Dark and Disorderly

May 05, 2012 Katepc rated it 4 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed Dark and Disorderly. The characters are well crafted and their interactions are realistic. The developing relationship between Johnny and Lillie is deliciously and realistically angsty.

I have to admit to being a little uneasy at how often Johnny showed up to rescue Lillie, but it was a minor detraction from a plot that clipped along nicely with a suitably tense conclusion.

As soon as I finished reading the book, I headed here to find the next one in the series, as accustome...more

like · see review

Apr 18, 2011 Storm Grant rated it 5 of 5 stars

I just finished reading DARK AND DISORDERLY and loved it. The world-building is complex and original, the characters very real. It's a nearby alternate universe in which certain paranormal elements have become part of life--with both good and bad consequences.

I had a little trouble figuring out where it was set--seemed sort of England, sort of the USA. I googled the author and discovered she lives in Southern Ontario only a couple of hours from me. Once I envisioned small-town Ontario, I got a...more

like · see review

Jan 20, 2011 Lisa Richards rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance

I finally gave in and got a Kindle at Christmas and one of the first things I did was download all the Net Galley books that the generous publishers had given me to read. I had only read a few as I totally hated to read on my PC. But it was a whole different ballgame reading on the Kindle. The fact that the first book I read on the Kindle, Dark and Disorderly, was purely coincidental. And boy am I glad it was first, because it was fabulous. I loved the trip that Harris took us on and look forwar...more I finally gave in and got a Kindle at Christmas and one of the first things I did was download all the Net Galley books that the generous publishers had given me to read. I had only read a few as I totally hated to read on my PC. But it was a whole different ballgame reading on the Kindle. The fact that the first book I read on the Kindle, Dark and Disorderly, was purely coincidental. And boy am I glad it was first, because it was fabulous. I loved the trip that Harris took us on and look forward to more books in this series. Please, please say it's going to be a series.
First of all the opening sentence, "I was standing there naked when my dead husband walked into my bathroom..." now tell me how can that not hook you?
Harris's characters Lillie and Thresher caused sparks every time they ran into one another. I just loved the spunky spit fire Talent. Her job (talent) was to dispatch ghosts in this alternate world where everyone knew about ghosts, zombies and other such creatures.
Despite the fact that someone or something seemed intent on doing away with her, she was going to do her job. This was a fun read that once I got about a third of the way through, was unable to lay down till I had finished it and solved the mystery. There was a lot of action and excitement that kept me clutching the book (er Kindle). Oh, and the scene where Lillie is hunting a missing girl and the little ditty "Ding dong dell" just made me want to gather the child up, much as Lillie did before I burst into tears. I loved the world that Harris created and hope we will see more of Lillie and Thresher. The only jarring thing I found was some of the "big" words where simpler would have been better. But hey, I got to use the nice feature on my Kindle that immediately told me the meaning
of any words that were in doubt whereas I'd probably not have bothered to double check the meaning if it meant looking it up in Websters. I've heard other reviewers compare this book to Harrison's and Armstrong's and while I agree, I honestly think it was a whole different take on the paranormal that was outstanding on its own. (less)

like · see review

Jan 20, 2011 Sho rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy

From Audible review
Surprisingly fun
This was the first book I read of from this author and I enjoyed it very much. First I was a bit confused about the world setting but that got cleared up pretty quickly. Like most of the urban fantasy novels the heroin Lillie is tough and has loads of trouble coming after her. The difference from other books is that even though the heroin has an extraordinary strong necromancer-like talent, she feels like an “ordinary” person. She isn’t too tough, sexy, and an...more

like · see review

Dec 12, 2010 NovelReaction added it

Lillie St. Claire is just starting to recover from the mess her husband’s death has left her life in, not that it was any better when he was alive, when his zombified body appears in her bathroom as she is about to slip into a bath. Dark & Disorderly by Bernita Harris is about Lillie St. Claire, a Talent who can permanently dispatch the spirits of the dead and is in great demand as the spirits on earth are getting more restless. With the appearance of her husband’s zombified body, Lillie fin...more Lillie St. Claire is just starting to recover from the mess her husband’s death has left her life in, not that it was any better when he was alive, when his zombified body appears in her bathroom as she is about to slip into a bath. Dark & Disorderly by Bernita Harris is about Lillie St. Claire, a Talent who can permanently dispatch the spirits of the dead and is in great demand as the spirits on earth are getting more restless. With the appearance of her husband’s zombified body, Lillie finds herself a suspect in his murder and finds herself having to deal with psi-crime detective John Thresher. Lillie can’t understand why anyone would think she would want to reanimate her husband when he thought she was a Freak and made her life a nightmare.

