Awakened by P.C. and Kristin Cast, UK edition cover.

Title: Awakened (House of Night #8)
Author: P.C. and Kristin Cast
Genre:  Paranormal Romance, Young Adult
Publisher:  Atom (25th October 2011)
Blurb:

‘Zoey lives.’

Neferet’s voice was flat, cold, lifeless.

‘She does. What will happen next?’

‘It is quite simple. I will ensure Zoey is drawn back to Oklahoma. There, on my own terms, I will complete the task you failed.‘

Exonerated by the Vampyre High Council and returned to her position of High Priestess at Tulsa’a House of Night, Neferet has sworn vegence on Zoey. But Zoey has found sanctuary on the Isle of Sky and is being groomed by Queen Sgiach to take over for her there. Bring Queen could be cool, wouldn’t it?

And what about Stevie Rae and Rephaim? The Raven Mocker refuses to be used against Stevie Rae, but what choice does he have when no one in the entire world, including Zoey, would be okay with their relationship? Does he betray his father or his heart?

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

Awakened is the eight book in the House of Night series by P.C. and Kristin Cast. Awakened follows on from the dramatic events of Burned.

Honestly, this book is somewhere between two and three stars for me, I’ve rated it three because whilst I struggled with this book there were parts about it I adored. Equally there were parts which I hated, but there were more parts I liked than I disliked.

So, in Awakened the consequences of Burned come home to roost, and the stage is being set for the endgame – I think there are going to be twelve books in the House of Night series –  so with four books to go after this one, things are starting to heat up. As always the narrative has been split, with mostly Zoey (yay, she’s back!) and Stevie Rae narrating – though we do hear from a couple of other characters in the narrative role.

I had to take a break from reading this book because it started to feel like the book and plot were being spun out, so that the story line could continue on for more books. I don’t know if it was because I didn’t have a long enough break between books seven and eight, or what. However, I was really enjoying the narrative up to this point and after I’d taken my break I slipped back into the story easily. One of the things I really would have liked to see in this book was Zoey having more lessons from Queen Sgiach, and I would have loved to have seen Stark’s relationship with Seoras – it is only hinted at in the book, but I wanted to see it. Ah well.

I really loved the way Zoey’s relationship with Stark evolved in this book. It was really nice to watch (well, read). I think the Cast’s had exactly the right pacing and tone for it in the narrative. I also enjoyed the way they wrote Zoey’s camaraderie with Queen Sgiach – here was someone Zoey could really learn from. I also liked how Rephaim’s conflict in this book was handled. Nyx was just awesome in this book, when she made an appearance. And I loved the way that the Casts didn’t shy away from the hard stuff.

All in all, this book was a good read. It makes for an interesting eighth book in the House of Night series. It will be a while before I pick up the ninth book – I’m waiting for it to appear in paperback – but I am looking forward to reading it.