+by+Alma+Katsu.jpg)
A love triangle spanning 200 years…Alma Katsu takes readers on a breathtaking journey through the landscape of the heart.
New York Times bestselling author Scott Westerfeld (Leviathan) praises Alma Katsu’s The Taker as, “a centuries-spanning epic that will keep you turning pages all night. This marvelous debut is a thinking person’s guilty pleasure.” And Keith Donohue (The Stolen Child) says, “The Taker is a frighteningly compelling story about those most human monsters—desire and obsession. It will curl your hair and keep you up late at night.”
Now Alma Katsu delivers the highly anticipated follow-up to her haunting novel about an immortal woman learning firsthand that the heart wants what the heart wants…no matter how high the stakes. Fans of The Taker can finally indulge in their next juicy fix with the second book of the trilogy, The Reckoning. In this gripping, pulse-pounding supernatural sequel, discover what happens to Lanny, Luke, Adair—and Jonathan. The Reckoning picks up where The Taker leaves off, following Lanny on her path to redemption—and creating a whole new level of suspense.
Recommended: Yes.
About The Reckoning
Available as: Hardcover $15.20 from Amazon.com (and lower prices) / Paperback $9.99 from Amazon.com , E-book $11.99 from Amazon.com Kindle's Edition, Hardcover $18.23 from The Book Depository
Recommended Ages: 17 and Up
Hardcover: 352 pgs.
Published: June 19th 2012 by Gallery Books (first published April 2nd 2012)
For This Review: *Advance Reader's Edition Provided For Book Tour*
If you like this review - Like It on Goodreads.com
The Reckoning Online Book Tour
Extremely grateful to be part of it as a blogger. Keep your eyes open for other stops on other blogs. It's a one-day (June 21, 2012) online book tour. Thank you, Alma, for letting me participate. You know how much I loved your first novel and your debut-The Taker. Thank you also to Gallery Books for reaching out for the tour.
For many The Taker, the first book in The Taker Trilogy, not only introduced but also swept them up into the world of some alarmingly deprived Immortals. The Reckoning has quite the few shocks and unexpected reveals. We had lastly left off in The Taker with Lanore (Lanny) having imprisoned Adair the person who gifted her with Immortility itself. Lanore had also just met Luke, a doctor, who felt a certain connection to her and she and Luke seemed rather happy together. Now in The Reckoning, by mere chance Adair is released from his prison. Years have passed and though Lanore felt she made a good choice by entrapping Adair she never feels at ease after her decision. Lanore forever lives in fear of having committed her betrayal. She'll finally get to let go of her fear of Adair ever escaping since he finally does escape! Adair is back with a vengeance. You really get to see how he struggles to accept his new surroundings considering he's in the modern world and not in older times where he feels more in control. Adair comes of as vulnerable in The Reckoning which is a contrast to how he always felt self-assured in The Taker. Adair's fury toward Lanore's betrayal on most ocassions can be seen as conflicted since he loved her and as readers will see is that taking over Jonathan's body in the past which led to Lanore imprisoning him was because he simply wanted to please her. Adair throughout The Reckoning has an intense love/hate relationship toward Lanore.
Alma Katsu delivers once again with her suspenseful story of longing. For those of you who wanted to see more of Jonathan the beautiful man that so captivated Lanore for many centuries and many other women as well then you should be happy to know that he will be making an appearance. He wont be the same as he was! Something rather weird is going on with him. There's some curiosity there. He will though let readers know how he truly felt about his relationship with Lanore.
The writing is equal parts present and flashbacks to the past. There are encounters with Lanore's past and Adair's perspective of things that happened then. Adair where as a fan of the trilogy saw as a completely cruel and inmoral individual there is some eye-opening views of how he became the person he is in this novel. His greed for power ultimately changed him. He reached an idea that people with a bigger knowledge of alchemy had the right to take what they wanted and act on their desires. Although that turned him into a man with no restraint. As of now, Adair is someone that understand and actually root for him to hopefully end up with Lanore if he changes his ways. Some of the other characters acquired vulnerability where there only seem to be depravity before and yet others were worse in who they are as individuals. The books, so far, in The Taker Trilogy have managed to expand on the story and add to the characters on both fronts.
By now, have an inkling, that with Alma's books, well in reference to The Taker Trilogy specifically, you can only get mind-shocking turns in the play of events. If this book was one of the books that you or anyone were holding in high expectations then rest assure. The Reckoning builds on The Taker Trilogy and cements Alma as a master storyteller in Dark Fantasy.
Overall: Amazing read!
Genre: Dark Fantasy, Fiction
About the Author
Alma Katsu is an author who used to love to spend her childhood in books before her love for writing really came out. The Golden Book of Fairytales is her prized possession.
The Taker is her debut novel. The Reckoning is her second novel in The Taker series which is to come out in June 2012. While, The Descent is Book Three in The Taker series.
Alma Katsu's Website for Information on her and her books: http://almakatsu.com/
Alma Katsu's Website for Information on her and her books: http://almakatsu.com/
