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Everlife #2
Lifeblood
"Utterly unique and absolutely riveting—I couldn’t put it down! What a marvelously cool world." —Sarah J. Maas, New York Times bestselling author, on Firstlife
Don’t miss book two in the heart-stopping New York Times bestselling Everlife series by Gena Showalter.
"My Firstlife is over, but my Everlife is only now beginning."
With her last living breath, Tenley "Ten" Lockwood made her choice and picked her realm in the Everlife. Now, as the war between Troika and Myriad rages, she must face the consequences.
Because Ten possesses a rare supernatural ability to absorb and share light, the Powers That Be have the highest expectations for her future—and the enemy wants her neutralized. Fighting to save her Secondlife, she must learn about her realm from the ground up while launching her first convincing a select group of humans to join her side before they die. No pressure, right?
But Ten's competition is Killian, the boy she can't forget—the one who gave up everything for her happiness. He has only one shot at beating Ten at a game she's never even played. As their throw-downs heat up, so do their undeniable feelings, and soon, Ten will have to make another choice. Love…or victory.
Books in the Everlife
Firstlife
Lifeblood
Everlife
Don’t miss book two in the heart-stopping New York Times bestselling Everlife series by Gena Showalter.
"My Firstlife is over, but my Everlife is only now beginning."
With her last living breath, Tenley "Ten" Lockwood made her choice and picked her realm in the Everlife. Now, as the war between Troika and Myriad rages, she must face the consequences.
Because Ten possesses a rare supernatural ability to absorb and share light, the Powers That Be have the highest expectations for her future—and the enemy wants her neutralized. Fighting to save her Secondlife, she must learn about her realm from the ground up while launching her first convincing a select group of humans to join her side before they die. No pressure, right?
But Ten's competition is Killian, the boy she can't forget—the one who gave up everything for her happiness. He has only one shot at beating Ten at a game she's never even played. As their throw-downs heat up, so do their undeniable feelings, and soon, Ten will have to make another choice. Love…or victory.
Books in the Everlife
Firstlife
Lifeblood
Everlife
443 pages, Paperback
First published February 28, 2017
853 people are currently reading
14325 people want to read
About the author
Gena Showalter
263 books27.8k followersGena Showalter is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of over seventy books, including the acclaimed Lords of the Underworld series, the Gods of War series, the White Rabbit Chronicles, and the Forest of Good and Evil series. She writes sizzling paranormal romance, heartwarming contemporary romance, and unputdownable young adult novels, and lives in Oklahoma City with her family and menagerie of dogs and cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 715 reviews
December 19, 2025
"Everyone has a story, and I will be the author of mine."Back the bleep up there sweetheart.
Have you read your own book? Seriously. I am honestly asking.
Have you read your own book?
Cause if you had, what the hell happened when these lines were written?
Oh good lawd.
"The vacuum tightens until I feel as if I’m being expelled from a birth canal, sliding into the welcome arms of…"
You must be kidding me
"I trace a fingertip...He might be firm and muscled everywhere else, but he’s soft as rose petals here, and I shiver."
I cannot begin to describe how bad this is.
"He looks like the bad boy he likes to accuse Killian of being: rough, tough and totally buff."
I literally have no starting point - it absolutely sucked. It was a dumpster fire. It was a smoldering vomit cesspool. It was...just bad. So incredibly bad.
"I lean into his grip like a kitten being petted for the first time."
In an effort to give some semblance of structure to my undoubtedly unorganized rant, I will limit myself to what made me want to murder this book most: Tenley, the inconsistencies and the absolute stupidity.
Tenley
She's the kind of girl who in high school would shout out "i'M sO rAnDoM!" after ever sentence. You know exactly who I'm talking about.
She's a special snowflake who's absolutely obsessed with numbers - because she's Ten-ley get it? GET IT? THIS IS SO CLEVER THAT I'M LITERALLY DYING RIGHT NOW.
She also loves talking to herself. Constantly.
"We are accountable…count…eight, nine… Ten! Click, click. My name is Tenley Lockwood. 'Ten' to my friends.
5 + 5 = 10.
A representative of two equal parts."
And it honestly feels like she didn't show up for the first book.
"Five minutes and fourteen seconds ago, I died. Whoa. I’m dead? I must be. My heart no longer beats, and my lungs are deflated. I can’t breathe. I need to breathe."
Yes, yes it was. Considering you literally never went on a date with him.
"Killian! His name is a ragged cry from the depths of my soul. I’d say we dated, but dated is too mild a word."
The Inconsistencies
I am in actual shock. It feels like the author actually forgot what was in the first book.
Right off the bat - let's talk about the title. Book 1 completely revolved around lifeblood (which flows through the veins of shells (essentially robots that dead people can possess) ).
If a shell loses too much lifeblood, the spirit could die (again). Which led to several vampiric instances of shells sharing lifeblood to stay alive. (Very weird, 10/10 would not recommend)
BUT GENA COMPLETELY IGNORES HER OWN SYSTEM IN BOOK 2. Instead everyone eats manna all the time despite no one mentioning it in the first book.
Like lifeblood, it's supposed to heal them and be the only thing their spirits need to survive. BUT if that is really the only thing, then why does Gena just use it as a flavor to regular food - mana bread, mana juice, mana cookies...mana drugs?
Tenley has super awesome powers which are never explained or evenly explicitly stated. They're just kinda there when convenient.
"One of them jabs a needle in my neck, jolting me—energizing me. “A concentrated dose of manna,” she explains."
They have this weird thing called Jellyair which gets mysteriously renamed as "the Buckler" until Showalter reverts to the original name.
The "Generals" in charge of the war act like eighth grade bullies based on the way they constantly needle and mock their subordinates. And, they are complete idiots.
Everyone talks like they are 8 years old and on a sugar high.
"None of the injuries Miss Lockwood sustained were life-threatening. How do I know? She survived."
