Caroline Peckham
I mean every single word sounds as if it's coming straight from Varick's slowbeating heart.
How he hates how Selena is a part of the world of Vs and Hunters and wolves, yet he is helpless to how she makes him feel.
One chapter really broke my heart in this novel, the one where . Anyway, listen to the song if you get a chance!
My Varick, the tortured but eternally lovely, greeneyed vampire :
My Jameson, the always charming, cocky and carefree werewolf :
Varick and Selena.
. . I really love this picture, .
eARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review, ”We were at the heart of the biggest Casino ever made, Chance was the dice and the numbers our lives, ”
And here I thought “V Games” was already fast paced and left me with a severe cliffhanger! I guess after reading “Fresh From The Grave” Ill have to reevaluate that first impression now.
I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I began to read the second book, but let me tell you that Caroline stepped up her game pun totally intended big time! P
Book two is definitely:
More blood thirsty
Another level of cruel
Even more fastpaced I really had no idea this was actually possible XD
A little more romantic
A whole lot darker than the first one and this says quite something because lets face it “V Games” was already pretty dark.
I mean I described it as a mixture of “Resident Evil” and “The Hunger Games” so you get the idea! P
But worry not between all the impaling and crawling for their lives the contestants of THIS V Game havent lost their spirit yet.
So new characters are introduced, some human, some bloodthirsty and some with fur ltand not all of the games spectators are still content to sit back and to watch the show.
I guess you could say the Helsings have quite a lot on their plate and Im notonly talking about a rebellious teenage daughter that begins to question her life choices and decisions! lol
Are you curious yet XD
My advice: Sit down, make some popcorn, pick up the book, find out for yourself and enjoy the freakyride show! P
The characters:
And here I go with my characters section which is also known as the “dont continue to read because their might be a lot of spoilers coming your way” section! XD Its your choice, choose wisely and dont say I didnt warn you!
Selena:
”Everyone here knows what you are.
”
“And whats that” I asked through a snarl, I wasnt any different. No girl deserved to be here, no matter what theyd done, We were still human. We still deserved an ounce of dignity,
“Youre hope. ”
WOAH!!! Selena changed quite a lot since the beginning of the first book but I suppose after everything that happened to this girl you cant really blame her for getting a hard shell.
Dont get me wrong, she didnt turn all dark and there is still compassion in her heart but shes definitely not as naïve and innocent as she was in the “V Games”.
There just happened too much and she crossed the line way too often to be able to maintain her innocence, So we have a way tougher Selena in this book and she doesnt just take things in stride but even makes plans to overthrow the Helsings reign.
Which is pretty awesome if you ask me! Shes finally willing to do everything in her power to turn the tables on the Helsings as well as on the other spectators of the games and I lived and breathed for it! lol You go girl!!!
”Ill give you the same courtesy then.
”
Varick took my arm, but I tugged free of him,
“You will” the man asked hopefully,
“Yes,” I breathed. “Ill bet on you surviving, ” I turned away. “But I dont like your odds, ”
Varick:
”Darkness rushed in, Too quickly for me to do anything to try and stop it, The strength inside me wilted and a monster grew rapidly in its place like a weed, ”
Aww my poor boy! My heart broke so much for him in this book! At the beginning he wasnt only tortured but they also took away his most precious possession: his humanity.
And Ill never forgive the Helsings for that! His fight in this book was kind of terrifying to watch because for a while he was nothing more than a bloodthirsty V who preyed on the girls in the games.
I was really relieved when Selena let him drink from her blood because I knew that hed become the old Varick again, Still, just to think what it must have cost him to become human again, to feel and think about what he did to those many girls Ahh poor Varick, I just want to hug him and make his pain go away.
Ignus:
”I dont hate you,” he said, surprising me, “But I do enjoy punishing you, I want to see how far you can be pushed, How it will feel when I break you, ”
I smiled and Ignus looked genuinely disconcerted by my reaction, “You cant break whats already broken, ”
Was there ever a bigger excuse my crude language asshole than Ignus There are villains you adore because they are so cunning and clever and there are villains you just hate because they have no humanity left in them.