As if things weren’t bad enough, Lillie finds herself the target of a series of accidents and Thresher decides to stick close to her side as things get more deadly. Lillie finds herself attracted Thresher but is hesitant to let anyone close physically or emotionally after the abuse she suffered from her husband.

Lillie’s talent isn’t an easy one, most of the time she is called upon to get rid of ghosts who like to relive their horrific death or crimes they committed, like getting rid of pedophile ghosts who linger around children’s playgrounds making children uncomfortable. Most members of society are both nervous of Lillie’s talent and super demanding of her powers to get rid of the apparitions. I really enjoyed this novel. Lillie was a sympathetic character with all that she has gone through without being weak, always a fine line for an author to tread. In many of the urban fantasy novels I have read, the main character has flaws and problems that come about because of selfish choices, I didn’t feel like that was the case here, Lillie pushed herself to the edge of her powers both physically and emotionally because she feels strongly that the ghosts lingering behind to terrorize the living need to be dispatched as soon as possible. One of my favorite characters is Lillie’s ghost dog Dumbarton, not only does he scare away intruders, he also spends time chasing the ghost squirrels that reside in the cemetery next door. Thresher’s history is left wide open and I eagerly look forward to the next book in the series. Dark and Disorderly was a great mix of mystery, paranormal and mythology and I recommend it(less)

like · see review

Oct 28, 2010 Chibineko rated it 5 of 5 stars

Once in a while you come across one of those books that not only hooks you, but makes you scream when the book ends. Not because it is bad, but because you wanted it to keep going. This is one of those books & Bernita Harris has officially become one of my top ten to watch out for.

About two weeks ago Lillie St. Clair's abusive husband perished in a car accident. A few nights ago he came back in the form of an undead creature bent on destroying her. She manages to dispatch him this time but n...more Once in a while you come across one of those books that not only hooks you, but makes you scream when the book ends. Not because it is bad, but because you wanted it to keep going. This is one of those books & Bernita Harris has officially become one of my top ten to watch out for.

About two weeks ago Lillie St. Clair's abusive husband perished in a car accident. A few nights ago he came back in the form of an undead creature bent on destroying her. She manages to dispatch him this time but now the trouble comes with figuring out who would want her gone. As a Talent, a person capable of not only seeing but also dispatching ghosts, there's no end to the list of people who would want her dead, with groups hating her for her abilities as well as for the fact she can exorcise ghosts. When she meets the sexy John Thresher Lillie assumes that she can add his name onto the "people who don't like me" list. What she didn't bargain for was her intense attraction to him.

If you love books that deal in paranormal romance or just urban fantasy in general, you'll probably love this book. As it is, this reviewer found it incredibly hard to put this book down. There's just so much to love about this book. First you have a female character who doesn't sit around hoping people will take care of her & protect her. She's perfectly happy to care for herself, yet she doesn't come across as one of those characters who is always at odds with men trying to help her out. Even better, when her character starts thinking in terms of "poor me", she has entirely valid reasons to think that & never really uses it as a way of garnering sympathy from anyone. Then we have the mystery of who exactly is after Lillie & what exactly is going on- this book will have many guessing until the end. Plus there's other things about the book that I loved, such as what ultimately happens between Lillie & John by the end of the book. I can't specify what it is without ruining it, but I loved how Harris is pacing things.

The only thing that needed a little work is that at the beginning a lot is going on & at times it just felt a little jumbled. Not so much that it would turn people off, but enough to where you'll notice.

Even so, this is a fantastic start to what I'm going to optimistically predict will be a fan favorite for quite a long time. This book may be in e-book format only at this time, but I'm going to guess that it isn't going to stay that way. Why this isn't getting a wider release is beyond me- my addiction to this book reminded me of the first time I picked up Kim Harrison, Kelley Armstrong, or Sherrilyn Kenyon. I can only hope that the next book in the series will come out soon- I'm really jonesing for my next dose of Bernita Harris!

(ARC provided by NetGalley) (less)

like · see review

Aug 17, 2010 Marissa Dobson rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2010

The cover for Dark and Disorderly caught my attention immediately, and the blurb had me adding it to my must read list. I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but a good cover goes a long way. This is the first book I have read by

In Dark and Disorderly I never knew what was coming next. It was wonderful. Every twist was a surprise, and I loved that because you can't find many books like that.

