Book Review: Empower by Jessica Shirvington

Pages: 496

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pub. Date: May 6, 2014

Source: Publisher for review

Series: Embrace (#1),  Entice (#2), Emblaze (#3), Endless (#4)

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "It has been two years since Violet Eden walked away from the city, her friends, her future and - most importantly - her soulmate, Lincoln. Part angel, part human, Violet is determined to stand by the promises she made to save the one she loves. Living in the perpetual coldness of a broken soul she survives day to day as a Rogue Grigori in London. But when an unexpected visitor shows up at her door, the news he bears about someone she swore to protect leaves Violet with no choice. Even worse, she fears that this might all lead back to the night she tries hardest to forget. And what was taken without her permission. Violet is going back to New York ... and she knows exactly who is going to be there. With Phoenix in her dreams and Lincoln in her heart she knows it is only a matter of time before the final choice must be made."

The ending of Endless, book four in the Embrace series, really made me pine for Empower with the hopes that things would get better for Violet.  When Empower starts, it has been two years since she left the Academy, Lincoln and all of her friends.  Violet probably shouldn't even be existing in her current state, but thanks to Phoenix's transferred abilities, she is able to survive even with her broken soul.  She is living in London with other Rouges and has settled down a bit now that she senses Lincoln has stopped looking for her, which for her, is both good and bad.  Her world is changed forever though when she gets a visitor summoning her back to the Academy since her good friend, Spence, has gone missing.  Ultimately, she is needed for the case and she has no choice but to go back to New York even if it means facing everything she has left behind.  Empower by Jessica Shirvington is an action packed conclusion to the Embrace series.  Fans of the series will be delighted by the ending and most definitely sad to say goodbye to the characters.

Violet has grown so much throughout the series and she has really come into her own in Empower. She's tough, resilient, and determined. I really liked her in this final book.  Shirvington has created a cast of characters in this series that are some of my favorites. Gray, a fellow Rouge and her friend, is hilarious in Empower. I loved his witty banter back and forth quips with Violet.  There's also more from Steph, Onyx, Phoenix, and of course, Lincoln.

The whole on-again-off-again relationship with Lincoln in this series really frustrated me from time to time, but that's not the case in Empower. I was happy to see where Shirvington was taking their relationship and although there were a few bumps in the road, I was genuinely happy. Lincoln is a swoon-worthy male lead and one of my favorites, for sure.

As in the other novels in this series, there's a ton of action.  Empower was filled with fight scenes, moments of suspense and life-altering decisions.  One thing is for sure: Shrivington knows how to keep readers engaged.

My only complaint with Empower was some of the cheesy moments. I sort of cringed and rolled my eyes at a few things, especially some of the dialogue, but overall, it didn't deter me from enjoying the book.  There are definitely some swoon-worthy scenes (dancing!) that made my mind forget all about some of the more overly saccharine moments.

All in all, I truly loved the Embrace series and Empower is a fantastic ending.  If you are a fan of paranormal stories, especially ones with angels and a lot of action, you must give this series a try.  You'll definitely be hooked.