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3.44 AVERAGE
3.44 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Features:
- Explores themes of race, slavery, war, and trauma
- What if an escaped slave fighting in the American Civil War…but with vampires?
- A blend of forbidden and enemies to lovers romance
- Strong, black female main character as well as a diverse cast of other characters
Oh dear. This one is definitely a diamond in the rough. I have so many thoughts that it’s going to be hard to sum up, but here we go! Main characters Jerusalem and Alexei are well realized and have great chemistry on the page. I enjoyed their banter and the evolution of their relationship, but we don’t really get to see how they meet until much later in the book and not in a way that feels particularly meaningful. There are a lot of interesting ideas in the world building that I desperately want to see fully realized, but they were never woven together and developed in a way that felt truly cohesive. If you are into history like me, I am going to warn you away from this one right now. However, if you like stories that are action driven and/or vampire romances, I think this could be one you could enjoy.
Pro: Character Chemistry
This book switches between two perspectives. The first is Jerusalem, an escaped slave with enhanced abilities. After running from her captors, Jerusalem joins a group of other people with enhanced abilities known as “Saints” and trains hard in order to exact her revenge. The other perspective is Alexei, an old world vampire of Eastern European descent with a complicated past of his own that he finds himself running both towards and away from in equal measure. Both of these characters are strong and independent, but Blackwood does a good job allowing space for vulnerability and errors that are clearly connected to their past experiences.
The first time we see Alexei and Jerusalem together, they are sibling-like in the way they antagonize each other while also quietly respecting and trusting one another. Unfortunately, we don’t get to live through the process of them meeting and getting to this point. However, they have great chemistry and it is easy to see how this friendship could bloom into something more. There are definitely some missed opportunities with both characters, but I found myself invested in them all the same. The other “Saints” each followed an archetype without much else to make them feel extremely unique and most characters beyond that were minimally characterized. However, I think the ‘blend’ of archetypes played well with the main characters and I wasn’t too upset by it.
The Breakdown: What’s the Rush?
I’m just going to say it: structure is a real problem with this book. There is a version of this book that could be 5 stars and all it would really have to do is pump the brakes a little bit. We start with Jerusalem’s dramatic escape (which is very well done) and then in the very next chapter, we have jumped 2 years ahead and she is already well established in this group and close with Alexei. That in and of itself could probably be its own novel and the rest of this story would be better for it. Instead, the story tries to fill in the gaps with flashback chapters that find themselves competing with the present day action that unfolds at breakneck speed. As a result, the flashbacks themselves only cover the essentials and the memories shared don’t always have a strong correlation to what is happening in the present. I imagine at least some of this is intended to create curiosity in the reader to hook them in, but it falls short in execution and just feels a little thrown together.
Action is definitely prioritized in this book and there is nothing wrong with having a fast paced book. However, the themes this book tries to explore and the characters it uses to do so need to be given more time to develop in meaningful ways. Without giving any spoilers, I will say that there are some big reveals in the early parts of the story that could have been really amazing moments if more time was spent getting me invested in the characters and/or situation. As a result, I wasn’t really affected by some of the developments in the way I knew I should be. Additionally, you can tell that there is more to the world building and characters that we never really get to see or explore in the rush from one thing to the other.
I am not a big believer that an alternate history needs to be as close to the real historical event/time period as possible. However, I think that it is important to have a clear vision of what this version of history looks like and that it remains cohesive and consistent. I understand and appreciate the story the author was trying to tell and there is enough here that I can even see how it could work in a wonderfully weird way. That’s why it pains me to say that this, my friends, is a glorious mess. I can’t even tell how much is intentional in order to ‘reach younger readers’ and how much is simply not spending enough time researching and editing. Unfortunately, this book is largely missing its sense of time and place and loses some of its power as a result.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Racism, Violence, Blood, War
Moderate: Confinement, Gore, Rape, Grief, Gaslighting
THE DANGEROUS ONES by Lauren Blackwood reimagines the American Civil War by adding vampires and vampire hunters to the mix. Her story revolves around Jerusalem, a former enslaved person who escaped her vampire enslaver and found her calling fighting with the Yankees against the South and their vampire allies. Jerusalem fights alongside one of the few vampires who don’t side with the South. The rest of the story follows pretty much as you can guess. In fact, there are no major surprises here. The story is formulaic and filled with tropes. Jerusalem and Alexei are great together. Their chemistry is perfection, and Ms. Blackwood takes care to highlight their friendship before moving on to other aspects of their relationship. Individually, both are engaging characters, flawed and better for those flaws. Together, they make sparks fly.
