Arise by Tara Hudson

Arise by Tara Hudson

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Goodreads: Amelia—still caught between life and death—must fight for every moment of her relationship with the human boy Joshua. They can hardly even kiss without Amelia accidentally dematerializing. Looking for answers, they go to visit some of Joshua’s Seer relatives in New Orleans. But even in a city so famously steeped in the supernatural, Amelia ends up with more questions than answers…and becomes increasingly convinced that she and Joshua can never have a future together.Wandering through the French Quarter, Amelia meets other in-between ghosts, and begins to seriously consider joining them. And then she meets Gabrielle. Somehow, against impossible odds, Gaby has found a way to live a sort of half-life...a half-life for which Amelia would pay any price. Torn between two worlds, Amelia must choose carefully, before the evil spirits of the netherworld choose for her.

My thoughts: Hudson released Hereafter last year and I have been DYING to find out where it can go. Okay, not really dying because then I'd be in a bad spot, like Amelia.

Last time we met Amelia, she banished her demons, remembered who she was and realized she'd been stuck for a decade. She'd also saved a few lives and fallen in love with Joshua who is alive. Amelia is dead and has been for the past decade. Turns out that Joshua is from a family of seers who awakens their gift upon a near death experience.

This time Amelia is reflective on the hopelessness of the relationship with Joshua. She is still dead. She doesn't want Joshua to be dead and she is still stuck in between. She wants to enter the netherworld and rescue her father but she can't enter it anymore. But then she receives a message from an unlikely messenger. She needs to get off the radar. The underworld wants her. She is powerful and they are coming. They will harm those she loves to get to her.

The setting and characters change dramatically for this book. Amelia goes with Joshua's family to New Orleans for a holiday. This brings in an added element of Voodoo and more of the seer family. Like I mentioned earlier, I wondered how this story would progress but it did. I enjoyed it almost as much as the first one which included the added novelty of Amelia's circumstances.

I can't wait for the next book!


*I received a free copy of this book from publishing company in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.