Captivate

Captivate by Carrie Jones picks up where Need left off: Zara, her friends Issie and Dev, her werewolf boyfriend Nick, and her grandmother Betty (also a were) have captured Zara's pixie father and many of his subjects and trapped them in a house deep in the Maine woods. It's not a perfect plan for how to deal with the problem of the cruel pixies, but it's the best idea they have had to keep their town free of the menace. So it's back to school and the rather normal things of life...until more pixies begin to show up and Zara finds those she loves in dire peril. This sequel is packed with action and emotion, though it does seem like mostly a bridge to the next entry in the series. Zara's love for Nick is strong and fierce, and she's no simpering wallflower waiting to be rescued, taking charge and making hard decisions. This creates tension between Nick and Zara, which makes their relationship that much more believable. Things are complicated by the appearance of another pixie king named Astley; Zara has to determine whether or not she can trust him...which might become a life or death decision in more ways than one. I really enjoyed Captivate, and I liked how Ms. Jones allows Zara to experience the full range of emotions: love, anger, confusion, grief--they're all there in full measure. My main problem with the novel came in its ultimate ending (which is obviously a set up for the next book) since I could not see Zara pausing even a moment from the quest for which she made such a huge sacrifice. Other than that, this book...well, captivated me. I had a hard time finding a stopping point every time I picked it up, and I was drawn into the story completely. I will be waiting excitedly for the next installment to find out just where we're going and how we're going to get there.