Mistress of Night and Dawn

Eighty Days : Companion #3

by Vina Jackson

Bared to You meets The Night Circus—

From international bestselling author Vina Jackson comes the seductive story of a love affair that spans the globe.

Growing up, Aurelia was haunted by the mysterious death of her parents when she was very young, and she has always longed to know the truth about her past. At eighteen, she meets a man who will change her life forever, and when he disappears before she can learn his name, she vows to find him again. Thanks to an unknown benefactor, Aurelia travels to America to continue her education. There she comes across the existence of an exclusive ball that has been held every year for centuries. The decadent celebration of the senses travels from country to country, cropping up in secret locations and including only a very selective list of guests. Caught up in a world of passion and intrigue, Aurelia soon becomes one of the ball's star attractions. But little does she know that as her involvement with the festivities increases, she is coming ever closer to discovering the truth about her mysterious benefactor, her own past, and the identity of the one man she has ever truly loved. Vina Jackson is the pseudonym for two established writers working together. One is a successful author; the other a published writer who is also a financial professional in London.

Genres: Erotica, Romance, Fiction, BDSM

350 pages, Paperback

First published September 12, 2013

About the author

Vina Jackson is the pseudonym for two established writers working together for the first time. One a successful author, the other a published writer who is also a city professional working in the Square Mile.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mistress of Night and Dawn is an exquisite perversion, a vivid tale of a thing, rather than the people inhabiting the story. The story is about Aurelia, the one destined to be the next Mistress of the Ball- an annual celebration of hedonism and sex, held for those who are invited to indulge in its excesses, revelry and celebration of sexuality and humanity. However, her story, and that of Andrei the Protector of the Ball, sent to find Aurelia, with whom she falls in love, is not really about her. I did enjoy the sensuality of the characters, their abandon and joy in their sexual being, and even though I don't love the idea of a person having their personality broken down to become something else, I recognized that Aurelia's consent was imperative to continue the story. It felt like a cross between The Story of O and The Night Circus, especially the flowing language and languid pacing of the story. The elements of dominance and submission are hardly new, but treated respectfully here. In all, I enjoyed the book, even if it lacked some originality, it was interesting and very hot.
ARC provided by Netgalley

[Julie Kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Vina Jackson's books.

The story line was great flitting between the present and some historical chapters about 'The Ball' This appears to be a very hedonistic affair, which is full of music, love, men, women, food, drinking, the usual things which would happen at parties.

The history of 'The Ball' goes back to the 1700's as per the historical chapters in the book, it gave great insight as to what had happened in the past and what is going to happen.

We meet Aurelia just before her 18th birthday, she goes to a fun-fair travelling from her home in Essex in UK, to where the fair was in London. She is with her friend Siv, they have been friends for quite some time, after her god parents brought her to UK after loosing her parents in USA shortly after her birth.

Whilst at the fair she has a romantic experience, but doesn't know who the boy is! She spends some time remembering the experience, and begins to explore her sexuality.

Aurelia and Siv go to a party where she re-unites with the boy she met before at the fun fair, exploring more with him. She really struggles to get him out of her mind. After a little while Aurelia and Siv travel to USA, Siv wants to join the acrobatics of the circus. During their trip Siv finds herself a job modelling, and they are invited to an art exhibition, which is not what they were expecting. Siv begins to change causing Aurelia to start to look for her, she finds her at the party, but Siv has changed.

Whilst looking for Siv, Aurelia find the boy that had captured her thoughts since the fun-fair and the party in UK! and its from here that we begin to learn Aurelia's fate. She begins her journey into finding out about her birth parents, learns who they were and how they perished.

Throughout the story we learn more about the hedonistic views regarding the ball, how important it is and who the descendants are!

We are reintroduced to some characters from the Eighty Days series, although it would have been nice to catch up and learn more about what they had been doing! but I believe this books, runs parallel to some of the books in the series.

Aurelia turns out to be someone very special, a integral part of 'The Ball' and we go through her training with her. She learns more about her sexuality, and the love that grows for the boy who first piqued her interest!

