Monday, March 7, 2016

Thornhill (Hemlock #2)

                Hello happy readers!  As I post this there are only a few hours left in my giveaway and I will announce the winner tomorrow at the top of my top ten post.  Good luck!  Now last week I reviewed the first book in the Hemlock trilogy here and today I want to continue on and get my thoughts and feels down for book two, Thornhill by Kathleen Peacock.  Now as this is the second book in the series this review will contain spoilers for the first book so read on at your own risk. 

Rating: 4 Stars

                So when we left off in Hemlock I was a bit peeved at Kyle.  After everything that happened and with how freaked out his girl is and knowing she has some abandonment issues due to her dad he decides to just high tale it in the middle of the night without a word.  Not pleased.  Mac has chosen to not be angry about this but determined to find him and get him back with the help of her dead best friends former boyfriend who she found out has feelings for her and was almost initiated as a full Tracker before he realized just how far they would go, oh and his best friend turned out to be a werewolf so that makes it hard to hate them all.  With only some vague ideas they set off to find him and end up in a werewolf den.  As luck would have it as soon as they find Kyle things take a turn for the worse as huge raiding parties hit all over targeting wolves.  Not about to abandon her friends, despite being human, Mac goes into the newest rehabilitation camps hoping to figure out a way to get those she cares about out and maybe discover some secrets that will help shut down the camps as a whole. 

                I really enjoyed the first book and the sequel didn't let me down.  It was just as fast paced and action packed as the first one.  We follow our core three of Mac, Kyle, and Jason but in this one we get so much more Serena which I adore.  Oh and lets not forget Amy still hanging around in dreams.  I went in thinking there was going to be a long search for Kyle but that was wrong we found him rather quickly which I think helped the book and the pacing, more for me as I was not a fan of his having left like he did.  Thornhill was more centered on the larger agenda.  Where we focused on what was happening in one small town last time and figuring out who murdered her friend, Thornhill focuses on the larger issue of the werewolves and how they are treated and what the world has turned into as a whole by taking us into the new rehab camp aptly titled Thornhill. 

                Mac is still a loveable character to follow.  She is upset at Kyle but she is trying to see things from his perspective and as she thinks she can be mad after she finds him.  She isn't trying to save all the wolves she just wants to keep her little group safe.  She has accepted her boyfriend and friend are werewolves and doesn't agree with how wolves in general are treated but she still struggles with seeing wolves and being afraid of them.  She has had a mixed variety of wolves around her from friendly, dangerous, to downright crazy making her feelings all the more real.  She has a real range of emotions and things to work through but she keeps moving.  Kyle as well has to come to terms with his own issues, he wanted to save those he loved by leaving because he has not yet come to terms with himself.  He has a monster complex. Jason is still a work in progress and at times seems more like a car crash.  Still his charm squeezes through and I still see him a bit as Logan.  While I never saw his connection with Mac as anything but friendship I could feel the tension between them, him caring more for her and her not wanting to hurt him. 

                We also get tons of new characters in this one from the staff at the camp to the huge population of wolves we grow to know.  My favorite is Eve, and not just because we share a name.  She is a no nonsense kind of gal!  She has her own opinions and views on things but she can also smell some BS and she is able to take in new information and admit when she is wrong and readjust.  Also Sinclair….she is so beyond twisted.  There are so many people in this series so far who are just straight up manic.  They are so sure they are right and nothing can stop them and anything is worth their end.  This also relates to the real world in many ways, the prejudices of people to others based on 'X' instead of being a werewolf.  Maybe the majority are not this extreme but it does make you think. 

                Anywho the action was really rolling from secret missions to keep cover inside while trying to stay alive to chases and gun fights, to the obvious wolf fights there was never a dull moment.  Between action and thinking and plotting it's an easy book to fly through.  This series also happily surprised me with the sequel book being a solid story and not just a book that got you to book three but a solid story that not only stands on its own but also contributes to the series as a whole moving into book three.  That's all for now, I'd love to hear your thoughts below in the comments.  Plan to post my review of the last book next week. 


                Until next time…

4 comments:

  1. Great review as always! I really enjoyed this book, even more than the first. :)

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    1. Same I think I liked it a bit more than the first as well. Though the first one had the whole making me think of Veronica Mars that kind of leveled the field ;)

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  2. I adored this book so much! Have you read the third one? I think it's my favorite of the series. This series was not one that I expected to enjoy (or even make it to the third book), but I loved each book and the series overall. I can't wait to read more from the author!

    Lovely review, Eve. =)

    Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

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    1. Yes! I have finished the series and have the final review scheduled for next week! I didn't know what to think when I first picked them but but they were a lot of fun!

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