I really liked the book ! The main character was liakable and I loved the plot ,I wish it was longer tho ,to enjoy it a little bit more

This was not a book for me. I was not a fan of the characters or the plot. I think this just a case of my type of book.

TW/CW: grief, talk of removing a loved one from life support, airborne illness, talk of quarantine/evacuating/wearing a face covering, death of a loved one, underage drinking and talk of intoxication, domestic abuse (in past, not described on page), murder, rituals

The Deck of Omens – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review:
Okay, so I have some super mixed feelings about this book.

While most of my reviews are based on my subjective enjoyment of books, for this one I wanted to consider my objective thoughts. I wanted to consider books I enjoyed when I was a teenager and things I found surprising back in the day.

—>plot<—

This book takes place shortly after the events of the first book and was incredibly character-driven. This book felt like it dragged at an extremely slow pace as we had 4 large character plots to sort out. While I enjoyed we got as much time we got with the characters, I wish that the pacing of the book moved a bit faster as I did get a bit bored while reading a couple of times.

I did enjoy that we got a bit more from May’s perspective as her power is probably my favorite. I also felt like her motives were the most realistic out of everyones. She struggles a lot with wanting to feel loved and accepted by her family and is trying to find her place amongst the town’s founders. While I don’t agree with every action she made, her decisions felt realistic for her circumstance and for her age.

Harper’s story was so heartbreaking to follow. At the end of the first book, the church members were given the opportunity to have their memories wiped instead of going to jail and Harper’s dad agrees to do this. Because of that, Harper has to deal with learning to control her powers and processing the attempt on her life by her father without having any of her family members to help her.

By this point in the book, Harper and Isaac are competing for who’s been through the most shit and this new development pushed Harper to the top (at least for now).

Isaac’s story was the one I was the most interested in following. In the first book, he’s shrouded with a lot of mystery and I enjoyed that we got some of those mysteries solved during this book. While some of the mysteries that we got revealed in this book felt a bit convoluted, the ones about Isaac’s family actually worked really well and were pretty heartbreaking.

Violet and her mom had a really sweet arc in this book. After the events of book one, they need to rebuild their entire relationship. Watching that throughout this book, improving their communication, rebuilding their trust, and redefining their dynamic was really great to see. There’s also a coming-out scene with Violet and Juniper that was so sweet to read about and was so important to see in a book targeted towards teens.

I adored the conversation the two had about sexuality and the difficulty of coming out – even in a safe and accepting setting. As a bisexual person myself, I really resonated with some of the stuff Violet said about the difficulty of repeatedly coming out to different people.

—>spoiler corner<—

I try to keep these reviews as spoiler-free as possible, but I need to talk about a few bits of the ending as it’s where a lot of my conflicted feelings lie.

I like that this book/series did the thing where the villain we met in the first book turned out not to actually be the villain. That’s slowly becoming one of my favorite tropes and one of my favorite books of the year ended up doing it. When I figured out this book was doing the same thing, I actually got pretty excited as it was starting to feel like a YA version of the book I read earlier.

Sadly, the reveal as to what was actually going on really flopped for me. It led to some things not really making sense and felt a bit convoluted. Also, I felt like it took the tone of the book from dripping with creepy atmosphere and made it feel a bit…meh.

Also, the reveal in Deck of Omens made the events of Devouring Gray feel like they shouldn’t have happened the way they did, leading me to question the logic of this world a bit.

In the end, as things are starting to wrap up we had a bit of the romance that have been underlying threads during the book start to make it to the forefront. At first, I didn’t love how neatly everyone was pairing up, as I just don’t like endings that are too happy after really dark stuff. In the end, I did enjoy how everything resolved and why the characters made the decisions they did.

Final Thoughts:
Overall this was a solid follow-up to The Devouring Gray. We got some interesting developments with the overall mystery behind the town of Four Paths and a lot of time with the characters. Unfortunately, I really didn’t enjoy the twist in this book as I felt that it made me question plot points and logic from the first book a bit too much, resulting in me checking out of the story. I feel like as a teenager I probably wouldn’t have seen this trope done and would have really enjoyed it, but as a more seasoned reader, I was ultimately let down.

