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Daeva #1
Dawn of Darkness
Unburdened by the pain of loss and heartbreak, Mikhail is content with his life of solitude. But everything began to change the day he realised he has a psychic ability -- the power to alter the emotions of those around him.Mikhail is ushered into the Military Academy with others like him -- other Daevas -- where he does his part to help tip the scales of war against the vampires that destroyed the world and plague what remains of humanity. But after going up against his first vampire, Mikhail starts to question everything he thought to be true.To discover the truth and expose the lies he once believed, Mikhail will set out on a journey of discovery, and learn some things about himself in the process.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 20, 2011
17 people are currently reading
1479 people want to read
About the author
Daniel A. Kaine
9 books127 followersDaniel Alexander Kaine is a writer of gay fiction, who is proud of his British-ness and correct spelling of doughnuts.
Born and raised in the northeast of England, Daniel found himself struggling for work after graduating university with a degree in Applied Biology. It was at this time he stumbled upon fan-fiction, and decided to try his hand at writing one of his own.
Since then, Daniel has gone on to write original fiction, preferring the hard, gritty nature of serial killers, vampires, and dystopian realities.
When not writing, Daniel enjoys a variety of activities, including reading, running, music, going to the gym, and playing video games.
Daniel lives with his four loveable furballs - Mik, Ash, Spidey, and Flash - and one very greedy leopard gecko named Harry.
Born and raised in the northeast of England, Daniel found himself struggling for work after graduating university with a degree in Applied Biology. It was at this time he stumbled upon fan-fiction, and decided to try his hand at writing one of his own.
Since then, Daniel has gone on to write original fiction, preferring the hard, gritty nature of serial killers, vampires, and dystopian realities.
When not writing, Daniel enjoys a variety of activities, including reading, running, music, going to the gym, and playing video games.
Daniel lives with his four loveable furballs - Mik, Ash, Spidey, and Flash - and one very greedy leopard gecko named Harry.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews
June 10, 2013
**2.5 stars**
I am going to be the odd man out here and say that I didn't love this book. It is definitely different than anything else out there, and I applaud the author for doing something original. However, it didn't quite click for me for a few reasons.
1)The horror aspect. This is totally personal preference but I tend to lean towards the shiny, Hollywood-y vampires vs the gruesome murderous rampage vampires. Here, we mostly see the latter kind. Some of the details were too gory for my liking. I don't like books that give me the willies. **shrugs**
2)The world-building. I didn't love the world building here. For someone that didn't know that towns existed outside of his little community, Mik sure had an easy time adapting to the outside world. He seemed so accepting of everything.
3)The romance. While I think that the relationship between Ash and Mik was wonderful in how it came about (I LOVE that they both didn't play games and just faced up to everything that happened between them. No silly drama here! Thanks Daniel Kaine!), I simply wanted more of it. I didn't think that what they had was strong enough to pull them through the entire book. I wanted more time devoted to them as a couple before they were torn apart. This is also a bit personal preference because I tend to like sappier kinds of books and this wasn't sappy.
I have to say that I didn't want to put this one down because I wanted to see how it would all play out (hence the rounding up to 3 stars), but I have no desire to move on with the series. It just didn't do it for me.
I am going to be the odd man out here and say that I didn't love this book. It is definitely different than anything else out there, and I applaud the author for doing something original. However, it didn't quite click for me for a few reasons.
1)The horror aspect. This is totally personal preference but I tend to lean towards the shiny, Hollywood-y vampires vs the gruesome murderous rampage vampires. Here, we mostly see the latter kind. Some of the details were too gory for my liking. I don't like books that give me the willies. **shrugs**
2)The world-building. I didn't love the world building here. For someone that didn't know that towns existed outside of his little community, Mik sure had an easy time adapting to the outside world. He seemed so accepting of everything.
3)The romance. While I think that the relationship between Ash and Mik was wonderful in how it came about (I LOVE that they both didn't play games and just faced up to everything that happened between them. No silly drama here! Thanks Daniel Kaine!), I simply wanted more of it. I didn't think that what they had was strong enough to pull them through the entire book. I wanted more time devoted to them as a couple before they were torn apart. This is also a bit personal preference because I tend to like sappier kinds of books and this wasn't sappy.
I have to say that I didn't want to put this one down because I wanted to see how it would all play out (hence the rounding up to 3 stars), but I have no desire to move on with the series. It just didn't do it for me.
November 6, 2011
CAUTION: Long Review, Spoilers
At the time of writing this review, Dawn of Darkness combines the two most popular genres — Paranormal and Dystopian — of Young Adult fiction into one substantial read. This is the first time where I read a YA book that was both Paranormal and Dystopian, both genre that I read extensively of in my YA books.
DoD is told in the 1st POV from Mikhail's (or Mik as everyone calls him) perspective. The story follows Mik as he start off as a Daeva soldier-graduate of the city Rachat and becomes a resistance fighter against the dystopian government — the Silver Dawn.
The World of DoD
DoD is set in a post-apocalyptic world where the biggest supernatural danger are vampires. Pre-apocalypse, vampires revealed themselves and everything was going fine as vamps gained rights...until the plague came. Since the plague happened to suspiciously coincide with the vamp's "coming out of the coffin" event, humans blamed the vampires.
But too late, too bad, many people died — hence the apocalypse.
DoD begins in Rachat, a barrier-city, possibly the only city of humans left on Earth. (I assumed the Internet is down which only emphasize how horrible DoD's world is.) However, nothing is as it seem and there may be a danger inside Rachat greater than the ones outside.
Unexpected Expectation
DoD was not at all how I expected it to be...
1) Nowhere in the book blurb or on the cover-art did it mentioned that the book was LGBT, specifically that the protagonist was gay. I only found out because the author advertised the book in the M/M Romance Goodreads group.
I had other YA books to read, but no YA with a gay protagonist. So once I learned DoD had a gay protag, I immediately made it my next book to read. The fact that I was in the mood for a YA book helped greatly.
2) Reading as much YA books as I have, I expect romance in girl YA (YA books with a girl as the protag) but not in boy YA (YA books with a boy as the protag). I'm not saying boy YA don't have romance, but I am saying that most boy YA that I have read don't have romance. So after reading the first few chapters of DoD, I was pleasantly suprised to see a mm-romance plotline.
After finishing the book, I was satisfied with the romance plotline because usually the romance in YA are subprime. Yes, I do have a low opinion of romance found in YA, mostly in girl YA only because there are more girl YA than there are boy YA. Sometime those girls were simply TSTL — Too Stupid To Live, and the All Girls Want Bad Boys trope is so overused and overrated.
3) I recently read a few mainstream YA where the protag is a gay boy, and I was disappointed with them. The Archangel Academy series had poor writing, poor character development, overall poor everything. Witch Eyes for me wasn't exciting enough, its gay protag wasn't clever enough. So the fact that DoD is self-published (which has a stigma of poor editing/quality) and has a gay protag (which imo has a history of unsatisfactory writing), I didn't expect anything great from DoD.
Fortunately, DoD proved me wrong and turned out to be a solid book. DoD had great editing for being a self-pub book, and I will go as far as to say the editing rivals that of mainstream books. Moreover, the writing was good — the best from a gay boy YA that I've read so far.
4) The book was written in British English, and I'm American. Nonetheless, DoD not being localized for my region didn't bother me since the writing didn't contain anything unfamiliar.
