Review: A Darkness Strange and Lovely

A DARKNESS STRANGE AND LOVELY
Something Strange and Deadly #2
Susan Dennard
Paranormal Young Adult
406 pages
HarperTeen
Available now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Amazon)
With her brother dead and her mother insane, Eleanor Fitt is alone. Even the Spirit-Hunters—Joseph, Jie, and the handsome Daniel—have fled to Paris. So when Eleanor hears the vicious barking of hounds and see haunting yellow eyes, she fears that the Dead, and the necromancer Marcus, are after her.

To escape, Eleanor boards a steamer bound for France. There she meets Oliver, a young man who claims to have known her brother. But Oliver harbors a dangerous secret involving necromancy and black magic that entices Eleanor beyond words. If she can resist him, she’ll be fine. But when she arrives in Paris, she finds that the Dead have taken over, and there’s a whole new evil lurking. And she is forced to make a deadly decision that will go against everything the Spirit-Hunters stand for.

In Paris, there’s a price for this darkness strange and lovely, and it may have Eleanor paying with her life.

MY THOUGHTS
A Darkness Strange and Lovely picks up a few months after the events of Something Strange and Deadly, the title aptly suggesting we'll find life for Eleanor a bit darker than it was previously. Our hearts instantly go out to her as her loneliness wraps around our necks with all the comfort of a garrote wire, slowly biting into our skin as the weight of death, loss and guilt continues to press in. Ms. Dennard does a beautiful job of reminding us exactly what happened to Eleanor and the Spirit Hunters at the end of the last book, thankfully not leaving us floundering as we struggle to remember, but also not simply dropping a summary of book one in our laps either. Instead she easily integrates a few clues to spark our memories here and there in the opening chapters before whisking us away to begin the grittier second leg of Eleanor's journey with the Dead.

Eleanor is a changed young woman from the girl we met initially in book one, a bit beaten down by the rather horrific past few months and the lingering whispers and rumors she encounters on a daily basis as Philadelphia society thrives on her misfortune, but she never wallows or pities herself, always moving one foot in front of the other even if the direction those steps take her is not necessarily one we want to see her travel. Forced to explore the ins and outs of necromancy thanks to an exceedingly powerful villain who simply cannot let her be, we find ourselves unable to look away as Eleanor embraces that which destroyed her brother, a myriad of interesting questions raised as we watch her dabble in what we previously understood to be dangerous and evil. It's unclear to us as she wades further and further into the murky waters of necromancy whether it's the type of absolute power that corrupts absolutely, or if perhaps the black and white view of the Spirit Hunters is in fact a bit more gray, leaving us morbidly fascinated and hoping Eleanor remains as strong through this latest trial as she has been thus far.

While questions as to the ramifications of Eleanor's newfound talent with necromancy keep our minds alert and invested, her complicated relationship with Daniel ensures our hearts are equally involved. Though they are not reunited for some time in this second installment, the tension between them when they finally come face to face again is palpable, her hurt and confusion as to his blunt admission at the end of book one seeming to rise to the surface of the pages and reverberate straight through us. Their romance continues to stutter, every step they take forward quickly followed by several steps back, but it's not in the irritating way of so many sequels where one person tries to the push the other away in order to protect them, rather all the things they need to say to one another as well as the complications of her necromancy form a labyrinth they both struggle to find their way through.

Overall A Darkness Strange and Lovely is a solid second installment, moving things forward both physically and emotionally for Eleanor while setting us up for a much larger showdown in the next book. The smaller villain and the case of the Dead in Paris is solved, leaving us satisfied that we didn't invest all our time in these four hundred pages just to be left hanging, but it's also abundantly clear that even bigger and badder things are on their way, hungrier and deadlier than anything we've seen thus far.

Rating: 4/5

If you haven't already, be sure and check out my interview with Daniel, and enter to win some fantastic prizes!

Find Susan:

Website • Blog • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads • Amazon

This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

A Darkness Strange and Lovely Blog Tour: Character Interview with Daniel + A Giveaway

I'm thrilled today to welcome to the blog Daniel; Spirit Hunter, inventor extraordinaire, and love interest for Eleanor in Susan Dennard's newest release, A Darkness Strange and Lovely. I absolutely adored the first book in the series, Something Strange and Deadly, despite my fierce aversion to all things zombie, and I may have fallen a little in love with Eleanor and Daniel both individually and as a couple. Daniel was nice enough to take time out of his busy schedule fighting the Dead to answer a few questions for me, and be sure and check the bottom of the post for all the details on a fantastic giveaway!

