Black City

Black City #1

by Elizabeth Richards

From Book 1: A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-olds Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable--they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash's long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they're caught, they'll be executed--but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopia, Vampires, Paranormal, Romance, Science Fiction

374 pages, Hardcover

First published November 13, 2012

About the author

*** NOTE TO REVIEWERS***

If you would like a review copy of BLACK CITY, PHOENIX or WINGS, please contact Penguin's marketing department at YRmarketing@us.penguingroup.com. Happy reading! :)

***************************

Elizabeth Richards is a YA author who loves books about supernatural boys, kissing and blood.

Her debut novel, BLACK CITY (Book #1 of the BLACK CITY trilogy) was published in November 2012 and was selected as one of Penguin's Fall 2012 Breathless Reads. Her second novel, PHOENIX, was released in June 2013, and the last novel in the series, WINGS, is out in June 2014.

Film rights optioned by Screen Gems.

www.officialelizabethrichards.com

Reviews

[Emily May]

I think I've permanently damaged my eyeballs from rolling them so much.

It seems like I can't get into anything lately, I've read so many new releases to about chapter five and then I have to give up. The only good thing about this book is that my expectations were low as they now are with every book marketed as a dystopia - which, to be honest, this just isn't a dystopia in any sense of the word. For one, it's mostly a love story, but I'm not too upset about that because I received fair warning of it in the GR description - I just had my fingers crossed that it wouldn't be another annoying, cliche, insta-love story (apparently, this doesn't actually work).

For another, it's more of a dark fantasy/urban fantasy than a dystopia - the world reminded me somewhat of Ixion in Burn Bright - with the only hints of the latter being in the similarities between this world and Cold War Berlin where the city is split by a wall that separates humans and darklings (vampires, basically). Apart from this rather intriguing world, everything else from the characters to the plot to the love story were lacking in originality. I think I even recognise some scenes from popular series like Harry Potter and Twilight.

"You don't want to be seen with her sort, she's one of the Rise kids," he says to Natalie. "I'll set you up with the right type of people to know."
"I can make my own mind up about who the 'right type of people' are," Natalie snaps."I'm already getting a pretty good idea of who I want to avoid."

I seen this before!




And the love story makes me cringe, it's so... typical. So cheesy. So annoying. The guy's an asshole who more or less tells Natalie that he's glad her father's dead and she's all "but he's soooo hot". Give me a break, would ya?

I was reading this on my laptop in Adobe Digital Editions when my housemate came walking in and started reading the page I was on over my shoulder. She then began reading it out loud in a breathy voice and putting emphasis on certain words... well, how I wish I had recorded it and could put audio files in this review. What had been slowly getting more and more annoying to me finally hit breaking point when she voiced some of these ridiculous lines out loud. After hearing this spoken I decided I'd had enough:

He's changed out of his school uniform and is now wearing dark trousers, leather work boots and a fitted black shirt that accentuates every inch of his powerful, muscular, frame. He looks at me, into me, like he can see every secret I have, every rush of my blood. My pulse races with fear and a much more unexpected, disturbing emotion: desire. I turn away, horrified at my body's reaction to him. It's sick and irrational. He's a darkling, a predator that would gladly rip my throat out, given the slightest provocation. Then why are my cheeks burning so red? I'm just hot from the fire, that's all.

Oh gawwwwddd. Really? Does everyone else have this problem that they can't tell the difference between genuine heat and horniness? Is no one else nauseated already by this same old "no, no, I mustn't, it's wrong" while the heroines are simultaneously fanning themselves with desire? I'm done with this silliness.

[shady boots · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know what I hate? I hate when I'm reading a book, and all I feel the whole time is anger, frustration and disappointment.

That's what I felt with Black City.

As you can see, this is yet another DNF review. Let me tell you why I disliked this book so much: the romance. You know how bad the romance was? It made me overlook everything else in the book; the world building, the other characters, the plot, all of it. The romance was just so bad that it drained my interest in the book more and more as I read. Also, the FUCKING MADE UP SWEAR WORD! Fragg? Are you KIDDING ME? It sounds ridiculous.

The book is told from the points of views of our two protagonists, Natalie and Ash. Ash is a twin-blood Darkling (coughvampirecough) and Natalie is a Sentry, a human, and the daughter of the Emissary. I'll break down each of these two's chapters for you:

Ash's POV - first half of the book: I hate that Sentry girl. Grr. Bitch stole my jacket. But my non-working heart flutters and beats when I see her and when she's around. But she's just a fragging Sentry! Who gives a fragg about her.

Natalie's POV - first half: That Darkling boy, I can't get him out of my mind. But he's a Darkling! I shouldn't feel these feelings. But oh, his muscles... No! But I like his jacket, I'll keep it. It smells good.

Ash's POV - second half & so forth: I love her. She's my Blood Mate. Nothing will ever tear us apart. Natalie, Natalie, Natalie. But Evangeline is so hot... No, Natalie's my girlfriend! And my Blood Mate, my one true love. Natalie Natalie Natalie......Evangeline. NO! Natalie!

Natalie's POV - second half & so forth: Oh Ash, I love you so much. He's my one true love. I love him, and I don't care if what we have is forbidden. He's my Blood Mate and we'll never be apart, ever. Ash Ash Ash Ash Ash. He'll never hurt me, and he loves me too. Oh Ash... Ash Ash Ash.

Yeah.

Literally every paragraph in either of these two's chapters are about how hot and in love they are for each other. And they just say the most cheesiest things. -_- I lost interest in anything else about the book not only because the romance is bad, but because it's ALL THERE IS TO THE BOOK! It's so heavily based on the romance that I found it hard to focus on anything else because I'm constantly attacked by cheesy sentences left right and center.

The author also took the whole electric-touch thing to a whole nother level. There was one scene where they were making out and it was described as them feeling like...multiple zaps and shit. Why the fuck do all these characters in PNR/dystomance books like it when they feel zaps of electrity anyway? e_e That shit hurts. I wanna know who first started this ridiculous but annoyingly popular trend. It needs to die, and I know most of you agree with me on this.

And don't even get me started on the fucking cheating. Oh my god, this guy... Ash actually cheats on Natalie. We're treated to a steamy, detailed make-out scene of him with the Other Girl character, Evangeline, from his POV. And he was enjoying it. And he didn't even try to fight it. Natalie barged in a few minutes later, but could you imagine what would've happened if she didn't? I doubted it would have ended with just making out, because Ash really did get into it. I was so disgusted. I know some pretty asshole guys from other YA books, but none of them ever actually straight up cheat on the girl.

The author tried to pull out the "only-thinking-about-the-heroine-while-kissing-another-chick" card, too, with Ash going all: "Only one name rang in my mind: Natalie." -_- Nice try, Ash. The H on your name should be changed into another S, is what I think.



I stopped the book not long after that, because I just couldn't be bothered to continue. I mean, why should I? The romance was horrible and it clearly dominated the whole book, so much so that it made me not pay attention at all to the plot or the world-building.

Gah, I'm still so mad right now. This book definitely falls on the category of worst romances I've ever read. Cheesy crappy insta-love, and to top it all off the guy cheats on the girl! How worse can it get? I don't wanna stay around to find out. No thanks.

I know a lot of you are fans of this book, and you know, to each their own, but I personally just hated it for its ridiculous romance. So much so that it made me overlook everything else. If you guys still wanna give it a go, be my guest. Maybe the romance won't get to you as much as it did me.

Edit: Yeah, as you can see, I repeat myself a lot in this review. ._. I guess I was just so angry lol. And it's just further proof of how infuriating and unbearable the romance in this book is.

[Christina (Ensconced in Lit) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had several people approach me and say that this was one of the best ARCs they had read all year. So this has been high on my radar.

Black City by Elizabeth Richards may seem like an amalgam of familiar territory. We have vampires. We have a dystopian society. We have lovers on two different sides of a war. Sure, we start with the expected, and then Richards completely turns everything on its head. All I will say is that we have alternating perspectives of Natalie, the daughter of an Emissary, who is trying to keep Darklings segregated from Black City, and Ash, a Darkling, who sells Haze, a drug, to keep his family fed. These two unlikely kids seem to have a Romeo and Juliet kind of romance and then everything goes out the window.

You must read this book. That's all I'm going to say. I don't want to give away any of the marvelous twists this book reveals, and I read the book from cover to cover in a day. The characters are terrific, and I love the dark setting of Black City. This isn't a perfect book, but it is an extremely compelling one. I know Richards is only going to get better and better with each installment.

Overall, one of the most intriguing and pulse pounding dystopian books I've read this year.

[I am Bastet]

The trend isn't over yet?

Not sure how I feel about this one. Right now I'm quite conflicted, because what was good was very good, but what was bad was also very bad.

[Belle · Rating 5 out of 5]

SOME SPOILERS!

WTF DID I JUST READ.

HOLY SHIT.

My first thought post this book.. is a) i want to marry Ash
but then I think harder so b) WHY did I not read this as soon as I got it ! Rookie error Belinda, Rookie, Rookie error.

This book was amazing. It was a whole lot of loving and more.