5) DoD set place in France. I'm so used to reading YA books that take place in America and UK that the France setting in DoD took me for a surprise.
6) The vampires in DoD are scary...no, seriously, they are like the vampires in old horror films and old books like Dracula. These are not your sparkly vampires from the Twilight series.
7) I liked DoD's sexual content. YA, or at least mainstream YA, don't have graphic sex scenes but DoD does and I liked it. The sexual content consisted of kissing and mutual masturbation.
And it didn't took long for the sex scenes to occur either. Though those sex scenes were few and far, and weren't put there for readers' sexual gratification like in an erotica.
8) Though there was homophobia in the story, I was happy that it was mostly in the background. Ash, the protag's love interest, is the one character who gets flak for being bi from his parents. This occurred only in 2-3 short scenes, IIRC. Mik, on his part, seem to have more of an issue accepting love from a person in general than accepting love from a same-sex person. But basically, I like how there wasn't LGBT-related drama in DoD because that's not something I'd care for.
Strong Characters
Mik is an orphan and have abandonment issues, which essentially makes him an emo character. I dislike emo character because they mostly just mope and play a passive role in the plot. Fortunately, Mik wasn't anything like that because he took actions when actions needed to be taken and he didn't let his situation, no matter how bad, get him down...most of the time anyway.
Initially Mik has trouble being with Ash after their the first sex scene, but I was glad to see him overcoming his issues and just enjoy being with Ash. I was even more glad to see their relationship quickly changed from a "friends with benefits" thing to that of actual lovers.
I like how Mik questioned everything once he learned Daevas and vampires were connected. I like how Mik kept wanting to save Ash from the Silver Dawn even when Ash didn't believe in Mik. I like how Mik continued to work on his power even though he knew how dangerous his power could be. In short, Mik had countless opportunity to wuss out and act like your typical emo from high school but fortunately he wasn't. Mik didn't show flashy strength, but he did show a resilient will.
Beside Mik, the author showed great skill for developing all of his characters. Whether that character was main or minor or mentioned in reference, there wasn't a single one I would have considered as weak or flat. For everyone, readers can catch a glimpse of their personal history that the author wrote into the story so seamlessly.
My favorite minor characters were Anna and Violet.
Plot Twists and Turns
Some Small Gripes
These gripes didn't detract me from enjoying DoD but it did stop me from giving a 5-star rating.
1) I'm American, but I'm pretty sure the term "no one" should not have a hyphen in between even in British English. There's nothing wrong using "room-mate" but I'm really used to reading it as "roommate." Chalk it up to OCD. =P
2) On my epub,
page 20/275, [Any fond memories I had had of Mrs Rosseau were long]
should be [Any fond memories I had had of Mrs. Rosseau were long] Nevermind. British grammar. =P
Page 240/275, [He either plans to win your over by then]
should be [He either plans to win you over by then]
Page 128/275, ["Sorry. Animal instinct, and all that," Daniel, grinning.] was in a different font-type and font-size.
*DoD is still well edited.
3) I didn't like how Mik accepted to sharing blood with Russell. Russell is a bad guy and there's nothing to actually stop him from reneging on his "promise" and tattle-tell to Marcus.
4) I wished Mik and company had a better plan or a fail-safe in their attempt to take down the Silver Dawn. After all, they going up against one of the most powerful vampires in the world — ancient, pureblood, and damn evil.
5) Readers never learn who Katiya dated... though I had a pretty good hunch it was Lucas.
6) Anna owes a favor to Marcus, Marcus used that favor on Mik so that Anna can teach Mik how to be a competent Siren. What was in it for Marcus that he would use — waste? — a favor on Mik? Marcus doesn't come across to me as a vampire who's just a nice guy.
In Conclusion
DoD had good pacing, good amount of action, emo characters that didn't act emo-y, and depth. Especially depth. One of my favorite scenes that showed depth was when Daniel and Mik were talking about the plan to take down the Silver Dawn and get revenge. Daniel, who have more reasons than Mik to get revenge, try to convince Mik that revenge hurts more than just the targeted bad guys. And Mik began to re-evaluate his motives and think about the possible consequences of his action.
So another reason I like Mik is because he actually think things through which not many YA protags — gay, straight, girl, boy, human or not — does this.
I'm looking forward to reading the sequel and I greatly hope the series keep up its game. DoD gets a four-stars rating for a really-liked-it.
If you like DoD, you may like...
is a boy YA (not LGBT) with a strong snarky protag and a horror factor in ghosts.
At the time of writing this review, Dawn of Darkness combines the two most popular genres — Paranormal and Dystopian — of Young Adult fiction into one substantial read. This is the first time where I read a YA book that was both Paranormal and Dystopian, both genre that I read extensively of in my YA books.
DoD is told in the 1st POV from Mikhail's (or Mik as everyone calls him) perspective. The story follows Mik as he start off as a Daeva soldier-graduate of the city Rachat and becomes a resistance fighter against the dystopian government — the Silver Dawn.
The World of DoD
DoD is set in a post-apocalyptic world where the biggest supernatural danger are vampires. Pre-apocalypse, vampires revealed themselves and everything was going fine as vamps gained rights...until the plague came. Since the plague happened to suspiciously coincide with the vamp's "coming out of the coffin" event, humans blamed the vampires.
But too late, too bad, many people died — hence the apocalypse.
DoD begins in Rachat, a barrier-city, possibly the only city of humans left on Earth. (I assumed the Internet is down which only emphasize how horrible DoD's world is.) However, nothing is as it seem and there may be a danger inside Rachat greater than the ones outside.
Unexpected Expectation
DoD was not at all how I expected it to be...
1) Nowhere in the book blurb or on the cover-art did it mentioned that the book was LGBT, specifically that the protagonist was gay. I only found out because the author advertised the book in the M/M Romance Goodreads group.
I had other YA books to read, but no YA with a gay protagonist. So once I learned DoD had a gay protag, I immediately made it my next book to read. The fact that I was in the mood for a YA book helped greatly.
2) Reading as much YA books as I have, I expect romance in girl YA (YA books with a girl as the protag) but not in boy YA (YA books with a boy as the protag). I'm not saying boy YA don't have romance, but I am saying that most boy YA that I have read don't have romance. So after reading the first few chapters of DoD, I was pleasantly suprised to see a mm-romance plotline.
After finishing the book, I was satisfied with the romance plotline because usually the romance in YA are subprime. Yes, I do have a low opinion of romance found in YA, mostly in girl YA only because there are more girl YA than there are boy YA. Sometime those girls were simply TSTL — Too Stupid To Live, and the All Girls Want Bad Boys trope is so overused and overrated.
3) I recently read a few mainstream YA where the protag is a gay boy, and I was disappointed with them. The Archangel Academy series had poor writing, poor character development, overall poor everything. Witch Eyes for me wasn't exciting enough, its gay protag wasn't clever enough. So the fact that DoD is self-published (which has a stigma of poor editing/quality) and has a gay protag (which imo has a history of unsatisfactory writing), I didn't expect anything great from DoD.
Fortunately, DoD proved me wrong and turned out to be a solid book. DoD had great editing for being a self-pub book, and I will go as far as to say the editing rivals that of mainstream books. Moreover, the writing was good — the best from a gay boy YA that I've read so far.
4) The book was written in British English, and I'm American. Nonetheless, DoD not being localized for my region didn't bother me since the writing didn't contain anything unfamiliar.
