Anne Osterlund: Exile

I won't lie.  I have had this book all summer long.  I have been avoiding reading this, just like Harry Potter 6 & 7 and just like A Conspiracy of Kings.  It's what I seem to do when I find I don't want an awesome saga to end.  I haven't finished HP6 because I know book 7 is the end.  I know that there will be at least one more book from Whalen-Turner, but who knows when she'll get around to it.  And because I thought this was a sequel, I didn't want Aurelia's story to end.  And now I've discovered the little #2 in parenthesis on Goodreads, and who knows when/if another book will be on its way?! 

GRRRRRRR....because, THIS ONE WAS AMAZING.  I finally started it last night, and finished it today at noon.  It was emotion-filled, heart-wrenching, and satisfying and mortifying and frustrating all at once.    Aurelia develops her strength through her journey in this book.  Initially, as I was reading, I was turned off by the heavy emphasis on the developing love story, but towards the end and looking back on the text, I know that there was strong reasons behind the focal points of the book.  

I won't lie, the writing is also what makes the lovey-dovey stuff more tolerable.  Osterlund is really adept at pulling the reader into the emotions of the situation with the skill of her craft.  I cried and teared up several times.  Though I don't think I smiled or laughed as much as I think I remember from the first book.  The slight shifts in perspectives (Aurelia's and Robert's) without the voices blurring together (unlike Crossed) add an interesting dimension to the text, and had I not been rushing to get through it, I think I would have been even more impressed with the technique.  

I will say that Osterlund is not on my "nice" list for some of the serious losses Aurelia endures, but I will not be too irked and will give her a chance to rectify things in the *potentially* culminating story.  :)

While I am glad I finally read it, I am NOT glad that I will have to wait to see if Aurelia and Robert's story will culminate in a truly satisfying ending or if this wide-open "use your imagination" is all readers will get!  Loved. This. Book!