BECOME (Desolation #1) [Kindle Edition]

Become is the fabulous story of Desolation, a girl torn between two worlds - Helheim, where she grew up and Midgard where she now finds herself. Desolation struggles with the decision to become what her father, Loki, wishes her to be or to give in to the warmth she guarded deep in her heart. The warmth she knew came from her mother - a Guardian - a mother she never knew.

Desolation is placed in the care of fallen humans under her father's command as she deals with past memories, unresolved turmoil, self doubt, and the urge to take the easy way out and return home. Her only source of comfort came from Lucy, a woman who embraced her with love.

Loki expects her to Become - to give in to the darkness and transform into a being that personifies mankind's depravity. She despises her name and what it signifies for her to transform into that which her name means. Instead she insists on being referred to as Desi - her small attempt at rebellion knowing that in the end her father will get what he wants. In order to Become, Desi is to assist Miri, an alcoholic and tortured soul end her mortal life, but in the process Desi opens her heart and instead chooses to protect Miri.

Things get complicated when she discovers that Michael, an Angel of Asgard and the boy from her memories, goes to the same school. She's conflicted by feelings of warmth and love whenever she's with him - feelings that spark old memories of a garden. It's too much to bear when she looks into his golden eyes knowing he's an Angel and she's a demon - and demons can't love nor do they deserve to be loved.

Akaros, her father's right-hand man and the demon who trained her in combat, is preparing for war. He'll stand at nothing to either force Desi to Become or destroy her in the process.

Now the time has come to make a decision - to fight and protect Midgard or Become as her father has commanded.

I really enjoyed this book. The story flowed smoothly and the characters were believable. Desi had to choose between Helheim, the world she's always known, and Midgard, a world in danger of destruction and the world where her friends live, while at the same time learning to believe in herself and her destiny.

Desi is a strong character, who is full of self doubt but her inner strength grows as the story develops. When we first meet Desi, she's a character with amnesia, whose brief remembering of old memories leave her fearful and impotent but in the end she discovers her true purpose and gains the strength to fight for what she believes.

My favorite aspect of this novel is the way the author infused it with Norse mythology. It's a refreshing change from the heavily saturated Catholicism that permeates most stories of good versus evil.

I'm going to condense the full review from my website a bit.

"Become" by Ali Cross left me feeling really conflicted. I came across this book while tripping through various author websites during a YA Scavenger Hunt. The cover grabbed me instantly, and I ended up clicking on it, reading the description, and purchasing the book since it sounded intriguing. I love YA paranormal books and angels/fallen angels have been prevalent in the genre over the last couple of years. This looked like a really different take on the theme, with the whole concept of Lucifer's daughter being our protagonist. It turns out it IS different - so different I'm not really sure what to think.

Desolation, or Desi as she likes to be called, has been sent to Earth to live with one of Lucifer's minions, Daniel, and his son, James, so she can receive some in-depth training on manipulating and corrupting humans. As part of her assignment, Lucifer orders her to bring him the soul of a young girl named Miri who attends the school Desi is being sent to. When they meet, however, Desi is drawn to Miri more as a friend and confidante than as a corrupter. When she finds out Miri is dating James, Desi tries to get Miri to realize he is not good for her; after all, she has seen his sins first-hand. Desi's life is further complicated when she finds herself drawn to another student at the school, Michael, who seems very familiar and also seems to recognize her. Will Desi defy Lucifer and help Miri? Why is she so drawn to Michael? And how can she avoid "Becoming" just like her father?

This is billed as a YA paranormal, but I never felt like I was reading about young adults. I kept forgetting the fact that Desi, Miri, Michael, and James were teenagers. Every one of them came across as much older and it was only when their ages were mentioned that I recalled they were supposed to be 16 to 18-year-olds. Even in school sequences, I frequently felt like they were older than they were supposed to be.

I also wasn't too sure what to make of Desi. She is strong and able to hold her own when fighting, but she is a mass of insecurities She was desperate not to "Become" like her father, but she also wanted to return to Hell and embrace a life of darkness because it would be the easiest thing to do. Desi wants to be loved, but also tries not to get close to anyone because she feels she will destroy them. She was a mass of contradictions that made it difficult for me to feel connected to her, but I was eventually able to get a grasp on her as the different threads of the story wove together and her character grew.

As I read, it felt like I was being dropped into the middle of the story and not at the beginning of it. When I got to the final chapters, I realized this is exactly what had happened. Desi, Michael, Lucifer - these were all characters who came with a lot of back story which is fed to the reader bit by bit, with the final chapters pulling it all together. Only Miri and James came without this mass of baggage, but since Miri is struggling with a substance abuse problem and James has issues from the way he was raised they obviously have some carry-on luggage of their own. James actually turned out to be the most intriguing character, since there were hints that there were some real feelings buried inside him. Miri, however, is still very much a mystery with a lot of back story to tell.

Ultimately, I did enjoy this book and I want to know what happens next to these characters. Now that the massive world-building has been accomplished, I think Cross will be able to settle in and focus on character and relationship-building in the next book. Desi, Miri, Michael and James all have myriad ways to grow, but I am especially interested in seeing what happens with Michael and James. However, I don't really know what type of reader to recommend this book to. This is not light reading, it is not the typical angel story, and it had a very adult feel to it. The sin and corruption that Desi and James live with daily gave this story a much darker tone than I am used to in the YA genre.

"Become" is a complex, unusually mature YA paranormal book which twists the angel concept in new directions. The protagonist, Desi, experiences a lot of growth in this novel, while her friends still remain a bit of a mystery. Now that I have seen how everything in this book ties together, I look forward to seeing where Ali Cross takes these characters and if they can hold back the apocalypse planned by Desi's father, Lucifer.

Ali Cross's BECOME expands upon mythologies and explores an age-old quest of good vs. evil in a new and fantastic way.

Desolation Black, the Devil's daughter, believes her destiny remains in her father's realm. When she's sent back to Earth, she experiences a Remembering unlike any other time. Then, she Becomes something unlike anything anyone expected. Now it's up to her to choose where her destiny will take her, if she can keep balance between the Shadows and the Light.

This novel is a refreshing new take on good vs. evil and how choices play out against destiny. The characters are wonderful, deliciously complex, and more than typical stereotypes of good or evil. I love the characterization of Lucifer's daughter, Desolation. At times she is such a teenager. Other times, she has the strength of her mixed parentage. From the first chapter, I cared about Desolation. The plot moved quickly in waves of seduction, regret, sin, and love. I love the use of Norse mythology to explain the worlds and characters within, as Lucifer = Loki, Asgard = Heaven, Midgard = Earth, etc. I laughed, cried, cared, and loved, and did not want to put this book down.

BECOME by Ali Cross has become one of my favorite books I've read this year. It's definitely an awesome must-read.