5) DoD set place in France. I'm so used to reading YA books that take place in America and UK that the France setting in DoD took me for a surprise.
6) The vampires in DoD are scary...no, seriously, they are like the vampires in old horror films and old books like Dracula. These are not your sparkly vampires from the Twilight series.
"We found corpses... so many corpses. They were nailed to the walls of the save with iron spikes. Their eyes and mouths were sewn shut. Their bodies were naked and shaved. We couldn't see the cave walls for them. Even the ceiling was covered."Though I like reading stories that romanticized vampires, I was very happy to find out that DoD returned the vampire to its horror origin. I was very happy that DoD even had a horror factor, period. This made DoD's post-apocalyptic world that much more frightening. A zombie apocalypse is bad, but a vampire apocalypse seem even worse.
7) I liked DoD's sexual content. YA, or at least mainstream YA, don't have graphic sex scenes but DoD does and I liked it. The sexual content consisted of kissing and mutual masturbation.
And it didn't took long for the sex scenes to occur either. Though those sex scenes were few and far, and weren't put there for readers' sexual gratification like in an erotica.
8) Though there was homophobia in the story, I was happy that it was mostly in the background. Ash, the protag's love interest, is the one character who gets flak for being bi from his parents. This occurred only in 2-3 short scenes, IIRC. Mik, on his part, seem to have more of an issue accepting love from a person in general than accepting love from a same-sex person. But basically, I like how there wasn't LGBT-related drama in DoD because that's not something I'd care for.
Strong Characters
Mik is an orphan and have abandonment issues, which essentially makes him an emo character. I dislike emo character because they mostly just mope and play a passive role in the plot. Fortunately, Mik wasn't anything like that because he took actions when actions needed to be taken and he didn't let his situation, no matter how bad, get him down...most of the time anyway.
Initially Mik has trouble being with Ash after their the first sex scene, but I was glad to see him overcoming his issues and just enjoy being with Ash. I was even more glad to see their relationship quickly changed from a "friends with benefits" thing to that of actual lovers.
I like how Mik questioned everything once he learned Daevas and vampires were connected. I like how Mik kept wanting to save Ash from the Silver Dawn even when Ash didn't believe in Mik. I like how Mik continued to work on his power even though he knew how dangerous his power could be. In short, Mik had countless opportunity to wuss out and act like your typical emo from high school but fortunately he wasn't. Mik didn't show flashy strength, but he did show a resilient will.
Beside Mik, the author showed great skill for developing all of his characters. Whether that character was main or minor or mentioned in reference, there wasn't a single one I would have considered as weak or flat. For everyone, readers can catch a glimpse of their personal history that the author wrote into the story so seamlessly.
My favorite minor characters were Anna and Violet.
"Because when a vampire says it's a long story, we're usually talking a few hundred years. It would take several nights to explain the history betwen myself [Anna] and Violet."With the way the author writes, I wouldn't mind reading that and I'm confident he could condense it into a short story. If DoD was not YA but an adult UF book (think Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Richelle Mead), I would have expected there to be such a story in a novella or an anthology of UF stories.
Plot Twists and Turns
Some Small Gripes
These gripes didn't detract me from enjoying DoD but it did stop me from giving a 5-star rating.
1) I'm American, but I'm pretty sure the term "no one" should not have a hyphen in between even in British English. There's nothing wrong using "room-mate" but I'm really used to reading it as "roommate." Chalk it up to OCD. =P
2) On my epub,
should be [Any fond memories I had had of Mrs. Rosseau were long]
Page 240/275, [He either plans to win your over by then]
should be [He either plans to win you over by then]
Page 128/275, ["Sorry. Animal instinct, and all that," Daniel, grinning.] was in a different font-type and font-size.
*DoD is still well edited.
3) I didn't like how Mik accepted to sharing blood with Russell. Russell is a bad guy and there's nothing to actually stop him from reneging on his "promise" and tattle-tell to Marcus.
4) I wished Mik and company had a better plan or a fail-safe in their attempt to take down the Silver Dawn. After all, they going up against one of the most powerful vampires in the world — ancient, pureblood, and damn evil.
5) Readers never learn who Katiya dated... though I had a pretty good hunch it was Lucas.
6) Anna owes a favor to Marcus, Marcus used that favor on Mik so that Anna can teach Mik how to be a competent Siren. What was in it for Marcus that he would use — waste? — a favor on Mik? Marcus doesn't come across to me as a vampire who's just a nice guy.
In Conclusion
DoD had good pacing, good amount of action, emo characters that didn't act emo-y, and depth. Especially depth. One of my favorite scenes that showed depth was when Daniel and Mik were talking about the plan to take down the Silver Dawn and get revenge. Daniel, who have more reasons than Mik to get revenge, try to convince Mik that revenge hurts more than just the targeted bad guys. And Mik began to re-evaluate his motives and think about the possible consequences of his action.
So another reason I like Mik is because he actually think things through which not many YA protags — gay, straight, girl, boy, human or not — does this.
I'm looking forward to reading the sequel and I greatly hope the series keep up its game. DoD gets a four-stars rating for a really-liked-it.
If you like DoD, you may like...
is a boy YA (not LGBT) with a strong snarky protag and a horror factor in ghosts.
January 7, 2012
My reaction I got to the end ... "GOD DAMN IT, I SHOULD'VE BOUGHT THIS BOOK WHEN BOOK 2 IS ALREADY AVAILABLE!!!"
Yeah, because while one big plot is finished, there is another kind of 'cliff hanger' regarding one of the characters, which makes me dying to read book #2 right away. Okay, my opinion will have some spoilers and retelling the plot because it helps me to remember what the story is all about (I have short term memory capacity)
What the plot is all about: HUGE SPOILER
I don't discover much dystopian/paranormal story in male/male genre, so I totally welcome this. Especially with a gay male protagonist. That is one huge plus. The writing is SMOOTH, and unlike a couple of YA mainstreams I read, this is not just about a boy pining for another boy. Yes, there is sexual/romance element, but this is not just that. There's friendship (between Mik and the Twilight Resistance members, I especially adore his and Daniel) and mystery (about the real bad guy) and thrill and action.
The world building is captivating -- and it is easy to read, without some flowery words that usually come in urban fantasy/paranormal genre. Characters wise are also well-written. I come to love these people (except when I find out who the traitor is, DAMN YOU!) and when the cliffhanger happens () I just want to scream and demand book 2 to be released now.
WELL-DONE, Mr. Kaine!! Especially to think that this is your first novel. Hats-off.
Yeah, because while one big plot is finished, there is another kind of 'cliff hanger' regarding one of the characters, which makes me dying to read book #2 right away. Okay, my opinion will have some spoilers and retelling the plot because it helps me to remember what the story is all about (I have short term memory capacity)
What the plot is all about: HUGE SPOILER
I don't discover much dystopian/paranormal story in male/male genre, so I totally welcome this. Especially with a gay male protagonist. That is one huge plus. The writing is SMOOTH, and unlike a couple of YA mainstreams I read, this is not just about a boy pining for another boy. Yes, there is sexual/romance element, but this is not just that. There's friendship (between Mik and the Twilight Resistance members, I especially adore his and Daniel) and mystery (about the real bad guy) and thrill and action.
The world building is captivating -- and it is easy to read, without some flowery words that usually come in urban fantasy/paranormal genre. Characters wise are also well-written. I come to love these people (except when I find out who the traitor is, DAMN YOU!) and when the cliffhanger happens () I just want to scream and demand book 2 to be released now.
