The Offering by Kimberly Derting
Release Date: December 31, 2013
Format: ARC, 336 pages
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Series: The Pledge #3
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review
Buy It: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository
Description from Goodreads:
True love—and world war—is at stake in the conclusion to The Pledge trilogy, a dark and romantic blend of dystopia and fantasy.
Charlie, otherwise known as Queen Charlaina of Ludania, has become comfortable as a leader and a ruler. She’s done admirable work to restore Ludania’s broken communications systems with other Queendoms, and she’s mastered the art of ignoring Sabara, the evil former queen whose Essence is alive within Charlie. Or so she thinks.
When the negotiation of a peace agreement with the Queendom of Astonia goes awry, Charlie receives a brutal message that threatens Ludania, and it seems her only option is to sacrifice herself in exchange for Ludanian freedom.
But things aren’t always as they seem. Charlie is walking into a trap—one set by Sabara, who is determined to reclaim the Queendoms at any cost.
Charlie, otherwise known as Queen Charlaina of Ludania, has become comfortable as a leader and a ruler. She’s done admirable work to restore Ludania’s broken communications systems with other Queendoms, and she’s mastered the art of ignoring Sabara, the evil former queen whose Essence is alive within Charlie. Or so she thinks.
When the negotiation of a peace agreement with the Queendom of Astonia goes awry, Charlie receives a brutal message that threatens Ludania, and it seems her only option is to sacrifice herself in exchange for Ludanian freedom.
But things aren’t always as they seem. Charlie is walking into a trap—one set by Sabara, who is determined to reclaim the Queendoms at any cost.
The Offering is one of those books that starts out with an absolute BANG. Honestly, I finished the first chapter, set down the book, and said (out loud to myself because I'm freaking cool like that), "WHO STARTS A BOOK LIKE THAT?! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN IN THE FIRST CHAPTER OHMYFLIPPING GOD."
And then I picked up the book and kept reading.
I loved it.
It's rare that a book starts out in such a way that has me flipping out. The last specific time I remember this happening was when I was reading The Darkest Minds in my US History class, gasped at what happened, and got a classroom full of stares. As you may know, The Darkest Minds is one of my all-time favorite books. The Offering started off on the right track.
The rest of the story definitely held its own. As far as plot goes, Kimberly Derting nailed it with this one. I was completely IN to what was going on, and always interested to learn what came next. After that first chapter, I was kind of afraid of what the rest of the book would contain, but I actually ended up really liking what happened, and I ended up enjoying the whole book.
Kimberly's writing is fantastic. I love how she distinguishes her protagonist in first POV, and then branches out as the story goes on to give us a glimpse into other characters' brains through third POV. Plus, Kimberly writes some darn good suspense. And mystery! I told you how this book held my attention, right? THE WRITING IS A BIG PART OF THE REASON WHY. That and the unique premise that I think is positively brilliant.
The characters, however, have never been my absolute favorite. I think Charlie is strong and worthy of her title, but I don't particularly like her. Max is definitely worth swooning over, but he doesn't completely STAND OUT to me. I don't outright dislike either of them, but they aren't my favorites, either. I do see and like their character development, however. And I prefer them as a couple as opposed to whoever-the-flip would be paired with Niko. I mean, I'LL take Niko, if he calms himself down. But Max and Charlie are sweet together. ALSO, as far as characters go, I am quite fond of Xavier, though. And Angelina is adorable.
Overall, The Offering is a great ending to The Pledge trilogy. The writing was fabulous, the plot was enticing, and I certainly look forward to reading what comes next from Kimberly Derting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kimberly Derting is the author of the BODY FINDER series, THE PLEDGE trilogy, and THE TAKING (coming April 2014 from HarperTeen). She lives in the Seattle area, with her husband and three children, who often find the outrageous things they say either in the pages of her books or posted on Twitter or Facebook for the entire world to see.
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Ends 1/21/14
I've never heard of this series but Kimberly Derting sounds familiar. I think may have read one of her books a while ago or just recognize her name. Great review and thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteI love it when a book grabs me right from the start. And I, too, have set a book down in order to comment out loud, to myself, about it. =D Great review! I'm going to have to check out this series.
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