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Love is Darkness (Valerie Dearborn #1)

by Caroline Hanson (Goodreads Author)

3.91 of 5 stars 3.91 · rating details · 2,086 ratings · 221 reviews

Valerie Dearborn wants a cotton candy life, but it’s more like a puffer fish: pointy, unusual, and—if not prepared exactly right—deadly.

In London for graduate school, Val knows she's finally free. Her father and ex-almost-boyfriend are back in California and she's out of the Vampire hunting biz for good. Or is she?

She draws the attention of Lucas, a 1600 year old Vampire,...more

Kindle Edition, 1st Edition, 323 pages

Published August 27th 2011 by Host of the Hills

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Dec 14, 2011 Bookie | The BookChick rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampires, never-read-again, 2-star-read

Reading this book was about as interesting as listening to my own brain cells die. Oh, now isn't that coincidental...several brain cells died a horrible death in the reading of this book. I'm not sure if this book was supposed to be PNR, UF, YA, Indie or what. But whatever it's supposed genre, it was a horribly painful book to read.

The heroine, and please know that I use the word loosely, was a slut. I hate throwing around such a tabooed word as slut.

*RAH...RAH...RAH...woman's lib...and feminis
...more Reading this book was about as interesting as listening to my own brain cells die. Oh, now isn't that coincidental...several brain cells died a horrible death in the reading of this book. I'm not sure if this book was supposed to be PNR, UF, YA, Indie or what. But whatever it's supposed genre, it was a horribly painful book to read.

The heroine, and please know that I use the word loosely, was a slut. I hate throwing around such a tabooed word as slut.

*RAH...RAH...RAH...woman's lib...and feminism rocks*
However, Val blew feminism to smithereens. She vacillated between Jack and Lucas for the entirety of the book. Oh, and let's not forget the one night wonder of Ian, who she slept with just to prove that she didn't want Lucas. She had sex with Ian and left his room immediately after the deed was done and discovered Jack in her room when she returned. She goes all mooney over Jack because he was the man she loved. Umm, excuse me Slutty Spice, but you just slept with one man to forget about a man you lusted after but was not the man you loved. *Skeevy*. What a slutty and tangled web Val weaved. She auto-orgasmed twice, one time from Jack and one time from Lucas, with very little to almost no stimulation. Really? Auto-orgasm? What woman does that?!?! This story was supposed to be a paranormal romance and not a fantasy.

I am not trying to be cruel but the story was weak and the romance, between any of the characters, was non-existent. How could any romance occur when Val was aroused by every Tom, Dick, and Tree Stump? The story lacked any parallelism because of all the time jumps and really didn't start until my Kindle was at 40%. Hansen ended the story, basically in mid-paragraph...I suppose her version of a cliffhanger...to encourage the reader to buy the next book in the series, Love is Fear. People say the second book in a series is often better than the first...I'm not sure about that.

My head is yelling PASS!!!! on the next one. This book received great reviews on GR and on Amazon so maybe I'm missing something.
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Jan 18, 2013 Marina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: a-class-vampires, all-things-paranormal, erotic-romance, kick-ass-heroes-heroines

Lucas. A 1600 year old vampire King attempting to restore ballance in both supernatural and human world, while attempting to keep at bay his unquenchable desire for Val, a Hunter's daughter and Empath. She could destroy him with only her emotions. Bring him to his knees with her confusing want for him. Torn between games of politics, rebellions, and a pull so strong it does not end with this book but keeps us waiting for more.

His gaze burned into hers, words quiet and forceful. “You want me to

...more

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Sep 23, 2011 Lauren Stewart rated it 5 of 5 stars

These characters are fantastic. How I love a book with two equally sexy men and a cute, funny heroine. It was really enjoyable and I have no idea what will happen in book two. In fact, I don't even know what I WANT to have happen in book two. Hmm... :)

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 14, 2012 BamaGal rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Readers looking for a non-cutesy vampire read

Shelves: pnr-uf

2 Stars for the first half; 4 Stars for the last half.

I'm not even sure how to go about reviewing this one, it's hard to articulate all my thoughts without rambling on. I liked the story. There was nothing really new about it, but it was interesting; and for the most part kept my attention. The first part of the book really needed some editing. It went on and on in places, then jumped and jerked around in others. The worst part (for me) was that it was vampire soap opera, and I don't like soap o...more 2 Stars for the first half; 4 Stars for the last half.