WELL-DONE, Mr. Kaine!! Especially to think that this is your first novel. Hats-off.
January 15, 2012
4.5 stars. It's difficult by now to write a book with werewolves and vampires that feels unique, imaginative and fascinating. In this first book of his fantasy series, Daniel Kaine has achieved exactly that. The narrator, Mik, is a wonderful character, a young man who will grab your heart from the first page and not let go. This book is more fantasy than romance, but the thread of Mik's feelings for his lover Ash carry the reader through the book. Although this book is written for adults, the style echoes some of the very best YA fantasies. A small amount of on-page sex and violence would exclude younger readers, but it would be a wonderful read for older teens. I would love to see it reach that wider audience because I think the response would be enthusiastic. Although those adolescents might find themselves competing with their parents for the first look at new installments in this series as they are released. Because although this novel does have a complete arc, that ending... let me just say, "Daniel Kaine, you'd better be writing and editing your fingers to the bone, because I want the rest of this series, yesterday." Highly recommended for fans of fantasy and the paranormal.
August 30, 2014
To use a friend's word, this should have been a minefield for me. A post-apocalyptic world, humans with super abilities, vampires, werewolves, witches, magic, even some telepathy, usually a big no-no, but it turned out to be a very smooth and fascinating ride.
Mr. Kaine has wowed me with how he made this amazingly original story with different twists work by slowly unfolding the layers, keeping it balanced, focused and straight-forward. By having Mik tell it in a way I easily understood, made me care and believe everything could very well happen, not once questioning logic. The entire cast of characters was full of shining stars. I can probably throw out at least 10 names of characters who made an impact whether they touched my heart, broke it, amused, angered or frustrated me. It is a series, so expect a bit of a cliffhanger. I thought it was an all around great read, loved it!
Mr. Kaine has wowed me with how he made this amazingly original story with different twists work by slowly unfolding the layers, keeping it balanced, focused and straight-forward. By having Mik tell it in a way I easily understood, made me care and believe everything could very well happen, not once questioning logic. The entire cast of characters was full of shining stars. I can probably throw out at least 10 names of characters who made an impact whether they touched my heart, broke it, amused, angered or frustrated me. It is a series, so expect a bit of a cliffhanger. I thought it was an all around great read, loved it!
October 28, 2011
First let me say how incredible is this world that Daniel Kaine has created in his debut novel Dawn of Darkness. The level to which Mr. Kaine creates this new world is nothing short of amazing. I felt like I was visiting--seeing his world as the pages of his novel unfolded. Set on the planet earth, Kaine creates a place inhabited by both human and supernatural beings. Mikhail, the MC, is one of the "super" human military who have been born with supernatural powers while still retaining human form. Darkness is his story--his and that of his lover, Ash. As this novel unfolds, Mik does indeed come to question everything he has been lead to believe about the military unit he has been assigned to, the war he is helping to fight against supernatural beings and even his own abilities. Through it all, he clings to the one person whom he has finally allowed himself to trust, Ash, his best friend and lover. To say anymore would be to give away some of the many twists and turns this novel takes--good twists and turns--ones that make you cling just a little harder to your kindle and pray that everyone will make it out alive. At turns, this is a mystery novel, a fantasy novel, a love story and unbelievably a commentary on how gullible we as a people become when we allow ourselves to be controlled by religion and politics.
Did I mention this was Mr. Kaine's debut novel--stunning, just stunning. This novel sets us up for subsequent sequels and good thing too because with the ending of this gem I, for one, was ready to hunt down Mr. Kaine, strap him to a chair and demand he not move until finishing the next book in the series!
I highly recommend this novel--this is an author you will want to keep your eye on--I believe he not only weaves a wonderful story but he has something to say--something important. I, for one, am ready to listen!
Did I mention this was Mr. Kaine's debut novel--stunning, just stunning. This novel sets us up for subsequent sequels and good thing too because with the ending of this gem I, for one, was ready to hunt down Mr. Kaine, strap him to a chair and demand he not move until finishing the next book in the series!
I highly recommend this novel--this is an author you will want to keep your eye on--I believe he not only weaves a wonderful story but he has something to say--something important. I, for one, am ready to listen!
October 28, 2013
Just not enough romance for me. I though the beginning was very strong. The way Ash and Mik came together relatively easy was nice. But there wasn't enough of them for me to really love it. I like sweeter romances. Now, what they had was nice, but it was cut short.
I want to point out something. This book was not for me because I was looking for more romance than this one had. But, and that is a big but, if you like world building and dystopian type books, you would really like this. The world building in the beginning was good, but I didn't like the way things went afterwards. Again, that has something to do with the romance. Dystopian isn't my genre of choice and I find it hard to follow along most of the time. So the romance needs to be a lot stronger than it was here. Had the book been a bit shorter... I might have liked it more, too.
Saying all that, I did like the ending. Cliffhangers are not my favourite thing in the world, but here it was definitely welcome. It gave more of a hopeful ending than it would have been without it. I don't see myself continuing with the series. It's juts not my thing. But I think the books would be really good for someone who wants to read something different.
Fans of dystopian books with a sprinkle of romance will really appreciate this book.
I want to point out something. This book was not for me because I was looking for more romance than this one had. But, and that is a big but, if you like world building and dystopian type books, you would really like this. The world building in the beginning was good, but I didn't like the way things went afterwards. Again, that has something to do with the romance. Dystopian isn't my genre of choice and I find it hard to follow along most of the time. So the romance needs to be a lot stronger than it was here. Had the book been a bit shorter... I might have liked it more, too.
Saying all that, I did like the ending. Cliffhangers are not my favourite thing in the world, but here it was definitely welcome. It gave more of a hopeful ending than it would have been without it. I don't see myself continuing with the series. It's juts not my thing. But I think the books would be really good for someone who wants to read something different.
Fans of dystopian books with a sprinkle of romance will really appreciate this book.
December 17, 2011
Holy Freaking Cow! What a Fantastic ride!
There are some really fabulous reviews out there for this book and they are all correct. The dystopia world, the plot, the characters, the writing...all of it...there was nothing I didn't LOVE about this. It is one of those books that you are loathed to put down because you have to know RIGHT NOW what is going to happen next. I was handing out post-it notes with a, "I'll kill you if you don't read this," demand. Not that I would actually do bodily harm, I just wanted someone to dish with about the book! I CANNOT wait for the next book in the series. I need-want-need it now!
There are some really fabulous reviews out there for this book and they are all correct. The dystopia world, the plot, the characters, the writing...all of it...there was nothing I didn't LOVE about this. It is one of those books that you are loathed to put down because you have to know RIGHT NOW what is going to happen next. I was handing out post-it notes with a, "I'll kill you if you don't read this," demand. Not that I would actually do bodily harm, I just wanted someone to dish with about the book! I CANNOT wait for the next book in the series. I need-want-need it now!
November 2, 2011
WHERE'S BOOK 2??? O_O
Damn, but this is Daniels first effort at writing.. and it's gripping.. An emotional roller coaster ride in places.
Characters are well formed with good back grounds. They fit into the plot as required without coming across as filler. The main character is very well formed from the outset. I found it quite easy to be caught up in everything happening.
Story has no lag, jumps or plot holes that could easily have annoyed or detracted from the journey.
