BOOK REVIEW : DARK MAGIC (DARKHAVEN SAGA #2) BY DANIELLE ROSE

TITLE : Dark Magic (Darkhaven Saga #2)

AUTHOR : Danielle Rose

GENRE : YA, Fantasy, Paranormal

FR RATING : 3 Stars

SYNOPSIS

There’s something about the scent of blood from the undead.

In the heat of battle, hybrid Ava López discovers she has new and fascinating powers, but she does not know how to control them. Though her former enemies have offered her refuge and helped her acclimate to the vampire lifestyle, even they don’t understand her enhanced magic.

With mounting threats from Ava’s former coven and reckless rogue vampires, Ava and her new friends have no choice but to request the wisdom of Holland Taylor to help her understand her powers. Holland is one of the most powerful witches Ava has ever met, and he is also Jeremiah’s ex, which introduces another wrinkle.

Tension between the vampires and Ava’s former coven is building, and when the witches offer a deal Ava would be remiss to reject, she is forced to choose between the life she once considered safe and the life she never wanted.

FR REVIEW

DISCLAIMER : Thank you, YA Bound Book Tours for letting me be a part of this tour and for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dark Magic is the second installment to the Darkhaven saga featuring witches and vampires. The story kind of picks up after a few weeks from where we left off in the first book. Ava is struggling with her new life, her new powers and strength. She is also quite over-confident in her abilities to handle herself and other situations. She is a hybrid who has powerful magic residing in her and she accesses it to her surprise and the other vampires who have taken her in. The need to get answers for her powers is hanging heavily on her and the vampires contact another witch to help with the task. With the new witch’s help, she is learning to control it. Tensions seemed to mount even more aggressively now that she is one of the vampires. The witches approach her to ask for help with a problem they are facing. Ava is torn between the family she was born into and the family that took her in

Her character hasn’t changed much from who she is in the first book, personality-wise. She is also dealing with the emotional toll her new lifestyle has put on her. Her senses and strength and emotions are all heightened. She is often confused about her feelings toward vampires now that she is one of them. Her impulsiveness and emotional bursts are still leading her into dangerous situations and often having to fight for her life. There are dangers lurking in the shadows and she also seems to be seeing more visions that unsettled her. One great thing about Ava is that she is so dedicated to her cause and always seems to be loyal to her family. For her doing the right thing is more important and because of this, the vampires are wary of her motivations and intentions. She is naive and believes that her family will understand and take her back one day.

The love interest is the same. I don’t see myself shipping them at this point. Although I understand the reasons for their connection and I still feel there should be something more than those reasons holding them together or even expecting them to be a couple. We see the tension between the characters but it’s mostly physical in nature and it’s also because of their sire bond. So I don’t really think it would be something long-lasting if the other sire bonds are to be considered. I am also sensing the possibility of another person being a love interest(or unrequited love) in future books.

The plot is evolving as the story goes from one book to next. The writing and pacing are also well done. They are pretty consistent and there is enough action in between to keep the story entertaining. We are also getting to see more of our characters and they are all very interesting. Ava’s mother is the one I want to more about. She has me intrigued with her behavior. I also want to know how Liz joined Ava’s coven after her exile. There seems to be a lot of changes after Ava’s exile that doesn’t fit the information we know about them.

Overall there are some interesting twists and turns that kept me engaged and riveted to the story. I wish we got to have more with some of the side characters and their backstory. I think the author has kept the stories short and to the point only adding in pieces that are relevant to the main plot. I was engaged and fascinated by the events but also didn’t connect strongly with any characters.

Overall the book is good and has intriguing twists and turns to keep the reader hanging on to the story. I felt the book was a good follow up to the first book. I am interested in seeing how things will progress and turn out in the end. I gave the book 3 stars and I believe paranormal fantasy lovers should pick it up if you are in the mood for a series that’s light and short with some interesting fantasy elements. I definitely recommend young readers to check it out.