Elixir by Hilary Duff (again)

Elixir by Hilary Duff
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Pages: 327
Rating: 3/5
Series: Elixir Series

A soulmate for life...or death.

     Seventeeen-year-old Clea Raymond has felt the glare of the spotlight her entire life.  The daughter of a renowned surgeon and a prominent politician, she has become a talented photojournalist who takes refuge in a world that allows her to travel to many exotic places.  But after Clea's father disappears while on a humanitarian mission, Clea begins to notice eerie, shadowy images in her photos of a strange and beautiful young man - a man she has never seen before.

     When fate brings Clea and this man together, she is stunned by the immediate and powerful connection she feels with him.  As they grow closer, they are drawn deep into the mystery behind her father's disappearance, and they discover the centuries-old truth behind their love triangle and haunted by a powerful secret that holds their fates, together they race against time to unravel their pasts in order to save their lives and their futures.

I've read and reviewed this book previously, almost two years ago, but I always feel the need to reread a series when a new installment arrives.  I still enjoyed Elixir on the second go, but I found more faults in the writing though I still loved the story and when it's right it's really good.

Clea is rich, famous and a fantastic photographer trying to live after her father's disappearance. Coming home from a trip through Europe, she sorts her pictures and finds the same man in many of them.  In one, he's floating on air! Clea begins to have scarily realistic dreams about this man, but she’s never herself.  She’s another girl in another decade with him.  Scared and confused, Clea, with the help of her friends Ben and Rayna, travels to Rio to try and solve the two mysteries.  She is soon involved in a 500 year old feud and torn between love and a painful death.

I couldn't connect with Clea and that's a problem.  She's just too rich, famous, pretty, kind of a Mary Jane.  In fact most of the characters were like that which makes it me think well why the hell do I like the book then? And the truth is, I have no clue.  Sometimes I read a book that I don't really love but there are parts which I am ecstatic about.  That's what happens in Elixir.  I love the descriptions of Clea's past life and when she discovers Sage in her photos, but the romance and the drama I couldn't careless about.

The dependency and romance eerily echoed Twilight which made me question my taste even more.  If I find Edward watching Bella sleep super creepy why does Sage inspire different feelings?  He’s in the picture of her birth!  Also, both Bella and Clea will do anything to keep their love alive, no matter the consequences.

I don't know how this worked but I disliked all the characters, loved the story and can't wait to read Devoted.  It's like Reality TV.  I don't know why I love Dance Mom's but I come back every week to see the next episode.  I think this book is worth reading for parts of the novel, but not if relate-able characters are a necessity for you.