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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
Kelly Gay (AKA Kelly Keaton) writes one of my favorite Urban Fantasy series out there right now. So it's no surprise that her writing and characters would be just as strong and powerful in her YA debut Darkness Becomes Her. The problem is for all that power, this is a setup novel. After turning the last page I can easily say it's not that big of a problem. My enjoyment of this title was truly joyful.
Another point that I have to make is that Darkness Becomes Her has an original idea behind it, come on Medusa and Greek mythology! It mixes a little bit of every paranormal YA book out there into one fun read. Which may be slightly disappointing if you love the 100% originality of Gray's Charlie Madigan. If anyone can make a hodgepodging of the genre work for them, Gray can.
What I love is that despite the synopsis saying Darkness Becomes Her is a “paranormal romance”, it really isn't. It's there, but the focus isn't zoomed in on it, nor does it make you want to vomit with its “power of love”. What the synopsis got right is that Darkness Becomes Her is “dark and lush”. A future where a New Orleans is destroyed by hurricanes and is rebuilt as New 2 (band name anyone?) is a fun idea. Just because it's a new New Orleans the city does not lose any of the magic of New Orleans. Nope, I'd say this is a new and improved Orleans. Any book focusing on the paranormal set in New Orleans has so many options and just the few creatures that readers meet are so cool!
At this point I'll wrap it up because I do not want to give anything away. If readers go in not quite knowing what to expect this book is so much fun!
Despite the few minor complaints, Gay is the boss! Her world building is amazing and she's got me snared. Ari Selkirk is the type of lead more YA titles need. She's independent, tough, can take care of herself, but she knows when she needs to get backup. It bothers me how often a kick butt female ends up being just another damsel in paranormal young adult. Ari connects emotionally with readers as an outcast looking for a place to belong, she's real and I love having her as one of my fictional gal pals.
Sexual Content: Kissing, making out, and some ballroom friskiness. Fairly clean.
4/5- Great! Really enjoyed it.
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
Another point that I have to make is that Darkness Becomes Her has an original idea behind it, come on Medusa and Greek mythology! It mixes a little bit of every paranormal YA book out there into one fun read. Which may be slightly disappointing if you love the 100% originality of Gray's Charlie Madigan. If anyone can make a hodgepodging of the genre work for them, Gray can.
What I love is that despite the synopsis saying Darkness Becomes Her is a “paranormal romance”, it really isn't. It's there, but the focus isn't zoomed in on it, nor does it make you want to vomit with its “power of love”. What the synopsis got right is that Darkness Becomes Her is “dark and lush”. A future where a New Orleans is destroyed by hurricanes and is rebuilt as New 2 (band name anyone?) is a fun idea. Just because it's a new New Orleans the city does not lose any of the magic of New Orleans. Nope, I'd say this is a new and improved Orleans. Any book focusing on the paranormal set in New Orleans has so many options and just the few creatures that readers meet are so cool!
At this point I'll wrap it up because I do not want to give anything away. If readers go in not quite knowing what to expect this book is so much fun!
Despite the few minor complaints, Gay is the boss! Her world building is amazing and she's got me snared. Ari Selkirk is the type of lead more YA titles need. She's independent, tough, can take care of herself, but she knows when she needs to get backup. It bothers me how often a kick butt female ends up being just another damsel in paranormal young adult. Ari connects emotionally with readers as an outcast looking for a place to belong, she's real and I love having her as one of my fictional gal pals.
Sexual Content: Kissing, making out, and some ballroom friskiness. Fairly clean.
4/5- Great! Really enjoyed it.
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
I want to start off this review saying that finished this book in 2 and a half hours. So it’s not that big of a book. I wasn’t really impressed with it either. I found it rushed into everything. I did t understand what was going on half the time because there was no explanations. It wasn’t a bad book because the plot was there, even though it was rushed. Maybe the me t book will be a little more elaborate.
I’m not a huge fan of the main character Ali. She also rushed into things. She’s looking for leads on her mom and just rushes off wherever she feels like going. She hardly checks in with her parents and when she does they just let her do what she wants. It wasn’t very realistic. After that, she meets this guy and they’re making out the second time they see each other. I mean good job for her because he’s hot and everything but that’s not how a relationship starts. He was a boring character though. The typical punk, bad boy vampire. How original. The only character I did like was Violet. She was pretty cool.
Something else I didn’t like was all the supernatural going on. By the title of the series, you assume it’s about the Gods and some mythological creatures, who we did see, like a harpy and Arachne. But the book starts with introducing vampires, witches, and shapeshifters. It’s completely fine until the author then introduces the Greek Gods too. There’s way too much going on I think.
