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Darkness Before Dawn Trilogy #1
Darkness Before Dawn
At seventeen, Dawn Montgomery knows that monsters really do come out at night—after all, they are her job. It’s just after the thirty-years war between vampires and humans, and as an ambassador between the two sides (a role she inherited when her parents were killed), Dawn quickly learns that balancing schoolwork, teen life, and the requests of Lord Valentine, the most frightening vampire in the region, isn’t easy.
And it only gets more complicated when she forms a tentative friendship with Victor, the mysterious stranger who rescued her from a hoard of vampires…only to discover that not only is Victor a vampire, but that he is Lord Valentine’s son.
Soon Dawn is struggling to remember that with everything on the line, she can’t afford to fall for the enemy…
And it only gets more complicated when she forms a tentative friendship with Victor, the mysterious stranger who rescued her from a hoard of vampires…only to discover that not only is Victor a vampire, but that he is Lord Valentine’s son.
Soon Dawn is struggling to remember that with everything on the line, she can’t afford to fall for the enemy…
342 pages, Paperback
First published May 29, 2012
187 people are currently reading
24843 people want to read
About the author
J.A. London
3 books632 followersJ.A. London is the mother-son writing team of Rachel Hawthorne and her son, Alex London. Rachel has written many novels for teens, including the popular Dark Guardian series. Alex, a recent graduate with a degree in Historical Studies, enjoys combining history and fiction to create unique worlds. The Darkness Before Dawn series is their first joint project.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 912 reviews
April 17, 2013
It's rather unfair, really. Any post-apocalyptic vampire fiction I read these days pales next to Julie Kagawa's series. Dawn (get it??!! Sunlight! Vampires! Ok, I'm done) is a likeable character. She has had to grow up pretty quickly, becoming the delegation to the city's vampire leader, Lord Valentine, at the very young and unrealistic age of 17. Her parents were killed in an ambush towards the beginning of the book, and it is hinted that Dawn is SPESHUL.
She's not.
I've finished the book and I don't know what was so special about Dawn that her family had to be killed. Maybe I missed something crucial; if so, please point it out to me. As far as I'm concerned right now, 10 minute after finishing this book, there is nothing special about Dawn that needed a Big Reveal besides maybe the fact that .
The best friend is a typical annoying-but-well-meaning loud, outgoing, boy-crazy girl, who seems hell-bent on dragging the staid and serious Dawn into trouble. Lila, the bad girl at school is again, beautiful, spoilt girl out to get Dawn's boyfriend and has apparently devoted her life to making Dawn's miserable. There's really nothing special or out of the box about the other characters in the story. There is no redeeming quality to the bad guys that would make them believable or relateable in any way.
Dawn's love interests are also one-dimensional and unrealistic. Her love interest, Michael, has been perfect for Dawn her entire life. They've been childhood friends forever, they fell in love as adolescents, and they've maintained a relationship based on mutual friendship, love, and respect. Of course, all that goes out the window once Dawn meets the bad boy, Victor. The childhood love interest becomes an asshole as soon as she meets and unrealistically falls for the new guy. Out of nowhere, the revered and respected Michael becomes a whiny, clingy little girl who throws tantrums, displays a massive amount of machismo, and fools around with the much-reviled Lila to make Dawn jealous. His actions change so completely in such a short time that I have a hard time believing it.
The relationship between Victor and Dawn is also unbelievable. Victor is powerful and strong, but there is nothing in their few interactions that I felt justifies the fact that Dawn falls for him so quickly. I almost laughed out loud when Victor says that in 400 years, he has never felt this way about anyone but Dawn. Right, say this to a girl he's been with for all of 2 hours since they've known each other. Where I come from, we call that an Edward Cullen.
I should just read shitty books from now on to keep my standards low.
She's not.
I've finished the book and I don't know what was so special about Dawn that her family had to be killed. Maybe I missed something crucial; if so, please point it out to me. As far as I'm concerned right now, 10 minute after finishing this book, there is nothing special about Dawn that needed a Big Reveal besides maybe the fact that .
The best friend is a typical annoying-but-well-meaning loud, outgoing, boy-crazy girl, who seems hell-bent on dragging the staid and serious Dawn into trouble. Lila, the bad girl at school is again, beautiful, spoilt girl out to get Dawn's boyfriend and has apparently devoted her life to making Dawn's miserable. There's really nothing special or out of the box about the other characters in the story. There is no redeeming quality to the bad guys that would make them believable or relateable in any way.
Dawn's love interests are also one-dimensional and unrealistic. Her love interest, Michael, has been perfect for Dawn her entire life. They've been childhood friends forever, they fell in love as adolescents, and they've maintained a relationship based on mutual friendship, love, and respect. Of course, all that goes out the window once Dawn meets the bad boy, Victor. The childhood love interest becomes an asshole as soon as she meets and unrealistically falls for the new guy. Out of nowhere, the revered and respected Michael becomes a whiny, clingy little girl who throws tantrums, displays a massive amount of machismo, and fools around with the much-reviled Lila to make Dawn jealous. His actions change so completely in such a short time that I have a hard time believing it.
The relationship between Victor and Dawn is also unbelievable. Victor is powerful and strong, but there is nothing in their few interactions that I felt justifies the fact that Dawn falls for him so quickly. I almost laughed out loud when Victor says that in 400 years, he has never felt this way about anyone but Dawn. Right, say this to a girl he's been with for all of 2 hours since they've known each other. Where I come from, we call that an Edward Cullen.
I should just read shitty books from now on to keep my standards low.
June 4, 2012
Is dissapointing to see many readers judging the books because its cover is similar to the Fallen series.
I really hope this book is better than Fallen series (I'm not a fan of Lauren Kate, I was very frustrated to have spent my money in a book so bad written!). I do not expect so much from this one, even if is by another writer (Actually, I never expect anything from american literature...), but I hope it changes my POV.
********
Reading finished on June 1st.
Review upcoming.
I really hope this book is better than Fallen series (I'm not a fan of Lauren Kate, I was very frustrated to have spent my money in a book so bad written!). I do not expect so much from this one, even if is by another writer (Actually, I never expect anything from american literature...), but I hope it changes my POV.
********
Reading finished on June 1st.
Review upcoming.
July 5, 2012
1.5 stars - spoilers
Seventeen year old Dawn Montgomery lives in the city of Denver surrounded by walls. The walls were built to keep vampires out after a 30 year war between humans and vampires devastated both sides. A treaty was forged between the two - in exchange for vampires not attacking the human, humans donated blood. After her parents death, Dawn is chosen to be the delegate between the city of Denver and the vampire, Lord Valentine. Hijinks ensues.
-I found most of the book to be largely unoriginal and predictable. A lot of the worldbuilding reminded me of the world in The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa, only not quite as bleak and depressing.
-I couldn't get past the ridiculousness of having a 17 year old for a delegate between humans and vampires. Even though she was requested by Lord Valentine to act as delegate..it was still hard to swallow. It's like the prime minister sending a teenager to the Middle East for peace talks - it's just plain absurd.
-The secondary chracters were typical for YA. There's the token shallow, boy crazy, loud best friend that's just lazily added in to make the heroine seem profound and deep. There's the mandatory mean girl who of course is described as slutty and bitchy.
All the female characters apart from the heroine and her guardian are described in unflaterring and unattractive ways -they pout, stomp and whine and are bitchy, unemotional and cold. There obviously can't be a female character that's actually decent - otherwise it'd make the heroine seem even more underwhelming than she already is.
-There's a scene where Dawn has to randomly wear Victorian style clothes and act like a Victorian lady when she's meeting Lord Valentine..why? Just because Lord Valentine likes the Victorian era..WTF? The author wanted the gravitas and romanticism of the Victorian times but couldn't even give a good enough reason for infusing Victorian-esque customs into the story.
-It's disgusting that a 400 yr old vampire (Victor) gets all hot and bothered over a 17yr old girl. I mean seriously the girl still likes playing on swings. I guess it's supposed to be 'hawt' that he's so old but it's not it's just creepy and paedophilic. Just because he's attractive and looks young, doesn't make it any less creepy. He hangs around her bedroom uninvited, gives her presents and follows her. The poor girl didn't really have a chance when she was being groomed by a 400 year old.
Victor says he'd never met anyone like Dawn before..really? So in the 400yrs he's lived he's never come across another unremarkable girl who hates vampires..yea right. I don't believe him, I think it's just a line he uses every few years on naive, virginal young girls so he can get in their knickers - the dirty perv.
I was confused as to why Dawn felt so betrayed by Victor not revealing he was vampire straight away. He didn't owe her the truth, they weren't friends, they knew each other all of a couple of hours - he was hardly going to tell her his life story.
-Michael, Dawn's boyfriend started of great but he soon turns into a douche so that Victor can look like Mr Right. Michael starts of being protective, sweet and understanding but then he becomes unreasonable and sulky. Michael's change in character conveniantly happens just when Dawn starts falling for Victor - it's the authors clumsy way of saying: 'Look, look Michael doesn't understand Dawn, he's not suitable for her but ooh looky who is the old pervy vamp'. Yes, everyone gets it Old Perv and Dawn are meant to be.
I actually don't blame Dawn for kissing Old Perv after Michael suddenly turned into a jerk. I don't get why Michael was pissed at Dawn just for wanting to stay safe inside the walls especially after her parents were so recently killed. I thought it was pretty low of Michael to punish Dawn by flirting with the mean girl that hates her all because she didn't want to risk her life by going on an adventure outside the wall.
I was pissed that Old Perv kissed Dawn and told her how much he cares about her and how he wants her, only for him to turn around a few hours later and say that they can't be together. Why the hell did he even tell her all that in the first place?? why mess her around?? why give her hope?? He really is a douche.
-I despised when Dawn compared Michael's reluctance to donate blood to Vicor's willingness to procure blood for vampires..are you kidding me - seriously?! Of course Victor would be willing to get blood for vampires since he's a freaking vampire himself! And of course Michael wouldn't want to give blood since he hates vampires. And she can't really blame him for that since she herself hated vampires up until Victor started grooming her. Naturally the dumb cow thinks that because Michael was hesistant in donating blood that Victor is now a better person than Michael - that he's compassionate and brave and that Michael is no longer as good as she thought..ugh.
-I found it laughable that Dawn felt safer with a vampire she's known for a few days over the boyfriend she's known all her life - the boyfriend who's always protected her and who's trained in fighting vampires. The girl is truly mental.
- Dawn at one point thinks that vampires need human blood more than humans do. WTF?! If humans didn't have blood they would die! Humans need blood to survive just as much as if not more than vampires..she's truly a dolt and a half.
-After all the talk that Lord Valentine was unbeatable and uber-strong, the fight between him and Victor ended up being far too quick and easy. For a vampire that was supposed to be intelligent, all powerful and ruthless he sure gets killed easily.
-I hated that Dawn killed her brother at the end just to save Old Perv who she only knew for a few weeks. Her brother protected her and never hurt any humans yet she was quick to kill him - she could have at least tried to find some way to help him.
-No doubt in future books Dawn will find out she's a speshul snowflake, Victor will be hot and cold with her, she'll string along Michael, for some unknown reason everyone will call her brave, she'll have to fight off both vampires and humans who want her for nefarious reasons, she'll whine, bitch and moan, she'll dump Michael, she'll give her virginity to Old Perv, Michael will either become evil or he'll die and Dawn will be upset for all of 5 minutes, she'll become some sort of a super vampire, she'll save the world and she'll ride of into the sunset with Old Perv.
