The Ballad of Never After Book Review

Because we miss the infuriating prince of hearts and the hopeless romantic Evie.

Song Vibe Check

1. "Hateful ever after" By: Ellise

2. "My Oh My" By: Camila Cabello

3. "Lovefool" By: Pia Mia & Twocolors

After Book 1's ending, I knew I had to get Book 2 to see how this story continues and considering that this is the first series from Stephanie Garber that I have read, I have to say that I am still invested and actually glad that the sequel turned out to be as good as Book one.

There tends to be a history were sequels don't tend to be as good as their predecessors and while I do have many sequels I have enjoyed, lately it feels like the sequels I have read have not been as good. But I'm pleased to say that this one was different. So, onto the madness (and the brand new pile of bricks dedicated to Jacks.)

Short Summary: Evie, the resident hopeless heartbroken romantic sets out to awaken Prince Apollo and undo a curse that ties her to him along with the ever- infuriating Jacks as they set out to open the Valory Arch, without realizing what the real end goal is.

Long Summary? Evie has learned one thing: She can't trust Jacks. Not after discovering that Prince Apollo is stuck in a spell that she can break to assure her happy ending. But, with the coronation of the new heir and a curse that ties her to be hunted down by Apollo, Evie has no choice but to team up with Jacks again as they set out to find the four stones to open the Valory Arch where the solution to the curse might be... if she doesn't die before finding the answers.

So, now we can focus on how infuriating Jacks continues to be and how this time around, we get to see more vulnerability from him... as well as more lies and secrets that he hides and while I spent half of the time in this book theorizing what else he could be hiding. Let's note that I haven't read the Caraval series that Stephanie Garber made before this, so some answers could be there, but I can't be too sure about that.

Now, moving on from that. He has his moments that had me swooning: "I will not let you die," has to be one of my favorites in this book and while his constant teasing and witty banter make him come out as the more rewarding person this time around, he's still pretty bad. And I think none of us will ever finish to pinpoint his actual intentions. But I am forever convinced that this book was designed to torture my heart until the release of the next book.

Because I am now in a state of emotional distress.

Overall: 5/5 stars