Needless to say that Ignus belongs to the second category, Seriously if anyone in this book deserves to be called a monster, than its definitely Ignus and not the Vs or the werewolves, Guess this already says enough about his character and Im really glad that hes dead now! XD Varick did the deed and even though it was a brutal and cruel way to die, I still cant bring myself to feel bad about it.
All those people he killed and tortured just because he could He had it coming!
Ulvic:
”Ignus rested his hand on my shoulder, looking desperate.
“Im truly sorry. You know how I can be when I dont get my way, ”
I pinched my lips together, I knew exactly how he could be, Violent, vengeful, vindictive. But never with me. Not once with me.
Now that was something I didnt see coming and to say it surprised me would be putting it more than just mildly.
lol Ulvic and Ignus actually had something like an affair! Who would have thought it XD Bearing this in mind it was no surprise that Ulvic was hesitant to harm the Helsings, it unfortunately didnt make me any less angry or annoyed by his actions though.
XD I mean I get it he wanted to save his wolves without harming the person he once loved, but still GAH! His character made me so angry sometimes and I couldnt help but wonder if he would have even intervened if his pack wouldnt have gotten involved in the games as well.
Hes a coward, plain and simple and the only reason he stood his ground this time around was the simple fact that Jameson and the other two werewolves were used in the game.
Well, I think in the end he paid dearly for his mistakes and I really hope it will be a lesson for him,
”I may have been a lot of things, but bloodthirsty wasnt one of them, The problem was, no matter how desperate I was to save them, to stand up to the Helsings and fight for what I knew was right, I didnt know if I could do it.
Because, I may not have been bloodthirsty, but I was a coward, And at that moment, both traits equated to evil, ”
Cass:
”In what universe would I find a stinking wolf attractive”
“This one” he asked hopefully.
His words caught me off guard and a snort of laughter escaped me, Bloody wolf boy. What on earth had my life become”
Gosh, I was so happy to see Cass again but damn did this poor girl suffer! I hated that the Helsings turned her into a V and used her as entertainment in vampire fights and I dont blame her for taking her rage out on them once she got a decent chance.
This poor red head already went through hell and then those damn Helsings had to add to her grief as well, TT I just hope that she will get over everything that happened to her and I definitely hope to see even more of her in the next book! I cant wait for more chapters of her POV!
Jameson:
”The youngest of the group backed up, perhaps newly enrolled at the Helsings playground.
How did one go about applying for this shit
Wanted: creepy scientist who likes to screw with immortal beings,
It wasnt exactly a back of the newspaper kind of ad, ”
Haha! JAMESON!!! lt I LOVE, THIS. BOY!!! Seriously, this guy turned out to be such a revelation and an asset for the entire book! I adored the chapters from his POV and I just couldnt get enough of his sometimes rather questionable humour! lol In book one I loved Varick so much but I have to admit that Jameson actually managed to steal my heart away from him.
XD Hes just too amazing not to fall in love with him and I cant wait to find out more about him! I really want to know how he became a werewolf and what happened after Varick vanished and was turned into a vampire.
I have so many questions and I hope theyll all be answered in the next book!
”Thats it, I thought, No one bites my arse unless I say so, ”
”I could have spent the time in my cage wondering why Id ended up here, Crying about the choices Id made in my immortal life, All that woeisme bullshit. But that wasnt my style, In fact, Id spent most of the last hour humming Gimmi Shelter by The Rolling Stones, ”
The relationships amp ships:
Selena amp Varick:
”You remind me of the sea the endless storm in your eyes, the flush of sunsets in your cheeks.
I see a red dawn in your lips, where I once would have set my eye and sailed into its promised light, You are all the things I loved in life, embodied, And after what Ive done, I fear losing you will bring about my death all over again, ”
I had to read aboutof the book until those two finally got together but damn was it worth the wait! With Varick in “killer mode” and Selenas blood as his only hope to get him back to his senses it was logical that it would take a little time until they had a reunion though.
