incrediblemelk's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I really adored The Call, but it felt like the author did not really want to write a sequel because this was full of flat spots, flat characterisation and some odd plotting decisions.
For instance,
The central romance between Nessa and Anto struggled because they were separated for most of the book. I found Anto quite hopeless and sappy, while Nessa was self-satisfied and never as smart and resourceful as she believed she was.
The epilogue was definitely of the ‘Harry Potter letdown’ variety. It was very depressing to learn that.
I would much rather end the story in the ‘present’ than read a lacklustre flashforward to the future. When an author does this I always see it as their way of seizing control of the story so that nobody else can write a sequel or other work in the same storyworld.
The fighting scenes and the body horror that made The Call so vivid were still here, though – and there were some grim scenes as characters we had got to know in the previous novel were ruthlessly killed off. That ruthlessness was one of the things I appreciated most about The Call.
For instance,
Spoiler
Nessa is given a bone dagger that we understand is going to be important, but she never actually uses it in her final duel.The central romance between Nessa and Anto struggled because they were separated for most of the book. I found Anto quite hopeless and sappy, while Nessa was self-satisfied and never as smart and resourceful as she believed she was.
The epilogue was definitely of the ‘Harry Potter letdown’ variety. It was very depressing to learn that
Spoiler
to the rest of the world, Ireland had not been isolated at all and the past 25 years with all their suffering had not registered on a global levelI would much rather end the story in the ‘present’ than read a lacklustre flashforward to the future. When an author does this I always see it as their way of seizing control of the story so that nobody else can write a sequel or other work in the same storyworld.
The fighting scenes and the body horror that made The Call so vivid were still here, though – and there were some grim scenes as characters we had got to know in the previous novel were ruthlessly killed off. That ruthlessness was one of the things I appreciated most about The Call.
raemelle's review against another edition
4.0
Fast-paced and full of action. I still felt a little like things weren’t explained enough sometimes - like I wasn’t being eased into a scenario slowly enough, and it just ended up feeling quick and random. But it happened less in this book than in the first.
hoosgracie's review
4.0
The follow-up to the Call finds our heros from the first book in unexpected places and the Sidhe invading Ireland. This was a good second book, which completed the story.
elfsara's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
becky_efc's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
aliciaalaffa's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
cassidylynnereads's review
4.0
I have so many feelings- happiness, contentment, confusion, anger, frustration. I think my feelings for this book overall are positive, but there’s so many questions left unanswered. I really feel like that ending should have been elaborated on, otherwise it’s just not satisfying. I’m pretty sure the author has said this is the last book, and with the addition of an epilogue so many years later I’m afraid to say that’s probably true, but I want so much more. I have so many questions about what happens next, and if you’ve read it I’m sure you know who my questions are about. Despite the ending being so open, that’s not why I went with four stars for this book instead of five. I took a star off because the characters could be so frustrating (especially Anto- he was the worst in this book) and the romance is dramatic. Also there’s so many plot points and characters brought up in the first half of the book that have absolutely no bearing on the end, which makes me question why they were even included. Despite these issues, I still had to give the book four stars because the world building is just so amazing. The plot totally picks apart the good vs. evil way of thinking and makes us question who the real monsters are. The Sídhe are so delightfully despicable, as usual. The horrors described in the Grey Land are just as chilling as they were in the first book. There’s so much to love and also so much to dislike. I do think this book is a step down from the first, but I don’t think it’s as terrible as other reviewers have described. I’ll go into more depth on what I liked and disliked, but unfortunately I can’t do that without spoiling things so only read on if you don’t mind having most of the plot revealed.
Nessa- Oh my goodness, Nessa just cannot die. I know the Sídhe wouldn’t kill her because of fulfilling their promise to Connor, but the fact that she managed to survive for so long in the Grey Land just shows has bada** she is. I love Nessa and I’m so frustrated that her fate turned out the ways it did, but I guess at least she isn’t alone. I would love another book just detailing her time in the Grey Land and how she eventually escaped. Or became queen, as Aoife suggested she may have.
Father Ambrosio- He may be a little bugger but I liked his insight into the Grey Land, as a human condemned to it forever.
Things I disliked: Anto- He’s such a whining, blubbering baby. I think it’s interesting that the trope of women being the weak ones dependent on men was turned on its head here, but there is nothing likable about Anto. He’s so obsessed with Nessa that he completely forgets his family, especially in the end when he decides to spend eternity in the Grey Land just to be with this girl who pushed him away practically the whole time he had a crush on her. He would have been much better had he been orphaned. At least then his whole obsession with Nessa, who would be the only tie to a normal life left, would make some sense.
