Nightshade (Nightshade, #1; Nightshade World, #4) in Vampire Lovers☻

Dec 29, 2009 Rachel (The Rest Is Still Unwritten) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: i-own

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I was very disappointed with this book. I’d been looking forward to it being released and having heard such raving reviews I thought I’d love it. I didn’t! I have very mixed feelings about this book. I found the writing style to be beautiful, I can’t fault it at all and the author has a very good eye for detail, but there was just something about this book that I didn’t like.
Storyline was interesting enough, although I found it confusing at times and it took me a while to be interested at all. I was very disappointed with this book. I’d been looking forward to it being released and having heard such raving reviews I thought I’d love it. I didn’t! I have very mixed feelings about this book. I found the writing style to be beautiful, I can’t fault it at all and the author has a very good eye for detail, but there was just something about this book that I didn’t like.
Storyline was interesting enough, although I found it confusing at times and it took me a while to be interested at all. Throughout the whole book I kept waiting for a moment to make me think, “Ahhh, this is it, this is brilliant, this is why I’m reading this” but that moment never came. Often I felt the story dragged on and it bored me at times. I actually ended up taking a week long break from reading it where I read other books, so that’s saying something. Usually I hate reading more than one book at a time.
Gah, for the most part I did not like Calla. I’m not even quite sure why. I think it was her inability to know what she wanted. One minute I got the feeling she wanted Ren and then the next she wanted Shay. It was like she couldn’t make up her mind and if there’s one thing I don’t like it’s a heroine who doesn’t know her own mind. I understand in books that sometimes a girl can be attracted to and have feelings for more than one guy, but to me there has to be a reason for that. And I didn’t feel like there was one in this. Usually in books I’m all for the forbidden love. I love nothing more than seeing someone willing to risk life and limb for someone who makes their heart race....someone they love. I like seeing them go up against their family if it’s how they feel.

Calla was always meant to mate with Ren, and yet she never really knew him at all. Shay just popped into her life and from the beginning she wanted him for no real reason. Other than the fact that she didn’t really have any kind of control over her own life and he was something she could have some control over, I never saw a reason for her to be interested in Shay from the very beginning.
I mean he was boring. That’s the simplest and nicest way I can put it. Shay was boring. There was nothing interesting or special about him.
Ren on the other hand I actually liked. He was feisty and funny and I actually believed that he cared about Calla, although I have no idea why. I think Calla made the wrong choice about who she should be with. Honestly, I hope Ren finds a nice, actually cool girl to be with and just lets Calla have boring old Shay.
One of the very few things I liked about this book was the pack relationships. I liked how they all interacted and how they cared about one another. The loyalty was wonderful. I thought Ansel and Bryn were cute though. I’d have liked to see more of them. They were more interesting than Calla and Shay.

Now I don’t know if I will or won’t read the sequel....I’m thinking probably not, but if by some off chance that I do, I won’t be racing out to get it.
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Aug 14, 2018 Mash rated it really liked it

Shelves: series, dnf, young-adult

TEAM REN!!!

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Dec 25, 2010 Catherine rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, reviewed, ya-pnr-supernatural, shifters

I admit I didn’t have high expectations for this book. With the amount of YA paranormal titles out there, I expected this book to simply blend in with the rest of its genre as just another typical werewolf story; enjoyable but forgettable. For me, the beginning of the book was as I anticipated. None of the characters really stood out for me, especially Shay, who is the hero of the book. From the start, Calla was fascinated with him but I couldn’t understand what it was about him that drew her at I admit I didn’t have high expectations for this book. With the amount of YA paranormal titles out there, I expected this book to simply blend in with the rest of its genre as just another typical werewolf story; enjoyable but forgettable. For me, the beginning of the book was as I anticipated. None of the characters really stood out for me, especially Shay, who is the hero of the book. From the start, Calla was fascinated with him but I couldn’t understand what it was about him that drew her attention. The author failed to convey to me the qualities that Calla apparently saw in him, so for the majority of the book, Shay’s character didn’t really have an impact on me.