I did enjoy how bisexuality was handled and really enjoyed an on-page coming-out scene, as well as all of the queer characters being openly welcomed by their friends and family. I feel like this is so important to have in books for teens and love that we’re getting it more.

The teens of the founding families are each struggling with their responsibilities, relationships, and more. Together they fight for the corruption cure only to discover the truth behind everything they’ve been led to believe in their whole lives. They’ve been deceived about their entire purpose of protecting the community. The responsibility to end the corruption falls completely on the teenagers and they work past their grudges and become a strong team. The cause of the corruption isn’t what they think and they are shocked when they find out who is truly the cause of everything bad. 4 stars for a supernatural read!

This was an exciting conclusion to The Devouring Gray duology and I enjoyed returning to Four Paths and especially to these characters. The Gray and the woods are as creepy and atmospheric as ever and if you thought everything was back to normal after the end of the first book, you’re in for a surprise. Things are just getting started.

Absolutely my favorite parts are that we get to spend so much time with Isaac (love him) and that May plays a much larger role in this book than she did in the first one. Plus, we learn so much about the Founding Families, Four Paths, the beast and the Gray itself, I was delighted to get so much back story.

There are times that the pacing in this lulls and it was easy to feel as though you were lost in the Gray itself while trying to unpack what was happening in the story and where it was going. However, I feel as though the last quarter or so of the book makes up for this well, especially as all of the pieces fall together.

Needless to say, I’m greatly looking forward to seeing what Herman has in store for us next and absolutely look forward to reading her upcoming novel with Amanda Foody.

This book was a DNF for me. There was a lack of excitement that the first book in this series had, and the plot points of this book just fell flat.

The first book in this series was an easy five stars for me, and the sequel was one of my most anticipated reads this year.

This sequel starts off a little slow, but I was glad the author threw in some reminders about occurrences in The Devouring Gray – I appreciated her refreshing my memory. I was happy to see the eerie, atmospheric vibe continued with this novel. Where the first book skirted the edges of horror, this one dove right into it – invading tree roots worming under skin, creepy hand-shaped flowers, and people trapped in trees. I was captivated.

Although this series focuses on four main characters, Isaac is easily my favorite. His tragic past was hinted at in The Devouring Gray, and I’d hoped his backstory would be revealed in this sequel. My wish was granted. When his older brother shows up in town, Isaac’s whole horrific and and incredibly painful past is gradually revealed. My heart ached for him. He also has some of the best snarky lines in the book.

When the teens band together for the showdown with the beast, it’s everything – although it may not involve who you’d expect. I honestly didn’t know who’d make it out alive. From the very beginning this small town was full of secrets and lies and everything comes to light – the good, bad, and ugly.

The ending was perfect and appropriate for these characters and left me feeling satisfied after reading the last page. I’m anxious to see what this author does next – she’s absolutely on my watch list.

Really enjoyed this book. Such a great conclusion to this duology. Really sad it's over though, I'm going to miss these characters.

**3.5 Stars**
I adored the first book but struggled getting into this one. I wanted more creepy gray interactions, which this was light on. But the relationship dynamics were great! Solid end to a very unique ya paranormal duology

Actual Rating: 3.5 stars

I liked but didn't love Deck of Omens. I was a fan of The Devouring Gray for its atmospheric prose, interesting characters, and twisty plot. The followup was still fairly atmospheric and added in some creepy elements, but it felt like everything was getting a little too neatly and quickly tied up. Which, for me, made the characters feel a little flat and the plot a tad predictable. There were some cool moments, and opportunities for characters to talk through important issues. There's nothing really wrong with it, I just was hoping for more. We do get some good representation of and discussion surrounding bisexual identity, so that's appreciated. I will probably read more from this author in the future since I think she does creepy atmosphere and interesting ideas well.

Christine really said y'all want more Isaac Sullivan? Here, damn!

Isaac may have been the star for me, but this whole cast of characters is so enchanting I wish I could live in Four Paths full time. I'm ready to research the mystical past of our elders and their involvement in forest magic and meet the gang at my mansion for drinking games by night time.

