Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton (Review)

Series:	Gods & Monsters #1
Genre:	Paranormal, Fantasy, Mythology, Vampires, Witches, Shifters
Publication.Date	February 22, 2011
Pages:	320
Published By:	Simon Pulse
Website	Kelly Keaton
	Darkness Becomes Her on Goodreads
My review copy:	Borrowed from public library

Where to get:

Ari can’t help feeling lost and alone. With teal eyes and freakish silver hair that can’t be changed or destroyed, Ari has always stood out. And after growing up in foster care, she longs for some understanding of where she came from and who she is.

Her search for answers uncovers just one message from her long dead mother: Run. Ari can sense that someone, or something, is getting closer than they should. But it’s impossible to protect herself when she doesn’t know what she’s running from or why she is being pursued.

She knows only one thing: she must return to her birthplace of New 2, the lush rebuilt city of New Orleans. Upon arriving, she discovers that New 2 is very...different. Here, Ari is seemingly normal. But every creature she encounters, no matter how deadly or horrifying, is afraid of her.

Ari won’t stop until she knows why. But some truths are too haunting, too terrifying, to ever be revealed.
(Goodreads)

My chest expanded in a scream I couldn't voice. I stared hard at my hands, my short fingernails like shiny black beetles against the white composite surface of the table. I resisted the urge to curl them under and dig into the laminate, to feel the skin pull away from the nails, to feel something other than the grief squeezing and burning my chest.

Family. That word was so alien, so unreal, that I wasn't even sure I'd heard him right. Family. Hope stirred in the center of my chest, light and airy and ready to break into a Disney song complete with adorable bluebird and singing squirrels.

I loved it immediately-beauty shadowed by time and decay, but still standing proud. Yeah, this was my kind of place.

I held on, squeezing my eyes closed and locking myself away. But not alone. Thankfully, this time, not alone.

     Paranormal? Check. Mythology? Check. What more does a girl need?!

    Desperate to find out about her birth mother, Ari heads to New 2, the storm ravaged New Orleans that the US has abandoned. New 2 was bought by, the Novem, nine powerful/rich families who all have their little secrets: three families are witches, three families are vampires, and three families are shifters. New 2 is now known for it's paranormal aspects and "unusual" residents. Once in New 2, Ari gets help from Sebastian and they fall in love. Instantly...

     I enjoyed the characters and it was kind of fun to see characters from mythology running around the city and interacting with others - and it was nice that they stayed true to their mythological personalities. Ari was definitely a strong character, even if she did have her moments where I needed to smack her upside the head. I did like the Sebastian as well, but neither of them really portrayed themselves as the insta-love type when we first meet them. Sebastian acts like he wants nothing to do with her when they meet and then the next day he's showing her around New 2 and they're making out left and right. I would have much preferred - as I usually do - the slow budding romance.

     One of the things I didn't like about the book is that there was a lot going on (paranormal, mythology, finding her parents/the truth), and it all felt pretty rushed. Nothing major happens for the first few chapters and the plot is slowly getting into the nitty gritty andthenallofasuddenthingsstarthappeningandOMGwhat'sgoingon? It was very interesting to read, but I felt like I had to re-read previous pages/passages to find out what exactly was going on and how we got there. At the same time, Keaton is amazing at describing scenes and using such vivid imagery, that I felt like I was in New 2. I could picture scenes and characters very clearly and definitely felt immersed in the world.

     Overall, it was a very interesting story and definitely a new take on paranormal/mythology. At the same time, it wasn't the book for me - which is weird as I'm all about the two subjects and you would think with a combination of them I'd be in Heaven. However, I do not want you to not read this book because I wasn't a huge fan. It was enjoyable and I can see the appeal, so I definitely think it is worth you giving Darkness Becomes Her a read. Not to mention, most of my friends feel completely opposite about this novel than I do - I'm a lone shark in this one. *duh duh duh duh*