Review--Strange and Ever After by Susan Dennard

An ancient evil has risen over Egypt.

It has been a tumultuous time for Eleanor Fitt since life as she knew it in Philadelphia came abruptly to an end. While the Spirit-Hunters--Joseph, Jie, and Daniel--have helped her survive her brother's violent death and an invasion of the Hungry Dead, Eleanor has lost just about everything.

And now, Jie is missing--taken by the evil necromancer Marcus. Eleanor is determined not only to get her back but to end this nightmare altogether. But to do so, she must navigate the hot desert streets of nineteenth-century Egypt amid the rising Dead, her unresolved feelings for Daniel, and her volatile relationships with Joseph and Oliver, her demon. And it won't be easy. Because now Allison, her friend from Philadelphia, has tagged along, becoming strangely entangled in Eleanor's mission.

It will take all of Eleanor's powers of black magic, and all of Daniel's and Joseph's trust, to succeed. But there will be a price. And only when it is over will Eleanor truly be able to live a strange and ever after life.

In the conclusion to this epic trilogy, which began with SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY and continued with A DARKNESS STRANGE AND LOVELY, Susan Dennard will have readers on the edge of their seats, breathless with anticipation, and begging for this story not to end.

Strange and Ever After is the breathtaking conclusion to the Something Strange and Deadly trilogy by Susan Dennard, and never have I ever had sooooooo many feels in one book! I mean really, there were all over the place and I was a wreck the entire book with my heart racing and pounding in my chest, I wreck I tell you!

All from page 1, we are subjected to the shocks and feels! Eleanor learns of shocking news and it puts her in a bad place. But soon, she must push aside those feelings because there's an enemy to contend with, Marcus. It's time to end the battle once and for all, but there will be much more to deal with before we can get to that!

Where to begin without drifting into spoiler territory? There was soooo much to this novel, I really was a wreck from page 1. You did not want to be near me during this time, and I am still in the shocking woes or whatever feels you want to call my reaction to how everything ended! I was slightly prepared based on other reviews, but still, one can never be prepared for shock after shock!

I will forever love these characters! Not only was Eleanor the character that just kept on growing, from being someone I almost feared for to a girl who totally became the heroine to save the day! She struggles with controlling her powers instead of the other way around, but she always remains true to herself and not what others expect her to be.

Jie, Joseph, and Daniel remain forever astounding secondary characters, and Oliver even joins in the mix too. I had my suspicions about him last time around, but I am glad to know I was wrong. Even by the end of A Darkness Strange and Lovely I knew I was initially wrong about Oliver. All these characters continued to grow as well, bending their initial beliefs and standards to what is right in front of them. Sure, Joseph and Daniel berated Eleanor for her use of her powers, but as time moved along, they grew to accept her--again within A Darkness Strange and Lovely we began to see this, although there are always moments of doubts. It's always about Baby Steps--as Bob taught us! *winks*

And the romance, oh Daniel and Eleanor! I truly love their romance! It was one that took time to grow and fully develop. It seemed like there was always something standing between them, but finally they have come to accept one another, and it was lovely!

When people tell you how they feel after reading a book, those thoughts intrude on you as you read. And this is basically what had my heart pumping this entire novel! And it did not ease one bit! Seriously, I had to take breaks in between writing this review to calm my nerves and not utter something forbidden! You know I would never do that to you! This definitely made reading this one a fast paced-read, for I had to know what was going to happen! 

The ending was truly shocking and re-memorable. I will leave it at that! But yeah, there's no way one can forget that kind of impact!

I don't know how to feel now! I am a mix of emotions now that this series is over! Binge reading can sometimes do that to me, as I did with this one! Other times I've binged read and had to wait for the last book to come out, like I did with another series just this year and am still waiting for its final book! Now I find I don't know what to do with myself and my feels! There are other review books awaiting, so I cannot let the feels distract me for long, but I will let things simmer for the rest of the evening and just digest.

Susan Dennard has truly written a whirlwind of a trilogy here and I am pleased and happy to have read it! I will definitely be keeping her on my auto-buy list from now on! 


Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars