A review by readingoverbreathing
The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman

3.0

"Never turn yer back on the sea, and remember what's hidden beneath her is always more deadly than what's in plain sight."

I was honestly so excited to dive back into this series so soon, as I had such a fun time with [b:The Dark Days Club|15993203|The Dark Days Club (Lady Helen, #1)|Alison Goodman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1439928937l/15993203._SY75_.jpg|21750762]. However, its sequel here, unfortunately, turned out to be kind of disappointing for me.

The primary problem was that the first half was just so slow. It took a couple hundred pages before anything exciting happened as Goodman really took her time reorienting the reader in Brighton and establishing the latest stakes for the characters. Once it picked up, I really started enjoying it more, but it still took entirely too long to get to that point.

I also had a much harder time connecting to these characters and their world than I did last time, which I think may mostly be due to how long it took me to get into this because of its early slow pacing. I think more personality could have been given to Brighton, for one thing, and for another, the characters I had previously really liked actually here started to drive me a little crazy. Lady Margaret was too bossy, Carlston was aloof and problematic (although admittedly through no fault of his own), and don't even get me started on how controlling and sexist the Duke has gotten.

One thing I do want to throw in that I appreciate with this series is the love triangle dynamic between Helen, Carlston, and the Duke. It is so not your typical YA romantic conundrum but is instead based on real social constraints and patriotic duty which to me really raises its stakes and heightens the books' overall drama. And honestly, I can't resist a good 'she's mine' sort of fight, despite the problematic issues of gender that might need to be unpacked there.

The final hundred pages or so, where most of the book's action really happened, did do a considerable amount to revive my overall interest. Goodman wrapped up just enough loose ends here to satisfyingly conclude this installment whilst also unravelling a few new ones to set the stakes for the final book, which I am definitely planning on picking up, as I really do need to find out how she's going to solve that unevenly balanced love triangle. This is still such a fun series, one that's really right up my alley, and I am excited to soon see where Goodman takes it next.