Take us back to the first time you ran afoul of a zombie. What was your reaction and what object or person do you most wish you had with you when you came face to face with one?

The first time I ran afoul of the Dead, I was just a kid. My ma worked for a rich family outside of Chicago, and their estate was deep in the forest. There was this terrifying spirit that haunted those those woods—you could hear it hiss at night. *shudder* I wish I’d had Joseph with me then. He’d have known what to do—even if he would’ve only been a boy like myself, I bet he could’ve handled it. *grin*

If, in a separate interview, Eleanor was asked to describe you, how different do you think her answer would be from the way you would describe yourself?

Aw, she’d probably say I’m ornery. And rude. And I’ve heard her call me a scalawag more times than I can count now, so I reckon that’d be on her list too. But I’ll be honest, I’m not as grouchy as she might think—I just don’t like people touchin’ my inventions. What’s so hard to understand about that? And while I’ll admit I haven’t got my manners all tidied up like Joseph or Eleanor,  I wouldn’t call myself rude. I can be nice…when I want to be.

The scalawag thing, though…She’s probably right about that. *wink*

If zombies and spirits were suddenly a non-issue and your days no longer revolved around them, what would you most enjoy focusing on instead?

I reckon I’d go to school. Why hell, I might even start a school. I could teach kids like me—orphans and guttersnipes. I’ve been real blessed since my time in pris…well, you know where. Ever since I escaped that hell, though, I’ve been real blessed, and it only seems right to pass that luck on.

Let’s say you’re teaching a multi-week class specifically geared toward fighting the dangerous Dead. What would the class be called and what would the first item on the syllabus be?

Honestly, I’d leave that kind of class to Joseph or Jie. They’re the real Dead-fighers in the group. But I can already tell you what item Jie would want on the syllabus first…

Aim for the Knees: how to incapacitate a corpse when you’ve got no weapons or magic

If you had ample time to show Eleanor around your lab, which of your many inventions do you think she would be most fascinated by?

Now that’s a secret. One I don’t want her findin’ out. I reckon you’ll just have to read A Darkness Strange and Lovely to see for yourself. *sly smile*

While Eleanor doesn’t have your same experience with zombies, she is a quick learner and determined to be of assistance to you and the other Spirit Hunters. What quality of hers do you admire most?

I respect a woman—or any person, really—who doesn’t back down just ‘cause things get hard. As long as my fingers can curl into fists and breath still burns in my chest, I won’t stop—and neither will Eleanor.

It doesn’t hurt that she’s mighty fine to look at either.

• • • • • • • • • • 

A DARKNESS STRANGE AND LOVELY

Following an all-out battle with the walking Dead, the Spirit Hunters have fled Philadelphia, leaving Eleanor alone to cope with the devastating aftermath. But there’s more trouble ahead—the evil necromancer Marcus has returned, and his diabolical advances have Eleanor escaping to Paris to seek the help of Joseph, Jie, and the infuriatingly handsome Daniel once again. When she arrives, however, she finds a whole new darkness lurking in this City of Light. As harrowing events unfold, Eleanor is forced to make a deadly decision that will mean life or death for everyone.

Goodreads • Amazon • B&N • The Book Depository

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SUSAN DENNARD

Susan Dennard is a writer, reader, lover of animals, and eater of cookies. She used to be a marine biologist, but now she writes novels. And not novels about fish either, but novels about kick-butt heroines and swoon-worthy rogues (she really likes swoon-worthy rogues).

She lives in the Midwest with her French husband and Irish setter, and her debut, SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY, is now available from HarperTeen.

Website • Blog • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • •

GIVEAWAY

There will be 10 winners total and the prizes are…..

•      5 Winners will receive a hardcover copy of A DARKNESS STRANGE AND LOVELY and a paperback of SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY, along with signed swag - US ONLY.

