Author: Marissa Meyer
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Genre: YA dystopian
Pages: 474
Rating: 5/5 stars
Synopsis:
“The Renegades Trilogy continues, in this fiercely awaited second installment after the New York Times-bestselling Renegades by Marissa Meyer, author of the Lunar Chronicles.
Time is running out.
Together, they can save the world.
But they each other’s worst nightmare.
In Renegades, Nova and Adrian (aka Insomnia and Sketch) fought the battle of their lives against the Anarchist known as the Detonator. It was a short-lived victory.
The Anarchists still have a secret weapon, one that Nova believes will protect her. The Renegades also have a strategy for overpowering the Anarchists, but both Nova and Adrian understand that it could mean the end of Gatlon City – and the world – as they know it.”
I am so blown away by this book! Marissa Meyer made this sequel everything I wanted and more and now I’ll be forced to wait a painful year for the final book in this trilogy… I think my heart is going to burn up with anticipation.
Archenemies was a MASSIVE step forward for this story. It takes the story beyond anything Renegades did as it pushes new political and personal issues to the forefront. Suddenly the world isn’t completely captivated by who is deemed good or bad, but instead it twists the views of who can be considered a hero and how morals can play a part in that. Marissa Meyer is artfully weaving this universe and pulling on my heart strings in the process. Gatlon City feels deep, authentic, and well orchestrated to the point that it feels like the perfect puzzle of a city – and Marissa is waiting to drop the final pieces into place.
Of course, I adored the characters in this story. I’m constantly intrigued by Nova’s character and seeing where she will drive the story since she is constantly throwing me off. One second I understand her and the next she’s a stranger driven by morals I could never understand… but that’s what makes her unique. She and Adrian, unknowingly, drive the tension in this story and it’s so freaking perfect. As much as I love Adrian (which is A LOT) I still feel like he’s too good to be true. He feels so perfect that it’s off. Sure, he has the whole Sentinel secret identity thing going on but I want more from him. I want to hear about how he grew up and I want to see more development for his character in the final book. But besides Nova and Adrian I finally began to learn about the side characters. To be perfectly honest I had forgotten their names and powers because they were pretty forgettable BUT their larger role in Archenemies was refreshing and I’m beginning to actually care about them just a little bit.
One of my favorite things about this book was the relationship between Adrian and Nova. Their slow burn, sorta there but sorta not, romance in book one had my blood pounding and this book keeps their dynamic going in a fresh way. I love seeing these two characters together because despite their differences they compliment each other well. Their banter was funny and their attempts at flirting were even funnier. Nova and Adrian have an extremely authentic awkward teen romance going on that I adore. It has the perfect balance of cute moments and cringy “why did I say that” moments that are in tune with the characters.
This book was miraculously both character driven and plot driven … and it read beautifully. I don’t have much preference for what drives the story but I haven’t seen a book written quite like Archenemies was. The characters move the plot points to suit their needs and also are forced into scenarios due to the world. The balance was amazing and made the story fun to read. I would say this story is more character driven and less action packed than Renegades but I loved them equally. This book finds its focuses on other topics but leaves off in a way that ensure plenty of battle and drama to come in the conclusion.
In the beginning I was never sure if I would even like the first book in this trilogy. It didn’t seem like the type of story I would enjoy… but I’m really glad I picked it up now because these books are creative, funny, and well developed. Archenemies was a ride from start to finish and leaves off with a promising finale for this trilogy that I know will shatter my heart.
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