Now what I want to happen is for Old Perv to use Dawn, for Dawn to then realise that she's been played, then for Michael to dump Dawn and date the mean girl, then Dawn goes crazy and starts indiscriminately killing vampires, then she's turned into a vampire when she's in the middle of a fight, then she challenges Victor to a fight to the death, Dawn loses and dies, then wait for it Victor starts preying on a new teenage girl and then fade out..aw yea, now that's a book I'd love to read.
Seventeen year old Dawn Montgomery lives in the city of Denver surrounded by walls. The walls were built to keep vampires out after a 30 year war between humans and vampires devastated both sides. A treaty was forged between the two - in exchange for vampires not attacking the human, humans donated blood. After her parents death, Dawn is chosen to be the delegate between the city of Denver and the vampire, Lord Valentine. Hijinks ensues.
-I found most of the book to be largely unoriginal and predictable. A lot of the worldbuilding reminded me of the world in The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa, only not quite as bleak and depressing.
-I couldn't get past the ridiculousness of having a 17 year old for a delegate between humans and vampires. Even though she was requested by Lord Valentine to act as delegate..it was still hard to swallow. It's like the prime minister sending a teenager to the Middle East for peace talks - it's just plain absurd.
-The secondary chracters were typical for YA. There's the token shallow, boy crazy, loud best friend that's just lazily added in to make the heroine seem profound and deep. There's the mandatory mean girl who of course is described as slutty and bitchy.
All the female characters apart from the heroine and her guardian are described in unflaterring and unattractive ways -they pout, stomp and whine and are bitchy, unemotional and cold. There obviously can't be a female character that's actually decent - otherwise it'd make the heroine seem even more underwhelming than she already is.
-There's a scene where Dawn has to randomly wear Victorian style clothes and act like a Victorian lady when she's meeting Lord Valentine..why? Just because Lord Valentine likes the Victorian era..WTF? The author wanted the gravitas and romanticism of the Victorian times but couldn't even give a good enough reason for infusing Victorian-esque customs into the story.
-It's disgusting that a 400 yr old vampire (Victor) gets all hot and bothered over a 17yr old girl. I mean seriously the girl still likes playing on swings. I guess it's supposed to be 'hawt' that he's so old but it's not it's just creepy and paedophilic. Just because he's attractive and looks young, doesn't make it any less creepy. He hangs around her bedroom uninvited, gives her presents and follows her. The poor girl didn't really have a chance when she was being groomed by a 400 year old.
Victor says he'd never met anyone like Dawn before..really? So in the 400yrs he's lived he's never come across another unremarkable girl who hates vampires..yea right. I don't believe him, I think it's just a line he uses every few years on naive, virginal young girls so he can get in their knickers - the dirty perv.
I was confused as to why Dawn felt so betrayed by Victor not revealing he was vampire straight away. He didn't owe her the truth, they weren't friends, they knew each other all of a couple of hours - he was hardly going to tell her his life story.
-Michael, Dawn's boyfriend started of great but he soon turns into a douche so that Victor can look like Mr Right. Michael starts of being protective, sweet and understanding but then he becomes unreasonable and sulky. Michael's change in character conveniantly happens just when Dawn starts falling for Victor - it's the authors clumsy way of saying: 'Look, look Michael doesn't understand Dawn, he's not suitable for her but ooh looky who is the old pervy vamp'. Yes, everyone gets it Old Perv and Dawn are meant to be.
I actually don't blame Dawn for kissing Old Perv after Michael suddenly turned into a jerk. I don't get why Michael was pissed at Dawn just for wanting to stay safe inside the walls especially after her parents were so recently killed. I thought it was pretty low of Michael to punish Dawn by flirting with the mean girl that hates her all because she didn't want to risk her life by going on an adventure outside the wall.
I was pissed that Old Perv kissed Dawn and told her how much he cares about her and how he wants her, only for him to turn around a few hours later and say that they can't be together. Why the hell did he even tell her all that in the first place?? why mess her around?? why give her hope?? He really is a douche.
-I despised when Dawn compared Michael's reluctance to donate blood to Vicor's willingness to procure blood for vampires..are you kidding me - seriously?! Of course Victor would be willing to get blood for vampires since he's a freaking vampire himself! And of course Michael wouldn't want to give blood since he hates vampires. And she can't really blame him for that since she herself hated vampires up until Victor started grooming her. Naturally the dumb cow thinks that because Michael was hesistant in donating blood that Victor is now a better person than Michael - that he's compassionate and brave and that Michael is no longer as good as she thought..ugh.
-I found it laughable that Dawn felt safer with a vampire she's known for a few days over the boyfriend she's known all her life - the boyfriend who's always protected her and who's trained in fighting vampires. The girl is truly mental.
- Dawn at one point thinks that vampires need human blood more than humans do. WTF?! If humans didn't have blood they would die! Humans need blood to survive just as much as if not more than vampires..she's truly a dolt and a half.
-After all the talk that Lord Valentine was unbeatable and uber-strong, the fight between him and Victor ended up being far too quick and easy. For a vampire that was supposed to be intelligent, all powerful and ruthless he sure gets killed easily.
-I hated that Dawn killed her brother at the end just to save Old Perv who she only knew for a few weeks. Her brother protected her and never hurt any humans yet she was quick to kill him - she could have at least tried to find some way to help him.
-No doubt in future books Dawn will find out she's a speshul snowflake, Victor will be hot and cold with her, she'll string along Michael, for some unknown reason everyone will call her brave, she'll have to fight off both vampires and humans who want her for nefarious reasons, she'll whine, bitch and moan, she'll dump Michael, she'll give her virginity to Old Perv, Michael will either become evil or he'll die and Dawn will be upset for all of 5 minutes, she'll become some sort of a super vampire, she'll save the world and she'll ride of into the sunset with Old Perv.
Now what I want to happen is for Old Perv to use Dawn, for Dawn to then realise that she's been played, then for Michael to dump Dawn and date the mean girl, then Dawn goes crazy and starts indiscriminately killing vampires, then she's turned into a vampire when she's in the middle of a fight, then she challenges Victor to a fight to the death, Dawn loses and dies, then wait for it Victor starts preying on a new teenage girl and then fade out..aw yea, now that's a book I'd love to read.
September 5, 2014
Today started out as a really good day.
I didn't have any morning classes so I could sleep in late. I got some good news on the writing front and found out that a contest I entered had very few entrants, so more chances to win. Yay!
So I was feeling pretty pumped by the time I got to class and relayed my good news to a guy friend of mine. Somehow, we got on the topic of his opinion on my writing, which I had let him read a while back. He frankly advised me to stop writing because of "spiritual warfare" reasons. When I asked him to clarify, he paraphrased it to say that he feared for my immortal soul because of the satirical content of my writing.
Yeah, that was my reaction.
I replied that it was okay if he didn't like my stuff, but I wasn't going to stop writing about the topic just because it was too controversial. He, in turn, shrugged and said, "I tried." (Note: this is also the guy who thinks the fall of humankind was entirely Eve's fault)
Darkness Before Dawn is the equivalent of my day today. Everything is going hunky dory—we got the gorgeous cover, reasonably high rating, encouraging reviews. Then, something bad happens and you start noticing all the tiny irritable things, like how your bangs keep getting blown the wrong way, how much time you wasted in today's lecture because all the tutor (the professor didn't even bother coming) did was show you a crappy documentary or how your friend (another one) is kind of stand-offy today. And soon enough, you hardly notice the good stuff, because you're so overwhelmed by the bad. And Darkness Before Dawn had a lot of temple-rubbing moments.
First off, the plot. It is as predictable as a Simple Plan song. No offense to any fans (Heck, I'm one), but when I was listening to "Last One Standing" last night, I could already belt the chorus along with lead singer despite the fact it was the first chorus and I had never listened to the song before. There are no special twists, no oh-my-God-I-have-to-find-out-what-happens-next moments. It's just one straight line from point A to point B. Also the climax was extremely anti-climatic
The characters are typical at best. They aren't as lifeless as the paper dolls from I Am Number Four, but they don't wow me. They are bad actors playing a part and rife with stereotypes and cliches. We got the slutty best friend, Tegan. The steadfast best friend/boyfriend, Michael. The broody love interest/vampire, Victor. And of course, Dawn, the supposedly kick-ass heroine of dystopia-land. Yet like Celaena, her mad ninja skills never come in use when they're needed. Oh, we know she's competent. There's this very necessary scene in the beginning where she drop-kicks the stereotypical mean girl who's out to get her man.
But from then onwards, it's all Victor rescuing her pretty little ass.
Speaking of Victor, let's talk about the romance.
It is your standard YA copy-and-paste paranormal romance. Mysterious hot dude saves girl. Girl can't stop thinking about him. Buy turns out to be a vampire, the bane of Dawn's existence. But Victor is different, he's sensitive and gets me, unlike my douchebag boyfriend who suddenly morphed into a jerk because...because he doesn't get me.
At least there wasn't a love triangle. Can I get a Hallelujah?
Also, cheap cliffhanger ending.
Honestly, you'd be better off readingThe Immortal Rules. Exact same concept, way better execution.
Unrelated, but one last thing:
Whether it's in reviews (I'm looking at you, Goodreads), books or your own writing. Dare to be different.
I didn't have any morning classes so I could sleep in late. I got some good news on the writing front and found out that a contest I entered had very few entrants, so more chances to win. Yay!
So I was feeling pretty pumped by the time I got to class and relayed my good news to a guy friend of mine. Somehow, we got on the topic of his opinion on my writing, which I had let him read a while back. He frankly advised me to stop writing because of "spiritual warfare" reasons. When I asked him to clarify, he paraphrased it to say that he feared for my immortal soul because of the satirical content of my writing.
Yeah, that was my reaction.
I replied that it was okay if he didn't like my stuff, but I wasn't going to stop writing about the topic just because it was too controversial. He, in turn, shrugged and said, "I tried." (Note: this is also the guy who thinks the fall of humankind was entirely Eve's fault)
Darkness Before Dawn is the equivalent of my day today. Everything is going hunky dory—we got the gorgeous cover, reasonably high rating, encouraging reviews. Then, something bad happens and you start noticing all the tiny irritable things, like how your bangs keep getting blown the wrong way, how much time you wasted in today's lecture because all the tutor (the professor didn't even bother coming) did was show you a crappy documentary or how your friend (another one) is kind of stand-offy today. And soon enough, you hardly notice the good stuff, because you're so overwhelmed by the bad. And Darkness Before Dawn had a lot of temple-rubbing moments.
First off, the plot. It is as predictable as a Simple Plan song. No offense to any fans (Heck, I'm one), but when I was listening to "Last One Standing" last night, I could already belt the chorus along with lead singer despite the fact it was the first chorus and I had never listened to the song before. There are no special twists, no oh-my-God-I-have-to-find-out-what-happens-next moments. It's just one straight line from point A to point B. Also the climax was extremely anti-climatic
The characters are typical at best. They aren't as lifeless as the paper dolls from I Am Number Four, but they don't wow me. They are bad actors playing a part and rife with stereotypes and cliches. We got the slutty best friend, Tegan. The steadfast best friend/boyfriend, Michael. The broody love interest/vampire, Victor. And of course, Dawn, the supposedly kick-ass heroine of dystopia-land. Yet like Celaena, her mad ninja skills never come in use when they're needed. Oh, we know she's competent. There's this very necessary scene in the beginning where she drop-kicks the stereotypical mean girl who's out to get her man.
But from then onwards, it's all Victor rescuing her pretty little ass.
Speaking of Victor, let's talk about the romance.
It is your standard YA copy-and-paste paranormal romance. Mysterious hot dude saves girl. Girl can't stop thinking about him. Buy turns out to be a vampire, the bane of Dawn's existence. But Victor is different, he's sensitive and gets me, unlike my douchebag boyfriend who suddenly morphed into a jerk because...because he doesn't get me.
