Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Immortal (Immortal #1)

3.48 of 5 stars 3.48 · rating details · 6,548 ratings · 612 reviews

Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, housed in a Gothic mansion on the bleak northern moors, is elite, expensive, and unwelcoming. When Evie Johnson is torn away from her home by the sea to become the newest scholarship student, she is more isolated than she could have dreamed. Strict teachers, snobbish students, and the oppressive atmosphere of Wyldcliffe leave Evie...more

Hardcover, 368 pages

Published August 4th 2009 by Katherine Tegen Books (first published January 17th 2009)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Judge A Book By Its Cover!

85th out of 2,449 books — 5,802 voters

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

Books With The Blues

26th out of 1,712 books — 652 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Sep 05, 2011 Kat Hooper rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: audiobook

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

Evie Johnson is a new student at Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, which resides in (you’ll never guess) a gothic mansion on the moors. Surprisingly, there are some severe headmistresses there (coiffed with scraped-back buns) and a clique of mean rich girls. They tease Evie for arriving on the train and make discourteous comments when the school mistress announces that Evie is their new “scholarship student.”

You won’t believe it, but Evie has red h...more ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

Evie Johnson is a new student at Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, which resides in (you’ll never guess) a gothic mansion on the moors. Surprisingly, there are some severe headmistresses there (coiffed with scraped-back buns) and a clique of mean rich girls. They tease Evie for arriving on the train and make discourteous comments when the school mistress announces that Evie is their new “scholarship student.”

You won’t believe it, but Evie has red hair and a seemingly innocuous silver pendant which belonged to her mother (who was drowned), grandmother, and other maternal ancestors who have some connection to the area around Wyldcliffe Abbey. Needless to say, I was astonished when Evie started experiencing strange sensations and hallucinations when she arrived at school. These visions are connected to the tragic deaths of two young ladies, one of whom grew up in the Victorian age and wisely kept a diary detailing her experimentation with witchcraft.

In an unpredictable twist, there’s also a mysterious and exotically beautiful boy with no personality who sneaks around on the grounds at night and has fallen hopelessly in love with Evie for no apparent reason. With the help of Sarah, the only nice girl at Wyldcliffe Abbey, and Helen, the strange loner, Evie tries to figure out what’s going on.

Immortal, by Gillian Shields, is a disappointing Wuthering Heights wannabe whose plot so closely mimics Libba Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty, that it begs comparison. And so I will compare it. I didn’t particularly enjoy Bray’s book because of the unlikable girls, but I did find some pleasure and wit between its covers and the audio narration was truly beautiful.

Immortal, however, has nothing going for it. Evie is an ineffective heroine. We’re supposed to root for her because she’s the protagonist of the story, but she’s not particularly engaging or interesting. The only reason to root for Evie is that Celeste (the “ice princess” who’s the classic mean girl caricature) is against her. Likewise, the beautiful boy who falls in love with Evie has nothing to offer. He’s supposed to be tragic and romantic, but I found him annoying and wondered when Evie would ask herself what was wrong with this ridiculous romance. The only tolerable person in Immortal is Sarah, the nice girl. Unfortunately, though the audio version performed by Emily Durante was otherwise well acted, the voice used for Sarah was so highly pitched (sometimes becoming sharp and shrill) that it made even Sarah intolerable.

So, there’s no reason to like any of Shields’ characters, and there’s no charm, wit, beauty, or style to make up for it. Immortal isn’t likely to entertain most adults and most well-read teenagers will also find it derivative, emotionally vapid, and generally unsatisfying. Other than disappointment, while reading Immortal I never felt anything but déjà vu.(less)

7 likes · like · see review

Jan 08, 2011 Bonnie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, 2009-books

Evie: Oh no, I have to go to this stupid boarding school since my grandmother is sick, my dad’s in the army and my mom is dead! Stupid boarding school!

Me: Well, that’s pretty sad about your family and all, but at least you get a good education for free, you know?

Evie: And the stupid cabman wouldn’t even drive me! He just used weird words like “yonder” and muttered dark, cryptic things about the boarding school!

Me: That’s pretty weird. This is a tiny village, right? I have to just assume this, be...more

138 likes · like · see review

Apr 17, 2009 Eve rated it 3 of 5 stars

Okay. I admit that I liked this one. If you haven't noticed I am a sucker for the story of the somewhat lonley, misunderstood female lead who falls in love with the guy who is not quite what he first seems to be. HOWEVER, I will tell you that I liked this story much much more when it was called A Great and Terrible Beauty and was written by Libba Bray.

