You should jump on the COLD KISS / GLASS HEART bandwagon.

COLD KISS is one of those books that, when someone asks me what I like most about it, I can pinpoint the answer in a heartbeat.

It feels real.

Ok, it feels real if, like main character Wren, you had crazy magical abilities that you didn't understand and your boyfriend died tragically and you accidentally-on-purpose magicked him back to life...ish.

Normally, you'd think that would be the end of a paranormal YA: "Look! I'm special! My boyfriend is alive again and we'll be together forever!"

With COLD KISS, it's the beginning. It starts when you realize that your undead boyfriend isn't quite the same person he used to be. When you realize that everyone else thinks he's gone and buried, so you have to hide him from the world. When you realize that your crazy, impulsive, grief-driven decision was the worst thing you could possibly have ever done. 

And you have to deal with it.

It's as much about grieving and learning to let go and taking responsibility for your mistakes as it is about figuring out what to do with the undead boyfriend hidden in your neighbor's garage ... and the complication of the cute new guy who's reminding you what it's like to crush on someone warm-blooded.

Wren is a complex, complicated character, and she doesn't fit into any cookie-cutter mold. Sometimes I wanted to shake her until she saw sense, but I understood her mistakes. In the sequel, GLASS HEART, we explore more deeply into Wren's magical abilities — including their darker side — and why discussing them has been so taboo in her family.

I enjoyed this second glimpse into Wren's life because, again, the book delves into an area that usually isn't written about: The time after "The End," when the crazy plot has wrapped up and the main character is adjusting back to being normal (or some semblance thereof, in Wren's case).

Her relationship with Gabriel (the aforementioned "cute new guy") is developing and hitting a few bumps, and she's testing the limits of her powers and how she wants to integrate them into her life. GLASS HEART is more traditionally coming-of-age in that Wren is setting her own course for the first time, and she's pushing against the expectations of the people who love her.

Like COLD KISS, the end satisfies the reader, and I have it on direct authority from author Amy Garvey that GLASS HEART completes Wren's story. (So refreshing not to have the almost obligatory trilogy!)

GLASS HEART releases on September 18th, so be sure to read this standout duo! (I purchased my copy of COLD KISS and received an ARC of GLASS HEART at BEA.)

Full disclosure: I'm friends with Amy Garvey. She's awesome, so it's no surprise that her books are great, too.