I absolutely adored this duology. Christine Lynn Herman writes my type of contemporary fantasy. It flows so well and creates this atmosphere in the real world that I would frankly just like to bury myself in. I love the characters and the drama and just how charming the whole story is. I will say this book lagged for me in the beginning. I couldn't really connect back to the story. I mostly blame this on my own reading slump and having read the first book over a year ago, but let me tell you, half way through the love I had for The Devouring Gray was sparked again. The ending was just so good, and even though I kinda predicted some elements they were still very surprising on HOW they were executed and I just loved it.

I can't wait to see what else Christine is working on and I hope its just as magical!

Last year, The Devouring Gray pulled me in with its atmospheric world and intriguing plot. I loved the Stranger Things + Riverdale vibes and the air of mystery within the pages made for a dark, eerie read. The Deck of Omens follows suit with the strong writing and interesting plot to create the perfect finish to this duology.

What is this book about? The Deck of Omens picks up not to long after the end of the events of The Devouring Gray. In the aftermath of subduing the Beast, Justin, May, Isaac, Violet, and Harper are left to sort out their messy relationships. Just when they thought the worst was over, the veil between Four Paths and the Gray begins to thin and corruption spreads across town.

What did I like? I'll admit that usually reading sequels a year after I read the first book can be a struggle. However, it was so incredibly easy to fall back into this world and remember everything and everyone from the previous book within chapters. My biggest complaint in The Devouring Gray was that I didn't feel connected to the characters. That was not an issue in this book! I was much more invested in these characters and it made such a difference when reading. 

I love how realistic the author writes these characters and their relationships with each other and their families. Christine Lynn Herman captures the complicated nature of human relationships: the hurt, the acceptance, the hardships, and the easiness. 

What didn't I like? I'm not sure if this was just me, but everything felt very rushed and chaotic in The Deck of Omens. The stakes were raised and the urgency was turned up a notch, but reading this felt like a whirlwind. 

Overall thoughts: The Deck of Omens will definitely please anyone who enjoyed The Devouring Gray. The superb character development, subtle romance, and atmospheric writing make this an excellent sequel and a wonderful paranormal series!

When I reviewed The Devouring Gray, this is what I said about it:

“This book was like the perfect amalgamation of so many things. The historical intrigue and adventure of The Raven Cycle. The pleasant weirdness of Stranger Things. The paranormal town teen angst of Teen Wolf and The Vampire Diaries. The atmosphere of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. It’s almost as if Stephen King wrote a YA novel.“

And that’s still true with the sequel. It’s a great way to describe the vibe of this duology.

This was a satisfying conclusion and I enjoyed my time in Four Paths.

The Deck of Omens was an awesome read. Violet Saunders and her friends have escaped the clutches of the Beast, but their fight with darkness isn''t over. As she, Harper, Justin, Isaac and May struggle to figure out the source of a deadly corruption that threatens to destroy the Gray and consume Four Paths, they soon realize that the story of the founding of the town and the source of their power was not what they'd thought. Soon they learn the consequences of what happens when someone tampers with fate, and the power of rectifying the sins of the past.
I really enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed The Devouring Gray. All these characters are amazing, full of so much heart and are so relatable. The Deck of Omens was super gross and twisty, but in the best way. Full of dark magic, kissing, and emotional turmoil that just kept me reading. Fans of the Devouring Gray will DEVOUR The Deck of Omens. It is a sequel not to be missed with superb writing and an exciting plot. Thanks to the publisher for giving me access!

**4.5-stars rounded up**

With the events of The Devouring Gray behind them, and the Beast seemingly subdued, May, Justin, Harper, Violet and Isaac, are left to lick their wounds and repair their relationships.

Old anxieties remain and as the teens move forward, they find themselves continuing to seek solace in one another as the town at large feels hostile, especially for Justin.

Things are far from over, however, as a mysterious corruption beings to seep from the Gray, infecting those citizens it comes in contact with.

The Founder's children seem to be immune, so again it is up to them to save the fate of Four Paths.

May seems especially tuned in to the changes around her as she continues working on her powers dealing with the Deck of Omens.

As her relationship with her mother, Augusta, remains hella strained, she reaches out to her estranged father for guidance.

Obviously her mother is less than pleased when he arrives, thus deepening the hole May is already in with her.