At least there wasn't a love triangle. Can I get a Hallelujah?
Also, cheap cliffhanger ending.
Honestly, you'd be better off readingThe Immortal Rules. Exact same concept, way better execution.
Unrelated, but one last thing:
Whether it's in reviews (I'm looking at you, Goodreads), books or your own writing. Dare to be different.
June 29, 2018
Well, I'm a few years late to this party... six years to be exact, but I was in the mood for a a good ol' vampire book. I realize vampires are basically non-existent nowadays but to me a vampire book is like chicken noodle soup when you have a cold, it's just good for the soul. So, I did a little digging on Goodreads and came up with this. Vampire novel + dystopian novel = one happy bookish chick. I didn't go into this expecting it to be a phenomenal book that would blow me away and by all means it didn't, but it did get the job done for reminding me why I still love vampire books so much. Can we bring them back? They don't have to sparkle, I promise.
This book was hella trope-y and super predictable and yet I'm still trash for a book like this. I'm just saying, if vampires were real I would probably try to date one #sorrynotsorry (especially to my husband if you're reading this). This is your typical - girl hates vampires but meets hot vampire guy who swears he's not like the rest and would never hurt her and they fall madly in love after like two days - type of book. But despite all of that trope-y/predictability there were some aspects to this story that weren't as predictable (like who Dawn's stalker was), so it was nice to still have a few surprises here and there.
As far as, climatic "battle scenes" go, it was pretty dismal but I am willing to look past it because the ending was pretty good. I'm curious to see how the story will progress in the next two books. Yes, I did request the next book from my library. LET ME LIVE IN MY VAMPIRE GLORY. I think if this story really didn't have that dystopian feel to it, it wouldn't have been as good as it was. But again, this was just such a mood read for me and I'm glad I picked it up.
All in all, if you're like me and refuse to leave vampires in the past and are looking for any easy, trope-y, insta-love/hate filled, vampire novel then look no further friends!
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This book was hella trope-y and super predictable and yet I'm still trash for a book like this. I'm just saying, if vampires were real I would probably try to date one #sorrynotsorry (especially to my husband if you're reading this). This is your typical - girl hates vampires but meets hot vampire guy who swears he's not like the rest and would never hurt her and they fall madly in love after like two days - type of book. But despite all of that trope-y/predictability there were some aspects to this story that weren't as predictable (like who Dawn's stalker was), so it was nice to still have a few surprises here and there.
As far as, climatic "battle scenes" go, it was pretty dismal but I am willing to look past it because the ending was pretty good. I'm curious to see how the story will progress in the next two books. Yes, I did request the next book from my library. LET ME LIVE IN MY VAMPIRE GLORY. I think if this story really didn't have that dystopian feel to it, it wouldn't have been as good as it was. But again, this was just such a mood read for me and I'm glad I picked it up.
All in all, if you're like me and refuse to leave vampires in the past and are looking for any easy, trope-y, insta-love/hate filled, vampire novel then look no further friends!
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January 13, 2015
Just another typical paranormal romance. OH "human and vampire relationships never end well" damn I know. The protagonist Dawn annoys the hell out of me, meanwhile I do like victor I just wanna punch Michael in the face. AND YEAH ITS A LOVE TRIANGLE DEAL WITH IT XD
Oh the romance is so forced...
Victor goes like : i Always wanna see the sun and once I though I saw the sun but it was a girl
Dawn: blushes
Insta love alert INSTA LOVE ALERT YEAH YEAH
Overall this book doesn't make sense and the plot is not rich everything seems to be too easy.
Oh the romance is so forced...
Victor goes like : i Always wanna see the sun and once I though I saw the sun but it was a girl
Dawn: blushes
Insta love alert INSTA LOVE ALERT YEAH YEAH
Overall this book doesn't make sense and the plot is not rich everything seems to be too easy.
April 3, 2012
Eh. Sorry to say I didn't really love Darkness Before Dawn. I thought as I was reading it that the reason I wasn't into it might be because I recently read, and adored, The Immortal Rules which is extremely similar. Its hard not to make comparisons between the two dystopian vampire books, and in the end The Immortal Rules wins hands down.
But my lack of enjoyment wasn't just because of the comparison. I just didn't like the story. I had very high expectations and am disappointed that this one fell so flat for me. I thought the writing was kind of bland and the dialogue was bumpy and, frankly, the story was kind of boring. I realize this is going to be a trilogy so I'm hopeful that this one suffered from first book syndrome in having to set up the story for the next two books. I thought Dawn was kind of ho-hum as the heroine, her friends were very typical for a YA book, and the plot points were fairly predictable. I even played a little game where I tried to guess what was going to happen on the next page. Guess what? I was right every time!
I'm not in the habit of book bashing, so I will get to some positives in a bit. First, let me list some reasons why I might not have enjoyed this one:
1. Just read The Immortal Rules and preferred Kagawa's version of a dystopian, vampire-ruled world to the one in Darkness Before Dawn (we still have cell phones and cable, but the vamps don't let us use airplanes...?).
2. I've read a string of shockingly good YA lately and now my standards are higher for YA than they used to be because I know how good they can be.
3. I was extremely excited for this book because the cover was beautiful and the blurb sounded interesting, so I went into it with high expectations.
4. I recently read The Mortal Instruments, in which the head bad guy is also named Valentine. Since this is one of the most freaking popular series on the planet right now it perturbed me a little that this author couldn't have thought up a more original name for the head bad guy in this story.
Now, as promised, some things I did like about the book. The vampires are not sparkly and friendly. Even though I love me some sexy vamps when I'm reading a paranormal romance, when it comes to YA the notion of friendly vamps that don't have to drink human blood has been overdone and I like this new direction we seem to be heading. I also liked that the Old Family vampires preferred the more conservative traditions of the past, and when Dawn goes to visit Valentine in the castle she has to get all dressed up in Victorian clothes and use old world style manners.
Sorry I don't have a more pleasant review to write for this one. It just underwhelmed me completely.
But my lack of enjoyment wasn't just because of the comparison. I just didn't like the story. I had very high expectations and am disappointed that this one fell so flat for me. I thought the writing was kind of bland and the dialogue was bumpy and, frankly, the story was kind of boring. I realize this is going to be a trilogy so I'm hopeful that this one suffered from first book syndrome in having to set up the story for the next two books. I thought Dawn was kind of ho-hum as the heroine, her friends were very typical for a YA book, and the plot points were fairly predictable. I even played a little game where I tried to guess what was going to happen on the next page. Guess what? I was right every time!
I'm not in the habit of book bashing, so I will get to some positives in a bit. First, let me list some reasons why I might not have enjoyed this one:
1. Just read The Immortal Rules and preferred Kagawa's version of a dystopian, vampire-ruled world to the one in Darkness Before Dawn (we still have cell phones and cable, but the vamps don't let us use airplanes...?).
2. I've read a string of shockingly good YA lately and now my standards are higher for YA than they used to be because I know how good they can be.
3. I was extremely excited for this book because the cover was beautiful and the blurb sounded interesting, so I went into it with high expectations.
4. I recently read The Mortal Instruments, in which the head bad guy is also named Valentine. Since this is one of the most freaking popular series on the planet right now it perturbed me a little that this author couldn't have thought up a more original name for the head bad guy in this story.
Now, as promised, some things I did like about the book. The vampires are not sparkly and friendly. Even though I love me some sexy vamps when I'm reading a paranormal romance, when it comes to YA the notion of friendly vamps that don't have to drink human blood has been overdone and I like this new direction we seem to be heading. I also liked that the Old Family vampires preferred the more conservative traditions of the past, and when Dawn goes to visit Valentine in the castle she has to get all dressed up in Victorian clothes and use old world style manners.
Sorry I don't have a more pleasant review to write for this one. It just underwhelmed me completely.
November 16, 2012
I was really looking forward to reading Darkness Before Dawn so when I sat down on a Sunday afternoon to start this book it was with excitement and anticipation. But unfortunately, it couldn't hold my attention and the slightest little thing was distracting me. Thankfully, about a third of the way in, things really kicked up a notch and I was fully engrossed in the remainder of the book.
Dawn Montgomery is only 17 years old, when her parents are assassinated following a meeting with the head vampire of Denver, Lord Valentine, who then insists that Dawn become the new vampire delegate.
Dawn and the rest of the humans, live in the city, which is surrounded by a guarded wall, meant to keep vampires out and humans in and supposedly safe from vampires. But as there's always rogue vampires around, it is dangerous to be out after sunset.
One night Dawn and her best friend Tegan are reckless and go to a party, close to the wall. Tegan's drink gets spiked and Dawn has to get her out of there. With no signal on her cell, she must do it alone. When they are attacked by vampires on the train, they are saved by a mysterious stranger. One that Dawn meets again on her first meeting again with Lord Valentine.
I really liked Dawn. She's brave and tough, and despite some recklessness, she does appear to have her head screwed on. I wasn't quite as fond of Tegan or Michael, Dawn's boyfriend. Tegan is constantly trying to get Dawn to do dangerous things and Michael seems to need a lot of ego rubbing. So, enter Victor, who I just couldn't help but love, he's like the Robin Hood of vampires.
So, as I'm sure you've guessed, we do have a love triangle, but it wasn't one that bothered me too much as I have a straight up winner. Now I just have to hope things go my way in future instalments.
Throughout this book, we received some interesting hints about Dawn and I'm looking forward to seeing how things turn out in that department. I'm also excited to see how things go for Victor in his new role.
Blood Kissed Sky is set for release in December which is not too bad, as things go and I'll definitely be picking this one up.
Dawn Montgomery is only 17 years old, when her parents are assassinated following a meeting with the head vampire of Denver, Lord Valentine, who then insists that Dawn become the new vampire delegate.
Dawn and the rest of the humans, live in the city, which is surrounded by a guarded wall, meant to keep vampires out and humans in and supposedly safe from vampires. But as there's always rogue vampires around, it is dangerous to be out after sunset.
One night Dawn and her best friend Tegan are reckless and go to a party, close to the wall. Tegan's drink gets spiked and Dawn has to get her out of there. With no signal on her cell, she must do it alone. When they are attacked by vampires on the train, they are saved by a mysterious stranger. One that Dawn meets again on her first meeting again with Lord Valentine.
I really liked Dawn. She's brave and tough, and despite some recklessness, she does appear to have her head screwed on. I wasn't quite as fond of Tegan or Michael, Dawn's boyfriend. Tegan is constantly trying to get Dawn to do dangerous things and Michael seems to need a lot of ego rubbing. So, enter Victor, who I just couldn't help but love, he's like the Robin Hood of vampires.
So, as I'm sure you've guessed, we do have a love triangle, but it wasn't one that bothered me too much as I have a straight up winner. Now I just have to hope things go my way in future instalments.
Throughout this book, we received some interesting hints about Dawn and I'm looking forward to seeing how things turn out in that department. I'm also excited to see how things go for Victor in his new role.
Blood Kissed Sky is set for release in December which is not too bad, as things go and I'll definitely be picking this one up.
March 28, 2017
With all the overused, over done tropes and cliches in this genre, not to mention I was over vampires about two years ago, I wasn't going to pick this series up but, it's been on my kindle for a really long time and it's been awhile since I have read about vamps in the YA setting so I thought, why not.
Kind of glad that I did actually. This was surprisingly entertaining and while maybe not completely original, it was good and pretty page turning worthy. Definitely worth the time it takes to read it and I will be reading (and hopefully finishing) the series soon.
Kind of glad that I did actually. This was surprisingly entertaining and while maybe not completely original, it was good and pretty page turning worthy. Definitely worth the time it takes to read it and I will be reading (and hopefully finishing) the series soon.
