REVIEW: Dark Longing

Dark Longing

Pure/Dark Series #2

Author: Aja James

Pub Date: January 18, 2018

Synopsis: 

“Every story has more than one side, like a crystal that captures and reflects different colors of light. Do not take for granted what you think you know, for until you hold the entire jewel in your palm, the temptation is to fall prey to illusion and deception.”

This is a story of the Dark Ones…

Inanna: the vampire warrior

Known as the Angel of Death among her kind, she has lived millennia alone, one of the remaining True Bloods in existence, unconsciously longing for the one male she could never have.

Gabriel: the forbidden human

His soul recognizes hers from the first encounter. With the first touch, he is awakened. Though he does not know it, he has been searching for her across the ages.

But even as they are finally reunited, their love faces seemingly impossible odds. Will history repeat itself or will they break all the rules and chart a new course together?

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My Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The tale continues in this second instalment but in a twist, we see the other side of the coin. The Dark Ones. I honestly think it is a wonderful idea. Normally we have one good side and the other bad. We don’t much get the chance to see the good and the bad come together and work towards a common goal. This book shows just how relative good and bad can be.

Nana Chastain is a Dark One or as most of us know them, a vampire. She lives but she does not live. She is in want of something. Something that is just out of reach.

When his wife passes away, Gabriel D’Angelo is told that Nana Chastain, a woman he has never seen and knows nothing about will have joint custody of his son, Benji. When Gabriel meets Nana for this first time he feels things he has never felt before-not even for his wife.

Nana already loves Benji. She has since the moment of his birth. When she first meets Gabriel, she feels inexplicable drawn to him and it does not take her long to fall in love with him as well. As their feelings grow, an evil entity lurks threatening everyone and everything they hold dear.

Will these two soulmates make their way back to each other or will they once again be torn apart?

This is the second book in a series and has a HFN ending. Although it can be read as a standalone, I believe it would be better to read this series in order.

I love being immersed in this world Aja has created. She captures and holds my undivided attention and delivers a sexy and intriguing read every time. Throughout this book, she builds relationships, strengthens ties and sets up the current and future books beautifully. I was riveted.

This is definitely a complex read with many facets and I can’t help but feel some story lines are a little rushed. I also had a hard time understanding and believing Gabe and his wife’s relationship.

That aside, the question remains, who is behind all these misdeeds. I feel like we’ve only scratched the surface with these two first books. There are many loose ends and they must all intertwine somehow. I am hooked and cannot wait to see how it all pieces together. This is a paranormal read that should definitely grace your TBR list.

Thank you to Aja James for the ARC.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Here is my review of Pure Healing, the first book in the series.