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A review by smitch29
The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter
3.0
2.7
I hated the heroine. Ashlyn fell in absolute lust and that led her to go with some random guy (also because he quieted the voices in her head), basically anywhere he was going. But really, even if her quieted voices was a good enough reason it doesn't really excuse how she thinks she fell in love with him in under a week. Like soul-deep, life redefining love. That just doesn't happen. She fell in lust and relief at the new quiet in her life. The fact that Maddox also fell on that same time period is more excusable since he's not human, and he's lived for thousands of years. Honestly, their entire relationship was just so over-the-top and unbelievable that it was the main thing that tanked the rating.
Also, Ashlyn had a special power that allowed her to hear every conversation that has ever happened, ever, in what ever spot she stands. Great, I actually thought that was cool. However, it felt like it was only there to provide a "deus ex machina" moment. Sure, the power was what tortured her as a child, and led to her parents abandoning her to scientists. Then it was what made her useful to her employers as an adult. So in a way, it did set her up to be super naïve and unsure of how real people work, presumably. However, there was no real development on her powers. It felt more like a tool for the author to drive the story in a few places, because there was no other logical way for the story to progress than with magic. If she hears all past conversations in an airport, wouldn't that take a very long time? Or does it play a super-speed and she still can comprehend it all? If she's in an airplane, does she hear only what has been discussed on that plane or on the ground that lays directly below her? Same question but about traveling in a car or really any other vehicle. What I'm getting at, is that it seems unlikely that if her power is that traumatic and bad that she willing followed a random, dangerous-looking, strange man back to his house, in a foreign country, in the middle of the night. Surely there had to have been other times for her to have silence or else would she really have traveled that much, and to Europe, where the history of largely populated civilizations is more steady and extends longer into the past? I would think it would take her a long time to hear conversations in a town center (as she claimed she had done) in just one particular standing position, let alone throughout the main central area. Basically, her power needed WAY more development to be entirely credible as a motivator in this story. It truly felt like the author needed a tool to make things magically happen.
The other real main issue with this story was the lack of communication between the characters. I absolutely understand that at some points the main characters are in sticky trust situations. Ashlyn is more or less a captive at one point, and thus she isn't about to trust Maddox or his friends with important info. And then Maddox and his friends think Ashlyn is Bait, sent to trap them. However, after they profess their love for one another, Maddox wants Ashlyn to stay in the fortress by herself, and trusts that she will, without being locked in, despite all those times she's said she wants to leave, or at least contact her boss. He never thinks it would be wise to tell her that the Hunters might be looking to kill her? Or else mention that he spent the previous day sent up dozens of booby traps on the hill around the fortress, so if she does run away, she might want to be careful? Both of those seem like things that would be essential to know, and even might make her more compliant to his wishes.
I won't even go into Ashlyn's lack of logic. She was just a joke on most anything real. It's been awhile since I've read a heroine I dislike so much, but she might just be the most eye-roll inducing character I've ever read.
Beyond my hatred of Ashlyn, this story was half bad. The supporting cast was intriguing. I can't say I'm excited for any of their stories, but this book had underlying potential and was an easy enough read, that I'll probably try out the next book and see if the author improved any. Also, I'm a bit swayed by the ratings this series has gotten. But it might turn out that I'm just the odd woman out with my opinion.
I hated the heroine. Ashlyn fell in absolute lust and that led her to go with some random guy (also because he quieted the voices in her head), basically anywhere he was going. But really, even if her quieted voices was a good enough reason it doesn't really excuse how she thinks she fell in love with him in under a week. Like soul-deep, life redefining love. That just doesn't happen. She fell in lust and relief at the new quiet in her life. The fact that Maddox also fell on that same time period is more excusable since he's not human, and he's lived for thousands of years. Honestly, their entire relationship was just so over-the-top and unbelievable that it was the main thing that tanked the rating.
Also, Ashlyn had a special power that allowed her to hear every conversation that has ever happened, ever, in what ever spot she stands. Great, I actually thought that was cool. However, it felt like it was only there to provide a "deus ex machina" moment. Sure, the power was what tortured her as a child, and led to her parents abandoning her to scientists. Then it was what made her useful to her employers as an adult. So in a way, it did set her up to be super naïve and unsure of how real people work, presumably. However, there was no real development on her powers. It felt more like a tool for the author to drive the story in a few places, because there was no other logical way for the story to progress than with magic. If she hears all past conversations in an airport, wouldn't that take a very long time? Or does it play a super-speed and she still can comprehend it all? If she's in an airplane, does she hear only what has been discussed on that plane or on the ground that lays directly below her? Same question but about traveling in a car or really any other vehicle. What I'm getting at, is that it seems unlikely that if her power is that traumatic and bad that she willing followed a random, dangerous-looking, strange man back to his house, in a foreign country, in the middle of the night. Surely there had to have been other times for her to have silence or else would she really have traveled that much, and to Europe, where the history of largely populated civilizations is more steady and extends longer into the past? I would think it would take her a long time to hear conversations in a town center (as she claimed she had done) in just one particular standing position, let alone throughout the main central area. Basically, her power needed WAY more development to be entirely credible as a motivator in this story. It truly felt like the author needed a tool to make things magically happen.
The other real main issue with this story was the lack of communication between the characters. I absolutely understand that at some points the main characters are in sticky trust situations. Ashlyn is more or less a captive at one point, and thus she isn't about to trust Maddox or his friends with important info. And then Maddox and his friends think Ashlyn is Bait, sent to trap them. However, after they profess their love for one another, Maddox wants Ashlyn to stay in the fortress by herself, and trusts that she will, without being locked in, despite all those times she's said she wants to leave, or at least contact her boss. He never thinks it would be wise to tell her that the Hunters might be looking to kill her? Or else mention that he spent the previous day sent up dozens of booby traps on the hill around the fortress, so if she does run away, she might want to be careful? Both of those seem like things that would be essential to know, and even might make her more compliant to his wishes.
I won't even go into Ashlyn's lack of logic. She was just a joke on most anything real. It's been awhile since I've read a heroine I dislike so much, but she might just be the most eye-roll inducing character I've ever read.
Beyond my hatred of Ashlyn, this story was half bad. The supporting cast was intriguing. I can't say I'm excited for any of their stories, but this book had underlying potential and was an easy enough read, that I'll probably try out the next book and see if the author improved any. Also, I'm a bit swayed by the ratings this series has gotten. But it might turn out that I'm just the odd woman out with my opinion.