June 18, 2012
Darkness Before Dawn
introduces us to Dawn. Nine years after the end of a thirty-year war between humans and vampires, the death of Dawn's parents leads to her becoming the youngest Agency delegate. As a delegate she is responsible for meeting with "one of the most powerful vampires in the world: Lord Valentine" to discuss, well, blood.
However, now that some time has passed, people are donating less and less. They are starting to rebel a bit against having to remain behind the twenty-foot high wall that surrounds their city. Moreover, the city is not vampire-free as it should be.
My first paralove affair was with vampires. I am also a fan of a good dystopian. So, when I spotted several vamp dystopian stories coming out this year I couldn't resist grabbing them all. Darkness Before Dawn happens to be the first one I chose to read.
Some of the bits that I enjoyed most were:
- The Night Watchmen, who are trained to fight against vampires and protect the citizens within
- The classes taught in school were vamp-oriented: fighting, psychology, history, etc.
- The Night Train, which is the "only train that run across the country; it move practically non-stop, twenty-four hours a day. Literally, one train, one track. It was written into VampHu as the only alternative for long-distance travel, now that airplanes are outlawed."
- I thought it was interesting that "each city is an island. Vampires didn't want humans to compare notes. All news is local news. All radio and television shows are made within the city, for the citizens."
- Only twenty walled cities remain in the United States, and [Denver] connects the five in the West with the other fourteen to the east. If [they're] ever taken over by vampires, then the country would be split in half.
Some meh bits:
The world that London has created is very interesting, yet I was not particularly drawn to any of the characters within it. I did like Victor, Lord Valentine's son and there was nothing specific that I did not like about our heroine. There is a love triangle, which while I am not a big fan of them I have come to almost expect them in YA novels. This one was one of the more well-written, IMO.
The book ends on a cliff-hanger, which has sparked a desire to read book two, Blood-Kissed Sky, immediately. Alas, we'll have to wait until Christmas 2012. There is a short snippet from BLOOD KISSED SKY at the end, which makes readers that much more curious about how things will change in Dawn's world.
Possibly of note to some: J. A. London "is the mother-son writing team of Jan (mom) and Alex (son) Nowasky. Jan, AKA Rachel Hawthorne, is the author of the Dark Guardian YA series.
As a part of the VampHu Treaty that ended the war, humans in the cities supply blood to the vampires on the outside. In return the vampires don't attack the cities. Donating blood is voluntary; no one is forced to do it.
However, now that some time has passed, people are donating less and less. They are starting to rebel a bit against having to remain behind the twenty-foot high wall that surrounds their city. Moreover, the city is not vampire-free as it should be.
My first paralove affair was with vampires. I am also a fan of a good dystopian. So, when I spotted several vamp dystopian stories coming out this year I couldn't resist grabbing them all. Darkness Before Dawn happens to be the first one I chose to read.
Some of the bits that I enjoyed most were:
- The Night Watchmen, who are trained to fight against vampires and protect the citizens within
- The classes taught in school were vamp-oriented: fighting, psychology, history, etc.
- The Night Train, which is the "only train that run across the country; it move practically non-stop, twenty-four hours a day. Literally, one train, one track. It was written into VampHu as the only alternative for long-distance travel, now that airplanes are outlawed."
- I thought it was interesting that "each city is an island. Vampires didn't want humans to compare notes. All news is local news. All radio and television shows are made within the city, for the citizens."
- Only twenty walled cities remain in the United States, and [Denver] connects the five in the West with the other fourteen to the east. If [they're] ever taken over by vampires, then the country would be split in half.
Some meh bits:
The world that London has created is very interesting, yet I was not particularly drawn to any of the characters within it. I did like Victor, Lord Valentine's son and there was nothing specific that I did not like about our heroine. There is a love triangle, which while I am not a big fan of them I have come to almost expect them in YA novels. This one was one of the more well-written, IMO.
The book ends on a cliff-hanger, which has sparked a desire to read book two, Blood-Kissed Sky, immediately. Alas, we'll have to wait until Christmas 2012. There is a short snippet from BLOOD KISSED SKY at the end, which makes readers that much more curious about how things will change in Dawn's world.
Possibly of note to some: J. A. London "is the mother-son writing team of Jan (mom) and Alex (son) Nowasky. Jan, AKA Rachel Hawthorne, is the author of the Dark Guardian YA series.
October 4, 2012
I'm going to start right off with the world building because it was very well done and important to all other aspects of the story. There was a huge war with humans and vampires which left the world devastated. Vampires won as I guess would be expected so the VampHu treaty was put in place. The cities are all surrounded by huge walls. Vamps on the outside, humans on the inside. Technology has been destroyed. Little communication and travel between the cities. There is one train that goes through and it is like a huge event when it comes to town. Any human outside the wall can basically be killed as can any vampire found inside the wall. Humans must donate blood but now that time has passed since the war humans are less afraid and growing more angry. They are donating less which is causing hunger and more vamps to enter cities to find blood.
Dawn is the delegate, her parents were murdered so she is taking over, and it is her job to talk to the vamp overlord and to create peace. It is basically a pointless job because Lord Valentine will take absolutely no responsibility for anything. He demands but gives nothing in return. But then enter his son Victor. Vamps can reproduce and also be turned. Victor is unlike any vampire Dawn has ever met. Incredibly sweet and caring towards humans and vampires. He shows her that not all vampires are evil which is her belief after having her parents and brother brutally murdered by vamps. Her brother's story was incredibly heartbreaking. Victor did grow on me and I respected that he was trying to make a difference but I didn't really see him and Dawn having much more in common. Plus he is 400 years old and she is 17! That is just a bit of a big/gross age difference! Plus she has a wonderful human boyfriend!
Dawn meets with Victor in secret which puts on a strain on her relationship with Michael. I loved Michael! He was friends with Dawn all her life and really understands her. He is training to be a night watchman and would willingly throw down his life to protect Dawn. Dawn keeping secrets about her new life I think confused Michael. She should have let him in on what she learned and how her thinking towards vampires changed. Michael shows a couple instances of being a jerk but it could have been prevented with some honestly. I forgive him though. Dawn has specifically stated she doesn't want to be turned so I think Michael is the better choice for her but as always I have a feeling I won't get what I want. Then again the only quote I highlighted was from Victor so I admit I eventually grew a soft spot for him. Damn love triangles!
Victor would make a great leader but Lord Valentine will not easily step down. Lots of changes need to be made but if Lord Valentine stays in charge humans and vamps will continue to suffer. It ends with a huge cliffhanger but there was a preview of the next book that cleared it right up. I guess they knew it was cruel so they threw in the preview?! I love vampires and haven't read a good vamp book since The Immortal Rules so I was so excited for this and happy it didn't disappoint. With a great romance(s), action, mystery, twists, and world building I am eagerly awaiting Blood-Kissed Sky. It's due out in December so hopefully I can hold out until then!
"I like you, Dawn. I've seen a lot of humans, from far away and up close, I've never met one like you. I think you're the closest thing to a sunrise I'll ever see."
Dawn is the delegate, her parents were murdered so she is taking over, and it is her job to talk to the vamp overlord and to create peace. It is basically a pointless job because Lord Valentine will take absolutely no responsibility for anything. He demands but gives nothing in return. But then enter his son Victor. Vamps can reproduce and also be turned. Victor is unlike any vampire Dawn has ever met. Incredibly sweet and caring towards humans and vampires. He shows her that not all vampires are evil which is her belief after having her parents and brother brutally murdered by vamps. Her brother's story was incredibly heartbreaking. Victor did grow on me and I respected that he was trying to make a difference but I didn't really see him and Dawn having much more in common. Plus he is 400 years old and she is 17! That is just a bit of a big/gross age difference! Plus she has a wonderful human boyfriend!
Dawn meets with Victor in secret which puts on a strain on her relationship with Michael. I loved Michael! He was friends with Dawn all her life and really understands her. He is training to be a night watchman and would willingly throw down his life to protect Dawn. Dawn keeping secrets about her new life I think confused Michael. She should have let him in on what she learned and how her thinking towards vampires changed. Michael shows a couple instances of being a jerk but it could have been prevented with some honestly. I forgive him though. Dawn has specifically stated she doesn't want to be turned so I think Michael is the better choice for her but as always I have a feeling I won't get what I want. Then again the only quote I highlighted was from Victor so I admit I eventually grew a soft spot for him. Damn love triangles!
Victor would make a great leader but Lord Valentine will not easily step down. Lots of changes need to be made but if Lord Valentine stays in charge humans and vamps will continue to suffer. It ends with a huge cliffhanger but there was a preview of the next book that cleared it right up. I guess they knew it was cruel so they threw in the preview?! I love vampires and haven't read a good vamp book since The Immortal Rules so I was so excited for this and happy it didn't disappoint. With a great romance(s), action, mystery, twists, and world building I am eagerly awaiting Blood-Kissed Sky. It's due out in December so hopefully I can hold out until then!
"I like you, Dawn. I've seen a lot of humans, from far away and up close, I've never met one like you. I think you're the closest thing to a sunrise I'll ever see."
May 22, 2012
*An ARC was provided by Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review*
When I first started this book I loved it. It had huge potential, was fast-paced, and kick-butt. And then it…wasn’t.
This book had everything going for it: plot, idea, setting, everything. And then, it kind of ruined it. The writing was never amazing, but I was willing to overlook that if the other aspects of the book lived up to their full potential. They didn’t. The idea was amazing. I loved the setting, a dystopian world where vampires don’t kill you in exchange for a monthly blood supply. Ingenious. And the story line was really good too, and then…okay, so I’ve done a lot of thinking about this and have finally come to the conclusion that the romance ruined it. Dawn looked like she was going to be the completely kick-ass character that I love…and then she falls in love and gets all helpless. I hate it when the authors do that. And there was one event that really made me angry: Tegan meeting Sin. Literally, they met and then five minutes later they were holding hands. It’s like the authors said “Okay, I don’t feel like putting a lot of effort into this part of the book so they’ll just meet one minute than be making out the next.” It freaking pissed me off. I hate it when authors do that, and the only conclusion I can come to is that they were too lazy to develop the romance. And, what should have been the best part of the book, the ending, fell completely flat. There wasn’t any real build towards it, and it was over like *snaps fingers* that. No, just no. The ending was hugely disappointing.
In the beginning, I loved Dawn. She could take care of herself, knew how to fight, and could use a stake (the things they use to kill vampires). And then…she met Victor. After that, I hated her. First off, when she first meets him, she really likes him because she thinks he’s human. Then, when she finds out he’s a vampire (don’t worry, that isn’t a spoiler) she hates him. Do you see what I’m trying to say? He’s obviously a good guy because he just saved her from five bloodthirsty vamps, but since he’s one himself, she hates him, but if she didn’t know he was one, she’d love him. That. Is. Horrible. And then, after she finally gets past her prejudice and starts liking him, she’s so freaking sappy, I really wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. She was weak, useless, and could only stand around helplessly while Victor fought to the death for her. No, just no.
I will admit that from the second he was introduced, I loved Victor, despite the fact that he’s a vamp. In fact, that made me like him more because he was doing what was right, which is getting rid of the bad vamps. He was cute, sexy, and totally kick-butt. I honestly don’t know why he put up with Dawn the fifty pages she hated him. She was so freaking mean to the poor guy and he was just trying to help her.
I had such high hopes for this book, and at first it lived up to what I expected, and then mean heroines turning weak and totally cute guys putting up with her crap, not to mention the climax, or lack there of, and because of that this book fell flat for me.
~Emily @ Emily's Crammed Bookshelf
When I first started this book I loved it. It had huge potential, was fast-paced, and kick-butt. And then it…wasn’t.
