ARC Review: Fire in the Darkness (Darkness #2) by Stacey Marie Brown

Fire in the Darkness

Author: Stacey Marie Brown

Series: Darkness #2

Genre: New Adult – Paranormal

Publisher: Self

Release date: 28^th August 2013
Amazon

My review of Darkness of Light

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

***This is NOT a YA Series but a New Adult (17+). Sexual Content and Language.***

It's been four weeks since Ember Brycin witnessed what her powers are capable of. The Electrical Current Storm has turned Seattle, Washington into a natural disaster zone. The death toll is in the thousands with countless others homeless and hungry.

And Ember is the one who caused it. Something she will have to live with every day.

Those people who were unable to escape either turned quickly into gangs or live in shelters. Ember, on the other hand, can’t do either. With a price on her head and a Dark Dweller on her ass, she is constantly on the move. Both Light and Dark are hunting her for their own purpose to use her as a weapon or a pawn in the war between the Unseelie King of the Dark and the Seelie Queen of the Light.

Em needs help but doesn’t know who to trust: Lars, the mystery man Torin told her to find? Torin, the Seelie Queen’s personal knight, who has sworn to keep Em safe? Or Eli, who wants to turn her over to the Unseelie King, but whom she has an undeniable, intense connection with?

No matter what she chooses she will probably lose—her life or everything and everyone she loves.

Review: 4 ½ out of 5 stars

** contains spoilers from the first book **

After the ending we were left with in Darkness of Light, I was eager to dive back into the exciting, unique world Stacey Marie Brown has created and I was completely satisfied with how it is all playing out although it has left me even more eager for the next book in the series.

At the end of the first book we saw Ember forced to use her abilities to turn Seattle into a pile of rubble which freaked her out and forced her to run from herself, the dark dwellers who want to turn her over to the Unseelie King, the Light Queen and other magical creatures, it was non-stop running for her until she is saved and captured again by Dark Dweller Eli Dragen who gave her his blood in the first book and is now somehow connected to her but also betrayed her.

Ember is an independent, courageous and loyal protagonist who at times acts without thinking but has the best of intentions; I easily connected to her and thought her dedication was admirable. Eli is gorgeous, dangerous and evasive but we are slowly beginning to learn more about this mysterious, enigmatic dark dweller and what we have learnt I have found to be quite interesting. We also get reacquainted with a number of characters from the first book and meet a few more who each play a pivotal role in the overall story, Eli’s brother Lorcan continues to irk me and I am still a little unsure of a few characters intentions.

Fire in the Darkness is a compelling page-turner that leaves you on the edge of your seat anticipating the characters actions and reactions and more often than not guessing completely wrong about what they would be. There was a lot happening throughout the book but I felt the pacing was consistent and everything was balanced out well, the plot was action-packed and fascinating as we see Ember learn more about who and what she is, her abilities and how she plans to avoid capture from the Light Queen and Dark King who both want to use her for their own personal gain – a weapon and a pawn. I still at this point have no idea at which direction the story will go, the element of surprise and the unexpected twists and turns has made for a captivating, addictive read,

I am not sure where the romance is headed, one moment Ember is lusting after Eli, the next it is Torin, the Queens first Knight and then she has her tongue down Nic’s throat (although he isn’t part of the equation), her inner-monologue seems like she wants Eli but then her reaction to Torin suggest otherwise so I’m still a tad confused about this aspect but Eli is my obvious pick, I don’t trust Torin whatsoever, I feel he has his own motives.

There is a lot of sexual tension and innuendo’s between Eli and Ember which made for some smexy, enjoyable moments but their relationship is unusual because of what they are so we see them biting each other’s heads off or throwing snarky remarks at one another a lot of the time, I did enjoy most of the banter between them but wished they would just get over it and get together.

The writing flows well and is engaging, Stacey Marie Brown’s story-telling is exciting and the intense action, betrayals, revelations and smexy moments make for a riveting read.

Overall, Fire in the Darkness is an entertaining and creative story, fans of Fantasy and Paranormal alike will enjoy the amazing characterisations and wonderful, unique world-building. I am more than excited for the next book in the series.

Thank-you kindly to Stacey Marie Brown for providing me with a copy of Fire in the Darkness.

 

About the author: Stacey Marie Brown by day is an Interior/Set Designer, by night a writer of Paranormal Fantasy, Adventure, and Literary Fiction. She grew up in Northern California, where she ran around on her family’s farm, raising animals, riding horses, playing flashlight tag, and turning hay bales into cool forts. Even before she could write, she was creating stories and making up intricate fantasies. Writing came as easy as breathing. She later turned that passion into acting, living and traveling abroad, and designing. Though she had never stopped writing, moving back to San Francisco seemed to have brought it back to the forefront and this time it would not be ignored.

When she’s not writing she’s out hiking, spending time with friends, traveling, listening to music, or designing.