Series Review (so far): The Rephaim by Paula Weston - AMAZING!!

I rarely stumble upon a paranormal (creatures) series that I enjoy. The last two I've loved were The Violet Eden Chapters series by Jessica Shirvington and recently The Dispossessed trilogy by Page Morgan. So If you're a fan of the previous mentioned series, then you'll 100% love The Rephaim series. 

This will be a series review of the first two books, Shadows and Haze. They won't be separated because I read them almost back to back and feel a combined review of the two books is more informative than separate distinct reviews. 

It’s been almost a year since Gaby Winters was in the car crash that killed her twin brother, Jude. Her body has healed in the sunshine of Pandanus Beach, but her grief is raw and constant.

It doesn’t help that every night in her dreams she kills demons and other hell-spawn. And then Rafa comes to town. Not only does he look exactly like the guy who’s been appearing in Gaby’s dreams, he claims a history with her brother that makes no sense. 

Gaby is forced to accept that what she thought she knew about herself and her life is only a shadow of the truth – and that the truth is more likely to be found in the shadows of her nightmares.Who is Rafa? Who are the Rephaim? And most importantly – who can she trust?

SHADOWS: GOODREADS | CHAPTERS | AMAZON | B&N

HAZE: GOODREADS | CHAPTERS | AMAZON | B&N 

The beginning of Shadows was so gripping. I was so intrigued by everything. I mean, have your sad the synopsis of it? Gaby lost her brother a year ago, barely has contact with her parents, and is now trying to move on. Her pain through losing her brother was so playable.. my heart was aching for her. However when a guy suddenly appears claiming to know her brother.. all hell breaks loose. Let me tell you, whatever you think the direction of the book will go.. I can guarantee you, it isn't that. I was looking out for the typical paranormal cliche plot falls and I received none. From the mysterious Rafe that isn't mysterious at all, to the big mystery behind her memory loss and her nightmares. It is all just well written. The attraction, the romance, the friendship, and the introduction of an onslaught of new characters were all brilliantly written in a way that gives depth to ally he characters, as well as makes them all memorable, including the secondary characters. 

The plot guys.. it was just so addicting. Everything is laced with mystery. Yes it is paranormal and a sub-genre that has been excessively done, but this is so unique in the memory loss aspect. Also, can we please crown Gaby the most kick butt character ever? I loved how all the characters didn't hold back. There was no censorship going on. They said what they wanted, swore when they couldn't hold it back.. this is something typical of seventeen to eighteen year olds. There was no air of innocence that is usually present in YA books. The first book was one heck of a book. I knew instantly this is going to become one of my favorite series, however I could only confirm it by reading Haze. 

Paula Weston took no time to jump right back into the action. Haze didn't suffer from a lack of action scenes. It was definitely an adrenaline pumping book. Haze literally started less than 10 days from the beginning of Shadows. I loved that. I felt like I'm experiencing what Gaby is feeling in a real timeline. The introduction of a new plot in Haze was freaking fantastic. Since I can't spoil Shadows for you, I won't be saying what it is but it is very hard for me to keep my excitement over what happened in this book. The romance between Gaby and Rafe is so natural and totally a secondary plot line. Don't fear from romances overtaking paranormal books here. 

With Haze, I became even more invested in the characters and their well beings. I love Paula Weston's writing too. I'm big on visualizations so the way she describes everything without spending paragraphs on it and doing it right, as well as the dialogues; it was all done brilliantly. I never got tired reading Haze to the point of not knowing that I was in the last chapter until I flipped to read the next chapter but found out the acknowledgments page. I might have screamed a "NOOOOO" in the middle of my house. I definitely recommend The Rephaim series to paranormal fans in need of something original and unique as well as YA fans in need of something a bit more mature and interesting. I am so excited for Shimmer! Us North American citizens won't get the book until mid 2015, but it's already out in the UK (just an FYI, I might order it form The Book Depository #Sorrynotsorry). 

She is the author of the Rephaim series.
She is also an avid reader and blogger, a huge fan of Australian literature and fantasy/paranormal stories, a closet comic reader and TV addict...and she's borderline obsessed with the Foo Fighters.