This book had everything going for it: plot, idea, setting, everything. And then, it kind of ruined it. The writing was never amazing, but I was willing to overlook that if the other aspects of the book lived up to their full potential. They didn’t. The idea was amazing. I loved the setting, a dystopian world where vampires don’t kill you in exchange for a monthly blood supply. Ingenious. And the story line was really good too, and then…okay, so I’ve done a lot of thinking about this and have finally come to the conclusion that the romance ruined it. Dawn looked like she was going to be the completely kick-ass character that I love…and then she falls in love and gets all helpless. I hate it when the authors do that. And there was one event that really made me angry: Tegan meeting Sin. Literally, they met and then five minutes later they were holding hands. It’s like the authors said “Okay, I don’t feel like putting a lot of effort into this part of the book so they’ll just meet one minute than be making out the next.” It freaking pissed me off. I hate it when authors do that, and the only conclusion I can come to is that they were too lazy to develop the romance. And, what should have been the best part of the book, the ending, fell completely flat. There wasn’t any real build towards it, and it was over like *snaps fingers* that. No, just no. The ending was hugely disappointing.
In the beginning, I loved Dawn. She could take care of herself, knew how to fight, and could use a stake (the things they use to kill vampires). And then…she met Victor. After that, I hated her. First off, when she first meets him, she really likes him because she thinks he’s human. Then, when she finds out he’s a vampire (don’t worry, that isn’t a spoiler) she hates him. Do you see what I’m trying to say? He’s obviously a good guy because he just saved her from five bloodthirsty vamps, but since he’s one himself, she hates him, but if she didn’t know he was one, she’d love him. That. Is. Horrible. And then, after she finally gets past her prejudice and starts liking him, she’s so freaking sappy, I really wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. She was weak, useless, and could only stand around helplessly while Victor fought to the death for her. No, just no.
I will admit that from the second he was introduced, I loved Victor, despite the fact that he’s a vamp. In fact, that made me like him more because he was doing what was right, which is getting rid of the bad vamps. He was cute, sexy, and totally kick-butt. I honestly don’t know why he put up with Dawn the fifty pages she hated him. She was so freaking mean to the poor guy and he was just trying to help her.
I had such high hopes for this book, and at first it lived up to what I expected, and then mean heroines turning weak and totally cute guys putting up with her crap, not to mention the climax, or lack there of, and because of that this book fell flat for me.
~Emily @ Emily's Crammed Bookshelf
December 10, 2015
Similar Books: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa, The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda
This was an interesting read for me. There were bits that I liked a lot, then some that didn't really impress me. Maybe I'm sick of vampires. Or dystopians. Or both. But I was a little disappointed with this one.
First things that I did like: the setting and worldbuilding. Honestly, that was my favorite part of the book. I liked the world that the "J.A. London" crafted here, with vampires pretty much ruling the world and humans trying to survive. I also liked that our heroine, Dawn, is the delegate that interacts with the vampires. The interactions between her and Valentine were actually my favorite parts of the story - Valentine was a really interesting character, and I loved that he wanted everyone to dress and act like it was still Victorian times.
In terms of other characters, I wasn't really invested in any of them. They weren't badly written, I just didn't connect with them. I didn't feel like I knew much about Victor, and Dawn was so quiet and level-headed that she didn't that many qualities that made her stand out. Her boyfriend Michael was really the only one that I felt had a clear character motivation, but he was just a supporting character.
The romance was pretty standard. There's no insta-love, though, so that's good. But they fall for each other at a pretty remarkable pace, anyway, especially considering she has a boyfriend. And I never really felt any sparks between them. I didn't feel anything. It all just played out in the book, and I wasn't all that interested in them getting together or not.
Now, the pacing of this book is sorta slow up until like page 200. I was getting bored with the book, ready to start skimming, but then it really picks up. I liked the last 100 or so pages a lot, and they almost made up for the slow beginning. Although I figured one of the big twists at the end, another one surprised me (in a good way). I think it set up really well for a sequel!
Just a warning, though: it's a serious cliffhanger. I mean, like, ending right in the middle of a scene. Now, it's not as bad of a cliffhanger as, say, Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel. But it's still pretty intense.
Overall, this was just an okay book for me. The end made it worth reading, but I'm not dying to read the next one. I think the topic just wasn't for me - I've never been a huge dystopian or vampire fan, so the mixing of the two didn't get me all excited. But people who enjoy either of those genres should like it more than I did!
This was an interesting read for me. There were bits that I liked a lot, then some that didn't really impress me. Maybe I'm sick of vampires. Or dystopians. Or both. But I was a little disappointed with this one.
First things that I did like: the setting and worldbuilding. Honestly, that was my favorite part of the book. I liked the world that the "J.A. London" crafted here, with vampires pretty much ruling the world and humans trying to survive. I also liked that our heroine, Dawn, is the delegate that interacts with the vampires. The interactions between her and Valentine were actually my favorite parts of the story - Valentine was a really interesting character, and I loved that he wanted everyone to dress and act like it was still Victorian times.
In terms of other characters, I wasn't really invested in any of them. They weren't badly written, I just didn't connect with them. I didn't feel like I knew much about Victor, and Dawn was so quiet and level-headed that she didn't that many qualities that made her stand out. Her boyfriend Michael was really the only one that I felt had a clear character motivation, but he was just a supporting character.
The romance was pretty standard. There's no insta-love, though, so that's good. But they fall for each other at a pretty remarkable pace, anyway, especially considering she has a boyfriend. And I never really felt any sparks between them. I didn't feel anything. It all just played out in the book, and I wasn't all that interested in them getting together or not.
Now, the pacing of this book is sorta slow up until like page 200. I was getting bored with the book, ready to start skimming, but then it really picks up. I liked the last 100 or so pages a lot, and they almost made up for the slow beginning. Although I figured one of the big twists at the end, another one surprised me (in a good way). I think it set up really well for a sequel!
Just a warning, though: it's a serious cliffhanger. I mean, like, ending right in the middle of a scene. Now, it's not as bad of a cliffhanger as, say, Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel. But it's still pretty intense.
Overall, this was just an okay book for me. The end made it worth reading, but I'm not dying to read the next one. I think the topic just wasn't for me - I've never been a huge dystopian or vampire fan, so the mixing of the two didn't get me all excited. But people who enjoy either of those genres should like it more than I did!
November 4, 2021
For a YA it's not bad, but it does follow conventional, convention, and 'oft done tropes.
⚫"Special heroine" that the lead vampire falls for that he has never found someone who compares to - honestly, that's the weirdest part. She has no powers or nothing special about her. Yes, she's a decent person and main character, but nothing unique stands out about her which should differentiate her from countless others he's met in 400+ years. I mean, come on here.
⚫ We don't need that last page dangling cliffhanger
⚫ At first the character irritated me with her attitude toward Victor and not believing anything, got old, but then when I heard more of her backstory, I kind of get it - I'd be like death to vampires forever basically.
⚫ It was clear there was something up with a new character in the story, and something up with a backstory tragedy she tells
⚫ The stuffy with her parents is just confusing - is it ever fully explained? Back and forth stuff that's mixed up.
⚫ Not fully getting her ties with Rachel and their bond, as well as with the agency, not enough is really explained.
Overall passable and not badly written, but not atypical and it's not a series I'm interested in continuing.
⚫"Special heroine" that the lead vampire falls for that he has never found someone who compares to - honestly, that's the weirdest part. She has no powers or nothing special about her. Yes, she's a decent person and main character, but nothing unique stands out about her which should differentiate her from countless others he's met in 400+ years. I mean, come on here.
⚫ We don't need that last page dangling cliffhanger
⚫ At first the character irritated me with her attitude toward Victor and not believing anything, got old, but then when I heard more of her backstory, I kind of get it - I'd be like death to vampires forever basically.
⚫ It was clear there was something up with a new character in the story, and something up with a backstory tragedy she tells
⚫ The stuffy with her parents is just confusing - is it ever fully explained? Back and forth stuff that's mixed up.
⚫ Not fully getting her ties with Rachel and their bond, as well as with the agency, not enough is really explained.
Overall passable and not badly written, but not atypical and it's not a series I'm interested in continuing.
April 12, 2012
I've got myself a new favorite read everybody! I couldn't turn the pages fast enough in this one. I can't say that I found this to be a surprise, but I was really excited to learn that despite all the hype that I was experiencing before getting my hands on a copy of this to read, I discovered that it wasn't in vain. This new title lived up to the jazz and then some.
J.A. London makes up the mother-son writing team of Jan and Alex Nowasky. Jan also writes under the name of Rachel Hawthorne and is widely known for her (very) popular Dark Guardian series. It was one of my favorites and I was very disappointed and sad to hear that after four books, the series was ending. But the disappointment didn't last long, because shortly after I realized that series was over, I got wind of this upcoming release and couldn't have been more excited to see what the mother-son team was capable of. And let me tell you, they can pack a punch for sure!
Not knowing what to expect from this alternate reality where humans are at the bottom of the food chain and are forced to supply blood for the vampires that overthrew them was a little harder to grasp. But I'll admit I quickly caught up, as I'm sure other readers will as well. The pace is fast and readers won't really have a choice but to catch on quickly because it's impossible not to devour this one as quick as possible...it's too addicting to take breaks and stop for just about anything...including meals and sleep.
After getting a feel for the characters and people Dawn is surrounded with on a daily basis, readers get introduced to the juicy parts, the vampires, the delegates and the agency they report to and all the stress that goes right along with it. Without giving away too many spoilers since this one won't be hitting the shelves until May 29th readers just have to know that there is a lot going on with this title and every little bit counts. This writing team will be keeping their readers glued to the pages and desperate to find out what will come next for these new and exciting characters. I know I'm already chomping at the bit for another taste of this world and Dawn and the rest of her crew.
J.A. London makes up the mother-son writing team of Jan and Alex Nowasky. Jan also writes under the name of Rachel Hawthorne and is widely known for her (very) popular Dark Guardian series. It was one of my favorites and I was very disappointed and sad to hear that after four books, the series was ending. But the disappointment didn't last long, because shortly after I realized that series was over, I got wind of this upcoming release and couldn't have been more excited to see what the mother-son team was capable of. And let me tell you, they can pack a punch for sure!
Not knowing what to expect from this alternate reality where humans are at the bottom of the food chain and are forced to supply blood for the vampires that overthrew them was a little harder to grasp. But I'll admit I quickly caught up, as I'm sure other readers will as well. The pace is fast and readers won't really have a choice but to catch on quickly because it's impossible not to devour this one as quick as possible...it's too addicting to take breaks and stop for just about anything...including meals and sleep.
After getting a feel for the characters and people Dawn is surrounded with on a daily basis, readers get introduced to the juicy parts, the vampires, the delegates and the agency they report to and all the stress that goes right along with it. Without giving away too many spoilers since this one won't be hitting the shelves until May 29th readers just have to know that there is a lot going on with this title and every little bit counts. This writing team will be keeping their readers glued to the pages and desperate to find out what will come next for these new and exciting characters. I know I'm already chomping at the bit for another taste of this world and Dawn and the rest of her crew.
April 23, 2012
This book really had me hooked. Written beautifully, I am able to step into a world of darkness and full of blood driven vampires.
I have to say that the new books that are coming out with vampires are certainly coming out fresh and new. I loved that this book contains elements of dystopia as well as paranormal. Nothing is old. Everything is fresh and totally addicting. The plot is the best part of the book. We have delegate who meets with the vampire lord and negotiates. I love this idea right here. Dawn is not some stupid girl. She is a girl raised in politics and knows what needs to be down. I like that despite the fear that has been driven into her over and over again, she is strong. As long as Dawn cities meets requirements, they are protected from the vamps. Or are they...