And there's a useless love triangle between the bad boy Killian and good guy Archer. You would think that by killing off Archer, the triangle would die. Wrong.
"Wah, wah, wah. Way to ruin a mood. We’ll be on opposite sides of the war, with far different goals."
She knew Archer for maybe two weeks. Two. Weeks.
"You are the best friend I’ve ever had. I miss looking at you, talking to you, laughing with you. If I could sneak into your room and watch you sleep, I would."
The Absolute Stupidity
Whewww ....this rant is already far too ranty for my taste.
To summarize: the whole mother-fudging-point of this book is that Tenley is supposedly a reincarnated head-honcho of the war effort and she'll end the war.
The War?
Yes. Between Troika and Myrad (aka heaven and hell).
They are locked in an everlasting struggle because...because...because reasons.
And that's it. They're at war because they're at war. That is literally the premise for the entire book series.
"Myriadians, you hate us for our Light, and we despise you for your darkness. The two cannot coexist. We know this. We all know this. But why must we war because of it?"
Just shoot me.
To all those who ask why did I read this one if I absolutely hated the first:YouTube | Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Snapchat @miranda_reads
Angela's Booked and I have a reading challenge every year and this year, we had a prompt called "A book your friend doesn't recommend.
And she didn't recommend book 1 to me.
So, I read book (solely out of spite) so I could not recommend it to her.
The ball is in your court Angela - enjoy!
February 22, 2017
Can't believe it took me so long to read this because it was fabulous. Full review to come!
Edited to add review:
Having falling in love with the first book in the Everlife series, I knew the second had a lot to live up to and with middle book syndrome being so dominant in this genre, I won't lie, I was a bit nervous going into this.
I really shouldn't have been nervous. This book hooked me once again, from the very first chapter. It didn't take me long to once again be pulled back into the unique world that Showalter created and once again be immersed in it all and fall back in love with the characters.
I knew this book would be different, with everything that happened in the first, there was no way it couldn't be but I wasn't expecting to like all the changes. I thought it would be hard with key characters from the first missing but you know what, Showalter pulled it off beautifully without it hurting the story line or drive of the plot at all. In fact, I think it even helped it.
So much happens and yet so much stays the same. Ten still has an amazing group of friends to support her and still so much to learn about herself and of course, the war is still raging without an end insight.
This was such a fun entertaining sequel and I lapped it up. It was hard to resist and hard to put down. I can't wait to see how explosive the ending will be in the last book.
*ARC copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*
Edited to add review:
Having falling in love with the first book in the Everlife series, I knew the second had a lot to live up to and with middle book syndrome being so dominant in this genre, I won't lie, I was a bit nervous going into this.
I really shouldn't have been nervous. This book hooked me once again, from the very first chapter. It didn't take me long to once again be pulled back into the unique world that Showalter created and once again be immersed in it all and fall back in love with the characters.
I knew this book would be different, with everything that happened in the first, there was no way it couldn't be but I wasn't expecting to like all the changes. I thought it would be hard with key characters from the first missing but you know what, Showalter pulled it off beautifully without it hurting the story line or drive of the plot at all. In fact, I think it even helped it.
So much happens and yet so much stays the same. Ten still has an amazing group of friends to support her and still so much to learn about herself and of course, the war is still raging without an end insight.
This was such a fun entertaining sequel and I lapped it up. It was hard to resist and hard to put down. I can't wait to see how explosive the ending will be in the last book.
*ARC copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*
September 26, 2016
I've tried really hard to find flaws in Gena's stories, something I didn't like or didn't understand, I honestly did because I want to be a good critique and not just read and automatically love her books. I've tried and failed. Gena gets me, she's the perfect author for me, everything she writes I love. She is such a tremendous writer and I am so honored to have read an early copy of this book.
Lifeblood was an emotional roller coaster, I laughed, rejoiced, stressed, cried, raged, I went through all the emotions a human being possibly can. I was not prepared, I definitely was not expecting to feel this much while reading it, I was genuinely stressed at times, like knots-in-my-stomach stressed and didn't want to stop reading for a minute. I also cried a lot, some might say I'm a sensitive person, which is true, but it's a well known fact that Gena likes to make her readers suffer, she spared no one and when I say no one I mean no one is safe from her, she keeps surprising me.
That said, I absolutely loved this book. Lifeblood was one of my most anticipated book of 2017, I loved Firstlife and wanted to adore this one and, once again, Gena did not disappoint. This series is important to her and it shows, you can actually feel all the hard work she put into it, all the hours spent researching and trying to find the perfect plot. I've never written a book but I'm assuming it's not easy, it can be frustrating, difficult and long but in the end I bet all of that is worth it. Gena, I'm telling you, it was worth it with Lifeblood.
I don't want to give anything away but Lifeblood starts right where Firstlife ended so you won't be too lost or confused. You're pulled into the story right from the start, there are no dull moments, everything fits together perfectly, every little detail is important, numbers are too, the poems are still amazing and so clever, you will fall in love with this series even more. The writing is everything, this series is so unique and delivers a beautiful and powerful message.
Ten grows a lot in this book, I really like her and I love her evolution in Lifeblood. She learns a lot from her new home and it was interesting to watch her learn how to forgive herself and others, how to become a better person with her hardships and flaws. Of course, her decision to be with Troika will have consequences, especially for her relationship with Killian but you'll have to read the book to find out more. Killian is an important part of the story as well, I don't want to say too much but for all the romantics out there, don't fret, Gena will not let you down. That's all I'll say.
I loved loved loved the characters in this book, you'll see old ones and new ones. You'll miss some, love some and hate some. Like I said, emotional roller coaster. Lifeblood was not everything I wanted it to be, or everything I was expecting it to be but it was amazing nonetheless. Gena is not afraid to write things her way, she wants to please her readers for sure but she's the author and she leads the dance, we just have to trust and follow her.
