Let the Storms Break by Shannon Messenger

Let the Storms Break by Shannon Messenger
Series: Let the Sky Fall #2
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: March 4th 2014
Source: Publisher [Edelweiss]

Vane Weston is haunted. By the searing pull of his bond to Audra. By the lies he’s told to cover for her disappearance. By the treacherous winds that slip into his mind, trying to trap him in his worst nightmares. And as his enemies grow stronger, Vane doesn’t know how much longer he can last on his own.

But Audra’s still running. From her past. From the Gales. Even from Vane, who she doesn’t believe she deserves. And the farther she flees, the more danger she finds. She possesses the secret power her enemy craves, and protecting it might be more than she can handle—especially when she discovers Raiden’s newest weapon.

With the Gale Force weakened by recent attacks, and the power of four collapsing, Vane and Audra are forced to make a choice: keep trusting the failing winds, or turn to the people who’ve betrayed them before. But even if they survive the storms sent to destroy them, will they have anything left to hold on to?

Ever since I read Let the Sky Fall last May, I've been desperate to get my hands on the second book. I was lucky enough to be accepted for a review copy on Edelweiss and I was so freaking happy! I had to force myself not to read this book when I got approved way back in October because I wanted to wait until nearer it's release date - and it was definitely difficult! While I didn't find Let the Storms Break as amazing as the first book, it was still a fantastic sequel. 

Let the Sky Fall ended with Audra disappearing and leaving Vane by himself (which did leave me slightly heartbroken). Vane is trying to learn to harness his power because he's the one the Gales are relying on. Audra is off running from everything: her past, the Gales and Vane because of what she's done. Raiden is still out their biding his time waiting for his next chance to strike. 

Again, Let the Storms Break was told by both Audra and Vane. I adored seeing both of their POV's. They were both dealing with their own struggles and coming across their own issues/problems and I lvoed seeing how they dealt with them when they were apart (but I was also hoping they'd be reunited asap!). 

Vane hasn't really changed much from the first book. He's still hilarious, struggling to control his power and a regular teenage guy who has sexy thoughts about his girlfriend at inappropriate times. I did still really love Vane. Even though there were times when he could be a complete ass or had me rolling my eyes, I still really loved him. I enjoyed seeing him trying to come to terms with his future position, and I loved that he never gave into the Gales. He can be a tough and strong character when he wants to be, but he can also be pretty weak.

I adored Audra in this book. She was completely bad ass from start to finish. Audra is such a strong character, but she's struggling to come to terms with her past. She recently learnt the truth about what happened when she was a child and she can't wrap her head around it. She's also struggling with what she did with Vane and how she feels like she doesn't deserve him. Audra is very insecure and has been completely shaken after the revelations in the previous book, but she's still willing to put her life on the line for Vane (which really just shows how much she cares for him and how she truly deserves him). She was just so completely awesome in Let the Storms Break. 

I adored the story line of this book. I loved meeting the new characters that were introduced in this book. As much as I didn't like Solana, I didn't hate her either. I just hated the fact that she was so obsessed with Vane and was trying to do anything she could to make him love her. But other than that, Solana seems like she's going to be a fantastic character. Gus was by far my favourite of the new characters. He's really funny, charming and always managed to give Vane a kick up the arse when he needed it. There was a lot of action and fighting in this book - which was completely expected - and the fighting scenes were awesome. Vane was going all bad ass and creating awesome wind spikes and Audra was even more bad ass and was creating kick ass haboobs (which are wind storms btw). 

The ending was especially exciting and full of action. I loved seeing the Gales using Vane's wind spikes and fighting the living storms, but I wasn't loving was Os was doing. Still not sure if I can trust him or if I like him yet. What I didn't expect though was for my heart to be torn in two. WHY? Why did the ending have to be so cruel and soul destroying? After everything Audra and Vane have been through, why can't they be happy for two seconds without something destroying it? I was slightly broken after that ending and I just need book #3 so bad so that I can find out what happens to Audra and whether Vane will be able to save her.

Overall, Let the Storms Break was a fantastic sequel to Let the Sky Fall. It was full of action and actually helped me understand the wind walkers and their control of the wind a lot more. This has been such a fantastic series so far and I just need book #3 RIGHT NOW.