18 likes · like · see review

Apr 02, 2009 Laura rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009-mt-bookpile

I'm sure I've read this before... but perhaps it only feels like it. Evie is a part-orphan (no mother, father never home) raised by her grandmother; when Frankie becomes to ill to care for Evie, her father sends her to Wyldcliffe Abbey School.

It's clear from the very start that there's something Not Quite Right about the school, about Sebastian (the boy she meets as she arrives) and about who Evie really is. No spoilers, but if you don't get the main plot twists well before they're revealed, yo...more

3 likes · like · see review

Apr 14, 2012 Maxine Mathew rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, series, romance, paranormal, gothic-fiction, owned, book-from-sis, disappointing, fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. May be I had expected too much out of this book. But at the end I was highly disappointed:
- Evie falls in love with Sebastian just after their first meeting solely based on the fact that he was good looking. This was kind of hard for me swallow. Especially since Sebastian was rude and arrogant when they first met. Instead of finding him charming and magnetic, I found him creepy.
- When Sebastian tells Evie that he killed Agnes, instead of feeling mortified even for a moment, she is quick to give...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 28, 2010 Shannon (Giraffe Days) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, paranormal, romance, ya

Evie Johnson is a sensible, responsible girl not much given over to fancy, but there's no denying her world is becoming increasingly strange - and she seems to be in the thick of it. Sent to the village of Wyldcliffe in Yorkshire to attend a boarding school her military father has found for her after her grandmother suffers a stroke, Evie's determined to make the best of things. But on arriving in Wyldcliffe, Evie literally runs into a handsome, ill-looking young man on a horse who somehow manag...more

4 likes · like · see review

Mar 07, 2013 Kaitlyn rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: annoying-heroines, insta-love

This is one of those paranormal books that has every cliche you can think of. I really wanted to like this, but honestly, I couldn't think of anything I enjoyed. It's all just so unoriginal.

- Girl who's lost one or both of her parents?
- Girl gets shipped off to boarding school?
- The teachers are mean and have lots of strict rules?
- Girl is lonely and gets picked on by popular girls?
- Immortal boyfriend who is sad and mysterious?
- Girl falls in love with said boyfriend in a tiny span of time and...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 15, 2009 Briana rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of paranormal romance

Shelves: my-personal-library

Immortal was a compelling and exciting story that kept me turning the pages until I had reached the end. Though I found some parts to be predictable, there were also times when I didn’t have a clue as to how certain elements were connected, which made for an engaging read.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters. I felt they were well developed, realistic, and interesting. However, I must admit that when I heard Sebastian tell Evie to stay from him because he was dangerous I thought, “Oh no, please...more

4 likes · like · see review

Sep 29, 2009 Heather rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, ya

Fans of the Gemma Doyle Trilogy will love this book, though I enjoyed Immortal much more than the former. It took a while for the story to take off, but once it did, I didn’t want to put it down.

Immortal tells the story of a teenage girl named Evie who must attend Wyldcliffe School for Girls in England. She is alone in the world as her father is in the military and her grandmother, and only other guardian, has dementia and has been placed into a rest home. On her trip to the ominous boarding sch...more Fans of the Gemma Doyle Trilogy will love this book, though I enjoyed Immortal much more than the former. It took a while for the story to take off, but once it did, I didn’t want to put it down.

Immortal tells the story of a teenage girl named Evie who must attend Wyldcliffe School for Girls in England. She is alone in the world as her father is in the military and her grandmother, and only other guardian, has dementia and has been placed into a rest home. On her trip to the ominous boarding school, Evie happens upon a handsome, dark cloaked rider. Their meeting is odd at best and Evie is left perplexed by his unusual turns of phrases and aloof manor that masks an underlying spark of interest. Distracted by her thoughts and delayed by the handsome stranger, she arrives late to Wyldcliffe and makes an unfortunate impression upon the Head Mistress who seems to have it out for poor Evie. The environment doesn’t improve as she is introduced to the other girls and to make matters worse, Evie has learned that her acceptance was the result of a former student’s mysterious death. Perhaps that’s why she is seeing ghosts. Distraught by the oppressing school, Evie sneaks out to enjoy the solitude of the moors and once again she happens upon the handsome rider, who we learn is named Sebastian. Sebastian and Evie meet night after night and soon fall in love. Events at school and the individuals within it become more and more bizarre and threatening and to make matters more grim, the ghosts Evie continues to see is warning her about the one thing that makes Evie’s life worthwhile. What follows is a well written though slightly somber tale of magic, ambition, love, friendship and the defying of time.

