Book Review Monday: Black City by Elizabeth Richards

Here's another review from the review pile!  I wrote this review all the way back in December of 2013!

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Goodreads Blurb:

"A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war.

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-old Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed—but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths."

Review:

OH MY COOKIES. This book was f***ing amazing. There are no words to describe it. I basically only have one complaint about the book but it is a teensy itsy bitsy thing that doesn't even compete with this book's overall awesomeness.

So let's get the nastiness out of the way shall we? My one grievance about this book was the occasional total immaturity both Ash and Natalie displayed in some scenes. They acted like children with no maturity whatsoever. I could be missing something that the author wanted us as readers to pick up on like further character development so forgive me if I'm being oversensitive :D.

Other than that one sticky spot, this book was spotless. The writing had just the right about of vagueness and detailedness at the same time. It explained everything about the Darklings and the Wrath with precision and I never once got confused and had to reread something (which is pretty rare for me by the way). This book was just beautifully written with just the right combination of romance, drama, danger, and action. If you are a YA lover, this book should go on the top of your to-read list it is that good.

I'm not so crazy about the cover even though it has the right color scene in my mind. I guess I was picturing something a little more... developed? This looks a little like someone just threw together the cover to me.

I absolutely loved the blurb on the back cover:
"I release Natalie's arms and expect her to walk away, but instead she lightly traces her fingers over my lips...My breath catches in my throat at her forbidden touch...
A million reasons run through my head why I should push her away, but I don't. Instead, I do the one thing I shouldn't: I gently touch her face....In a weird way, this is the first time I've truly 'seen' her; my fingertips chart a map of her features, committing every tiny detail to memory. Desire and guilt wage a war inside me, and I'm torn between wanting her and my loyalty to my species... This is so wrong! And yet I'm unable to control myself...
'Ash,' she sighs, tilting her head up.
Her lips touch mine. They barely make contact, but a force like a lightning bolt shoots through them and straight into my heart. An explosion of pain erupts inside my chest. Natalie stumbles back, and I know she's as stunned as I am because that's when I feel it:
A second heartbeat pounding inside my chest."

Now for the ending: I LOVED it. I got so emotional when Ash was being crucified. Tears were running down my face: literally. I kind of expected what happened in the epilogue because the next book just couldn't be written without Ash.  It was a nice and dramatized ending which is how I like them. Sure, it was kind of cliche how Ash just came back to life. The whole 'my kiss had jump started his heart thing' was a tiny bit far fetched but I'm willing to go along with it.

Overall this book was an overachiever and earned 6 out of 5 stars!! I highly recommend this to pretty much anyone who loved YA or some other kinds of books I guess.

Quotes:

“She's not worth it. You said so yourself, you don't even know if you have feelings for her—"
"Then why does my fragging heart feel like it's been ripped out of my chest?.” 

“The war's only just begun.” 

“I love you,” he says. “I love the way you bite your bottom lip when you’re nervous. I love the annoying way you rattle mints against your teeth when you eat them. I love how brave you are. Those are the reasons I love you, Natalie, not because you have a Darkling heart.” 

“She may have your heart, but that's not the reason I love her," I say. "It's not just a physical connection. It's something deeper. You may be my Blood Mate, but she's my Soul Mate. That's just as powerful.”