The Characters
Ash: He is like the epitome of any leading man you could ever want in your life. He knows when to be a smart ass, irresistible and cocky.. but knows when to be caring, kind and compassionate to others. His vulnerability about not feeling like he belonged to either Darkling or human side. His feelings of abandonment by his mother, his vulnerability, his love for Natalie, his joy and confusion over his heart beating. Man, where do they make boys like him.. if anyone knows SIGN ME UP ! Although I won't lie when he kissed Evangeline - I mean yeah i get he was confused and trying to sort his feelings out - I was seriously going to bitchslap him through the pages. Glad, he made the right decision and sorted his shit out.

Natalie: Her character definitely grew on me. I was a bit hesitant at first because I could tell how conflicted she was when seeing the torturing and oppression of the Darklings, but at the same time did nothing. However, as the book grew, her strength grew and consequently my love for her character definitely grew. She became the kick ass heroine I knew she could be. The way she gave Ash her complete heart was so admirable, and how she cared for Sebastian even though he wronged her. Damn woman you are too nice for your own good.

Sebastian: When his character first got introduced I was like.. oh no here comes the love triangle. But boy was I pleasantly surprised that it didnt end up that way. In fact for the majority of the story he is public enemy number one. Sure at times I thought he had some good qualities sometimes.. but.. After the attempted rape.. no redemption can come out of his character for me. I mean I was going to give you a last chance, but seriously it's a hell no from me. DIE DIE DIE

Beetle/ Day: Yeah LOVE these characters. I won't lie both of them at times got under my skin. What with Beetle being a nincompoop over hazing (otherwise known as drugs in this world) and with Day being a stubborn cow. Although I wont lie I am pretty stubborn so it is like a pot calling the kettle black. But when they got their crap together i love the two of them ! They are a match made in heaven, and supporting characters/great friends to both the leads :) !

Evangaline: Now I won't lie to you and say I didnt want to kick her ass to Timbuktu throughout the majority of the book. Simply because no one steals my man except Natalie. But then as I write this, guilty, nagging thoughts are rising from the back of my mind.. of sympathy. I mean wouldn't it just suck a lot to watch someone you love with some one else. I mean how sad would it be, to realise the one person you are meant to be with has already found a blood mate and is in love with someone else because she has your heart. That would kill me. How unfair would you think life is. And the fact that she is a carrier so won't really be able to find someone else to love.. damn. BUT that spoiler being said, Im glad Ash tried to make her realise that the heart/ blood bond was purely superficial whereas the love he shares with Natalie runs deeper.. they are soulmates. Hopefully she will find happiness in another character I hope she gets what she deserves next book.

The Backstory
Wow, what an amazing back drop this book was cast in. I mean the world of this book.. is intriguing, mysterious, completely realistic for a make believe world and makes you feel like you are within the pages of this book living in this fantasy. Although of course I wouldnt be that keen to live there if I was a darkling. I wont lie, I was a bit uncertain with the whole the vampires/Darklings are the outcasts and rejects, while the humans are the power race. That seemed pretty unrealistic, but after reasons were given it started to make more sense to me. The way Richards has really thought out and given us such a supreme knowledge of the world in which her characters live in only further enhances the storyline of this book. I can not wait to read the next book in this series.

The Plot
I won't lie, I love anything to do with civil rights movements and this book was no different. Sure it was in a made up world where vampires roamed but it really connected with me due to the messages it sent out. The way in which humans oppressed, murdered and treated the Darklings like dirt was intriguing to read. The wristbands that they had to wear reminds me of the Jews in World War 2 or the passbooks in the Civil Rights movement in America. It really reflects real life this book. I loved the rebellious spirit of the citizens who refused to watch the hangings, and all those who rose up against the injustices. I loved how ignorance soon turned into awareness and action in this book.

THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING! i give it a solid 5/5!! Can't gush about it's awesomeness enough. Read read read this book!

[Morgan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Review of Black City , written by Elizabeth Richards.
Won from a giveaway via Goodreads.com
Expected Publication: 11/13/12

My Overall Rating: One Star
Cover Rating: 4 Stars - gorgeous, though slightly similar to the Twilight cover theme, if you know what I mean.

What I knew about this book before beginning it:
1. Vampires. (Or, Darklings, as they're called in this book.)
2. Dystopia setting, of course.
3. Romance. Duh. It's YA with vampires in a dystopian setting.
4. The main character's name is Ash. While not terribly original (considering he's a vampire and that's a slightly vampire-y name)it's not as terrible as it could be.
5. Two narrators....

Review:
Alright. I have a lot to say, and most of it isn't all that great... at all. Granted, there are some good things... but the majority of it... sigh.

Okay, let's get started with the good stuff:

1. I actually started to genuinely enjoy this book within the last 10 chapters or so. Things were actually happening. I was surprised by a couple of things. But then Ash came back from the dead 'cause ohmyGodhe'sJesusnow and I went back to rolling my eyes and waiting for the "fragging" book to be over with.

2. I also liked some of the world building. Black City was an interesting enough place, with the Wall and the Legion and the Rise, etc, etc.

3. Evangeline. Yeah, I liked her. Her part in the story was genuinely interesting.
Other than these couple of things, there just wasn't anything about this book that I loved... or even liked, really.

Onto the bad stuff:

1. This story was painfully unoriginal. I mean, there was a load of stuff that was similar to either Harry Potter

"Gregory stretches out a hand to Natalie.
'I'm Gregory Thompson,' he says. 'My father works for the Department of Subspecies Management, sorts out the Synth-O-Blood shipments to the Legion, that sort of thing. Ever heard of him?'
Natalie smiles politely. 'The name doesn't ring a bell.'
He looks disappointed. 'Well, it's an honor to have you here. I'll happily show you around the school-'
'Day's doing that, but thanks,' she says dismissively.
Waaiiit for iiiit:
"'You don't want to be seen with her sort, she's one of the Rise kids,' he says to Natalie. 'I'll set you up with the right type of people to know.'
Day's cheeks burn red.
'I can make my own mind up about who the 'right type of people' are,' Natalie snaps.'I'm already getting a pretty good idea of who I want to avoid.'"

or Twilight (for obvious reasons)or some other vampire/YA/dystopian cliche.

2. The characters. My God, there wasn't a single character that I even remotely liked. Not one. Seriously! (Not even Evangeline. Yes, she was interesting, but I still didn't like her.) Natalie was annoying, Ash was annoying, Day overreacted about everything (so did everyone, really), and Beetle was lame. And a druggie. And pathetically in love with Day.
Also, there was absolutely NO character development (aside from Natalie being all Miss Priss I'm-So-Rich in, like, the second chapter to being all omgiloveeveryoneequallyexceptformymother!).

3. The use of the word "fragging" and the italics that were everywhere.
"Fragg"? Seriously?! Nobody says that! Ever!
Also, don't even get me started on those italics. There were completely unnecessary! The story was told in the first person. We were able to read their thoughts. They didn't need to be italicized randomly, whenever you felt like it, Elizabeth! Graaaahhhh!

Okay, moving on.

4. The romance. Oh, the romance.
First off, they met within the first chapter or so. Boring. Also, there was electricity when they touched. How original. Guess what else? Their hearts fluttered/tugged/jumped/skydived/blah blah blah. Natalie had a heart condition, for God's sake! Hon, if you are on heart meds and you're supposed to tell your doctor if you're heart if being all janked up, why the hell would you think your heart "tugging" is not a reason for concern?!
GRAH.

5. Poor pacing. Nothing big really happened until the last few chapters.

That's about all I can say, without going into extreme detail, but I think you get the point. Overall, the book was unoriginal, cliched, and (aside from a few scenes toward the end) just bad .
At one point, I just stopped reading it for a week because I couldn't bring myself to read it.

Please don't go out and read it. It's just not worth it.

[Giselle]

WANT TO WIN THIS ARC? And how about the first chapter? Head on over to my blog! :)

[Kait · Rating 5 out of 5]

The dystopian trend seems to be getting a bit old. All the books have a similar feel to them and the stories are becoming less unique. That is not at all the case with Black City. Elizabeth Richards has created a world all her own with fantastic history, unbelievable creatures, and a bleak setting that manages to stand out against all others.

Black City is a place in ruins. Ash still rains down from bombs that were set off a year ago. Buildings crumble daily and no new ones are built to replace them. People live in the rubble but fear speaking out to get better living conditions. In the middle of it all is a walled enclosure where all the Darklings are forced to live. However, things may not be that way for long. The Darklings are unhappy with their restrictions and they are ready to fight. Black City is a city on the brink of war.

Ash is a twin-blood. He is half human, half Darkling. He lives outside the Darkling enclosure but he does not feel accepted. He is lonely and sad and it causes him to do some stupid things. However, it is easy to tell that he is a good guy at heart. Readers will definitely fall for this dark and lonely guy. Natalie is also alone but that is because of her station. She is the Emissary's daughter and most people are afraid she could get them in trouble. Even though she is lonely she is friendly and caring and very easy to like. She's smart, brave, and loyal. What's not to like? Beethe and Day are also fabulous. Beethe is hilarious. He's kind of a druggie but he's a sweetheart and he's trying to change his ways. Day is smart (sometimes too smart), kind, yet she can be hard-headed. She makes some mistakes but she learns from them.

