Book Review: Welcome to the Darkness

Media Type: Print Book
Title: Welcome to the Darkness
   * Series: Darkness Trilogy #1
Author: L.M. Justus
Publisher: Taurpio Publishing
Pages: Paperback; 349
Release Date: August 5, 2013
Source: Xpresso Book Tours
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Content Screening: Violence; Adult Language

HDB Rating: 3 Keys to My Heart

Recommended to: Readers who enjoy reads with vampire lore, and lots of action.

Add it on: Goodreads / Shelfari / Amazon / B&N

A typical teenager, seventeen-year-old Reed Hennessy doesn’t realize how lucky he is to lead a normal life until he loses everything, including his humanity. The attacker who slaughters his family and destroys their home turns out to be a vampire, a creature Reed had considered a myth.

Now a vampire himself, but with the unique ability to walk in sunlight, Reed struggles in the dark underworld he didn’t even know existed. His only two allies in his fight to stay alive are his reluctant mentor, Nathaniel, a vampire with over two hundred years’ worth of emotional baggage, and Sarah, a rookie cop with a secret ability of her own.

Together, Reed and his companions face a harrowing, cross-country journey before stumbling into a plot which could mean the end of everything for humans and vampires alike.

It’s no secret that I’m quite addicted to books about vampires. There’s something about the line they walk between utter beauty and complete violence that has always fascinated me. Which is why I was really pleased with the way L.M. Justus handled these vampires. Welcome to the Darkness chooses to focus on the dark side of vampire kind, something that isn’t put into the spotlight very often. I found this intriguing, and it is definitely what kept me reading on.

A warning to those with certain sensitivities, this book starts right off with blood and gore. Reed’s family is murdered in front of him and, if that isn’t bad enough, he becomes the very thing that he now despises. I think that Reed’s initial shock and despair were written very well. It’s painfully obvious that he doesn’t want the new life he’s been given. He doesn’t instantly accept it and move on. However I do have to admit that, after a while, his attitude started to get to me. Reed wasn’t an easy personality for me to like.

Instead I chose to focus on the other characters while reading. Nathaniel has an old-world charm about him that makes him instantly likable. I adored the way he grew so much during this book and, by the time I was at the end, he’s really the one I was rooting for most. I also really liked Sarah and her feisty attitude. Her ability really adds a whole other level to the story line.  The one issue I had, and I’ll be vague as to not spoil it, was the relationship between Sarah and Reed.

The story was fast paced for the most part, although I did feel that some scenes were a little choppy because of it. The story is solid though, and easy to fall into. If anything might put you off while reading Welcome to the Darkness, it will be the changes in POV. The chapters switch between the characters and, oddly, Reed’s is the only one in first person. It was a little disconcerting for me at first but, once I dove deeper into the characters, I stopped noticing it so much.

I have to say that I see a lot of potential in Reed’s continuing story. The ending is spot on and the type of cliffhanger that makes you eager for more. I’d love to see more character development in book two, and am looking forward to having some of the questions I had answered! I’ll be here to see where this story will take me next.

FTC Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for my opinion.