Ever and Damen have faced down three enemies that stood in the way of their love across the centuries; all that's left is to find the antidote to release Damen from the curse flowing through his veins that will kill him if he comes in contact with Ever's DNA. The last novel, Night Star, left off with Ever and Damen in Summerland after Ever killed her friend Haven and lost the only link to the antidote. They go to the dark place of Summerland filled with swamps and creeping things that even the animals avoid. It seems Damen and Ever are the only ones willing to step foot there. The book backtracks over much of the first five novels refreshing the memory of all that as happened.
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They meet a crazy old woman speaking in riddles named Lotus who keeps calling Ever the name Adelina and clues her in on uncovering her destiny's journey. She tells her she must take this journey alone even though Jude and Damen both end up there too. Damen doesn't understand why Ever wants to trust her and keeps questioning her, insisting that Lotus is senile. Ever is certain that Lotus makes sense, she just has to figure out the riddles. Ever pleads to Damen that he give her one week, and he agrees.
Lotus explains that Ever must take this journey, she needs her to do this because it's the only way to release herself and to release Ever. She comes to Ever, Damen, and Jude and tells them that their journeys are intertwined, which we already knew seeing as how the three of them have been linked for centuries. Each of them has their own destiny to complete.
Ever uncovers the truths of her very first lifetime with Damen. She was once born to a wealthy family and given the name Adelina. Her cousin, Esme, who was the former Drina, was even wealthier and arranged to be married to Alrik who was Damen. Heath, the past life of Jude, had asked Adelina to marry him, but Adelina and Alrik fell in love proving that Ever and Damen really are soul mates. One day they eloped because Alrik couldn't bare the thought of marrying anyone but Adelina.
Fiona, the past life of Haven, told Esme all about the two secret lovers' hideout, and Esme found out they had eloped from a sleep talking Rhys, the Roman of that time. Even then, Roman as Rhys was in love with Drina as Esme, but Haven as Fiona was in love with Rhys. The love triangles surpassed centuries. When Fiona told of their hideout, Esme stalked in and killed Adelina. But then Heath comes along and thinks he knows a woman that can save Adelina with an elixir. The woman ends up being Ava (Ever's friend in this life) and the twins that Ever sometimes talks to in Summerland for advice.
Damen and Ever cross the river of forgetfulness which propels Damen to Shadowland. Ever notices his absence and follows after where they encounter all of the lost souls of their former enemies, Drina, Roman, and Haven. They help release their souls. Meanwhile, Jude on his own journey returns to Earth and hooks up with one of the popular girls named Honour.
Lotus appears again and explains that Ever now needs to complete her journey by finding the Tree of Life. Suddenly, Damen who was once in agreement for Ever to complete her journey, can't understand why she feels she needs to do this and again insists Lotus is crazy. Lotus explains that the the Tree of Life is a giving force that has lost all of it's fruit. Lotus gives Ever a wish that she uses to find out the necessary ingredients for the antidote. She understands deep down that this won't be able to fix her and Damen's problems so she returns it all and asks to complete her life journey instead. It turns out that by fulfilling their destiny, they will be provided with their true immortality, the antidote they've been looking for all along. It turns out the antidote for immortality is to become mortal again. Damen doesn't want this because he is afraid of losing his youthful beauty and everlasting life. Damen isn't pleased and returns to Earth where he gathers the ingredients for the antidote that will give him everlasting life.
As Ever goes on looking for fruit, she learns the other released souls have been gathering it too. She gets a bagful and returns to Earth with it. When she encounters Damen, she finds he has proved successful in completing the immortality antidote, but he hasn't taken it yet. Ever tries convincing Damen to eat the fruit, but his reluctance is made clear; he fears Ever will stop loving him if he loses his power. She insists that she doesn't love him because he is immortal but because of who he is inside. After some prodding, Damen is convinced and eats the fruit which breaks the curse put upon him by Roman. He and Ever can now touch, and can finally have sex which they have been trying to do for centuries. Ever and Damen are finally happy. They're still able to communicate with their minds and manifest all the things they could in Summerland, but it takes a bit longer to process.
This is the end of the Immortals series by Alyson Noel.
Best part of story, including ending:
I liked being able to get a clear understanding of what all the mystic and witchcraft ideology was leading up to. It was nice to get a resolution to a series that kind of dragged on in the middle novels. I can't believe it took Ever this long to come to a conclusion, but I guess that's the point in reincarnation. A soul must repeat lessons over until they learn what is necessary to move forward.
Best scene in story:
I really enjoyed the scenes with Lotus, the cooky old woman, and the darkness of Summerland.
Opinion about the main character:
I've always been annoyed with the character's slow progression, but now it makes sense why she made so many mistakes. It's all part of reincarnation.
