Title: The Impossibility of Tomorrow (Incarnation #2)
Author: Avery Williams
Published: June, 2013 by Simon & Schuster
Pages: 375
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

Seraphina has been living for centuries, thanks to a special method of alchemy, but only recently has she really felt alive. She’s finally broken free from her controlling boyfriend, Cyrus, and after years of swapping bodies to preserve her immortality, is happily settled into a life worth sticking with. Because in this life, she has Noah.

But Noah might not be as trustworthy as he seems. After he delivers an ominous message that could only come from Cyrus, Sera is worried that her new friends and family will find out her secret. And as her suspicions extend beyond Noah, Sera is forced to wonder about her new friends as well: Could her old coven be disguising themselves right under her nose?

Will Sera have to move to another body—and take another life—or can she find a way to keep what she’s got, forever?

Final Thoughts:
I went into this one with the notion that I had really enjoyed the quick little read that was The Alchemy of Forever. I’m not sure if something changed since then or if time has altered my memories, but I just couldn’t get on board with this one the way I would have liked. It was all teen drama—and high school dance teen drama at that. Sure, the book has its cat and mouse aspect to it, but it was nothing too exciting. It’s another one of those ‘everything squashed into the last quarter’ kind of books.

Title: The Alchemy Of Forever (Incarnation #1)
Author: Avery Williams
Published: April, 2012 by Simon & Schuster
Thanks: Simon & Schuster, AU
Pages: 245
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

After spending six hundred years on Earth, Seraphina Ames has seen it all. Eternal life provides her with the world’s riches but at a very high price: innocent lives. Centuries ago, her boyfriend, Cyrus, discovered a method of alchemy that allows them to take the bodies of other humans from jumping from one vessel to the next, ending the human’s life in the process. No longer able to bear the guilt of what she’s done, Sera escapes from Cyrus and vows to never kill again.

Then sixteen-year old Kailey Morgan gets into a horrific car accident right in front of her, and Sera accidentally takes over her body while trying to save her. For the first time, Sera finds herself enjoying the life of the person she’s inhabiting–and falling in love with the boy who lives next door. But Cyrus will stop at nothing until she’s his again, and every moment she stays, she’s putting herself and the people she’s grown to care about in danger. Will Sera have to give up the one thing that’s eluded her for centuries: true love?

Final Thoughts:
A different take on reincarnation is always welcome, and while this one is certainly unique, it didn’t feel substantial enough to grip me. That’s probably due in part to the short page count. Things don’t really get a lot of focus time, instead, giving us brief moments for each part that Sera comes to understand while living her new life as Kailey. I think the most time was actually spent on the setup. It felt like it took forever for the plot to get underway, and when you know what’s coming, based on the blurb, that’s when long beginnings can be a mistake. I did still enjoy the short time spent with fake-Kailey and Noah—friends falling for each other doesn’t happen enough. It’s normally the paranormal guy that gets the girl, leaving the best friend shafted.

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, which allows bloggers to share what books they’ve received in the past week. They can be from stores, contests, tours or publishers!

• Night School by C.J. Daugherty (swapped)
• Immortal Beloved by Cate Tiernan (purchased)
• The Alchemy Of Forever by Avery Williams (thanks to Publishers)
• Balthazar by Claudia Gray (purchased)

It’s been a quiet two weeks book-wise for me. But I’ve got plenty that I want to read, so that’s alright. I just spent the past five days finally reading The Hunger Games during my lunch breaks. Glad I did. Now I know what all the movie-hype is about. Thanks to Simons and Schuster for sending me a copy of The Alchemy Of Forever. I’ve heard actually really good for a reincarnation story. Usually they all fall into the same pattern, so I’m interested in seeing what this one does. I picked up Balthazar when I went shopping on Thurday, but I still need to read final three books in the Evernight series. It’s like that though. I just like having them on my shelves for when I’m ready.

Here are my latest reviews if you want to check them out:
Armentrout, Jennifer L. Lux #0.5, Shadows
Collins, Suzanne The Hunger Games #1, The Hunger Games
Smith, Alexander Gordon Escape From Furnace #4, Fugitives
Waters, Daniel Generation Dead #1, Generation Dead

Link up to your mailbox and I’ll be sure to check it out!