While Immortal can be predictable at times, I was equally surprised by the unfolding of some details. The alternating points of veiw was well done and provided a much more interesting way of unveiling clues and perspective than what is usually afforded by first person narratives. I certainly look forward to seeing how Evie and Sebastian’s story unfolds.
(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jun 19, 2012 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: series, books-the-library-has

It took me a while to actually get into the book. It has a really good, new, interesting plot. It just never really caught my attention like some other books I've read have. It also kinda bugged me how quickly Evie and Sebastian 'fell in love'. To me it was all to fast. Maybe it was just because we don't get to see all the time they spend together. We just get to see some of the times they meet together. But, even through all that, as all the mysteries strengthen, the book get's a lot more excit...more

2 likes · like · see review

Dec 16, 2011 Ren rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Orang yang suka Twilight

Shelves: ghost, high-school-theme, paranormal, young-adult, annoying-chara, had-translated

Sampai sekarang hal2 yang masih belum jelas dan aneh:
- Tumben Dastan nerbitin YA.
- Apa nerbitin YA ini gara2 nama tokohnya Evie sama Sebastian?? (Devil in Winter alert)
- Covernya ada kelelawar,padahal bukunya bukan tentang vampir lho :D => EPIC FAIL!! =))
- Kenapa ya aku beli ini? Kebanyakan duit kah? Tergiur diskonnya Dastan pas itu kah? =)) Atau mungkin kaget karena tumben (lagi) Dastan nerbitin buku YA, yang dibilang gothic romance. Biar ga keliatan kalo buku YA kali ya :P

Yang pasti, salah...more

2 likes · like · see review

Feb 09, 2011 Ashlynn rated it 5 of 5 stars

i chosse this book because it seemed like I would understand it more then the other books that i have read so far. the genre of the book is paranormal romance. it takes place in England. the main main charater Evie is a girl that dose not like to change what she is use to she trys to fit in at wyldcliffe bording school for girls butthen she relizes thatshe fits in just in a diffrent way. Evie meets a guy and she vows that she willl probley never see him again and that every thing eles at the abb...more

2 likes · like · see review

Dec 03, 2012 Maddy Fritos rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-favorites

This book....the BEST most intriguing novel. This book about Evie Johnson is so complelling and fun to read. Evie goes to a boarding school on a scholarship, everyone makes fun of her and doesnt like her because shes on scholarship money. Evie has her own secrets and dark past. The school has a dark history that most dont know about and somehow, Evie is connected. her and her sisters, desceased Lady Agnes, founder of the school and Sarah and Helen all control elemental powers. These girls are bo...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 18, 2012 Kazen rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book fell right into my sweet spot - a story that unfolds rather than being set, a mysterious man with a troubled past, a normal world that ends up being full of magic. The story is very good and the plot kept me from putting it down for even a moment.

So why only four stars? I'm finding nearly all YA books to lack a measure of depth and this one was no different. Connections were spelled out and characters fit into neat stereotypes (the mean girl, the mean girl's groupie, the one nice girl,...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 08, 2012 Eliza rated it 2 of 5 stars

I would've rated this book a 2.5 but that option is nonexistent. The book only became interesting when you reached the middle. Evie was just a little to naive for my taste and a little bit in denial. I didn't really like Sebastian. He isn't the kind of guy that I like in these teen paranormal romance books. Probably because he wasn't necessarily a teen and he was technically really old fashioned. I kind of hoped he really did die in this book. I didn't really like his name that much mostly becau...more

like · see review

Apr 21, 2012 Sara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 4-stars

Plot: 4.5 Stars
My favorite part of this book was how seamlessly it jumped between the present and the journal entries detailing the past. The journal entries gave the backstory needed to completely understand Sebastian without bogging the reader down with large amounts of dialogue. I also tend to like books that focus on the paranormal in a boarding school setting, and I felt the Wyldcliffe Abbey School was mysterious and creepy in all the right ways. This novel was definitely a fresh take on im...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 04, 2012 Sakura L. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Jam setengah 12 sing tadinya aku selesai membaca novel ini dari kemarin sore.
Evie seorang murid pindahan di sekolah perempuan yang terkenal menyeramkan dan 'dikutuk', bertemu dengan cowok tampan bermata biru cerah yang seharusnya tidak dapat terlihat. Bersama Sarah dan Helen, mereka berempat--bersama Agnes, seorang Lady yang sudah meninggal seratus lima puluh tahun yang lalu--berusaha memerangi Dark Sisters yang adalah pelayan bagi Sebastian, si cowok tampan bermata biru cerah itu.

