Publisher's Blurb:
A new day dawns blood red
A master of fire, Mira is the last hope for the world. For centuries she has secretly enforced the history-altering edicts of the Triad. Now she and her unlikely ally—the human vampire hunter, Danaus—have come to Venice, home of the nightwalker rulers. But there is no safety in the ancient city, for the threat of conflict is in the wind . . . with unholy alliances and earth-shattering betrayals taking hideous form in the shadows.
Banished for eons beyond the world's boundaries, the malevolent naturi prepare to feed once again upon a vulnerable earth—and treachery is opening wide the portal that will enable their dread re-emergence. The great battle that has always been Mira's destiny is looming, and she must remain powerful in the face of a shocking revelation: that Danaus, the only creature she dares to trust, is something more than the man he claims to be . . .
Review: The second Dark Days novel continues the battle between the nightwalkers and the naturi, as Mira continues to be at the forefront as both a weapon and tool. She has learned that she was created for the purpose of being used as the ultimate weapon, and it was through her that the great magical seal was created five centuries ago, trapping the naturi in another world.
But this series is about Mira. She has always been different and feared, even during her brief life as a human, for her ability to control and create fire. Mira's long life as a nightwalker has been about survival, and creating a life of peace. The life she created in Savannah has been shattered, and besides the war with the naturi, she is caught up in complicated political manipulations that make Machiavelli seem like an amateur. The Coven (the ruling body of vampires directly beneath the not-yet-seen Our Liege), each has a byzantine-like strategy to gain more power and defeat or destroy the others, and Mira is finding herself at the center of their plots, even as she is being used to battle the naturi. The strength of these novels thus far is Mira's multi-faceted personality and character development. In spite of all the betrayals and lies from those she trusted the most, she has maintained a moral core and a sense of hope, using her incredible gifts and strengths to carry on and find a path, giving the reader a complicated, realistic heroine we can all commiserate with and cheer for through her adventures. Mira's sense of humor and bravado cover her intense pain and loss, making her more realistic. She now expects to be betrayed, and the only relationship she can depend on is the complicated one with Danaus. They both plan on killing the other when the naturi threat has been eliminated, but we all know that there is a more intense emotional bond of respect and attraction growing between them. The author is a master at slooooooowly building the tiny displays of affection and tenderness between them in this novel. Their relationship becoming more emotional and physical feels inevitable, and yet there is that uncertainty. It keeps me reading, and I'm ready to find the third Dark Days novel right away!
The only distration for me is the incredibly complicated and cruel political structure of the nightwalkers. The torture and murder of weaker nightwalkers as entertainment, the constant lies and betrayals, strategies and plots for power. I couldn't help thinking two things - if I lived for centuries would I become less compassionate and crueler, having little value for any life but my own? Or more compassionate, viewing the constant frailty fleeting nature of life itself? And the second thing is this - I'm worried that these wonderful Dark Days novels and the fantastic character of Mira will begin to focus entirely on the machinations, entertainments, and baser natures much like Laurell K. Hamilton did to Anita Blake and her world. I see many similarities between Mira and Anita (early Anita, before the books turned into S/M sex manuals cataloguing clothing, rituals and arcane minutiae, producing shockingly boring porn - I may be a little harsh, but I LOVED Anita Blake in the first few novels. But I digress......).
But why borrow trouble and worry? The Dark Days novels are a delightful adventure into an amazingly believable and unique world - on to the next!
But this series is about Mira. She has always been different and feared, even during her brief life as a human, for her ability to control and create fire. Mira's long life as a nightwalker has been about survival, and creating a life of peace. The life she created in Savannah has been shattered, and besides the war with the naturi, she is caught up in complicated political manipulations that make Machiavelli seem like an amateur. The Coven (the ruling body of vampires directly beneath the not-yet-seen Our Liege), each has a byzantine-like strategy to gain more power and defeat or destroy the others, and Mira is finding herself at the center of their plots, even as she is being used to battle the naturi. The strength of these novels thus far is Mira's multi-faceted personality and character development. In spite of all the betrayals and lies from those she trusted the most, she has maintained a moral core and a sense of hope, using her incredible gifts and strengths to carry on and find a path, giving the reader a complicated, realistic heroine we can all commiserate with and cheer for through her adventures. Mira's sense of humor and bravado cover her intense pain and loss, making her more realistic. She now expects to be betrayed, and the only relationship she can depend on is the complicated one with Danaus. They both plan on killing the other when the naturi threat has been eliminated, but we all know that there is a more intense emotional bond of respect and attraction growing between them. The author is a master at slooooooowly building the tiny displays of affection and tenderness between them in this novel. Their relationship becoming more emotional and physical feels inevitable, and yet there is that uncertainty. It keeps me reading, and I'm ready to find the third Dark Days novel right away!
The only distration for me is the incredibly complicated and cruel political structure of the nightwalkers. The torture and murder of weaker nightwalkers as entertainment, the constant lies and betrayals, strategies and plots for power. I couldn't help thinking two things - if I lived for centuries would I become less compassionate and crueler, having little value for any life but my own? Or more compassionate, viewing the constant frailty fleeting nature of life itself? And the second thing is this - I'm worried that these wonderful Dark Days novels and the fantastic character of Mira will begin to focus entirely on the machinations, entertainments, and baser natures much like Laurell K. Hamilton did to Anita Blake and her world. I see many similarities between Mira and Anita (early Anita, before the books turned into S/M sex manuals cataloguing clothing, rituals and arcane minutiae, producing shockingly boring porn - I may be a little harsh, but I LOVED Anita Blake in the first few novels. But I digress......).
But why borrow trouble and worry? The Dark Days novels are a delightful adventure into an amazingly believable and unique world - on to the next!
I reviewed the first novel in the series on January 14, 2012.
For more information check out the author's website at http://www.jocelynndrake.com/.
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