Seduced by Shadows

In paranormal romance, I've been noticing a phenomenon similar to that seen in Regency historicals for years. There are just gazillions of series out there. We can't follow them all, so how does an author write a series and make it stand out enough that people will actually want to keep up with it? Jessa Slade has put a thought-provoking spin on her Marked Souls that makes it a series I definitely want to follow.

Sera Littlejohn definitely fits the description of a tormented heroine. Following an accident, she is scarred both inside and out. She walks with difficulty, and her internal pain in the initial chapters comes through with aching clarity. Her path crosses that of Ferris Archer as he tries to run down a demon before it can possess a human. To Archer's great surprise, the demon has a female target. Archer tries to warn Sera about the demon stalking her, but she turns away from him.

Shaken by the encounter with Archer, Sera later finds a mysterious man with violet eyes in her home. This encounter leaves her marked, or possessed, by the demon Archer had seen targeting her. Archer now must watch Sera to see if her demon will be evil or a talya, a repentant demon. In their world, angels and talya don't cooperate, but both fight the endless fight against evil and do battle with all manner of creatures that only they can see. Sera initially fears Archer, while he, something of a loner among the talya, wants nothing to do with his newly possessed charge. Still, Sera draws Archer's attention despite his inclinations to stay away and the chemistry between the two heats up both physically and emotionally.

One of the strengths of this story also holds the key to its greatest weakness for me. There is a lot happening in this book. Slade creates a very complex world of good, evil and the shadings in between. On the positive side, you can read this book on a rather superficial level and enjoy a grand adventure in a complex world. However, elements of the story lend themselves to reading on a deeper level. It's not often that I read a romance and find myself musing over the nature of evil and the properties of a soul, but these themes run through the book and I expect they will be explored further in later volumes.

And the weakness here? Oh my goodness, what info dumps! Slade has a very intricate world to present and she throws a lot of character backstory and rules of world building into her first few chapters. At points near the beginning, I wondered how much of this book I was going to be able to stand reading in one sitting. Thankfully, after the first few chapters, it all improved dramatically. The author also introduces a number of secondary characters who add to the story and make for interesting reading in their own right. There are a few wobbly points later in the story and a few too many cliches (Sera is special because she is a female talya and talya usually aren't female, etc..). Still, the depth of the fantasy world in this tale, as well as the appealing characters, made it a pleasant read.

Even though Archer is a loner like many, many other heroes, Slade makes him feel fresh. The dialogue fits the character and, because he's the sort of hero not given to flowery speeches, what he says carries meaning. This is probably why I couldn't help smiling when he told Sera, "If ever I turned away from you, Sera Littlejohn, I'd do so not in hatred, but because I'd want no one else at my back." The author does something similar with Sera. Sera may be the mythical, rare-as-a-unicorn female talya, but as I got to know her, I saw more to her and started to warm to her and to her story. Though understandable, her prickly attitude can be difficult to bear at first, but as Sera begins to find her way in her new life, she also becomes a much more engaging heroine.

Though not flawless, I found Seduced by Shadows entertaining and it also made me think. The author engages readers with her characters enough to make us care about them and what will happen to them in the battle of good and evil that they fight. Even though I found some of the story's weaker moments a bit irritating, I still felt drawn into the story to the point that I want to see what happens next. This series opener is a promising debut and I hope to see this author grow better and better.

-- Lynn Spencer

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