Review: Evermine (Daughters of Askara #2) by Hailey Edwards

by Buffy KennedyJune 9, 2012

TLDR Recap:

Five years after her life-long love tore Emma and her sister from their life of abuse and reportedly died the same night, he returned from the grave ready to claim her as his. But he’s haunted by the things he endured while held captive, and she’s wracked with guilt for her behavior during his absence. Their obstacles prove too great, driving them to spend another year apart in new roles back in Askara before trouble with raiders land Harper at Emma’s door once again. GraveTells says you must go read their story!

Title: Evermine
Series: Daughters of Askara book #2
Author: Hailey Edwards
Prominent Characters: Harper and Emma
Recommended Reader Age: 18+
Sexual Content Level: Moderate

*** This review is SPOILER-FREE! Read on with confidence! ***

Thoughts:

Who doesn’t love a tortured hero? I know a lot of us here at GT do, myself included. While the overall feeling from the book is what you expect from Hailey Edwards, the experience itself is a little darker than her others, and it’s because Harper and Emma have both been through so much and are forced to face and really deal with it. In Everlong, Maddie and Clayton were sweet and cute together, whereas Emma and Harper only have moments like that but simply have a rougher edge. The bottom line is that they’ve always been the rocks for their families, had to make the difficult decisions, and had to endure a lifetime of even harder consequences due to those choices.

The writing style is a little different than I remember from her other works, mostly just from the POV aspect. We only ever see from Emma or Harper’s points of view, but it’s written in first person when in Emma’s head and third person when in Harper’s. This isn’t a bad thing, just a little weird as I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before. I think it’s neat though, as it definitely set the characters apart.

Possibly the coolest thing about Evermine is that it takes us back to Askara. There’s a new queen, and this allows Emma and Harper to return to their home world in new capacities as their way of life has undergone a revolution. It’ll take time, but both are anxious to play their parts to make it happen. This allows us readers to see more of the realm that our characters were raised in, including the magical elements which play a large part in their escapades through various places within Askara this time around, reminding us that Hailey excels in delivering an exciting fantasy with surprisingly relatable characters (at least emotionally, as I doubt any of you are princesses and I hope none of you have been slaves!).

If you liked Evermine…

If you enjoyed Evermine, make sure you check out book 1 in the series, Everlong, if you haven’t already. It’s the story of how Harper whisked Emma and Maddie away so they can have a better life, especially when Maddie meets Clayton.

Final Thoughts:

This second installment of the Daughters of Askara series is full of wonderfully complex relationships, exciting mortal danger, and ambitious political power plays. Witnessing Harper and Emma’s struggles to put the pieces of their once envisioned future, that was stolen from them and left shredded, back together is heartbreaking but satisfying. You must read Evermine if you want a fun, emotional rollercoaster ride and a captivating story!