I'm not even sure how to go about reviewing this one, it's hard to articulate all my thoughts without rambling on. I liked the story. There was nothing really new about it, but it was interesting; and for the most part kept my attention. The first part of the book really needed some editing. It went on and on in places, then jumped and jerked around in others. The worst part (for me) was that it was vampire soap opera, and I don't like soap opera. Nor did I particularly care for any of the players in the story. Valerie acted like a hormonal 15 year old teenager; all she thought about was sex, whenever and whoever. She's about to die, and she's lusting. If that wasn't bad enough, all the guys around her acted like she had a magic vajayjay; even a 1600 year old vampire who is bound to have had better in his day.

The last part of the book was the saving grace of the story. Hanson was definitely channeling Anne Rice for this part of her book. The story amped it up to almost a horror level, and this is where the real action in the story took place. These are the vampires that are real monsters, not the misunderstood lost souls looking for their truemates like in a great deal of today's PNR/UF. You'd never mistake these vampires for humans with fangs; and I really liked that in the book. It's good to have the balance and different POV of vampires.

I will read the next book. After trudging through the first half, I really liked the second half; and really want to know where the story in this vampire world is going. Looks like the reader has werewolves and fey to look forward to in the series. I like that. I am going to take a break in between books and read something else, though. As much as I like the story, I don't think I can deal with the annoying Valerie in back to back books. I need a break from her. Hopefully, (please) she'll be a little more mature by the next book. Pretty good story, series shows promise.

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Nov 19, 2012 Michelle Cummings rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampire, urban-fantasy

I absolutely loved this book (except for the kindle typos, but I don't blame the author for that). To me this is a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer (see why I liked it?!) and the Fever series. But it doesn't feel derivative in any sense to me. I found the storytelling phenomenal, the characters engaging and the worldbuilding quite fascinating, and some parts actually laugh out loud funny. (one such quote "probably not a Kindle kind of guy. Just a guess.") I had absolutely no problem steppi...more

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Nov 11, 2011 Alisha rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Rating: 3.5, I think.
Shorty Review:
This was an incredibly fun story, with a feisty (and sometimes really moody) heroine, and two majorly sexy male suitors. ^_^ It'd be higher, but I can't--cannot--ignore the fact that the book was in dire need of a copyedit/proofread. The story was great, lots of fun. But it was seriously riddled with errors of all types, almost inexcusably so. A crying shame, because the story is full of awesomeness. The one thing that kept this book from being a favorite of mi...more

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Mar 03, 2013 Mistress of the Dark Path rated it 3 of 5 stars

Love is Darkness begins in the past, rather than present. It takes the reader to an important scene among some key vampires that will affect the main character, Valerie Dearborn, even if she doesn't know it yet. From there you will follow brief periods of Valerie's life until reaching the present. This helps give more background to the story, but also slows down its progression. You learn that the death of Valerie's mother to vampires changed everything in her life. Her father became a stranger...more Love is Darkness begins in the past, rather than present. It takes the reader to an important scene among some key vampires that will affect the main character, Valerie Dearborn, even if she doesn't know it yet. From there you will follow brief periods of Valerie's life until reaching the present. This helps give more background to the story, but also slows down its progression. You learn that the death of Valerie's mother to vampires changed everything in her life. Her father became a stranger bent only on revenge, so she has little emotional support. She gained a "foster brother" of sorts, named Jack, who she slowly falls in love with as they grow up together. The main reason they don't become more is Jack's parents were murdered by a vampire (just as Valerie's mother was) and he has turned cold, bent on revenge. That makes him a better companion for her father, as they work together in hunting down vampires. Yet she wants no part of it.

