Blog Tour: A Matter of Forever by Heather Lyons {Review, Playlist, +Giveaway!}

Welcome to my stop on the A Matter of Forever blog tour hosted by InkSlingerPR!

Today I am excited to share my review, Heather's playlist, as well as a giveaway with you all!

A Matter of Forever (Fate #4)
   by: Heather Lyons

Publication Date: May 15, 2014
Publisher: Cerulean Books
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by InkSlingerPR in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 278 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 5/5 stars

It all comes down to this . . .

Chloe Lilywhite has struggled for years to find her footing in a series of dangerous and demanding worlds. Creator, first tier Council member, and one of the most powerful Magicals in existence, she was little more than one of Fate’s pawns. But now, Chloe is back home and ready to call the shots. She knows what she wants and who she wants to be.

Except the Elders never got the memo.

Annar and Magical-kind are under attack. The lives of Chloe’s loved ones, and life as they know it, are at stake. Chloe's the key to taking the Elders down, but they won't go quietly into the night.

This time, neither will Chloe.

*This is a New Adult title, suitable for readers 18+.

 

 

I have been contemplating just what to say in this review for weeks now, and I still don't feel I'll be able to emphasize to you all just how in love with this series I am. It is definitely one of my all time favorites and that is saying something for the girl who can never pick favorites. Ask me my favorite book series and you will get Heather's Fate series as an answer. Even though I consider Heather a dear friend and I actually beta'd for her on this book, that did not keep me from providing you all with my honest thoughts about the book.

 

Being the final book in the series, I aim to keep this as spoiler free as possible and just provide you with my overall feelings, thoughts, and observations on a very surface level as I do not want to spoil this wonderful book for anyone. I have been waiting in nervous anticipation for this book ever since A Matter of Truth released last November. One of the things I loved most about A Matter of Truth was that we got to see Chloe evolve and really mature. She's not the selfish, confused girl she once was. She knows what's right and wrong and she's made her decision in terms of who she's going to be with. I'm glad she didn't go back on that because I would have felt all that maturity and development would have been for nothing.

 

A Matter of Forever is action packed from start to finish and I found myself holding my breath at times, terrified of the outcome. Chloe, her friends, and loved ones are being hunted by the Elders, who will stop at nothing to ensure they are destroyed. She and her protectors are in great danger and with the enemy hell-bent on destruction, you just know that not everyone might make it out alive. The entire time all I could do was worry and panic that one of these characters that I have grown to love so much would not make it through.

 

Not only is this an intense read, but it is also extremely emotional. There were points I felt my heart shattering in my chest and I couldn't help but tear up at the pain these characters felt. They have the weight of the world on their shoulders and every decision is critical. I was so overwhelmed for them and I love how much growth we've seen from these characters from the first book to now. Heather has truly written a fantastic set of characters that will infuriate, frustrate, and drive you crazy, but that is what makes them so great. They are REAL. They have their flaws and issues- they're not perfect. They make mistakes, they hurt the people they love more than anything in the world, and they make decisions based on what they think is best for others, even when it kills them. I've said it time and time again. I've never in all my years of reading felt more emotionally attached to a set of characters than I do Chloe, Jonah, and Kellan.

 

Heather will break your heart and just when you don't think you as a reader can survive the pain, she manages to put it back together and fill it with so much happiness and joy you feel you might burst.

 

It doesn't matter if you're Team Jonah or Team Kellan. I guarantee you will fall in love with both of these boys and agree that this is one of the most complicated love triangles to ever exist. The matters of the heart are a tricky thing and are almost never easy.

 

All I can say is that this book is very bittersweet. I feel the book ended the way it was meant to end and the only way it could. I tried coming up with another solution, another way around everything that transpired, and I just can't think of anything. Heather has stayed true to her characters and whenever a book evokes my emotions like this, I know it's a great one. I was so connected to the characters, their feelings, their losses, and their happiness. I cried, laughed, and loved right along with them and I know this is one series I will always hold very close to my heart because it is just that beautifully written.