The Infestation Squad- I loved the reveal at the end that Ryan and Karim were actually married the whole time and had lived through the same loss of their children. Actually, I just loved Ryan in general because he’s such a pure character. Karim was annoying though. But the reason I disliked the squad is because they ended up being so unimportant. I thought they were going to play some major role in the book, or at least show up again to help Anto and the other students during their retreat. But nope, they’re just a way of keeping Anto from thinking about Nessa even though they literally could have just told him the truth and he wouldn’t have been able to get her out of the prison anyway. And then they show up at the end to confirm that they’re basically all doomed.
The prison and everyone in it- Okay, that isn’t completely true. I loved Angela because she’s just so innocent and cute, if a bit dimwitted. But again, the prison seems like such an unnecessary plot point. I get that Nessa was sent there so she’d end up being banished back to the Grey Land, but if that’s the case why introduce so much conflict within the prison that’s never resolved? We never find out what happens to Angela. Does she end up being trapped inside an iron cup forever, to be forgotten when the Professor is inevitably executed? Does she end up making it back to the Grey Land and perishing there? And why isn’t there ever an answer as to why she wasn’t Called earlier? Then there’s questions about the Professor. Now that the Nation doesn’t need her, is she going to be executed? Will she even be able to be executed since the prison guards are such bumbling idiots and she’s an escape artist? What about the rest of the prisoners? And Detective Cassidy? What was even the point of him besides to make us hate someone who flip flops between believing Nessa is guilty and innocent? There’s just no reason to even bring all these characters into the story.
The romance- Anto and Nessa barely even have more than a little puppy love between them and they’re sacrificing themselves for each other. They forget they even have families because they’re oh so in love. But then half the time Anto hates Nessa and literally sleeps with Liz Sweeney, one of the most despicable characters who isn’t a “villain” (and why is Liz Sweeney always referred to by her full name anyway?). Then all of a sudden Anto just sees Nessa and he’s no longer a killing machine, he’s back to being the spineless coward who needs her to even figure out how to breathe. There’s nothing cute about Anto’s indecision and mood swings. Nessa’s dedication to him is cute, maybe, but nothing about Anto is romantic.
The end- I need to know more. I need to see Nessa and Anto surviving in the Grey Land. I need to see how they escaped and what’s going to happen to them next. I need solid proof that the Sídhe will never be able to reach the human world again just to have the entire events of this series repeat themselves. I need to know what happens to the Sídhe now that they have no hope of returning home. I also need to know why it was even a major plot point that Nessa couldn’t return home since she ate fairy food but somehow the Sídhe and all the other humans who ate food from the Grey Land were able to go back. That just makes zero sense. This ending was super rushed and poorly thought out.
Spoiler
Things I loved: The Sídhe (I know, my tastes are questionable)- They’re made out to be this race of beings you love to hate. They can be so cruel but also benevolent at the same time. Even though they tend to twist promises to turn out in their favor, you have to admit it’s admirable of them to let humans life among them despite all that humans have done to them. It’s mentioned multiple times that the Sídhe would fare much better if they just forgot the evils done to them by ancient people, but if they were so fueled by hatred why did they let Morris, Veronica, and all those other humans live among them? Yes, you can argue that they only did this to fulfill promises so they could escape into the Many-Colord Land, but that just shows how unfairly they’ve been treated. They were banished to a literal hell dimension for what must seem like an eternity. They’ve been killed and consumed repeatedly in this new land with no hope of their suffering ending since the Cauldron continually revives them. Then all of a sudden they’re the monsters for finding a way to get back at the humans who condemned them to this eternity of terror and trying to get back to their home? I feel so bad for them being permanently banished in the end. I thought that the whole book was building up to some kind of truce or understanding, but nope. The humans continue brutalizing the Sídhe and living in their stolen land while the enemy has no hope of returning, at least not for another thousand centuries or so.Nessa- Oh my goodness, Nessa just cannot die. I know the Sídhe wouldn’t kill her because of fulfilling their promise to Connor, but the fact that she managed to survive for so long in the Grey Land just shows has bada** she is. I love Nessa and I’m so frustrated that her fate turned out the ways it did, but I guess at least she isn’t alone. I would love another book just detailing her time in the Grey Land and how she eventually escaped. Or became queen, as Aoife suggested she may have.