All the while, the most powerful vampire on earth, Lucas, has been watching over Valerie with future plans in mind. He is dark, sexy, and enigmatic. She is drawn to him, and though she cares for Jack, it is the vampire who calls to her in ways she has never felt before. Lucas teaches her new things and gives her a purpose, even if it is one she resents. Their personalities clash, but the sparks fly between them. This leaves Valerie confused, as she knows she loves Jack, but doesn't know if there can ever be anything more with him. Now that she is an adult and on her own, she must decide what is best for her life and whether she should let anyone force her into doing things she doesn't want to do. Whether those dictates come from the humans or vampires in her life.

I have mixed emotions about this book. From the beginning, Valerie came off as young, immature, and weak. You give her a break because she is a teenager and this is somewhat expected. The only problem is once you reach present day, she still acts the same way, even though she is now twenty-one and in graduate school. Eventually, part of the reason for this is revealed. She is an Empath, which means she is affected by the emotions of others around her. Without knowing this about herself, or receiving training in her abilities, it has made Valerie emotionally vulnerable. This is understandable to a certain extent, but it doesn't mean I have to enjoy the way it has shaped her personality. Just to caveat that, though, she wasn't all bad. I enjoyed the way she clashed with other characters in the book at times. Valerie wasn't just some girl who let people walk all over her, she had great moments where she really stuck up for herself, no matter the opposition. That made her endearing and helped me to keep reading the story.

Most of the early part of the book is back-story and covers about a ten year span. Once the novel reaches present day, things get more interesting. Lucas gives Valerie a job helping him track down supposedly extinct supernaturals, which brings them into closer contact than before, but it begins a rather rocky relationship. The main problem I had with this book is not a lot actually got accomplished. It was more of an introduction which focused on world building and character development, without progressing the plot very much. A ton of questions got raised and few of them were answered. There are moments of action and danger, but they pretty much involve Valerie's life being threatened and Lucas saving her. To give her credit, she did save herself in a couple instances.

Though I have these few complaints with the book, I actually did like it. The characters were endearing. I felt genuine interest in what would happen next and I was completely sucked into the ending. I wasn't happy it came as a cliffhanger, but the next book releases in December so I don't have to wait too long to see what happens next. One thing I will warn is that this book may be considered adult paranormal, but it really reads a lot like YA. Plus there were some occasional errors that need to be cleaned up. These things may bother some readers, but I believe the potential for this series is great and have every intention of continuing it. I'm curious to see where everything goes and have high hopes for Valerie maturing over time. For the purpose of this review, I give it 3 stars with the hopes of a greater rating on the next one. If you like dark vampire tales with (mostly) human women as main characters, then you might try this one out. It isn't a bad read and certainly has the prospect of getting even better. (less)

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May 08, 2013 Kristy Centeno rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book was a little controversial in terms of relationship, but I’d be lying if I told you I did not enjoy it. The author really made this story her own, building the characters to such a degree it’s as if you can actually visualize people you’ve met in your lifetime.
The plot flowed nicely and quickly. The love triangle between the main characters had me confused at first, but I grew to understand Val’s indecision (even though I seriously wanted to get inside her head and tell her to make up...more

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Apr 06, 2013 Julia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: alpha-male, borrowed, cliffhanger, paranormal

Valerie's family is screwed up. She has a dead mother, a disinterested father, and a quasi-boyfriend who may be hot and dangerous, but frankly pisses me off. So, how is it that Valerie, a girl who wants absolutely nothing to do with her family vampire hunting business, ends up being so immersed that there is no possible escape? The answer is both complicated and simple...lust. Specifically the lust of Lucas, the vampire king. I love how the book description puts it, "after 1600 years of an emoti...more

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Feb 01, 2013 Damiellar rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook, series, vampire, romance, 2013, 2013rom, supernatural-themes

This story opens with Lucas (the head of the vampires) feeling a bit blah with life, what pulls him out is the discovery that one of his subjects has just fed (to death) on an empath and is now riding a high (reminiscent of 'The World on Blood'). Lucas kills him (to stop the word spreading) after learning that the woman in question had a daughter. That daughter is Valerie. Her father becomes a vampire hunter but Lucas protects her as he has a use for her.