Sayang, aku me...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 18, 2012 Nic rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: audiobook

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

Feb 01, 2012 Tianna rated it 3 of 5 stars

It began with a typical old, girl gets sent to boarding school. girl meets boy. boy stays on girl's mind.

The differences? Well it seems like Evie has a bit of an attitude not a big one, but its more subtle but either way I'm glad its there. All the teachers are suspiciously crazy or something, like you know there's something off about them. The boy is also quite crazy, but I guess its in a lovestruck/ grieving kinda way.

This book was pretty good, not to shabby. I liked how Agnes journal was wo...more

like · see review

Jan 14, 2012 Jeanette Johnson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

I listened to this book in my car. Here is the summary. I think the story could have been trimmed down some. by the time I got to the end i was just hoping it would be over soon. Too melodramatic for me.

Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, housed in a Gothic mansion on the bleak northern moors, is elite, expensive, and unwelcoming. When Evie Johnson is torn away from her home by the sea to become the newest scholarship student, she is more isolated than she could have dreamed. Strict teache...more

like · see review

Oct 28, 2011 Vanessa Booke rated it 3 of 5 stars

Immortal by Gillian Shields is filled with HEAVY undertones of the Bronte sister's. When I began reading immortal I was instantly drawn into the story. I have to admit I wanted to like the book, especially because so much of it seems inspired by the classics. I found an abundance of beautiful imagery through out the text that reminded me of the moors in Wuthering Heights. Sebastian is conveniently named Sebastian James Fairfax. Does the last name sound familiar? It's from Charlotte Bronte's Jane...more

like · see review

Sep 29, 2011 Margarida Cruz rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: segredo-dos-livros

Depois de um livro mais pesado, excessivamente descritivo e monótono, as primeiras páginas de "Imortal" revelaram-se viciantes e incrivelmente promissoras. A escrita de Gillian Shields é objectiva, directa, simples e, ao mesmo tempo, riquíssima em imagens, descrições, emoções e sensações! Era precisamente aquilo de que estava a precisar. Li os primeiros capítulos num ápice e desde as primeiras linhas que me encontrava presa à história e à protagonista da mesma.

A própria história apresentava-se p...more Depois de um livro mais pesado, excessivamente descritivo e monótono, as primeiras páginas de "Imortal" revelaram-se viciantes e incrivelmente promissoras. A escrita de Gillian Shields é objectiva, directa, simples e, ao mesmo tempo, riquíssima em imagens, descrições, emoções e sensações! Era precisamente aquilo de que estava a precisar. Li os primeiros capítulos num ápice e desde as primeiras linhas que me encontrava presa à história e à protagonista da mesma.

A própria história apresentava-se promissora. Depois da avó Frankie ser internada num lar e de o pai se ver obrigado a partir para o estrangeiro em trabalho, Evie Johnson não tem alternativa a não ser inegrar o colégio de Wyldeliffe. No entanto, quando tudo o que esperava era paz e uma vida tranquila, depara-se com o oposto: um rapaz sedutor e em tudo misterioso, uma direcção do colégio fria e decidida a fazer da sua vida um inferno, um fantasma que mais se parece com o seu reflexo, uma morte que assombra o seu percurso e integração no colégio...

Tudo isto aliado à simples mas viciante escrita da autora, fez-me esperar uma história com grande potencial. E até mais de metade da história, a expectativa manteve-se. No entanto, chegando-se à parte final, comecei a ficar desiludida com o rumo da história. Esperava algo relacionado com angelologia ou outra vertente do fantástico e não, de todo, com os quatro elementos (Ar, Terra, Fogo e Água).

Se no início aplaudia a escrita pouco desenvolvida e trabalhada, mas objectiva e sintética, neste caso acho o tema dos 4 elementos requeriam uma escrita mais profunda e desenvolvida. Por exemplo, o leitor não chega a aperceber-se da relação da protagonista com a Água, nem da sua amiga com a Terra, a não ser quando as acusam de possuir o poder desses mesmos elementos. Ou seja, há ali uma lacuna no modo como a autora atribui os poderes sobrenaturais às personagens da história e os relaciona entre si.