Father Ambrosio- He may be a little bugger but I liked his insight into the Grey Land, as a human condemned to it forever.
Things I disliked: Anto- He’s such a whining, blubbering baby. I think it’s interesting that the trope of women being the weak ones dependent on men was turned on its head here, but there is nothing likable about Anto. He’s so obsessed with Nessa that he completely forgets his family, especially in the end when he decides to spend eternity in the Grey Land just to be with this girl who pushed him away practically the whole time he had a crush on her. He would have been much better had he been orphaned. At least then his whole obsession with Nessa, who would be the only tie to a normal life left, would make some sense.
The Infestation Squad- I loved the reveal at the end that Ryan and Karim were actually married the whole time and had lived through the same loss of their children. Actually, I just loved Ryan in general because he’s such a pure character. Karim was annoying though. But the reason I disliked the squad is because they ended up being so unimportant. I thought they were going to play some major role in the book, or at least show up again to help Anto and the other students during their retreat. But nope, they’re just a way of keeping Anto from thinking about Nessa even though they literally could have just told him the truth and he wouldn’t have been able to get her out of the prison anyway. And then they show up at the end to confirm that they’re basically all doomed.
The prison and everyone in it- Okay, that isn’t completely true. I loved Angela because she’s just so innocent and cute, if a bit dimwitted. But again, the prison seems like such an unnecessary plot point. I get that Nessa was sent there so she’d end up being banished back to the Grey Land, but if that’s the case why introduce so much conflict within the prison that’s never resolved? We never find out what happens to Angela. Does she end up being trapped inside an iron cup forever, to be forgotten when the Professor is inevitably executed? Does she end up making it back to the Grey Land and perishing there? And why isn’t there ever an answer as to why she wasn’t Called earlier? Then there’s questions about the Professor. Now that the Nation doesn’t need her, is she going to be executed? Will she even be able to be executed since the prison guards are such bumbling idiots and she’s an escape artist? What about the rest of the prisoners? And Detective Cassidy? What was even the point of him besides to make us hate someone who flip flops between believing Nessa is guilty and innocent? There’s just no reason to even bring all these characters into the story.
The romance- Anto and Nessa barely even have more than a little puppy love between them and they’re sacrificing themselves for each other. They forget they even have families because they’re oh so in love. But then half the time Anto hates Nessa and literally sleeps with Liz Sweeney, one of the most despicable characters who isn’t a “villain” (and why is Liz Sweeney always referred to by her full name anyway?). Then all of a sudden Anto just sees Nessa and he’s no longer a killing machine, he’s back to being the spineless coward who needs her to even figure out how to breathe. There’s nothing cute about Anto’s indecision and mood swings. Nessa’s dedication to him is cute, maybe, but nothing about Anto is romantic.
The end- I need to know more. I need to see Nessa and Anto surviving in the Grey Land. I need to see how they escaped and what’s going to happen to them next. I need solid proof that the Sídhe will never be able to reach the human world again just to have the entire events of this series repeat themselves. I need to know what happens to the Sídhe now that they have no hope of returning home. I also need to know why it was even a major plot point that Nessa couldn’t return home since she ate fairy food but somehow the Sídhe and all the other humans who ate food from the Grey Land were able to go back. That just makes zero sense. This ending was super rushed and poorly thought out.
littlbooknerd's review against another edition
2.0
✩✩.75/5
“Plenty come back from the Grey Land with a taste for blood. But any kind of horror will do that for you. It takes decades to breed a war out of a people that went through it.”
I read The Call about a year and a half ago and loved it. A survival story about kids being hunted by evil faeries in Ireland? That was definitely a story for me. Ever since I read that book I've been looking forward to reading the sequel. Well, I read it.
What a disappointment.
The Invasion turned out to be the exact opposite of what I envisioned the next part of the story would look like. With the way the previous book ended, there was so much potential for The Invasion to be amazing. Sadly, for me, it was anything but.
Going into it, I expected a story that was more focused on Nessa and Anto. They had both gone through so much in the previous book with surviving the Call and being transformed by the Sidhe, so I think I speak for all of us when I say that they (and we, as readers) were robbed of a *true* happy ending.
The synopsis of the story leads us to believe that during The Invasion, Nessa and Anto's relationship would face various obstacles and trials and that they would have to fight to stay together, all while trying to stay alive among an evil faerie invasion. But, in reality, they only spent like 4% of the book in each other's company??? I don't get why they were kept separated for the near entirety of the book, and the fact that they were was highly irritating to me.