Speaking of people returning to town, Isaac's older brother, Gabriel, makes a sudden appearance as well. Thus forcing the Sullivan boys to have it out once and for all.

As the Gray continues to destabilize and the corruption begins to get out of control, the town leaders have no choice. They must evacuate the town's citizens for their own safety.

The Founding Families remain, preparing themselves for the ultimate showdown.

This second book of The Devouring Gray duology continues the themes of long buried secrets and heartbreaking deceptions.

The truth about the Gray and its early beginnings are revealed and it flips everything you thought you knew on its head.

You may think the most dangerous thing in Four Paths is the Beast, or the Gray, but you're wrong!

Guys, I enjoyed this story so, so much! Once I started, I absolutely could not put it down.

While with the first book, I felt that a lot of the plot got bogged down in the details, I didn't feel that at all with this one.

The town of Four Paths has a complex history and there is a lot to learn in regards to the Founding families, their powers, the Gray and the Beast.

I think, for me, I let myself get too caught up with all the details in the first book and it ended up losing some of its fun.

With The Deck of Omens I went in with that foundation and was just able to relax into the story.

I loved the relationships and how they grew and changed as the teens gained more knowledge about their own family histories. At this point, I am so attached to these characters, I can't believe it is over.

I am so satisfied with the conclusion. If it has to end, I am happy with this result.

The ultimate showdown was pure nail-biting fun, which is another strong selling point, it was fast-paced the WHOLE way through! There was never a lull in the action.

I am beyond happy that I continued on with this duology and send a very hearty thank you to the publisher, Disney Book Group, for providing with a copy to read and review.

It's so far one of my favorite reads of the year! Well done, Christine Lynn Herman!

The Deck of Omens is the second and final installment in author Christine Lynn Herman's The Devouring Gray duology. This story picks up where The Devouring Gray finished. The town of Four Paths, New York was founded by Four families: Hawthorne's, Carlisle's, Saunders, and Sullivan's. The founding families are both revered and despised by the town. Only they have the powers to cage that which lies with the Gray. The Beast. The author once again rotates her story thru a variety of characters: May Hawthorne, Harper Carlisle, Violet Saunders, Isaac Sullivan plus Justin Hawthorne who is the only one of the key 5 who has no powers.


May's powers revolve around the Deck of Omens. She can gaze into the past and the future of a living focal point. She also may have changed the future unwittingly which is causing problems to crop up left and right. May isn't really a fan of her brother, Justin. Justin is the gold boy who can do no wrong even after he failed his ritual. But now, Justin's days of glory are fading quickly, and May intends to take every advantage of proving her worth to her mother. With her father's help, May hopes she can prove that she has the ability to fix what she's broken.


Ever since Harper lost her hand and was stranded in the Gray for days after her ritual, she has vowed revenge on the person who she believed abandoned her: Justin Hawthorne. Thanks to May and Violet, Harper now has her memories back and as a result, she has all but abandoned her family staying with Violet and her mother. Harper also has the power to bring stone to life and she is wicked powerful with a sword even with one hand. But, Harper has to give in a bit if she is going to learn how to control her powers before they end up getting someone killed. That means asking for help from the devil herself; Augusta.


Isaac spent years alone after his family tried and failed to kill him during his ritual. He's mad at his descendants for trapping him in a town with no future. He has the power of destruction and creation, but made the mistake of telling Justin how he feels and thus the distance between best friends has grown. Isaac thought he was alone in Four Paths. Until his older brother Gabriel returns and shares real memories with Isaac at what really happened during his ritual and what part he played. Isaac and Violet have grown closer as a result of shared hatred for Augusta Hawthorne and wanting to end the Beast's threat to the town.


Harper isn't the only one who had their memories returned. Violet and her mother Juniper now have a target for their anger; Augusta Hawthorne who was once close to Juniper but has the ability to remove memories. Violet and her mother have vowed to work together to kill the beast as well as taking power from Augusta. Violet is also learning secrets about her mother, and her descendants that has shaken her to the core. Secrets which tend to have a hard time of letting go are finally revealed with shocking results. Violet also has a companion named Orpheus that just happens to be a dead cat. Yeah, she has power over the dead.


