Liz Loves Books.Com.

Publication Date: Available now from Jo Fletcher.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the review copy.

Enough time has passed for the young girl Jaenelle, heir to the magical Darkness, for her physical wounds to heal, while amnesia keeps her frightening memories at bay. But with Saetan–a Black-Jewelled Warlord Prince and Jaenelle’s foster-father–to protect her, she will continue to grow. Her magic will mature. Her memories will return. And Jaenelle will face her destiny.

Well the first book in this trilogy ” Daughter of the Blood” was a deeply strange and enthralling read so I came to Book 2 with much excitement and it did not disappoint – if anything it was superior, probably due to the depth the author manages to give her weirdly wonderful characters and the fact that you know them now and are more than ready to find out what is next.

At the end of Book One things were not going well for Jaenelle, now she is in recovery under the watchful eye of Saetan (my absolute favourite of ALL the characters, boy was I pleased to see him again) As she suffers the aftermath and struggles to regain her emotional equilibrium, her amnesia protects her from the horror she suffered. Meanwhile Daemon Sadi is suffering a breakdown due to the lies he has been told and believed and his injury sustained during Jaenelle’s rescue.

Whilst the rich imagery and beautiful prose from the first novel remains intact, the sexual content and violence is toned down somewhat, which is very fitting for the portion of the tale being told – the bridge if you like between start and finish – we already know how darkly disturbing some of the living conditions are -  and here we learn more about the lavish and extravagant world the author has created.

It really is stunning in its complexity, so wonderful to read, as far as dark fantasy goes you won’t find much better than this that is for sure. The end of the book had me absolutely on the edge of my seat and I simply cannot wait to find out what is going to happen in the finale. You see here one happy reader.

So Queen of the Darkness up next then. As soon as I can possibly get around to it. Certainly the first 2 books in the Black Jewels Trilogy come highly recommended from me.

Happy Reading Folks!