Elizabeth Richards really knows how to create a terrifying villain. Sebastian, Gregory, Natalie's mom, and Purian Rose are all completely evil. Natalie's mom is manipulative and sick. Sebastian tries to hide his dark side but it definitely does not work. Gregory doesn't try to hide his prejudice and nastiness. Purian Rose is by far the worst though. He is the leader of church and state. He hides his evilness by saying it's "His mighty's" will. He is cruel and sick. I both dread and look forward to reading more about him.

The plot focuses quite a bit on the forbidden romance between Ash and Natalie but that is definitely not all that is going on (although that part was great.) Because of Ash, Natalie discovers a lot about Darklings and a lot about her family. Ash discovers that people can't be judged based on their parents. There is also quite a bit of mystery that will have readers hooked.

Overall, Black City is a favorite of mine that I must recommend. Dystopian fans HAVE to read this one. And romance fans because it is one steamy romance. Really everyone should just read it!

[Mizuki · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.7 stars, this book and its male and female leads remind me often of Legend by Marie Lu, and I'm not saying it in a good way.

So, in what way Black City is similar with Legend? Let's do a check list.

(1) Vague and poorly constructed dyspotian world:


(Link: https://giphy.com/gifs/dystopian-8qat...)

Dystopia, you said?


We never know what is going on with the rest of the world or why this fictional world had become what it is today. We only see the events that happen within one city, we only know there is a deadly plague haunting the population and....you guessed it...we also have an evil government and an evil, power-crazed state leader/dictator. Only that in Black City, we get a humanoid specie known as 'The Darklings' (X-Men? Vampires? What are they actually? I don't know.)

Not to mention, in Black City, despite of the evil, mean government and the power crazed dictator (who has been enjoying a fiery cult following and be viewed by his followers as a holy man), said evil government still allows its citizens to each have a vote to decide whether they should pass a law to crush down on the suppressed Darklings.

Seriously?

(2) A supposed streetwise male lead from a humble background and a main girl who is from a rich and privileged family:

*sighs* It's just the same old, same old 'I'm a poor boy but she is from a rich family' YA romance angst bullshit.

(3) The heroine has an asshole suitor/ex boyfriend who is in the army:

And the jerk is following her around in the name of 'I'm protecting you from harm', plus he also had gone after the heroine's older sibling first before shifting attention to her.

(4) The male lead is a poorly written 'reluctant hero':

In Black City, the male lead's best buddy wants to join a protest which aims at protecting the rights of the male lead and his fellow Darklings (the male lead himself is a half-human, half-Darkling hybird). Naturally this best friend wants the male lead to join in the protest as well, but guess what is his reaction?

His reaction: 'You will only get yourself killed.'

So...this male lead wants to stay out of trouble and save his own hide, which is fine, but guess who has eventually become a hero in the eyes of the citizens? Who? The best friend or the male lead? Who?

(5) By the end everyone becomes drama queen:

When there is an evil government's conspiracy going on, the lives of many Darklings and general citizens are at stake, and a bloody battle between the evil government and the rebels is well underway, our main couple still decide to care more about their love life than what is going on outside of their relationship.

And you don't even want to know how the huge crisis is averted in the very end. I rolled my eyes at how the MCs act like a bunch of drama queens when the evil government is closing in on them, these people should have long been killed when their every reaction is based on impulse and anger instead of carefulness and self-control. I mean, when facing a suppressing, ruthless government, people should act with careful measure, not just open your mouth and speak whatever you want and react out of anger, right?


(Link: https://giphy.com/gifs/sherlock-john-...)

(6) Last but not least...the YA romance angst and insta-love


(Link: https://giphy.com/gifs/thg-BgltgOWHsJq0w)

Let me tell you this...the heart is only an organ which helps us to pump blood all over our bodies, it has nothing to do with our romantic feeling and love life.

But according to Elizabeth Richards it is not the case with the male lead and the Darklings! Due to some reason, their hearts never beat until they found their ONE TRUE LOVE!!!!!

Why would they be like this? You know...reasons!

Okay...the Immortal After Dark series has similar setting and I never like it, but at least the idea doesn't sound as stupid in the IAD series.

Not just this, but the male and female leads also start proclaiming their true love to each other shortly after they meet and chat with each other for least than ten times.

*facepalms*

To be honest, the extra 0.7 star is for the plot twist in the end. These few plot twists are actually quite creative, but the rest of the book...*sighs*

The Final Words: if you happened to have a lot of time to waste, read this book.

[Taschima · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can find more reviews @BloodyBookaholic

To put it in the simplest terms Black City is like Legend only mixed with vampires. This is not a bad thing; Legend is great, and so is Black City! It has some of the things Legend has, only heightened- ex. love becomes forbidden love. Corrupt government? Check. People being oppressed? Check. Two main characters, one from the government the other a normal person? Check. Adding to this delight Black City manages to have a plot that is original and not monotonous. Black City is that typical book you can't put down, it enthralls you with it's very complicated dark world,it makes your heart beat just a little bit faster. I bet If you were a half-darkling this book would kick start your heart right up.

It is a hot day in Black City (I can only imagine) when Natalie, the Emmisary's daughter (fancy term for a high ranking government official), and her remaining family move to the crappiest place in the world, Black City, from Centrum (a "better" city than Black City). On top of that she now has to attend public school along with the rest of the work boots (not so fancy term for people who actually have to work for a living). How will she ever survive?

"It's your bew identity bracelet. Do you like it?" I ask.

Martha nods slighly, not saying anything. She must be overwhelmed; it's a very expensive gift. She slips it on.

Some context on the quote, Martha is Natalie's maid and she is a Darkling (Darklings who live on the human side of the wall are made to use bracelets with their info on them). I thought this quote described Natalie great at the beginning of the novel. Natalie pissed me off at first. She was such a spoiled brat. It was hard to root for her, but then she grows up. It's so amazing, she went from someone who I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole to a brave self sufficient heroine that doesn't need to be rescued. I respect her, I like her.

"I place a hand against the wall and slip my other hand between her thighs, gently easing her legs apart. Touching her doesn't turn me on, but I groan like it does, knowing she'll enjoy that. They all do, even the guys -it's why they come to me instead of the Haze dens."

Ash is a Haze dealer, and a half-Darkling. You can say he got the "short" end of the stick in life (though in fact he is really tall). He is an outcast, abondoned by his mother at a young age. It's clear that he has issues.But It is very hard NOT to like Ash, he is so conflicted. You just want to hug him, and help him. He is the one who drew me to the story beginning on Chapter 1.

The story evolves around these two characters with a backdrop of war, corruption, and danger. It's a very dark world, but then again which dystopian world isn't?

The characters, the world building, the intense connection between the characters, the customs of Black City and the Darklings, all of this and more is what I loved about this book. It was just a very good read.

Some things were hard for me to swallow, like how can the vampires (who are stronger, faster, PREDATORS) be oppressed by the humans? I would have liked some more information on the old war. What happened, and how? Were the humans always privy to the existence of this other race? How did they exactly beat the vampires and made them live in guettos? I have no idea! I missed that history lesson.

Another thing that bothered me was the romance, at first. Because the characters show this instant connection to each other without really knowing anything about each other. They meet, they dislike/are sttracted to each other, and on the next page they are bound together. This was something that bothered me, BUT it was completely addrssed and insta-love was succesfully avoided. And even though I could smell the twist to the romance a mile away I still enjoyed it (maybe I like being proved right).

But if you can look past the non existent/much needed history lesson you will really enjoy this novel. I liked the writing, I loved Ash, and I liked Natalie, as well as the rest of the characters. It's a very easy story to get sunk into, and I enjoyed every single page.

**Quotes taken from an ARC copy, subject to change.

[Kat (Lost in Neverland) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ash is a twin-blood Darkling, a half human creature that drinks blood to survive. In the Black City, Darklings are relentlessly hunted and persecuted, most of which are kept behind a massive wall splitting the Darklings from the humans.
Natalie is the daughter of the Sentry, one of the most powerful women in the city and working to remove the Darklings permanently.
Ash and Natalie meet one night briefly, and to Ash's shock, his normally dead-silent chest starts to thrum with a heartbeat.


Wow. I should have known; this book was one of the 'Breathless Reads', along with Origin, which I hated with a passion.

Imagine Legend mashed together with Romeo and Juliet, and bits and pieces from other books like Harry Potter, and you got Black City.

Unlike Legend, this is not 'love'. These two know each other for a couple weeks before they start throwing around words like 'love' and 'Blood Mate' (which is how Darklings know who to mate). Ash and Natalie have no chemistry whatsoever besides physical attractions. The story could have been a very neat fascinating book had it not focused wholly on the relationship bullshit.
It is your typical YA paranormal lust-fest. Not much new here. What bothers me is that the story had real potential.
Despite their rather ridiculous similarities to other supernatural beings, the Darklings were interesting and I wanted to know more about them. The Bastets, enemy of the Darklings, were catlike creatures that were sparsely mentioned, but I wanted to learn more about that 'species' as well. Of course, the story only manages to focus on Ash and Natalie's 'romance'.


So let me clear this up;

A Darkling is basically a glorified vampire, mixed with a Time Lord.
Vampire abilities: Fangs, needs blood to survive, 'tall and pale'.
Time Lord abilities: Two hearts, regenerating cells that make them difficult to kill.

Not to mention they howl like werewolves and some species have wings like fairies.