Thankfully, Violet, Harper and Isaac have formed an alliance of sorts to find a way to reveal the towns hidden secrets. If they can get May's help who has every reason to want to help fix things, they might just save themselves, the town, and everyone who lives in Four Paths. In my honest opinion, this is May's story to tell like The Devouring Gray was Violet's. May really kicks things off by asking her father, Ezra Bishop, to return to town and help her find a way to save the town and stop the corruption that is rapidly consuming the town, starting with each of the (4) families areas that they protect.


I can't forget the Beast. The Beast is a mysterious sentient creature which was trapped by the Four Founders of the town over a century ago. The Beast is hell bent on breaking its constraints. Violet, May, Harper, Isaac, and yes, even Justin, must work together to keep the town, and the wider world, safe from what creeps through the woods when no one is watching. Or, is the Beast really that evil? Could deeper, darker secrets going back to the founders days unravel everything that has been taught and passed down? Or, is the Beast playing games with the founding families as a way to pay them back for years of being a prisoner in the Gray?


This story has been compared to the stylized setting and character-driven drama of Riverdale, if Riverdale was plagued by the Upside Down from Stranger Things, as well as similarities to The Raven Cycle. I will say the ending of this book holds ties up storylines in a way that is both curious and made me go hmmm, what was that? Especially when it came to the relationships between Justin & Isaac, Isaac and Violet, Harper's desire to walk her own way, and May's ability to put hurt feelings aside for just a minute and work with others to fix things she helped break.

As the founder families continue to squabble for power, the younger generation is trying to fix the problem of the Beast in this sequel/finale to The Devouring Gray. As mentioned in the synopsis, a new threat has been rising from the Gray, and as May, Harper and the others investigate, it seems that this new threat may not be the Beast's doing. Diving back into their history for clues, they stumble upon old family secrets and the truth of the story the town was built on. While the central plotline is about the elimination of the Beast and Gray, the story itself is character-driven, taking into account the complicated relationships between the founder teens, their own relationships with their family legacy and their troubled childhoods.

The Deck of Omens falls on expected storylines, so there aren't many surprises (well, expect for one that kinda made me go 'whoa'), but it does quite well even when you are expecting things to turn out as they do. The development of the storyline leading to those reveals is handled very well. Also, the relationship development between the characters, the character's arc and their decisions are all made organically, and I liked that I could predict the character's actions because the groundwork for the character was laid so well in the last book and in this one. Overall, it is an enjoyable read, taking the threads from the first book and leading them well to their conclusion.

Stunning follow up to a fantastic first book. I was heartbroken, on the edge of my seat, laughing, and so i love with the woods and Four Paths. Those kids . . . I would do anything to protect them. I can't even express how much this book is the perfect follow-up to my favorite book of 2019. This will no doubt be one of my favorites in 2020.

The story was interesting. The cover is BEAUTIFUL. The characters were a little hard to relate to, but that is more on me than the writer. I was a little nervous about the sequel, but I still enjoyed it.

The Devouring Gray was one of my early reads of 2019 and I was looking forward to seeing more of Four Paths in the second book. In the end I felt that I just didn’t see enough good or original in this book to really push the series into highly recommendable territory.

The characters for me reminded the same. They each had their own voices, yet sometimes I got confused as to who was narrating as I felt that they all had too many problems (and a lot of the same ones with family and the Gray) that everything just blended together. The relationships between characters didn’t seem to grow much through their experiences. Although a couple of relationships blossomed, while one was believable, the other seemed to be forced to create a more happily ever after.

The storyline was one that I was looking forward to. I wanted to know more about the history of Four Paths and how things came to be. While there was some exploring into this realm, we only got to see brief glimpses and the main cause was held onto for so long that I wasn’t that excited to see it when it came. Although things moved along throughout the story, the teen angst from the first novel was still ever present here and create a deep drag in between action. I am not against some good angst, but too much, from everyone, creates an adverse environment.

This was a good closer for the Four Paths town, yet I don’t think it will see too much action from our YA shelves. Unless on display (as the covers are wonderful) I don’t think there will be enough word of mouth to get them checked out.