I can't wait to read Everlife, I am so ready for the next chapter in Ten's life and I want to know what's going to happen to everyone. Gimme!
I've got one last thing to say: Archer, 143.
Lifeblood was an emotional roller coaster, I laughed, rejoiced, stressed, cried, raged, I went through all the emotions a human being possibly can. I was not prepared, I definitely was not expecting to feel this much while reading it, I was genuinely stressed at times, like knots-in-my-stomach stressed and didn't want to stop reading for a minute. I also cried a lot, some might say I'm a sensitive person, which is true, but it's a well known fact that Gena likes to make her readers suffer, she spared no one and when I say no one I mean no one is safe from her, she keeps surprising me.
That said, I absolutely loved this book. Lifeblood was one of my most anticipated book of 2017, I loved Firstlife and wanted to adore this one and, once again, Gena did not disappoint. This series is important to her and it shows, you can actually feel all the hard work she put into it, all the hours spent researching and trying to find the perfect plot. I've never written a book but I'm assuming it's not easy, it can be frustrating, difficult and long but in the end I bet all of that is worth it. Gena, I'm telling you, it was worth it with Lifeblood.
I don't want to give anything away but Lifeblood starts right where Firstlife ended so you won't be too lost or confused. You're pulled into the story right from the start, there are no dull moments, everything fits together perfectly, every little detail is important, numbers are too, the poems are still amazing and so clever, you will fall in love with this series even more. The writing is everything, this series is so unique and delivers a beautiful and powerful message.
Ten grows a lot in this book, I really like her and I love her evolution in Lifeblood. She learns a lot from her new home and it was interesting to watch her learn how to forgive herself and others, how to become a better person with her hardships and flaws. Of course, her decision to be with Troika will have consequences, especially for her relationship with Killian but you'll have to read the book to find out more. Killian is an important part of the story as well, I don't want to say too much but for all the romantics out there, don't fret, Gena will not let you down. That's all I'll say.
I loved loved loved the characters in this book, you'll see old ones and new ones. You'll miss some, love some and hate some. Like I said, emotional roller coaster. Lifeblood was not everything I wanted it to be, or everything I was expecting it to be but it was amazing nonetheless. Gena is not afraid to write things her way, she wants to please her readers for sure but she's the author and she leads the dance, we just have to trust and follow her.
I can't wait to read Everlife, I am so ready for the next chapter in Ten's life and I want to know what's going to happen to everyone. Gimme!
I've got one last thing to say: Archer, 143.
March 29, 2017
2 stars
Review to come
Better than book one, still pretty rough.
Review to come
Better than book one, still pretty rough.
June 24, 2018
Lifeblood by Gena Showalter
This sequel follows Ten as she has made her decision on where she wants to go after her life is ended. This causes problems for her and the boy she is falling for, Killian. Killian will also have to choose lose the war or the girl?
CHARACTERS-
These characters are some of my favrouites ever! They are so memerobale and amazing!
ROMANCE-
The love between Killian and Ten is gorgeous and well written. They are soulmates and I love them with all my heart.
PLOT-
The plot is super super unique
ENDING-
THEY ARE GETTING MARRIED.... IM SHOOK. WELL NOT MARRIED BUT BONDED
Characters-9/10
Romance-10/10
Plot-10/10
Ending-10/10
Speed-9/10 (fast paced)
This sequel follows Ten as she has made her decision on where she wants to go after her life is ended. This causes problems for her and the boy she is falling for, Killian. Killian will also have to choose lose the war or the girl?
CHARACTERS-
These characters are some of my favrouites ever! They are so memerobale and amazing!
ROMANCE-
The love between Killian and Ten is gorgeous and well written. They are soulmates and I love them with all my heart.
PLOT-
The plot is super super unique
ENDING-
THEY ARE GETTING MARRIED.... IM SHOOK. WELL NOT MARRIED BUT BONDED
Characters-9/10
Romance-10/10
Plot-10/10
Ending-10/10
Speed-9/10 (fast paced)
May 16, 2017
That ending though! Those last few words....
Loved Lifeblood, it followed on very nicely from Firstlife.
Ten's Everlife is just beginning in this book, her 'Firstlife' having ended and she now faces loving and protecting Killian as well as being loyal to her chosen people in Trokia. The choices she has to face, the love she finds in friends, the betrayal and the losses are all immense in Gena Showalter's 2nd book.
Absolutely loved the first book, the 2nd book, for me, was so different and even better in some ways. The book is well written, easy to follow and has left me with a thirst for book 3, aptly named Everlife!
Highly recommended.
Loved Lifeblood, it followed on very nicely from Firstlife.
Ten's Everlife is just beginning in this book, her 'Firstlife' having ended and she now faces loving and protecting Killian as well as being loyal to her chosen people in Trokia. The choices she has to face, the love she finds in friends, the betrayal and the losses are all immense in Gena Showalter's 2nd book.
Absolutely loved the first book, the 2nd book, for me, was so different and even better in some ways. The book is well written, easy to follow and has left me with a thirst for book 3, aptly named Everlife!
Highly recommended.
March 27, 2017
There are so many issues with this book I'm not even sure where to start. I guess the first thing I can say is I really don't understand all the four and five star ratings, did we even read the same book?
My biggest complaint about this book is the pacing. It's horrendous. Absolutely horrendous. You get no sense of time from the story, you are just slammed with event after event at a break neck pace. The way it reads it's like it happens in just hours, but she explains at one point that Ten has been in her ever life for months. As a reader there is no sense of time elapsing to allow growth and development of the characters or relationships or even the world they live in, it's just event, event, event...
(spoiler)
I think the worst example of this is when Ten's grandmother dies. Ten is absolutely devastated and thrown into mourning... but as the reader I was sitting there thinking 'give me a break you met her all of five days ago, there is no way you would be that broken over her death.' Because of the pace of the book there was no time to develop any attachment to the characters, yet we are supposed to believe that Ten certainly did.