I have to say that the beginning I felt overwhelmed with all the information, but I felt that i...more

like · see review

Jul 22, 2010 Lillie Roberts rated it 5 of 5 stars

Lillie St. Claire is one of the lucky few, one of the new "Freaks", one of the Talents. Some say it was an asteroid passing close to the Earth, some say it's a new natural phenomenon, whatever the reason, the shimmering silver sheen of her hair gives her away. The Talents are the individuals who have some form of psychic ability, Sensitives.... clairvoyance, ghost exorcists, necromancers... and the walking undead that have become common everyday occurrences.

Lillie has had a rough couple of weeks...more Lillie St. Claire is one of the lucky few, one of the new "Freaks", one of the Talents. Some say it was an asteroid passing close to the Earth, some say it's a new natural phenomenon, whatever the reason, the shimmering silver sheen of her hair gives her away. The Talents are the individuals who have some form of psychic ability, Sensitives.... clairvoyance, ghost exorcists, necromancers... and the walking undead that have become common everyday occurrences.

Lillie has had a rough couple of weeks, first her husband is killed in a suspicious car accident, then someone sends the apparition of her departed husband back to visit, and later his zombie. It doesn't get much worse than a visit from your husband's zombie. She doesn't do zombies, everyone in the department knows this, and yet when is comes down to it, who do you think is going to get blamed?

Johnny Thresher, a psi-crime detective, comes into department when Police Chief Bobby Secord is attacked by a rogue zombie, maybe the same one that Lillie's been having problems with, only who could have risen the dead and lost control of it? He doesn't know what to think until he experiences an attack himself, at Ms. St. Claire's home. Maybe there's more going on in this quiet little town than he expected, or maybe Ms. St. Claire isn't what she seems. Regardless, he needs to get to the bottom of the problem before anyone else gets hurt.

Dark and Disorderly by Bernita Harris is a dark, first person point of view paranormal romance/urban fantasy where something has happened, something unexplainable, something paranatural. For some reason, children are being born with pre-cognitive abilities and there's been a large influx of paranormal activity. The Talents as they have become to be known as are the only defense that the "Normals" have. And most of the Normals just want the "Godforsaken" (the apparitions, ghosts) to be swiftly dealt with, exorcised with extreme prejudice, especially the ASP (Against Spirit Pollution), but the SOS (Save Our Spirits) has other ideas and doesn't even want the malevolent spirits eliminated, and Lillie finds herself caught in the middle. Lillie St. Claire is one of the Talents and Johnny Thresher is the only person she can turn to, and she's unsure what he's fishing for. He could be looking for guilt, innocence, or maybe something else altogether. Lillie is presented as a woman used to being on her own, burned by the lie of love, used to the harsher realities of life, but still she's an innocent. Johnny Thresher is massively larger than life, used to getting what he wants, and he's not afraid to kick asses and take names. He's a cop on a mission, but Lillie's not quite sure what that mission is.

Dark and Disorderly is an excellent 1st person POV, plot driven story of the urban fantasy variety. There are romantic elements, but I believe the romance will be developed as Lillie's adventures continue. The reader enters this world where ghosts and sensitives are an everyday occurrence and there are organizations and departments in the local constabulary to specifically deal with the issues and problems cause by the apparitions and those who have the power to control them. It has dark elements, this isn't a typical adventure story. There are elements of Irish mysticism and folklore which as the story develops, allows the reader an additional peek into this evolving world. I can't wait to see where Bernita takes Lillie's adventures. I also have to say, the cover art for Dark and Disorderly was nicely done and compliments the story, Lillie pretty closely resembles the written image down to her bracelets. I also love Lillie's ghost dog, Dumbarton, who can choose to be corporeal or not, too cool for the mysterious guard dog.

This is the first book I've review from this new ebook publisher, Carina Press. I choose Dark and Disorderly to be my first review because the author, Bernita Harris, was one of the participants in The Clarity of Night "Silhouette"contest from last January. We both attained the 40's club and I was happy to see her work published, it's well deserved. I have to give it up to Bernita, YAY Bernita, but I also have to say this novel was excellently rounded, entertaining, and attention grabbing. I enjoyed reading about the world she's created and hope to get to see more of it. I recommend this book to all lovers of dark urban fantasy and Irish folklore, it's definitely a worthy read.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Jan 12, 2011 Alexia561 rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook, fantasy

While I've read books before about people who can see and interact with ghosts, don't think I've ever come across someone like Lillie before. I really liked her! She's been considered a freak almost her entire life and is dealing with the betrayal of her late husband, but still has an inner strength that I admired. Despite everything, I think she'll recover and take another chance on romance. And if that chance should somehow involve the interesting Detective Thresher, well....that could be very...more

like · see review

Nov 01, 2010 Jasmyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, romance, urban-fantasy, ghost, mystery, nook

First of all, this cover looks amazing, I want to hang it up on my wall.

