choose from. Finding a soulmate is tough business apparently. Again, P.S. Meraux created two separate worlds with crafted and artful detail, though this book focuses mainly in the human world. Her writing style sucks you in and I found I had a lot of trouble putting it down. I was able to connect with Emily and felt her thought process was true to a young woman experiencing the issues she's faced with. Lots of action and excitement. I can't wait to read what comes next!
I received a free copy of this in exchange for an honest review.
So, why is Emily a Beacon? It’s my personal favorite in the series thus far. We still have the question "Will they? or won't they?" only now we discover there's something more volatile going on. And learn more about David's past and discover his capacity for self-doubt and his plodding path toward love. He's very protective and possessive. And just when you think he's going to declare himself this author tosses in a new twist that was epic!. The journey is emotional and twisted and so heady that Emily and David don't have the predictable happily-ever-after that you might get in another version of a storybook romance. It’s the guy from the right side of the tracks who took his time acting because of past problems that's he's had and is now having to deal with some serious competition for the girl who’s too good for him. But there's so much more to him and her and his new rivals
Paragons are meant to match humans with their soul mates but sonething has gone horribly wrong, and Emily Wren is caught in the middle of a battle between immortals.
Though the narrative was occasionally confusing, I like the way this fast-paced story weaves layers of secrets and mystery. The magic is unique and fascibating.
The climax is action-packed, and there's a hint of closure (though this is much more of a cliffhanger ending than I prefer.)
What is going wrong with the plans of the soul minders? Why have all 3 possible soul mates shown up at the same time? What is the memory of the protector who saved her when she was twelve? On into the third book!!
I'm really into this series. Can't wait to see what happens next, the characters are funny, ridiculous, supernatural, arrogant and somehow endearing. On to the next book.
This book was great and a suspenseful read. I stayed up late to finish it a couple of nights cause it's a real book and very enjoyable. Emily's worries about body image struck a chord with me and felt so validating. I know I'm not the only girl with figure flaws so I liked that she's not perfect but is still secure and independent. Charlie is still my least favorite character, but I'm now torn between Josh and David. I know David was holding himself back because of his own doubts. But Emily doesn't know that. I mean he hurt her feelings and his apology would have made me mad too. Josh is so forthright and all about doing the right thing. Honestly this is a good book that I had a hard time putting down. I needed to know what was coming next. I feel close to Emily, I mean she's dealing with stuff that I understand, it's like I'm in her head, like she's a friend that I know. P.S. Meraux does a good job of portraying a young woman coming of age while dealing with this confusing event. I like that she's this beacon of hope to the others even if they don't understand why they're so drawn to her. I mean who knew finding your soul mate(s) would cause these kinds of problems? I found the novel enthralling and I love the author's writing style. It's fresh and like you're having a conversation while reading a story. And there's a secondary plot that is adding to the suspense while the main story is going on, which makes me wonder where it's going to lead. In the beginning I thought it would be this small story about one girl finding love and happiness but now I'm not so sure, there's a lot going on and this could be epic!! I'm already reading book 3, I'll let you know how it goes when I finish.
2.5 stars--I'm rounding it up to three because it WAS a better read than the first book of the series.
This book continues pretty much from where Luminary left off. It does delve more into Emily's life and I was more engaged in this story than the previous one because of this. Wicus and Waxine also continued to hold a spotlight in this book--however, my estimations of them both plummeted sharply after the events in this book. I won't say more because of spoilers, but I was very disappointed with their decisions.
The premise is still upheld--everyone has a "primary" soul mate and a "secondary" soul mate. This book focuses a lot on Emily and her eventual meetings with her soul mates...all three of them (courtesy of events that occurred in the first book.)
There remain a lot of unanswered questions, and although the story was engaging, I didn't feel as though the plot moved very far in this book. There were more hints of intrigue and bigger things in the shadows, but nothing concrete, and although the constant play between Emily and her various soul mates is interesting, it wasn't enough to make me want to keep reading.
People who enjoy a light romance with some supernatural elements would probably enjoy this series. My only warning is that, like the first book, this one is once again riddled with fragments and head-hopping.
Overall, a 2.5 star read. Would I read the rest of the series? Probably not; I don't think it's right for me.
With my mind in parental watch mode, I picked up the second book in his series. (My daughters are all into them, including my youngest). The split between universes continues as the Paragon in charge of providing Emily Wren with a soul mate works to undo the treachery of his old friend. The humans are pawns to these super immortals. Then something unexpectedly wonderful happens, the humans start mucking up his plans too. The consequences of their actions set up a surprising love quadrangle the likes of which I have never seen. It's fascinating the way things go out quickly out of control. I suspect this is the grounds for the whole series. Despite all the forces at work behind the scenes, good or bad, Emily Wren will have to decide who she will fall in love with. As a father I appreciate that the author lets theses relationships develop organically, that Emily doesn't rush headlong into a sexual relationship with any of her soul mates. Knowing that, makes me breathe easier about my youngest being glued to the pages.
Am straight from reading Luminaries and the mysteries was just intriguing. Beacon is just as beautiful and soft. I am still amazed by the strange angles that the author chooses to come from, especially in this series. The mortals and the interesting super immortals ( or as she puts it "... a hidden universe known as the realm between reality and the tangible "). The author is a seasoned writer. The style is entirely as unique as it is exciting and easy to follow. Simply like going on a literal tour to an exotic beautiful town. You'll see many different things you're not used to but thanks to the tour guide. Believe me, if you enter this tour bus, you'll never want to come down. The book keeps you turning pages excitedly till the last. You'll understand what I mean when you read it.
I really enjoyed it. This author, Meruax, is good at baiting the hook and making you want more. The suspense builds slowly with the characters traveling down one path and seeming to go off with one agenda in mind, like Charlie who was all set to get revenge against Josh, but then there's a twist and something else happens. Fantastic! Emily is a normal person and a realistic character who is well developed. I guess if you're creating your own hidden world as this author does you can do that and fortunately it works and held my interest. I didn't expect it to end the way it did and now I want to know what happens for Emily.
I admit I got into the second book to see what happened after the surprise ending of the first one. The author's universe is different than anything that I have experienced. Although in book 2 a lot of the action takes place in the human world. The writing is crisp and held my interest. I found myself envious of the main character. What girl wouldn't want to be wooed by handsome suitors like that. Oh well, at least I can live vicariously. Another unexpected ending that shocked me and had me wanting more. I don't know how Emily is going to solve the question facing her. This author definitely knows how to spin a YA tale. And yes, I admit I've already bought book 3.