(spoiler over)
The next killer for this book is the complete lack of consistency. In the first book Mana is described as a food for spirits that only needs to be eaten once a day, yet Ten gets to her ever life and there is constant eating going on. There are Mana restaurants, Mana chips, the apartments have kitchens and she mentions more than once about her cupboards being bare. None of it lining up with the earlier descriptions of Mana.
Events after the missions are another example: after her first mission she is told she has to go to a debriefing because there is Always a debriefing, yet she never had to go to another debriefing in the book. After her second mission she is told to go see a healer and told that she is Always supposed to see a healer after every mission, but she didn't see a healer after her first mission... Troika is supposed to be a realm of structure and stability, but there is no consistency there.
Then of course there is all the YA tropes to deal with. Ten has just barely entered her second life so let's send her on a dangerous mission and let her lead because she is the protagonist. Oh and let's send her on another mission and another. Let's forget about all the people who actually have experience, the teenager gets center stage.
There is still a ton of "Zero!" happening, which morphed into an equally annoying "Lockdown!"
And frankly I don't like Killian as a love interest. I hate when romances take the bad boy who has done horrible things, you know like convincing a multitude of women that he loved them when he was really only trying to get them to sign with his realm and once they sign he abadons them and moves on to the next target, and suddenly he just changes everything because the new girl he met is the One. I hate that story line, because men like that don't change, but it gets romanticized in books and movies, and so some women end up living their lives thinking they can change a guy who is a complete jerk, or that if she were just special enough, if she were the One, he would change for her... It's bs and it's been played out so much it would genuinely be refreshing for a good guy to get the girl.
I read this one because I was curious about what Ten would do as a conduit, if it weren't for that curiosity I probably wouldn't have picked it up at all. Now that I've read it, I won't be reading another of this series, and I don't recommend you pick up this book unless you are utterly in love with YA tropes, zero character and world develoent, and getting slammed endlessly with events that are trying desperately to drive the plot along.
One of Five stars. Don't waste your time reading this.
My biggest complaint about this book is the pacing. It's horrendous. Absolutely horrendous. You get no sense of time from the story, you are just slammed with event after event at a break neck pace. The way it reads it's like it happens in just hours, but she explains at one point that Ten has been in her ever life for months. As a reader there is no sense of time elapsing to allow growth and development of the characters or relationships or even the world they live in, it's just event, event, event...
(spoiler)
I think the worst example of this is when Ten's grandmother dies. Ten is absolutely devastated and thrown into mourning... but as the reader I was sitting there thinking 'give me a break you met her all of five days ago, there is no way you would be that broken over her death.' Because of the pace of the book there was no time to develop any attachment to the characters, yet we are supposed to believe that Ten certainly did.
(spoiler over)
The next killer for this book is the complete lack of consistency. In the first book Mana is described as a food for spirits that only needs to be eaten once a day, yet Ten gets to her ever life and there is constant eating going on. There are Mana restaurants, Mana chips, the apartments have kitchens and she mentions more than once about her cupboards being bare. None of it lining up with the earlier descriptions of Mana.
Events after the missions are another example: after her first mission she is told she has to go to a debriefing because there is Always a debriefing, yet she never had to go to another debriefing in the book. After her second mission she is told to go see a healer and told that she is Always supposed to see a healer after every mission, but she didn't see a healer after her first mission... Troika is supposed to be a realm of structure and stability, but there is no consistency there.
Then of course there is all the YA tropes to deal with. Ten has just barely entered her second life so let's send her on a dangerous mission and let her lead because she is the protagonist. Oh and let's send her on another mission and another. Let's forget about all the people who actually have experience, the teenager gets center stage.
There is still a ton of "Zero!" happening, which morphed into an equally annoying "Lockdown!"
And frankly I don't like Killian as a love interest. I hate when romances take the bad boy who has done horrible things, you know like convincing a multitude of women that he loved them when he was really only trying to get them to sign with his realm and once they sign he abadons them and moves on to the next target, and suddenly he just changes everything because the new girl he met is the One. I hate that story line, because men like that don't change, but it gets romanticized in books and movies, and so some women end up living their lives thinking they can change a guy who is a complete jerk, or that if she were just special enough, if she were the One, he would change for her... It's bs and it's been played out so much it would genuinely be refreshing for a good guy to get the girl.
I read this one because I was curious about what Ten would do as a conduit, if it weren't for that curiosity I probably wouldn't have picked it up at all. Now that I've read it, I won't be reading another of this series, and I don't recommend you pick up this book unless you are utterly in love with YA tropes, zero character and world develoent, and getting slammed endlessly with events that are trying desperately to drive the plot along.
One of Five stars. Don't waste your time reading this.
February 24, 2017
LIFEBLOOD is the second book in the Everlife series by Gena Showalter. I would highly suggest reading this series in order as the first book kind of ends on a bit of a cliffie. Some answers are present in this book but mostly, Showalter raises more questions and puts Ten, our heroine, in some very disastrous situations. One of my favorite parts of the first book was Ten. She’s very independent and fun, but in this book, I think there was a bit of a change in her character. I’m not sure that she’s as fiery as she was in the first book, but that might just be because now she knows she’s in and over her head and must act a bit more rationally.
In terms of romance, there’s an interesting one here. I wondered what was going to come from it because really, the first book only introduced them and didn’t explore it as much as I wanted. I still don’t know where Showalter is going with it, but I am intrigued by Ten and Killian’s dynamic. I really like him. There’s a complexity to his character that I find intriguing. We never really know where his thoughts are or what he’s going to do next and I think that keeps the readers on their toes when he’s around.
Again, Showalter continues to build her world from the ground up and I really like the way she’s done it. She doesn’t reveal everything all at once and that’s a good sign. If she did, I think it would bore readers and it probably wouldn’t be as good as it is now. LIFEBLOOD is another wonderful installment to the series.