Lillie St Claire works for the city dispatching ghosts and other various things that go bump in the night, day, or during recess. She is caught between being respected and feared by almost everyone, but never thought anyone would stoop to trying to kill her.

Enter John Thresher, a psi-crime detective that has his eye on Lillie for multiple reasons. John is the kind of guy that always seems to show up at just the right time t...more

like · see review

Feb 28, 2011 Scooper Speaks rated it 3 of 5 stars

Dark & Disorderly is a paranormal romantic suspense written by Bernita Harris. It takes place in a world in which ghosts have made themselves visible. In response to the dead, some humans seem to have mutated on a genetic level to help deal with the problem. Those people are usually marked by their white hair. They walk a thin line between being respected and feared/despised by other humans.

I want to start by saying, “I never saw the twist this book took.” Some people will call me slow for n...more

like · see review

Sep 06, 2010 Becky rated it 3 of 5 stars

I have some very mixed feelings about this book. I loved the concept, and the first line is a real attention-getter. (And the cover is beautiful, but as we've previously established, I'm shallow like that. Show me a pretty cover and I'm half way to buying the book.) This one has been on my list of Carina Press titles to read since I spotted it just before it was released, and I was so excited when I was able to grab it for 99 cents from Kobo last week.

However.

The reading experience just didn't l...more I have some very mixed feelings about this book. I loved the concept, and the first line is a real attention-getter. (And the cover is beautiful, but as we've previously established, I'm shallow like that. Show me a pretty cover and I'm half way to buying the book.) This one has been on my list of Carina Press titles to read since I spotted it just before it was released, and I was so excited when I was able to grab it for 99 cents from Kobo last week.

However.

The reading experience just didn't live up to my excitement. There was something a little off about the writing. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't quite right, either. In some places the phrasing or expressions used were distracting and left me wondering if the author was British and hadn't quite nailed the Americanisms. (I checked-- she's Canadian.) Then, as I was writing this, I started to wonder if it really was set in the US or if that was just my assumption. I've been skimming the book again, looking for clues, and as of page 75 I'm still not sure. This may seem like a dumb thing to nit pick about, but clearly it's still bugging me two days after finishing the book. Where does this story take place?

Also, I wasn't completely in love with the main character, Lillie. Most of the time I liked her, but there were one or two spots where she came perilously close to TSTL territory. At one point in the story, she and Johnny are trying to make their way through a riot. He tells her to run, and she decides to wade into the fight instead, because she doesn't want to be a coward and leave the others to fight. The idea might be nice, but someone with no training, whom the crowd is actively trying to harm, is a liability not an asset in a situation like that. If the professionals tell you to run, run baby run. There was a scene late in the novel that really redeemed her risk taking for me, though. (I won't give any specifics because I don't want to spoil anything.) The fact that she took this risk when Johnny didn't want her to, and was able to give reasonable, clear headed reasons for putting herself in danger, really showed that she wasn't reckless. She cared more about others than her own personal safety, which helped me like her as a character.

There were some things I really liked about the book, too. The supernatural entities that we meet are interesting and grounded in existing myths. Harris's concept of Talents and how the general public might accept them, or not, was different from a lot of other books in the genre, and I found that refreshing and probably pretty accurate considering human nature. And this is a small thing, but I really like Dumbarton the spectral dog!

Johnny Thresher, and his relationship with Lillie, is something else I have some mixed feelings about. Johnny is an enigma, and I definitely like the fact that there is much more to learn about him. I love a romance that develops slowly over the course of several books, when well executed, so I had no problem with this plot element still being up in the air at the end of the book. I didn't quite buy the chemistry between Johnny and Lillie, though. I really wanted to, but I didn't. The transitions between the mystery/supernatural storylines and the romance storyline were too abrupt and didn't feel natural. Johnny seemed to blow hot and cold throughout the book, and Lillie's sometimes overreaction to him got annoying after a while.

That said, I think this book showed potential. There were storylines that weren't resolved, not enough to be annoying but definitely enough to make you want to see what happens next. And I'm hopeful that as the series progresses the romance will be worked more seamlessly into the narrative. Overall, I'd give this a C-. I didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped to, but I'm interested enough to give the next book in the series a try. (less)

like · see review

Jul 05, 2010 Melissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is the first book in a series of Lillie St. Claire. Her past was not happy and was in fact orphaned at the age of 5. She has had to endure a lot of prejudice because of her "Talent" at an early age and so has no solid sense of self. When she meets the charismatic and sociopathic former husband, Nathan, the torture continues until she doesn't know what is true and false in the world. Despite this, she finds some strength but never feels strong since she constantly has her husband's abus...more

like · see review

Jan 15, 2011 Mikaela rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who love Urban fantasy

Shelves: paranormal-fantasy, suspense

Blurb:

Lillie St. Claire is a Talent, one of the rare few who can permanently dispatch the spirits of the dead that walk the earth. Her skills are in demand in a haunted country, where a plague of ghosts is becoming a civic nuisance.