Ren, on the other hand, I alternated between liking and wanting to smack. He seemed a bit of a womanizer and it was hard to tell at the start whether he really liked Calla or was only with her because it was expected of him, but at the end of the book, I really came to like his character.

There’s not much I have to say about Calla other than I liked her, and I liked the way she saw herself as a warrior rather than a damsel that needed to be saved. One of my major flaws is that I always end up focusing more on the sexy male characters than the females, but I am a hot-blooded female myself so what can I say?! :D

The dynamics between the characters, especially the hierarchy between the different species were very interesting and what made Nightshade unique from the rest of the YA paranormal genre. Usually, I don’t like books that randomly merge different supernatural elements; I prefer to keep the different paranormal species separate from one another unless they’re battling each other, but in Nightshade, I enjoyed reading about the mix of wolves, witches, succubus and wraiths working on the same side...supposedly. Who knows what’s going to happen in the next book!

The first half of the book was quite slow and wasn’t much different from a lot of other YA paranormal titles, because it focused largely on the love triangle, but the pace of the story picked up towards the middle of the book when the history of the keepers, searchers and guardians were revealed and the hierarchy of the characters were clearer. The plot became more interesting when it became apparent that this was more than just the average werewolf story where the wolf girl falls for a human boy, and the whole book revolves around the issue of forbidden romance. Of course, there is a little bit of that here, but what makes this book stand out from the rest is the conspiracy that plays a very large part in the story. The author keeps you guessing at who the good guys are and who the villains are, and by the end of the book, there is still a lot of unanswered questions. But there is definitely a lot of mystery and suspense involved, as well as a love triangle between Calla, Shay and Ren, so there’s a bit of everything for everyone!

The ending of the book definitely made toiling through the first half of the book worth it, as a lot more is revealed and the conspiracy thickens. Some of the twists were quite obvious and the ending was pretty predictable but the book ended in a very good cliff-hanger that has me itching to get my hands on the next book. Too bad it doesn’t come out until next July. Shay’s character makes more of an impression, as does Ren, so for the time being I can’t decide who I think is better for Calla, but it’s obvious who she prefers.

All in all, Nightshade exceeded my expectations and I would certainly recommend it to YA paranormal lovers. The characters and world the story is set in is very interesting and intriguing, and once you get past the first half of the book, the rest of it keeps the pages turning.
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Apr 19, 2011 Parajunkee rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed

You know how I'm always complaining about the male teenagers in YA always acting abnormally, not like normal teenage boys would act in real life? Well, I finally found a novel that I think laid it out on the table pretty well. Now, I'm just trying to process if I liked this way better than the typical YA superhero hero. NIGHTSHADE was a different take on the werewolf pack. Cremer had such original ideas to an old tale that I actually found myself delighted to read more and more as the back-story You know how I'm always complaining about the male teenagers in YA always acting abnormally, not like normal teenage boys would act in real life? Well, I finally found a novel that I think laid it out on the table pretty well. Now, I'm just trying to process if I liked this way better than the typical YA superhero hero. NIGHTSHADE was a different take on the werewolf pack. Cremer had such original ideas to an old tale that I actually found myself delighted to read more and more as the back-story was revealed. It was highly original and very interesting. I can't wait to read book 2 and find out more about these new kind of shifters (Guardians) and how they came into this world.

Calla Tor is a Guardian. She can shift into a wolf by magic and it is her legacy that she must protect the Keepers, the ones that protect the world. Because she is fated with this task there are a few things required of her as Alpha. She must be mated to whom the keepers choose for her and act accordingly, following the Keeper's rules to the letter. Any straying from the path will lead to her death. Calla has accepted this. Their legacy is a great one. The Keeper's care for them, provide them with housing, all the finest things and schooling. They ask very little of them just to guard them and mate with who the Keepers think would make the strongest offspring. Ren Laroche is whom the Keepers have chosen for her. They will form a new pack together. They will be great together. Or so she hopes.

Calla has never questioned her duties much. She knows what is expected of her. She might not like the fact that she will be mated when she is only 18, but she knows there is nothing she can do about it. She might even extend a little bit of extra effort when it comes to Ren, because he does seem to be trying lately. He's stopped dating (probably because he's been through everyone at their school) and he's actually showing a very strong interest in Calla. This could be good, she is attracted to Ren, but how could she not, he's an Alpha.