This is a story about first love, self discovery coupled with intrigue and plenty of sexual interactions

[Redfox5 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've jumped in at book 6, though it didn't feel like it was part of a series, so maybe this is a stand alone set in the same universe? I have no idea. All I know is that this was a series that tried to cash in during the '50 Shades' phase.

This is erotica infused with magic. I feel like if you are a fan of 'The Night Circus' looking for a kink, you might be happy with this. At times it reads like a fairytale, it contains some very soft erotica.

The story is centred around a ball that happens every year, which features lots of nakedness, circus acts and impossible things. Aurelia, the main character is destined to be the Mistress of The Ball. This book follows her story, which predicatively involves her being fucked by lots of different men, but still finding her true love, who is okay with this.

This was alright, nothing special. Features lots of 'perfect' sex scenes, like so many other books of this genre.

[Hannah Polley · Rating 2 out of 5]

What did I just read? This is one of the weirdest books I've read. It flips between present day and various other times and it has an element of magic that it never really explains.

The book is all about a sort of magic Ball that takes place every year. There is always a mistress of the Ball. Aurelia's parents ran away from it and tried to escape but drowned but the Ball tracks down Aurelia and she can't escape her fate.

I was not expecting the first graphic sex scene, I did not realise it was an erotic fiction book. Not the greatest, I skipped over some of those bits towards the end, it was very samey.

I would have liked a lot more explanations as a lot of the book did not make sense.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ball is a festival that takes place annually, celebrating life, love, and sexuality. Many desire to not only be a guest of the notorious Ball, but to be a participant in any way possible. The food is unlike any other tasted. The theatrics unlike any witnessed; the women the most beautiful, the men the most handsome. To be a part of the Ball is to participate in the most satisfying sexual experience of one’s life. All of this sensual foreplay leads up to the culmination of events before Dawn, when the Mistress of the Ball is presented and completes the ceremony with the anticipated event of the evening. Though the Ball is widely celebrated, it cannot take place without a Mistress, and since the disappearance and tragic death of the last Mistress, the Ball has been without a Mistress.

Aurelia is just beginning her young adult life. After her parents tragically died, she had been raised by her kind godparents and given the most normal upbringing possible. Despite the normal upbringing she had, most of her life, Aurelia has sensed that she has been being watched. As she turns eighteen, she becomes more aware of the changes not only in her physical body, but the way her body responds. As she becomes more aware, she encounters a mystery man, who only reveals himself at certain times, but causing an unimaginable amount of desire and need for him.

Aurelia continues to embark on her journey, desperately trying to put her mystery man out of her memory. As she prepares to enter college, she discovers that she has been entrusted and enormous amount of money with the intention she travel to America and enroll at Berkley University. She travels with her friend, Siv, to live in America and plans to enroll in college. As her final preparations are made, again, her body comes to life with arousal and she notices small heart shape tattoos that mysteriously show up on her body, but only when she is a state of supreme arousal.

All events lead to her coming face to face with her mystery man, where he reveals to her that she is the missing piece. She is the Mistress of the Ball. Everything that has happened to her has led to her being led to him and making the choice whether or not to become the new Mistress.

This book was unlike any book I have ever read. During my duration of reading, I felt drugged, in a haze almost. It was simply intoxicating.

The book flips back and forth between the past and present. In the past chapters, the author gives the reader insight into the traditions of the Ball. They are each eye witness accounts of events that occurred. As I was reading the chapter, I could feel the moment when the characters senses were overtaken by arousal. Not only did the character change, but I changed too, finding it difficult to not read rapidly because I wanted so badly to know what happened. In the present chapters, the author focuses mostly on Aurelia and the changes that are occurring in her. Many moments within this book, Aurelia has a feeling of being a little drunk on her senses, and I have to say, I too, had quite the buzz going on.

This book is extremely erotic. Not only are the scenes erotic, but the language is as well. It is impossible to read this book, and not have at least one of your senses go into overdrive. At many times I could smell the scents, taste the tastes, and hear what was going on in the book. It was quite the reading experience.

