ARC Review: Raven Blog Tour + Giveaway

Raven by Stacey Rourke
The Legends Saga #2
Publisher: Anchor Group
Release Date: September 21st, 2014
Source: E-book
Date Read: 9/19/14 to 9/22/14
211 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰1/2

An infamous love, destined nevermore,
For death could not claim, the enchanting Lenore.

Cursed by the malevolent spirit of the Headless Horseman, Ireland Crane ventures to Manhattan in search of a way to break her soul crushing bond. Instead, she discovers the lines between fact and fiction are blurring once more. Croaking ravens. Telltale hearts. Could the works of Poe be coming to pass with handsome Wall Street Midas Ridley Peolte as their unwilling target?

She walks the Earth, a plague on mankind,
searching for he, her rotted heart doth pine.

Together, the two unknowingly release a dark force death itself could not tame. Surrounded by the unrelenting violence and mayhem they’ve unleashed, Ireland feels her control over the Horseman slipping. Before the beast within consumes her, she and her crew must follow the clues of the dead to right a centuries’ old wrong. Will it be enough to sate the Horseman’s appetite?

Hell hath no fury like a ghoul scorned.

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012

Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013

Stacey Rourke lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant, dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction  and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head. Mark your calendars! Her latest literary adventure, Crane, will release May 26, 2014. She is currently hard at work on the continuations of this thrilling Legends Saga, as well as other literary projects.

Author Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

So here's to another well done book by Stacey Rourke! I received an e-arc Raven from a Xpresso Reads blog tour, and it was in pdf form, and most likely not the published form. However, Raven, the sequel to Crane (which you can read about here) was actually published yesterday! The e-book is on Amazon, and also Smashwords, I believe?

Since this is a sequel, I'll just sum up the awesomeness of the first book in bullet-point form:

• If you're looking for your first NA, LOOK HERE. This is a great read that focuses more on the plot rather than the romance
• It has incredibly witty lines and dialogue that made me laugh out loud!
• Hidden Easter eggs from other movies or books, which I actually haven't seen in many books (probably because I'm reading fantasy, oops)
• It's about the headless horseman, aka The Hessian, taking over Ireland's body because of a curse. And it's something she HAS to control. You know, before she kills tons of people by accident.

Feel free to skim this if you haven't read the first book! Or read it, either way there are no spoilers!

Raven is the second book in this series, and although I did like the first book better, this one also had the same witty lines that I loved.

'Perhaps she got her anger under control?' Rip's lips worked like a cow chewing cud. His beard bobbing with each rotation of his jaw. "I watched a fascinating documentary about a scientist that was inadvertently struck with a substance known as 'gamma radiation.' The result of which turned him into a reptilian colored ogre with horrible coping mechanisms. Only be calming himself could he revert back to his true form. It is possible the same type of technique worked for her.'

'Not a documentary, bud,' Noah corrected.

(Taken from an unedited/unpublished, ARC e-copy)

The story moves forward from Ireland's curse, to another character, Ridley, who has to battle the curse of Edgar Allen Poe. Yeah that's right, the actual Edgar Allen Poe, except he can bring anything back to life through his touch. Though they aren't exactly human when brought back.

Instead of moving completely on to a new character, Rourke decides to bring all of them together, Ireland (still trying to figure out HER curse), her boyfriend Noah, Rip (the guy out of his time), and then Ridley. This is a good and bad thing. Well, the good is that I loved how there's the whole "Team Horseman" and "Team Poe" thing going on. But then, this makes everything a little bit confusing.

Well, a lot.

Characters were just popping in and out, and I had a hard time focusing on who was doing what, or saying what. Ridley was even worse to imagine, since he constantly was seeing dead people. My main problem, and what brings this down a star and a half, is that the POVs keep on shifting throughout the story inconsistently. 

As with the last book, the chapters rotate between the past, in this case, historic Edgar Allen Poe, and the present with Ireland and the gang. I found Edgar's past to be much more appealing, simply because I didn't have to deal with a bunch of characters. 

In conclusion, I still really like this series. I think it has great potential! And I'm still looking forward to the next book, which will come out.....hopefully sometime soon!