That being said, THE DANGEROUS ONES is cute but ultimately forgettable. It is the type of book you enjoy reading but put aside once finished and never think of it again. In fact, I had to read the synopsis before I could recall what the book was about before writing this review. It is a fun book in that vampires in the Civil War is a premise I always love. Ms. Blackwood keeps the gravitas and pain that is necessary and deserved when Jerusalem thinks about her time as an enslaved person; you can tell she aches for all of the enslaved and takes the pain of generations upon her shoulders. But, there is nothing that makes the story stick in my mind, and that is okay. Not every book can be profound or life-altering in some way. Everyone will come across a read-and-forget book at least once in their life. THE DANGEROUS ONES is the latter for me.
That being said, THE DANGEROUS ONES is cute but ultimately forgettable. It is the type of book you enjoy reading but put aside once finished and never think of it again. In fact, I had to read the synopsis before I could recall what the book was about before writing this review. It is a fun book in that vampires in the Civil War is a premise I always love. Ms. Blackwood keeps the gravitas and pain that is necessary and deserved when Jerusalem thinks about her time as an enslaved person; you can tell she aches for all of the enslaved and takes the pain of generations upon her shoulders. But, there is nothing that makes the story stick in my mind, and that is okay. Not every book can be profound or life-altering in some way. Everyone will come across a read-and-forget book at least once in their life. THE DANGEROUS ONES is the latter for me.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This audiobook was made available for me to listen to and review by Lauren Blackwood, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley.
This is a historical fantasy novel with an alternative history twist. What if, during the American Civil War, the Confederate army were led by vampires? What if some humans had developed super human speed and reflexes? That's the basis for this novel, and it fully delivers.
This has epic battle scenes, tragic character backstories, high stakes, solid world building, and a strong and complicated Black formerly enslaved FMC with a sweet but complicated interracial love interest.
This is a slow burn enemies to lovers storyline with a side of trauma and PTSD thrown in. I think the romance is a bit complex for this type of novel and could've used more fleshing out. It does work but is not the snoothest element of this story. This does use modern language, which this novel is dinged for in multiple reviews, but I think it fits a novel of this genre. The concept of a civil war fought by vampires, werewolves, and godlike humans is a fairly modern concept. The language used in the novel matched the concept. Furthermore, this concern with the correct use of 'language' concerning Black authors is, in my experience, usually just dog whistle racism. There's absolutely nothing jarring about the language used in this novel at all.
I read Within These Wicked Walls by this author previously, which I enjoyed but found a bit clunky in places. This was a much more fully developed concept and a much smoother storyline. I look forward to Ms. Blackwood's next novel.
The narrators of The Dangerous Ones are Angel Pean and Jay Ben Markson. I've definitely heard at least one other audiobook narrated by Ms. Pean before. Mr. Markson is new to me as a narrator. I loved the dual narrators for the dual viewpoints. Both of these narrators really succeeded in bringing both Jerusalem and Alexei to life. As well as making them both immediately relatable given their respective backgrounds.
Thank you to Lauren Blackwood, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.
This is a historical fantasy novel with an alternative history twist. What if, during the American Civil War, the Confederate army were led by vampires? What if some humans had developed super human speed and reflexes? That's the basis for this novel, and it fully delivers.
This has epic battle scenes, tragic character backstories, high stakes, solid world building, and a strong and complicated Black formerly enslaved FMC with a sweet but complicated interracial love interest.
This is a slow burn enemies to lovers storyline with a side of trauma and PTSD thrown in. I think the romance is a bit complex for this type of novel and could've used more fleshing out. It does work but is not the snoothest element of this story. This does use modern language, which this novel is dinged for in multiple reviews, but I think it fits a novel of this genre. The concept of a civil war fought by vampires, werewolves, and godlike humans is a fairly modern concept. The language used in the novel matched the concept. Furthermore, this concern with the correct use of 'language' concerning Black authors is, in my experience, usually just dog whistle racism. There's absolutely nothing jarring about the language used in this novel at all.
I read Within These Wicked Walls by this author previously, which I enjoyed but found a bit clunky in places. This was a much more fully developed concept and a much smoother storyline. I look forward to Ms. Blackwood's next novel.