Even though the language is erotic, it is quite lyrical, and at times, a little heavy on the adjectives. If you enjoy reading “straight to the point this is what happened” kind of stories, then this book is definitely not for you. If you, however, enjoy something entirely different, a story that will set your senses on fire, then I would definitely read this book. Four stars!

[NomdePlumePress · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book because I was intrigued by it. Intrigued doesn't always turn into a good read. Often it's a WTF read. This wasn't quite that, and in fact I read it quite quickly because it held my interest, but I'm not really sure if I know how to review it.

Aurelia's never really fit in. She's an American orphan who was raised outside London by godparents. She's never met a guy who's interested her until an unknown stranger kisses her at a fun fair and it feels like it's meant to be. They meet again a year later, but still he remains unseen. In the meantime, Aurelia mysteriously comes into some money, so she and her bestie Siv travel to San Francisco for their gap year. Their, Siv meets a blind sculptor who invites them to an erotic exhibition. Then, Siv disappears. Aurelia's search for her takes her to Seattle with two kinksters who take her to the Ball, a mysterious annual event that's occurred for centuries. There, Aurelia finds her man and her place. And that's when things start to get really weird.

I kept changing my mind about what kind of book this one. In the prologue, it seemed like urban fantasy, then a sweet new adult romance, but in the end it is all erotica. That disjuncture kind of threw me out of it at times. I didn't love this book, I didn't hate it, but I can't really say I liked it either. There was a lot that was intriguing and fun. The writing was lovely and evocative. Aurelia's character had sufficient depth before she became a sexual pawn. But then there was a lot of WTF. I know; crappy review. I warned you.

Neva

Reviewed from ARC. Published by Open Road Media June 3, 2014.

Full review at nomdeplumepress.wordpress.com.

[Sarah Place · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well.... this was a strange book for me to read. First of all I don't really tend to read books that are set in the past tense as I don't understand a lot about history so I tend to find that type of book a bit confusing.
This book has two story's happening along side each other. One in current tense and the other many hundreds of years ago. The modern day bits I loved but the older parts of the story I did not enjoy very much.
I almost gave up on the book almost half way through as I was finding it quite hard going but I stuck with it and am very glad that I did.
The whole story now makes sense and I understand the relevance of the older part of the story.

[Kelvin Ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is the strangest book I've ever read but it was truly addictive and tantalizing, maybe because Mistress of Night and Dawn is a combination of romance, erotica, fantasy and magical realism, certainly not the kind of books you find everyday in the romance section of the bookstore. I like how characters from their previous books i.e. Lauralynn and Luba made an appearance here. I don't think the epilogue spelled the end of this book but it's only a beginning for the next title in the expanding Eighty Days series.

[Alex Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the vein of The Sleeping Beauty trilogy (Anne Rice writing as A.N. Rolequare- not sure if I spelled that correctly) comes this sensual tale of a young woman's journey into a hidden world filled with timeless traditions steeped in eroticism and sexual exploration. But don't be fooled into thinking this is just a spicy novel-- no, it is so much more. It has layers, just waiting to be peeled with each turn of the page. Excellent read.

[Jeni · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh dear. I picked this up expecting more Night Circus then sex circus. The Ball plot has so much promise and could be amazing, but I feel the sex just made it shallow and boring. No I'm not been prudish, in honesty the sex was bland. I'd opt for more Ball plot and less vanilla.
I found the characters boring and weak. except Siv, she was cool.
All in all, I finished in the hope of more and was left unsatisfied.

[MissFede · Rating 1 out of 5]

This books gets a low grade from me mostly because of how utterly flat, boring and uninteresting the female protagonist, Aurelia, is. Apparently having a strong, interesting, well written heroin these days is almost impossible. It seems like that the only important thing is throwing into the mix a dark mysterious man and all is done. Very superficial and lame if you ask me.

[Mummy's Naughty Corner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting story. I liked the idea of the ball and the flash between the past and the present. the magic of the ball seemed to be present in every page of the book. The characters were easy to get to know and the interactions were witty as well as hot in places. The sense of mystery were woven well within the story.

[Olivia (Stories For Coffee) · Rating 2 out of 5]

**ACTUAL RATING: 2.5 STARS**

Weirdest book ever.

