ARC Review: See How They Run (Embassy Row #2) by Ally Carter

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See How They Run
Series: Embassy Row #2
Author: Ally Carter
Published January 14th 2016 by Orchard Books

Goodreads Synopsis
The second thrilling book in the EMBASSY ROW series.

Grace thought finding her mother's killer would bring her peace. But the truth has only made her a target. on Embassy Row, trust is a luxury. Death is a very real threat. And a girl like Grace should be very careful about which secrets she brings to light...
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

If you, like me, love Ally Carter's books, I bet you were gutted when the US publication date for See How They Run was pushed up to December, and we still had to wait until January. I've been desperate for this book since I read All Fall Down. I pre ordered the book just before Christmas, but as soon as I saw that the book was available to review on NetGalley, I immediately had to request it, and read it (even though I should be revising, but I deserve some down time, don't I?)

In See How They Run, action picks up not long after the events of All Fall Down. Grace is struggling to come to terms with the fact that she caused the death of her mother, and that the 'Scarred Man' - Dominic - is actually trying to protect her, and her mother, and wasn't intent on harming them. Life in Embassy Row is as normal as it can be, and then Grace's brother Jamie turns up, with one of his West Point friends. When Spence, the friend, turns up dead, and Alexei is the prime suspect, Grace is thrown back into the seedy underbelly of Embassy Row, as she tries to save Alexei from people intent on hurting him, and on hurting her family.

I love Grace! Hands down, she is my favourite of Ally's protagonists. It's no secret that I adore everything that Ally writes, and she just keeps getting better and better. Grace is this fragile, hurt person, who feels like she's damaged, and doesn't deserve anyone's love or affection. In actuality, she has a group of people who love her, and would do anything for her. I just want to pick her up, and give her the biggest hug possible! Gracie deserves all the love she gets, and I know that the ending of this book - which I'll get to later on - will just break her up even more! Ally, please, don't hurt my Gracie!

The secondary characters are just as wonderful as Grace, especially Alexei! I love them all, and meeting Jamie was lovely; he's the best big brother Grace could ask for. Noah, Megan, and Rosie are the same as they were in All Fall Down, and I adore how much they care for Grace - they are a proper group of best friends. Lila was a shock. After disliking her in the previous book, I was thoroughly surprised with how much I liked her now. Her and Grace have a begrudging friendship, and I want it to be explored further in the future.

Now, Alexei. I'm sure most of you are a fan of him, like me ;P I swooned so much when reading his and Grace's interactions. Her loves her, even though he might not admit it. You can just see in his expressions, and though Grace might be oblivious, no one else is! Again, I think the conclusion of the book will have consequences for their relationship.

Like I've mentioned a few times, this book ended with a cliffhanger! I was not expecting what was revealed until about a second before I read it on the page. I think Ally is trying to kill us all, leaving us like that! The only information about book 3 on Goodreads is that it is due in 2017 - I need more info! Actually, I just need more of the Embassy Row gang, like ASAP!

If you haven't guessed by now, I adored this book! It is a high contender for favourite book of 2016, and it's only the beginning of January. I'd definitely recommend this book, this series, this author, to everyone. If you haven't tried any of Ally's books before, give them a go, you won't be disappointed!

Dates Read:
January 7-8, 2016

Rating
5 Stars