The main body of the book takes place 15...more

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Sep 23, 2012 Elizabeth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, reviewed, hem-steppers-and-bodice-rippers, in-by-of-the-americas, in-by-of-england, vamps-and-other-mythical-beasts

This is extremely uneven, badly edited, and some of it is just painful to read, but I liked it. I liked it the way I liked Darkfever, which means in spite of a lot of things, particularly the heroine. Valerie is stupid. She's in denial. We only see her in scenes when either her life is in danger or she seems to be in heat. Take a cold shower, dear, avoid public places until you learn to control yourself, please. And she likes terrible stuff: chain restaurants, lousy music, monopoly games, emotio...more

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May 09, 2012 Amazon80 rated it 2 of 5 stars

OK, its more like 2.5. Valerie was an eyewitness to the vampire attack that killed her mother. Its understandable that she might have a fear of vampires but it doesn't help that being a vampire Hunter is the family biz. At first I felt a lot of sympathy for Val and her dilemma but quickly changed my mind. Val came off as selfish and petulant. She didn't have to be a blood thirsty Hunter hell bent on revenge but the whining was too much. The relationship she has with her father makes me dislike h...more

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Apr 17, 2012 Nawnee rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: authors-i-m-addicted-to, books-i-couldn-t-put-down, hot-and-steamy-yum-yum

This is the first in a supernatural series where the main character's father has a life long obsession with hunting and killing vampire's. Valerie wants nothing more than a normal life and the constant fighting and blood shed have made her determined to make her life as normal as possible. She has no idea how far from normal she is until the king of vampire's takes an interest in her, Valerie has no idea that she is probably the last empathy a live, and Lucius wants her to be his mind body and s...more

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Apr 12, 2012 Rauli rated it 2 of 5 stars

I cannot say I enjoyed this book or the second as I read then in a compilation. It is very different to the tone in most books I read, much more frenzied, hopeless and dark, the humor was much drier and had an edge of fear or conversely sadistic glee. I find that ignoring the supernatural elements of "Love is Darkness" it paints the rough brushstrokes of desolation and desperation as well as that more hurtful than helpful hope that can be found in the most drab parts of any city in the world.Lea...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Ciara rated it 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved this book!! A mixture of drama, wit, sex, and history-Caroline Hanson got it right!!!! Valeria Dearborn had her mother killed by a vampire and now her father has become a renown vampire slayer. Jack becomes apart of their somber lil family when his parents are ravagely taken from him at the hands at a ruthless vampire. Together, Jack and her father try to convince Val to train as a Hunter so she, too, can rid the world of vampires and avenge her mothers death. Instead Val deci...more

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Jan 08, 2012 Amanda Cogar rated it 2 of 5 stars

This store is one centered around Valerie Dearborn, an Empath whose love interest begins with Jack, an orphan who trains as a vampire hunter by her father, Nate. Enter Lucas, King of the Vampires as a instant lust centered character. I like the switching perspective from chapter to chapter, the characters are diversified, the plot is sound and interesting as well as entertaining and the idea of an Empath heroine is a nice change from the usual of this cannon. However, that's where my praise ends...more

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Dec 30, 2011 Kay rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-reads, uf-or-paranormal

Valerie wants a normal life away from her vampire hunter family friend, Jack & her father. While away at college in London, Lucas, the king of all vampires, propositions her to find the Others who are the werewolfs, empaths and the fae. The Others were destroyed many, many years ago by Lucas & his vampires. He feels that by bringing the Others back, it should bring back a balance to their paranormal world. Valerie agrees and in exchange, Lucas must promise safety for her father's and Jac...more

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Dec 28, 2011 Shelley rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance

Valerie is a very reluctant vampire hunter. Actually, so reluctant, she runs away in search of a normal life. To her annoyance, running thousands of miles to London puts her right in the middle of more vampires but similar problems.