[Deb Omnivorous Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't get into all the multiple, diverse, unconnected plot lines. Trying for erotica with teenagers-creepy. Token mention of 'the marquis' was sneer worthy.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm an Amazon Vine member, this book was available for me to read and review through that program. To be fair trying to review a book that is already six installments into a series is challenging and can put the author at a bit of a disadvantage...but it can also point out issues that I feel sometimes authors forget to take into consideration when writing a series.

So, on to my review!

I wanted to give this book a higher rating than 3 stars (Liked it), I really did, I wanted to say I loved it, but it just didn't come together well enough for me to rate it higher and perhaps this is because this is actually book 6 in the series and I haven't read any of the other books.

I felt dropped into the middle a story from the get go with the introduction, which to be honest took me some time to finally get into. In fact, it's why it has taken me so long to finally review this book. I'd pick this book up to begin reading and get bored in the introduction because I already felt lost, so I'd put it back down again; I just had a hard time finally getting into this story.

That's not to say that I thought this was a bad story, I didn't think that. In many ways I really enjoyed the gothic nature of this erotic mystery as Aurelia struggles with the death of her parents and becomes entwined with Andrei and Tristan while she comes to terms with who she is. But trying to review a book that is now six installments into a series tends to leave one feeling lost in the process if the author doesn't include enough information here and there to bring the reader up-to-speed so that it can be read as a stand-alone.

Now, does that mean don't read this book? Nope, that's not what I'm saying; I'm saying you need to read the other books first. If you enjoy erotica I believe you will enjoy this series. It feels as though Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty Chronicles may have been an inspiration for it and its darkly erotic twists and turns were interesting to me but the many nameless characters and lack of back story began to get on my nerves.

This is why I rate it at 3 stars; it was interesting enough for me to read, once I finally got into it, yet there were things I wish had been developed more both within the plot and the backstory for new readers.

Still, I say check this one out.

BUT if you are put off by erotica, steer clear; don't be one of those people who are warned of sexual content and then buy the book anyway and pretend to be shocked by it.

[L8dm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t know what to expect before reading this novel but the beginning sounded promising and mysterious. But as it went along and the female protagonist started to change, I felt more and more disturbed. Is she becoming a glorified sexual geisha type? I’m not very comfortable about a young girl being made into a sex toy. That inkling of uneasiness gets more and more stronger as the chapters continue. I think I’m only half way through and am throwing in the towel. I was debating whether to get over the hump of the uneasy parts and maybe the ending would answer all the questions and not leave me with the I Wish I Never Read This type of feeling. I might just skip to the end just to get some closure.

But all in all, I love the writing language and intricate details provided by the authors but this type of genre maybe not for me. I just don’t feel any heart in it other than this becoming a plain erotica novel with the circus theme as fancy icing.

Update: Ok, I am utterly mad. I just couldn’t continue reading about past stories of character that had nothing relating to the main character; other than for the purpose of overrating the extravagant of the Ball. I skipped to the end and was just dumbfounded on the stupidity of it. So....she wants to have sexual encounters with lots of men? And the love of her life is fine with it because “it’s just the way it has to be” ...really?!!! C’mon?! And then to end it off with she’s pregnant with a girl and the immediate thought is maybe she can follow in her mother’s footsteps...so she can grow up to also be f*** by many men?! Heck! What is wrong with you people?!

This novel left me with such a bad taste in my senses! Ugh! So mad that I even picked this up thinking it was a romance when it was .. this instead.

I wanted to take back a star but I still appreciate the beautiful writing such as that describing how the air is layered etc. Almost poetry. Just that the content was not to my taste at all.

[Lara Vehar · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is not even remotely what I'd usually pick up and read but I did pick it up and read it and I don't really regret it I guess. It's just not my type of book.

I don't remember where I got this book but it was collecting dust on my bookshelf so I decided to pick it up and read it without reading anything about it before I read it because I like a good surprise.

I haven't read anything else from this author before this so I am not sure about her other books but:

I didn't really like this book, it was just not my type of read and it might be the translation too.

