The Quackeroo

* ARC kindly provided by Entangled Publishing, LLC/Netgalley in exchange for an honest review *

4/5 shifting stars

"Curiosity killed the cat and, maybe soon, the Addison"

The blurb of the book interested me a lot since it's very different from other PNR books I've read so far. This is the first book I've read by author Jocelyn Adams and it's the first book of a trilogy with the next book - Midnight Dawn - being published in September 2014.

It took me a little while to get into the book in the beginning. This was mainly due to the fact that you get thrown into the story right away and I found it a tad difficult to get a feel for Addison - the main character in the book - and what exactly 'it' was that was happening to her. It felt a little bit ADDish, since it felt very rushed, hyperactive and jumpy. But once everything was a little clearer I was mostly hooked.

Addison - the heroine - is a timid girl who remains mostly unseen by everyone around her. She has always been drawn to old things and has seen the world literally unravel around her. For a large part, I really liked Addison. The only thing that bothered me a little bit about her, was the inconsisentency with her character. She is described throughout the book as a timid little rabbit who has to grow some balls and man up. But I didn't really see that in her. Yes, she grows into her powers and gets more secure, but she never let them walk all over her to begin with - so that didn't make much sense to me.

" What would Green have done if he'd discovered something had invaded his lecture hall from a black hole in his wall? Find some way to insult it, no doubt"

Enter the hot arrogant professor - Asher Green. I wondered if I would like him, since he really was an a-hole in the beginning. But he's interesting enough and eases up on her a little eventually. He's very closed off and a mystery to Addison - who he not so lovingly calls 'plaid'. Asher is an interesting character and I'm excited to read more about him in the next book. He's arrogant, cruel, mean, hot, sexy, sweet when he absolutely has to be and swoon worthy.

" "You're not weak, and I don't.... why do you have to be so ... so ... goddammit, I'm going straight to hell if I ever die." His lips covered mine before I even saw him coming."

The book also envolves several secondary characters - some of which get more 'screen time' than others. I really liked Sophia and Remy. They were sweet and funny and a great asset to the story. Sophia is a very colorful, honest and good friend to Addison and I created Remy in my mind as a big, sweet and funny huge teddy bear. I wasn't a fan of some of the others, such as Kat - whom I hated. But I'm pretty sure you're supposed to hate her for now.

I think the writing itself was a lot better in the second half of the book. The beginning was very rushed and jumpy and also a tad too descriptive for my taste.But the writing gradually improved and by the last 40% my rating went up from a 3.5 to 4 stars out of 5.

"Back there in the woods, I actually started to imagine we could have a life together while we fight this war. Once I finally had you within reach, it became so much harder to keep my hands off you."

Overall, I ended up really enjoying this book and I really liked the original take on the genre. It managed to suprised me at certain points and the ending - which is absolutely devastating - left me wanting more. It's not easy to suprise me with plot twist, but this book succeeded where others have failed - which is a major plus for me.
I'm sad that it's a cliffhanger and that I have to wait several months to find out how the story continues. I am planning to read the next book in the series and I'm curious to see where Jocelyn Adams will take this adventure, as it seems like it's only beginning.

I won't give anything away about the rest the plot, so if you want to find out what exactly is happening to Addison, who she turns out to be and the role of Asher in her story, you should really read the book - which is out tomorrow March 10 2014.

I'd recommend this book to readers who enjoy NA/PNR and are looking for a fresh take on the genre and don't mind USTand a cliffhanger.