Those skills bring her into conflict with frightened citizens who view Talents as near-demons. Her husband comes to see her as a Freak; so when Nathan dies after a car crash, she is relieved to be free of his increasingly vicious presence. Lillie expects to be haunted...more

like · see review

Apr 08, 2011 Sheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy, paranormal, kindle

3-1/2 STARS

This book is a solid start to a new series. It's not a "drop everything, you must read this" book, but it was good overall. I couldn't give it 4 stars because the first half to two-thirds of the book felt a little "off" to me. The writing just didn't flow smoothly, sometimes it even felt forced. It almost seemed like the author was trying too hard, for example, using "50cent" words when simpler words would have worked better. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't like "big" words...more

like · see review

Jul 24, 2010 Susan rated it 3 of 5 stars

When the last few sentences of this book were read, I sighed deeply. Thank the gods that's over.

I must say before going on that I didn't dislike either of the main characters. I was just this side of indifferent. In the genre of heroine, 'wounded-by-past-love but now bitchy-needy', meets 'muscles-hard-as-rock and big-therefore-BIG', manly man, this is standard fare, or maybe a little less. The book is saved by the story line which was sufficiently interesting if a little slowly paced. The slown...more

like · see review

Sep 06, 2010 Amy or "Ames" rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley, paranormal-romance, death-reapers-zombies, stand-alone, free-read, read-in-2010, kindle-other-sources, arc

Lillie is a bitter woman used and abused by her husband and considered an outcaste by society which finds itself needing her to help with the increase in ghostly activity which sometimes poses a risk to the living. When her husband dies in a car accident and his corpse comes back to kill her, somehow she's implicated in his death and has to find a way to exonerate herself as well as dodging further attempts on her life.

Lillie's bitterness colours her perspective. Her terrible experiences with h...more

like · see review

Oct 18, 2010 Cyna rated it 2 of 5 stars

Dark and Disorderly is another digital review copy we got from netGalley, which I picked up in a concentrated effort to read something not written for teenagers. It was published by Carina Press, which is a branch of Harlequin that exclusively publishes e-books, so I guess that's about as far away from YA as you can get. I'll be honest, it took me a while to get into this book, and I'm pretty sure positive it wasn't the lack of teenage protagonists...

Ok, I'm gonna say this now and get it out of...more

like · see review

Jul 17, 2010 Sophia (FV) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Rating 3.5 stars.

Dark and Disorderly is a unique urban fantasy style, paranormal thriller with more than a few surprises. Just when I thought I had it all figured out the author tossed in unexpected twists and sent my mind in another direction keeping me on the edge of my seat. For me it was definitely the second half of the book that really took hold though. In the beginning I was bombarded with quite a lot of information, never quite clear if it was just information for a general foundation o...more Rating 3.5 stars.

Dark and Disorderly is a unique urban fantasy style, paranormal thriller with more than a few surprises. Just when I thought I had it all figured out the author tossed in unexpected twists and sent my mind in another direction keeping me on the edge of my seat. For me it was definitely the second half of the book that really took hold though. In the beginning I was bombarded with quite a lot of information, never quite clear if it was just information for a general foundation or details that needed to be remembered as key to the plot. The inclusion of mythology was interesting but with my lack of knowledge in that area, I admit I felt a little lost.

Lillie is an interesting character. She comes off strong and somewhat tough but she has vulnerabilities. You’d think that she’d be quite celebrated because of her talent but in fact she’s had to endure quite a lot of prejudice causing her to lack some self-confidence. At times I thought perhaps her lack of confidence was a bit overdone but she was still quite likeable. I do like my heroines with a vulnerable side but Lille pushed the boundaries just a bit in that department. I’ll be curious to see how she grows with the series.

Lillie’s love interest Johnny is quite an enigma. I wanted to love him, and to trust him but I was never quite sure what his actual motives were and he certainly kept me guessing, even as to what his true nature actually was. He’s one of those characters you suspect is bad news but he’s loaded with charisma and you just can’t help it, you want to go back for more. By the end of the story I still wasn’t quite sure about him, but I’m quite intrigued to say the least.