But, then a new boy comes to their school. Transfers are unheard of because the Keepers keep tabs on their town and the school. Who is this new boy and what does it mean that his Uncle is an important Keeper but he is human? When tasked with the mission to guard Shay after an attack in town, Calla feels inescpilcably drawn to him and becuase of this begins questioning the life that she thought she had figured out.

Finally teen boys acting like teen boys -- meaning they acted like two horn dogs chasing after a female in heat. Typical teen boy behavior, but while they were behaving in this way, good choices and respectable behavior would shine through. I thought out of everything this is what Cremer did best in NIGHTSHADE. The second best was the originality of the Guardians, I thought it was one of the most unique takes on the werewolf that I have read so far. Cremer did a wonderful job of weaving the story together and giving the reader bits and pieces to chew on as more and more was revealed. This is a definite must read for Shifter fans.

Recommended for fans of the Twilight series and those that would like to expand on the wolves a bit more. This is recommended for more mature teens there is violence and some sexual interaction that might not be suitable for younger teens. ...more

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Nov 07, 2009 Sara Grochowski rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed

Popular genres will always be spotted with so-so imitations of the novels that started the craze, and it's sometimes easy to let those particular novels skew a reader's perception of the genre's quality. Today's shevles are crowded with paranormal and fantasy YA that end up disappointing and mundane, but NIGHTSHADE is most definitely not one of those books.

NIGHTSHADE has been heavily marketed as romance, and it is, but Cremer also included what many of those so-so novels are lacking: a fantastic ...more

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Mar 22, 2010 La Femme Readers rated it really liked it

My rating: 3.5

Andrea's Nightshade world of spiraling events created a start to a potentially riveting werewolf trilogy. Throughout the novel I was presented with a radically distinct theme of love, loyalty and betrayal. However, I was also at a crossroad of shortcomings. Calla, the alpha female of the Nightshade pack was an unswerving leader with brave instincts. Her destiny was to mate with Ren, the leader of the Bane pack. Ren's drool-worthy ability tingled my core and made me wish I was in Ca My rating: 3.5

Andrea's Nightshade world of spiraling events created a start to a potentially riveting werewolf trilogy. Throughout the novel I was presented with a radically distinct theme of love, loyalty and betrayal. However, I was also at a crossroad of shortcomings. Calla, the alpha female of the Nightshade pack was an unswerving leader with brave instincts. Her destiny was to mate with Ren, the leader of the Bane pack. Ren's drool-worthy ability tingled my core and made me wish I was in Calla's shoes for a day. Unfortunately, the human boy she saved in the woods, turned out to be her missing love piece. Her relationship bloomed unexpectedly with Shay and ignited forbidden behavior against the rules.

I know Shay is a popular character among readers, however with my taste, he didn't seem that special. I prefer Ren's confident and smooth demeanor over Shay's quiet approach. Nightshade had its high points but regrettably surfaced with flaws as well. Personally, the whole plot around the Guardians, Keepers and Searchers was confusing. With an unclear deliverance in the beginning, it luckily started coming together once the true meaning behind the groups were unveiled. On top of that, I felt Calla took a backseat in the story. Being a strong alpha, I would have liked to see her take charge of situations instead of submitting to the low female ranks of power.

Also, a specific scene that took place in a cave with Calla and Shay annoyed me. It was such a profound moment of change which lacked the fear and realism I was expecting. I don't want to give too much away, but I'm sure Nightshade readers know what I mean. Most of the characters were diverse, but I never really got to know them. Most likely, the next installments will give others time to shine. By the end of the novel, I was yet again impressed by Ren's actions and hope to see more of him in the sequel. Calla's future is unknown and I'm anticipating that Wolfsbane will win me over with an action packed war for the life she longed for. All in all, Andrea has written a virtually stimulating series which I'm sure will grow into a pleasurable trilogy. With her creativity and detailed skills, anything is possible.
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