At the end of the book I wasn’t impressed but it wasn’t bad either. I’m willing to give the next book a chance.
I’m not a huge fan of the main character Ali. She also rushed into things. She’s looking for leads on her mom and just rushes off wherever she feels like going. She hardly checks in with her parents and when she does they just let her do what she wants. It wasn’t very realistic. After that, she meets this guy and they’re making out the second time they see each other. I mean good job for her because he’s hot and everything but that’s not how a relationship starts. He was a boring character though. The typical punk, bad boy vampire. How original. The only character I did like was Violet. She was pretty cool.
Something else I didn’t like was all the supernatural going on. By the title of the series, you assume it’s about the Gods and some mythological creatures, who we did see, like a harpy and Arachne. But the book starts with introducing vampires, witches, and shapeshifters. It’s completely fine until the author then introduces the Greek Gods too. There’s way too much going on I think.
At the end of the book I wasn’t impressed but it wasn’t bad either. I’m willing to give the next book a chance.
I've had Darkness Becomes Her sitting on my shelf for well over 8 months now and I finally picked it up and read it. I'm not sure why I didn't bother reading this sooner but anyways I'm glad I finally read it, it had a lot of your typical YA cliches but there was a twist I didn't see coming which made my enjoyment factor go up a little more then where it was at.
The story is about Aristanae "Ari" a girl with teal colored eyes and silver hair. She grew up in the foster system and now almost eighteen she is seeking information about her mother which leads her to an insane asylum. She finds out her mother killed herself a few months after she was put in the system and the only thing left to her is a box full of items with a letter from her mother telling her to run and that she needs to stay away from New Orleans and those who can identify her. First off I had issues with that letter, it bugged me that the letter didn't give her any insight on why and who she has to protect herself from..just run! not the most helpful letter in the world.
As for the romance it happened too fast and I never really connected with Sebastian's character. Then again when I think about it besides Ari, Violet (who is this awesome little girl who has a pet alligator named Pascal) and well another main character (who I can't give away without ruining the book for those who haven't read it yet) all the other characters weren't all that memorable.
Overall even though it looks like I didn't enjoy the book due to all the issues I stated above, I did enjoy it. I liked Ari she could fight so no damsel in distress there. I also liked the fact that Keaton setup New Orleans to be a sort of haven for supernatural creatures and she delivered as far as the supernatural goes, there was a diverse amount of creatures all playing their roles in the plot very well. Also I found the plot itself entertaining especially the second half.
The story is about Aristanae "Ari" a girl with teal colored eyes and silver hair. She grew up in the foster system and now almost eighteen she is seeking information about her mother which leads her to an insane asylum. She finds out her mother killed herself a few months after she was put in the system and the only thing left to her is a box full of items with a letter from her mother telling her to run and that she needs to stay away from New Orleans and those who can identify her. First off I had issues with that letter, it bugged me that the letter didn't give her any insight on why and who she has to protect herself from..just run! not the most helpful letter in the world.
As for the romance it happened too fast and I never really connected with Sebastian's character. Then again when I think about it besides Ari, Violet (who is this awesome little girl who has a pet alligator named Pascal) and well another main character (who I can't give away without ruining the book for those who haven't read it yet) all the other characters weren't all that memorable.
Overall even though it looks like I didn't enjoy the book due to all the issues I stated above, I did enjoy it. I liked Ari she could fight so no damsel in distress there. I also liked the fact that Keaton setup New Orleans to be a sort of haven for supernatural creatures and she delivered as far as the supernatural goes, there was a diverse amount of creatures all playing their roles in the plot very well. Also I found the plot itself entertaining especially the second half.
Previously Published on my blog: Welcome to Larissa's Bookish Life
Rating: 4.5 stars
*NO Spoilers
I am a big fan of Kelly’s Books as Kelly Gay, so when I found out she was releasing a new Y.A. novel under the Kelly Keaton name, I was thrilled and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. Thanks to Kelly and the Simon Schuster Galley-Grab program I was able to read this book early and I am so glad I did!
Darkness Becomes Her is an awesome YA read with all the elements that compose a great novel: An awesome heroine, great world building, action, mystery and a romantic interest.
