{Blog Tour} Book Review + Giveaway: Ever - Jessa Russo

 

Title: Ever (Ever #1)

Author: Jessa Russo

Release Date: October 1st 2012

Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press

Source: ecopy from author

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Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

Ever van Ruysdael had never been able to get over Frankie, her first love and best friend, who'd died in her arms in a car accident two years ago. How could she when, since then, Frankie's ghost had never left her and instead became a permanent fixture in her house? She had no problem with that, though, because she didn't want to move on... at least, that was until her hot new neighbor showed interest in her.

This book entertained me enough. The story flowed smoothly and was funny, sweet, and swoon-worthy where the author intended it to be. The mystery in the form of Toby kept me guessing and curious, but I wish the suspense was kept consistent and present throughout the whole novel.

The only problem I had were with the characters who, with the exception of Frankie and Toby, I thought were a little one-dimensional and sometimes just downright forced. Especially Ever who, with her questionable thoughts and actions, made me raise an eyebrow every so often, especially because of her fast-moving relationship with Toby and how lovesick she was.

Like, if I were the one with the dead best friend who was warning me not to date the new guy, I would pester him until he told me why. And it irked me how every time Ever caught sight of Toby, all her worries would move to the backseat - everything, except for the guilt she felt because for her, it was like she was cheating on Frankie. Lastly, she was bothered when she'd realized she didn't know a lot about Toby, but for all the wrong reasons. 

Overall, Ever was an okay book for me. Although I didn't particularly like the main character, she didn't infuriate me and she did grow somehow by the end. I do plan to check out the sequel, Evade, but it's not particularly near the top of my TBR list right now.

MY FAVORITE PART was when Ever started to know more about Toby.

RATING:

 

About the author:
I'm an unashamed super fan of all things paranormal romance. I read, write and breathe paranormal YA, rarely straying from my comfort zone. Seriously. I love the stuff.

When not writing or reading, I'm out and about making memories with some seriously awesome people - for an introvert, I'm pretty extroverted. ;-) You can bet that I'm also ALWAYS secretly planning my next trip to New Orleans. (If my eyes glaze over, I'm in one of my stories, or NOLA.)

I have a husband I love as much now as I did when we first fell in love over ten years ago, and a daughter we're doing our best to raise with manners, values, and spunk.

Southern California will always be home, but I'm open to suggestions.  

Website | Twitter | Evade (Ever #2) on Goodreads

Enter Jessa's int'l giveaway for signed paperbacks of both Ever and Evade!