Bookworm Blogger #YA: Review: Captivate by Carrie Jones

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:
Zara and her friends knew they hadn't solved the pixie problem for good. Far from it. The king's needs grow deeper every day he's stuck in captivity, while his control over his people gets weaker. It's made him vulnerable. And now there's a new king in town.

A turf war is imminent, since the new pixie king, Astley, is moving in quickly. Nick nearly killed him in the woods on day one, but Zara came to his rescue. Astley swears that he and Zara are destined to be together, that he's one of the good guys. Nick isn't buying it, though Zara isn't as sure -- despite herself, she wants to trust the new king. But it's a lot more than her relationship with Nick that is at stake. It's her life -- and his.

Review:
This book is so much better than the first! I read it in a day and would not put it down. For me, the new character of Astley absolutely blew me away. He's a new King in town, kind, sensitive with an eye always on Zara in case she gets into trouble. He understands her dilemmas in the world, that she hates killing and wants to see the best in people. He acts selflessly every time and he made me root for him from near the beginning.

Again, this is a story of Pixies, leadership, trying to solve hidden clues, getting rid of the bad guys, love for friends, family, people in need but most of all this is a story about prejudice

Zara discovers that her prejudices towards Pixies is based on ignorance. Everyone tells her that Pixies are evil, except Astley isn't. He is the exception to the rule and Zara wants to believe him because she believes that not everyone is born evil.

When one of her friends is badly injured Zara feels his loss so great that she's willing to go against all the rules to save him. She sheds her prejudices and does the unthinkable.

This is definitely a great sequel and overshadows all the shortcomings of the first. A must read!