Book Review: Tempestuous by Lesley Livingston

Title: Tempestuous

Author: Lesley Livingston

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publication Date: December, 2010

Hardback: 368 pages

Stand Alone or Series: Series–this is the final book in the series

How I got this book: Bought

Why I chose this book:  I read the first two books in this series, and thus had to finish the trilogy.  (Rarely, I will stop reading a series if it’s not good.)

Synopsis:

             “I don’t love Sonny Flannery.”

              That’s the lie Kelley Winslow told to protect the boy she loves from a power he doesn’t know he possesses. Devastated, Sonny retreats—to a haven for Lost Fae that’s hidden deep underneath New York City.

             But Kelley’s not about to let things end in heartbreak. To get Sonny back, she’s got to find out who’s after his magick—and how to use her own. She’s got to uncover who’s recruiting Janus Guards to murderously hunt innocent Faerie. She’s got to help rebuild the shattered theater company she called family. And she’s got to do it all without getting dangerously distracted by the Fennrys Wolf, whose legendary heart of stone seems to melt whenever he’s around Kelley.

Review:

The Cover: I think, overall, I would give this cover a B+.  Why?  Well, I do love the fact that when they featured “Kelley” on the cover, they gave her an air of mysticality (I don’t think that’s a word).  She truly does look like one of the fae.  But my only problem is that the cover of every novel in the trilogy is similar.  A little too similar.  There are pros and cons, but I do like this cover.

The Characters: Sonny Flannery is my favorite character in the Wondrous Strange series.  Like an onion, he has many layers that create him.  His warrior exterior, his completing love for Kelley, etc.  Yes, he isn’t your typical male.  But your typical male didn’t get raised under the thumb of King Auberon in the Otherworld, trained to be a warrior since he would walk.  Most intriguing: Sonny’s got some secrets hidden up his sleeve.

Maddox has a small part, but I think he’s a riot.  He’s like the parent of the Janus Guards.  He wants everyone to get along.  He tries to do what’s right.  He’s always the voice of reason.  And he also throws in some do-as-I-say-not-as-I-dos.  (He warns Sonny against loving fae, when he loves a one, too).  Maddox really seems to be the glue that holds these characters together.

Kelley Winslow is relatable.  Not so much that’s she’s a faerie princess, but that she’s a teen living in New York City, dealing with the hardships of love, and wondering why she has to be the one to fix everything.  All the while trying to maintain a part in her theatre troupe.  There are times when I want to scream at her and her decisions, but it’s all a part of the growing-up-thing. 

The Plot: We follow Sonny and Kelley through alternating points of view as they each embark on separate journeys.  Sonny, still reeling from the last words he heard Kelley say, “I don’t love Sonny Flannery”, tries to find a new place where he can fit in and try to heal his heart.  Kelley, devastated that she had to lie to Sonny, searches for a way to gain his safety from a secret not even he knows.

All the faeries are out in this fast paced conclusion to the trilogy.  We learn all about the underground sanctuary of the hidden fae that are stuck in the mortal realm, or as they like to call it, “hereside”.  Things start to take a strange twist as Sonny falls into a camaraderie with Cary’s, warrier-fae and one of the sanctuary.

Meanwhile, the plot confuses readers as Kelley, sometimes falcon, sometimes girl, struggles to balance her responsibilities of the theatre, saving Sonny, and maintaining an average life.  Not without the help of her fabulous roommate Tyff, that is.

You will get a taste of everything in Tempestuous. 

Overall: I thought this was a great finale to a series.  It touched back on all the lose points, and left me with answers to everything.  Most important of all, I liked the ending.  (Fenn was making me a little nervous).  A good read.

Spare Thoughts: I really love books when they alternate point of view, and Livingston does not disappoint.  I was skeptical at Sonny’s truly gentle nature – I don’t think it resonates with the male perspective – but then I think that he was raised in the Otherworld.  He should be a gentle-soul. 

Final: I love living in the magical world that Livingston has woven.

Other books by this author: Wondrous Strange, Darklight