The narrators of The Dangerous Ones are Angel Pean and Jay Ben Markson. I've definitely heard at least one other audiobook narrated by Ms. Pean before. Mr. Markson is new to me as a narrator. I loved the dual narrators for the dual viewpoints. Both of these narrators really succeeded in bringing both Jerusalem and Alexei to life. As well as making them both immediately relatable given their respective backgrounds.
Thank you to Lauren Blackwood, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
If you're looking for an emotional romantasy with a black female main character... look no further! This was gut-wrenching at times. Full of both love and pain, you follow our girl on her journey for freedom amongst the Civil War and vampires. Fight for life, truth, love, and above all, freedom. For herself and for those who didn't feel they could fight themselves.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Dangerous Ones by Lauren Blackwood is a fascinating, thrilling YA fantasy set in the Civil War Era with vampires. I love everything about the concept. It's told in dual POV, and I enjoyed both perspectives. The way that the vampire's experience with being turned tied into his views on slavery was unique and well done. There's a lot of angst in this one, and Twilight readers may see some similarities in the way the heroine's smell is discussed. All in all, a great read. This one is coming May 14th
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Overview: The FMC is a former slave of a vampire who has killed her family. It's the Civil War time, and she enlists in the Union army. She realizes she is "Saint," a preternaturally strong, fighter, who's purpose is to help kill the vampires that are in the Confederacy. Jerusalem, the FMC, develops feelings for an old vampire (white, male) who is fighting for the Union and also wants revenge against the same vampire. Story is told from dual POV, the FMC and MMC.
It's a bit difficult for me to put into words how much this book irked me, or in hindsight that I should have just DNF'd it (but those ratio scores, right?). Why? For several reasons:
Really disliked the FMC, who is stubborn, impulsive (admittedly so), and it doesn't really do it for this reader. The MMC is a bit more rounded, with a moment of internal struggle of what's right/wrong. The weird predatory feelings of the the MMC towards the FMC, always mentioning her smell and the temptation. I have never read Twilight, so maybe it's just as cringy and there are some readers totally into that. One could even say that it's a bit white savior-ish, but I think it's just the characters that the author wrote, developed, and it just so happens to be a former slave who is black falling in love with an old/ancient, white vampire, and they are both on the mission.
Maybe someone could argue otherwise that this deserves a higher rating. As always, thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this advanced book for a review.
It's a bit difficult for me to put into words how much this book irked me, or in hindsight that I should have just DNF'd it (but those ratio scores, right?). Why? For several reasons:
Really disliked the FMC, who is stubborn, impulsive (admittedly so), and it doesn't really do it for this reader. The MMC is a bit more rounded, with a moment of internal struggle of what's right/wrong. The weird predatory feelings of the the MMC towards the FMC, always mentioning her smell and the temptation. I have never read Twilight, so maybe it's just as cringy and there are some readers totally into that. One could even say that it's a bit white savior-ish, but I think it's just the characters that the author wrote, developed, and it just so happens to be a former slave who is black falling in love with an old/ancient, white vampire, and they are both on the mission.
Maybe someone could argue otherwise that this deserves a higher rating. As always, thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this advanced book for a review.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I love a revenge plot but the pacing was a little off in this one. Wanted to love it much more than I did
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for giving me early access to this book! All opinions are my own.
I really, really wanted to like this. Vampires and bad ass women in historical times? It sounds like a match made in heaven. But, unfortunately the execution just wasn’t there. The dialogue felt like it was trying to be historically accurate, but then there would be modern terms thrown in that didn’t mesh well at all. When I got to the time jumps, the story felt so jumpy I couldn’t figure out what in the world was happening. Finally at 32% I decided this just wasn’t for me and I DNFed it. I think this had a lot of potential, and the general premise was amazing, but the follow through just fell flat.
I really, really wanted to like this. Vampires and bad ass women in historical times? It sounds like a match made in heaven. But, unfortunately the execution just wasn’t there. The dialogue felt like it was trying to be historically accurate, but then there would be modern terms thrown in that didn’t mesh well at all. When I got to the time jumps, the story felt so jumpy I couldn’t figure out what in the world was happening. Finally at 32% I decided this just wasn’t for me and I DNFed it. I think this had a lot of potential, and the general premise was amazing, but the follow through just fell flat.
Couldn’t get into it. Didn’t like any of the characters