There are other characters in the book take the son Victor who really captured my eye. I knew right off the bat that he was different from all the rest. To see him come into power and step into a whole new era. Now, this love interest in quite intriguing. From the minute the meet it;s fire works all over the place. Not to mention the whole forbidden love aspects really kicks it in. What I especially adored was how both were able to maintain the facade that they have been playing all along. They meet in secret then go back as if they never met. Another words, they played both their parts well.
Darkness Before Dawn is a story that will whisk you away to a place you never been before. It's clever and keeps the reader on their toes. Let me just tell you that the less you know, the more you will come to enjoy it. Darkness Before Dawn is a great read!
I have to say that the new books that are coming out with vampires are certainly coming out fresh and new. I loved that this book contains elements of dystopia as well as paranormal. Nothing is old. Everything is fresh and totally addicting. The plot is the best part of the book. We have delegate who meets with the vampire lord and negotiates. I love this idea right here. Dawn is not some stupid girl. She is a girl raised in politics and knows what needs to be down. I like that despite the fear that has been driven into her over and over again, she is strong. As long as Dawn cities meets requirements, they are protected from the vamps. Or are they...
There are other characters in the book take the son Victor who really captured my eye. I knew right off the bat that he was different from all the rest. To see him come into power and step into a whole new era. Now, this love interest in quite intriguing. From the minute the meet it;s fire works all over the place. Not to mention the whole forbidden love aspects really kicks it in. What I especially adored was how both were able to maintain the facade that they have been playing all along. They meet in secret then go back as if they never met. Another words, they played both their parts well.
Darkness Before Dawn is a story that will whisk you away to a place you never been before. It's clever and keeps the reader on their toes. Let me just tell you that the less you know, the more you will come to enjoy it. Darkness Before Dawn is a great read!
August 3, 2015
Ήταν απίστευτο! Το λάτρεψα όσο δε πάει άλλο... Με συνεπήρε η ιστορία της Dawn και του Victor... Πάω σφαίρα για το δεύτερο βιβλίο... Δε μπορώ να περιμένω άλλο..
July 8, 2016
When I first started this I wasn't sure if I was going to like it or not. Dawn was a bit annoying with her not trusting issues. No matter how many times Victor proved himself to her she wouldn't trust him. However, as the book went along she got better. Ever since Sin showed up I just had this feeling that he would be trouble and the ending proved me right. Speaking of the ending I will tell you that it was full of surprises and left me wanting to read the next book.
October 8, 2013
When Vampires revealed themselves to humans it started a 30 year war for supremacy. The war ended and the VampHu treaty was signed. Humans have to donate blood to Vampires and Vampires will stay out of the cities. The Humans built a wall and nobody except the delegate is allowed outside.
Dawn is only young when her parents are killed. They were the Vampire delegates to Lord Valentine. Now the job falls to Dawn to become the new delegate.
Tegan, Dawns best friend, decides one night to go to a party near The Wall. Dawn has reservations about being out so late and being so near The Wall. They go and Teagan meets some boys, unfortunately those boys spike Teagans drink and Dawn is left trying to get an unconscious Tegan home. She hops on to the train but gets attacked by Vampires. She fights as best she can and suddenly hears fighting elsewhere. She hopes its the Night Watchmen. When the last Vamp is killed she looks up to find an extremely handsome man, Victor. He helps her and Teagan get home safe.
On her first solo trip outside the wall to Lord Valentines mansion she is a bundle of nerves but knows she has to contain all emotion and give nothing away but that's very hard to do when once she gets there she meets a very familiar man!
I went into this not expecting too much because Id read a few negative reviews but I have to say I really enjoyed it. I loved the Dystopian/ Post Apocalyptic feel to Darkness Before Dawn. It was refreshing to read a Vampire book that brought back the love of Vampire books!!!
I loved Dawn. She is strong, brave and capable. She went through so much with losing her parents and then losing her brother to vampires that she has a strong dislike for them. She thinks as them as monsters, only out for blood and care nothing about anyone else. Her opinion is changed when she meets a certain someone though.
Michael, Dawns boyfriend annoyed me a bit. He is all like 'Me Tarzan'!! He constantly has to be reassured and praised that he can protect Dawn even though she is kick ass herself. He is training to be a night watchman and his attitude is like he is the only one able to take care of things. He needs to lose the ego!
I loved Victor. The knight in shining armour!! From the start I loved him. He is brave and good and kind. I was so rooting for him and cant wait to read more in the next books.
I had to take off a star simply because of the dreaded love triangle. I hate them!!! Even though this book had one it was complex. Michael was her friend since childhood and then it developed into something. She is comfortable with him but when she meets Victor, sparks fly. Its different, forbidden and new.
So ya, overall Darkness Before Dawn was awesome. It added a new element to the Vampire Genre with the Thirst! It had enough action and suspense to keep me reading. I will say I kind of was able to guess the big reveal but there was still enough twists that it didn't get old. Im really looking forward to reading book 2, especially after the cliffhanger ending.
Dawn is only young when her parents are killed. They were the Vampire delegates to Lord Valentine. Now the job falls to Dawn to become the new delegate.
Tegan, Dawns best friend, decides one night to go to a party near The Wall. Dawn has reservations about being out so late and being so near The Wall. They go and Teagan meets some boys, unfortunately those boys spike Teagans drink and Dawn is left trying to get an unconscious Tegan home. She hops on to the train but gets attacked by Vampires. She fights as best she can and suddenly hears fighting elsewhere. She hopes its the Night Watchmen. When the last Vamp is killed she looks up to find an extremely handsome man, Victor. He helps her and Teagan get home safe.
On her first solo trip outside the wall to Lord Valentines mansion she is a bundle of nerves but knows she has to contain all emotion and give nothing away but that's very hard to do when once she gets there she meets a very familiar man!
I went into this not expecting too much because Id read a few negative reviews but I have to say I really enjoyed it. I loved the Dystopian/ Post Apocalyptic feel to Darkness Before Dawn. It was refreshing to read a Vampire book that brought back the love of Vampire books!!!
I loved Dawn. She is strong, brave and capable. She went through so much with losing her parents and then losing her brother to vampires that she has a strong dislike for them. She thinks as them as monsters, only out for blood and care nothing about anyone else. Her opinion is changed when she meets a certain someone though.
Michael, Dawns boyfriend annoyed me a bit. He is all like 'Me Tarzan'!! He constantly has to be reassured and praised that he can protect Dawn even though she is kick ass herself. He is training to be a night watchman and his attitude is like he is the only one able to take care of things. He needs to lose the ego!
I loved Victor. The knight in shining armour!! From the start I loved him. He is brave and good and kind. I was so rooting for him and cant wait to read more in the next books.
I had to take off a star simply because of the dreaded love triangle. I hate them!!! Even though this book had one it was complex. Michael was her friend since childhood and then it developed into something. She is comfortable with him but when she meets Victor, sparks fly. Its different, forbidden and new.
So ya, overall Darkness Before Dawn was awesome. It added a new element to the Vampire Genre with the Thirst! It had enough action and suspense to keep me reading. I will say I kind of was able to guess the big reveal but there was still enough twists that it didn't get old. Im really looking forward to reading book 2, especially after the cliffhanger ending.
May 22, 2012
I rate this book 4.5 stars :) I thought it was amazing! The cover, the characters, and the premise did not disappoint.
I've seen some reviews where the reviewer is judging the book based on the premise of the story. Comparing it to other books. I say, give a book a chance before you go into it. Go in to reading it with an open mind, because this book did not disappoint me whatsoever! I loved it :)
Vampires have won the war and are now ruling the world. How awesome is that! Something different. The whole thing with the thirty year war between the humans and vamps was intriguing. I loved when the book started talking about that point because, come on, vamps and humans fighting is a disaster waiting to happen.
I really like Dawn and Victor's character. Dawn was a strong female lead and I really like that. She didn't cower in a corner waiting to be protected. I would be scared out my mind to face Lord Valentine, the vampire ruler of her city. Dawn, only 17 and the delegate of the city is a big thing and I really liked that whose aspect of the book. And when Dawn meets Victor, Lord Valentine's son, it made the book all the more interesting.
Victor was amazing! I think I swooned over him! Who wouldn't want a guy like him. Even though he is a vamp. Living in Dawn's world, I think I would have had a more, OMG WTF you're Lord Valentine's son kind of reaction when she found out who he was. She was a little bit more calm than how I would've been. But I really enjoyed the chemistry between the too.
It was a little bit of a love triangle with Victor and Michael. Michael, her current boyfriend, and Victor. I actually didn't mind the love triangle because Dawn wasn't the Oh My Gosh what am I going to do I can't choose kind of girl. So it was A-OKay.
The only bad thing I can say is that when everything was revealed, I had already figured out who everyone was. But, me being me, I was still shocked? lol
The ending, I can't wait to find out what will happened! Will she die or will she be turned?! OR maybe she will survive and be human! I don't know, but I can't wait to find out!
This book was action packed, with some great romance and some awesome characters! I definitely recommend this book to all you dystopian and vampire lovers out there!
Thanks to J.A. London and Halli from HarperCollins Publishers for sending me an ARC of this book for my honest opinion :)!
I've seen some reviews where the reviewer is judging the book based on the premise of the story. Comparing it to other books. I say, give a book a chance before you go into it. Go in to reading it with an open mind, because this book did not disappoint me whatsoever! I loved it :)
Vampires have won the war and are now ruling the world. How awesome is that! Something different. The whole thing with the thirty year war between the humans and vamps was intriguing. I loved when the book started talking about that point because, come on, vamps and humans fighting is a disaster waiting to happen.
I really like Dawn and Victor's character. Dawn was a strong female lead and I really like that. She didn't cower in a corner waiting to be protected. I would be scared out my mind to face Lord Valentine, the vampire ruler of her city. Dawn, only 17 and the delegate of the city is a big thing and I really liked that whose aspect of the book. And when Dawn meets Victor, Lord Valentine's son, it made the book all the more interesting.
Victor was amazing! I think I swooned over him! Who wouldn't want a guy like him. Even though he is a vamp. Living in Dawn's world, I think I would have had a more, OMG WTF you're Lord Valentine's son kind of reaction when she found out who he was. She was a little bit more calm than how I would've been. But I really enjoyed the chemistry between the too.
It was a little bit of a love triangle with Victor and Michael. Michael, her current boyfriend, and Victor. I actually didn't mind the love triangle because Dawn wasn't the Oh My Gosh what am I going to do I can't choose kind of girl. So it was A-OKay.
The only bad thing I can say is that when everything was revealed, I had already figured out who everyone was. But, me being me, I was still shocked? lol
The ending, I can't wait to find out what will happened! Will she die or will she be turned?! OR maybe she will survive and be human! I don't know, but I can't wait to find out!
This book was action packed, with some great romance and some awesome characters! I definitely recommend this book to all you dystopian and vampire lovers out there!
Thanks to J.A. London and Halli from HarperCollins Publishers for sending me an ARC of this book for my honest opinion :)!
August 28, 2015
After a rather long hiatus from vampire stories, Darkness Before Dawn was a refreshing and relaxing read. In a futuristic, vampire dominated world, Dawn Montgomery, new delegate after her parents' deaths, must ensure that both humans and vampires are kept happy. Sometimes, however, life and love tend to interfere.
As I definitely had my fill of vampire novels a couple of years ago already, I haven't read one in quite a while. Hence, I approached this one with some trepidation. What a pleasant surprise when this book was a little different from the usual vampire fiction. That, combined with the flowing, easy to relax with prose in which Darkness Before Dawn is written, made for a few hours of truly enjoyable reading.
Dawn is a likable, well fleshed out main character. She is brave, loyal and conscientious, yet, she also has several glaring character flaws. Flaws that get her into trouble over and over. Yet, is loving somebody a flaw?