December 1, 2024
✅ Concept
✅ Secondary characters
✅ Action
✅🆗 Main character
✅🆗 Romance
✅🆗 Plot and pace
3.5 stars
I was expecting to see Ten deal with her afterlife, coming to terms with the fact that she now lived in a different realm than Killian who protected her and fought by her side until the end. Instead, I had to read about Ten mooning over Killian rather than getting to know Troika and its inhabitants... you know, the ones she is to spend eternity with? For the main part of the book, she was not working very hard at unlocking her access to the grid and its power, nor at understanding how Troika worked.
There is action and fights between the realms and over unsigned humans. I just didn't feel that involved in the story. Overall it's still a good book and I enjoyed it (thanks to Killian), even though the characters and plot were not the best. I will read the last one, hoping that it will be better.
1. Firstlife ⭐⭐⭐.5
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✅ Secondary characters
✅ Action
✅🆗 Main character
✅🆗 Romance
✅🆗 Plot and pace
3.5 stars
I was expecting to see Ten deal with her afterlife, coming to terms with the fact that she now lived in a different realm than Killian who protected her and fought by her side until the end. Instead, I had to read about Ten mooning over Killian rather than getting to know Troika and its inhabitants... you know, the ones she is to spend eternity with? For the main part of the book, she was not working very hard at unlocking her access to the grid and its power, nor at understanding how Troika worked.
There is action and fights between the realms and over unsigned humans. I just didn't feel that involved in the story. Overall it's still a good book and I enjoyed it (thanks to Killian), even though the characters and plot were not the best. I will read the last one, hoping that it will be better.
1. Firstlife ⭐⭐⭐.5
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December 8, 2017
Soms wil je gewoon even een boek lezen, zonder hem uitgebreid te analyzeren. Gelukkig kan dat ook gewoon als je een eigen boekje leest...
Mijn 3☆, kort samengevat: Soms wil je gewoon een pannenkoek, zonder kaas, spek, stroop en suiker. Niet dat hij met al die extra's niet lekker is, maar soms is het gewoon simpel weg allemaal even te veel. Wel erg nieuwsgierig naar het derde en laatste deel, dat dan weer wel ;)
Mijn 3☆, kort samengevat: Soms wil je gewoon een pannenkoek, zonder kaas, spek, stroop en suiker. Niet dat hij met al die extra's niet lekker is, maar soms is het gewoon simpel weg allemaal even te veel. Wel erg nieuwsgierig naar het derde en laatste deel, dat dan weer wel ;)
March 14, 2017
Better than book 1 but not enough to get a higher rating. I am a big fan of Gena's but this series isn't my favorite of hers. Ten and her obsession with numbers still drives me crazy. I think I keep reading this series because of Killian. And now that I'm invested I need to see how it ends, so bring on book 3!
snark-opportunity
September 3, 2016Edit 9/2/16: At least the cover is pretty...
Good golly gosh, there's another one?!?!
Good golly gosh, there's another one?!?!
December 4, 2017
Heel moeilijk om hier een mening over te vormen. Ik heb bijna twee maanden over dit boek gedaan en ik heb me er echt doorheen moeten worstelen. Ik vond Tenley soms ontzettend vervelend, er was niks meer van die stoere meid over die ik in Eerste Leven had leren kennen. Daarnaast vond ik het boek veel te vol: ik haalde heel veel dingen door elkaar en er gebeurde veel te veel. Maar het einde vond ik wel spannend en het concept van Troika en Myriad vond ik wel heel origineel! 3 sterren dus
January 11, 2021
4.5 Stars
*sobs in LEVIIIIIIIIII*
this was not as good as the first book, there was a lack of killian moments and i wasn’t there for it, but it was still so good. even though,,,,,,, leviiiiiii.
*sobs in LEVIIIIIIIIII*
this was not as good as the first book, there was a lack of killian moments and i wasn’t there for it, but it was still so good. even though,,,,,,, leviiiiiii.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 2, 2020
Bring on the 3rd book! I just absolutely loved this book, from beginning to end..... well ok not the end, but that’s only because I wasn’t ready for this book to be over. Gena you are an amazing woman! I love your work
February 15, 2017
This review was originally posted on (un)Conventional Bookviews
Lifeblood didn't fully live up to my expectations, as Ten didn't seem the same, strong, independent girl she was in Firstlife.
In the first book, Ten, while not being exactly decisive, did manage to be quite independent once she escaped the institution she was locked up in. I had quite high hopes for Lifeblood, seeing Ten deal with her afterlife, living in a realm different from the boy she had spent a lot of time with - one who was protecting her and fighting alongside her until the end. What got to me was that for a lot of the time, Ten was mooning over Killian rather than getting to know Troika and the Troikans she was supposed to spend eternity with. She was not working very hard at unlocking her key to the grid, nor at understanding just how her realm worked. She was quite judgemental, and I found her to be a lot less interesting than she was in Firstlife.
There was some action, with fights between the realms, and fights over humans who were unsigned. I just didn't feel like I was involved in any of it in Lifeblood. The realms were less interesting, and I found the characters to be a lot flatter than those I met in the first book. It could be that this one suffers from second book syndrome, and I will definitely pick up the next book in the series, but my expectations will be lowered accordingly before I get to it.
Lifeblood was in many ways just more of the same as in Firstblood, though. The realms fighting over humans, and also fighting each other. Light and dark, good and evil *sighs* just that here, Ten was not human anymore, she was a spirit. And she was a lot less discerning of the people around her, not understanding that because they were all spirits, they weren't really different from what they had been as humans. She remembered her life from before, but it didn't seem to me as if she had really learned anything from it. And she didn't appear to realise that all other Troikans also held on to who they had been as humans.
Written in first person point of view from Ten's perspective, I think it made it worse because I really didn't enjoy her very much in Lifeblood. It was not fun to be in her head, and even with the dialogues and the action, the story didn't really work well for me.