I enjoyed the plot of this book very much. My main gripe is Valerie; she has felt unwanted and abandoned by her father since her mother's death. He became a dedicated vampire hunter because his wife was killed by a vampire. So Val does have issues to deal with. Her fa...more Valerie is a very reluctant vampire hunter. Actually, so reluctant, she runs away in search of a normal life. To her annoyance, running thousands of miles to London puts her right in the middle of more vampires but similar problems.

I enjoyed the plot of this book very much. My main gripe is Valerie; she has felt unwanted and abandoned by her father since her mother's death. He became a dedicated vampire hunter because his wife was killed by a vampire. So Val does have issues to deal with. Her father is remote, without fatherly affection; she knows how vicious vampires are, she has a "foster brother " whom she loves (or lusts after??). But by the end of the book, Val doesnt seem to have learned very much about herself, nor how to resolve any of her issues. I would suggest that someone in her (often precarious) situation should stop thinking about sex and concentrate on making some decisions about her life! It all becomes a bit wearing when she changes her mind, virtually within the same sentence about the hunky men she is involved with. I dont understand how a woman would be drooling over a man when she can't trust him as far as she could throw him. Which wouldn't be far as Val appears to be a bit on the wussy side.

I believe the reader would understand her aversion to a relationship with her "foster brother" Jack from the start, so having it belaboured every time she encounters him gets a bit exhausting, particularly as she really just wants to jump him at every opportunity. Ditto her relationship with the Big Bad Vampire. I dont think it is possible to condemn someone at face value one moment and then consider emotions and feelings the next. All sounds a bit PMTish. But this is just a small gripe - I suppose the "will they/won't they" story line is what a romance story is all about.

I'm definately intrigued enough to get the next in the series; I just hope Val is going to learn how to control herself when hunky men are around, or at least get down to "business"...... she might then find time to sort out the world (supernatural world that is).(less)

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Dec 21, 2011 Samantha **ParaNormal Romance Party** rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 4-4-5-stars, bad-boy-lover, enemies-turned-lovers, erotic-romance, pnr-romance, vampire-lover, love-triangle, reviewed

***4.5 Stars***

1st line in the book---> He wasn't God.

Caroline Hanson does a brilliant job in taking the vampire myth and putting a twist to it. I had been hearing how her Vamps are not the romanticized version many stories portray them as today. Instead, they are more Anne Rice style. Her vampires are deadly, they are selfish, and eat people because its their nature.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story! Valerie Dearborn is one of the last surviving Empaths in the world. Living in a family of vamp...more

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Dec 12, 2011 Mike rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book was referred to me by someone that I know and trust - so I expected to enjoy it. And it was incredibly easy to read, with a great style and voice. But, as a story, it was disappointing.

I plowed through the first 25% of the book based entirely on that word of mouth recommendation. The opening is primarily flashbacks that contribute little to the story. You can feel the author finding herself as she tries to build her characters. But, it is not at all organic - you don't come to know the...more This book was referred to me by someone that I know and trust - so I expected to enjoy it. And it was incredibly easy to read, with a great style and voice. But, as a story, it was disappointing.

I plowed through the first 25% of the book based entirely on that word of mouth recommendation. The opening is primarily flashbacks that contribute little to the story. You can feel the author finding herself as she tries to build her characters. But, it is not at all organic - you don't come to know the characters as the story unfolds, you're handed their back stories in a "Here, this is what makes this person tick" kind of way. The book would have benefited greatly if the important info from all these flashbacks was woven into the story itself in a more natural way.

That alone wouldn't be an insurmountable problem, but it is a huge portion of the writing to devote to stuff that doesn't advance the plot. Thankfully, once we get into the current day the story starts to feel like it is moving... and quickly. Unfortunately, it doesn't have any real destination.

