Taking Back Forever (Review)

Taking Back Forever

(The Kindrily, #2)

By: Karen Amanda Hooper

Release Date: May 31st, 2013

Genre(s): YA Fantasy/Romance

Review: (4.5/5 stars*)

It pleases me to say that Taking Back Forever was worth waiting for. Hooper yet again writes with sophistication and aptitude. Maryah's story continues on its engrossing path of trying to figure out why she erased. Diving right in it felt like I've never left the world where Kindrily's exist and soul mates reincarnate together. This series pulls you in swiftly and engages you from page one. I thought reading Grasping at Eternity was such pleasure until I picked up the sequel and was just as captivated all over again. Every beloved character from the previous book is back with their individually distinctive personalities. Some make more of an appearance than others but that barely registers when you're immersed in the characters that feel so near and dear to the reader's heart. Some of my favorites became a bigger part of the story such as Harmony, Carson, Krista, and Dakota which was cool.

Having finally remembered a glimmer of her past life with Nathan Maryah is determined to recall it all. However her mind has other ideas such as randomly conjuring up strange premonitions. Meanwhile Harmony is done waiting around for Maryah to relearn her gift of astral projection and she knows it's now or never to take action to get her soul mate Gregory back. But when Harmony finally learns the truth of what happened to her beloved she's willing to do whatever it takes to locate him even if it means going against her Kindrily. As Maryah tries to regain her memories she knows that with each passing day the Nefariouns are preparing for something big and nefarious and that she has to be ready.

Taking Back Forever is told from alternating perspectives between Maryah and Harmony. Out of all the Kindrily members Harmony is a bit of a rebellious chick who doesn't play by anyone's rules but her own which evidently comes to bite her on the a** more often than not. Her personality is at times a little too full of attitude but it was very interesting to understand her thoughts and view her take on Maryah's situation. The story takes its time to unfold because it focuses on the characters more and their emotional struggles. I really felt for Maryah whose constantly trying to live up to the version of herself that she once was—the version that she can't remember. It's both a sad and heartbreakingly beautiful story of a reincarnated soul who chose to forget all her previous lives including her soulmate to escape something far worse than death. Nathan is one of the most considerate and patient guys in dealing with his loss and gain of a soul he's loved for hundreds of years. Maryah struggles with who she is and who she know's herself to be and it's difficult for everyone. I love that even though her and Nathan are soul mates that they're getting to know each other at a proper speed and taking their time to move forward in their relationship. I think most YA novels nowadays have the love interests fall for each other so fast their is never any growth or development so it always feels redundant and stale. Taking Back Forever moves in the opposite direction and actually builds up the tension, takes slow but necessary steps in dealing with the romance and it feels more believable to how reality is. I enjoyed each and every character and I'm excited to see their entwining stories in the future. More than a few times I forgot this was a young adult novel because some scenes are borderline adult. The first book had a young-adult feel but this one felt like a new adult read so I'd recommend it for 16 years or older for mature content.

As expected Taking Back Forever is just as fantastic as Grasping at Eternity was. Although their isn't a whole lot of action the character's conflicts really propel the story forward so it never feels like it's losing momentum or amusement. I think what I was most excited to get from this sequel was answers from all the questions brought up in the first novel but unfortunately few were offered. While I was a little let down it's hard to be mad when a story is so consuming that by the end your just left wanting more. Which brings us to how badly I want to read the third book in the series. For those new to these books and are deciding whether or not it's worth reading my answer to you is heck yes it's an incredibly refreshing story with top-notch writing all the way through with wonderful deliverance and potential to successfully continue that way. Be sure to read Grasping at Eternity before picking this one up and you surely won't regret it! All in all Taking Back Forever is a remarkable continuation of a unique young-adult story with a supernatural twist.

Synopsis:

*Recommended for ages 15 and older due to mature content.*

Forever is worth the fight.

Maryah erased all memory of her past lives, but she couldn’t erase her soul mate Nathan, or his undying love. Now, Maryah and Nathan have a second chance at a future together, but first Maryah must remember the person she used to be and embrace her supernatural gifts—more than one kindrily member’s life depends on it.

Maryah’s power is Harmony’s best hope of finding her kidnapped soul mate, Gregory. But Harmony isn’t big on asking anyone for help, and she’s tired of waiting, so she’s taking matters into her own hands. Heaven help anyone who stands in her way.

LINKS: GOODREADS | AMAZON | AUTHOR | B&N | SHELFARI !

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 Check out my review of Grasping at Eternity (The Kindrily, #1) HERE!