Early Review: The Keep by Veronica Wolff
The Keep by Veronica Wolff
The Watchers #4
JUST BECAUSE YOU WORK FOR THE DEAD DOESN'T MEAN YOU WANT TO JOIN THEM.
Drew has just started her second year on the Isle of Night, and the weather isn't the only thing changing drastically. She has ascended to the rank of Initiate. She’s also found an intimate love in the handsome vampire, Carden. But most of all, she no longer dreams of escape. She dreams of vengeance.
Her friend, Emma, was brutally wounded by the savage vampire Alcántara, and may have been taken to the dreaded castle, from which none of the living return. But there are so many different stories from so many people with so many of their own deceits and machinations, Drew can’t be sure of anything—except that she must find a way into the castle to discover the truth and take down Alcántara once and for all.
But Drew isn’t the only one out for revenge. Someone very dangerous on the island is also out for blood…
Hers…
Drew may have survived her first year at Isle of Night, but she is far from safe. Despite her bond and relationship with Carden, a very old, very mysterious vampire, she still isn't satisfied with life on the island. She's determined to have vengeance for her lost friend Emma, who may or may not be alive. All she knows is that Emma was taken to the castle, the one place no human ever returns from. Between warding off attacks left and right and plotting a way to take down the vamps that control her, Drew may have just bitten off more than she can chew. If she isn't careful she'll the next one to never be heard from again.
I love Drew's character, but she also really frustrates me at the same time. She's so strong and despite being tested over and over again, somehow manages to hold onto her humanity, which I find to be incredibly impressive. Yet, she's also incredibly hard headed, especially when it comes to information that she wants. No matter how many others tell her to let something go, she ignores them and put herself and others at great risk in her quests to find the information. I understand not just swallowing what she's told, but a lot of her behavior just sparked me as selfish whenever she would put others, particularly Ronan, in extreme danger due to her stunts. It's one thing to continually risk her own life, but it really bothered me that she kept doing it even though she knew the dangerous position she was putting others in. Honestly, I think if she spent a little more time planning out things, she'd still be able to get her answers, but with much less risk. She truly could be a force to be reckoned with if she just used that brain of hers a little more rather than just reacting.
I absolutely adore the bond between Carden and Drew. It's so sweet and innocent, yet incredibly dangerous at the same time. I really enjoy seeing how it makes the normally tough as nails Drew lose some of her confidence and act like a normal inexperienced girl. Carden, despite being a vampire in a world where it seems like being a vampire means pure evil, seems to genuinely care for Drew above and beyond just what the bond makes him feel. I really loved how he was always so fiercely protective of her and always knew what to do or say to brighten her day. Of course it isn't all roses between them as if their bond were to be discovered, it could be deadly for one or both of them. And of course Carden was rather frustrating at times in his need to protect Drew by shielding information from her. Which really wound up being pointless as she put herself in much more danger as she went out in search of those answers on her own. But it was still fun to see the dance between them as they test the limits of what their bond means for them, and I can only hope that somehow in the future they will find a way to escape together.
I've said this before in a previous review, but it bears repeating. As much as I enjoy this series, the lack of real momentum in the series. Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of action in each book to keep me more than entertained, but the overall series arc doesn't seem to be getting anywhere. As in I don't feel any closer to getting answers for all the burning questions that I have than when I started the book. It just seems that with every small bit of information revealed, five more unanswered things replace it. That being said, there was a pretty huge shakeup at the end of THE KEEP that I think could really help push the momentum forward in this series, and if I'm right will push this series from good to fantastic in my book. But as far as this book goes, THE KEEP was an entertaining read that I highly recommend to fans of the series.
(Received a copy from the publisher)
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