Nothing happens in this book. There is a lot of conflict... internal and external, with almost every character. And the characters themselves are so well written that you want to like them. There are no two-dimensional cartoon characters here. But, the author doesn't do anything with these great characters. It's only because of all the conflict and likable characters that the lack of a plot isn't painfully obvious.

Overall, this book would have worked really well as foundational elements of another novel. The author toys with some interesting premises that hold promise, but didn't do anything with them. She gave us great characters, but didn't do anything with them. She started to build an interesting world, but didn't finish fleshing it out.

The author has a lot of promise! I enjoyed her writing. I was just left frustrated be her lack of plot. Maybe in the future she'll develop the missing elements of a story as well as she has those she's excelling at.

Completely secondarily... The formatting on this book was a nightmare. I'm hoping she'll spend a little time with google and MS Word and get things worked out in time for anything else she publishes. (less)

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Dec 09, 2011 MsBDiamondDiva1 rated it 5 of 5 stars

Loved, loved and loved this short. Even with the story pretty much being the norm, the author did make enough unique qualities that it keep me drawn in. I love that Valerie aka "Val", really just wants a normal life after seeing her mother murdered by a vampire. Not only does that night bring the destruction of their family, it also makes her existence known to Lucas; king of the vampires. And Lucas is set out on making Val his, he watches Val from a distance; making sure she is safe. Val's chil...more

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Nov 15, 2011 Meg rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-fantasy, paranormal-romance, urban-fantasy

The description pretty well sums up the book. Valerie Dearborn wants a simple human life, but she keeps getting sucked into the dark underworld of the Others...well, the vampires anyway.

Overall, this was a good book, but not a great one. The characters were reasonably believable, the plot was fast enough to keep me entertained, but there were also quite a few problems that were distracting during the read, including grammar and spelling errors, and problematic point of view switches (one paragra...more The description pretty well sums up the book. Valerie Dearborn wants a simple human life, but she keeps getting sucked into the dark underworld of the Others...well, the vampires anyway.

Overall, this was a good book, but not a great one. The characters were reasonably believable, the plot was fast enough to keep me entertained, but there were also quite a few problems that were distracting during the read, including grammar and spelling errors, and problematic point of view switches (one paragraph from one character followed immediately by another paragraph from a different character, and back again). At $.99, it’s a fun distraction and a quick romp in urban fantasy, but don’t expect anything extraordinary.

Characters: *** 3 Stars
Nearly every character in this novel was a contradiction of themselves. Valerie wants to have a “normal” life, but she loves men who can’t give her that normalcy. In fact, the only man that could, Ian, is a non-character that was present for a couple of chapters and unnecessary for the plot. I actually would have preferred her just focusing on her grad school studies rather than getting involved with a stand-in. Meanwhile, Jack is the bad boy from her past that simultaneously wants to protect her by keeping her away from the action, but gets jealous when she actually tries to have a life outside of his world. Lucas is the vampire king that has been emotionless for centuries, but on finding out that Valerie is an empath, wants to take her as his own while using her as a tool to find more of the Others (empaths, werewolves, and fae). None of the characters really grew through the story or resolved their issues, although at least Valerie realized she was probably never going to have her white picket dream.

Plot: *** 3 Stars
Beyond the basic spelling and grammar issues (which automatically subtract a star), the story concept was strong but the execution of the plot was forgettable. The intro flashback chapters could have been incorporated into the rest of the story better, providing integrated background and adding some suspense instead of being front-loaded on the novel. Once we finally get into the meat of the story, Valerie does a lot of complaining while being whooshed around by Lucas or ordered around by Jack. Some of the action sequences toward the end were good, and the verbal repartee was fun, but there were huge plot holes that needed to be filled. For example, a whole section of the story is devoted to Valerie doing research on the Others. Lucas whisks her off to the British Library, sneaking her into the stacks using his ability to dematerialize. However, in subsequent chapters, Valerie is going to the library on her own. How does she get to the books she needs without Lucas? Similarly, she finally discovers some information, but never has a chance to report it to Lucas, yet somehow he magically knows about it. It left me with a lot of unanswered questions.

