Darkfever (Fever - Book 1) by Karen Marie MoningPublication Date: August 2007
Publisher: Random House
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal
ISBN-13: 9780440240983
ISBN: 0440240980
(From my own collection)
Purchase: Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Borders, IndieBound
If you live in Morehead, KY or the surrounding area:
Purchase from our local independent bookseller: CoffeeTree Books
Borrow from our local library: The Rowan County Public Library
Karen Marie Moning on the Web: Website, Facebook, Twitter
Excerpt from Darkfever
Book Trailer:
Synopsis (Barnes & Noble):
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 world 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 boundaries 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 it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands...
Thoughts:
I had heard sooo much about the newest books in the Fever series coming out that I finally decided I had to read this series. So I got the first book and it sat on my shelf for awhile because I had so many reviews that I was basically not able to take the time to read anything I really wanted to read just for pleasure. That's when I decided I had to make some changes. I started taking fewer requests and just reviewing for the publishers that I really enjoy and books that I really wanted to read. So basically as of the first of the year my schedule has lengthened out a bit and I am reading more of what I want to read and less of what I don't and it is in part thanks to this book! Now on to the review!
I struggled a little bit with the genre on this one. It has paranormal elements as well as urban fantasy elements. It is a book that has a very complex plot and a lot of twists and turns. I am of Scottish heritage and all things that involve the Sidhe or the Fae are very interesting to me, because I've heard stories of that nature all my life. I found Moning's take on the Fae very interesting and different. Her writing is extremely descriptive, so it would be hard to misconstrue her what's going on in the novel. The author makes it very clear, who is behind what's going on and how the characters fit into the scheme of things.
I found the antics of the MacKayla Lane very enjoyable. She was a very witty character with a lot of spunk. Moning used humor in a subtle way with MacKayla but in a way that made me smile in spite of myself in several places. This is a book that is filled with dark suspense and I wasn't sure Moning could pull it off with a character as colorful and perky as Mac, but I think she did so with flying colors. Her character was really fun to read and I was just enthralled with her the minute she set foot in Ireland, where she had no idea what she was up against.
Jericho Barrens was a very interesting counterpart. He was dark and mysterious and it was easy for the reader to feel like he had some sinister, ulterior motive when it came to Mac, but he had redeeming qualities as well. He was strong and he had Mac's back when she needed someone. The heat between the two of them was palpable at times but it was still below the surface. They were drawn to each other despite the fact that they didn't trust each other. I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that Barren's was definitely up to something. There was some reason he wanted that book, and it wasn't all about having control. I'm sure we'll find out what it is in subsequent novels. I can't wait to get started on the second one.
The supporting cast also added interesting elements to the story. From the various Fae met throughout the novel including Vlane, even to the Vampire Lord. I thought these characters added another dimension to the story and gave it a very urban fantasy feel. One character that I felt like I really wished I could have known was Alina, Mac's sister. Her death is the catalyst that brings everything to a head in the book, but I still felt like she was someone I would have liked to have gotten to know. Now that's good storytelling.
I really really enjoyed this book and count it among my favorites of 2010. I would recommend this one to readers of urban fantasy and paranormal romance, as well as readers who are just looking for some dark suspense. It is very well written and engaging. The character development is unparalleled and it's a real page turner.
Darkfever is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.
I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!
Karen Marie Moning is the internationally bestselling author of the Highlander and Fever novels. Her books have appeared on The New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly bestseller lists and have won numerous awards, including a prestigious RITA. She lives in Georgia and Florida with her husband Neil and the world-traveling cat, Moonshadow.
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 world 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 boundaries 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 it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands...
Thoughts:
I had heard sooo much about the newest books in the Fever series coming out that I finally decided I had to read this series. So I got the first book and it sat on my shelf for awhile because I had so many reviews that I was basically not able to take the time to read anything I really wanted to read just for pleasure. That's when I decided I had to make some changes. I started taking fewer requests and just reviewing for the publishers that I really enjoy and books that I really wanted to read. So basically as of the first of the year my schedule has lengthened out a bit and I am reading more of what I want to read and less of what I don't and it is in part thanks to this book! Now on to the review!
I struggled a little bit with the genre on this one. It has paranormal elements as well as urban fantasy elements. It is a book that has a very complex plot and a lot of twists and turns. I am of Scottish heritage and all things that involve the Sidhe or the Fae are very interesting to me, because I've heard stories of that nature all my life. I found Moning's take on the Fae very interesting and different. Her writing is extremely descriptive, so it would be hard to misconstrue her what's going on in the novel. The author makes it very clear, who is behind what's going on and how the characters fit into the scheme of things.
I found the antics of the MacKayla Lane very enjoyable. She was a very witty character with a lot of spunk. Moning used humor in a subtle way with MacKayla but in a way that made me smile in spite of myself in several places. This is a book that is filled with dark suspense and I wasn't sure Moning could pull it off with a character as colorful and perky as Mac, but I think she did so with flying colors. Her character was really fun to read and I was just enthralled with her the minute she set foot in Ireland, where she had no idea what she was up against.
Jericho Barrens was a very interesting counterpart. He was dark and mysterious and it was easy for the reader to feel like he had some sinister, ulterior motive when it came to Mac, but he had redeeming qualities as well. He was strong and he had Mac's back when she needed someone. The heat between the two of them was palpable at times but it was still below the surface. They were drawn to each other despite the fact that they didn't trust each other. I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that Barren's was definitely up to something. There was some reason he wanted that book, and it wasn't all about having control. I'm sure we'll find out what it is in subsequent novels. I can't wait to get started on the second one.
The supporting cast also added interesting elements to the story. From the various Fae met throughout the novel including Vlane, even to the Vampire Lord. I thought these characters added another dimension to the story and gave it a very urban fantasy feel. One character that I felt like I really wished I could have known was Alina, Mac's sister. Her death is the catalyst that brings everything to a head in the book, but I still felt like she was someone I would have liked to have gotten to know. Now that's good storytelling.
I really really enjoyed this book and count it among my favorites of 2010. I would recommend this one to readers of urban fantasy and paranormal romance, as well as readers who are just looking for some dark suspense. It is very well written and engaging. The character development is unparalleled and it's a real page turner.
Darkfever is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.
I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!
Karen Marie Moning is the internationally bestselling author of the Highlander and Fever novels. Her books have appeared on The New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly bestseller lists and have won numerous awards, including a prestigious RITA. She lives in Georgia and Florida with her husband Neil and the world-traveling cat, Moonshadow.
1 comment:
I like this series but don't love it as much as so many others seem to do. I am going to read the last book in the series, mainly because I have to know about Barrons!
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