A slow-moving book, much like the first one. The mystery unravels itself very very slowly, and there's no obvious plot/no real action until the second half. The mythology of the supernatural elements continues to be revealed but sadly, no elements of classical philosophy here; this one seems more like a straight up mystery. The introduction of a second love interest and potential love triangle irks me-- not necessary at all, but I do like that the author very briefly questions whether relationships should be so difficult. It seems like it's conventional wisdom that you need to work for your relationship, but if there are just so many obstacles that seem impossible to overcome, maybe it just isn't meant to be? At this point I find the whole series rather boring but may pick up the last book just to see how everything is resolved. ( )

After reading Dead Beautiful last year I was so excited to see where Yvonne Woon would take us next! The ending was a massive cliffhanger. So when I had the chance to review a copy of Life Eternal, the second in the Dead Beautiful series, I hopped on it as soon as I could.

One thing I loved about this particular book was how easily it picks up where the last one left off. We reconnect with Renée and see that life has become more difficult for her since Dante went on the run. She feels older, and less of a person. I liked seeing the changes in her since we parted ways. Unfortunately because of these changes, Renée is also extremely depressed for about the first third of the book. I didn't hate her for it. I understood it. Still, it made it tough for me to really get into the story. I wanted to shake her and tell her that life goes on, and things would work out if she just tried. What can I say? I'm an optimist.

Essentially, the first third of the book is slow. But don't loose hope! Once Renée begins to come out of her slump things get really interesting. In this installment we are treated to a brand new school in France, new characters to help Renée along, and even a new mystery to solve. The Nine Sisters are a group of scholars that some believe figured out the key to eternal life. For Renée, that means a chance to finally be with Dante. What ensues is a manic romp through France and the areas beyond. Running through dark underground tunnels, visiting graveyards, following clues, Renée does it all in the quest for true love.

I very much enjoyed the way that Yvonne Woon allows the reader to slowly uncover the mystery along with Renée. There is no way that you'll figure things out before she does. A trail of breadcrumbs is laid out beautifully, giving you little bits and pieces of what lies ahead. I honestly loved the addition of Noah to this book. Giving Renée something else to focus on, someone else to focus on, worked well with the story line. When you barely see the person who is the object of your adoration, how do you know if they are truly doing what they say they are? That is the question that fuels this book.

Although Life Eternal started out a little slow, and Renée might have bugged me a bit, I honestly did ultimately enjoy this book in the end! The ending was maddening, coming to a peak with a cliffhanger that just about made me sob. Let's be honest though, it hooked me. I'm in for the long haul! Book number three, here I come. ( )

That is one horrible cliffhanger! Good thing I have book 3 waiting for me. This series has a unique twist to the supernatural/death/powers thing. ( )

Life Eternal is the second Dead Beautiful book, and miles better than the first. Gone were my issues with the first, reviewed in this post. Instead, there was a ton of mystery and intrigue and a whole lot of spookiness. There was also a lot more romance without all the sappiness that I hated from the first book.
So much has changed for Renee and I think her character is that much better for it. I thought she was so much more real a character, despite the paranormal aspects to the story. Dante is just as tragic as in the first book, but a much warmer person... despite that whole Undead thing, of course! Their love story has matured and has no end of obstacles, some seemingly insurmountable. They weren't together for much of this book, but their love story was still a big part of the plot.

We meet a lot of new characters in this book, characters that I hope we see more of in the next book, Life Reborn, due out in January of 2014. They added a lot to the story and filled the gap that Dante's absence could have left.

Things to love about Life Eternal...

--Much better character development. The characters were much more likable in this book and that was a great thing.
--The inclusion of a new setting, new friends, and new mystery. This added a lot to the suspense of the story.
--The ending. A fantastic cliffhanger ending!

Things I wanted more of...

--Dante. I really began to love him in this book and would have loved more of him!

My recommendation: Much better than the first. The cliffhanger has me waiting for the next book! ( )

I was really looking forward to reading this book--the end of Dead Beautiful really got to me--but I have to say for much of the sequel I felt fairly frustrated. Some time has passed since the ending of book one, though we haven't missed much...Renee isn't quite what she used to be: she looks different, not just older but more surreal, as if parts of her face have shifted and changed; her senses are all dulled; she doesn't sleep well; and eating has lost most of its appeal. Pretty much everything has lost its appeal, actually. She hasn't seen Dante since he kissed her in the field, and she hasn't found anything since that day to bring her out of the heavy fog that her life has become. The only things that seem to inspire her to anything other than apathy are postcards from her Undead friend Eleanor (which contain coded messages from Dante) and mysterious dreams which may or may not be real--are they premonitions? memories? actually happening live as she sleeps? Renee isn't sure.

Then she recieves the bad news that someone who she knew and liked at Gottfried Academy has died, and died in a way that is frighteningly close to what had happened in Renee's latest dream. Gottfried is shut down so Renee is forced to continue her Monitor education at the next closest school, in Montreal. There she makes two new friends and one enemy and discovers the mystery of the Nine Sisters--a mystery that, if she can solve it, just might be Renee and Dante's salvation.

The new characters at Lycee St. Clement really help to add to the reader's understanding of the Monitor and Undead universe, and there is a lot of history given while Renee is at the school that helps to explain it as well. The mystery at times was intriguing, at times confusing...toward the end, though, that part of the plot really got rolling and I was really pulled into the story...and then bam! It was over. The last few pages are nonstop drama and action and then--done. I knew it was close to the end according to the page count, but I still had to go back and reread the last page (twice) because I just couldn't believe that that was it. It felt very get-the-band-aid-ripped-off-fast when the whole rest of the novel had been easing the strip off a half of a millimeter at a time. Just a teensy bit abrupt.

The part of the novel that most frustrated me, though, was Renee herself. She spends way too much time wandering around alone, whispering into the wind all the words she wants to say to Dante, and finding mysterious messages from him all over the city. (Her ability to immediately recognize these rather unobtrusive notes stretched the boundaries of credibility.) Life Eternal was a bit too heavy on the teenage angst, too light on the let's-solve-this-problem plot. It reminded me a lot of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, as both books spent way too much time on the main character's feeling sorry for themselves when they just needed a good smack in the head and a brisk "Get over it!" to snap them back into being a rational human being. It just felt like much of the middle of the novel really didn't accomplish much beyond that. The plot was actually moving along in there, but Renee's extreme melodrama tended to overshadow it.

The last chapter of the novel did much towards making me look forward eagerly to book three in the trilogy. Until that point, though, reading the second book felt more like treading water. ( )