It seems to me that Richards just put a bunch of supernatural creatures in a blender and called the resulting goop a 'Darkling'.

The world of the Black City was simply a fucked up version of our world going backwards in time. Women wore corsets, there were public floggings and executions, religion was a rising power, books were banned, etc. Oh, and instead of guns, officers and Trackers used swords.

FUCKING SWORDS.



This ain't the 15th century, people. Although, apparently, it was in this world.

Characters?

Eh, Natalie was a baby who had brief moments of coolness, Ash was an ass mostly who had brief moments of cuteness. I liked Day.
They hardly ever go into family matters until the end when the plot demands it.
The writing was mediocre at best, couldn't care less for the characters, it was just overall kind of stupid. There were a few parts I liked but the writing had no depth or life to it so it brought down the story a bit. Yet another book to die miserably from the effects of teen romance! It was doomed from the start, honestly, with that kind of first chapter and description.
I honestly don't know what made me want to read this. Never pick up books where the first sentence of the description has 'they fell in love' in it.

[Eyehavenofilter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmm what do I say about this? In the very very beginning I thought I was going to like this a lot, it had some very interesting qualities. Bad Vampire boy, goody goody girl, jealous girlfriend and jealous ex-boyfriend, drugs, vampires,(who are called unaffectionately " nipper" ( I didn't get the joke for about 4 chapters) all different breeds of them, and laws that were out of control, not unlike communist Russia in the 1940's , it seemed like it was going to be my kind of book. But it wasn't... It was dreadful. It dragged, it almost plagiarized, it took right turns then fell backwards.
Then, it went haywire. And when I say haywire I mean "razor wire crazy" hints of trains to an "Auschwitz" type camp for infected Vampires, on the outskirts of nowhere, intown ghettos for Vampires, complete with a "Berlin Wall"!
Crucifixions, as a means of public execution, Vampire race wars, laws against interracial marriages with Vampires or "Darklings" ( which for some unknown reason I kept reading as "ducklings" for about 10 pages),must be my dyslexia....an all powerful leader that has secret testings going on unbeknownst to the general public,(?) and harvesting body parts, I could go on and on but I wont, because....I just can't catch my breath.....
Oh, there's more, much, much more, but if I put it all down, you wouldn't believe me.
I think if this had been split up into about 3 or 4 books....maybe I could have taken this far fetched stuff and digested it slowly! ( NOT) but all this and in ONE book? Good grief!
I mean seriously? I hope there isn't a book 2 or 3! There's no where else to go!
I feel badly that I didn't like this book as much as I wanted to.... It had promise.... Like some guys I've dated, but left me unfulfilled ( same as above!)

[Mitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Umm … what a weird book. Vampires. Dystopian. Religious motifs. Obvious parallels to the Berlin Wall, segregation, racial tensions, and even ethnic cleansing. It’s a lot to take in, but Black City sort of works because I really didn’t expect much more than just a conventional mishmash of vampire and dystopian tropes based on a run of the mill Romeo and Juliet premise, but in fact Elizabeth Richards has really written something that’s actually a bit more complicated.

Part of it though is Richards doesn’t really take the time to explain the backstory, I’m dropped right into the middle of the plot with chapters alternating between Natalie’s and Ash’s points of view. Personally, I like Richards’s approach because I have to work at figuring out exactly what these characters are talking about, although it can be a bit infuriating at first not knowing exactly what’s going on. But basically, Black City takes place in a world where humans and several kinds of vampires, called Darklings, coexist, except Darklings obviously need to feed on human blood so they produce this addictive drug from their venom in order to get willing blood donors in it for the high. The Black City version of the United States obviously doesn’t want all its citizens getting high all the time, so a few years before the events of the book there’s this religious reformation that brings to power this leader who decides to trap the Darklings either in ghettos or ship them off to concentration camps. The Darklings clearly weren’t going to willingly go along with that plan, so they start a revolt that’s violently put down and Black City now takes place in this postwar city with Darklings still stuck in their ghetto and the rest of the city divided between supporters of continued persecution and Darkling sympathizers.

That said, I really like how Richards has written her story in a way that’s not at all black and white, both sides can legitimately claim to be doing the right thing, even if it’s obvious what Natalie’s mother is doing is horrifically wrong. The premise is what I would imagine a natural progression of a society in a mixed vampire and human world would be, so while I can’t condone Natalie’s mom’s methods, the question of how to fix all these problems remains, because, yes, Darklings are being horribly mistreated, but as you’ll see, they’re not entirely innocent either. That’s actually the only reason I put up with Natalie and Ash’s relationship, because otherwise it’s really a generic ‘I hate you at first sight but secretly feel different’ type deal, but with the added backdrop of Darkling and human tensions, the two of them become slightly more bearable. However, I’m not exactly convinced that Richards has struck the right balance between Darklings as dangerous menace and innocent victims, the Darklings are starving yes but in order to give credence to the worst of the accusations against them, or maybe just to make Ash seem like a potentially dangerous monster, they end up doing stuff like killing innocent people that just doesn’t sit right with me, like shades of gray gone too far. Heck, I’d support keeping them in that ghetto if I knew what they were doing in there, and that the Darkling sympathizers don’t even acknowledge that Darklings can be that dangerous just makes them seem more than a little naïve and foolish in my book. Just the problem with their addictive venom would’ve been enough for me to understand where the Sentry government is coming from.

As for Natalie and Ash themselves, a big problem with books written with alternating points of view is that the guy and girl characters tend to sound alike, and unfortunately, that’s a problem here too. For me, the only noticeable difference is Ash swears while Natalie is way too uptight for that, but it’s really not enough to set them apart. Oh, and beyond their ‘I hate you until now I like you’ problem, I swear there are scenes that are entirely reminiscent of Twilight, down to a triangle with fellow half Darkling Evangeline and Ash having to pick between human or Darkling society. But enough of the time Richards does add enough shades of gray, Ash being a drug dealer to support his family, getting his best friend Beetle hooked on drugs, contributing to the death of a classmate, that for the most part the Ash and Natalie drama was tolerable, and some stuff, like Ash eventually falling into the ‘he’s a dangerous monster the innocent girl should stay away from’ trope, actually worked as a smaller part of the bigger Darkling place in human society picture.

My biggest problem though is the religious aspects really didn’t work for me. I don’t have a problem with ambiguous world building where it works, but the use of crucifixes as punishment stuck out like a sore thumb because this didn’t strike me as an overly religious book and I just don’t see how the one aspect ties into the rest of the story. And the ending only leaves me even more confused. Other than that, there are quite a few plot holes, I have to point out security at Natalie’s house seriously sucks, an intruder can break into the place the same way, not once, but twice, even though her mom’s such a big shot. After what happens the first time, somebody really needs to be fired. And the treatment of half Darklings is really inconsistent, there’s a scene with another half Darkling kid, not Evangeline, and compared to what Ash has to go through it doesn’t really add up.

But overall, despite the plot holes and flawed characters, I like Black City because Richards could’ve written a much more conventional book without tackling the implications of the world she’s created, but she’s done it and the result is far more interesting.

[☯Meera☯ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Why was this book ever published?
It was terrible, it was absolutely horrific.
Honestly, it was just eye-rolling, tacky-romance, flimsy-character, terrible-writing, terrible. Like, who even authorized this book?

First of all, it was like insta-romance. "Omg, a DARKLING! Must resist!"

I couldn't even FINISH it. What I read sums up to this:

Ash: I don't deserve to be loved. I am super broody and really hostile and a total jerk. But I've got my reasons.

Natalie: This boy intrigues me. What is this feeling that I am feeling? Why am I so attracted to him?

Ash: I can't get her out of my head ... she is so different. She is so strange.

Natalie: *touches Ash*

Ash: *heart starts to flutter* *can't stop thinking about Natalie*

Natalie: *barely knows him* Hm, you're so handsome and dark. It's totally forbidden... but it's true love, so it must be right.

Ash: OMG she made my heart beat. That must mean ...

Natalie: I have a crush of Ash... he's so mysterious but also totally sweet under that dark mask.

Ash: You are ... *dramatic, because he's so in love* my BloodMate

Natalie: OMG I knew all along in my heart, I love you so much!

Ash: It was so meant to be. You are my heart, I love you so much.

(Me: WTF?)

Natalie: *is forced to make decision between best friend and guy she just met*

Ash: ...

Natalie: I CHOOSE ASH BECAUSE I LOVE HIM *ignores the 'but it's forbidden' protests* I DON'T CARE IF IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!

Ash: Oh, Natalie, I love 'oo so much ... you're so sweet ...

Natalie: *smiles*

(Me: WTF?)

Then I slammed the book shut. And I thought, What kind of world are we living in — or rather, are Natalie and Ash living in?

[Beatriz Lins · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a disappointment. Ridiculous world-building, shallow characters, stupid ending, and the romance is cheesy, melodramatic and unrealistic. This book couldn't have been worse for me :(

[Komal · Rating 1 out of 5]

So I ended up DNFing this.


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The book was just one HUGE cliche!
The characters, the plot...It just wasn't gripping enough.
The start was promising enough but as the story progressed, the plot had dwindled to a sappy, cheesy, too-much-hackneyed love story.

