When Darkness Comes by Alexandra Ivy

When Darkness Comes by Alexandra Ivy

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Sadly, this is a very weak three stars. It was sooo hard to read this book. It just didn't keep my interest. My attention kept wandering, until there would be an appealing snippet that caught it, and then it would be off again.

Honestly, this is not a bad book. It's just underwhelming to a die-hard paranormal fan who has some favorite series that Bring It. I know that it's First Book Syndrome, because there are some ideas that I like about this series, that will make me keep reading (which is a good thing since I bought the subsequent books). I know some of my friends who have similar tastes enjoy this series, so that makes me hope I will find the next books appeal better.

What I liked:

*I liked Abby a lot. She has had a tough life, and she's very down to earth, adaptable, and strong-minded without being annoying. She has an everyday, regular girl appeal that I liked. She is the type of woman who can take it on the chin and doesn't throw herself into a sobbing heap when things get hairy. I admire her for what she overcame with her abusive father and two parents that were alcoholic. And she didn't stay in denial too long when her life got weird. She saw the evidence and adjusted her worldview accordingly.
*Dante was also likable. He had that sexy old world vampire vibe that I liked a lot. I appreciated that he really cared about Abby and had been half-way in love with her since the book started.
*Viper. Oh my! I really liked him. I can't wait to read his book! I liked that he was Boy Scout prepared. He had a solution to most situations, and that made it fun to see what relics he had to deal with various situations. And I liked his loyalty to Dante. He was a good friend.

What could have been better:

*The worldbuilding felt...unfinished to me. There were some mildly tantalizing elements that made my interest perk, but they teetered off too often. I do think she introduced some interesting characters in the PNR world of this story that make me want to keep reading, so that's a plus.
*Paper Tiger villain. The main villain was lame....He was the type to get others to do his dirty work and he just didn't impress me. I did like that she turned things around and gave a more intense climatic situation. But things still fizzled a bit on that score.
*Although I felt that Abby and Dante had good chemistry, the love scenes didn't really enthrall me. I guess I just have high standards for paranormal. I don't want to compare, but when you read some of the other top series, you do have a benchmark that you expect from books in that genre.


Final Thoughts:


I admit I was disappointed with this one. It was so hard to keep reading at times, but I persevered. At the end, I was glad I finished it, not just because I hate dnf'ing books. At least I got to meet some pretty cool characters like Abby, Dante, and Viper (who is kinda droolicious) But I still have hope that the next books can turn it around.



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