Book Review: Vernal by Randi Cooley Wilson

Nichole

July 10, 2016

1936

Vernal by Randi Cooley Wilson

To be Released on June 30th, 2016

Genre: New Adult/Paranormal/Fantasy

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25901506-vernal

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/vernal-randi-cooley-wilson/1123441022?ean=2940152864090

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Vernal-Royal-Protector-Academy-Novel-ebook/dp/B01C65MLGC

Serena has a bright future etched in stone.
Tristan has a dark past that haunts him.
Together, they have a love that can never be.

Sheltered, and unable to escape her bloodline, Serena St. Michael has spent the last two years training at the Royal Protector Academy. Struggling with a dark past, Tristan Gallagher’s current assignment is to protect a lifetime of secrets. One chance encounter will change everything. Serena must decide if she will follow her heart, forsaking all she’s ever known and risking a future worse than non-existence. Tristan will break every rule to save Serena, even if he can’t keep her. In their world of darkness, one love will ignite an ancient war. When pasts collide with the present, and secrets are revealed, will love be enough? Or will one lie destroy it all?

When you’ve hidden behind a mask for so long, would you reveal yourself for love? Vernal, the first novel in The Royal Protector Academy series is a dangerously exciting and darkly romantic tale that will take your breath away.

About the Author:

Randi Cooley Wilson is a “New Adult” Paranormal/Fantasy and Contemporary Romance author. A resident of Massachusetts, she makes stuff up, devours romance books, drinks lots of wine and coffee, and has a slight addiction to bracelets. For more information visit:http://randicooleywilson.com

My Review
I fell in love with Randi Cooley Wilson clear back when she introduced me to Asher and Eve. Her writing is magnetic, powerful, and full of love and heartbreak. Vernal, the first in an all new series, brings many of those attributes to the table.
I’m going to try and keep this review as spoiler free as I can keep it. What I will say, though, is that I obviously hadn’t read the synopsis of this book very clearly. You’ll understand what I mean when you read the book, but I felt totally blindsided by some of the revelations this book introduces. That being said, I’m still not sure how I feel about who these characters actually are…… It made me question things that I’ve previously read and…..you know….I’m not really sure quite how to put it. I was just really blindsided and confused.
While I did really enjoy this book, I was very much put off by the returning characters in this book. I didn’t enjoy the fact that this book is so far in the future or how they acted. I was very disappointed in the behavior of several of the returning characters to say the least. After following them in the past four books, I kind of expected more from them….
The whole thing with Gage has me super confused. Don’t get me wrong, I’m SO EXCITED for his book (Seriously, 2018?!) but this book left me a little………confused. Is his book going to be NA or adult contemporary? I’m a little confused at how that all is going to take place. Also, will it be set after the Vernal series? I’m curious as to how that is all going to work out.
Serena and Tristan were a very enjoyable couple to read about. However, I didn’t enjoy them nearly as much as I did with Asher and Eve. I also think that I liked Tristan a lot more than Serena. It took me awhile to warm up to her….. What I will say, though, is that Tristan was HOT! Not quite to the degree of hot as Asher was, but definitely hot! Also, he was hilarious!
The sexiness in this book was way more on point than in the previous series! My only minor complaint was that they were kind of short and a little…..awkward. I would have liked them to have a bit more heat. Also, I would have liked some more heated “wow” scenes between Tristan and Serena. More like the ones between Asher and Eve. However, I did really appreciate that those scenes were more detailed than in the past.
One thing that I absolutely loved in Vernal was the funny, quirky scenes that were mixed in throughout the whole book. I was laughing (mostly from Tristan) throughout the whole book! I LOVED those scenes! I hope that more are mixed in throughout the rest of the series!
Another thing that I really loved about Vernal was one of the major AHA moments mixed in. It was something that I just didn’t see coming. I was super impressed at Randi’s sneakiness with that!
The ending of Vernal was a bit rushed for my personal taste. I would have liked to see more of an action scene than what was there. That being said, the ending really sets it up well for the second book.
Overall, I thought this was a good start to a new series. I didn’t think it was nearly as good as the previous books in the series, but it interested me. I am very excited to see where Randi takes this series and to see more chemistry development between Serena and Tristan! Bring on the sexiness!
[rating: 3.5]

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