Here are my issues with the book:

- Bland protagonist with bland personality.
- Needlessly obscene language that made everything sound gross, even just kissing (might be just the translation that I read though).
- The completely pointless history chapters- you just meet a character, get used to them and bam you are back at the main story and you never see them again.

My other issue was: Aurelia and Siv moved to another country and to another lady's house, they both go missing and move to another country and the lady doesn't even care or ask where they went or anything, I don't know about you but if I had two young people living in my place and they suddenly disappeared I wouldn't just take: "I found my friend so be back soon" note and roll with it and never start worrying or anything.

So all in all: It was an interesting and different book, not one that I'd usually pick up and that I'd read often or even reread, but it's not a bad book if you like this genre.

[Amy Wade · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t usually bother writing reviews, but I felt I needed to for closure — I was so disappointed by this book when it held so much promise.

The first chapter was fantastic and made me think I was in for a great read. Unfortunately, everything after that fell flat.

Firstly, this book is basically erotica, even though the blurb gives absolutely no hint of that — which feels misleading, especially since that’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

There’s also an overuse of the word “cunt” to describe female anatomy, which is one of my biggest icks.

The plot itself is dull — I had to force myself to keep going, hoping it would get better, but it never did. The sex scenes all felt repetitive, and the language used was just… cringe.

Overall, it’s frustrating because the idea was genuinely brilliant, but the execution just didn’t do it justice.

[Harley Biala · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was just okay though I think the erotic parts are well-detailed.

[Meggy · Rating 2 out of 5]

not what I was expecting at all. reminded me of the night circus but it was something else.

[Danii corrine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Jelena Antic · Rating 3 out of 5]

U nekim trenucima tok Aurelijine obuke bude previše

[Lena · Rating 3 out of 5]

War nicht wirklich meins und hatte für mich zu wenig Bezug zu den Teilen davor.

[Marta · Rating 1 out of 5]

Zaznaczam to bo nie ma zimy na gr lol

[Ricarda Scola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inhalt:

Aurelia führt ein ganz normales Leben bis sie an ihrem 18. Geburtstag erfährt, dass ein unbekannter ein Gönner einen Treuhandfonds für sie angelegt hat. Die Bedingungen dafür, das Geld zu erhalten, sind so simpel wie kontrovers: sie muss studieren und darf nicht bis zu einem bestimmten Alter heiraten. Da sie gerade keine Heiratspläne hat und ihr bisher eh nie ein Mann gerecht werden konnte, stimmt sie kurzerhand zu. Nichts ahnend, wohin sie diese Entscheidung führen wird...

Eigene Meinung:

"80 Days - Die Farbe der Liebe" von Vina Jackson ist der mit Abstand beste Band der Reihe. Ich weiß, dass ich das schon vom 5. Band behauptet habe, aber da konnte ich ja noch nicht ahnen, dass mich dieses Finale so begeistern kann.

In gewohnter Weise lockt das Autorenduo den Leser in seine Welt und dieses Mal kann man wirklich von einer "Entführung" sprechen, denn es kommt Magie ins Spiel - doch dazu kommen wir später. Die Beschreibungen sind detailliert und dezent zugleich. Durch diese kontroverse Mischung wird eine tolle Atmosphäre kreiert, die dieser Story das gewisse Etwas verleiht.

Auch in diesem "Einzelband" konnten mich die Charaktere viel mehr überzeugen als in der ursprünglichen Trilogie. Die Rollen waren perfekt verteilt und wirklich jede Figur hatte etwas ganz Eigenes.

Aurelia ist bodenständig und ruhig. Eine natürliche Schönheit, die sich zwar nichts vormacht, aber auch nichts darauf einbildet. Bisher hat es mit keinem Mann so recht geklappt, was ihr allerdings nicht wirklich Sorgen bereitet. Sie ist unglaublich geduldig und vertraut auf das Schicksal. In Kombinatin mit einer überraschenden Abenteuerlustsind das die perfekten Vorraussetzungen für ihren tatsächlich vorherbestimmten Weg.