The beginning of the story was great (also the only part of the book I liked). I thought it was so interesting that Nessa was under investigation for being a traitor given the suspicious way she survived her Call when she clearly should have died. That's literally the only part of the book that made sense to me. But, I don't get why Nessa never told anyone how she got her fire powers. She was asked countless times if she was the traitor and if she had just told the truth from the beginning that Connor's the one who made a deal with the Sidhe to spare her so he could be the one to kill her, I'm sure at least one person would have believed her. It would have saved her so much trouble and allowed her to be reunited with Anto.
The next thing that annoyed me was how pointless Anto's expedition with the soldiers was. I knew that there would be a Sidhe invasion in the story because of the book's title, but I think it's frustrating that it ended up being 90% of the plot when the synopsis advertised it as being more relationship-oriented.
The rest of the plot ended up being Nessa running away from the Sidhe, Anto sleeping with what's her face (so annoyed that I don't remember that character's name) because he felt so *hurt and betrayed* by Nessa being a traitor, Nessa putting an end to the invasion and defeating the bad guy and finally Nessa and Anto having a sort of happy ending.
The plot's focus was clearly invested in the wrong place. Although the idea of a full on Sidhe invasion sounded really awesome to me after the way the first book ended, this book felt more like a war story to me and glossed over all the important parts we should have gotten to read. The ending as well as other parts of the book felt rushed while others dragged on and on, which made for really weird pacing.
I was sometimes bored, sometimes annoyed and only very rarely thinking that I was actually enjoying this story. Although The Call was an amazing read, its sequel was sadly not for me.
“Plenty come back from the Grey Land with a taste for blood. But any kind of horror will do that for you. It takes decades to breed a war out of a people that went through it.”
I read The Call about a year and a half ago and loved it. A survival story about kids being hunted by evil faeries in Ireland? That was definitely a story for me. Ever since I read that book I've been looking forward to reading the sequel. Well, I read it.
What a disappointment.
The Invasion turned out to be the exact opposite of what I envisioned the next part of the story would look like. With the way the previous book ended, there was so much potential for The Invasion to be amazing. Sadly, for me, it was anything but.
Going into it, I expected a story that was more focused on Nessa and Anto. They had both gone through so much in the previous book with surviving the Call and being transformed by the Sidhe, so I think I speak for all of us when I say that they (and we, as readers) were robbed of a *true* happy ending.
The synopsis of the story leads us to believe that during The Invasion, Nessa and Anto's relationship would face various obstacles and trials and that they would have to fight to stay together, all while trying to stay alive among an evil faerie invasion. But, in reality, they only spent like 4% of the book in each other's company??? I don't get why they were kept separated for the near entirety of the book, and the fact that they were was highly irritating to me.
The beginning of the story was great (also the only part of the book I liked). I thought it was so interesting that Nessa was under investigation for being a traitor given the suspicious way she survived her Call when she clearly should have died. That's literally the only part of the book that made sense to me. But, I don't get why Nessa never told anyone how she got her fire powers. She was asked countless times if she was the traitor and if she had just told the truth from the beginning that Connor's the one who made a deal with the Sidhe to spare her so he could be the one to kill her, I'm sure at least one person would have believed her. It would have saved her so much trouble and allowed her to be reunited with Anto.
The next thing that annoyed me was how pointless Anto's expedition with the soldiers was. I knew that there would be a Sidhe invasion in the story because of the book's title, but I think it's frustrating that it ended up being 90% of the plot when the synopsis advertised it as being more relationship-oriented.
The rest of the plot ended up being Nessa running away from the Sidhe, Anto sleeping with what's her face (so annoyed that I don't remember that character's name) because he felt so *hurt and betrayed* by Nessa being a traitor, Nessa putting an end to the invasion and defeating the bad guy and finally Nessa and Anto having a sort of happy ending.
The plot's focus was clearly invested in the wrong place. Although the idea of a full on Sidhe invasion sounded really awesome to me after the way the first book ended, this book felt more like a war story to me and glossed over all the important parts we should have gotten to read. The ending as well as other parts of the book felt rushed while others dragged on and on, which made for really weird pacing.
I was sometimes bored, sometimes annoyed and only very rarely thinking that I was actually enjoying this story. Although The Call was an amazing read, its sequel was sadly not for me.