 

Favorite Quote:

 

“I will love you and hate you and it fucking breaks my heart every single day even knowing that I am capable of feeling this way toward you.” - I felt this one down to my freaking SOUL.

 

 

One of the things that I absolutely love about Jessica here at Lovin’ Los Libros is (other than being an all around fab lady) how she’s a fellow music fanatic. So I’m thrilled to be here to share the playlist of songs I wrote A Matter of Forever to.

Jessica: (*tackle hugs* <3 <3 <3 <3 I was thrilled when I found out I was hosting your playlist!)

First up is the general Spotify playlist for you to listen to. And then below, I’m going to talk a little more about a few that specifically mean a lot to me and the book—and while I’ll try to keep it as vague as possible, just know there could be some spoilers in that section.

I love this playlist, by the way. I hope you do, too!

 

MILD SPOILERS AHEAD

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Let’s dish good tunes! Here are five from the playlist and the reasons why I chose them.

 

* Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) (Eurythmics cover) by Emily Browning.

Anybody who knows the end of A Matter of Truth knows that A Matter of Forever starts out with a bang. And this song? It’s totally perfect for what’s happened to Chloe. Browning makes this cover of a classic song all her own—creepy, haunting, and foreboding.

 

Some of them want to use you

Some of them want to get used by you

Some of them want to abuse you

Some of them want to be abused

 

 

* Vivere Sul Tuo Collo by Erica Mou

A lot of A Matter of Forever is written to Erica Mou and her beautiful music. For those of you who don’t know her, she’s an Italian singer-songwriter who sings in . . . you got it, Italian. I love how her songs fit Chloe and her forever so perfectly. Let’s just say this song inspired a scene in Rome.

 

E quando dormi vorrei dormire con te / And when you sleep, I want to sleep with you

dondolandomi tra i tuoi respiri. / rocking between your breaths.

Quando dormi vorrei dormire con te. / When you sleep I want to sleep with you.

 

 

* Floating in the Forth by Frightened Rabbit

Oh guys. This song. THIS SONG. First off, it’s by my favorite band, so of course I love it to pieces, but it’s also represented a moment from A Matter of Forever ever since I wrote the first draft of this way back when. The lyrics of this song are so visceral, so bitterly gorgeous that you can’t help but feel them deep in your bones.

 

So you just stepped out

of the front of my house

and I'll never see you again.

I closed my eyes for a second

and when they opened

you weren't there.

And the door shut shut

I was vacuum packed,

shrink-wrapped out of air

And the spine collapsed

and the eyes rolled back

to stare at my starving brain,

 

And fully clothed, I float away

(I'll float away)

Down the Forth, into the sea

I think I'll save suicide for another day.

 

 

*Severus and Stone by Radical Face

I debated so hard whether or not to include this song for this post, due to its inherent spoiler-y nature. But I eventually decided to include it because it’s one of the critical songs in the back half of the book. This song about twin brothers nearly makes me cry every time I listen to it, because I might have sobbed like a little baby while writing this scene. Listen to it in the Spotify list above, and wait for the last line. You’ll know what I mean, and who this song represents.

 

*December Ice by The Bats

Let’s just say this song is for a surfing scene. You’ll know which one.

 

In the dreams we can find

Another way to lead the blind

When peace breaks out I’ll find you here

The worlds come down and I want you near

 

 

 

And don’t miss the first books in the Fate Series!

 

A MATTER OF FATE (Fate Series #1) Just $.99 right now!

BEYOND FATE (Fate Series #1.5) Just $.99 right now!

A MATTER OF HEART (Fate Series #2)

A MATTER OF TRUTH (Fate Series #3)

 

 

Heather Lyons has always had a thing for words—She’s been writing stories since she was a kid. In addition to writing, she’s also been an archaeologist and a teacher. Heather is a rabid music fan, as evidenced by her (mostly) music-centric blog, and she’s married to an even larger music snob. They’re happily raising three kids who are mini music fiends who love to read and be read to.

 

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