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From Chaos and Darkness
From Darkness and Chaos is the first book in the epic Paranormal Urban Fantasy trilogy, The Elementals Series.
We do not fear the flame, though it burns us. We do not fear the fire, though it consumes us. And we do not fear its light, though it reveals the darkness of our souls, for therein lies our power.
--- Blood Oath of the Iron Elves, Iron Elves, Chris Evans
When Monroe Dubois woke up this morning, she hadn’t planned to set an office building on fire. She really hadn’t. Plagued with a lifetime of hallucinations and doctor's appointments, she was sick and tired of being poked and prodded. She just wanted to live like a normal twenty-five-year-old who had no idea what to do with their lives. Was that too much to ask for?
So, when the office fire drew the attention of Kaden, the hottest and most infuriating man she’d ever met, she was… curious. When he kept showing up randomly, she was hesitant. And when he told her she’s part of an ancient line of Elemental Guardians tasked with keeping Earth and her inhabitants safe, well, she was positive she was having hallucinations again.
It wasn’t until Kaden showed Monroe irrefutable proof of his claims that she had to start to question her entire existence. Would it be enough, though? There was an unnatural darkness brewing, casting the world in devastation, and the fates had spoken. The world would either be cast into fiery rule or innate darkness – only she could decide.
As Monroe enters into a cosmic war, she had no prior knowledge of, she will have to let go of everything she’s ever thought she knew and accept who she was always meant to be. The fate of the world depends on it.
From Chaos and Darkness is perfect for you if:
You love stories inspired by Greek Mythology
You love strong female leads
You live for slow burn romances and sarcastic banter
We do not fear the flame, though it burns us. We do not fear the fire, though it consumes us. And we do not fear its light, though it reveals the darkness of our souls, for therein lies our power.
--- Blood Oath of the Iron Elves, Iron Elves, Chris Evans
When Monroe Dubois woke up this morning, she hadn’t planned to set an office building on fire. She really hadn’t. Plagued with a lifetime of hallucinations and doctor's appointments, she was sick and tired of being poked and prodded. She just wanted to live like a normal twenty-five-year-old who had no idea what to do with their lives. Was that too much to ask for?
So, when the office fire drew the attention of Kaden, the hottest and most infuriating man she’d ever met, she was… curious. When he kept showing up randomly, she was hesitant. And when he told her she’s part of an ancient line of Elemental Guardians tasked with keeping Earth and her inhabitants safe, well, she was positive she was having hallucinations again.
It wasn’t until Kaden showed Monroe irrefutable proof of his claims that she had to start to question her entire existence. Would it be enough, though? There was an unnatural darkness brewing, casting the world in devastation, and the fates had spoken. The world would either be cast into fiery rule or innate darkness – only she could decide.
As Monroe enters into a cosmic war, she had no prior knowledge of, she will have to let go of everything she’s ever thought she knew and accept who she was always meant to be. The fate of the world depends on it.
From Chaos and Darkness is perfect for you if:
You love stories inspired by Greek Mythology
You love strong female leads
You live for slow burn romances and sarcastic banter
- GenresFantasy
342 pages, Paperback
Published August 1, 2021
6 people are currently reading
160 people want to read
About the author
Leslie Balbontin
2 books7 followersLeslie Balbontin is the writer behind your new favorite novel. She believes in sarcastic banter, slow burn romance, and happy endings with some comedic relief along the way. She lives in Massachusetts with her hot husband, three outspoken kids, one fat cat, and one rambunctious puppy. When she's not writing, you'll find her most definitely cozied up in one of her five hundred cardigans reading, stress baking, or cleaning up toys...again.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 8, 2022
Seriously I couldn’t put it down!! Greek Mythology with a twist, meets SJM & JLA world building and style.
Monroe is a girl I truly feel EVERYONE can connect with, I fell in love with her in like page 6 (not kidding). She snarky and had me literally laughing out loud at some points, I don’t know how to outline the best parts or storyline without spoilers so just go read it. Like right now!!!
Monroe is a girl I truly feel EVERYONE can connect with, I fell in love with her in like page 6 (not kidding). She snarky and had me literally laughing out loud at some points, I don’t know how to outline the best parts or storyline without spoilers so just go read it. Like right now!!!