So I kind of expected this when I started to read the book and wasnt disappointed how things worked out in the end, Plus I think that it was necessary to give those two characters time to grow and to be apart from each other, because Im pretty sure that the Selena of the first book wouldnt have been able to stomach Varicks dark side.
If they would have gotten together in “V Games” their love wouldnt have stood a chance but the way they developed and changed in “Fresh From The Grave” made it possible for them to be together and damn me, but Caroline pulled this off really nicely! They make a nice couple and I cant wait to read book three! lt
”I came back for this part of you.
” I laid my hand on his chest where the solid beat of his heart nearly outpaced mine, “Because even though theres a demon inside you, you meet it on the battlefield every day, I love you in all the spaces that youre not a monster, and I forgive you for all the places that you are, ”
”Hate me,” he demanded, his mouth bushing mine,
“Never,” I breathed, a tear rolling down my cheek,
Cass amp Jameson:
”What do I look like” I pressed, I wasnt the kind of girl to let men get under my skin any more, Even one as beautiful as him,
He tilted his head to look me in the eye, “You look like a firefly, the first light Ive seen in all this godforsaken darkness, ”
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I LOVED AND ADORED THOSE TWO!!! lt Give me more of Jameson and Cass moments and Ill be happy forever!! I loved how Jameson always managed to give her hope and how he tried to protect her soul from shattering entirely.
They both had a tough time but they always tried to help each other and they were there for each other whenever they were close to giving up.
And if were already at it, lets not forget about their easy banter!!! Haha! There were so many scenes where I had to laugh out loud and I swear I could read an entire book just about them making sassy remarks! lol Not to mention how they kicked the spectators butts in the end! They certainly make an amazing team and I just want MORE!!! lt
”I was there on Raskdod.
Do you think I didnt notice I was half a step behind you most of the way, Youre goddamn captivating. ”
I hoped for a blush even though Vs probably werent capable of it my arrogance evidently knew no bounds, Instead she rolled her eyes, “Captivating I was surviving. ”
“Like a boss. ” I winked at her and she laughed, My chest filled with air, I grinned from ear to ear, Hell yes.
Varick amp Jameson:
”Id gotten my best friend back, Hundreds of years had passed, a thousand new friends had come and gone and not one of them had held a candle to that man.
Yeah, I had a bit of a brocrush on him, But some people were kindred spirits, plain and simple, We were the best team Id ever known, ”
Bless Jameson for never giving up on Varick and Varick for never giving up on Jameson as well! They definitely have one of the best brotherly bonds I ever read about and I cant wait to see more of their interactions in book three.
Well, at least I really hope there will be more! I need to see their friendship unfold and Im sure Caroline will do me the favour, wont you lol
My conclusion:
I loved “Fresh From The Grave”! Just like the first book this one was a fast paced, bloody and very intriguing read! Thosepages read like they were nothing and I basically flew through this book! So much action, banter, plotting and even more bloodthirsty Vs! If you like your vampires without conscience and are interested in the idea of humans being the true evil, this will be a perfect read for you! Highly recommended!.
you realize we're in hell" Eesha
What another amazingly addicting and heartstopping novel in this series! I was lucky enough to receive a free copy from Caroline to read, and I found myself not wanting to stop or put this novel down even though my "adult life" made that necessary.
Still, I read this book whenever I could find some time and thought about these characters and the impossible scenarios they repeatedly found themselves in constantly.
As promised, I need to update my recipe from the first novel, This wonderful novel is a compelling mixture containingpints of Hunger Games we have the makings of a Quarter Quell with seasoned players,/cups of Divergent Big Brother and a Rebellion,/cups of Twilight we get werewolves but NO LOVE TRIANGLE, and perhaps most surprising of alltablespoons of The Selection the contestants vying for the approval of the spectators and having their every move analyzed for the pleasure of said viewers.
