Her Dark Curiosity Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway


Her Dark Curiosity by Megan Shepherd

Release Date: January 28, 2014
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Series: The Madman's Daughter, Book 2
Rated: YA 14+
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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Read my review of The Madman's Daughter HERE

To defeat the darkness, she must first embrace it.

Months have passed since Juliet Moreau returned to civilization after escaping her father's island—and the secrets she left behind. Now, back in London once more, she is rebuilding the life she once knew and trying to forget Dr. Moreau’s horrific legacy—though someone, or something, hasn’t forgotten her.

As people close to Juliet fall victim one by one to a murderer who leaves a macabre calling card of three clawlike slashes, Juliet fears one of her father’s creations may have also escaped the island. She is determined to find the killer before Scotland Yard does, though it means awakening sides of herself she had thought long banished, and facing loves from her past she never expected to see again.

As Juliet strives to stop a killer while searching for a serum to cure her own worsening illness, she finds herself once more in the midst of a world of scandal and danger. Her heart torn in two, past bubbling to the surface, life threatened by an obsessive killer—Juliet will be lucky to escape alive.

With inspiration from Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, this is a tantalizing mystery about the hidden natures of those we love and how far we’ll go to save them from themselves.

I only started reading this series because I received an advanced copy of Her Dark Curiosity from the publisher, and I'm really glad I did! I've come to love these books, it's subject matter and the characters, and I found that this was as dark as the first one. The story picks up a couple of months after the events in The Madman's Daughter, with Juliet's return to London. It's interesting to see how the island has changed Juliet, and how she has so much more understanding of the science behind her father's experiments and uses this to her advantage.

I'm glad to say that I liked Juliet even more in this book! I thought in the last book, while I did still like her, she was a bit "drab" and too focused on which guy to pick. But this time round, her character is so much stronger and fiercely independent – no longer dependent on men that much in her life – that I really enjoyed her story. There's the return of characters from the previous book, which would be a spoiler (kind of) if I mentioned them, so I wont. We do get to learn a lot about Juliet's friend Lucy, who played a small part in The Madman's Daughter, and there's some new characters, such as the professor, who is Juliet's guardian, Elizabeth, and Inspector Newcastle.

Like The Island of Doctor Moreau, I haven't actually read The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde – I should really get around to reading more classics – but I knew at least something about it that I was able to recognize how it was embedded into this book. The end promises yet another retelling for the final book in the trilogy, and this one got me super excited because it's one that I've ACTUALLY read. I'm not going to tell though– you've got to read this book and find out for yourselves! It's a very well-done twist to the plot that Shepherd had included, and completely caught me off-guard.

Her Dark Curiosity was enthralling and spine-tingling, and the sequel is even more amazing than the first. It's clear to see that I loved this one, and I come upon regretting that I read the book so early, because it now means waiting until next year for the last book, and I don't want to wait so long! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS.


▪ ▪ ▪ Thank you so much to Megan from HarperCollins for sending a copy for review! ▪ ▪ ▪

If you like this, try...


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Megan Shepherd

Hello!

I've been many things, like a professional exchange student, park ranger in Montana, and LOST enthusiast, but what I am now is a writer.

I think it's fair to say I was born into it. I grew up in the mountains of North Carolina, raised behind the counter of my parent's independent bookstore, Highland Books in Brevard. Ah, so many free books. But I never thought being a writer could be a real career. After college I thought I'd end up as a foreign service officer somewhere dashing and exotic, like Canada. I studied French, Spanish, German, and Russian and still speak a few of those. Then I joined the Peace Corps and spent two years in Senegal, where I learned a few more languages I'll never speak again and lived in a mud hut with no electricity or running water. You can probably image how that experience went, but if you're curious, here are the dirty details.

I wasn't until a chance acquaintance read something I wrote and said, "have you ever considered being a writer?" that something clicked and I realized it was possible. My husband encouraged me, and I quickly fell head-over-heels in love with writing and children's literature in particular. I started out writing articles, which have appeared in Faces, Appleseeds, and Calliope magazines, and stories for younger children. I soon realized I wasn't sweet enough to write fiction for that age and found myself writing young adult literature instead, which doesn't require nearly as many tender moments and includes a lot more cursing.

When I'm not writing, I can usually be found horseback riding, day dreaming at coffee shops, or hiking in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. I love to hear from readers, so please drop me a line!

I am represented by Josh Adams of Adams Literary.

Author Photo by Kristi Hedberg Photograph

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3 comments:

  1. I am very excited to read this book. I had been debating about reading The Madman's Daughter for quite some time and then saw that Epic Reads was holding a Read-a-thon for it so I figured I would join. I loved the book. I can't wait to find out what happens and what is in store for Juliet!!! Glad to hear you enjoyed both books!

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  2. I really enjoyed the first one, and have been craving this tea since it came out!
    Can't wait to read the next one! :]
    Thanks for this great post and the awesome giveaway!

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  3. I love this book themed tea and have to read this series! Two in a row makes a better companion now.

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