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Saturday 3 March 2012

Review: Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #1)

Publisher - Gollancz
Publication Date - 8th September 2011
Paperback - 368 pages
Genre - Urban Fantasy

Source - Purchased

Rating - 4 out of 5: I really liked it

Book Info - 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 realm 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 boundary 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 to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands...

My Thoughts - I have been hearing so many great things about this series for so long that I finally decided it was time to give it a go. And I certainly was not disappointed by Darkfever!

The best thing about the book for me was Barrons. He's dark, dangerous and mysterious and I found myself hooked on his every word hoping to find out something about him. I am very much looking forward to reading more about him as I continue on with the series.

And the author has created a perfect setting for Barrons in the dark, dark world she has created. The streets of Ireland are a scary place and certainly not a world I would like to visit. There are all types of paranormal creatures and none of them play nice.

My one problem with the book was Mac. I didn't find her particularly likeable at the start. She is incredibly shallow and I found it very hard to relate to her. Even when she is in Ireland tracking down her sister's killer, being chased by fae and vampires and who-knows-what-else, and she still insists on wearing her favourite pink outfit as it makes her happy. I just can't help but feel like her attire should be the least of her worries. Also, throughout her narrative, the author seems to be in the present describing the events that happened in the past, so there is a lot of 'If I had known about [insert dark, dangerous type situation] at the time then I would have done [insert brave kick-ass type action] but I didn't know so I [insert not-so-brave type action that normally involves a lot of tears and acting like a child]'. This technique was used too many times for my liking and I did find it frustrating at times. I found myself wishing the author would just get on with telling the story - a story that had me completely hooked and wishing there weren't little distractions like these.

Summary - A great start to a series that promises to deliver much in the way of danger, intriguing storylines and sexy alpha males. I can't wait to get my hands on book two!

Other books in this series:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

Other reviews of this book:
Feeling Fictional / Love Vampires / Saz101

This book counts towards the following challenges:
Book #2 for 2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Book #6 for 2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

5 comments:

Melliane said...

I love this series! this one was the book I love the less I think even if it was really great. but the others are just awesome. I hope you'll like them as much as I did.

Sarah (saz101) said...

"The best thing about the book for me was Barrons. He's dark, dangerous and mysterious and I found myself hooked on his every word hoping to find out something about him. I am very much looking forward to reading more about him as I continue on with the series."

Uhhh... YES! Oh my goodness, I'm obsessed with him. It gets even worse as the series goes on. He's compelling and fascinating and... uh... every bit as addicitve as death-by-sex Fae O___O

WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT MAC! YES! It really grated at me first, but she gets SO much better. At first I was like, 'really, Ms. Moning? You think we're gonna like this character?!', but I read a post from her recently, and I actually think it's deliberate. Mac's meant to be shallow and silly, and her evolution over the series is EXTRAORDINARY! Chrissie, I swear you'll end up loving her. I finished the last book yesterday. I officially love her, and I was very close to HATING her in Darkfever.

Oh, and the technique? The hindsight? Annoyed me, too. Keep reading, though... it gets better. The tense starts shifting over the series, too, which I enjoyed. Darkfever is past tense, Shadowfever is present. It makes sense as you read.

I LOVE your review! SO excited you're reading the series, and I hope you love them!! ♥

Julie said...

*Squee* You finally met THE Barrons! Very good review. The books only get better and better. :)

Shelagh said...

Yet another book in my TBR pile that it looks like I should be reading sooner rather than later...

Chrissie (Once Upon a Series) said...

Melliane - I really liked this one so to hear that they get better makes me very excited :)

Sarah - Glad to hear that Mac gets less irritating and that the whole hindsight thing gets better! I haven't read anymore of the books yet because of other reading commitments but I'm very excited about getting back to the series soon. I want more Barrons!

Julie - That's right, I have met THE Barrons! And I can't wait to find out more about him :)

Shelagh - This is a great book! I hope you get to read it soon :)

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