Heartless Lyn @ Great Imaginations

I know. I tried to love this book as much as I loved the cover.Everneath is an attempt to make mythology sexy and appealing to the teen population. The idea was great, but the execution was a bit too simpering and bland to make a good impression.The barely breathing heroine, Beks, resurfaces after her Fed from the Underworld, and virtually does little in the book besides drag from location to location, appear to be as bland as possible, and manage to snag two guys, one she ran away from, and the other who wants to set her up as queen of the damned. The rest of the story is then filled with a whole BOATLOAD of generic, formulated DRAMA, just in case one might enjoy the retooling of the myth of Persephone. Here is the character list:Hot sorta-ex boyfriend (Jack): cute star quarterback who refused the oh-so-beautiful and obligatory snotty cheerleader to be with his childhood sweetheart, who almost fell in love with the main character's attractive best friend during her absence, but is completely and totally unable to get over her, even though she took off without a word after his apparent (and poorly explained) cheating with snotty beautiful cheerleader.Other boy in the contractual Love Triangle, found in almost every YA novel (Cole): Cute, blonde rockstar who just happens to very very very much love the main character. And he's evil. Blonde Best Friend: Pushover and easily written off when needed.Sacrificed Female Sidekick: Needed to inflict pity.Dead mother: All novels need a dead parent.Out of touch Father: Yep, he's here as well. He even has the luxury to let his accused druggie daughter run around and take off when she pleases (and when the storyline needs for him to butt out).Main Character: Doesn't understand what a little hottie she is, attracts many of the guys in the school, but is forbidden to date unless Hot Soon Too Be Boyfriend approves. She is bland, self centered, and tends to have a one-track mind. Also, she has the inner strength like No One Before Her. This causes insta-love with Hot Bad Guy. Overall, I felt like I was watching something from the CW. So, I think this boils down to just not my type.There is one redeeming quality of the book. I did enjoy how the story is a fairy-tale for teens who are trying to kick an addiction. This book might have been a little more personal to me if I had ever experienced such an event in my life. Each one of us has to deal with a life-crushing condition or event, and it helps to read a fantasy novel that mirrors the struggles we face. For example, Percy in The Last Olympians series was dyslexic. I am dyslexic as well, and it was a comfort to me to read that dyslexia is the side effect of Percy's lineage. I understand that my brain misfires and has some wires crossed, but it is nice to slip into a world where there is a reason for dyslexia, and an awesome reason, to boot. So I can understand that the drug addict teen searching for a fictional identity to wrap around to help find a little comfort. The book also deals with the loss of a parent, and the wish to quickly fix the pain felt when we have a loved one robbed from our lives.