The character were so bland and predictable, it was annoying. All they ever were did was get into petty fights over Friendship Vs Relationship. And pout. And bitch. Really?



So, if you wanna fry your brain with a no-apparent-plot, petty characters story, go for this one.

[Wendy Darling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good stuff, and some very underdeveloped/not so good stuff. Short review to come...maybe.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

See more reviews at YA Midnight Reads

3.90 stars ( VERY WEIRD RATING FOR ME! I COULDN'T PLACE THIS ONE WELL SO THIS IS WHAT I GOT REDUCED TO!)

Sometimes, I really do hate myself for not reading the synopsis from time to time. Black City was one of these disappointments. I went in deeming that this was an action packed thriller/dystopian, while there was some action, this was more based around romance --forbidden love. I'm not trying to imply anything else apart from that I was expecting something totally different and took me some time to adjust ask recover from the confusion.

One minutes of awe for this cover please. *one minute passes* Lately, several covers have lived up to it's content, so near with my minute rant at this adorkable cover scheme. Redish pink and black. WOW. There is nothing better than these two colours to be on this cover. I still cannot really work out what that pink thing is....it's could be multiple thing really, but I think it looks like a glass shattered flower. O__O

Told in dual points of view, Elizabeth Richards takes vampires, dystopian and romance into a 400 paged galore which keeps readers intent in a world of chaos and discord. I envy the author's writing skills as they manage to create something so intricate and unique that wouldn't seem too possible at a glance. Unlike some books, Black City exceeds with dreamy descriptions and in depth and intense writing and story lines.

I feel link I haven't done my one sentenced summaries in a long time, so here it is!
In the middle of a boiling war time, two teens on each side of the battle fall in love, they will stop at nothing to discover the dark secrets Black City holds to stay together.

I can't resist running my fingers thought the soft ash coating, the walls of the houses, staining my skin black. Black That's the colour of my world here: black streets, black buildings, black skies. Black everything. I've almost forgotten what colour looks like.

Natalie should not be thought of anything less than an independent, straight-minded person who is very passionate in what she believes. I never really consider her as a heroine, I treat her like my model, while she isn't a kick ass female, she manages so many unthinkable issues and plunges through smartly and realistically. Such a beautifully drawn character! Ash sped down to my annoying male characters list at the beginning, not just because I was out off by the vampirey element but also because of the way he thought people as, hungry for blood, no control whatsoever. However, as I went on, Ash became much more likeable and relatable. Another dark, mysteriously character!

The plotting of Black City was uneven, I felt like Elizabeth tried too hard in informing me on background information for the first half then decided to add a plot to cover for her forgotten element in a YA book. Definitely should've been better paced and smoothed. Contrary to this, I still enjoyed reading her idea!

Be prepared for some negative thoughts. ANOTHER instant love book. WHY?! This really does suck, thankfully, it got covered up a bit by the original dystopian world but I am seriously ticked off.
The following sentences may contain a spoiler**
From the moment Natalie and Ash meet, they literally start crushing hard, then they don't bother to play nice to each other till half way the through the book which is when Ash relieves that they're blood mates and start to make out because its suddenly okay. I'm weirded out by this, am I the only one?

Black City was a refreshing dystopian/romance/paranormal novel that left me wondering and confused. CLIFFHANGER ALERT! I recommend this book to lovers of a star crossed love and Starters By Lissa Price.

[Mei · Rating 1 out of 5]

Main points:
1. The world building was too complex and a lot to take in. I can't picture out the different Darklings since each type has different features and physical appearance.
2. There was no clear explanation of the history, the government, the pre-war or a map of their world. Aside from the United Sentry States, and a few others mentioned that I have forgotten, what else are there? How did Purian Rose got his position? Who put him there? Is it monarchy? Or...what? For how long is his term? When did the war broke out and for how many years has it been going?
3. Trackers (humans who track Darklings after curfew) have this what you call 'V-gene' in their bodies, which helps them sense if a Darkling is within vicinity. If someone has this, they're automatically a Tracker. What's bugging me is how people got this. How do they get it and which kind of people have it? Where is this located and how on earth do they sense Darklings?
4. It was anticlimactic when Natalie found out about the material found on the Golden Haze.
5. The last parts of the book was fast paced, IN A BAD WAY. It was a lot to take in and I felt it wasn't consistent.
6. The introduction to the world building was only emphasized in the beginning, the rest are all about the annoying romance.
7. Their society is divided into two: the Workboots and the Sentry. I'm pretty sure you know what those mean: poor and wealthy (respectively). The division wasn't stressed out in the book; I didn't feel such system exists.
8. I also would like to know more about the religion aspect. I forgot what it's called in the book.
9. This book appears more like an urban fantasy than a dystopian.
10. Speaking of the romance, I was forewarned that it will be a love story as written in the synopsis, which was what lessened my expectations. The story was heavily focused on the romance, and didn't put much justice to the other parts. The characters, the plot...the story concentrated on it. The lines are too cheesy to handle. The love story was annoying and clichéd, and began with an insta-love. I understand they're Blood Mates, but there could've been at least a slow build of their romance.
11. That part also made me cringe. Darklings will only have two hearts if they found their Blood Mates, but how does it activate?

Natalie's POV: She doesn't want to return Ash's coat though she gets annoyed at him but has these this electric shocks or zaps when Ash is near. I also felt annoyed when she mentions how beautiful Ash's 'sparkling black eyes', how POWERFUL and MUSCULAR his body then goes all like, "Stop! I have to stop thinking about him this way. I'm the Emissary's daughter and he's a Darkling. We can't be together!" And then on the last part, she goes, "I love you Ash! Let the whole world hear it! Please don't leave me, you can't die!"

Ash's POV: He goes annoyed at her for not returning his coat and throwing insults because of her background (being a daughter of an authority). Then his heart suddenly has a beat and he goes admiring her 'cornflower-blue eyes' and 'tangled blonde hair' and instantly regrets saying it because of their differences. I also felt deeply annoyed when he kissed Evangeline and Natalie comes running away and the next day, she forgives him. WHAT?


EDIT: I lost my quotes -_- Oh well.

[Casey Ann Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imagine a wall keeping you separate from another race of beings? Never meeting them never will know them. But what if you do meet one of them and fall in love? Fall in love with a Darkling one that can drink your blood, have wings purple eyes and all sorts of unnatural things.


I first opened the book and was sucked in. Why? Because it was straight into the action and had such an awesome scene. Elizabeth Richards isn't afraid to be gruesome, A big dystopian, bloody, gory, sexy, hellish Romeo and Juliet is one way of describing this epic novel


So let's start with how epic this plot is! So original hints of relation to world war 2. You may think BORING but NOOO far from it. Emotional scenes, the book is such a page turner. Imagine your heart doesn't beat. But imagine meeting someone and your heart starts beating for the first time.....


I've never read so much sexual tension in a book it's so tremendous. Elizabeth has a Knack for making horrible things into something so beautiful. Like I said previously their are some relations to world war two e.g. concentration camps for "The Darklings" having to live in ghettos and wear wrist bands to show they are Darklings. I found this whole concept fascinating! From all the YA I've read this defiantly works. Love has never been more amazing in YA when reading this novel.


Soon as you think you've seen it all Elizabeth smacks you in the face with something new. Every time I think about certain characters such as Sebastian I keep thinking of the songs that would suit them! I don't usually do this but this book brought it out for me and for Seb "No churches in the wild" by Jay-Z and Kanye west suited very well go listen.



I love the two leads relationship. Ash and Natalie. I found their love/hate relationship addictive. I loved the fact it switched between the two characters. I never got tired of reading the scenes between these characters! Elizabeth takes you to a place that challenges your imagination wit forbidden love and screams at you through the page.....literally.


I love how she describe the surroundings. You literally felt like you where there breathing in the black Ash as the characters do. It was almost like watching a movie. I think this story is a lovely new take of what it means to love someone, first love, first experiences and not following the rules.

This book is one of those books that gives me goose bumps. I can feel it! The Darklings are going to take over the YA world. And I can't "fragging" wait.

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Black City was a quick and enjoyable read! I wasn't mindblown or anything, but I'm definitely going to continue with this series. :)

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't really know what to expect from this book going into it other than being told not to judge it by the first ten pages or so. That being said, seriously, don't judge this book by the first few pages. When I read them, I thought to myself "WTF am I reading?" But it totally gets better, trust me.

This book follows Natalie who is the Emissary's (like the governor of their "state") daughter and Ash who is a twin blood Darkling (basically a vamp) and their journey of insta-love and bringing down the government in true YA fashion. I enjoyed the two main characters for the most part. Ash is pretty BA is his hot vampy way who is a Haze (vamp venom) dealer. Basically he is the bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Natalie is also pretty awesome because she basically says EFF ALL THIS and does what she thinks is right in most situations.

Anyway, so these peeps live in this city called Black City which is basically this city that has a huge wall down the middle dividing the living people from the Darklings (or Darkwing ducks as we like to affectionately call them). Their country is ruled by this guy name Purian Rose who thinks he is all YEEZUS and is basically trying to eliminate all the Darklings and all other sinful things. The plot twist (not a spoiler) is that Ash isn't fully a Darkling. He is a half blood which means his human dad hooked up with his vampy mom and they made this cute little half human/half Darkling thing. It's way more complicated than my explanation but I'd give away some major spoilers if I went too indepth.

