Review: Juliet Immortal (Juliet Immortal #1) by Stacey Jay

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Title: Juliet Immortal (Juliet Immortal #1)
Author: Stacey Jay
Started: 10/1/12
Finished: 12/1/12
Medium: Hardback
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Genre: Young Adult: Paranormal Romance
Buy: Amazon / The Book Depository / Barnes & Noble

Goodreads Synopsis:

The most tragic love story in history . . .
Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

"The greatest love story every told is a lie" that one sentence got me so intrigued that I picked up the book and read Juliet Immortal. I am so glad that who every thought of that line put it right in front of the cover to tempt me into picking up this book.

I've never thought I'd be one of those readers who'll love retelling, basically because I've never read one. But now that I have. I'm definitely loving how it started out for me. I never put in much thought into Romeo and Juliet's story. The only time I was so fixated on it was just to sound romantic while speaking in Shakespearean talk with my friends and when I watched the movie Shakespeare In Love (I love that movie!).

Now, Juliet Immortal is so haunting with clear dark romance. Juliet is an immortal soul shifting from body to body to maintain true love for the Ambassadors of Light, while Romeo kills to sustain the Mercenaries of the Dark. They've been traveling for hundreds of years shifting and sustaining whatever sides they're on. Until they hit the end of their line.

As I've read, many retellings have been bad-mouthed and called bad. But this one. Isn't. This is finally a story that is unique, and all kinds of original (despite it being based on Romeo and Juliet, of course). Stacey Jay managed to recreate a story so beautifully with characters with realistic flaws and good qualities. Some characters were down right annoying but you learn to like them for their own flaws and such. I didn't feel that the plot was weak, the characters were bad or anything like that. I really loved this book, come on! It was fabulous! Don't listen to all those bad reviews. Just read it before you judge based on other peoples preferences.

Juliet Immortal is an excellent take on Romeo and Juliet's story. It was haunting, dark, somewhat morbid with all kinds of romance in between. A great read for the hopeless romantics and those readera who'd like to see Romeo without Juliet for once.