Bantam, £6.99, ISBN 978-0-55382-608-1
Fantasy, 2011
At last, the conclusion of Richelle Mead’s series about that succubus Georgina Kincaid. Needless to say, you shouldn’t be starting with Succubus Revealed if you are new to the series, because that is like watching only the last fifteen minutes of a movie. This review will have references to events in previous books, so you know what to do if you wish to read those books and do not want to be spoiled.
It has been four years since Georgina Kincaid, the succubus with a heart of gold, made her debut, and while the first few books are pretty good entertainment, the last few books have an increasing focus on the soap opera between Georgina and her boyfriend Seth Mortensen. When this book opens, Georgina has finally got Seth to come back to her. You may recall that Seth cheated on her with Maddie and then, later, he cheated on Maddie with her, but now that Georgina and Seth are together again, everything is right again. Georgina leaves her old job and her old human friends because, for some reason, they didn’t cozy up to the idea of Georgina being the Other Woman. Go figure. But they will come around – everyone loves Georgina, after all.
So, in this story, what happens? Oh, I can talk about a bowling league, Georgina being transferred, but these are all filler moments as the author neatly wraps up all loose ends from the last few books. The thing is, Ms Mead could have at least been less predictable in the process. Georgina finally learns the connection between Seth and her past – that one I have seen coming a mile away, one that I had secretly hoped isn’t going to happen as that will be boring and predictable. Oh, well. And, of course, Georgina and Seth get their happily ever after, something that leaves me feeling rather cheated because, for the most part, they have done nothing to earn the happy ending. Instead, it takes a secondary character to put in motion the events that bring about this happy ending, and his great sacrifice is for… what? So that Miss Melodramatically Miserable and Mr Surly Cardboard Dude can continue to remain in a chemistry-free relationship.
In this book, Georgina finally admits that she had been a self-absorbed and even thoughtless hag in the last few books, but the author still allows everyone to bend over backward for her and Seth. Jerome sarcastically remarks in this book that Georgina believes that everything is about her, but then again, that is exactly what happens in this story. Everything is about her. She’s special, so is Seth. Those that don’t bend over to make her and Seth happy are rendered as one-dimensional caricatures (Jerome) while those do are portrayed as one-dimensional fairy godmother types (Carter).
Ultimately, Succubus Revealed is an unsatisfying conclusion to a series. It wallows in melodrama, allowing Georgina to be what Jerome criticized her as – a drama queen when it comes to her angst. It is also very disheartening to learn that, after everything that happened in the last few books, it all boils down to the universe wanting Seth and Georgina to be together because they are special. The fact that these two have a history of cheating on each other or cheating on other people with each other aside, it’s true love between two special unicorns so I’m supposed to be touched or something.
In the end, the sins of the series have caught up with the author. Seth has been a one-dimensional character all along, so this conclusion which sees several more well-drawn characters being sacrificed to give him a happy ending has me scratching my head. Georgina has been nothing but a mediocre succubus, and yet she had been retained when other Hellish employees have been punished for lesser failings. She is loved despite behaving like a brat most of the time. So, in the end, I’m told these two are special and I should be cheering at how the author has everything fall neatly into place for them. How sad, I’m not too impressed by the way things turn out.
If you are a Seth and Georgina shipper, I suspect that you may enjoy this one far more than me. I’m just disappointed by how everything turns out – I guess I was hoping for something less predictable and more eventful than what is present in these pages. Goodbye Georgina, it was really fun for a while, but I was soon tired of your overwrought drama and I’m just glad the whole thing is over and done with, even if the conclusion is as average as this.