•      5 winners will receive an e-novella of A DAWN MOST WICKED and signed swag - INTERNATIONAL.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to check out the rest of the stops on this tour, put together by the amazing team at Rockstar Book Tours!

WEEK ONE
7/15/2013 - Bookcase to Heaven - Interview
7/16/2013 - Magical Urban Fantasy Reads - Guest Post
7/17/2013 - Tynga's Reviews - Review
7/18/2013 - Supernatural Snark - Interview
7/19/2013 - The Book Cellar - Guest Post

WEEK TWO
7/22/2013 - Read-A-holicZ - Review
7/23/2013 - IceyBooks - Interview
7/24/2013 - Working for the Mandroid - Review
7/25/2013 - The Reader's Antidote - Review
7/26/2013 - Two Chicks on Books - Guest Post

Review: Something Strange and Deadly

SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY

(Something Strange and Deadly #1)
Susan Dennard
Paranormal Young Adult
400 pages
HarperTeen
Available July 24th
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)

The year is 1876, and there’s something strange and deadly loose in Philadelphia…

Eleanor Fitt has a lot to worry about. Her brother has gone missing, her family has fallen on hard times, and her mother is determined to marry her off to any rich young man who walks by. But this is nothing compared to what she’s just read in the newspaper—

The Dead are rising in Philadelphia.

And then, in a frightening attack, a zombie delivers a letter to Eleanor…from her brother.

Whoever is controlling the Dead army has taken her brother as well. If Eleanor is going to find him, she’ll have to venture into the lab of the notorious Spirit-Hunters, who protect the city from supernatural forces. But as Eleanor spends more time with the Spirit-Hunters, including their maddeningly stubborn yet handsome inventor, Daniel, the situation becomes dire. And now, not only is her reputation on the line, but her very life may hang in the balance.

MY THOUGHTS

Something Strange and Deadly is a grimly beautiful story, a myriad of different elements making for colorful cogs in a fascinating machine, but as we read we see that the gears driving this steampunk zombie tale are not shiny and new, but rather are twisted and rusted, covered in a grime that adds a delicious edge to this debut. Ms. Dennard ensures that all the pieces of her puzzle are visible from three hundred and sixty degrees, each page we flip like the revolution of a gear that propels us forward so that we can see a new side of the characters or events, and we remain on our toes throughout wondering if what will be revealed will be dark or light in nature, or perhaps more interestingly, something in between.

Eleanor is a strong and willful heroine, stuck in a time of chaperones and marriages of financial necessity when she clearly has the mind and sensibilities of a much more modern time period. She is extraordinarily loyal, loving her brother more than life itself as she throws herself into increasingly dangerous situations in order to uncover what’s happened to him and save him from a gruesome fate at the hands of the dead. For all that she wades into the middle of deadly encounters with spirits and zombies alike, she never truly comes across as irritatingly reckless, rather her desire to be of assistance when everyone around her seeks to shield her is something we can’t help but admire. She learns quickly and applies that knowledge as she goes along, proving herself to be an asset to the Spirit Hunters rather than a hindrance, and it’s easy to smile even as untold horrors are taking place because Eleanor proves again and again that her value is not defined strictly by high society’s standards.

Ms. Dennard does a brilliant job of creating a cast of secondary characters who straddle the line between good and bad, covering each of them in a fine layer of dirt—the smudges thick in some places while other areas remain pristine to give us individuals with flaws of varying severity who keep us guessing throughout. Even the villainous necromancer, for all the devastation he/she unleashes, earns our momentary flashes of sympathy, and each chapter either adds a new layer of grit to the characters or washes a layer away, ensuring that we are never bored while in their presence. The romance with Daniel is an atypical one in young adult fiction, the only familiar element being Daniel’s sometimes brooding nature, but there’s nary an instant electric connection or all consuming love in sight, and in fact we are left with nothing more than a promise – a whisper of a relationship still so fragile merely thinking of their potential together could shatter it.

While the identity of the necromancer is fairly easy to guess early on, it doesn’t detract from the other pieces of the Something Strange and Deadly mystery, things coming together in the end to paint a full picture we only could make out a single corner of previously. Ms. Dennard impresses with her characters and world in this first installment, and the days until the release of the second book cannot pass by quickly enough.

Rating: 4/5