House of Night (9) - Destined by P.C. and Kristin Cast
And to the ninth part of the series: Destined (in German Bestimmt, in French Destinée). I read it in German where it contained 540 pages. 2011 published.
No matter how hard she tries to fix it, Z's life is and stays a mess. Her latest problem: A part time Raven, who's he BF's boyfriend, the son of one of her enemies and, of course, the latest issue of fighting in the clique. Then, of course, the evil Tsi Sgili of the year and her living weapon, Aurox, is as fascinating as confusing, her mother has been murdered and the High Council refuses to help her. Oh, and a girl has been marked blood red while the heart of the clique is breaking apart.
First of all to the good things: I like Shaylin and Thanatos, even though their gifts are actually unnecessary if Aphrodite's around. Because her oracle-mojo should actually be able to... well, make their powers unnecessary. She saw what happened to Kalona, so she should be able to see the aura of a person if she just looks. And she should be able to pull of that ritual, it has to be in one of the books somewhere, right? If my gift would be rooted in a connection to the Otherworld, I'd read as much as I could about the place and the death-related spells and such. So, again, why is Thanatos gifted that way?
But besides the fact that her talent is unnecessary, I like her. How she puts Neferet where she belongs and all of that, her lessons. Everything about her – even though I must admit that this “getting angry” is a little cheap. It would have been better if there was a detailed description of what happens and then someone drawing the comparison to the Lord of the Rings.
Shaylin herself is cool as well, I like how honest and open she is – her personality in general. But, about her tattoo. It's said that “all broken vampyres and fledgelings are red”. So. This is the first time someone with a physical handicap has been marked and, therefore, ended up red? In all those centuries?
Plus, Z's soul was shattered. It can't get more broken, can it? So why the heck isn't she red?
I also like Nicole, she's not exactly nice, but she reminds the group of what actually matters: The lives of innocents, and that it's easy to create a black-white-world, but only because it's an illusion – and the real thing far more complex.
Okay, I've already started talking about the mistakes, I might as well get on with it.
- Spoiler:
The High Council. I want to work there. Seriously, they're really cool. In the House of Night of Tulsa, a fledgeling has been marked with a full half-moon and has more abilities than anyone before her. No one cares. She gets really many tattoos and signs, that their goddess really likes her. Why should anyone ask her something about that? Teachers are murdered and the headmaster declares war on humanity. Finally, something happens: the High Priestess of the goddess pays a visit – and is murdered. Meanwhile, another type of fledgelings and vampyres shows up, they are a) something new and b) potentially dangerous. An immortal with wings shoots from bloodied earth. The High Council doesn't even send someone to look at the crime scene, let alone tries to find out who did it, who the fallen angel is and why his children are murdering every one in sight. Said headmaster states that she's the incarnation of her goddess and the immortal her Erebos. They don't even think of asking her what the hell has happened, or have her in a check-up to see if she's mental. Besides, their former High Priestess had tattoos which looked like the goddess (no one knows why) and Neferet doesn't, but even this little hint is ignored. The only one who grows suspicious is the helping hand of death – which could be important, since she has an affinity towards the Otherworld – which is ruled by Nyx. Zoey's soul shatters and she comes back alive, with her warrior – a first in history. Besides, her warrior has actually managed to die in the Otherworld. No one asks her to talk about how it looked like, what happened, or about Nyx, even though the two are as thick as thieves. And after she's up and about, even more funerals are held. Thanatos is showing up to investigate Neferet – after NINE books! - and when Z and her friends contact the High Council in order to ask for the set-up of a new House of Night, they simply give in to anything she asks for, without asking questions. They let a seventeen-year-old girl they don't know rule herself and a bunch of other teenagers of a totally unknown species! This “ruling institution” is cool, you get paid for doing absolutely nothing. You probably even have a good pension and a nice health insurance.
- By the way, Stark was more on Neferet's then on Kalona's side, since she had the magic which made him obey to her, didn't she?
- Spoiler:
Apropos Kalona. He denounces Rephaim and it's said that the ex-Ravenmocker looses his immortal blood. So far, so sound. This would have to mean that he a) can die (he could die before, by the way, since Zoey has killed one of his brothers in the 5th part) and b) that the connection doesn't work any more. But he's able to contact Kalona. This is confusing.
- To continue: At the beginning of the book, Rephaim and Dallas talk in Literature. A few hundred pages later, Dallas is forced by Neferet to attend school. He fights, because he doesn't want to leave his new home... right.
- It's said that Lenobia's name was chosen by herself (for the queen), but now her mother has named her. Ooookay.
- How big are the make-shift rooms and tunnels, that Aphrodite gets a huge bed and a chaise-longue in it? Is there even a tiny centimetre of ground floor left in her room? And how did she get it through the hole? Does she have a secret power none of us knows about?
- And how does Aphrodite know what Grandma Redbird's Lavender Ranch looks like? The vision from Untamed (Ungezähmt) was at the tiny river where Zoey split her head.
- Spoiler:
And to Neferet again: She was denounced by her goddess in front of the entire school, maybe two weeks after she raised a fallen angel out of bloody earth. Then, she asks explicitly for the blood of a virgin. And no one even gets suspicious?!
That's as realistic as a so-called mudblood thinking of Lord Voldemort as a bestie!
- Spoiler:
And the ritual: Why did Thanatos plan it in front of the entire class, knowing that Neferet has her spies in it? Why didn't she first say, get yourself something that represents an inner truth, instead of waiting until everyone is at the bus – to give Neferet one opportunity after the other to sabotage the mission? And why does everyone has to make a weed of flowers for Stevie Rae, except for those who actually participate in the ritual? By the way, how does she manage it to balance all 8 of them on her head? And why is she so important, if she doesn't even say one part of the spell? What's her job? Oh, and why are Stark and Darius bound by Neferet's blood magick, if she hasn't explicitly asked for it? The evil isn't known to be forth coming.
In brief:
So, in the end: the style was not special, so no point for that. Neither were the characters. The ideas were great, but the content nonsense. So: No star for Destined!
Prequel:
Extra:
Sequel: