Ever the Hunted Review

Title: Ever the Hunted (Book 1)
Author: Erin Summerhill
Publisher Info / Release: HMH Books / December 27 2016
Source: UpperCase Box
Rating: 3.5 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Britta Flannery is at ease only in the woods with her dagger and bow. She spends her days tracking criminals alongside her father, a legendary bounty hunter–that is, until her father is murdered. The alleged killer is none other than Cohen Mackay, her father’s former apprentice. The only friend she’s ever known. The boy she once loved who broke her heart.     She must go on a treacherous quest in a world of warring kingdoms, mad kings, and dark magic to find the real killer. But Britta wields more power than she knows. And soon she will learn what has always made her different will make her a daunting and dangerous force. 

**Post contains some spoilers, so read at your own discretion 🙂 **

First off, let’s talk about the cover! It is so stunning that I actually left the dust jacket on while I read my book, which I usually don’t do since sometimes the oil from my fingertips makes it all smudgy and gross looking. I was extremely careful while putting it in my purse and taking it out though.

Overall, I thought this book was well written and had enough conflicts / plot going on to keep me entertained. Normally I can read through books rather quickly if it holds my interest and it did take me a bit longer to read Ever the Hunted. It is slightly heavy on the romance side and I think those were the parts that slowed me down a bit from the overall story line.

From the beginning, you learn the Britta has lost her father, but she also lost the man who is her best friend and the one that she loves, Cohen. We go on a journey with her as she tries to understand why he left and discovers that her father was actually murdered, supposedly by her best friend who trained along side her. She uses her skills that her father taught her as the king’s bounty hunter to help the Captain of the Guard track down Cohen to release her from the poaching sentence that she receives while trying to survive while grieving his loss. In her heart, she knows that Cohen couldn’t have murdered her father like they suspected, but they make her believe it and so she agrees to help them to avoid the noose.

You get to explore the two countries that Britta is a part of and go on the journey of tracking Cohen. It brings up a lot of the past between them so you’re always seeing how much she misses having him there and the hurt that still lingers. Like I said earlier, a lot of the romance was right there as I read. Especially when their paths cross and the two of them start to try and find out who the actual murderer was. Their personalities develop a bit and you watch Britta become her own person that doesn’t have to rely on her father or Cohen to survive the world where they’ve always treated her differently.

I don’t want to go into too much detail since I don’t want to spoil the book! There’s definitely room for improvement. It’s a different kind of ride as you discover everything that Britta learns about herself and the ending of the book had my jaw drop a bit, so I’m really interested in seeing where the sequel takes Britta and Cohen in their journey.

If you’ve read this book, leave a comment down below and let me know what you thought of it!