Natalie has some pretty awful things happen to her family which causes them to move away for a while and eventually come back to Black City after this big war and the death of her dad. Natalie's mom (the Emissary) makes her go to this public school which is LIKE OMG AWFUL to set an example of her daughter going to school with common folk. Really though her mom is a total B and gets worse as the story goes along (no spoiler). She has this could-be hottie guard who is basically her body guard and has to follow up around every where, but he is a major jerk and to add insult to injury they used to date so now it's just totally awkward. So Natalie makes friends with this really sweet girl named Day who basically shows her how the blue collar people live and brings her down to earth a bit. Day also used to date this druggy dredlock hippie named Beetle (yes, Beetle) who is best friends with Ash. Day and Beetle broke up and now Day hates Ash. Well, of course this means that Natalie an Ash totally have to date. Cue lots of drama. Add in the fact that there is another war brewing between the humans and Darklings, so you know all that is going to happen when the story is taking place. I'm completely over simplifying the story on all of this because I'd have to give away a lot of spoilers to tell y'all what really happens. Let me just say go buy this book and read it for yourself because some cray stuff goes on. For real.

I will say this book had one of the biggest WTF twists that I've read so far this year. Most of the other "twists" I was able to figure out at least somewhat what as going to happen, but there is one BIG one that completely caught me off guard. After it happened I was like "well, that complicates things..." That alone boosts my rating of the book up.

There were some parts that were a little snoozefest for me, but it mostly had to do with the instalove and cheesy romance that comes with it. Normally I don't mind the insta-love, but this one came on a little thick in the I WILL SACRIFICE EVERYTHING FOR YOU way. Especially after the big twist, I was like "I bet you guys wish you would've thought all that through a little more, huh?!" I will say Evangeline was one of my favorite characters (I love a character who you can't figure out if they are good or evil) and cannot wait for her to reappear in later books.

The ending was a little strange to me as well. It goes from ZOMG GONNA DIE to Oh ok, cool not gonna die really quickly which I thought was a little bizarre. I texted Angela and was like "this chick is like the Mockingjay." Trust me, you'll get it and think the same thing with the end... even down to their version of President Snow coming and dropping threats and leaving weird presents. It left it wide open for the rest of the series to develop, so I am really excited to start the next two books.

All in all, not a bad read. Not my favorite book I've read, but I think the series has a lot of potential. I am a sucker for vampire books (pun intended) so I love the darkness the story has. I plan on starting the second book in the series Phoenix tomorrow, so stayed tuned for the review in a few days.

[Stephanie (Bookfever) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this awesome advance uncorrected galley in a giveaway with some other books. Black City was the one I was truly excited for. The summary sounded really promising and of course the cover is amazing. It even got a spot in one of my Cover Crazy memes.
When I started this book I saw it was writting in 2 POV's: Ash and Natalie's. I do like it when books are writting in different POV's because this way we can see the different views of the characters. I enjoyed Ash's more than Natalie's for some reason. I don't really know why. I guess it's because I found Ash more interesting. But that doesn't mean I dislike Natalie's character or anything. She's actually one of the more interesting characters I've come across in books lately. I could actually connect and relate to her. As I could with Ash.
The story had a dark atmosphere around it, as many dystopian like books have, which I truly love. I really liked the idea of the city being seperated by a wall that devides humand and Darklings. At first Ash seemed to me a little like a bad boy, but he's actually really sweet and cute. Yes, I've found a new book boyfriend ^_^. I loved how there was right something from the start between him and Natalie, even though they argued a lot. When they finally admitted their love to each other, it was really sweet. I found myself sighing and going 'awww' a lot while reading the book. The why and how of their connecting was really a shock to me. I don't want to go into it more because I don't wanna spoil anything but let me tell you there were a lot of twists and turns. I love that in a book! There were also lot of characters in this book. I found them all really interesting and I loved reading about them. I can't wait for some of them to return in the next book. There was so much passion, action and events I didn't expect. I just loved it!
When the end of the book approached I was in real tears. I was so afraid for one character... But it turned out well. Sort of. So yeah, I head some heart stopping moments.
The last sentence in the book was also just brilliant in my eyes.
The war's only just begun. How does that not want to make you read the next book?
5/5 stars definitely earned!!
Black City is definitely one of my favorite reads of 2012 now and I highly recommend it!

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: My spoiler cut means business. I’m not going to spell out the plot, but reading this review will definitely spoil some of the twists of this plot if you haven’t read it yet.

Further Disclaimer: I picked up a copy of this book at BEA, so I’m reviewing based on an ARC.

I read Black City pretty stoked and 100% ready to love it. The cover is pretty and I’d heard the concept was a neat take on the supernatural craze that has swept up so much of YA. For the first 160 or so pages of this book, I was into it. Really into it. Could not think of anything else into it.

I liked that the characters were flawed in a way that made sense with how they were brought up. I liked that both Ash and Natalie had their prejudices and were ignorant about the other’s life. I thought the world building was fascinating, so much so that I looked past the random and somewhat excessive use of exclamation points and the weird Britishisms that crept in from time to time. I thought that there were some cool stories hanging out in the background, the kind that would help a trilogy make sense. The background cast was interesting, and they all had histories and personalities that made them more than stereotypes of the role they were in.

I thought that the atmosphere of the first 160 pages of this book was stunning. It was moody and dark and mysterious. There were things I wanted to know more about (like the breakdown of the regions being governed), but I was confident that we’d keep getting subtle context clues and not suddenly have a history lesson info dump randomly one chapter. In short, the beginning of this book was everything I’d hoped it would be and then some, which is why what happened around page 160 was such a colossal letdown.

What was most frustrating about this book to me was that we had the potential to really see two characters get to know each other. Ash and Natalie were from two COMPLETELY different worlds (hell, two completely different species), and the only things they knew were the stereotypes that each of their social complained of. Natalie was spoiled by the luxury she lived in (for all of the problems that came with it) and Ash’s problems had turned him into a detached jerk. And it made sense - perfect sense! - that these two characters would turn a physical attraction and a fascination into something more grown up and awesome. I would have been so down with THAT story that I’d be crying with joy as I told y’all about it.

But...no. Instalove. Instalove in the most awkward and random and out of nowhere manner. I expected there to be an element of Fate and Destiny because this is a fantasy novel and, honestly, I would be bummed if that element were totally absent. But even I didn’t expect it to the degree it happened. After that point, I felt like Black City turned into a completely different, not nearly as awesome book. Suddenly Natalie, who up until this point has shown a fair amount of open mindedness and common sense, ignores everything she knows about Ash and turns her back on her (only) friend because her (only) friend doesn’t like him (with good reason, had everything Ash let said friend believe turn out to be true). She doesn’t question the feeling. We’re suddenly thrown into this whole “You have literally awakened my heart so I have forgotten everything that came before.”

For 100 pages, I was ready to tear my hair out. I couldn’t make sense of what had happened. I wanted the Black City of the first 160 pages back. And then...the twist. In theory, the twist should have turned the whole instalove aspect on its head. Natalie is NOT Ash’s instalove. One of his own kind is, but her heart is beating away happily in Natalie’s chest. I started to get my hopes up again. Ash (and to a lesser extent Natalie) suddenly has to question whether this instalove is real and the difficulties of a relationship with Natalie. Once again, we are back to a plotland I want to roll around in and never leave.

In order to decide if what he feels is real, Ash needs to make out with his “true” instalove bloodmate. I was with him. This is a confusing time! You are confused! Make bad choices and make reader-me happy with some delicious conflict! Natalie sees and obviously she reacts just as I want her to react which is basically, “I understand and all, but screw you.”

But that plot, for me, didn’t sustain itself. Ash starts thinking and realizes, no, he DOES in fact love Natalie for who she is. This is where my problems came back and then some. Ash has admitted, as has Natalie, that they know very little of each other. They are clearly attracted to each other. They are clearly interested in finding out more. But he LOVES her. And why? Because of the way she clacks mints against her teeth and because of her bravery (and one more reason ala mints that I can’t remember). So, two of those reasons are automatically silly. Bravery. Ok. That makes sense. Only as a reader, I had seen only a few instances of Natalie being brave. The very start of the novel and once more. I had, however, seen several instances of her not being brave. Of her being scared and succumbing to that fear (which is something I actually really liked about her character).

In the end, instalove prevails, only without the supernatural element. I tried to argue myself out of feeling this way about the love story of this book. They are teenagers, I told myself. They are young and stupid and they don’t know what love is! But we’re told that they do. We’re told that they’re in love. The Romeo and Juliet risk everything kind of love.

And maybe in the end, my intense problem with the love story in this book is that I am the type of reader who does not find Romeo and Juliet at all romantic; who found it, rather, to be a story of passion but not of great love. Who found it to be the story of what happens when passion rules every aspect of your life. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy for a reason. Only I know I’m not going to get that kind of payoff in this series because Ash and Natalie are very likely going to end up together. Which would be fine if I understood why; if this book went beyond the passion.