There is just so much stuff happening in this second book that's going to blow your mind, I don't want to get too much into it because it's best to go into it with no spoilers, but all of the anxietyinducing action, suspense, forbidden and swoony romance, light and dark humor, badass females, surprising allies, vengeful villains, and relatable and lovable characters that you loved from the first novel is here tenfold.
The ending is satisfying in its own right but will definitely leave you breathless and waiting for the next installment, Definitely recommend this entire series, and I cannot wait for the next one!!
On a side note, I was lucky enough to encounter the perfect song that encompasses and embodies Varick's thoughts and emotions so well.
I just love when my love of music and novels intersect and intertwine and leave me with a greater love for both, Take a listen:
The world was on fire and no one could save me, but you
It's strange how desire will make foolish people do
No, I'd never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you
And I'd never dreamed that I'd lose somebody like you
No, I don't wanna fall in love, no
No, I don't wanna fall in love
This world will break your heart
Nobody's falling in love
What a wicked game to play, to make me feel this way
What a wicked thing to do, to let me dream of you
What a wicked thing to say, you never felt this way
What a wicked thing to do, to let me dream of you.
. .
"Wicked Game" by Phillip Phillips
I mean every single word sounds as if it's coming straight from Varick's slowbeating heart.
How he hates how Selena is a part of the world of Vs and Hunters and wolves, yet he is helpless to how she makes him feel.
One chapter really broke my heart in this novel, the one where . Anyway, listen to the song if you get a chance!
My Varick, the tortured but eternally lovely, greeneyed vampire :
My Jameson, the always charming, cocky and carefree werewolf :
Varick and Selena.
. . I really love this picture, .
eARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review, ”We were at the heart of the biggest Casino ever made, Chance was the dice and the numbers our lives, ”
And here I thought “V Games” was already fast paced and left me with a severe cliffhanger! I guess after reading “Fresh From The Grave” Ill have to reevaluate that first impression now.
I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I began to read the second book, but let me tell you that Caroline stepped up her game pun totally intended big time! P
Book two is definitely:
More blood thirsty
Another level of cruel
Even more fastpaced I really had no idea this was actually possible XD
A little more romantic
A whole lot darker than the first one and this says quite something because lets face it “V Games” was already pretty dark.
I mean I described it as a mixture of “Resident Evil” and “The Hunger Games” so you get the idea! P
But worry not between all the impaling and crawling for their lives the contestants of THIS V Game havent lost their spirit yet.
So new characters are introduced, some human, some bloodthirsty and some with fur ltand not all of the games spectators are still content to sit back and to watch the show.
I guess you could say the Helsings have quite a lot on their plate and Im not
Are you curious yet XD
My advice: Sit down, make some popcorn, pick up the book, find out for yourself and enjoy the freaky
The characters:
And here I go with my characters section which is also known as the “dont continue to read because their might be a lot of spoilers coming your way” section! XD Its your choice, choose wisely and dont say I didnt warn you!
Selena:
”Everyone here knows what you are.
”
“And whats that” I asked through a snarl, I wasnt any different. No girl deserved to be here, no matter what theyd done, We were still human. We still deserved an ounce of dignity,
“Youre hope. ”
WOAH!!! Selena changed quite a lot since the beginning of the first book but I suppose after everything that happened to this girl you cant really blame her for getting a hard shell.
Dont get me wrong, she didnt turn all dark and there is still compassion in her heart but shes definitely not as naïve and innocent as she was in the “V Games”.
There just happened too much and she crossed the line way too often to be able to maintain her innocence, So we have a way tougher Selena in this book and she doesnt just take things in stride but even makes plans to overthrow the Helsings reign.
Which is pretty awesome if you ask me! Shes finally willing to do everything in her power to turn the tables on the Helsings as well as on the other spectators of the games and I lived and breathed for it! lol You go girl!!!
”Ill give you the same courtesy then.
”
Varick took my arm, but I tugged free of him,
“You will” the man asked hopefully,
“Yes,” I breathed. “Ill bet on you surviving, ” I turned away. “But I dont like your odds, ”
Varick:
”Darkness rushed in, Too quickly for me to do anything to try and stop it, The strength inside me wilted and a monster grew rapidly in its place like a weed, ”
Aww my poor boy! My heart broke so much for him in this book! At the beginning he wasnt only tortured but they also took away his most precious possession: his humanity.
