Now that our April Read-Along of Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things has come to a close and Book 2 in the Dead Things Series is right around the corner, I thought we would talk about what you can expect from Dark Dreams and Dead Things. (If you haven’t finished Book1, stop HERE! Spoilers ahead)

The Witches Take a Backseat

When we left Belle Haven in book 1, the witches had forced Ember to sacrifice Mace to bring back Quinn. Though Josephine has spelled them to forget the part they played, Stella is still the same hateful witch she was before and now, she has even more reason to hate Ember. That being said, the witches are the least of the pack’s problems as they have multiple threats coming at them in book two. But, fear not, the witches will be back with a vengeance in book 3.

This Book is Very Mace Heavy

Some of you may have gathered this as Mace is on the cover. This book deals with a lot of Mace’s backstory and how he became what he became. I will answer the question as to how he got those scars and, I promise you, whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably wrong. Mace has done some bad things in his time on this planet and now that his soul is floating in limbo, his past has come back to haunt him in a very big way.

This Book is Dark.

The title was not chosen simply for the alliteration. While the book will have the same humor, romance and pack feels of book 1 (I hope), there are some very adult themes in this book regarding things that aren’t often discussed in young adult fiction…let me clarify that; they aren’t often talked about in young adult paranormal fiction. I will say there are mentions and references to physical abuse and emotional manipulation as well as some things that may imply a rather dubious consent to the things happening to this person.

Flashback and Dream Sequences

Again, the title was chosen for a reason. I was leery of too many flashbacks as this is something that often makes people cringe in books. I do my best not to go overboard with these things but in order to tell the story as I wanted to tell it, both were needed. I hope you enjoy them.

More Characters

Yes, even with a cast of thousands, there are a few more characters coming to Belle Haven. I’m hoping you like them as much as I do. There will also be a few returning characters making a reappearance so, hopefully, that gets you excited. For the sake of everybody’s sanity, there will be a cheat sheet in the beginning of book 2 with a little reminder of who’s who and what everybody’s current status is.

There’s a New POV

I know, I know. That’s a lot. If you don’t like multi-POV stories, my books are not for you. Book 2 is told from five POV’s. This may seem like overkill but, again, in order for you to experience the story the way I wanted you too, I needed to give another character a voice. I’m hoping you will like this new perspective.

Tristin is Still a Bitch

Reactions to Tristin range anywhere from “I love her, she’s a badass,” to “Kill it with fire,” but I love her just the same. She (like all my characters) is a work in progress and she is just as salty as she was in book 1, maybe even more so. The only difference is this time Ember isn’t taking it sitting down.

Uh, Yeah, There’s a Baby

This may seem like the most random plot point of the story but I promise it matters for the future. This magically inclined baby quickly attaches itself to the most unlikely member of the pack and creates an interesting dynamic and a lot of problems. The pack can barely keep themselves alive much less a helpless baby.

Somebody is Gravely Injured

One of the pack is hurt…badly. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

We Will Finally Get to See What Neoma Can Do

Neoma is quite possibly one of the most asked about characters. It seems as though she sort of just floats along in the background just being her strange, carefree self. Which she does for the most part but we’ll get to see a bit more of her magic and what that entails and get a few more hints about how a faery became the adopted sister of a werewolf and what it was that drove a wedge between Wren and the Black Thorne pack.

So that’s it. Just a few things to know. As always, feel free to comment or ask questions below.