My worth isn't measured by other people's feelings for me. I am who I am, and my worth is my worth.
Those dreams... They can mean one of two things: something or nothing.
Love that comes with strings isn't love. It's just another form of selfishness, liking what the other person can do for you or make you feel.
Lifeblood didn't fully live up to my expectations, as Ten didn't seem the same, strong, independent girl she was in Firstlife.
In the first book, Ten, while not being exactly decisive, did manage to be quite independent once she escaped the institution she was locked up in. I had quite high hopes for Lifeblood, seeing Ten deal with her afterlife, living in a realm different from the boy she had spent a lot of time with - one who was protecting her and fighting alongside her until the end. What got to me was that for a lot of the time, Ten was mooning over Killian rather than getting to know Troika and the Troikans she was supposed to spend eternity with. She was not working very hard at unlocking her key to the grid, nor at understanding just how her realm worked. She was quite judgemental, and I found her to be a lot less interesting than she was in Firstlife.
There was some action, with fights between the realms, and fights over humans who were unsigned. I just didn't feel like I was involved in any of it in Lifeblood. The realms were less interesting, and I found the characters to be a lot flatter than those I met in the first book. It could be that this one suffers from second book syndrome, and I will definitely pick up the next book in the series, but my expectations will be lowered accordingly before I get to it.
Lifeblood was in many ways just more of the same as in Firstblood, though. The realms fighting over humans, and also fighting each other. Light and dark, good and evil *sighs* just that here, Ten was not human anymore, she was a spirit. And she was a lot less discerning of the people around her, not understanding that because they were all spirits, they weren't really different from what they had been as humans. She remembered her life from before, but it didn't seem to me as if she had really learned anything from it. And she didn't appear to realise that all other Troikans also held on to who they had been as humans.
Written in first person point of view from Ten's perspective, I think it made it worse because I really didn't enjoy her very much in Lifeblood. It was not fun to be in her head, and even with the dialogues and the action, the story didn't really work well for me.
My worth isn't measured by other people's feelings for me. I am who I am, and my worth is my worth.
Those dreams... They can mean one of two things: something or nothing.
Love that comes with strings isn't love. It's just another form of selfishness, liking what the other person can do for you or make you feel.
March 22, 2018
DNF at 25%
Firstlife was a good-enough book, but this one just wasn’t for me. Ten’s obsession with numbers really irritates me and the fact that she uses exclaimation marks every four or five sentences was the most distracting thing ever while I was reading. (And why does she have to say ‘Zero!’ in every single chapter?)
P.S The scene at the beginning was literally the worst battle scene I’ve ever read in my life. The writing was just bad. Finally deciding to DNF-ing this book was the best choice I’ve made.
Firstlife was a good-enough book, but this one just wasn’t for me. Ten’s obsession with numbers really irritates me and the fact that she uses exclaimation marks every four or five sentences was the most distracting thing ever while I was reading. (And why does she have to say ‘Zero!’ in every single chapter?)
P.S The scene at the beginning was literally the worst battle scene I’ve ever read in my life. The writing was just bad. Finally deciding to DNF-ing this book was the best choice I’ve made.
March 9, 2018
Writing a review for this book is so frustrating. The world building is fantastic. It is such a great concept. Unfortunately, Showalter just doesn’t pull it off. There are so many things I didn’t like in this book. I don’t like the characters, I don’t like the relationships and I hate most of the dialogue (so cringey). Showalter gives this book a large supporting cast but they aren’t fleshed out enough for me to care about any of them. They could all be interchangeable. It seems like the reason for the large cast is so that she has plenty of characters to kill off, unfortunately, I don’t care about the deaths because I don’t care about the characters.
The book is also woefully predictable. There is one part where there is a spy. It was so so SO obvious who the spy was I was almost thinking it wasn’t them because it was too obvious, but no it was just bad writing.
I guess my main issue is there is a lot of showing vs. telling. The main character is constantly going on about how much she loves this guy, how much she wants him but they barely know each other and I just don’t believe it.
I will probably read the conclusion to this trilogy because what the hell, I’ve come this far. Seriously it is such a shame because like I said, the world is sooooo good and the concept is great.
The book is also woefully predictable. There is one part where there is a spy. It was so so SO obvious who the spy was I was almost thinking it wasn’t them because it was too obvious, but no it was just bad writing.
I guess my main issue is there is a lot of showing vs. telling. The main character is constantly going on about how much she loves this guy, how much she wants him but they barely know each other and I just don’t believe it.
I will probably read the conclusion to this trilogy because what the hell, I’ve come this far. Seriously it is such a shame because like I said, the world is sooooo good and the concept is great.
November 23, 2018
3.5 stars*
March 3, 2016
Can't wait to read this
June 2, 2017
I just don't even know.
September 8, 2017
Wat een boek, wat een wereld & nu wachten tot 2018 🙁❤️
October 7, 2017
[4.0]
March 29, 2019
Schon den ersten Band der Immerwelt-Trilogie mochte ich unheimlich, der zweite Band reiht sich da, wenn auch etwas schwächer, ein! Ich persönlich bin ja immer ein Mensch, der große Schwierigkeiten mit Reihen hat, wenn er sie nicht hintereinanderweg liest. Ich vergesse einfach viel zu viel, und komme deswegen nie in Fortsetzungen klar; sei es wegen der Handlung oder den Charakteren. So hatte ich auch bei diesem Buch Angst, dass das wieder passieren könnte. Umso erstaunter war ich dann, als dies überhaupt nicht der Fall war. Gena Showalter führt ihre Leser unglaublich ausführlich in die Handlungen der Fortsetzung ein, während sie subtil die des Vorgängerbandes wiederholt, ohne dass es irgendwie erzwungen oder langatmig wirkt. Auch die vielen, vielen, vielen Fragen aus dem ersten Teil haben sich schnell zu Beginn geklärt, wofür ich sehr dankbar war. Wenn ich etwas nicht mag, dann ist es, wenn Geschichten widersprüchlich oder nicht gut durchdacht sind. Aber ich kann euch versichern, dass das hier definitiv nicht der Fall ist!
