Release Date: February 7, 2012
Publisher: Mascherato Publishing
Rated: YA 14+
Format: ARC
Source: Author
Buy: Amazon ❘ The Book Depository
Goodreads ◆ Website
Even as the modern world pushes the supernatural aside in favor of science and steel, the old ways remain. God, demon, monster, and sorcerer alike plot to regain what was theirs.
1913, Salem, Massachusetts – Sarah Engelmann’s life is full of friends, books, and avoiding the pressure to choose a husband, until an ominous vision and the haunting call of an otherworldly trumpet shake her. When she stumbles across a gruesome corpse, she fears that her vision was more of a premonition. And when she sees the murdered boy moving through the crowd at an amusement park, Sarah is thrust into a dark battle she does not understand.
With the help of Alex, an attractive Greek immigrant who knows a startling amount about the undead, Sarah sets out to uncover the truth. Their quest takes them to the factory mills of Salem, on a midnight boat ride to spy on an eerie coastal lair, and back, unexpectedly, to their own homes. What can Alex’s elderly, vampire-hunting grandfather and Sarah’s own rabbi father tell them? And what do Sarah’s continuing visions reveal?
No less than Gabriel’s Trumpet, the tool that will announce the End of Days, is at stake, and the forces that have banded to recover it include a 900 year-old vampire, a trio of disgruntled Egyptian gods, and a demon-loving Puritan minister. At the center of this swirling cast is Sarah, who must fight a millennia-old battle against unspeakable forces, knowing the ultimate prize might be herself.
1913, Salem, Massachusetts – Sarah Engelmann’s life is full of friends, books, and avoiding the pressure to choose a husband, until an ominous vision and the haunting call of an otherworldly trumpet shake her. When she stumbles across a gruesome corpse, she fears that her vision was more of a premonition. And when she sees the murdered boy moving through the crowd at an amusement park, Sarah is thrust into a dark battle she does not understand.
With the help of Alex, an attractive Greek immigrant who knows a startling amount about the undead, Sarah sets out to uncover the truth. Their quest takes them to the factory mills of Salem, on a midnight boat ride to spy on an eerie coastal lair, and back, unexpectedly, to their own homes. What can Alex’s elderly, vampire-hunting grandfather and Sarah’s own rabbi father tell them? And what do Sarah’s continuing visions reveal?
No less than Gabriel’s Trumpet, the tool that will announce the End of Days, is at stake, and the forces that have banded to recover it include a 900 year-old vampire, a trio of disgruntled Egyptian gods, and a demon-loving Puritan minister. At the center of this swirling cast is Sarah, who must fight a millennia-old battle against unspeakable forces, knowing the ultimate prize might be herself.
The Darkening Dream is one novel I can say that can fit into almost all YA genres. It's got action, mythology, religion, romance, paranormal, mystery, history, fantasy– what more could you want? This kept me going, but as it was kind of a long read, I couldn't finish it in one go. I kept on wanting more, and this satisfied my reading appetite.
All characters in this novel were amazing. They had contrasting personalities, which I absolutely loved. I liked how the perspectives also shifted, it was never really the same person narrating the story. More like going through all the characters in a round, which really gives a good view and insight into the emotions and storyline.
I LOVED Sarah! For the 1900's, she's really quite the tough one. I admired her ability to withstand whatever danger they came across and wasn't grossed out by certain things which I'm sure anyone else would have ran away from. A really strong heroine!
And of course, like every intriguing book there comes a love triangle. We see feelings for Sarah from Alex and Sam. I couldn't tell which team I was on, but I gotta say, Alex is pretty much who I was rooting for the whole time. But of course, I also loved Sam. Both male protagonists were brilliant.
And of course, there's Anne. She's completely the opposite of Sarah, but I really liked her character. I just wish that she'd made more of an appearance during the book though.
One thing which I really enjoyed during the book was the take on Vampires. They weren't the sparkly, Edward Cullen type– they were the really bloodthirsty, horrific kind and ones that gave me nightmares. Gavin's descriptions are top-notch, but of course, vampires come then hand-in-hand with repulsive. Which is exactly what Al-Nasir is. Let me just say: Voldemort has nothing on this guy. He is downright creepy and I still shudder when I think about him. *shudders*
The religion, history and mythology visited in this book is phenomenal. I've never seen a greater collection of these three topics in YA book that I've read so far. The religious beliefs tying in with history, and myths coming to life, and there's just so much more in the novel– it really has great substance.
However, what I could have done without though was the sexual-ness in this novel. I mean, I get the demon thing. That's pretty much understood, they are sexual and seductive in nature. But for other parts of the book I found that it was unnecessary.
The Darkening Dream is a fantastic novel, one which I'm sure will have fantasy nerds, historical-and-myth lovers, romance fans and just anyone who wants a good book wrapped up into this marvelously thought-out story. The ending just BLEW MY MIND, and I really hope Gavin has a second book planned because I need more!
**Thank you so much to Andy Gavin for sending me his book for review!**
This sounds really great! Glad you enjoyed it, great review :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds really great!
ReplyDeletetnx4the review
That book is so on my wish list! Great review! :D
ReplyDelete