Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

Published By: Dell

Date of Publication: October 31, 2006

Categories: Adult, Fairy, Series, Urban Paranormal, Vampire 

Pages: 342

Summary (from goodreads.com): MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death-a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone-Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed-a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae…

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane-an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women-closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book-because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands…

Review: I just finished reading Darkfever and to be honest, it was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. A friend of mine lent it to me. She’s really into fantasy. I’m not so much. I like at least a little reality in my books. So I was thinking I’d read Darkfever and tell her that the rest of the books in the series weren’t for me. Boy was I wrong.

I think once I had read the first chapter I knew I was going to l like it. Mac is a very likable character. She’s spunky and does what she wants. I like that. She kind of reminded me of Sookie Stackhouse at first, another character that I really enjoy.

I’m still not sure what to think of Barrons though. I’m not sure if I like him or if he’s out to use Mac for her abilites. It’s unusual that I can’t make up my mind about a character – usually I either love them or hate them right off the bat.

The novel is set in Ireland, a place that I’d love to go to, but haven’t traveled to yet. Reading Darkfever I almost felt like I was there. I love books like that. It draws you into the story and you can picture yourself in the middle of the action. The setting added a lot to my enjoyment.

I think this series if off to a great start and I’m excited to read the next one in the Fever series, Bloodfever.

Image: goodreads.com

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Published By: Hyperion

Date of Publication: March 2 2010

Categories:Boarding School, Fairy, Fiction, Ghost, Series, Urban Paranormal, Vampire, Werewolf, Witch, YA

Pages: 323

Summary (from goodreads.com): Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It’s gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie’s estranged father–an elusive European warlock–only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it’s her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

Review: I have to start off by saying that I love the way Rachel Hawkins incorporates humor into this novel. There were a few times that I went back and read certain parts cause they were really funny. It’s been awhile since I’ve read a book like that.

Archer was a great character to be Sophie’s love interest. I love guys like Archer – a little bit mystery, a little broody, there’s just something that you can’t pin down with him. It’s very mysterious, and it makes me want to read more to learn what it is.

The cast of supporting characters is great too. There’s a lot of them, because the story takes place at a boarding school. But they each have their own identity and voice, so they don’t all blend into each other. It’s kind of cool too, to have so many supernatural beings all in one book – everything from witches to werewolves, and everything in between.

I found it hard to put this book down because there was always something happening – there weren’t any slow or boring parts. The pacing was great.

While it would be easy to group this book with the other boarding school paranormal books just by reading the summary, it’s definitely more than that. It’s fresh and original and deal with more than just the paranormal. There are lots of teen stuff in there too, like friendship, betrayal, relationships, and even prom.

I can’t wait to read the next book in this series, Demonglass. I HAVE to find out what happens to everyone, not to mention the cliffhanger!

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Image: goodreads.com

Disclosure: I got this book from the library.