Monday, February 18, 2013

Review of Demon Lover by Juliet Dark

I must admit when I first saw the cover of The Demon Lover, I was completely under the impression that it was just another poorly written YA take on the Twighlight series. I am pleased to say I was very wrong and I guess that's why they say never judge a book by it's cover.  Judging a book by it's cover may keep me from reading a gem of a novel and getting the opportunity to open the doors to a genre of literature I've never really delved in before.

The overview of this novel is that Callie Mcfay is a young author who comes to Fairwick with the intent of landing a job as a professor of folklore and gothic literature. Fairwick is a small town that harbors secrets that Callie is unaware of until she is confronted by the incubus that appears in what she thinks are extremely vivid dreams. Suffice it to say, her incubus is not a member of the band I love that sings one of my favorite songs "Dig". Callie's incubus wants to be freed from the borderlands and the only way he can do this is by draining the life from her. Clearly if someone drains your life away you'd end up pretty dead. This is not good.



What I love most about this novel is that it is superbly written. It is vividly atmospheric and believeable. Although purely fantastical, Dark/Goodman has made me want to believe in fairies, demons, gnomes, vampires, ganconers, and everything else folklore. An even stronger testament to the writing style of this novel is that I want to believe there are sleepy towns, secret societies, magical professionals, and even an IMPIA- Institute of Magical Professionals Internal Affairs department.

Back to our leading lady Callie, the novel is written from her point of view but it does not hinder in any way the character development. Although Callie's meets more people and getting to know them in Fairwick, the reader is grows to care about them as she does. Callie is a well developed heroine, although she makes bad decisions at times, there needs to be conflicts. Of course the conflict comes in her budding romance(um...sex) life. But it's no surprise since the dawn of time and in the earliest written books, love and romance come hand in hand with sacrifice.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed this novel and found that I will never judge a book by its cover. I've become acquainted with folklore on a level I never have before and am open to reading more novels of this nature. I only fear I wouldn't know where to start. This novel is a great mixture of romance, fantasy, mystery, paranormal, and magic. I look forward to reading the next book in the Fairwick chronicles. Callie is developing into a heroine I can really root for once she fully realizes her potential. ****

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