Review: Until I Die by Amy Plum

Title: Until I Die

Author: Amy Plum

Pages: 357

Publisher: HarperCollins

Series: Revenants #2

Released: May 8, 2012

First Line: "I leapt, drawing my feet up beneath me, as the seven-foot quarterstaff smashed into the flagstones where I had been standing a half second before."

From Goodreads: "Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series."

My Thoughts:

 I'm not going to lie, I was a little disappointed with this book. I still really enjoyed it and the idea of the revenants is awesome, but I think that Die For Me was definitely better, and I felt that Until I Die was missing something.

In a lot of YA romances, the second book is typically where the main love interests are torn apart, broken up, etc. and the plot revolves around them trying to get back together. Thank goodness Amy Plum avoids this cliche! Instead, she spends the book developing Kate and Vincent's relationship. Yes, they do have issues, mainly how they're going to make their relationship work when she is a human and he is a revenant, but they actively search for ways to make it work instead of breaking it off. There is plenty of romance in this book with several "awww" moments, and the Paris setting makes it all the more romantic.

However, I wish there would have been more action. I'm a hopeless romantic and I'm all for romance, but I need some action too! Die For Me had memorable scenes that stuck with me--Jules leaping in front of the subway, Charles diving into the river, Vincent saving Kate in the cafe, Kate discovering Vincent's body--but Until I Die was lacking these. The plot's main focus was on Kate and Vincent finding a way to make their relationship work. With the way Die For Me ended, I had been expecting more action and conflict and fighting between the revenants and the numa. But the numa don't show up until half way through, and their appearances are brief. But when they do show up they sure make things interesting! I wish Amy Plum had added more of that into the plot.

I have the unfortunate talent of being able to predict where a story is headed. I saw the plot twist in this book coming really early on, and I don't know if it was because it was poorly done or because I'm good at predicting things. (Honestly I thought it was a little obvious). Either way, the twist in this book failed to surprise me. This made it somewhat boring for me at times because I knew what was coming while I was reading, but I don't think everyone will be able to predict it, I'm just weird haha :P

One of my favorite parts about Until I Die was the characters. I especially love Jules and Georgia, and Kate is a great heroine. I liked how she took matters into her own hands and is active in the story instead of sitting by--she takes defense lessons from Gaspard and searches on her own for a way to help her and Vincent. Vincent is sweet and a gentleman, but I would like to see him developed a bit more.

Recommendations:

 Overall, this book kept my attention and I devoured it in a few days. And with that intense cliff-hanger ending I wish I could get a hold of the next book right now! I would recommend this book to fans of Die For Me, and to lovers of paranormal romance. The whole idea of the revenants is really cool, and is what really drew me into the story. I can't wait for the last book!

My Rating:

Writing: 3/5

Characters: 4/5

Plot: 4/5

Creativity/Originality: 5/5

Kept me interested: 5/5