And Ill never forgive the Helsings for that! His fight in this book was kind of terrifying to watch because for a while he was nothing more than a bloodthirsty V who preyed on the girls in the games.
I was really relieved when Selena let him drink from her blood because I knew that hed become the old Varick again, Still, just to think what it must have cost him to become human again, to feel and think about what he did to those many girls Ahh poor Varick, I just want to hug him and make his pain go away.
Ignus:
”I dont hate you,” he said, surprising me, “But I do enjoy punishing you, I want to see how far you can be pushed, How it will feel when I break you, ”
I smiled and Ignus looked genuinely disconcerted by my reaction, “You cant break whats already broken, ”
Was there ever a bigger excuse my crude language asshole than Ignus There are villains you adore because they are so cunning and clever and there are villains you just hate because they have no humanity left in them.
Needless to say that Ignus belongs to the second category, Seriously if anyone in this book deserves to be called a monster, than its definitely Ignus and not the Vs or the werewolves, Guess this already says enough about his character and Im really glad that hes dead now! XD Varick did the deed and even though it was a brutal and cruel way to die, I still cant bring myself to feel bad about it.
All those people he killed and tortured just because he could He had it coming!
Ulvic:
”Ignus rested his hand on my shoulder, looking desperate.
“Im truly sorry. You know how I can be when I dont get my way, ”
I pinched my lips together, I knew exactly how he could be, Violent, vengeful, vindictive. But never with me. Not once with me.
Now that was something I didnt see coming and to say it surprised me would be putting it more than just mildly.
lol Ulvic and Ignus actually had something like an affair! Who would have thought it XD Bearing this in mind it was no surprise that Ulvic was hesitant to harm the Helsings, it unfortunately didnt make me any less angry or annoyed by his actions though.
XD I mean I get it he wanted to save his wolves without harming the person he once loved, but still GAH! His character made me so angry sometimes and I couldnt help but wonder if he would have even intervened if his pack wouldnt have gotten involved in the games as well.
Hes a coward, plain and simple and the only reason he stood his ground this time around was the simple fact that Jameson and the other two werewolves were used in the game.
Well, I think in the end he paid dearly for his mistakes and I really hope it will be a lesson for him,
”I may have been a lot of things, but bloodthirsty wasnt one of them, The problem was, no matter how desperate I was to save them, to stand up to the Helsings and fight for what I knew was right, I didnt know if I could do it.
Because, I may not have been bloodthirsty, but I was a coward, And at that moment, both traits equated to evil, ”
Cass:
”In what universe would I find a stinking wolf attractive”
“This one” he asked hopefully.
His words caught me off guard and a snort of laughter escaped me, Bloody wolf boy. What on earth had my life become”
Gosh, I was so happy to see Cass again but damn did this poor girl suffer! I hated that the Helsings turned her into a V and used her as entertainment in vampire fights and I dont blame her for taking her rage out on them once she got a decent chance.
This poor red head already went through hell and then those damn Helsings had to add to her grief as well, TT I just hope that she will get over everything that happened to her and I definitely hope to see even more of her in the next book! I cant wait for more chapters of her POV!
Jameson:
”The youngest of the group backed up, perhaps newly enrolled at the Helsings playground.
How did one go about applying for this shit
Wanted: creepy scientist who likes to screw with immortal beings,
It wasnt exactly a back of the newspaper kind of ad, ”
Haha! JAMESON!!! lt I LOVE, THIS. BOY!!! Seriously, this guy turned out to be such a revelation and an asset for the entire book! I adored the chapters from his POV and I just couldnt get enough of his sometimes rather questionable humour! lol In book one I loved Varick so much but I have to admit that Jameson actually managed to steal my heart away from him.
XD Hes just too amazing not to fall in love with him and I cant wait to find out more about him! I really want to know how he became a werewolf and what happened after Varick vanished and was turned into a vampire.