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August 27, 2022🎁 FREE on Amazon today (8/27/2022)! 🎁
August 1, 2021
Okay, when is book 2 coming out?? And let’s be honest, book 3 too because I will surely need it quickly after…
I really enjoyed this book! It was a quick read; I kept wanting to know what came next. Being from Texas, I loved the backdrop of the story & the detail in describing it. It’s clear how much the author loves it too.
Witty, funny, sexy, and intriguing. A must read!
I really enjoyed this book! It was a quick read; I kept wanting to know what came next. Being from Texas, I loved the backdrop of the story & the detail in describing it. It’s clear how much the author loves it too.
Witty, funny, sexy, and intriguing. A must read!
August 26, 2025
Fun fact: I've never read a book with as much paranormal influence as this one had, so it's a great option for those that especially enjoy that this time of year! From Chaos and Darkness is at times dark, oftentimes banter filled, and definitely unique. There are mythological elements, romantic elements, paranormal elements, and some well-loved tropes like "the chosen one" and "hidden power" and some snarky frenemies-to-lovers.
While I felt like the book had a slow start, about 1/3 of the way in and the story picks up significantly. There's lots of twists and turns that keep you wanting to turn the page, and it's a relatively quick read once you get going (I was able to read it in only a couple sittings!)
Probably my favorite aspects were the character dynamics- I looooved Monroe & Ruby's friendship, and Monroe and Kaden's angst.) And the imagery was great, I felt like I was watching a movie play out inside my head and that's always the best!
While I felt like the book had a slow start, about 1/3 of the way in and the story picks up significantly. There's lots of twists and turns that keep you wanting to turn the page, and it's a relatively quick read once you get going (I was able to read it in only a couple sittings!)
Probably my favorite aspects were the character dynamics- I looooved Monroe & Ruby's friendship, and Monroe and Kaden's angst.) And the imagery was great, I felt like I was watching a movie play out inside my head and that's always the best!
September 14, 2021
There was a bit of a slow start for me but was still hooked because I was intrigued by what was actually going on. To start I had very Alice in Wonderland vibes (like first chapter) but they faded into something wonderful. @authorlesliebalbontin writing comes to life and I think it was the vividness of it all that really spoke to me. Though I didn’t feel the plot really started to form until about the half way mark, the world building and story itself kept me interested!
Let’s chat Monroe. Girl has guts. I mean she has dealt with an entire dump of things from childhood but still manages to be positive. I felt for her and her journey through finding out what she had always been told was ‘wrong’ with her to what was really happening. I feel there’s still so much to come for her.
Rather than Monroe the shining stars were Ruby and Kaden. Ruby isn’t quite as big of a part but her friendship with Monroe is one I admire and have with some friends of my own. Kaden was a little more touch and go for me. Sometimes I felt like things were developing well and other times I felt like their relationship didn’t feel like it was flowing right for me. That being said I love their banter and budding relationship.
I would enjoy having book two SOON and highly recommend you give this one a try.
Let’s chat Monroe. Girl has guts. I mean she has dealt with an entire dump of things from childhood but still manages to be positive. I felt for her and her journey through finding out what she had always been told was ‘wrong’ with her to what was really happening. I feel there’s still so much to come for her.
Rather than Monroe the shining stars were Ruby and Kaden. Ruby isn’t quite as big of a part but her friendship with Monroe is one I admire and have with some friends of my own. Kaden was a little more touch and go for me. Sometimes I felt like things were developing well and other times I felt like their relationship didn’t feel like it was flowing right for me. That being said I love their banter and budding relationship.
I would enjoy having book two SOON and highly recommend you give this one a try.
December 17, 2022
Loved every bit of this story. I ate up every bit of this book and stopped 10 pages before it concluded because I didn’t want it to end. 😫 it has everything a good fantasy book needs. I can’t stop recommending this to my pals. There’s banter, witty and corny jokes, slow burn romance, magic, friendship love, mental health normalization and a main character who has healthy obsession with food like any normal person should!!
The characters and the story are so well rounded. If this book isn’t blowing up on booktok already, it will be soon !!
The characters and the story are so well rounded. If this book isn’t blowing up on booktok already, it will be soon !!
February 13, 2023
The narration is great. Monroe has a unique voice, with an entertaining love of coffee and baked goods, and a strong spine from a history of challenging medical issues. It's definitely a self-published book, with a strong focus on slow burn romance and power fantasy, but if that's for you, it's a really fun read.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews