Fab Fantasy Fiction

Katie Reus' Darkness Awakened definitely earns five stars for a fast-paced, suspenseful, and sexy paranormal romance

A friend introduced me to Katie Reus' books earlier this year and I quickly worked my way through her romantic suspense series (Red Stone Security, Deadly Ops, The Serafina: Sin City) as well as her paranormal romance one (Moon Shifter). I became hooked on her books, her writing style, and her characters - quickly reading through all the series with my only complaint being that I wanted "more." So, I was delighted to receive a review copy of her newest book, Darkness Awakened, the first in her new Darkness series. As soon as it was sent to my Kindle, I quickly sat down, putting the quiet vibe out, and began to enter into Reus' newest shifter community.

Once again, Reus hit all the right notes with her two main characters, the Biloxi werewolf Alpha Finn Stavros and vampire princess Lyra Marius. The tension between the two of them is immediately apparent, as is the foreshadowing of their battles with demons seeking an entry into this world.

Soon we find out that Lyra is there to seek help finding her daughter who's been kidnapped, apparently because of an ancient prophecy that foretold her blood would help open a gate to hell. As Lyra and Finn race around to try to find her, their 17-year-old passion begins to spark up as the embers for both of them were never extinguished.

I really liked both of the lead characters in this novel. Finn is definitely a strong, take-charge alpha - with a sensitive side for Lyra. While Lyra is no one's fool. One scene where she confronts a challenger in the pack house makes that quite clear. The secondary characters are also fascinating and I can't wait to see more about them, including the newest shifter to join their community. (I can't say who it is as that would be a spoiler, sorry.)

I'm looking forward to the next installment in this series and highly recommend that you add it to your e-library. Reus is an author whose books are consistently addictive page turners. The action is pretty much non-stop, so I'd suggest you carve out some time yourself to read this. Definitely five stars for Reus' newest series entry.

Fab Fantasy Fiction
http://www.fabfantasyfiction.com/2013/11/katie-reus-darkness-awakened-definitely.html

I received and eARC from the publisher through NetGalley for use in this review.