Undertow (Undertow #1)
by K.R. Conway
Release Date: 10/18/13
Summary from Goodreads:
Luckless Eila is unknowingly the last of her kind: Rare. Gifted. Breakable. Stunning Raef is her kind's historic enemy: Soulless. Lethal. Lost. A legendary death 160 years before would set their lives to collide, forcing a beautiful killer to become a savior, a simple wallflower to become a warrior, and ruthless destiny to become a death sentence.
Luckless Eila is unknowingly the last of her kind: Rare. Gifted. Breakable. Stunning Raef is her kind's historic enemy: Soulless. Lethal. Lost. A legendary death 160 years before would set their lives to collide, forcing a beautiful killer to become a savior, a simple wallflower to become a warrior, and ruthless destiny to become a death sentence.
SUMMARY:
High school senior Eila Walker knows that good luck skips over her like an Easter Bunny on Speed. So when she inherits her grandmother's million-dollar Cape Cod home, she is downright shocked. And yeah, her new town isn't perfect: the cheerleaders are heinous clones, the local undertow can kill ya, and her Great Grams was supposedly fried by lightning in the harbor square. Still, Eila is hopeful her luckless days are in the past . . . until history decides to repeat itself.
A self-proclaimed loner and previous-social reject, Eila thinks she's hit the jackpot when drool-worthy Raef O’Reilly becomes her friendly, yet weirdly protective shadow. But being hauled beneath the waves by an unnatural undertow slams the brakes on bliss – especially when Raef storms to her aid with coal-black eyes and iron-like strength.
Eila, entirely freaked, demands an explanation and Raef comes clean, revealing that neither of them are average humans but rather the genetic remnants of an angelic pissing-match gone wrong. Eila supposedly can channel the power of human souls, while Raef is quite adept at stealing them. Even worse, the legend about her ancestor isn't such a myth, since Eila’s grandmother was one kick-ass warrior until her lightning-like power backfired. A power that is written all over Eila's DNA.
Now sought by Raef’s own family for her destructive ability, Eila must trust him to watch her back. But when a quest for information goes terribly wrong, Eila is suddenly left with only two options: become a weapon for the enemy or follow in her Gram’s fearless footsteps to save those she loves. Unfortunately she needs a willing enemy to ignite her suicidal energy and the only one she trusts has been guarding her butt and scorching her lips.
My Thoughts:
I was instantly seized with horrific and illogical fear.
It wasn't the quick, superficial burst of scariness that accompanies a spider on the wall, but the absolute certainty of imminent death that unleashed a torrent of adrenaline through my body.
I was really intrigued by Undertow from the minute that I read the synopsis. I'm always looking for something that sounds a little different to all the other paranormal reads floating around. And in that regards, Undertow didn't let me down. It was original but also had elements of familiarity that pulled me into the story.
Eila Walker has just inherited a million dollar home in Cape Cod. What Eila has no knowledge of is the family secrets that the town holds and how her move there will set into motion events that will impact on not only her but also the group of new friends she will make.
Undertow was such an enjoyable read. Romance, friendships, secrets and mystery abound. All of these elements combine to guarantee a story that will keep you invested from start to finish. The writing was great and the pace of the story built steadily throughout.
What I loved most about this book was that each of the characters added their own something to the story. They were all very different to each other but as a group they blended together wonderfully. Eila may not have seemed like a really strong character at the start of the book, but she definitely became one as her story progressed. When the tough decisions needed to be made, she made them. Ana was quite closed off but I found myself really wanting to know what made her tick. At times Raef came across as the quiet brooder, but he had so many aspects to his personality. Kian was self assured on the outside but was so much deeper than first glance. And MJ was written perfectly to fit his part of the story. I could actually clearly visualise him in my head. Despite Undertow being written from Eila's point of view, I felt that by the end of the book I had a really good understanding of all of the supporting characters.
He was more to me than a way to survive. Every last molecule of my design pulled me toward him, illogically, like an undertow, towards salvation...or potential death.
The romance between Eila and Raef was slow building. We know pretty early on that Eila is attracted to Raef, but he keeps his cards pretty close to his chest, so just as Eila questioned his feelings and swayed back and forth between thinking he likes me/he doesn't like me, I too found myself questioning his feelings at times. He was always caring and always protective but for the longest time things never went beyond their great friendship. I really loved that the author built a friendship first. This made the romance all the more deeper when things progressed.
The ending to Undertow has me longing for the next book in the series. I can't wait to read what is next in store for these characters.
The O'Reilly boys had some serious talent at making females weak.
4/5 Protective Raef Stars
I have been a journalist for 15 years and serve on the Board of Directors for the Cape Cod Writers Center. I also drive a 16-ton school bus because I am ENTIRELY NUTS.
In addition to working jobs that should come
with a warning label , I hold a BA in Psychos (Forensic Psych), torment the
tourists about Jaws, and occasionally jump from the Town Neck bridge in an
attempt to reclaim my youth.
I
live on Cape Cod with two smallish humans who apparently are my kids, my
fishing- obsessed husband, two canines (adept at both flatulence and snoring),
and a cage-defiant lovebird that sleeps in a miniature tent. Nope - that's not
a type-o. The bird is quite the indoor camper.
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