Dark and Disorderly is not a story that is heavy on the romance. There is romance of course, with plenty of romantic tension between Lillie and Johnny, but there are no graphic sex scenes and the romance is secondary to the suspense and mystery. I do love romantic urban fantasy however I never felt let down that the romance was secondary and I think there was just enough romantic tension to enhance the story. I quite enjoyed Johnny and Lillie’s relationship.

Dark and Disorderly is a good start to what I think will be a fantastic new series. The characters are real and likeable, and the world has some unique elements. Now that I have a good feel for the author’s writing style and the fantasy world she has created, I look forward to seeing the characters grow with the series. (less)

1 like · like · see review

Jul 19, 2010 Charles rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: thriller, friendsbooks

This book is properly categorized as Urban Fantasy but I don't have that shelf so I put it into thrillers. I've only read a few books classified as Urban Fantasy and most I didn't care that much for. This book I really liked, however. The main character, Lillie St. Claire, just seemed like an absolutely honestly drawn individual. She wasn't some super asskicking babe who every vampire and werewolf is in love with. She had faults and fears. She brooded at times, lost her temper at times, joked at...more

like · see review

Jul 13, 2010 Tara SG rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-amanda-tbr, on-kindle

* * * *

--This book in 6 words:

best paranormal mystery read this year

--Why did I read this? And am I glad I did?

I added this to my TBR list after seeing Reading with Tequila’s review. When I got the chance to review the book, I jumped at it and I’m VERY glad I did! This is the best paranormal mystery I’ve read this year (or really the best I’ve read in a long time). I don’t like ghosts and did not read one review for this prior to Jennifer’s because of that. I could kick myself for almost missin...more

like · see review

Oct 30, 2010 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook, paranormal-romance, romance-novels, mystery, romantic-suspense, urban-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. First, I had quite a few problems with this book. That being said, I liked it, and I will definitely read the next book in the series.

Lillie St. Clare is a Talent. She can see and exorcise ghosts and may just have some sidhe blood flowing through her veins, but the answer to that question is only hinted at. The story begins shortly after the death of her abusive, jerk husband. A few days after his death, he visits her at home, zombie-style. What follows is fast-paced ride as Lillie tries to sol...more First, I had quite a few problems with this book. That being said, I liked it, and I will definitely read the next book in the series.

Lillie St. Clare is a Talent. She can see and exorcise ghosts and may just have some sidhe blood flowing through her veins, but the answer to that question is only hinted at. The story begins shortly after the death of her abusive, jerk husband. A few days after his death, he visits her at home, zombie-style. What follows is fast-paced ride as Lillie tries to solve the mystery of who raised her husband and why. Along for the ride is the mysterious, manly federal psi-crime detective John Thresher.

For those who need a relationship wrapped up by the end of a book, this book definitely isn't for you. At the end of this book, Lillie and Johnny haven't resolved anything relating to their feelings for each other. Johnny kisses Lillie a couple of times throughout the book, but, that's it, and she doesn't like the fact that she enjoys those kisses. This brings us to one of the problems I have with this book. Johnny just seems to randomly kiss her a couple of times, very forcefully, and he doesn't back down easily once she tells him to stop. Not a fan of guys forcing their attentions on unwilling women. He does back down eventually, and it is possible that she has some kind of sidhe-seduction powers that she doesn't know she has (which is hinted at but not outright stated), which could explain his not-nice-guy behavior when he's normally very much a nice guy. It's also hard to know how much of what happens in the book is colored by Lillie's limited POV. She's used to her abusive asshole husband, so maybe she's assuming worse of Johnny at times than he deserves.

Another thing I really didn't like is that Lillie was either constantly jumping to the incorrect conclusion that Johnny was accusing her of being up to no good, which makes her seem willfully stupid, or Johnny was actually constantly accusing Lillie of being up to no good, in which case Johnny is a jerk. I'm not clear which it was or if it was a combination of both. They definitely spend more time fighting than communicating like mature adults.

I didn't guess the answer to the mystery until Lillie did, so the mystery aspect of the book worked well for me and kept me turning the virtual pages. Maybe this is because I don't read a lot of mysteries, but maybe not.

My curiosity about both Lillie and Johnny is piqued, and I do really want to see them get together (assuming the overly forceful, constantly accusatory nature of Johnny is all in Lillie's head or a result of her uncontrolled supernatural seductive powers), so Carina Press better put out a sequel to this because the ending is *not* an ending, and that would just be unfair to leave readers hanging like that.