The other characters are realistic enough, though, the ultimate hero (won't say who that is) is perhaps a bit too good to be true. The mysterious villain in the story is kept a secret right up to the end. Said end, though satisfactory, isn't exactly what one may expect.
The world building is realistic and imaginative. Romance fans will love this book for its old-world romantic hero and tender, yet tastefully written, love scenes.
For a very relaxing, often suspenseful and attractively written reading experience, I recommend Darkness Before Dawn as a very worthwhile read. (Ellen Fritz)
As I definitely had my fill of vampire novels a couple of years ago already, I haven't read one in quite a while. Hence, I approached this one with some trepidation. What a pleasant surprise when this book was a little different from the usual vampire fiction. That, combined with the flowing, easy to relax with prose in which Darkness Before Dawn is written, made for a few hours of truly enjoyable reading.
Dawn is a likable, well fleshed out main character. She is brave, loyal and conscientious, yet, she also has several glaring character flaws. Flaws that get her into trouble over and over. Yet, is loving somebody a flaw?
The other characters are realistic enough, though, the ultimate hero (won't say who that is) is perhaps a bit too good to be true. The mysterious villain in the story is kept a secret right up to the end. Said end, though satisfactory, isn't exactly what one may expect.
The world building is realistic and imaginative. Romance fans will love this book for its old-world romantic hero and tender, yet tastefully written, love scenes.
For a very relaxing, often suspenseful and attractively written reading experience, I recommend Darkness Before Dawn as a very worthwhile read. (Ellen Fritz)
September 3, 2013
Actual rating: 1.5 stars
I finished this book within a few hours after borrowing it from the library. It was probably a bad idea to read this after The Coldest Girl in Coldtown as both have pretty similar flaws, only they are even more emphasised here.
I could not care less for the plot and characters, and I felt nothing for Dawn as the main character (I had to look her name up because I had already forgotten it). The descriptions/writing made me roll my eyes so many times and there was nothing that stood out to me from this book.
I honestly think that no other YA vampire book can live up to The Immortal Rules now (feel free to prove me wrong with your recs!).
P.S. The cover is way too similar to Fallen...
I finished this book within a few hours after borrowing it from the library. It was probably a bad idea to read this after The Coldest Girl in Coldtown as both have pretty similar flaws, only they are even more emphasised here.
I could not care less for the plot and characters, and I felt nothing for Dawn as the main character (I had to look her name up because I had already forgotten it). The descriptions/writing made me roll my eyes so many times and there was nothing that stood out to me from this book.
I honestly think that no other YA vampire book can live up to The Immortal Rules now (feel free to prove me wrong with your recs!).
P.S. The cover is way too similar to Fallen...
March 5, 2016
I really wanted to love this but it just was awful. The heroine, Dawn, got on my nerves. Tegan, her BFF, the typical "I want to party all day" got on my nerves even more. I have no idea what Victor liked about Dawn.
There is a treaty between the vampire and the humans for the past 30 years. Since Dawn's parents have died, she had become the human's delegate. Even though Dawn is only 17 years old, Lord Valentine (the leader of the vampires) wants only Dawn to delegate. Tegan and Dawn leave the wall to go out and party and after Tegan gets "drugged" Dawn and Tegan get attacked by vampires on their way home. A mysterious guy comes and saves them. Later Dawn finds out that their "hot" savior is actually Victor, Lord Valentine's son.
Dawn, I am sorry, is an idiot and annoying. I have no idea why Michael (her boyfriend) or Victor wanted anything to do with her. I wanted to love this story. I have been craving a good vampire trilogy with a romance, but this is awful. It may work for you, but it did not work for me.
There is a treaty between the vampire and the humans for the past 30 years. Since Dawn's parents have died, she had become the human's delegate. Even though Dawn is only 17 years old, Lord Valentine (the leader of the vampires) wants only Dawn to delegate. Tegan and Dawn leave the wall to go out and party and after Tegan gets "drugged" Dawn and Tegan get attacked by vampires on their way home. A mysterious guy comes and saves them. Later Dawn finds out that their "hot" savior is actually Victor, Lord Valentine's son.
Dawn, I am sorry, is an idiot and annoying. I have no idea why Michael (her boyfriend) or Victor wanted anything to do with her. I wanted to love this story. I have been craving a good vampire trilogy with a romance, but this is awful. It may work for you, but it did not work for me.
September 24, 2013
EDIT: Hmmm... It was kind of too standard for me -- standard romance, lack of chemistry, no surprises, okay main character -- but I felt no connection and it took me longer than expected to finish. Still, it was by no means a bad book! Just... not the greatest!
Review to come :)
I just found out that part of J.A. London is part Rachel Hawthorne, who wrote the Dark Guardian series! Cool, right?? :)
Review to come :)
I just found out that part of J.A. London is part Rachel Hawthorne, who wrote the Dark Guardian series! Cool, right?? :)
August 10, 2022
l have a soft spot for vampire books and movies. Darkness Before Dawn is dark, mesmerizing and blood thirsty vampires. Unlike other books, this book is intense, poignant and alluring.
The story is about vampire and human are living in the same world, but human should donate blood to them, otherwise vampires will hunt them. It is political and romantic.
This is the first book of the trilogy. l read the second one and l will read the third one soon.
The story is about vampire and human are living in the same world, but human should donate blood to them, otherwise vampires will hunt them. It is political and romantic.
This is the first book of the trilogy. l read the second one and l will read the third one soon.
November 28, 2011
Kitap güzeldi. Kızın insan oğlanı değilde vampiri seçmesi klişe olsada Michael biraz hak etti bunu o yüzden ona acımıyorum. Sonu çok şok edici bitti yenisi yakında gelse iyi olur!!!
May 7, 2012
When vampires and humans went to war there would only be one victor. The vampires. A treaty was enacted to keep the peace. And as long as the voluntary blood donations continued, the humans within the walled cities would remain safe. Protected.
But with the passage of time, many people forgot their promises and refused to give their blood freely. And as the human population began to dwindle, food supplies became limited and many vampires were left starving.
Attacks on the cities increased. Safety could no longer be guaranteed. And the ruling vampires were more concerned with keeping themselves fed than the safety of their captives or the hunger of the lesser vampires.
As delegate, it was Dawn Montgomery’s responsibility to find a middle ground. To keep Lord Valentine happy and to keep the citizens of Denver safe. But as the youngest person to ever accept the role, her lack of experience made others question her ability. And her hatred of vampires hardly made her a neutral party.
With tensions escalating, outcry against her growing, an increased demand for blood donations, and vicious attacks on the rise, Dawn wasn’t sure she could keep the peace, let alone survive. And with everyone she loved already taken from her and with nothing left to lose, she wasn’t so sure she cared.
Until the day she met Victor. A boy who changed everything. A savior. A hero. A mystery…. A vampire.
***
Darkness Before Dawn is a dark, gritty and entertaining dystopian vampire story set in a future where vampires rule, keeping humans isolated and locked down in cities for their protection and to keep control. Where the only thing keeping them safe from the hungry vampires outside the city walls is their willingness to donate blood to the ruling vampire lord.
And in this world, still ravaged by the war that was waged and lost, the human population is decreasing. And with a limited supply of blood, the starving vampires outside those walls are getting more desperate and keeping them out is becoming more challenging than ever.
As more and more vampires breach the city’s defenses, humans have even more reason to fear the night.
With a ruthless vampire lord demanding too much from the humans in his territory, a struggle for control within the vampire hierarchy, an even deadlier threat to both vampires and humans emerging, a heroine who is trying to keep the peace treaty intact and an unlikely hero rising amidst the chaos, Darkness Before Dawn offers readers a suspenseful, exciting and at times nail-biting story with a cliffhanger ending that will leave them anxiously awaiting the next installment in the series.
In Darkness Before Dawn the authors combined a dystopian world with the paranormal to create a story with an edge that sets itself apart from many of the stories in this genre. The vampires are reminiscent of the cold-hearted, blood-thirsty vampires depicted in horror stories versus love stories, with the exception of a few whose natures appear slightly more humane and one, in particular, who appears almost human.
The story has a nice, even pace that picks up at its end along with the action and suspense. But at times there were some issues with the flow. Much of the story moved along easily and flowed naturally, with writing that was engaging, wonderfully descriptive and often beautiful, but there were moments when there was an awkwardness to the writing and where the characters didn’t behave as expected. Even with these bumps, however, the interesting characters and intriguing world are more than enough to keep readers connected to the story.
A first book in this new series, Darkness Before Dawn gives readers a little bit of everything. A dark, dystopian future, humanity on the verge of extinction, numerous deadly enemies, unrest among the humans and among the vampires, secrets, lies and betrayals, a love triangle, an ill-fated love story and a cliffhanger ending. Add in action, mystery and tension and this is one story that will captivate fans of the genre.
On a personal note:
What drew me to this story was the premise. I loved the idea of a world where vampires ruled. Where they weren’t about living in harmony with humans. Where humans were simply their blood supply.
I loved the world the authors created. It was dark. It was violent. It was most definitely grim, practically hopeless and extremely isolated. I was easily and immediately transported into the world and I could imagine its crumbling buildings, its fearful citizens, it’s daring and rebellious residents who were just itching for a taste of freedom.
And I absolutely adored Victor. He was my favorite character in this book. He was charming. He was brave. He was incredibly fast and strong and smart. And he was a hero. A virtual knight in shining armor at times.
While I wasn’t initially a Dawn fan, she did grow on me. And her character did grow over the course of the story, which I always love to see. She was incredibly sympathetic for all she had lost. But for someone who was brave much of the time, she seemed to be a bit of a pushover at others.
There were a few twists and turns, one pretty big one, though I wasn’t caught by surprise when it came to light. But it was still an awesome change in direction nonetheless and one that totally made the ending incredibly exciting.
I definitely want to know more about the world outside of Denver. I want to know more about the night train. I want to know more about what it means to be a delegate. I want to know more about the lesser vampires and just how things got as bad as they did. I want to know more about the vampires in charge.
And I want to know what happens next for Dawn and Victor. As that was one giant cliffhanger the authors left me with.
What pulled me out of the story at various times during the read was some of the writing and character development. I thought much of the writing was absolutely beautiful. There were gorgeously written and incredibly meaningful passages. But they often sat side-by-side with some that were more awkwardly written with unusual ways of describing things.
At times I felt very connected to the writing and the story and at other times I didn’t. Perhaps it’s because there were two writers involved and their styles didn’t quite blend as smoothly as I might have liked in order to keep me connected. Or perhaps it was simply that I was able to connect to one writer’s style versus another.
I was also somewhat surprised by the change in direction with Michael’s character. The picture painted of him was that for years he was the best friend and practically perfect. And all of a sudden he becomes pushy, argumentative, demanding and selfish. With no real explanation given and no lead up to the change.
There were a couple instances where Dawn’s actions and reactions felt out of character, too. Even though she’d been through a lot, she was still brave, she still fought for what she thought was right and she took on the responsibility of being a delegate after the deaths of her parents. And yet she allowed herself to be persuaded against her better judgment to attend a party in a dangerous area and go for a wall walk and risk leaving the city because her friends wanted to.
But neither were enough to make me want to set this book aside. I did devour it in one sitting. I found myself always wanting to know more. And I couldn’t help but be most curious about Victor and his past.
While this wasn’t a brand new idea, the authors did make it their own. I found the world to be intriguing and by the end of the story incredibly exciting. I found characters to love, hate or be exceedingly frustrated with, all of whom I think played an important role and contributed to making this story pretty great.
But with the passage of time, many people forgot their promises and refused to give their blood freely. And as the human population began to dwindle, food supplies became limited and many vampires were left starving.