Even with all that said, if the world building of the first 160 pages had been sustained, I might have given this three stars. I thought the idea of this book was that awesome, but the idea faltered along with the love story. Too many things happened. There were, as I said above, enough subplots in this book to span at lest another installment of the series, but they all played out in a mere 340 or so pages. A LOT of things happened in this book. I felt like every time I turned the page, some new, crazy action was rushing at me. In some places, this worked very well. In others, it happened at the end of a chapter and the next chapter was several days later. It made the pacing a bit of a rollercoaster, but not an awesome kind. I kept start-stop-start-stopping, and it started to get frustrating the further into the book we got because more and more things just kept piling on.

Finally, and I hate to do this, but there were, for me, some similarities - both obvious and less so) to other YA series that have been out for a while and are very popular. And it isn’t fair, in some ways, that every time two characters sit next to each other in a class and the lights go down for a movie and they feel a spark that you think instantly of Twilight. But you do, because that was one of the defining moments in that book; it was a memorable scene, love it or hate it. I’m not saying no YA author should ever use that plot moment again, I’m just saying that as a reader, it’s in my brain. More importantly, Black City is a book about semi-vampires (I say semi, because they are definitely like vampires but they’re also not, which, see paragraph one, is one of the things I enjoyed). Not Twilight vampires, no (though these vampires DO have venom, which is not something I recall reading anywhere but Twilight), but vampires all the same, which means the audience is going to be similar. There were other things, too, like the villains use of a red rose ala President Snow from The Hunger Games. As I said, I know this isn’t necessarily a fair thing to point out, but I noticed it so I put it here with that caveat.

Overall, Black City has oodles of potential. So much potential. Elizabeth Richards obviously has some seriously boss imaginings going on in her brain. That potential, though, is what makes this review so hard to write. I wanted desperately to love this book. I was loving this book. The middle, though, is a mess. The “meat” of the love story is a mess. It’s scattered and jumps around which means that the plot ends up scattered and jumping around. All of the awesome backstories and worldbuilding get completely swept up by the instalove tornado.

In the end, I just didn’t enjoy this book. Will I read the sequel? Yes. Because Elizabeth Richards DOES have boss imaginings going on in her brain, and I think this series is salvageable. Hell, this book was an ARC so maybe changes will still happen. For me, without those changes, Black City, though it started with a spark, fizzled to a dud.

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***

Black City by Elizabeth Richards
Book One of the Black City series
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons BYR
Publication Date: November 13, 2012
Rating: 4 stars
Source: Goodreads giveaway

Summary (from Goodreads):

A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war.

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-old Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed—but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

What I Liked:

Why, oh WHY, didn't I read this book sooner?! I won a review copy from a Goodreads giveaway, and kind of just held onto it. Then, the next year, I won a Goodreads giveaway of book two, Phoenix, and the same deal happened. You'd think that winning those giveaways TWICE (one for each book) would have pushed me to read them... oops?

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book! The power struggle between humans and Darklings, the romance between Ash and Natalie, the scheming, the secrets, the politics - this is definitely a book for me! Ash is a twin-blood (half-human, half-Darkling), but in the city, he always feels like a Darkling. Natalie is a Sentry, human, and daughter of the Emissary (someone super powerful). She feels trapped in her life, trapped into watching her mother and ex-boyfriend and ex-boyfriend's father hurt Darklings mercilessly. When Ash and Natalie meet, it isn't love at first sight - they hate each other. But they grow closer. As they grow closer, things get more dangerous for them, and in general, the city becomes more dangerous. It is clear that humans and Darklings will not live as they are (segregated), and war is coming.

The beginning - really, the first half - of the book is deceptive. It would appear that the first half is all about Ash and Natalie hating/growing to like each other. The two of them did NOT hit it off at first, though there is an odd physical connection between them. Ash's best friend Beetle used to date Natalie's new best friend Day, and Day hates Ash, because she thinks Ash got Beetle hooked on Haze (think: heroine or ecstasy or something). So, Natalie doesn't like Ash. Ash definitely doesn't like Natalie - she's a Sentry. Her ex-boyfriend Sebastian is a Tracker and totally heartless.

But as the story progresses, Natalie and Ash keep finding themselves in each other's paths. There is the physical connection, but slowly, they develop feelings for each other. It feels kind of sudden, kind of insta-love-y, but this is addressed throughout the book. The two of them keep wondering, do we really know each other? What would we do for each other? By the end of the book, they know just how far they would go for each other.

But I was saying that the first half of the book is deceptive. It is. It's not just about Ash and Natalie's relationship (initially, lack thereof). Richards sets up the scene perfectly. The world-building is flawless. Every encounter, every event, every plot twist, gives readers more insight into the world, the city, the attitudes of humans, of Darklings, and so on. The first half of the book has readers following Ash and Natalie's relationship, but if you read beyond that, you'll see that Richards is subtly painting the picture of Black City, a divided stronghold of humans and exiled Darklings.

I am a HUGE FAN of Ash. I love his strong, selfless personality. He didn't get Beetle hooked on Haze - he's helping Beetle wean off the Haze. He saved Natalie more than once. He takes beatings and harsh treatment for being a Darkling, even though he's a twin-blood. He has a good heart (hearts?) and a strong characters. And yes, apparently he is QUITE good-looking, nothing wrong with that!

I think I liked Natalie overall, but at times, she was hard to like. You can't really blame her, because she grew up very well-off, very privileged. She also grew up in the home of the Emissary, her mother. Obviously, Natalie is going to be obtuse and ignorant at times. But Natalie sees and knows enough to know better, which she does. She acts on her rebellious nature towards the end - but towards the end. This is interesting to see - that Natalie isn't a complete rebel from the beginning. Richards breaks her down slowly. That's a bit of a change, from what YA novels usually feature.

I love the plot of this book. It's part romance, part feuding. The struggle between humans and Darklings is intense, and it's almost reminiscent of real-life history. The Darkling are physically different beings - not human at all - but that doesn't mean they are ALL dangerous or malicious. Yet there are all forced to live on the other side of the Wall. It's interesting to see how Ash's two sides collide and pull him in both directions. I can't wait to see how that works out in the next two books. Poor Ash.

I liked this book a lot. Is that enough to say? :D

What I Did Not Like:

I remember WHILE reading the book, I thought the romance was kind of insta-love-y. And it is, ish. But the characters keep asking themselves, do we even know each other? Do we like each other, beyond the physical connection? For me, this was good enough to rectify the insta-love issue. By the end of the book, I'm convinced that Ash and Natalie really do care for each other. So there's that.

Also WHILE reading the book, I remember thinking, why does Natalie has ZERO backbone? She's quite spineless at times, it's sad. It made it a little difficult to like her. However, by the end of the book, I think her character developed pretty well, so I forgive her. Mostly.

Would I Recommend It:

I most certainly would! I had a feeling that I would enjoy this book, and so I'm pleased that I liked it a lot. It's not straight-up dystopia like I thought it would be - and you all know I'm sick of dystopia, so that worked out really nicely. I love the paranormal aspect of this book - it's almost science-fiction-like. And the romance is intriguing, to say the least. So, there is something for everyone! It makes a nice combination, as a whole. Seriously, I think this book is a hit!

Rating:

4 stars. Why didn't I read this one sooner?! I'm kind of ashamed of myself. I have wonderfully high hopes for Phoenix, and Wings!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

OH MY COOKIES. This book was f***ing amazing. There are no words to describe it. I basically only have one complaint about the book but it is a teensy itsy bitsy thing that doesn't even compete with this book's overall awesomeness.

So let's get the nastiness out of the way shall we? My one grievance about this book was the occasional total immaturity both Ash and Natalie displayed in some scenes. They acted like children with no maturity whatsoever. I could be missing something that the author wanted us as readers to pick up on like further character development so forgive me if I'm being oversensitive :D.

Other than that one sticky spot, this book was spotless. The writing had just the right about of vagueness and detailedness at the same time. It explained everything about the Darklings and the Wrath with precision and I never once got confused and had to reread something (which is pretty rare for me by the way). This book was just beautifully written with just the right combination of romance, drama, danger, and action. If you are a YA lover, this book should go on the top of your to-read list it is that good.

I'm not so crazy about the cover even though it has the right color scene in my mind. I guess I was picturing something a little more... developed? This looks a little like someone just threw together the cover to me.

I absolutely loved the blurb on the back cover:
"I release Natalie's arms and expect her to walk away, but instead she lightly traves her fingers over my lips...My breath catches in my throat at her forbidden touch...
A million reasons run through my head why I should push her away, but I don't. Instead, I do the one thing I shouldn't: I gently touch her face....In a weird way, this is the first time I've truly 'seen' her; my fingertips chart a map of her features, committing every tiny detail to memory. Desire and guilt wage a war inside me, and I'm torn between wanting her and my loyalty to my species... This is so wrong! And yet I'm unable to control myself...
'Ash,' she sighs, tilting her head up.
Her lips touch mine. They barely make contact, but a force like a lightning bolt shoots through them and straight into my heart. An explosion of pain erupts inside my chest. Natalie stumbles back, and I know she's as stunned as I am because that's when I feel it:
A second heartbeat pounding inside my chest."

Now for the ending: I LOVED it. I got so emotional when Ash was being crucified. Tears were running down my face: literally. I kind of expected what happened in the epilogue because the next book just couldn't be written without Ash. It was a nice and dramatized ending which is how I like them. Sure, it was kind of cliche how Ash just came back to life. The whole 'my kiss had jump started his heart thing' was a tiny bit farfetched but I'm willing to go along with it.

