Bookworm Blogger #YA: Review: Endure (Need #4) by Carrie Jones

Endure (Need #4) by Carrie Jones

Publishers: Bloomsbury

Published Date: May 8th 2012

From: Bought

My rating: 5 out of 5

Synopsis:
It’s all-out war (and no-holds-barred romance) in the climactic conclusion to Carrie Jones’s bestselling series.

Zara is at the center of an impending apocalypse. True, she’s successfully rescued Nick from Valhalla, but it simply isn’t enough. Evil pixies are ravaging Bedford, and they need much more than one great warrior; they need an army. Zara isn’t sure what her role is anymore. She’s not just fighting for her friends; she’s also a pixie queen. And to align her team of pixies with the humans she loves will be one of her greatest battles yet. Especially since she can’t even reconcile her growing feelings for her pixie king . . .

Unexpected turns, surprising revelations, and one utterly satisfying romantic finale make Endure a thrilling end to this series of bestsellers.

Review:
The Need series by Carrie Jones is one of those where you read the first book and its great, then you wonder apprehensively at the direction the rest of the books are going to go. I must admit that when I started on Captivate and the whole Valhalla story opened up I was pretty excited. I love mythological stories. But knowing how Entice ended I was very unsure, maybe a little doubtful if Carrie Jones could pull off anything as spellbinding as the first three books. I mean, what could be bigger than fighting Frank in front of Odin and Thor?

Well, you know what? She absolutely did! Endure is not only a testament to the growth of Carrie's writing but her storytelling also. The characters weave a magical way through Endure that hits every nerve, bone and emotion in your body. The tension and compelling suspense doesn't stop from beginning to end. The story opens out wonderfully drawing in more Norse legends and whisking Zara and crew away to new lands in a hope of defeating evil pixie Frank and ending the apocalypse.

Now with her wolf, Nick, on one side and Astley, the good pixie king on the other, and a whole array of old and new characters, this is an adventure that will be hard to break away from.

The one thing that struck me at the end was how empowering Carrie has created all the women of her books. Even Issie, the token human of the scoobie gang has enough attitude to warn off a rhino attack. The introduction of Hel in this book was no exception either. If ever there was a series that screamed 'girl power' then this is the one, and our heroine Zara is almighty in her human AND pixie form. From the moment you start this book you understand how much Zara has grown as a character. No longer basing every decision on her groups ability to live or die, she finally grasps the bigger picture. The world is more important than their lives alone. The world, with all its flaws and badness, must continue turning for the sake of humankind, and if lives must be forfeit then so be it. But the hardest decisions are also the most heartbreaking. Astley or Nick. Pixie or wolf.

Of course, if you've read the first three books then it goes without saying that you'll pick this one up. But if you haven't yet been encouraged to read the Need series then you're missing out on a spectacular, original and wonderful story. And the ending with the romance? Perfect, and exactly how I hoped it would end.

No Young Adult collection is complete without it, Endure is out 8th May 2012