Quanto ao romance em si, a outra grande componente do livro depois do sobrenatural, também podia ser mais trabalhado. Não que o mesmo não tenha conseguido o impacto desejado no leitor, porque conseguiu. Apenas acho que podia ser mais trabalho de maneira a atingir uma profundidade e emoções que não se conheceram na relação entre Sebastian e Evie.

No geral, é um livro bastante leve e, simultaneamente , viciante, mais orientado para um público juvenil, mas que certamente agradará todo o leitor do fantástico que procure algo mais leve.

O final ficou em aberto pelo que se espera uma continuação da história de Evie e Sebastian, continuação essa que aguardarei com expectativa e ansiedade.

Recomendo!(less)

like · see review

Aug 19, 2011 Mindy/fangedmom rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: audio-book

I listened to this book via audio from Overdrive Media.

I admit that the beginning was a tab bit confusing as the POV switched and I had a hard time getting it all straight in my head. I think the actual book would have been a little easier to keep this straight. I did, however soon get into the story and got all the characters into place.

I found this a very nice read and although I read faster than audio, I did find myself anticipating hearing more of the story each and every day.

Evie's advent...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 13, 2011 Elizabetha Souvré rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: love-and-romance, magic-and-fantasy, paranormal-sobrenatural, something-is-missing, ghosts, 2010

Evie Johnson, huérfana de madre y criada amorosamente junto al mar por su adorada abuela Frankie, se ve obligada a estudiar en al selecto y clasista internado para señoritas "Wyldcliffe Abbey School". Su padre, un militar inglés, le ha conseguido una beca en este recinto estudiantil, pues no puede vivir con ella ahora que Frankie ha sido trasladada una casa de reposo aquejada por una dura enfermedad.A Evie sólo le quedan su fuerte y sensato carácter ,sus recuerdos y un medallón que su querida ab...more

like · see review

May 11, 2011 Michelle♥ rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: library, young-adult

Can I give it a 2.5?

I really liked the beginning of it! It has this whole gothic romance thing going on, and the mood of the book with the journal entries and how the flow is just so easy and simple between the two worlds is incredible. Deliciously incredible. And the morose beginning reminded me a little of Jane Eyre when she first was at the orphanage, I liked that part of the infamous book. Her depression, her sorrow, and her unwillingness to change for anyone. But then this book took a turn...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 24, 2011 Jess - The Tales Compendium rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-scifi-paranormal

Immortal is a suspenseful mystery based on elemental magic that spans generations.

I really like that the story is based on magic and witchcraft, and that the chapters alternate between present day with Evie and then pages from Agnes' diary (Agnes is the ghostly-girl mentioned in the blurb), allowing us to see a comparison between the two.

I wish that there had been a little more depth to all the characters. Agnes is the most interesting of all but Sebastian is rather irritable and difficult to li...more

like · see review

Jan 13, 2011 Renata Reider rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: maybe

Recommended to Renata by: best friend

The book was good. A different story line than I expected, which is the reason I give it 3 stars. If this book had a similar story line as most YA books, I don’t think I would have liked it. The writing style is nothing to write home about. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t good either. Another reason I give the book a three is not b/c of the ending in book 1, but because of the ending in book 2. It was a complete surprise. I didn’t see that situation in the series being resolved the way it was and t...more

like · see review

Jan 03, 2011 Sabrina rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I am struggling between 2.5 and three stars for this one. Immortal was rather disappointing for me. Shields does a decent job with the writing and her attempt at a gothic feel came through, especially in the flashback scenes with Agnes. I thought the premise was interesting albeit unorginal - young girl gets sent to boarding school that isn't all that it appears to be (hmm, how many of these have I read before, but I digress). It turns out that Evie is a descendant of one of the original owners...more

like · see review

Dec 16, 2010 Yola NY rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-romance, minjem, mistis, romance, terjemahan, immortal, supernatural

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. ini novel karangan gillian shields. ceritanya ttg kekuatan mistis gitu. awalnya aku baca sih agak nggak ngerti ama jalan ceritanya. kalau dibilang fantasi masih agak canggung. tapi pas 2/3 akhir novel lumayan lah..

ceritanya bermula dari sang tokoh utama, Evelyn Johnson, seorang gadis yang terbiasa tinggal di pinggir pantai, dipindahkan ke sekolah berasrama khusus perempuan wyldcliffe abbey school yang dikelilingi perbukitan dan desa yang suram. Evie merasa hidupnya dibatasi di dalam beton-beton...more

1 like · like · see review

Dec 09, 2010 Terri rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult

I’m finding it difficult to intro this, so we’re going to dive right in!