Allgemein war ich wieder sehr angetan von ihrem Schreibstil - ich hatte schon fast vergessen wie sehr ich diesen mag. Sie erzählt ihre Geschichte absolut humorvoll und in einer Art eines stream of conciousness, also einem ungezügelten Gedankenstrom unserer Protagonistin Tenley. Ich mochte das sehr gern, weil es einfach eine totale unbeschwerte und lockere Art und Weise an sich hatte, durch die man wirklich nur so durch die Seiten geflogen ist. Gleichzeitig ist ihr Stil extrem wortgewandt und ausdrucksstark, womit sie bei mir nur punkten konnte. Somit konnte sie auch das Setting Troikas, in dem die Geschichte nun größtenteils spielt, sehr gut verbildlichen.
Anschaulich war auch wieder die Erzählweise der Geschichte, denn der E-Mail-Verkehr aus dem ersten Band setzt sich auch hier wieder fort und bringt immer wieder ein frisches Windchen in die Geschichte, ebenso wie Tenleys Gedichte. Ich fand es bei der Immerwelt-Reihe auch zum ersten Mal sehr auffällig - natürlich im positiven Sinne - wie jede Figur tatsächlich ihre eigene Sprecherstimme hatte. Nie ist das für mich woanders so herausgestochen wie hier, und ich bin davon wirklich begeistert. Auch allgemein haben die Figuren einfach so viel Charakter, dass man sie sehr gut abgrenzen kann. Tenley, die ich ja schon im ersten Band toll fand, habe ich hier wirklich zu lieben gelernt, und vor allem konnte mich die Liebesgeschichte hier absolut überzeugen. Im ersten Band konnte ich die ja nicht wirklich nachvollziehen, aber Killian ist mir einfach so sympathisch geworden. Vor allem hatte ich irgendwie das Gefühl, dass er eine Art Fantasy-Science Fiction-Hardin (aus After Passion) ist, was es mir ja total angetan hat. Durch Tenleys Entscheidung entwickelt sich ihre Beziehung zu einem Romeo-und-Julia-Konflikt, was der Geschichte wiederum einen absoluten Reiz, totale Spannung und definitiv keine Durchschaubarkeit gegeben hat.
Obwohl ich keine konkreten Kritikpunkte habe und mir nichts ins Auge gestochen ist, was ich gar nicht leiden konnte, muss ich sagen, dass das Buch auch kein Highlight war. Vor allem mittig kamen für mich stellenweise immer wieder ein paar Längen auf. Gerade die ausführlichen Kampfszenen, die ich im ersten Band noch sehr gern mochte, habe ich hier oft überflogen, weil es für mich nicht relevant war. Ebenso haben mir hier irgendwie die Twists gefehlt. Viele Handlungen konnte ich schon vorausahnen, und hin und wieder hatte ich das Gefühl, dass die Autorin immer und immer wieder Charaktere einführt, nur um sie kurz darauf sterben zu lassen, in der Hoffnung, dass es dem Leser nahegeht. Bei mir hat das leider nicht wirklich geklappt, weil ich mich immer sehr distanziert von den Figuren, abgesehen der Protagonisten, gefühlt habe. Es war dann immer wieder dasselbe. Sehr schade. Gleichzeitig hatte ich hier häufig das Gefühl, dass die Figuren immer wieder 'einfach so' ihre Gegenspieler töten zu können, ohne dass es ihnen wirklich spürbar und tiefsinnig nahe ging. Tode wurden hier einfach so schnell abgehandelt, als wäre es nur ein Videospiel. Davon bin ich leider gar kein Fan.
3,5 von 5 Sternen
Allgemein war ich wieder sehr angetan von ihrem Schreibstil - ich hatte schon fast vergessen wie sehr ich diesen mag. Sie erzählt ihre Geschichte absolut humorvoll und in einer Art eines stream of conciousness, also einem ungezügelten Gedankenstrom unserer Protagonistin Tenley. Ich mochte das sehr gern, weil es einfach eine totale unbeschwerte und lockere Art und Weise an sich hatte, durch die man wirklich nur so durch die Seiten geflogen ist. Gleichzeitig ist ihr Stil extrem wortgewandt und ausdrucksstark, womit sie bei mir nur punkten konnte. Somit konnte sie auch das Setting Troikas, in dem die Geschichte nun größtenteils spielt, sehr gut verbildlichen.
Anschaulich war auch wieder die Erzählweise der Geschichte, denn der E-Mail-Verkehr aus dem ersten Band setzt sich auch hier wieder fort und bringt immer wieder ein frisches Windchen in die Geschichte, ebenso wie Tenleys Gedichte. Ich fand es bei der Immerwelt-Reihe auch zum ersten Mal sehr auffällig - natürlich im positiven Sinne - wie jede Figur tatsächlich ihre eigene Sprecherstimme hatte. Nie ist das für mich woanders so herausgestochen wie hier, und ich bin davon wirklich begeistert. Auch allgemein haben die Figuren einfach so viel Charakter, dass man sie sehr gut abgrenzen kann. Tenley, die ich ja schon im ersten Band toll fand, habe ich hier wirklich zu lieben gelernt, und vor allem konnte mich die Liebesgeschichte hier absolut überzeugen. Im ersten Band konnte ich die ja nicht wirklich nachvollziehen, aber Killian ist mir einfach so sympathisch geworden. Vor allem hatte ich irgendwie das Gefühl, dass er eine Art Fantasy-Science Fiction-Hardin (aus After Passion) ist, was es mir ja total angetan hat. Durch Tenleys Entscheidung entwickelt sich ihre Beziehung zu einem Romeo-und-Julia-Konflikt, was der Geschichte wiederum einen absoluten Reiz, totale Spannung und definitiv keine Durchschaubarkeit gegeben hat.