The ending also left me hanging. It was too open-ended and too abrupt, like a cliff-hanger at the end of your favorite TV series before they go on break for the holidays. LOVE IS DARKNESS clearly wasn’t intended to be a stand-alone novel, but I shouldn’t have turned the last virtual page thinking there were still several chapters to go.

Setting: **** 4 Stars
I love London, so the setting worked for me, but probably because I’ve been there. The description was somewhat limited, and I never fully felt sucked into the world, but I was still able to enjoy it.

Romance: *** 3 Stars
The love triangle was set up nicely, but failed due to an overabundance of jealousy, lack of willpower, and inability to make a decision. I loved the tension between Valerie and her two interests, but I never felt emotionally involved in either relationship. I wanted to her to have some kind of epiphany, even a small one, that would start her down the path toward one of the men.

Genre - Urban Fantasy: **** 4 Stars
LOVE IS DARKNESS fit right in to the urban fantasy genre. It’s dark enough to please, with a couple of kinky twists and lots of vampire action. That being said, I didn’t feel the story offered anything new to the genre, so I can’t give it a full 5 stars.
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Nov 02, 2011 J.A. Ball rated it 5 of 5 stars

Simply put... AMAZING! Now for the details.

Hanson has easily earned a position in my top ten favorite authors, which is not easy to do. I consider myself a tough customer and Caroline Hanson has solidly delivered! Her plot was involved and woven very well. Her pacing was spot on and she did a good job of providing tension and conflict in the form of external and internal conflict in every scene. Character development was great as well, I felt connected with the characters and could really visual...more

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Oct 23, 2011 Brob rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is probably one of the best indie adult books that I have purchased on amazon (and that says a lot). It is very well written and not riddled with grammar errors or plot holes. Furthermore, it is somewhat original. Yes there are vampires and the rest, however, there are empaths thrown in and it makes the story unique.

Valerie is fierce. At least the majority of the time. She makes a great strong lead and if you enjoy Merit from Chicagoland Vampires you will like Val. She is finding hers...more

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Oct 20, 2011 Carrie (Badass, Alpha-male, Cowboy Connoisseur ) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I am a paranormal romance and all things vampire junkie. There isn't much I haven't read, and finding a book with a new twist on things is hard to come by. With that said, I was skimming through my Kindle one evening looking for a book to jump out at me, I came accross Love is Darkness and thought "hmmmm, let's give it a try". A few hours later and some very swoon worthy moments, I finished the book and went on the search for book number 2. My heart ached when I found out I would have to wait un...more I am a paranormal romance and all things vampire junkie. There isn't much I haven't read, and finding a book with a new twist on things is hard to come by. With that said, I was skimming through my Kindle one evening looking for a book to jump out at me, I came accross Love is Darkness and thought "hmmmm, let's give it a try". A few hours later and some very swoon worthy moments, I finished the book and went on the search for book number 2. My heart ached when I found out I would have to wait until December to find out what was going to happen next. DECEMBER!!!! this is torture.

Our heroine, Valerie Dearborn is a woman that wants to be free of the nightmare she has been forced to live since she was a child, she gets into the college she wants, then eventually moves to London in search of freedom. Little does she know that a blast from her past is about to come knocking on her perverbial door and her life is going to be no where near normal.

