Tempted (A House of Night Novel) by P.C. and Kristin Cast

My copy of Tempted finally arrived on Saturday and I just now finished it...what a page turner! All I can say, is OH. MY. GODDESS! I really think this is the best book in P.C. and Kristin Cast's House of Night Series. The book picked up directly where Hunted left off, with Zoey Redbird trying to figure out how defeat fallen immortal, Kalona. If that wasn't enough pressure for seventeen year old fledgling, Zoey is still trying to balance her feelings for Erik, Stark, and childhood sweetheart, Heath. It's funny to me how the fact that Zoey "juggling three boyfriends" sounds so unbelievably cheesy, but is written in a way that you actually feel sorry for her emotional dilemma. The Casts write both Stark and Heath in such a way that you're not sure who you would choose, either!

Even though the teeny-bopper dialogue is a bit forced and a tad annoying, the characters are easy to admire an love. Zoey is doing her best to distinguish her real feelings for Kalona, (that are intensified in the HOT dream sequences she shares with Kalona) and can not decipher if she believes he has the capacity to choose his humanity over his evil side. Zoey knows that to defeat Kalona and rid him from this realm, she must face him...but is she strong enough to resist his unworldly allure? Sheesh, I wouldn't be able to! Great job, P.C. and Kristin, for writing every male character in your novels to be such perfect stud muffins. It sure does make reading about Zoey's life in The House of Night all the more interesting!

Although Zoey's essential conflicts are the same in this novel, one of the main differences between this book and others in the series is that it isn't only written from Zoey's point of view. The Cast duo shifts narrators with each chapters. At first, it annoyed me, but I enjoyed seeing things from hillbilly (and red vampyre) Stevie Rae's perspective, and even enjoyed being in the mind of bitchy Aphrodite for awhile. It certainly kept the story interesting and ever-changing. I can't give away too much, but this book mainly sets the stage for the next novel in the series, Burned. I will warn you that the ending of Tempted is a doosey, and will piss off a lot of fans, but will leave you craving for the next installment of Zoey Redbird's complicated and exciting life! If you haven't started this series, you MUST pick up MARKED (the first book in The House of Night) today. Fun, fun, fun teen reads!