Black Heart by Holly Black

Title: Black Heart (Curse Workers #3)

Author: Holly Black

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Release Date: April 3, 2012

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository

In a world where magic is illegal, Cassel Sharpe has the most dangerous ability of all. With one touch, he can transform any object--or person--into something else entirely. He's so valuable, the Feds are willing to forgive his past crimes if he'll go straight. But why does it feel so crooked?

For one thing, it means being on the opposite side of the law from Lila, the girl he loves. She's the daughter of a mob boss and she's joining the family business. Though Cassel is pretty sure she can never love him back, he can't stop obsessing over her.

The Feds say they need Cassel to get rid of a powerful man who is spinning out of control. But if they want Cassel to hurt people, what separates the good guys from the bad ones? Is everyone just out to con him? Time is running out, and all Cassel's magic and cleverness might not be enough to save him. With no easy answers and no one he can trust, love might be the most dangerous gamble of all.

The Curse Workers series by Holly Black is one of my all time favorite series so I was beyond excited when an ARC of Black Heart showed up on my doorstep. But as much as I was excited about reading it, I also didn't want to because that would mean one of my favorite series would be over. Regardless of all this, Black Heart ended up being a fantastic read.

Now training to work for the government, Cassel Sharpe has left behind the life of crime he grew up in and has always known. Except that the more he works with them, the more Cassel finds that the good guys may not necessarily be as good as they appear to be. Not only that, but working with the Feds means that Cassel is working against Lila, the girl he has been in love with his entire life. And to make things better, everything seems to be going completely wrong in Cassel's life, both at home and at school. When you grow up in a world filled with lies and deception, nothing can ever be what it seems.

I absolutely adore the world and story that Holly Black created in her Curse Workers series. It's dark and deceiving and I absolutely love it. The story itself will take you to places you never thought it would. The story in Black Heart was packed with twists and turns, every time I thought I had everything figured out, Holly Black would throw something new in the mix and I would have to re-evaluate everything. And of course Holly Black's writing itself is incredible. It draws me in to the story, to a place that I just don't want to leave. Once I started reading I just couldn't stop. And the ending was just perfect, both for the book and for the series. I couldn't have asked for a better one.

I am most definitely at least a little bit in love with Cassel Sharpe. I mean, not falling in love with him would have been a little difficult. In this book, he was the same Cassel that I have come to love in the other books. Once again, he has really good intentions and his heart is most definitely in the right place, but sometimes the follow-through is a little bit lacking or doesn't really turn out quite as planned. But, hey, at least it kept things interesting. And Lila finalled proved to me that she was deserving of Cassel and I was finally able to see what he saw in her. And of course, more than anything, I was happy with the way things turned out for everyone.

I loved Black Heart. In this book, Holly Black wrote an amazing conclusion to her phenomenal Curse Workers series. Though I'm sad this series I love has now ended, I couldn't have asked for a better ending for it.