Toxic Heart by Theo Lawrance

Genre: Magic

Hardcover: 351 Pages

Published: April 8, 2014

Series: Mystic City

            1. Mystic City

            2. Toxic Heart

            3. TBA

Rating:★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A city in flames. A trust betrayed. A perfect love destroyed.

Has Aria lost Hunter, her one true love?

Ever since rebellion broke out in Mystic City, pitting the ruling elite against the magic-wielding mystics, Aria has barely seen her boyfriend. Not surprising, since Hunter is the leader of the mystic uprising, and he'll do whatever it takes to win freedom for his people—even if that means using Aria.

But Aria is no one's pawn. She believes she can bring the two warring sides together, save the city, and win back the Hunter she fell in love with.

Before she can play peacemaker, though, Aria will need to find the missing heart of a dead mystic. The heart gives untold powers to whoever possesses it, but finding it means seeking out a fierce enemy whose deepest desire is for Aria to be gone—forever.

My Review:

            If you have read my review for Mystic City then you know how much I enjoyed reading the first book. Lawrence had created a unique mystic world with strong characters and an engaging plot. The pacing was good, the background was interesting, and the mystery kept me on my toes.

            Toxic Heart was not as exciting and interesting as the first book. I didn't think the plot went anywhere, the characters became annoying and I couldn't help but be annoyed with some of the things that happened.

            First off, Aria was never an annoying helpless wimp in the first book, but man, in Toxic Heart she just got on my nerves. Her character was so helpless, she didn't listen to anything Hunter told her, and on top of that, she just kept getting kidnapped. I mean c'mon!! How many times can you make a mistake before you learn your lesson? Second, the plot honestly didn't go anywhere. Hunter took his mothers place and is continuing where she left off. He won't let Aria leave the compound (for her own safety), he won't tell her the truth and he is hiding things from her. At this point I was rolling my eyes at Hunter. He lied and used Aria/his personal conversations to show the world that Aria hates her parents as much as the Mystics do. This caused a riff in their relationship and by the end of the book there relationship had been put on a hold. (I saw that one coming from a mile away. But I'm kinda excited! I hope Aria and Turk get together!!!)

            Overall, I did enjoy reading this book. I just think the plot could have had more action and the characters could have used a bit more depth. I did not like the fact that Aria was portrayed as a weakling. I would have liked to see her become more bad-ass and some of the other characters could also be improved. HOWEVER, I loved Turk! I couldn't believe he cut his mo-hawk and when he did I was so shocked! Hopefully, the third book is more action packed and I do hope the characters show more realistic characteristics.