The story is very reminiscent of A Little Princess: a girl with a military father gets packed off to a boarding school where she is treated badly and the other kids don’t like her. Unlike Sara Crewes in Princess, Evie starts off as a scholarship student, so she has to set out tea for the other girls and do small chores as a “thank you” to the school (hello, forced child labor?).

Evie meets a young man named Sebastian, whose m...more I’m finding it difficult to intro this, so we’re going to dive right in!

The story is very reminiscent of A Little Princess: a girl with a military father gets packed off to a boarding school where she is treated badly and the other kids don’t like her. Unlike Sara Crewes in Princess, Evie starts off as a scholarship student, so she has to set out tea for the other girls and do small chores as a “thank you” to the school (hello, forced child labor?).

Evie meets a young man named Sebastian, whose mysterious yet charming personality intrigues her. She starts seeing ghosts and visions during the day, and the other scholarship student, Helen, keeps warning her away from Sebastian but won’t tell her why. Meanwhile, another student, Celeste, is doing everything she can to make Evie miserable, because of her grief at the tragic death of her cousin Laura, whose bed is now Evie’s.

Every few chapters, Shields switches to the diary of Lady Agnes, a well-to-do girl who lived 100 years in the past and whose best friend, Sebastian, has found a book of magic. The book contains the secrets of power of the Mystic Way, a system of magic that will give the pure-hearted control over the Elements, which are the basis of life itself and give them a variety of abilities, depending on their element. When the Mystic Way refuses Sebastian on his own merit, he asks Agnes to gift him with power. She reluctantly does so, but he is easily frustrated by his limited abilities, growing jealous of Agnes’ natural ability with Fire. When his lust for power causes him to threaten Agnes if she doesn’t gift him with immortality, she runs away to London, hiding her power in an amulet and hoping to escape Sebastian forever.

On the whole, the back story was far more interesting than the present day story. Evie seems obsessed with Sebastian, who doesn’t seem like that interesting of a character. He seems tortured and angsty, but doesn’t have much personality outside that. I found it difficult to understand why Evie just had to be with him, and even more difficult to believe why she kept trusting him. At one point, after she realizes that she “loves” him and has discovered that he’s a ghost from 100 years ago who killed someone out of his desire for power, she decides it doesn’t matter whether he’s evil. I thought that was pretty stupid and naive. Of course it matters if he’s EVIL! I liked the part about the Elemental power, but that’s mostly because I’ve always loved that kind of stuff. (For example: I have all of the Avatar: The Last Airbender DVDs, I loved the faeries on Neopets, and elemental magic features heavily in the novel trapped in my head.) I’m giving it a 2.5 because while the writing wasn’t bad and the story was mediocre, the main character was stupid and no amount of good writing can make up for that.

http://starlightbookreviews.wordpress...

(less)

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Who were your favorite characters?	26	33	May 07, 2013 06:35am
Easy read and really good	7	17	Oct 04, 2012 08:09pm

combine
Other Editions (14)

More editions...

Genres

Young Adult

178 users

Fantasy

117 users

Fantasy > Paranormal

109 users

Romance

78 users

Fantasy > Magic

42 users

Fantasy > Supernatural

41 users

Paranormal > Ghosts

41 users

Romance > Paranormal Romance

39 users

Paranormal > Witches

31 users

Mystery

29 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Gillian Shields

Gillian Shields was born and brought up in Yorkshire, in the north of England. As she grew up, she had two passions:books and theater. Gillian’s love of books led her to read English at St. Catharine's College, Cambridge. After university she studied acting in London. She then taught in a drama school, the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, for several years, becoming Vice Principal. She recently...more

More about Gillian Shields...

Books by Gillian Shields

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Immortal

1 quiz

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from Immortal

“One person's dream is another's reality.” — 48 people liked it

“She is by my side, as my sister, but he is my soul.
He is my enemy, my tormentor, my demon.
He is my beloved.” — 17 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Immortal
avg rating	preview: Immortal Goodreads rating: 3.48 (6548 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5266655-immortal?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1330782895l/5266655.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5266655-immortal?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Immortal by Gillian Shields[/url]

Immortal (Immortal #1)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website