Darkness Watching by Emma L. Adams Review

Darkness Watching

Dark World Series

Book #1

Emma L. Adams

Genre: New Adult Paranormal Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

Release Date: October 10, 2013

Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press

ISBN: 978-1620073629

ASIN: B00FQXND14

Pages: 207

Goodreads Rating:  3.87

My Rating: 4.5

Book Description:

Eighteen-year-old Ashlyn is one interview away from her future when she first sees the demons. She thinks she's losing her mind, but the truth is far more frightening: she can see into the Darkworld, the home of spirits– and the darkness is staring back.

Desperate to escape the demons, Ash accepts a place at a university in the small town of Blackstone, in the middle of nowhere - little knowing that it isn't coincidence that led her there but the pull of the Venantium, the sorcerers who maintain the barrier keeping demons from crossing from the Darkworld into our own world.

All-night parties, new friendships and a life without rules or limits are all part of the package of student life - but demons never give up, and their focus on Ash has attracted the attention of every sorcerer in the area. Ash is soon caught between her new life and a group of other students with a connection to the Darkworld, who could offer the answers she's looking for. The demons want something from her, and someone is determined to kill her before she can find out what it is.

In a world where darkness lurks beneath the surface, not everyone is what they appear to be...

My Take On The Book:

I’m not sure what I expected when reading this book but I do know that I really enjoyed it. It was an interesting mix of demons, magic and college life (Uni for the English). It was slightly reminiscent of my first review on this blog, a book titled “Dark Souls” by author Ketley Allison.

In this book you’re introduced to your main character Ashlyn ‘Ash’. I think I liked her originally solely based of her name. I grew to love her because of her spunk and ability to keep going even when she thought she was losing her mind. It also doesn’t hurt that her character loves books as much as I do ;)

The Great (Pros):

• Demonology. The demons and the story behind them were badass ‘nuff said. No but seriously I like all the thought put into the demons, their world and how they came to be in this world.

• Magic. Sucker fro a good story ith awesome magically elements and this title was no different. It was something that took over the whole story but the author gave you just enough to tease you pallet.

• Friendship. I liked the friendships in this book and how the author worked them into the story. You have a young woman who moves away for college and yet she still has a close friendship with her best friend and she forges some pretty awesome friendships with new people.

• Story and Romance. While there is a hint of the romance… this story is about a lot more than that so its not a huge focus. By doing this the author allows the development of the main character as something other that part of a twosome. There is no lide altering, mind blowing love just your run of the mill dating. Girl likes boy, boy likes girl and some flirting here and there.

• Unpredictability. At times you are 110% sure you know where the story is heading, but then you’re proved wrong and it kinda awesome. It’s a classic case, well not classic with all the demons running amok, but it is a case of ‘who done it’. I loved the mysetery of the story almost as much as the magic and demonology.

The Not So Great (Cons):

• Dating. There just isn’t enough of it lol. While I’m happy it was a paranormal read oozing with romance, I do with there was more happening on the dating front. Give us a bit more of the college life dating fun. You can keep it PG, I think I prefer it that way because the story is definitely strong enough without the promiscuity.

• Gaps. I felt like the story moved in an odd pace. I’m not exactly sure how describe it but it felt sort of dream like which might have been the goal but it completely threw me for a loop. The story flowed just fine but it felt jumbled somehow like we as the audience reading the story is Ash’s POV were missing something crucial.

 

4.5 Quills

As I stated before, it reminded me a lot of ‘Dark Souls’ by Ketley Allison so my recommendations is the same… A must have with writing  comparable to Jana Oliver ‘Demon Trapper Series’, Kim Harrison ‘The Hollows’ and Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguie ‘Wicked Series’. Seriously its just that good. It’s a solid read that’s both mysteriously captivating and slightly haunting. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself feeling ‘watched’. I look forward to book 2.

About The Author 

Emma spent her childhood creating imaginary worlds to compensate for a disappointingly average reality, so it was probably inevitable that she ended up writing fantasy novels for children and young adults. She was born in Birmingham, UK, which she fled at the first opportunity to study English Literature at Lancaster University. In her three years at Lancaster, she hiked up mountains, skydived in Australia, and endured a traumatic episode involving a swarm of bees in the Costa Rican jungle. She also entertained her creative writing group and baffled her tutors by submitting strange fantasy tales featuring dragons and supernatural monsters to workshops. These included her first publication, a rather bleak dystopian piece, and a disturbing story about a homicidal duck (which she hopes will never see the light of day).

Now a reluctant graduate, Emma refuses to settle down and be normal. When not embarking on wild excursions, she edits and proofreads novels for various publishing houses and reads an insane number of books. At the age of 21, she signed a publishing contract with Curiosity Quills Press for the first book in her creepy urban fantasy Darkworld series. DARKNESS WATCHING was published in October 2013, and four more novels and a novella will follow. She chats about writing and other book-related things at her blog, From the Writer’s Nest, and looks forward to sharing more tales from the bizarre depths of her imagination.

Author Links:

Blog | Website | Twitter

Thanks for stopping by,

 “I received a free copy of the book from the author/publisher for my honest opinion. I was in no way compensated for this review and all opinions are expressly my own”