My one criticism of the story is the ending but I'm not sure how it really affects everything. This story could have been tied up before the actual ending, (as I kept expecting it to!) It sort of felt everything happened VERY quickly at the end. BUT having said that, I really don't know that the ending could have been dragged out in the next book. I guess I will have to wait and see.
Overall I have to say I think this book is as close to a work of art as can be. I don't need to sit back and 'appreciate' the obvious attention to details, the character descriptions or any of a myriad of other things one want's to acknowledge a writer for in their work. The book does it all. I am going to harrass Daniel though for the next book... NOW!!!!
Damn, but this is Daniels first effort at writing.. and it's gripping.. An emotional roller coaster ride in places.
Characters are well formed with good back grounds. They fit into the plot as required without coming across as filler. The main character is very well formed from the outset. I found it quite easy to be caught up in everything happening.
Story has no lag, jumps or plot holes that could easily have annoyed or detracted from the journey.
My one criticism of the story is the ending but I'm not sure how it really affects everything. This story could have been tied up before the actual ending, (as I kept expecting it to!) It sort of felt everything happened VERY quickly at the end. BUT having said that, I really don't know that the ending could have been dragged out in the next book. I guess I will have to wait and see.
Overall I have to say I think this book is as close to a work of art as can be. I don't need to sit back and 'appreciate' the obvious attention to details, the character descriptions or any of a myriad of other things one want's to acknowledge a writer for in their work. The book does it all. I am going to harrass Daniel though for the next book... NOW!!!!
January 14, 2012
4.5 stars.
Dawn of Darkness has everything I love about a good book:
A fascinating story, unique characters (I love Daniel!
), action, romance and even a little bit of horror! Oh! And a REALLY unexpected ending!
Can’t wait for the next book!
Dawn of Darkness has everything I love about a good book:
A fascinating story, unique characters (I love Daniel!
), action, romance and even a little bit of horror! Oh! And a REALLY unexpected ending! Can’t wait for the next book!
December 31, 2011
Oh my! I'm so glad I discovered this gem of a book.
I usually don't like books told in first person point-of-view but this was just too amazing.
We have a diverse cast of characters. The main character, Mikhail, can come off as stand-offish and cold but he has quite a past that reinforces this attitude. But he does soften up as the story progresses, while still retaining those familiar qualities. Also, I really like that he's keen, and has good morals. My other two favorite characters would have to be Violet and Daniel. I was really warming up to Nate but...you know...things happen. >___>
The world-building was done extremely well. Very smooth and informative, without feeling like info-dump. Ace.
The plot is very gripping. Several pages into it, and I couldn't stop. The suspense, the tension, the emotions, the dialogue. Exhilarating.
All in all, a pleasure to read. Sweet, delicious pleasure.
Oh, Daniel Kaine. I may murder you for that cliffhanger at the end, leaving me yearning for more.
Looking forward to the next book. ^^
March 2, 2012
I just wanna say OMG!! That was freaking awesome I stayed up all night reading it and by the time I was done I was contemplating strangling mr. Kaine for not having the next one done and out it bowing down to his awesomeness I know that sounds cliche and all but I truly loved this story and am so looking forward to more ( are you sure it can't be an ongoing series like forever!) I truly loved every aspect of this story and I can honestly say if I'm asked this is the story I will recommend to anyone wanting a awesome book to read
May 1, 2020
I kept flipping between this being 3.5 and 4 stars and since "really liked it" fits, I'm going with 4.
But here's the thing: It could have been 4.5 or even 5 stars. The problem? It needed better world-building. See, I am addicted to books, movies and tv shows with scifi/dystopian settings. And because of that I saw all the holes.
A pandemic plague wipes out huge swaths of humanity? I'll buy that one (apropos at the mo, I suppose). But you can't have all the modern conveniences of life we've become accustomed to in a post-apocalyptic world without explaining how it works. Coffee, gas-powered vehicles, new jeans and sneakers, hamberders (I couldn't resist), electricity and plumbing...how? Had this been set a few decades after the die-off, I could accept the people of this medium sized city had scavenged for a lot of it. But it's a hundred years later and nothing is mentioned about them scrounging for the resources. And every city (including Paris, but not "London") is abandoned or destroyed, plus it seems like the occupied cities are walled off from the countryside so where are they getting the meat?
Where does the energy come from to power their grids? No mention of solar, wind or any other method to run the power plant. (Some of this is set in France, which has a large Nuclear sector...but who's running that? If it's coal, who's mining that?) How are they getting treated water in the city? Where did the components for so many devices come from? New uniforms and medals are made how? (Could be smelted I guess, and re-built with re-purposed supplies, but it's not mentioned. Where are they growing enough cotton for jeans, or raising enough sheep for wool?) There are relatively few books (and what there is is treasured) but there's an electronic data source? I just...HOW?
The outside barrier is powered by a spell and that was a great detail...I just wish more was explained or hell, even hand-waved away with "magic." (Seriously, someone had an umbrella - that seemed "modern" and I just...how? I mean, yeah, it was in England and I'm sure there's probably a warehouse stocked with them that would last an eternity - because, ENGLAND & RAIN - but it bothered me so much that it was just a given and not explained...especially when it seems like everyone walked everywhere - when there wasn't a questionably powered vehicle - and the Chunnel had some lighting but no train. No trains anywhere.)
Maybe there's more details in the sequel, because, again, HOLY CLIFF-HANGER! And I did REALLY like this one, so I will eventually get to book 2...but still - this could have been 4.5-5 stars with more world-building.
But here's the thing: It could have been 4.5 or even 5 stars. The problem? It needed better world-building. See, I am addicted to books, movies and tv shows with scifi/dystopian settings. And because of that I saw all the holes.
A pandemic plague wipes out huge swaths of humanity? I'll buy that one (apropos at the mo, I suppose). But you can't have all the modern conveniences of life we've become accustomed to in a post-apocalyptic world without explaining how it works. Coffee, gas-powered vehicles, new jeans and sneakers, hamberders (I couldn't resist), electricity and plumbing...how? Had this been set a few decades after the die-off, I could accept the people of this medium sized city had scavenged for a lot of it. But it's a hundred years later and nothing is mentioned about them scrounging for the resources. And every city (including Paris, but not "London") is abandoned or destroyed, plus it seems like the occupied cities are walled off from the countryside so where are they getting the meat?
Where does the energy come from to power their grids? No mention of solar, wind or any other method to run the power plant. (Some of this is set in France, which has a large Nuclear sector...but who's running that? If it's coal, who's mining that?) How are they getting treated water in the city? Where did the components for so many devices come from? New uniforms and medals are made how? (Could be smelted I guess, and re-built with re-purposed supplies, but it's not mentioned. Where are they growing enough cotton for jeans, or raising enough sheep for wool?) There are relatively few books (and what there is is treasured) but there's an electronic data source? I just...HOW?
The outside barrier is powered by a spell and that was a great detail...I just wish more was explained or hell, even hand-waved away with "magic." (Seriously, someone had an umbrella - that seemed "modern" and I just...how? I mean, yeah, it was in England and I'm sure there's probably a warehouse stocked with them that would last an eternity - because, ENGLAND & RAIN - but it bothered me so much that it was just a given and not explained...especially when it seems like everyone walked everywhere - when there wasn't a questionably powered vehicle - and the Chunnel had some lighting but no train. No trains anywhere.)