Ari has been in foster care for as long as she remembers and it has definitely been a wild ride. Now she is finally living with a family that cares for her, but she also has a chance to find out about all that she has ever wanted to know about her biological parents and the mystery surrounding her and her family. Her hunt brings her to New 2, a dystopian look at New Orleans. It is never clear if New 2 is the result of Katrina or if another disaster hit the area and turned it into the New 2 we meet. The story takes place in 2026, so the latter might be the safest bet.
In New 2, Ari meets a cast of characters that will help or hinder her in her quest for the truth, she also makes some new friends. I couldn’t help but love Sebastian, Db, Crank, Henry and specially Violet, with her adorable weirdness. Kelly Keaton has done a superb in building the world Ari lives in and the way she combined Greek Mythology with it was incredible!
To be honest the only complaint I have about Darkness Becomes Her, was that I felt the little romance there is in it, was a bit rushed. Other than that, Darkness Becomes Her is an Amazing Paranormal YA read and I absolutely recommend to every fan of the genre out there! I can’t wait for the sequel and I so hope it becomes a series!
Rating: 4.5 stars
*NO Spoilers
I am a big fan of Kelly’s Books as Kelly Gay, so when I found out she was releasing a new Y.A. novel under the Kelly Keaton name, I was thrilled and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. Thanks to Kelly and the Simon Schuster Galley-Grab program I was able to read this book early and I am so glad I did!
Darkness Becomes Her is an awesome YA read with all the elements that compose a great novel: An awesome heroine, great world building, action, mystery and a romantic interest.
Ari has been in foster care for as long as she remembers and it has definitely been a wild ride. Now she is finally living with a family that cares for her, but she also has a chance to find out about all that she has ever wanted to know about her biological parents and the mystery surrounding her and her family. Her hunt brings her to New 2, a dystopian look at New Orleans. It is never clear if New 2 is the result of Katrina or if another disaster hit the area and turned it into the New 2 we meet. The story takes place in 2026, so the latter might be the safest bet.
In New 2, Ari meets a cast of characters that will help or hinder her in her quest for the truth, she also makes some new friends. I couldn’t help but love Sebastian, Db, Crank, Henry and specially Violet, with her adorable weirdness. Kelly Keaton has done a superb in building the world Ari lives in and the way she combined Greek Mythology with it was incredible!
To be honest the only complaint I have about Darkness Becomes Her, was that I felt the little romance there is in it, was a bit rushed. Other than that, Darkness Becomes Her is an Amazing Paranormal YA read and I absolutely recommend to every fan of the genre out there! I can’t wait for the sequel and I so hope it becomes a series!
A YA book that is original? Be still my beating heart!
Er, I really liked this; a fast, easy read. Definite insta-lust. Possible insta-love (though the book's too short for it to really develop slowly.) The blurb sounded very 'I'm-so-different-and-special-people-think-I'm-a-freak troupe-y. This is true, but not a big deal, her 'difference' is actually not one I've seen before. I barely guessed how it would turn out.
So, yeah, I enjoyed this book. Would recommend for a quick, easy read.
Er, I really liked this; a fast, easy read. Definite insta-lust. Possible insta-love (though the book's too short for it to really develop slowly.) The blurb sounded very 'I'm-so-different-and-special-people-think-I'm-a-freak troupe-y. This is true, but not a big deal, her 'difference' is actually not one I've seen before. I barely guessed how it would turn out.
So, yeah, I enjoyed this book. Would recommend for a quick, easy read.
The book started off as interesting, but slowly became difficult to read. I also hated where the author decided to throw in swear words, as it often did nothing to intensify the story in any way.
I'm still confused as to how Sebastian and Ari's relationship even started... One second he "hated her" the next they're making out in a bar. Confusing, if you ask me.
Also, at times , I found myself having to go back a page, thinking I had skipped something. Unfortunately, I hadn't skipped anything but the story seemed to skip crucial information at places. I found myself asking "how did we even get here?!"
All in all, I would recommend this book only if you have a lot of patience to figure out what is going on!
I'm still confused as to how Sebastian and Ari's relationship even started... One second he "hated her" the next they're making out in a bar. Confusing, if you ask me.
Also, at times , I found myself having to go back a page, thinking I had skipped something. Unfortunately, I hadn't skipped anything but the story seemed to skip crucial information at places. I found myself asking "how did we even get here?!"
All in all, I would recommend this book only if you have a lot of patience to figure out what is going on!
I owe a big thank you to Ashleigh for recommending this book. It helped get me out of my slump. I enjoyed it very much and the main character is something very different which is always great!
Hopefully I can bring myself to write an actual review later :)
Hopefully I can bring myself to write an actual review later :)