Sarah Mac’s Reviews > Night Falls Darkly > Status Update

Mythology, Ripperology, Cleopatra’s children, Elgin marbles, Stoker, Jekyll & Hyde, various Victoriana, grime + poverty/wealth + privilege living in close quarters…this author is really trying to create depth for her characters to play on. I respect that. At the very least it feels like a Victorian Gothic backdrop, which is more than I can say for most cheesy romances these days.

‘The cambric bodice gathered over her high, round breasts, w/ a pale green ribbon tied beneath. With interest, he noted a dark band around her wrist, a tattoo in the shape of a twining serpent. The mark would have been hidden tonight under the long sleeve of her glove, & only served to inflame him more deeply, for it added a forbidden, sensual dimension to her innocence.’

‘At the end of the passage lay a small, darkened square framed by condemned, empty houses & a warehouse marked in large white letters as belonging to Kearley & Tonge. Here there was no crowd, but only night shadows & the smell of fresh blood. A moment later the beam of the constable’s lantern swept over Kate’s body.’ ….The infamous double-kill night.

‘A bibliophile of immortal proportions, Selene suffered a quirky, fetishlike hunger for the written word—a hunger of the most literal sort. She devoured all varieties of letters, newspapers & books like an indulged child might gobble down sweets.’ ….I couldn’t be friends with Selene. I don’t even like to crease my books’ spines. 😂

‘She suddenly had the feeling of being utterly cut off. A sound echoed about her, a breath or a gasp. She twisted, searching the gossamer wall around her. The hair on her arms & neck rose up. Someone watched her. No one she could see, but she felt the presence—its intensity & malice—as certainly as if the person’s rancid breath dampened her skin.’

Lolz. This cover is so awful. But y’all know I can’t resist a romance set during the Ripper murders, so I’ll just have to endure. 😇💩