Maybe there's more details in the sequel, because, again, HOLY CLIFF-HANGER! And I did REALLY like this one, so I will eventually get to book 2...but still - this could have been 4.5-5 stars with more world-building.
December 23, 2012
Post-apocalypse stories are among my favorite, but I prefer them with a non-paranormal flavor. Said that, this book had a few good things that I think the author should have taken advantage of and that show a lot of promise.
I hoped the author would take advantage of the post-apocalyptic setting a bit more. I always found myself glued to the page when there were descriptions of the way nature was taking over cities, of the wild horses, of what was left of the civilization. My favorite parts were those about the journey and the cities, I liked trying to discover the city the author was describing, the landmarks left, especially in Aldar. The fun of post-apocalypse is to be able to superimpose what you know about the place and how the author can demolish your knowledge as the apocalypse demolished those places. There wasn't enough of that, in my opinion.
The narrator, Mik, didn't have a gripping voice. It was as if he was telling the story from the sidelines instead of the front of the story. It's true that Mik tends to remove himself from situations: he often takes a step back from sex, from emotional connection. It depends on his past, on the many losses he had to face when he was a child and the fact he has to face the fear of constantly losing the people he cares for. There was a great moment in the book when Mik acknowledged his rage and anger finding a connection with a negative character. It was so powerful, so alive and revealing, and it showed a potential strength. I hope the author will continue on this road in the next books, especially because the choices Mik has to make are not easy, depending on where his loyalties are.
Another interesting thing that I think I never found in another book was Mik's considering himself asexual. It's powerful. It denies an obvious relationship dynamics and it's simply cool, because it's a choice that implies power over a basic instinct - if it's not a lack of passion. This wasn't so clear to see, and I think this could be explored a bit more.
The book is rather long. The story dragged a bit in a few places and I think the way some information about the past wasn't always given smoothly, but I could see the author was trying to avoid info-dumping. Parts of the world building were not explored or left dangling. Mik's learning of his abilities was done with a lot of repetitions of situations, it could have been more organized. The consequences of Mik's initial meeting with a human outside Rachat on his first mission were not really explained and I felt the issues were abandoned. I don't know, there was a bit of general clunkiness.
There were interesting plot twists, very interesting, but I had the impression they had not enough space to have their full impact.
It was an intriguing read, a bit frustrating sometimes, but for a debut book it's good. I'm going to read the sequel because it ends in a jaw-dropping way.
I hoped the author would take advantage of the post-apocalyptic setting a bit more. I always found myself glued to the page when there were descriptions of the way nature was taking over cities, of the wild horses, of what was left of the civilization. My favorite parts were those about the journey and the cities, I liked trying to discover the city the author was describing, the landmarks left, especially in Aldar. The fun of post-apocalypse is to be able to superimpose what you know about the place and how the author can demolish your knowledge as the apocalypse demolished those places. There wasn't enough of that, in my opinion.
The narrator, Mik, didn't have a gripping voice. It was as if he was telling the story from the sidelines instead of the front of the story. It's true that Mik tends to remove himself from situations: he often takes a step back from sex, from emotional connection. It depends on his past, on the many losses he had to face when he was a child and the fact he has to face the fear of constantly losing the people he cares for. There was a great moment in the book when Mik acknowledged his rage and anger finding a connection with a negative character. It was so powerful, so alive and revealing, and it showed a potential strength. I hope the author will continue on this road in the next books, especially because the choices Mik has to make are not easy, depending on where his loyalties are.
Another interesting thing that I think I never found in another book was Mik's considering himself asexual. It's powerful. It denies an obvious relationship dynamics and it's simply cool, because it's a choice that implies power over a basic instinct - if it's not a lack of passion. This wasn't so clear to see, and I think this could be explored a bit more.
The book is rather long. The story dragged a bit in a few places and I think the way some information about the past wasn't always given smoothly, but I could see the author was trying to avoid info-dumping. Parts of the world building were not explored or left dangling. Mik's learning of his abilities was done with a lot of repetitions of situations, it could have been more organized. The consequences of Mik's initial meeting with a human outside Rachat on his first mission were not really explained and I felt the issues were abandoned. I don't know, there was a bit of general clunkiness.
There were interesting plot twists, very interesting, but I had the impression they had not enough space to have their full impact.
It was an intriguing read, a bit frustrating sometimes, but for a debut book it's good. I'm going to read the sequel because it ends in a jaw-dropping way.
January 24, 2012
Essentially this book hit all my hot buttons. I'm a big fan of apocalypse-themed books, but throw in paranormal/psychic abilities, shifters, vampires AND soldiers? What more could a girl ask for?
Mikhail is a Daeva that just graduated from the Military Academy with his team. Daeva's are humans with psychic abilities. Mik's own ability is to alter the emotions of those around him. Ash, the team leader, is an empath and is one of the few who is immune to Mik's power.
The other team members are Kat, Brad, and Lucas - I'll not list their abilities and allow the readers to learn that for themselves. The Daeva teams have been trained and assembled in order to fight the war against vampires, who are blamed for the plague that brought on the apocalypse. After learning some strange information, Mik starts digging in deeper to gain further insight until he discovers that his nosiness is not appreciated. Thus begins a troubling journey for truth and a battle for freedom.
I really enjoyed this book on many levels. The relationship between Ash and Mik was really beautiful and their vulnerability made their trust in each other even more touching. I thought the book was exciting and well-paced. I enjoyed the secondary characters and can't wait to learn more about them in the next book. The book ended with a bit of a cliff-hanger, so I can't wait for book 2 to be released!
A definite recommend from me.
Mikhail is a Daeva that just graduated from the Military Academy with his team. Daeva's are humans with psychic abilities. Mik's own ability is to alter the emotions of those around him. Ash, the team leader, is an empath and is one of the few who is immune to Mik's power.
The other team members are Kat, Brad, and Lucas - I'll not list their abilities and allow the readers to learn that for themselves. The Daeva teams have been trained and assembled in order to fight the war against vampires, who are blamed for the plague that brought on the apocalypse. After learning some strange information, Mik starts digging in deeper to gain further insight until he discovers that his nosiness is not appreciated. Thus begins a troubling journey for truth and a battle for freedom.
I really enjoyed this book on many levels. The relationship between Ash and Mik was really beautiful and their vulnerability made their trust in each other even more touching. I thought the book was exciting and well-paced. I enjoyed the secondary characters and can't wait to learn more about them in the next book. The book ended with a bit of a cliff-hanger, so I can't wait for book 2 to be released!
A definite recommend from me.
January 9, 2012
I can see why Vick's epilogue whore was angry now. =)
This is 4.5 stars, rounded down until I determine its rereadability.
This is an amazing story. It felt just a touch at its core like the first Matrix movie: there's an alternative to the reality that we know, and once you know, you can't go back to being who you were. The setting and world were thoroughly detailed and the characters and story were the important focii, as they should be.
The main character, Mikhail Hart, goes through so much from beginning to end that you wonder where he's going to land by the end. And I love that I was guessing all the way through. I also found myself waffling over some characters in a good way. It shows the depth of the characters in how much I cared about them. There will be much to look forward to in the sequel, which I will gladly pick up.
Typos (most often where verb tenses were changed) were an annoyance, but it was very worth continuing past them. At the end, I couldn't put it down.
This is 4.5 stars, rounded down until I determine its rereadability.
This is an amazing story. It felt just a touch at its core like the first Matrix movie: there's an alternative to the reality that we know, and once you know, you can't go back to being who you were. The setting and world were thoroughly detailed and the characters and story were the important focii, as they should be.
The main character, Mikhail Hart, goes through so much from beginning to end that you wonder where he's going to land by the end. And I love that I was guessing all the way through. I also found myself waffling over some characters in a good way. It shows the depth of the characters in how much I cared about them. There will be much to look forward to in the sequel, which I will gladly pick up.
Typos (most often where verb tenses were changed) were an annoyance, but it was very worth continuing past them. At the end, I couldn't put it down.
August 11, 2011
I also got to beta read this story and fell in love. Read it one setting and a few times felt really guilty because I was enjoying the story too much to stop and critique it. Which isn't a bad thing.
The story has everything I love, vampires, werewolves and a bit of magic. There were twists at the end I didn't see coming and I nearly strangled Daniel when it ended because I wanted it to keep going. Fortunately there's two more books. Mik's character was interesting and the way he developed throughout the story made me love him even more for how believable it was.
The story has everything I love, vampires, werewolves and a bit of magic. There were twists at the end I didn't see coming and I nearly strangled Daniel when it ended because I wanted it to keep going. Fortunately there's two more books. Mik's character was interesting and the way he developed throughout the story made me love him even more for how believable it was.
September 6, 2015
This was a wonderful read. I'm shocked it's the author's first book! The world created is extremely rich and well detailed. The characters are just vivid and so detailed. Mik is a very troubled soul but so easy to sympathize with. He has lead a troubled and difficult past. When Mik and Ash get together Mik finally seems to have something he has so needed. That is only the beginning though. I'm so looking forward to the next!
November 4, 2011
4.5 stars
October 28, 2011
“I can’t really write.” I’ll never forget Mr. Kaine’s statement of not-even-close-to-fact before we began exchanging chapters. Unedited chapters. What should one expect? Certainly not what I received in my Private Message Inbox on the NaNoWriMo site. His story completely blew me away. Chapter by chapter, it unfolds with such depth and humanity that the result is stunning. I found myself utterly pulled into the dystopian world Mr. Kaine imagines; his descriptions are stark, but fluid, and the Church of the Silver Dawn itself rises up as a centerpiece in that world that never leaves you, even after the book is closed and sitting on the nightstand or coffee table.
In this post-apocalyptic world, a militaristic theocratic society has arisen—and they
begin actively recruiting humans with special powers. Ash is a flamboyant, bi-sexual empath who, to all outward appearances, is confident to the point of near cocksureness, but as he is dragged through the events that unfold rapidly before him, the reader begins to discover that all is not what it seems. Mik is a painfully introverted soul, socially awkward, and chagrined to find himself the roommate of someone as extroverted as Ash. It is not until events conspire against these two young men that they realize what they really mean to one another.
Vampirism in this world was a plague that swept across the Earth, and while the humans who possess superhuman powers—the Daeva like Mik and Ash—also could be the result of this plague, the Church of the Silver Dawn is not above using these individuals to promote their flawed doctrine that holds the remnant of mankind tightly in its grip. It holds out fear as its driving and uniting force, and is far from the benevolent dictatorial entity it portrays itself to be; and the vampires who scavenge the ruins beyond the barrier city are not the monsters of their mythos. Mik’s journey into the unknown beyond the barrier city of Rachat shatters the pillars upon which his whole
society—his whole world—is precariously perched. The truth he comes to understand has the potential of undermining everything, including his relationship with Ash.
Like all good books, Daeva: Dawn of Darkness is difficult to review. This reviewer
wants you to read the book with a sense of naïveté and surprise, to take the plot twists and turns as they come—many of them stunningly abrupt, but all of them masterfully plotted. It is a story that moves quickly, that introduces characters that you’ll care about, that you’ll cheer for, that you’ll revile should that time come. And in the end, you’ll close the book with a strange sense of completion accompanied by a nagging ache
for something more—like Book 2.
I purchased the Daeva: Dawn of Darkness through SmashWords in ePub format for my Nook (No Nookie Like My Nookie!). I gave it 5 stars on SmashWords. Yes, I am acquainted with the author, but I have also watched his writing process from the very beginning. His is an impressive voice, and I am confident that Daeva: Dawn of Darkness is only the beginning of what we can expect from this great new voice in Dystopian Paranormal Horror.
In this post-apocalyptic world, a militaristic theocratic society has arisen—and they
begin actively recruiting humans with special powers. Ash is a flamboyant, bi-sexual empath who, to all outward appearances, is confident to the point of near cocksureness, but as he is dragged through the events that unfold rapidly before him, the reader begins to discover that all is not what it seems. Mik is a painfully introverted soul, socially awkward, and chagrined to find himself the roommate of someone as extroverted as Ash. It is not until events conspire against these two young men that they realize what they really mean to one another.
Vampirism in this world was a plague that swept across the Earth, and while the humans who possess superhuman powers—the Daeva like Mik and Ash—also could be the result of this plague, the Church of the Silver Dawn is not above using these individuals to promote their flawed doctrine that holds the remnant of mankind tightly in its grip. It holds out fear as its driving and uniting force, and is far from the benevolent dictatorial entity it portrays itself to be; and the vampires who scavenge the ruins beyond the barrier city are not the monsters of their mythos. Mik’s journey into the unknown beyond the barrier city of Rachat shatters the pillars upon which his whole
society—his whole world—is precariously perched. The truth he comes to understand has the potential of undermining everything, including his relationship with Ash.
Like all good books, Daeva: Dawn of Darkness is difficult to review. This reviewer
wants you to read the book with a sense of naïveté and surprise, to take the plot twists and turns as they come—many of them stunningly abrupt, but all of them masterfully plotted. It is a story that moves quickly, that introduces characters that you’ll care about, that you’ll cheer for, that you’ll revile should that time come. And in the end, you’ll close the book with a strange sense of completion accompanied by a nagging ache
for something more—like Book 2.
I purchased the Daeva: Dawn of Darkness through SmashWords in ePub format for my Nook (No Nookie Like My Nookie!). I gave it 5 stars on SmashWords. Yes, I am acquainted with the author, but I have also watched his writing process from the very beginning. His is an impressive voice, and I am confident that Daeva: Dawn of Darkness is only the beginning of what we can expect from this great new voice in Dystopian Paranormal Horror.
April 23, 2012
Wow!!!! I got this as a freebie from Amazon, and I am shocked that it was offered that way. This is much too good to be free!!!
Dawn of Darkness is set in a post-apocalyptic time, where vampires and werewolves are abound and to be feared. Or are they? Vampires are to blame for the apocalypse, and surviving humans have created a city in which they can live free of the dangers posed by these paranormal creatures. Some of them, however, have special powers. Think X-Men-like qualities. They have joined the army to keep their city and livelihood safe and free of more disaster. Two of these graduating cadets, Mik and Ash, are roommates and have become best friends. After a night of drinking, the relationship moves to the next level, and friends become lovers. It is very sweet how much they care about each other from the get-go, and to see them not be afraid to accept each other and their new found relationship with ease.
But then something happens, and Mik is no longer a part of the city or the army. Most of the remainder of the book is Mik trying to find his way back, with the help of his new friends.
All in all, I loved the paranormal/urban fantasy elements mixed with that of m/m loving. For those leary of m/m romance, the latter is not overbearing, but just very, very sweet.
I highly recommend this book to all PNR/UF lovers, and with the way that this ended, #2 cannot come quick enough!!
Dawn of Darkness is set in a post-apocalyptic time, where vampires and werewolves are abound and to be feared. Or are they? Vampires are to blame for the apocalypse, and surviving humans have created a city in which they can live free of the dangers posed by these paranormal creatures. Some of them, however, have special powers. Think X-Men-like qualities. They have joined the army to keep their city and livelihood safe and free of more disaster. Two of these graduating cadets, Mik and Ash, are roommates and have become best friends. After a night of drinking, the relationship moves to the next level, and friends become lovers. It is very sweet how much they care about each other from the get-go, and to see them not be afraid to accept each other and their new found relationship with ease.
But then something happens, and Mik is no longer a part of the city or the army. Most of the remainder of the book is Mik trying to find his way back, with the help of his new friends.
All in all, I loved the paranormal/urban fantasy elements mixed with that of m/m loving. For those leary of m/m romance, the latter is not overbearing, but just very, very sweet.
I highly recommend this book to all PNR/UF lovers, and with the way that this ended, #2 cannot come quick enough!!
January 9, 2012
This was a very good read. I was worried about the cliffhanger, but I kind of loved it. I'm not looking forward to waiting for the next book because I want to know more!!!! I don't really get why this is considered YA beyond it doesn't have the amount of sexual situations most m/m books do. It did have a couple of scenes, so yes there is some smexy. The focus was more on the romance and holding onto that love. I'm totally invested in the couple. From the moment I started this book I had a feeling of anticipation of what was to come. Every page had me on edge but not in a stressful way. It had great world building without feeling overwhelming. There was one of those quickish endings but it didn't bother me. I recommend this book!
January 2, 2012
Agh I'm so torn with this book.
On the one hand I loved the storyline and the mythology of the Vampires and the Deava, really wonderful. But on the other hand I just can't love a book where I spend most of it wanting to give the main character, Mikhail, a good slap and tell him to get a grip! He really annoyed me, especially with his incessant griping, and constant mentioning of Ash, yes I get he was in love with him but he just came across so needy and desperate. Saying that, the other characters were great I particularly liked Daniel who came across as warm, friendly and having great strength of character, which Mikhail severely lacked.
Overall it was a good book, just the main character let it down for me. Maybe he'll sort himself out in the next book.
On the one hand I loved the storyline and the mythology of the Vampires and the Deava, really wonderful. But on the other hand I just can't love a book where I spend most of it wanting to give the main character, Mikhail, a good slap and tell him to get a grip! He really annoyed me, especially with his incessant griping, and constant mentioning of Ash, yes I get he was in love with him but he just came across so needy and desperate. Saying that, the other characters were great I particularly liked Daniel who came across as warm, friendly and having great strength of character, which Mikhail severely lacked.
Overall it was a good book, just the main character let it down for me. Maybe he'll sort himself out in the next book.
September 25, 2013
4.5 stars
I loved this book. It was easy to read and had an interesting MC. the characters had flaws and the world and mythology were interesting to explore. plus, there were vampires, werewolvesand humans with superpowers (giving off a x-men vibe). it really was a lot of fun and not the dreary post-ap I was expecting. Still, the big twist of the book was sadly painfully obvious and I kept hoping til the end that it would turn out differently or mor complicated. it wasn't just a red herring,though. the whole conclusion felt kind of rushed and not as smooth, actually. but this was a debut and I really loved the book non the less, so I'm gonna be generous witb the points and round up to 5 to get more people to read it. plus there was a small cliffhanger in the end that really rocked :)
I loved this book. It was easy to read and had an interesting MC. the characters had flaws and the world and mythology were interesting to explore. plus, there were vampires, werewolvesand humans with superpowers (giving off a x-men vibe). it really was a lot of fun and not the dreary post-ap I was expecting. Still, the big twist of the book was sadly painfully obvious and I kept hoping til the end that it would turn out differently or mor complicated. it wasn't just a red herring,though. the whole conclusion felt kind of rushed and not as smooth, actually. but this was a debut and I really loved the book non the less, so I'm gonna be generous witb the points and round up to 5 to get more people to read it. plus there was a small cliffhanger in the end that really rocked :)
October 23, 2011
Daniel has somehow managed to tell the story of a complex world with a rich and complicated history, then populated it with people full of life and, well, character, whether good or bad, and he made the whole thing believable and easily visualized, and he did it with a straight forward writing style that's both engaging and informative while being personalized and character driven.
I've never actually written a review, but I think it's time I start. I can't claim to be an authority of any sort, but I can identify depth of character and the ability to tell a story, and Daniel Kaine has both. And let me just say he's put them to good use.
I've never actually written a review, but I think it's time I start. I can't claim to be an authority of any sort, but I can identify depth of character and the ability to tell a story, and Daniel Kaine has both. And let me just say he's put them to good use.
August 10, 2011
I read a beta version of this and loved it! It's not a typical vamp/supernatural story so it was nice to feel like I hadn't read it before (as I do with many other vampire books out there these days).
There's action, romance, suspense, and some sexy time scenes that may very well leave you needing a smoke when you're done reading it. The characters are well rounded and likable. You'll come to care what happens to them.
I can't wait to read the final product and you should definitely mark it on your to read shelves!
There's action, romance, suspense, and some sexy time scenes that may very well leave you needing a smoke when you're done reading it. The characters are well rounded and likable. You'll come to care what happens to them.
I can't wait to read the final product and you should definitely mark it on your to read shelves!
March 20, 2012
Post apocalyptic isn't my usual bag, but luckily this one had plenty of vamps, wolves and enhanced humans to keep me going. There is also a sweet romance that had me rooting for the characters all the way through.
Despite the paranormal stuff this is a highly original concept and covers a big story with lots of travelling through France and England. One thing I couldn't understand though is; Paris is Paris, Calais is Calais but London is Aldar - what is that about?
The writer has created a rich and multi-layered landscape and I shall look forward to the next one.
Despite the paranormal stuff this is a highly original concept and covers a big story with lots of travelling through France and England. One thing I couldn't understand though is; Paris is Paris, Calais is Calais but London is Aldar - what is that about?
The writer has created a rich and multi-layered landscape and I shall look forward to the next one.
April 11, 2012
That book was amazing. I hate that it took me so long to read, RL sucks at times! But I never lost the plot. It flowed so well. I am amazed this is a first book -- so impressive; not that that is why it is impressive, even as a second, third or even tenth book, it would have packed a punch. It really ticks so many boxes - post apocalyptic, magic, shifters, vamps -- these are a few of my favourite things :-P and the smexy was there too.
Of course now I am wishing I had waited for book 2, so i could have just flowed into it seamlessly ... But as cliffhangers go, this one was not E.V.I.L.
Of course now I am wishing I had waited for book 2, so i could have just flowed into it seamlessly ... But as cliffhangers go, this one was not E.V.I.L.
December 17, 2014
I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this story. It seemed a bit slow at first and it took a while for me to get into it. Once the story picked up, however, it got really good. I admit to being a bit shocked at a twist. Very well written. Cliffhanger was a bit of a stinker but luckily book 2 is already available. Just hope that one doesn't have a major cliffie. I hate waiting. lol
January 7, 2012
Ooops... I ran out of stars, so here is the SIXTH star for this book ( * ). I read this for a BOM challenge and I'm so glad I did. Fantastic world building, great characters, unique storyline. All in all this was a GREAT read!!!
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