For the Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfeund

Source: Bought
It's been several generations since a genetic experiment gone wrong caused the Reduction, decimating humanity and giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family's estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot's estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth--an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.
But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret--one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she's faced with a choice: cling to what she's been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she's ever loved, even if she's lost him forever.
Inspired by Jane Austen's persuasion, "For Darkness Shows the Stars" is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.
I have been trying to write this book for months, but every time I started it, I began to sound like a fangirl  So I apologize for that. I really loved this book. Like really liked it. Like I read slow, because I enjoyed the writing so much that I wanted to savor every single word. Elliot North is a strong girl with a lot of pressure on her, at the same time, she was very realistic and approachable. I just really liked her. Kai intrigued me from the beginning and I wanted to know everything about him. I enjoyed the relationship between Kai and Elliot. I liked that they could just stare at each other and I felt all of the emotions. The letters were a lovely way to introduce the past without having a large amount of information dumping. While reading, I would look ahead to see when the next letter was, because I was very anxious to read them all.The plot was very tense and I liked the feeling of not knowing everything and becoming surprised on the way. I haven't read Persuasion yet, but I know from Emma and Pride and Prejudice that Austen is a huge fan of surprising her readers and I was glad to see that Peterfeund kept this element. I also enjoyed the  world that she built. I was interested about everything from the solar cars to the Birth Houses. Peterfeund's writing is spectacular. The imagery and dialogue were amazing and I found that I wanted to read more. I can't wait for more from Peterfeund in the future, hopefully another killer unicorn book. Even if it isn't, I am already excited for the next book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that loves Jane Austen and also to fans of romance. I promise that you will adore this book as much as I did. Even if you aren't in those categories  you should check it. It is one of those books that I would totally hand to everyone on the street, if I could afford to do so. This book is so magical and awesome.  It is now one of my favorites.

Ascendant by Diana Peterfreund

Rating:
Characters: 18/20
Plot: 20/20
Originality: 20/20
Writing: 19/20
Recommendation: 18/20
Overall: 95/100 or A
Source: Publisher
Now a fully trained unicorn hunter, Astrid Llewelyn is learning that she can’t solve all her problems with a bow and arrow. Her boyfriend has left Rome, the Cloisters is in dire financial straits, her best friend’s powers are mysteriously disintegrating, and her hope of becoming a scientist seems to be nothing but an impossible dream.
So when she’s given the opportunity to leave the Cloisters and use her skills as part of a scientific quest to discover the Remedy, Astrid leaps at the chance. Finally, she can have exactly what she wants—or can she? At Gordian headquarters deep in France, Astrid begins to question everything she had believed: her love for Giovanni, her loyalty to the Cloisters, and—most of all—her duty as a hunter. Should Astrid be saving the world from killer unicorns or saving unicorns from the world?
I adore Unicorns, and Peterfreund's kick ass hybrid of killer unicorns are even more epic. After reading Rampant, I was so pumped for Ascendant. Astrid came back just as awesome. She was just as brave and strong as the first book, but now she has a fraction of doubt about what she is doing. She doesn't have time to see her mother or go to school, which made me sad. She is one of the few YA characters that though past the next month and had a plan for what she wanted to do in life. That is until, she get the offer of a lifetime... a job working at Gordian Pharmaceuticals. I loved that it allowed her to make her own decisions in this book and not just what the Cloisters wanted. Also that, you got to see some issues that the world was dealing with, because of the return of the unicorns.

The opinion that I had about Gordian, changed at the beginning, because Isabeau seemed to be a such a sweet and caring person that wanted to no longer be tied to what happened in the previous book, but she turned out to be not the person that she seemed. I hated the abuse on the einhorns and it kept on making me cry like a baby. The plot left me with so many questions about Peterfreund's magical world and the last few chapters were so hard to read. I really hope that there will be a third book. Peterfreund's writing was stunning and ingenious. I could picture every move on the battle scene. I loved Ascendant, more then Rampant. It was unpredictable and ingenious. I think that you should start this series soon, I am sure that you will not regret it.

Rampant by Diana Peterfreund

Characters: 19/20

Plot: 18/20

Originality: 19/20

Writing: 19/20

Recommendation: 20/20

Overall: 95/100 or A

Source: Library

When you think of Unicorns, you think of fluffy creatures with a wondrous horn and full of sparkles. Real unicorns are venomous, man-eating monsters with huge fangs and razor-sharp horns. Luckily, they have been extinct for a hundred and fifty years. Astrid has always scoffed at her eccentric mother's stories about killer unicorns. But when one of the monsters attacks her boyfriend—thereby ruining any chance of him taking her to the prom—Astrid finds herself headed to Rome to train as a unicorn hunter at the ancient cloisters the hunters have used for centuries. However, at the cloisters all is not what it seems. Outside, the unicorns wait to attack. And within, Astrid faces other, unexpected threats: from the crumbling, bone-covered walls that vibrate with a terrible power to the hidden agendas of her fellow hunters to—perhaps most dangerously of all—her growing attraction to a handsome art student . . . an attraction that could jeopardize everything.

I loved Astrid. She didn't want to become a unicorn hunter and was a whiny. Yet she was strong when she needed to be. She also protective of those that she loved. My favorite character in Rampant was Bonegrinder. Bonegrinder was such a cute character and she was so innocent, because she didn't know that attacking nonhunters was bad. I want my own house Zhi. Giovanni is a great romantic interest and also was very sweet. All of the other girls were strong, smart, and had different attributes. I loved how they were all one of a kind and I love them. The plot of Rampant was slow to begin with, but the book slowly gained momentum. I loved how these Unicorns were not fluffy, but dangerous. I didn't think that this Unicorn Hunter plot would work, but the lore of Unicorns were changed and made into a believable world. I also loved that this book was so unique and that is a brand new take on Unicorns. Peterfreund is an amazing writer. She created a world that I wanted to get lost in. I loved this book and can't wait for the next book. I highly recommend this book and think that you should go read it right now.