Book Review: Dark Kiss by Michelle Rowen
Michelle Rowen- Dark Kiss (Nightwatchers #1) Format- Paperback Source- Review copy courtesy of DMPCR Media Publisher- MIRA/ Harlequin Publication date- June 2012 Synopsis- I don't do dangerous. Smart, über-careful, ordinary Samantha-that's me. But I just couldn't pass up a surprise kiss from my number-one unattainable crush. A kiss that did something to me...something strange. Now I feel hungry all the time, but not for food. It's like part of me is missing-and I don't know if I can get it back. Then there's Bishop. At first I thought he was just a street kid, but the secrets he's keeping are as intense as his unearthly blue eyes. If he's what I think he is, he may be the only one who can help me. But something terrifying is closing in, and the one chance Bishop and I have to stop it means losing everything I ever wanted and embracing the darkness inside me.... NIGHTWATCHERS When angels and demons must work together, something beyond evil is rising... Review- Dark Kiss is a young adult paranormal novel and the first in the Nightwatchers series by Michelle Rowen.When usually cautious, seventeen year old Samantha is kissed by long-time crush Stephen at a club one evening while out with her friend Carly- her life changes. Her soul is sucked out of her and she becomes what is known as a ‘gray,’ who has an intense desire to feed. Only the feed comes from kissing and the nutrition is a human’s soul. Samantha then comes across an angel, Bishop who needs help locating his team for their mission on earth. Bishop is lost and disoriented, but when Samantha touches him, his world becomes clearer, literally. Together, along with Bishop’s demon brother Kraven, they try to track down the other members of their team and Bishop promises to re-instate Samantha’s soul.Dark Kiss is told in first person, from Samantha’s perspective and I really couldn’t find a rhythm with her as a character. The beginning felt choppy as there were particular events that the author wanted to lay down quickly before the story progressed. And almost immediately, Samantha is transformed from a shy, awkward teen, to one who has witty liners and is confident. It seemed quite drastic and not very believable. For the most part, I found Samantha annoying and this made for very difficult reading. Her voice seemed much younger than seventeen- or perhaps other YA novels protagonists are written with a more mature voice, I’m not sure. Samantha and Bishop are the cliché paranormal couple who can’t be together because it endangers them both.I just couldn’t get into Dark Kiss, I did finish it but it wasn’t an easy read for me. An interesting premise with the angel and demon theme, but for me it was not executioned well enough for me to really be absorbed in the story.
2/5 rating
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