ARC Review: Darkness Hunts by Keri Arthur

Title: Darkness Hunts Series: Dark Angels #4 Author: Keri Arthur Publisher: Penguin Format: eBook, 400 pages Published: November 6, 2012 ISBN #: 9780451237125 / 0451237129 Genre: Urban Fantasy My Copy: Penguin USA Rating: Buy: Risa Jones, half-Aedh/half-werewolf, can enter the realm between life and death. She can speak to the dying and the dead, and she can see the Reapers, collectors of souls. What she can not yet see is the identity of a stranger murdering women and draining their blood. Now Risa must summon her gifts to find him, even if it means putting her own life in danger. But Risa needn’t look far. The killer knows who she is. He tells her his victims are infected by darkness and he’s fated to destroy them. Fascinated by Risa, he engages her in a sinister game: the chance to save the life of his next victim by deciphering his series of clues. In a race against time, she enlists the help of the Reaper Azriel. But as an attraction between them grows, so does the fear that the stranger’s motives are only part of a larger, more dangerous scheme—one that has lured Risa and Azriel into the dark.

I thoroughly enjoyed the fourth installment in Keri Arthur’s Dark Angels series. The fact that Risa’s in a race against time for most of this book definitely amps up the intensity level. Plus, her love life undergoes quite the upheaval; Lucian’s real motives are finally revealed (I never liked him) and Azriel throws caution into the wind (about time!). As a stand alone story this novel delivers on all fronts but as part of this series’ bigger picture it falls short. Again. For the second book in a row I’m left speculating where the main plot line went. I love these books and Keri Arthur’s writing but I’m beginning to wonder when the Dark Angel novels are going to get back on track.

As I mentioned, I enjoyed the story line of this installment because it forced me to think outside the box. The clues cross multiple plains of existence and as a result, Risa has no choice but to get a little creative in order to catch the killer. No stone is left unturned and no contact is left unexplored. Thanks to Arthur’s layer upon layer of cleverness, Darkness Hunts kept me guessing up until the very end. I was surprised to see Jak in this story. I’d originally thought that he’d served his purpose in Darkness Devours and that that was the last we were going to see of him. However, now I’m thinking he’s a replacement for Lucian in Risa’s love triangle after the Aedh showed his true colours.

Azriel has caused me endless amounts of frustration in this series and continued to do so for the greater part of Darkness Hunts. He’s been my pick for Risa since the get-go and after that jaw dropping ending I think that he may have finally seen the light. YES!! The reaper reveals quite a bit in this installment but there are still several unanswered questions. At least we’re making some progress! I hope this forward momentum continues because I am sick and tired of his indecisiveness. I don’t know how Risa puts up with it.

My biggest complaint with this novel is that it didn’t really further the keys / gates of hell story line. There is some mention of them which is something at least because they weren’t even a blip on the radar in Darkness Devours. Risa finally gets the clue she needs to start looking for the next key but this didn’t happen until the very end of the book. In my opinion, she should have gotten this lead in the previous book and spent this installment looking for it but that’s just me. Ooh, and one other thing, Risa is once again kidnapped and held underground where her reaper can’t track her. This has happened in every single installment so far. I think that it’s time to come up with some new material because this one’s getting rather redundant.

I’ve been a fan of Keri Arthur’s for years now; she’s one of my top three favourite authors and Darkness Hunts proves once again why she more than deserves her spot on my list. You can’t go wrong with the Dark Angels books; the pacing is relentless, the story is top notch and the ending will leave you begging for more.

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Carmel

Owner, designer and main blogger behind Rabid Reads.I also offer virtual assistance to authors and webmaster services to bloggers. I ♥ #werewolves.