Review: Darkfever - Karen Marie Moning

My name is MacKayla, Mac for short. I'm a sidhe-seer, one who sees the Fae, a fact I accepted only recently and very reluctantly.

My philosophy is pretty simple - any day nobody's trying to kill me is a good day in my book. I haven't had many good days lately. Not since the walls between Man and Fae came down. But then, there's not a sidhe-seer alive who's had a good day since then.

When MacKayla's sister was murdered, she left a single clue to her death - a cryptic message on Mac's cell phone. Journeying to Ireland in search of answers, Mac is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to master a power she had no idea she possessed - a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae...

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister's death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho...while at the same time, the ruthless V'lane - an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women - closes in on her. As the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac's true mission becomes clear: to find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book - because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of both worlds in their hands....

Fever Series:
Darkfever
Bloodfever
Faefever
Dreamfever
Shadowfever
Fever Moon: The Fear Dorcha (Graphic Novel)
Iced
Burned
Feverborn

Visit Karen Marie Moning's website for more information

Review:
MacKayla is happy with small town life, she doesn't have much ambition and enjoys working evenings in a bar so she can spend her days topping up her tan. She is definitely a girly girl who likes pretty clothes and make up and the only reason she is even attending college part time is to keep her parents happy. It seems like Alina is the only sister with any get up and go in their family. That is until Alina is brutally murdered while studying abroad in Ireland. The police have no clues to go on and have closed the murder investigation which incenses Mac. While her parents fall appart with grief Mac is determined to get justice for her sister and track down the killer. With the only clue a mysterious answer phone message that Alina left before she died Mac uses all her savings to get to Ireland with the sole aim of forcing the police to reopen the investigation. However, after arriving in Ireland she finds herself thrown in at the deep end, into a world full of terrifying Fae creatures that only she seems to be able to see. Has she been driven mad by grief or are these monsters really walking amongst us? She is going to need the help of her new acquaintance Barrons if she wants to survive amongst the Fae but can she really trust him when she knows he is keeping secrets from her?

I have heard so many good things about the Fever series that I've been wanting to start reading it for a while now but after hearing about the killer cliffhangers (particularly in the later books) I decided to wait until the entire series was available. I have to confess I'm glad I waited because before I'd even finished reading Darkfever I had placed an order for all of the other books and I'm looking forward to getting stuck into them. This was a great start to an urban fantasy series, I loved the world building and am looking forward to spending more time with the characters.

At first I wasn't at all sure I was going to like Mac - she seemed far too Barbie like for me, completely obsessed with her looks - but once the going gets tough you really start to see a change in her. Yes she still loves pink and likes to have her nails done but underneath that there is a steely determination to find out what happened to her sister, and to make the killer pay. I still think Mac has a lot of growing to do but I was left wanting to see her take that journey.

While there is no romance in the first book in Darkfever (I'm hoping there will be more in the rest of the series!) there is definitely some serious chemistry between Mac and Barrons. Watching the banter between them gives you a feel for the love/hate relationship they have started to develop and it should be fun to see which side the coin eventually falls on. I would have liked to find out a bit more about Barrons but in a way I think the mystery is one of the main things that draws me to him, I just HAVE to get to know him & I know he's got some good stories to tell! Another character I want to see more of is V'lane who Mac dubbed a death-by-sex-Fae. Admittedly he didn't do anything in this book to make me like him (in fact it was quite the opposite) but I can't help thinking there is more to him than meets the eye. I'm curious to find out if he is actually a friend or an enemy!

This is the first book I've read my Karen Marie Moning but it won't be the last, her writing style is gripping and makes it very hard for you to put the book down once you've started. I enjoyed the mythology and want to find out more about the Fae and Mac's abilities. This was a good start to the series and I would definitely recommend it to urban fantasy fans.

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.