Obwohl ich keine konkreten Kritikpunkte habe und mir nichts ins Auge gestochen ist, was ich gar nicht leiden konnte, muss ich sagen, dass das Buch auch kein Highlight war. Vor allem mittig kamen für mich stellenweise immer wieder ein paar Längen auf. Gerade die ausführlichen Kampfszenen, die ich im ersten Band noch sehr gern mochte, habe ich hier oft überflogen, weil es für mich nicht relevant war. Ebenso haben mir hier irgendwie die Twists gefehlt. Viele Handlungen konnte ich schon vorausahnen, und hin und wieder hatte ich das Gefühl, dass die Autorin immer und immer wieder Charaktere einführt, nur um sie kurz darauf sterben zu lassen, in der Hoffnung, dass es dem Leser nahegeht. Bei mir hat das leider nicht wirklich geklappt, weil ich mich immer sehr distanziert von den Figuren, abgesehen der Protagonisten, gefühlt habe. Es war dann immer wieder dasselbe. Sehr schade. Gleichzeitig hatte ich hier häufig das Gefühl, dass die Figuren immer wieder 'einfach so' ihre Gegenspieler töten zu können, ohne dass es ihnen wirklich spürbar und tiefsinnig nahe ging. Tode wurden hier einfach so schnell abgehandelt, als wäre es nur ein Videospiel. Davon bin ich leider gar kein Fan.
3,5 von 5 Sternen
September 12, 2022
3.5 Stars ✨
“Light is knowledge. Darkness is confusion. Light is strength, like being connected to a battery. Light is love, the reason we live. It is hope. No matter how magnificent or how bleak our situation, we can have better. Light is truth. There are no shadows where secrets can hide.”
Lifeblood picks right up where Firstlife left off. I really liked learning more about each realm, and the concept of light vs dark. Still think this is such a unique plot, but it did have its up and down moments.
The relationships Ten builds in this installment was done very nicely. She even grew a little in this one, I wasn’t her biggest fan in the last book. I really missed Archer, but hoping we see him in the last book. The focus one of the realms puts on forgiveness and compassion was fantastic. Looking forward to seeing how everything unfolds in Everlife book 3.
“Light is knowledge. Darkness is confusion. Light is strength, like being connected to a battery. Light is love, the reason we live. It is hope. No matter how magnificent or how bleak our situation, we can have better. Light is truth. There are no shadows where secrets can hide.”
Lifeblood picks right up where Firstlife left off. I really liked learning more about each realm, and the concept of light vs dark. Still think this is such a unique plot, but it did have its up and down moments.
The relationships Ten builds in this installment was done very nicely. She even grew a little in this one, I wasn’t her biggest fan in the last book. I really missed Archer, but hoping we see him in the last book. The focus one of the realms puts on forgiveness and compassion was fantastic. Looking forward to seeing how everything unfolds in Everlife book 3.
Read
May 4, 2017*Source* Library
*Genre* Young Adult, Fantasy
*Rating* 3.5-4
*MY Thoughts*
Lifeblood is the second installment in author Gina Showalter's Everlife series. Lifeblood picks up immediately after the events of Firstlife. As a summary, Showalter's world is a place where Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, while real life begins after you die. In the Everlife, the place you go after you die, you are given a choice to sign between two different factions: Troika and Myriad. Troika & Myriad are deadly rivals. There is a third option, one that is for those who remain unsigned when they die.
*Full Review @ Gizmos Reviews*
http://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/201...
*Genre* Young Adult, Fantasy
*Rating* 3.5-4
*MY Thoughts*
Lifeblood is the second installment in author Gina Showalter's Everlife series. Lifeblood picks up immediately after the events of Firstlife. As a summary, Showalter's world is a place where Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, while real life begins after you die. In the Everlife, the place you go after you die, you are given a choice to sign between two different factions: Troika and Myriad. Troika & Myriad are deadly rivals. There is a third option, one that is for those who remain unsigned when they die.
*Full Review @ Gizmos Reviews*
http://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/201...
March 13, 2017
This was a quite interesting thing, really, because I can't say I particularly enjoyed Firstlife all that much. It had too many YA-book tropes and the main character just frustrated me to no ends. So I went into Lifeblood with the feeling it would be similar. In no means was it great, or did it warrant four stars, I mean the main character is still a frustrating person. However the book had things going for it, moments I truly enjoyed more than I'd thought I would, side characters I really liked. Could I give halves, this would be a 3.5 star book. It was better than Firstlife and now my hopes lie that the last book in the series will be even better
March 26, 2023
In the second book of the trilogy our heroine, Tenly has become a Troikan but her heart belongs to a Myriadian. She’s lost her best friend to The Rest. She’s trying to figure out Many Ends and if Myriad is connected to it as she suspects. The battle heats up between the realms now that Ten has chosen her realm and is on her way to becoming a Conduit. Myriad is holding out hope that Killian can persuade her to defect and join him in Myriad so that they may gain her as their one and only Abrogate. Once Tenly unlocks her powers and has full access to the grid the battle will begin in earnest and Myriad unleashes a secret weapon called Penumbra.
April 7, 2017
Is it wrong that I was more excited for the story to be over than the actual story itself? I can't say this enough: this was so much longer than it needed to be. It was packed full of information that had no purpose. It was such an infodump that I feel it took away from the actual story. I'm not sure I want to finish the series. I am good not knowing (or caring) what happens next.
November 26, 2017
I love this series.
This book was a really good 2nd book in the series.
I think the overall concept of the series is creative and engaging, and the plot hasn't disappointed me yet.
If you like YA fantasy, then read this series.
This book was a really good 2nd book in the series.
I think the overall concept of the series is creative and engaging, and the plot hasn't disappointed me yet.
If you like YA fantasy, then read this series.
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