Review for Promise by Kristie Cook

Well Developed Characters and Steamy Scenes:

4.5 Stars. This book opens with a lot of action, and it really sucked me in. I did feel a little like the very first scene of this book was a little disjointed from the rest of it; but, after reading the second book in this series it makes sense how it all fits together. The whole book has a very quick pace, which I enjoyed for the most part. Although at the beginning there were a few scenes that I wouldn't have minded if they'd been slowed down a bit.

Cook has wonderfully descriptive scenes, and fun sassy dialogue. I loved her main character Alexis. She is an introverted type, partly because of all the moving around she did as a kid. She never had time to make close friends. She also at times has low self-esteem, maybe again because she never had a chance to really connect with anyone, and maybe partly because of things she went through as a teen. Alexis has been an outcast, a freak, and rejected, and I found myself completely able to relate to her. And, she's got sass too. She's introverted but also independent and she channels her feelings into her writing. I liked that she had this talent; it made her feel like a very well rounded character. Also, she's not weak; she's a strong young woman. She just prefers to keep to herself.

There were times when I found Alexis a little too naive. I just wish she had explained better why she never looked deeper into what she was. Also, there were some things that were obvious to me, but she was completely oblivious to them. So, while I liked her character I felt she wasn't the most perceptive and that her lack of perception was somewhat unbelievable.

Tristan was also a wonderful character. From the very beginning I found him fascinating. He was confidant and very forward but also down-to-earth. However, he could be a little cheesy at times. For the most part I loved his character, but some of the things he said to Alexis, like constantly following up her name with "my love" was a little too much for me. I also hated that Alexis was always referring to Tristian as "yummy" or "delicious" as if she were eying up a candy bar. Despite these little annoyances however, their relationship really felt like it clicked to me. It felt real and felt like it truly grew. I believed Alexis when she said she was drawn to him and could feel that they were truly falling in love. I also liked that their relationship took time to develop.

This was a wonderful love story, and while there were also some unique ideas being used there were also defiantly some overdone plot devices as well. I can see why some people compared this to Twilight. Both Promise and Twilight are about this unyielding, forever love that two people experience, and they both involve supernatural creatures dealing with how to control and hide their powers. Because of this there are some similar themes between the books. But, I have to say, this book as a whole was very different from Twilight.

Also, I was bothered by the fact that some people didn't think this was YA, but that's mostly because I think a lot of people have a really screwed up definition of what YA stands for. YA - young ADULT. This book is not for kids. I would give it a 17+ rating because there are some really steamy scenes, but that's still YA for me. At 17 you're a young adult. And on that note, the romance in this was hot! (My thoughts on what it means to be a Young Adult)

One thing that was odd to me about this book was that Alexis wonders if her mother and Tristan will hook up. This just seems like a strange thing to wonder about your mother. Did her mother often date much younger men? Obviously as we learn more about the nature of just what Alexis, Tristan and Sophia are this question isn't as weird, but in the beginning before Alexis knows what she is I find this to be an odd thought for her to have. Later it's also clear that she and her mom are very close, they are almost more like sisters or friends then mother and daughter, but I think at first this really threw me off.

Where I had some problems with this book was at the end. I liked the way the plot went, but the story lost me a little. I didn't feel Tristan's sacrifice, and I'm not sure I entirely understood his decision. He seemed to go off and walk right into exactly what they were avoiding. I just wish the ending had sucked me in a little more, but for whatever reason it didn't. All together though this was a great read and after finishing it I immediately picked up its sequel Purpose.