should be titled, "Darkness and Frustration"

Over half of the dialogue dedicated to how warm and lusty he made her feel. This was even after he treated her like crap. There were many eye rolls . There were so many things stated but unexplaineded. I still don't understand the purpose of the 2nd male darting in and out of her dreams leaving the same cryptic message. The author finally started getting to the point around chp 23. I thought, "finally". But the ending was disappointing.
The narrator did well with the exception of the husky, sensual voice which remained throughout. I won't be getting the second book. Sorry.

15 people found this helpful

Great Beginning to a Series!

This is my first Book by this author and after I was done, I devoured the rest of the series! I started this series because of a friends always raving about this author and went into it completely blind and spent most of this book wondering what the heck Ember was! This book is action-packed, a little YA, Quirky and is full of sexual tension! I really enjoyed the world building, the paranormal originality and the writing! The character are great too, they are all so completely different from each other. I was so excited to finally find out what was going on I knew I had to jump right into book two!

The narrator for this series is great too!

12 people found this helpful

held my attention throughout

Darkness of Light is the first book in a paranormal romance series which is classified as New Adult. The series consists of four books in total.

The main character, Ember Brycin, is a bit of an outsider due to her unusual appearance (she has two different colored eyes) and due to the fact that things tend to explode around her. She also has hallucinations, or that is what she assumes they are. After the latest explosion at her school, Ember is sent to a juvenile facility where she meets the mystifying Eli Dragen, whom she feels instantly attracted to.

Ember and Eli have this love/hate relationship going on which was quite entertaining. Eli was totally unpredictable and could change from bad ass, cocky biker boy to really quite charming, protective and helpful in seconds. The banter between Ember and Eli was fun. Dry humor, sarcastic comments and a heroine who can’t help but say what she thinks.

The romance was clean and in my opinion, would have been suitable even for a younger age group. But there is the hint of a potential love triangle to be developed in the series, so who knows where this will go. In book one, there is nothing more than a few kisses.

For the majority of this book, Ember is trying to work out who and what she is. There were lots of clues to an otherworldly existence around her, but Ember was very slow on the uptake, a bit too naive, really. Therefore, the main action does not really start until about three quarters through the book, when things are finally revealed to her and Ember starts on a dangerous quest where she has no idea whom she can really trust.

Ember has two good friends at school and lives with her stepdad Michael. Her Mum was killed some years ago. Then there is Torin, who initially appears in Ember’s dreams, the other candidate for the potential love triangle. All these characters were well developed and interesting. There was a good balance of romance, action and mystery.

The writing was flawless. It flowed well, was nicely paced and interlaced with lots of humor. It definitely held my attention throughout. It was a really good introduction to the fantasy world created by Stacey Marie Brown, and I am certainly interested enough in the plot and feel invested in the characters to want to get book two to find out how the story continues. Considering that I don’t usually read any fantasy books that is saying a lot.

Michelle Sparks did an excellent job narrating. I hope she will continue as narrator for book 2 in the series. She really made Ember sound like an eighteen-year-old girl. Michelle Sparks was very good at expressing emotions. I would certainly listen to other audiobooks narrated by her. There were no issues with the production.

A definite recommendation for paranormal romance fans, maybe enjoyed more by YA/NA readers at the lower end of the age spectrum. Saying that, I am a very “mature” adult and I definitely enjoyed it.

Audiobook provided for review by the author.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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11 people found this helpful

I couldn't get past the abusive relationships!

Any additional comments?

Main love interest was completely unlikable and abusive! I felt sick as I read how he treated Ember and all she could do was lust after him...it was disgusting. I did like the story and wanted to know how the series ended but stopped in the middle of book 3 because I could no longer take it. Bad language, abusive boyfriend, unlikable characters, explicit sex... I won't read another book by this author.

8 people found this helpful

A welcomed surprise & enjoyment

I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this book but high ratings from others suggested the writing and story would be good. While the first chapters were a little slow for me, it picked up steam and it was a pleasant surprise to me how much I did enjoy the Audible version. Ember is an 18 yo young woman trying to finish HS but unusual things happen around her. She is sent to an 'alternative' school to finish the last couple of months of school and there she meets Eli. Everything that seems to happen to her revolves around him in one way or another. Added to that is her realistic dreams where she meets Toren but she's convinced that isn't real. It isn't until the end of the story that Ember learns the truth about who and what everyone around her are and what she is. So much story material can't be contained in one book. A cliffhanger ending but I will definitely be reading the next book. Don't be skeptical, this is a very enjoyable book.

7 people found this helpful

Douchey Hero

What would have made Darkness of Light better?

If Eli wasn't in it.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Michelle Sparks?

Maybe, but I wouldn't buy a book just because she was narrating it.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

There were some good moments. It's biggest failing is the hero is a complete douche-bag.

4 people found this helpful

Intriguing and enjoyable

This book was fun and mysterious. Narration was good. I enjoyed it and I'm looking forward for the next book.

4 people found this helpful

Stacey Marie Brown should have fired this narrator

I loved the Collector series which coincides with this series so I was excited to start it despite all the reviews saying Eli is a giant dick and the narrator sounds like a phone sex operator.

The story was good, a bit slow at the start, but I survived. However, the narrator was horrible. She does sound breathy like she's having sex over the phone. She did change her inflections from narration to a character speaking, but she didn't even try to change the tone of her voice. Despite everything, I hope the narrator reads these reviews and changes the way she narrates books because several people will never know the complete awesomeness that is Stacey Marie Brown all because of the performance. I'll be continuing the series regardless because I'm dying to see how this series and the Collector series ties together.

3 people found this helpful

What's up with the lusty narrator voice?

I'm still listening to the book (for now), but I must say I'm annoyed by the change in the narrator's tone starting around Chapter 10. All the sudden she starts speaking like every line makes her horny. It's like a YA Debbie Does Dallas. Who gets breathy when they're talking about pizza? I hope this doesn't persist.

3 people found this helpful

narration is breathy and over dramatic

What disappointed you about Darkness of Light?

The narration is overly dramatic. Every sentence is read like it is some steamy romance novel- even if the sentence is about getting in a car and driving to school. It drove me crazy!

3 people found this helpful