Monday, April 9, 2012

Illuminate by Aimee Agresti

Illuminate
Gilded Wings 1

Author: Aimee Agresti
Pages: 531 pgs
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Release Date: March 6th 2012
Review Source: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

I couldn't wait to read this book and was so excited when I got a copy from the publisher. Aimee's debut was fun and interesting and a great set up for the rest of the series.

Life for Haven Terra takes a dramatic turn when she and two fellow classmates, Dante and Lance, find out they've been awarded an internship at a pretty swanky hotel in Chicago. And when they arrive, it's to the astonishing recollection that everyone is absolutely gorgeous, including the hotel owner Aurelia, and her second Lucian.

The more time Haven spends in the hotel, the more she realizes something just isn't right. Especially with the hotel staff called The Outfit. With the help of a mysterious book, and later her friends, Haven discovers an underground route that will lead her to more than she ever could have imagined. There's more to the world that she's walked into, and if she's not careful her soul and everyone else's could be on the line.

From the moment I started reading this I was pulled in. The slow build up to the climax of the story and even the character building set a great tone. I loved getting to know Haven and seeing her beginning to realize that things just weren't quite right at the hotel. Her growth from the beginning to the end was fabulous and didn't just happen over night.

I also enjoyed the background information of old time Chicago and even Al Capone. It added a bit of mystery and even overlay to the setting of The Outfit and Aurelia at the hotel. On the outside they seemed beautiful and perfect, but there was more lurking beneath the surface.

Aimee created a fantastic world and left me wanting to know more. We got a little taste of just what was going on around them and who they really were, but there is so much more to come. I can't wait to find out what's next for Haven, Lance, and Dante in the next book!

For more information on the author you can check out her website http://www.aimeeagresti.com/ or follow her on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/AimeeAgresti.

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