Overall this book was an overachiever and earned 6 out of 5 stars!! I highly recommend this to pretty much anyone who loved YA or some other kinds of books I guess.

[Princess Bookie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Thoughts: When I first started this one, I wasn’t sure what was going on. It was somewhat hard to understand all the terms but it clicked pretty fast.

We are introduced to Ash who is a half darkling and Natalie who is the Emissary’s daughter. In this world, the Emissary is powerful. Any kind of romance is forbidden between humans and darklings.

Natalie meets Ash and is drawn to him. The chemistry is there from the get go even though they dislike each other. She also ends up attending his school and meeting a couple new friends.

Because Ash is a darkling she should stay away from him. Darklings are a type of creature that feeds on blood with fangs but they aren’t actually vampires. There are also all different kinds of darklings.

Ash and Natalie become friends and more happens from there. Behind the scenes there is a lot going on with the Emissary and the way of the world. People want darklings dead, they don’t want to live with them while others believe that they should co-exist.

Everything stands in the way of Ash and Natalie being together, other people, the law, lots of things.

There was a lot going on in Black City, way too much detail to mention. It's one of those novels you should read for yourself and hopefully you’ll enjoy it as much as I did. It’s also told in multiple points of view, which I really liked.

Black City was a fantastic debut you should read as soon as possible.

Overall: I could write a lot more about Black City but it's complicated. You have to really read it to fully understand everything. So do me a favor, and just go read it so you can enjoy it like I did!!!

Cover: Like it! Its colorful!

What I’d Give It: 5/5 Cupcakes
_________
Taken From Princess Bookie
www.princessbookie.com

[malayna · Rating 1 out of 5]

MY OPINION: *

Okay, this is the first one star book on my shelves. Technically, it's a 1.5 star book but still.

Wow.

I had such high expectations for this book. I mean, my friend recommended it to me and even lent me her copy. She was raving about it and I had already started it before so I thought "Okay, sure, let's try this out."

WARNING: There are major spoilers ahead that I will try to block off as best as I can

At first, I was in love with it.

It had a really good beginning, but once we got past that, ughhh.

The only thing that kept me reading was so that I could write and rant about this book in this review.

Oh, and I wanted to see what was going to happen to Natalie and Ash.

The thing is, I didn't even ship the MCs.

Let's break this book down...

Wait. A lot of my friends gave it meh or mediocre ratings... I read some other reviews that loved it and some who hated it.

So there's a mix of opinions about this book.

BOOK BREAK UP

*We start the book with Ash's POV and are introduced to our first MC. He's a "vampire" or a Darkling, as they were called.
*Ash does some really weird things to this girl, as well as drugging her? I guess they both got high from the weird experience...
*Then we see this girl who manages to make Ash's heart "flutter" (PS Ash's heart doesn't beat because he's a Twin-blood)
*We switch to Natalie's POV and we get introduced to our second MC. We also find out that her father was killed by a Darkling and that she has a sister named Polly
*We also meet this guy named Sebastian, who was Natalie's ex until she caught him cheating on her?
*Natalie and Ash have this weird conversation and we get introduced to the Sight, which is some weird Darkling mark for their prey
*Ash threatens Natalie

ALL OF THAT HAPPENED IN TWO CHAPTERS

Let's continue.

*We are switched back to Ash's POV and we are introduced to his dad, who is a human.
*We learn that Ash doesn't have a heartbeat because he is a mixture of human and Darkling... Okay, I liked that idea. It was pretty cool.
*We learn that Ash feels like a "freak." Of course he does. There's always that character who feels like they don't fit in and of course, it had to be our MC
*We meet his Mom and learns that she is being kept a secret???

I would love to go into more detail but this post will be as long as the book.

Anyway, Natalie manages to start Ash's heart because he's her Blood Mate. Or something like that. They instantly fall in love because they're drawn to each other, being Blood Mates. Honestly, I didn't really understand the concept of Blood Mates.

That was the worst way to fall in love. "Fate was forcing us together" blah blah blah. I wish that it had been more natural. It would have been more real. And the insta-love was kind of cringey, TBH

Of course, that had to happen because this is a love story.

Anyways, we meet this other twin-blood named Evangeline. Turns out, Natalie has her heart. Natalie's original heart had a hole in it, meaning that she needed a replacement. They took it from Evangeline because she didn't even need it, being a Twin Blood. Oh, and Evangeline was awake while they did it, causing her to feel more hate towards Natalie.

Oh, and because it's not her real heart, Natalie isn't Ash's Blood Mate. Turns out Evangeline is.

WHAT???

So that romance was all a fake?

Nope. Ash doesn't care or whatever because he cares for Natalie.

Oh, yeah, we can't forget the fact that Evangeline is kind of a psycho killer who ripped the hearts out of Natalie's cat and guard.

Yeah.

Oh, another thing that I disliked about the book (note I don't say hate because I didn't hate the book. I just really disliked it.) EVERYTHING WENT SO FAST.

In one chapter, Natalie replaces Sebastian, her bodyguard and ex, with another guy, leaves the bodyguard while she goes to hang out with her friends, AKA Ash, Beetle and Day get back together after getting drunk, Natalie and Ash kiss, Ash reveals that Natalie is his so-called Blood Mate, Natalie isn't even shocked and legit shows no emotion, we learn that their relationship is illegal, they kiss and share souls or whatever, they get caught by Day and Beetle, Day and Natalie break their friendship, Beetle and Ash get into a fistfight, the boat crashes, oh yeah, did I mention they were on a boat?, they come back to find that Natalie's bodyguard's heart has been ripped out by Evangeline, Natalie tells Polly about Ash, and then we experience this nightmare.

ALL IN ONE CHAPTER

So yeah, that's just one chapter of this book.

Half the time, I didn't know what was going on, or where they were, or what everything looked like. Like legit. I was trying to pay attention but my mind kept wandering. This book did not keep me hooked like I hoped it would have.

Oh, and Ash comes back to life after being crucified... Ummm, does this remind you of any particular story? :\

Oh, and there's this drug in the book that kills people off. Yet people still take it. Is that a good lesson?

Oh, I DID like reading the romance. That was actually really well written. Actually, I also liked reading the fight scenes... which is unusual.

Then again, I still plan to read the next books. I was reading reviews and it has considerably higher ratings than this book. Oh, and I wanna know if Ash and Natalie end up together. I kind of hope they won't. Because I don't even ship it.

Anyways, I would recommend this book to YA fantasy readers, though it's better for people who are looking for a dystopian read that will be quick and short.

Main Character(s): Ash, Natalie
Sidekick(s): Beetle, Day, etc
Villain(s): Purian Rose, Sebastian, etc
Fantasy/Romance Elements: This book had fantasy characters, places, and creatures. This book featured an almost thrilling romance.

[Tee loves Kyle Jacobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where to begin with this review? First I have to say a huge thank you to Around The World ARC Tours for allowing me to read and review this ARC. I have to say what Princess Bookie is doing is something GREAT! Without her group I would not have even heard about this book and that my friend is TRAGIC! I have to say I have only read a few Dystopian books but this one right here is EPIC and a MUST READ because you will not be disappointed!

In Black City we are introduced to a new world where Humans and Darklings live separated by a wall. Can you imagine not knowing what is beyond the wall. Natalie is a Human and she is the daughter of The Emmisary and she will never know what is behind the wall. Or so that is what she is told. Then she meets Ash Fisher who is a half blood darkling and what happens next sparks the rest of the books off.

Ash and Natalie fall in love. They know they are not supposed to and they try very hard to stay away from one another but it fails. They have to find a way to be together because they can't live without one another. Natalie's father is the Emmisary and he is powerful and will stop at nothing to keep his daughter away from the darklings. Ash and Natalie's love for one another may just starts another war. Will they be able to be together? Or will they be separated?

This book is a powerful testament to what love can do to a person. It is told from a dual point of view. From Natalie to Ash and you get to feel what each other is feeling and thinking. When this book comes out on November 13th I am buying my own copy and re-reading it! That is how EPIC it is!

[Savannah (Books With Bite) · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know, there aren't many books that can get me hooked by the first page. With Black City, it is inevitable.

The plot of the book is what got me. The world building, with the time that they are living in really created a nice picture in my head. Once emerged in the story, I did not want to leave. (Confession: I read this story at my desk...at work!) When I have to put my work stuff aside, just to finish a book cause I can not stop thinking about it means, I've got it BAD. Let me tell you that Ms. Richards sure knows how to throw one over the reader. Some of the plot twist left me gasping,"NO!" I'm still feeling the book hangover today as I write this.

The characters of the book are awesome. Natalie and Ash are facing some hard times in a harsh world. I really love how well both these characters grew along with reader. It gave the reader a front row seat to an awesome reading adventure.

The love interest is what you want it to be. Hot and forbidden, this love sky rockets sky high. The way it grows is so freaking exciting! Watching these two fight with every single chapter and then gets closer, exposing secrets, its get better and exciting as the ending gets closer...

Take it from me when I say Black City is an phenomenal book! Flat-out entertaining, Black City ignites the YA world with brilliance. The maddening love with the witty world building, once in the book you won't want to come out. Black City is awesome!