Hades by Alexandra Adornetto

Beth's been through Hell...

Beth and Xavier were meant to be, their relationship has survived angels, demons and worse. But now a familiar presence returns, one that she'd thought they'd overcome, one with the power to destroy them all... Jake Thorn.

A simple, albeit dangerous prank unleashes the Hell of all surprises and Beth and Xaviers relationship is once more put to the test.

Unwillingly dragged to the alternate of Heaven...Hades, Beth must find a way to return to Earth and her loved ones or the consequences could be dire

Jake’s not taking any chances this time, and to ensure he breaks Beth, he decides to go after her once Achilles heel. To spare Xavier, Beth finds herself dancing with the Devil, and intricate web of deceit and sacrifice, one wrong step and all Hell could break loose...

----oO0Oo----

Ta-da! My sorta quick and hopefully enticing short summary, now I’ll actually start with the reviewing. Shall we start with the characters?

Why yes, yes we shall. So obviously there’s Beth, the protagonist of the book, a naive and hopeful angel on the corrupt and distorted planet we call Earth. Her hope and overall goodness is something that is very endearing, but she’s just so helpless and oblivious to the dangers. At times she is too naive which is usually the start of the problems. How trusting she is?!?!
She’d probably be the type of kid that actually gets in the van when told there’s candy.

I’m not saying that it’s a bad trait, but I think she needs to be able to distinguish between those with bad intentions and those with good, because frankly, it’s getting old. Throughout the entire book she’s just a tad helpless, yes, I understand that she’s kinda trapped, but maybe she should have spent her time being more constructive, I don’t know... building a bomb or something... :D

Nevertheless, Beth always seems to know what to do and when to do it, which I have rather mixed feelings about. She’s also so selfless, and sweet and that’s quite inspiring. At times she’s a little cheesy, even going as far as calling Xavier “Huggiebear”.
Bleugh! Too sweet, I think I’m getting a cavity.
And don’t even get me started on the quotes. Oh wait, I’ve already started and now I’m on a rampage... Nothing can stop me now!
Ahem:

“My one true love, the light of my life”

Now where have we heard that one before? Hmmm...Try everywhere!!!! I’m seriously debating screaming at Alexandra Adornetto right now... oh wait, debate’s over and I am already screaming at her! Don’t get me wrong, she’s a brilliant author, but I honestly wonder where her brilliant mind was when she typed that up. It’s just so clichéd! Alexandra is so much more than that! She should have been able to come up with something conveying more emotion than “Light of my life”. pfffssshhh

Jake, he’s such a mixed character, but strangely magnetic. So he’s a gorgeous demon Prince, the root of all of Xavier and Beth’s problems. Whenever the happily-ever-after draws near, Jake pops up. Yep, that's right blame the demon :) He’s also so weird, one moment he’s apologetic, the next moment he’s murderous. He really is a piece of work.

Ivy and Gabriel were as composed as ever, though Ivy seems to have changed and has become more bitter than necessary, whilst Gabriel is becoming more empathetic. The little side story of him and Molly is quite cute, though a tad depressing.

Xavier, he was quite the presence throughout the book, he really does care for Beth and the story is so, so cute. He has a couple of adorable and inspirational quotes, and it seems he’s developed a backbone, as opposed to his lack of one in Halo. His perseverance is another charming quality, knowing that someone would go to Hell for you, is kind of a bonus...

Molly, gosh she’s annoying at times, I think she’s the reason they invented Duct tape... nah... I’m being mean. Molly is very determined throughout the second half of the story, and her persistence is admirable. Her character contributes some variety to the story. It shows that friends should always be there for you... gosh that sounds cheesy :) I’m such a hypocrite, here I am berating Alexandra and then I quote something equally bad... there goes my credibility! ;)

The plot and script was slightly tacky at times but quite unpredictable and easy to follow. The storyline was very original and I love the different ideas and themes incorporated into it. It dragged at times, but it was still enjoyable. I quite like how Alexandra presents the big, bad underworld with a modern, new and exciting twist.

Another controversial factor was how Alexandra enabled the readers to view what was going on in the outside world without changing perspectives, by having Beth “project” herself. It was an easy solution, too easy if you ask me... Come to think of it, several things were way too easy and sloppy, almost as if they were just thrown in there to complete the story.

Warning to all those of you who haven’t had their minds poisoned: Hades isn’t as innocent as Halo, it’s not all holding hands and stolen kisses anymore... **dun dun dun**
Okay, fine, I’m being overly dramatic, but still...

Personally, I prefer Halo, but Hades has a certain sinister and twisted feel to it. Waiting for the 3rd book now.

Yes you heard me: there’s another book, why? BECAUSE THERE’S A CLIFFHANGER!!! Arrrgghhh.
Cliff-hangers... the bane of my existence!
It wasn’t a ginormous cliff-hanger, it was a little unexpected though.

The 3rd installment will be called Heaven