Attacks on the cities increased. Safety could no longer be guaranteed. And the ruling vampires were more concerned with keeping themselves fed than the safety of their captives or the hunger of the lesser vampires.
As delegate, it was Dawn Montgomery’s responsibility to find a middle ground. To keep Lord Valentine happy and to keep the citizens of Denver safe. But as the youngest person to ever accept the role, her lack of experience made others question her ability. And her hatred of vampires hardly made her a neutral party.
With tensions escalating, outcry against her growing, an increased demand for blood donations, and vicious attacks on the rise, Dawn wasn’t sure she could keep the peace, let alone survive. And with everyone she loved already taken from her and with nothing left to lose, she wasn’t so sure she cared.
Until the day she met Victor. A boy who changed everything. A savior. A hero. A mystery…. A vampire.
***
Darkness Before Dawn is a dark, gritty and entertaining dystopian vampire story set in a future where vampires rule, keeping humans isolated and locked down in cities for their protection and to keep control. Where the only thing keeping them safe from the hungry vampires outside the city walls is their willingness to donate blood to the ruling vampire lord.
And in this world, still ravaged by the war that was waged and lost, the human population is decreasing. And with a limited supply of blood, the starving vampires outside those walls are getting more desperate and keeping them out is becoming more challenging than ever.
As more and more vampires breach the city’s defenses, humans have even more reason to fear the night.
With a ruthless vampire lord demanding too much from the humans in his territory, a struggle for control within the vampire hierarchy, an even deadlier threat to both vampires and humans emerging, a heroine who is trying to keep the peace treaty intact and an unlikely hero rising amidst the chaos, Darkness Before Dawn offers readers a suspenseful, exciting and at times nail-biting story with a cliffhanger ending that will leave them anxiously awaiting the next installment in the series.
In Darkness Before Dawn the authors combined a dystopian world with the paranormal to create a story with an edge that sets itself apart from many of the stories in this genre. The vampires are reminiscent of the cold-hearted, blood-thirsty vampires depicted in horror stories versus love stories, with the exception of a few whose natures appear slightly more humane and one, in particular, who appears almost human.
The story has a nice, even pace that picks up at its end along with the action and suspense. But at times there were some issues with the flow. Much of the story moved along easily and flowed naturally, with writing that was engaging, wonderfully descriptive and often beautiful, but there were moments when there was an awkwardness to the writing and where the characters didn’t behave as expected. Even with these bumps, however, the interesting characters and intriguing world are more than enough to keep readers connected to the story.
A first book in this new series, Darkness Before Dawn gives readers a little bit of everything. A dark, dystopian future, humanity on the verge of extinction, numerous deadly enemies, unrest among the humans and among the vampires, secrets, lies and betrayals, a love triangle, an ill-fated love story and a cliffhanger ending. Add in action, mystery and tension and this is one story that will captivate fans of the genre.
On a personal note:
What drew me to this story was the premise. I loved the idea of a world where vampires ruled. Where they weren’t about living in harmony with humans. Where humans were simply their blood supply.
I loved the world the authors created. It was dark. It was violent. It was most definitely grim, practically hopeless and extremely isolated. I was easily and immediately transported into the world and I could imagine its crumbling buildings, its fearful citizens, it’s daring and rebellious residents who were just itching for a taste of freedom.
And I absolutely adored Victor. He was my favorite character in this book. He was charming. He was brave. He was incredibly fast and strong and smart. And he was a hero. A virtual knight in shining armor at times.
While I wasn’t initially a Dawn fan, she did grow on me. And her character did grow over the course of the story, which I always love to see. She was incredibly sympathetic for all she had lost. But for someone who was brave much of the time, she seemed to be a bit of a pushover at others.
There were a few twists and turns, one pretty big one, though I wasn’t caught by surprise when it came to light. But it was still an awesome change in direction nonetheless and one that totally made the ending incredibly exciting.
I definitely want to know more about the world outside of Denver. I want to know more about the night train. I want to know more about what it means to be a delegate. I want to know more about the lesser vampires and just how things got as bad as they did. I want to know more about the vampires in charge.
And I want to know what happens next for Dawn and Victor. As that was one giant cliffhanger the authors left me with.
What pulled me out of the story at various times during the read was some of the writing and character development. I thought much of the writing was absolutely beautiful. There were gorgeously written and incredibly meaningful passages. But they often sat side-by-side with some that were more awkwardly written with unusual ways of describing things.
At times I felt very connected to the writing and the story and at other times I didn’t. Perhaps it’s because there were two writers involved and their styles didn’t quite blend as smoothly as I might have liked in order to keep me connected. Or perhaps it was simply that I was able to connect to one writer’s style versus another.
I was also somewhat surprised by the change in direction with Michael’s character. The picture painted of him was that for years he was the best friend and practically perfect. And all of a sudden he becomes pushy, argumentative, demanding and selfish. With no real explanation given and no lead up to the change.
There were a couple instances where Dawn’s actions and reactions felt out of character, too. Even though she’d been through a lot, she was still brave, she still fought for what she thought was right and she took on the responsibility of being a delegate after the deaths of her parents. And yet she allowed herself to be persuaded against her better judgment to attend a party in a dangerous area and go for a wall walk and risk leaving the city because her friends wanted to.
But neither were enough to make me want to set this book aside. I did devour it in one sitting. I found myself always wanting to know more. And I couldn’t help but be most curious about Victor and his past.
While this wasn’t a brand new idea, the authors did make it their own. I found the world to be intriguing and by the end of the story incredibly exciting. I found characters to love, hate or be exceedingly frustrated with, all of whom I think played an important role and contributed to making this story pretty great.
April 7, 2020
This book seems to tiptoe back and forth across the line of what I consider to be juvenile writing. I like the premise of the storyline though, and I think in the right author’s hands (possibly one that would have written it as adult fiction rather than YA) it could have been amazing. As it is, the writing style is pretty simple, and it’s an easy read. The biggest downfall is the predictability of where the storyline is heading. I suspected that Sin was a vampire right from the introduction of his character. I also suspected that Dawn’s hoodie stalker was actually her brother. The only reason I haven’t rated this as a 1-2 star flop, is the fact that I do like the premise of the storyline.
Read
January 16, 2021Dnf 25%
So dull! I skimmed to the end, and it felt like a chore.
So dull! I skimmed to the end, and it felt like a chore.
March 21, 2012
*Rating* 4 stars
*Genre* YA Paranormal/Dystopian
J.A. London’s Darkness before Dawn is the first novel in a promising new series that features a world where vampires have won the 30 year war against humans and now live by an agreement called the Vamp-Hu Treaty. In accordance with the treaty, humans are required to provide blood to the vampires and in return, the vampires agreed not to attack any of the remaining US cities. Not all humans are agreeable to the treaty which leads to complications. The one positive that came out of the Vamp-Hu treaty is that vampires cannot turn humans against their will.
The story itself takes place in Denver, Colorado where the city is walled in and armed with hunters called Night Watchmen. The Night Watchmen are responsible for killing any rogue vampires that try to make their way into the city.
17 year old Dawn Montgomery is the story’s main protagonist and the official delegate between the humans and vampires. She is required to meet with the most powerful vampire in the world, Lord Valentine, on a regular basis on all matters of concern. Valentine forces her to wear Victorian clothing when meeting with him and he picked her above all others to be the Human representative.
Dawn was chosen for the job after her parents were killed by vampires mysteriously. The reason behind their attack and the secrets that they took to their grave, are hanging like a chad during a presidential election in Florida. There is something about Dawn that is considered special and intriguing but has yet to be revealed.
Michael Colt is Dawn’s best friend, love interest, as well as training to become one of the elite Night Watchmen. He and Dawn do everything together and it's hoped that they would be together forever. Later, Dawn meets vampire Victor Valentine who saves her and her best friend Tegan Romano from a vampire attack. This leads to more complications since Dawn sincerely respects Michael and what he stands for. I normally complain LOUDLY about love triangles but in this case, it was actually done in a way that left me open to Dawn being with either character.
Because this is the first book in the series, there are plenty of comparisons to Julie Kagawa’s The Immortal Rules which I actually read AFTER this book. If you want to compare the characters, we can do that.
Both Allison and Dawn are strong willed. They are both willing to do whatever it takes in order to survive in a hostile environment where vampires rule the roost. They both lost their parents under circumstances that created a hardship for both characters. One difference is that Dawn actually has a guardian, Rachel Goodwin, to look after her needs. Allison helps herself. They both have series of events that pushes them in a certain direction and their choices are not the best at times.
What is best left unsaid is that this book ends with tragedy and a cliffhanger that will hopefully be remedied in the next book called Blood Kissed Sky. The book on one hand is also predictable when it comes to the villain. When this person is introduced, warning bells should have been ringing loudly. Instead, a certain character falls head over heels for him and ends up in an unknown predicament.
I was actually surprised when this book came in the mail. I’m not sure who sent it to me from HarperCollins or who to thank personally. But, I am appreciative and hope that they will continue to share these ARC’s with me in the future.
*Genre* YA Paranormal/Dystopian
J.A. London’s Darkness before Dawn is the first novel in a promising new series that features a world where vampires have won the 30 year war against humans and now live by an agreement called the Vamp-Hu Treaty. In accordance with the treaty, humans are required to provide blood to the vampires and in return, the vampires agreed not to attack any of the remaining US cities. Not all humans are agreeable to the treaty which leads to complications. The one positive that came out of the Vamp-Hu treaty is that vampires cannot turn humans against their will.
The story itself takes place in Denver, Colorado where the city is walled in and armed with hunters called Night Watchmen. The Night Watchmen are responsible for killing any rogue vampires that try to make their way into the city.
17 year old Dawn Montgomery is the story’s main protagonist and the official delegate between the humans and vampires. She is required to meet with the most powerful vampire in the world, Lord Valentine, on a regular basis on all matters of concern. Valentine forces her to wear Victorian clothing when meeting with him and he picked her above all others to be the Human representative.
Dawn was chosen for the job after her parents were killed by vampires mysteriously. The reason behind their attack and the secrets that they took to their grave, are hanging like a chad during a presidential election in Florida. There is something about Dawn that is considered special and intriguing but has yet to be revealed.
Michael Colt is Dawn’s best friend, love interest, as well as training to become one of the elite Night Watchmen. He and Dawn do everything together and it's hoped that they would be together forever. Later, Dawn meets vampire Victor Valentine who saves her and her best friend Tegan Romano from a vampire attack. This leads to more complications since Dawn sincerely respects Michael and what he stands for. I normally complain LOUDLY about love triangles but in this case, it was actually done in a way that left me open to Dawn being with either character.
Because this is the first book in the series, there are plenty of comparisons to Julie Kagawa’s The Immortal Rules which I actually read AFTER this book. If you want to compare the characters, we can do that.
Both Allison and Dawn are strong willed. They are both willing to do whatever it takes in order to survive in a hostile environment where vampires rule the roost. They both lost their parents under circumstances that created a hardship for both characters. One difference is that Dawn actually has a guardian, Rachel Goodwin, to look after her needs. Allison helps herself. They both have series of events that pushes them in a certain direction and their choices are not the best at times.
What is best left unsaid is that this book ends with tragedy and a cliffhanger that will hopefully be remedied in the next book called Blood Kissed Sky. The book on one hand is also predictable when it comes to the villain. When this person is introduced, warning bells should have been ringing loudly. Instead, a certain character falls head over heels for him and ends up in an unknown predicament.
I was actually surprised when this book came in the mail. I’m not sure who sent it to me from HarperCollins or who to thank personally. But, I am appreciative and hope that they will continue to share these ARC’s with me in the future.
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