Technical notes: I bought this e-book directly from the Carina Press website (Harlequin's digital branch). I bought the .epub format. There were a few noticeable typos/mistakes. Mistakes such as using the word "internment" instead of "interment," unintentional repetition, occasional spacing issues in relation to quotation marks, and a couple sentences that just made no sense. This seems to be a problem quite common in e-books regardless of publisher, and I'm not really sure why e-books tend to get less proofreading than paper books, but it's kind of annoying.(less)

like · see review

Sep 23, 2010 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley-reviews

As a fan of the Urban Fantasy genre I am always looking for new authors who have a unique interpretation of the supernatural. Harris's Dark and Disorderly, while grounded in existing myth and lore, has a fresh take on their place in her characters world. The supernatural is leaking into suburbia, increasing in activity and number and not all are benign. Human's are ambivelent - some want all the supernatural banished, the S.O.S think they should be left alone. In Lillie's world there is a strugg...more

like · see review

Aug 02, 2010 Bernard DeLeo rated it 4 of 5 stars

The words ‘Dark’ and ‘Disorderly’ outline the plot of this fast moving paranormal adventure with excellent aplomb. Lillie St. Claire, resident ‘Talent’ who exorcizes spirits, teams with a federal agent named John Thresher to solve a bewildering series of ghost related incidents. After dispersing the zombie apparition of her husband Nathan to introduce Lillie, a series of ghostly subplots involving her husband’s inner circle unfolds into a compelling mystery with very little pause in the action....more

like · see review

Aug 03, 2010 Nina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Reading the first line of Dark and Disorderly made me want to read the whole story immediately. It drew me in like a little kid at a candy store.

Lillie isn’t the average heroine. Yes, she’s strong, determined and very alert. But she’s also scared and needs big broad shoulders to cry one. Lillie is a realistic character, except for the job, but it’s easy to relate to her. I really liked Lillie, but I wished that there was more depth to her. Not only to her, but also to the other characters in th...more

like · see review

Nov 05, 2010 Laura Lulu rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, ebook, i-own, ghosts, urban-fantasy

This was a good UF--I appreciated the "something new" aspect of it--one can only read so many stories about vampires before it gets a bit old. So I'm always appreciative when an author actually gives us a new idea in the paranormal world.

I didn't always like Lillie, sometimes she exhibited TSTL tendencies, but she grew on me and I liked her by the end. I really liked Johnny, but I had a hard time believing the baby romance--it felt forced and almost uncomfortable.

And I am dying to know where thi...more

like · see review

Oct 14, 2010 Laura Summers rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: bcc-reviewed, read-in-2010, urban-fantasy

Reviewed for www.bookchickcity.com

In 'Dark and Disorderly' the world is slightly different. Something has happened, a shift and now the ghosts of the dead are everywhere, spilling out into the streets and into people's homes.

Lillie is a 'Talent', a person born with a supernatural ability that means she can put the dead to rest. However her gift is controversial, there are groups that believe she isn't in fact putting the souls to rest, but destroying them instead. She is demonised and labelled a...more Reviewed for www.bookchickcity.com

In 'Dark and Disorderly' the world is slightly different. Something has happened, a shift and now the ghosts of the dead are everywhere, spilling out into the streets and into people's homes.

Lillie is a 'Talent', a person born with a supernatural ability that means she can put the dead to rest. However her gift is controversial, there are groups that believe she isn't in fact putting the souls to rest, but destroying them instead. She is demonised and labelled as a freak, even by her now dead husband.

Lillie's relationship with her husband was strained at best, abusive at its worst. So she can't help but feel somewhat relieved at his unfortunate demise. But when she becomes the prime suspect for his murder things start to get a bit out of control.

The book opens with a bang, the action taking off straight away with the eerie arrival of Lillie's zombie, dead husband intent on killing her. And it doesn't stop from there, the novel is without a doubt action packed, as Lillie is thrown into one adrenalin pulsing scene after another.

Detective John Thresher from the psi-crime division is put in charge of the investigation into Lillie's attack and her husband's death. He's an interesting character with more than a few secrets. There is a nice amount of chemistry bubbling away between him and Lillie which has some great potential for a growing love story. However, I was never quite sure where it was going. They were both hot and cold, trusting and non trusting, and John (Johnny) was such an enigma it was hard to get a grasp on him.

Despite the action, I struggled to get into the book at first. I can't quite put my finger on why, as all of the ingredients of a good urban fantasy book were there.

This book was very much in two halves for me. In the first part I found myself counting the pages a little and it wasn't until the second half that I became fully submerged in the story. The second part is brilliant, page turning, pulse pounding stuff. With a great ending that has more than a few unexpected plot turns.

