"I really love this series and would like to see it continue"
Zoey Redbird's soul shattered when she saw everything
falling apart around her. Now Zoey's body remains alive
with her friends refusing to mourn her death. It is only
her soul that is gone, in pieces in the Otherworld. They
have seven days to get Zoey back before she fades away
forever. If only they could communicate with her and help
her back. BFF Stevie Rae wants to help Zoey but she has enough
problems of her own to deal with. The Rogue Red Fledglings
are making a nuisance of themselves and Stevie knows she
will have to let them suffer the consequences this time.
But that is nothing compared to the big secret Stevie is
hiding from everyone, even her kinda boyfriend, Dallas. Her
secret could actually help get Zoey back but if she reveals
it to the others the poop is going to hit the fan big time. Stuck in the middle is Aprodite. No longer a fledgling she
is still blessed by Nyx. Her visions may be able to help
Zoey but she isn't sure how. She really wants to do the
best she can for everyone involved but it is clear to her
that not everyone has total faith in her. Which is to be
expected. All three girls have had a lot of pressure put on them
again. Not only does Zoey's fate hang in the balance but
everyone elses as Neferet and Kalona try and take over the
world. Will the girls come through this time? Or will they
all get burned? The House of the Night series has come a long way since the
first book 'Marked'. With so many players and such a deep
storyline it is nice to see that the authors have adapted
how they write the books to make sure that the reader can
follow the story. The story in Burned is told by
many different characters and therefore other perspectives.
This sounds like it could be confusing but the change in
person is clearly marked which makes the change in the
narrative easy to follow. Seeing things from the perspective of different characters
was an interesting development in the series but I also
realised that there was a lot we don't get to see in this
book. Some of Zoey's friends, for example the twins, are
only mentioned in passing and the school itself is hardly
seen or heard of. The distance from the House of the Night
disturbed me quite a bit and I hope things will be brought
back to the school again in the next book. Another side effect of the ever changing characters
perspective was the lack of Zoey. In a way this was a nice
change and a chance to see and get to know other characters
much better. I enjoyed following Stevie Rae's side of
things and actually looked forward to seeing the story move
over to her. I would have liked to have gotten to know
Aprodite in the same way but her part in this book was
slightly smaller. Understanding the role Stark played in
everything that happens in this new release was made easier
by seeing it from his standpoint. So all in all I hope this
new trend in the books continues. As for the story itself, well things are getting a little,
in my honest opinion, off track. I wonder how many more
books are planned for the series and if there is actually
an end in sight. At some points I thought that this book
was just drawing things out that little bit more. Giving
the authors time to decide where they really want to take
this. Even though I really love this series and would like
to see it continue, I also want to see things finally come
to a head. Maybe not the end of things all together but at
least a new enemy or a different storyline about the House
of the Night. Any fans of this book would be out of their mind not to
rush out and buy this new installment. It is a must buy and
must read to anyone who has been following the House of the
Night series. Now that I have come this far I know there is
no turning back. Even if there are small things that annoy
me there are still a lot of things I love about these
books. Sure, Burned wasn't as good as the first few
books but it is just part of a continuing story that I am
definitely going to read to the end. Whenever that is.
Reviewed by Amber Chalmers
Posted July 12, 2010
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