Enter the luscious Vampire King Lucas, **Sigh**.......sorry, I got sidetracked. Lucas is HOT, treacherous and oh so smooth, Valerie can't decide what she is doing with him, but she knows exactly what she wants to do with him (wink, wink). And the fact he agrees to protect her and the ones she loves if she agrees to help him find something or somethings that he wants puts her right in the middle of some very unpleasnt situations. She also is let in on the secret that she is an Empath and that makes her very desriable (in not a good way) to vampires. The story weaves in colorful characters (oh Marion you are a cruel one), tender moments, anger, confusion, blood, gore, manipulation, treason, sadness and romance. Did I mention the HOT vampire king? There are questions that need to be answered here! Can Lucas keep his hands off Valerie and his teeth out of her? Does she want him too? Will she find the peace she is looking for? Needless to say I was blown away by the first book in this series and I am eagerly awaiting book number 2 "Love is Fear". Oh Ms. Caroline you have bewitched me. Awesome book solid 5 stars (less)

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Oct 17, 2011 Nancy Cavaliere rated it 5 of 5 stars

Okay, let me just say...OMF'in G!!! I devoured this book! The storyline is SO GOOD, like ice cream on a hot day, its very fast paced, and the character development is amazing! The romance is sexy, fulfilling and has a hint of fear, but in a good way.

Warning Spoilers Ahead-

Our main Gal, Val, is completely captivating with her wittiness, sarcasm, innocence and her sense of right and wrong. I really liked the fact that Caroline made Val so intense, shes almost reckless with her emotions and her pas...more

3 likes · like · see review

Oct 09, 2011 Emily Miller rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I always find it interesting to read how different authors’ imaginations build and mold the vastly popular paranormal genre into stories that stand out among all the hundreds of books on vampires, werewolves, fey and witches. Caroline Hanson definitely adds new character and insight to this world with Love is Darkness.

I love when a book can make you feel the emotions of its characters. When reading Love is Darkness, I definitely felt Val’s hurt in not feeling loved and her determination to find...more

2 likes · like · see review

Dec 15, 2011 Steph rated it 4 of 5 stars

4 1/2 Stars

Another surprisingly decent cheap read. I am again struck by how many good Indy authors there are out there. The first book in the series is a twist on the very overdone subject of Vampires. But don't let that deter you from checking out this very engaging and fast read. A little more UF than PNR, but there are still plenty of hot scenes to take in.
*******
Valerie Dearborn wants a cotton candy life, but it’s more like a puffer fish: pointy, unusual, and—if not prepared exactly right—de...more

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Nov 05, 2011 Mithrendiel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance, vampires

This book came up on a Goodreads discussion thread about books similar to Moning’s Fever series. It is a little indie book from a self-published author. I found it refreshingly engaging, witty, and well written. I’m not sure I’d compare it to Moning’s Fever series because it’s not an epic fantasy novel, but I can draw favorable parallels to the Neill’s Chicagoland series. Love is Darkness however, stands up on it's own two legs as a superb addition to the parnormal romance genre.

Premise:

Valerie...more

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Oct 02, 2011 Gothic Angel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: most-favourite

What to say about this book? Well if it was possible to give it more than 5 stars, you can trust me, I would. Why? Well let me explain:

When I first heard about this book, I took one look at the cover and thought it was SMOKING hot. That was the initial draw for me, because I like a book to have an enticing cover. Yes, I know you can still get a good story even with mediocre cover art, but it always helps if the cover is aesthetically pleasing.

Second of all, I read the 'blurb' on Amazon and it so...more

3 likes · like · see review

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About Caroline Hanson

Caroline Hanson grew up in California and moved to London in order to dance and go to pubs. Eventually, she matured enough to marry and imported an Englishman, returning to the United States.

After passing the bar, she had two children and now tries to parent, read, write and play tennis. She's heard rumors that other mothers clean and cook but is putting in serious effort to make sure those rumors...more

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Books by Caroline Hanson

Love Is The Beginning (Valerie Dearborn, #0.5)

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Quotes from Love is Darkness

“You want me to be unselfish? A vampire is selfish. We kill so that we can survive, that is the ultimate selfishness.” — 3 people liked it

“Of course it was, this was perfect Jack. She could tear his fucking heart out and he'd want to know is she broke a nail.” — 1 person liked it

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Love is Darkness (Valerie Dearborn #1)

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