I have so many questions and I hope theyll all be answered in the next book!
”Thats it, I thought, No one bites my arse unless I say so, ”
”I could have spent the time in my cage wondering why Id ended up here, Crying about the choices Id made in my immortal life, All that woeisme bullshit. But that wasnt my style, In fact, Id spent most of the last hour humming Gimmi Shelter by The Rolling Stones, ”
The relationships amp ships:
Selena amp Varick:
”You remind me of the sea the endless storm in your eyes, the flush of sunsets in your cheeks.
I see a red dawn in your lips, where I once would have set my eye and sailed into its promised light, You are all the things I loved in life, embodied, And after what Ive done, I fear losing you will bring about my death all over again, ”
I had to read aboutof the book until those two finally got together but damn was it worth the wait! With Varick in “killer mode” and Selenas blood as his only hope to get him back to his senses it was logical that it would take a little time until they had a reunion though.
So I kind of expected this when I started to read the book and wasnt disappointed how things worked out in the end, Plus I think that it was necessary to give those two characters time to grow and to be apart from each other, because Im pretty sure that the Selena of the first book wouldnt have been able to stomach Varicks dark side.
If they would have gotten together in “V Games” their love wouldnt have stood a chance but the way they developed and changed in “Fresh From The Grave” made it possible for them to be together and damn me, but Caroline pulled this off really nicely! They make a nice couple and I cant wait to read book three! lt
”I came back for this part of you.
” I laid my hand on his chest where the solid beat of his heart nearly outpaced mine, “Because even though theres a demon inside you, you meet it on the battlefield every day, I love you in all the spaces that youre not a monster, and I forgive you for all the places that you are, ”
”Hate me,” he demanded, his mouth bushing mine,
“Never,” I breathed, a tear rolling down my cheek,
Cass amp Jameson:
”What do I look like” I pressed, I wasnt the kind of girl to let men get under my skin any more, Even one as beautiful as him,
He tilted his head to look me in the eye, “You look like a firefly, the first light Ive seen in all this godforsaken darkness, ”
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I LOVED AND ADORED THOSE TWO!!! lt Give me more of Jameson and Cass moments and Ill be happy forever!! I loved how Jameson always managed to give her hope and how he tried to protect her soul from shattering entirely.
They both had a tough time but they always tried to help each other and they were there for each other whenever they were close to giving up.
And if were already at it, lets not forget about their easy banter!!! Haha! There were so many scenes where I had to laugh out loud and I swear I could read an entire book just about them making sassy remarks! lol Not to mention how they kicked the spectators butts in the end! They certainly make an amazing team and I just want MORE!!! lt
”I was there on Raskdod.
Do you think I didnt notice I was half a step behind you most of the way, Youre goddamn captivating. ”
I hoped for a blush even though Vs probably werent capable of it my arrogance evidently knew no bounds, Instead she rolled her eyes, “Captivating I was surviving. ”
“Like a boss. ” I winked at her and she laughed, My chest filled with air, I grinned from ear to ear, Hell yes.
Varick amp Jameson:
”Id gotten my best friend back, Hundreds of years had passed, a thousand new friends had come and gone and not one of them had held a candle to that man.
Yeah, I had a bit of a brocrush on him, But some people were kindred spirits, plain and simple, We were the best team Id ever known, ”
Bless Jameson for never giving up on Varick and Varick for never giving up on Jameson as well! They definitely have one of the best brotherly bonds I ever read about and I cant wait to see more of their interactions in book three.
Well, at least I really hope there will be more! I need to see their friendship unfold and Im sure Caroline will do me the favour, wont you lol
My conclusion:
I loved “Fresh From The Grave”! Just like the first book this one was a fast paced, bloody and very intriguing read! Thosepages read like they were nothing and I basically flew through this book! So much action, banter, plotting and even more bloodthirsty Vs! If you like your vampires without conscience and are interested in the idea of humans being the true evil, this will be a perfect read for you! Highly recommended!.