I think the problem stems from the fact that things weren't always explained as fully as they could have been. For example, there were some fascinating references to mythology and superstitions that were no longer really superstitions, that I wish they had been developed more. Lillie's background and gift were never properly explored. I understand the need to hold back details and dangle the stick for later books in the series, but I wanted just a tiny bit more of that carrot.

VERDICT:

'Dark and Disorderly' has a lot of potential for a new urban fantasy series. I really liked the two main characters Lillie and Johnny and the ending was an exciting roller coaster ride. While I do have a few reservations with it, I also find myself interested to see where it goes next and would still recommend it.(less)

like · see review

Jun 10, 2010 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-ghosts

I never had a clue what was coming next while reading Dark and Disorderly. It was fantastic. Every twist and turn was a complete surprise and you just don't get those kind of experiences often enough.

I loved Lillie. She's strong, determined, has been through hell and she's not going to take it anymore. Still she cries for others pain and vomits in the face of grisly death. She's a balanced, realistic character that's easy to fall in love with.

There were some obscure mythological/paranormal terms...more

like · see review

Aug 20, 2010 Angela rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: carina, ebooks, urban-fantasy, paranormal-romance

Bernita Harris' Dark and Disorderly did not at first impress me by its title. But as I thought the concept sounded fun, I made sure to pick it up when Carina Press went live earlier this year. Turns out, I was very glad I did. Dark and Disorderly turned out to be a lively book indeed.

Coming out of an imprint of Harlequin, you'd expect this book to lean more towards the "paranormal romance" end of the urban fantasy/paranormal romance spectrum. And while you could make a good case for that, for me...more Bernita Harris' Dark and Disorderly did not at first impress me by its title. But as I thought the concept sounded fun, I made sure to pick it up when Carina Press went live earlier this year. Turns out, I was very glad I did. Dark and Disorderly turned out to be a lively book indeed.

Coming out of an imprint of Harlequin, you'd expect this book to lean more towards the "paranormal romance" end of the urban fantasy/paranormal romance spectrum. And while you could make a good case for that, for me as a reader it read more like pure urban fantasy, for two reasons: 1) good worldbuilding, and 2) way less emphasis on the romance between the leads, although of course there was one.

Let's talk worldbuilding first. This is a universe where ghosts and the other expected batch of supernaturals exist, and our heroine, Lillie St. Claire, is essentially a city-employed ghostbuster. I quite liked the scenario Harris lays down, that supernatural incidents have been on the rise only in the last couple of decades, and that Lillie is one of a generation of children known as Talents--and in her particular case, maybe even something above and beyond. It was just the right blend of supernatural and real-world for me, with a city trying to work out its infestation of ghosts as a municipal problem; this felt very real and believable.

Props as well for the story starting off with a serious bang, when what Lillie thinks is the corpse of her recently deceased husband assaults her in her own bathroom. That seized my attention nicely, and once that initial punch was delivered, the arrival in the plot of police sergeant John Thresher made a great followup. And when Harris described her hero as "not ugly, exactly, just... rugged" and with "a face like a box of hammers and jaws like angle irons", I was instantly charmed. I've had a surfeit of super-sexy heroes, not to mention overly florid description of heroine's reactions to them, so this won me right out of the gate. So did the chemistry between Lillie and John, which was quite strong and yet never over the top. Major, major points for that.

This is Book 1 in a series, not terribly surprisingly, but I'll definitely look forward to coming back for more. Intriguing questions are raised about Lillie's background that hopefully will be answered in forthcoming books--not to mention the bigger picture of supernatural happenings in the world at large, and I'm quite interested in seeing how Lillie and John will play into that. My only quibbles with the story were minor stylistic ones, and overall I found this highly enjoyable. Four stars.(less)

like · see review

Jul 23, 2010 Jackie Uhrmacher rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was the second book in a row I have read that has made me want to chuck it against the wall in frustration, and I loved it. Seriously. I am tired of finishing a book, putting it on the shelf, and moving on. I enjoyed being riled up, being made to analyze the characters and their motives, and even ranting in the wee hours of the morning about the injustice of series books ending the way Dark and Disorderly did.

Full review available here: http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=26852#mor...

like · see review

title link	preview: Dark and Disorderly
avg rating	preview: Dark and Disorderly Goodreads rating: 3.74 (94 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8355243-dark-and-disorderly?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328329294l/8355243.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8355243-dark-and-disorderly?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Dark and Disorderly by Bernita Harris[/url]

Dark and Disorderly

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (2)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Bernita Harris

Books by Bernita Harris

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Dark and Disorderly