Dass die Geschichte mich begeistert hat, habe ich ja bereits angedeutet, allerdings gibt es doch einen Punkt zu bemängeln: und zwar das Fehlen der versprochenen Auflösung. Natürlich tauchen die altbekannten Figuren in gewisser Weise auf, allerdings spielt nur Lauralynn tatsächlich eine Rolle. Dieser Aspekt hätte mich normalerweise auch überhaupt nicht gestört, aber nach dem Klappentext habe ich in dieser Hinsicht einfach mehr erwartet.

Dafür wird man verschiedenen Handlungssträngen belohnt, die den mysteriösen "Ball", um den sich letztlich alles dreht, im Wandel der Zeit beschreibt. Man erlebt einige Geschichten aus verschiedenen Perspektiven und wird auch mit verschiedenen Ansichten konfrontiert. So wird diese zweifelhafte Veranstaltung nicht nur hochgelobt, sondern komplett durchleuchtet. Überaus gelungen!

Ansonsten war dieser Erotikroman ganz nach meinem Geschmack. Wobei mir natürlich gerade der mystische Aspekt so gut gefallen hat. Zugegeben, am Anfang war ich irritiert. Immerhin war das in den vorigen Büchern nie ein Thema, aber wie es aussieht - und die Wenigstens wird es wohl wundern - war das die letzte Zutat, um es für mich zu einem Erfolgsrezept zu machen.

Dass bei einem Erotikroman Sex ein großes Thema ist, sollte niemanden mehr schockieren. Ansprüche darf man aber trotzdem haben - und diese werden hier genau erfüllt. Obwohl Sex die Konstante ist, wird es zu keiner Zeit "trashig" oder obszön. Das Autorenduo geht zwar ins Detail, aber wiederholt sich nicht ständig und erzählt auch nie mehr als nötig.

Fazit:

Vina Jacksons "Die Farbe der Liebe", das große Finale der 80-Days Reihe, ist ein wunderschöner Abschluss, der mich rundum zufrieden zurücklässt. Meine Erwartungen wurden übertroffen, obwohl nicht alle Versprechen erfüllt wurden und jetzt kann ich getrost sagen, dass dieser Band tatsächlich der Beste der Reihe war. Die komplette Geschichte umgibt eine mystische Atmosphäre, die diesem Roman das gewisse Etwas verleiht. Verschiedene Handlungsstränge runden das Gesamtbild ab und die einzigartigen Charaktere wissen zu überzeugen. 5/5 Bücher und eine klare Empfehlung!

[Joannah Keats · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vina Jackson is back with something new and wildly different. Mistress of Night and Dawn is less like the books in the Eighty Days series and more reminiscent of the erotic Sleeping Beauty trilogy by Anne Rice but without the darkness. This is truly an example of fantasy erotica, as opposed to the more realistic style of the other books by the Jackson duo. If you are familiar with the other titles but felt that they were lacking in quantity of sex scenes, Mistress will be right up your alley.

Still well-written though more difficult to follow at times, Mistress is for readers looking for more romance in their gratuitous sex, as Jackson has not been much for providing a love story per se, until now.

The Vina Jackson novels are incredibly unique in a genre over-crowded with poorly-written 50 Shades knock-offs and Mistress of Night and Dawn is no exception, though I did not find it as striking as Eighty Days Yellow, which remains my favorite of them all.

[Barmybelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read the other Vina Jackson books and so when started reading this one I assumed it would be a similar genre. Unlike the other books I felt there was more of a fantasy element in this one, not something I usually enjoy. I found the book slow to start and it wasn't until about 15% read when we are given details about the history of the Ball that my interest was sparked. A mysterious, erotic, secret ball which is a "celebration not just of sexuality but also of humanity", hundreds of years old, maybe back to the days of Cleopatra. After this, I began to enjoy the book more, Aurelia's training to be the mistress both physically and mentally, the tattoos showing the progress.
All the previous books by Vina Jackson had some overlap of characters or events and this is an element in this book too, although less so than the others. As I say, I'm not a fan of fantasy but if you are, and enjoy BDSM based erotica, this book may be for you.

[Linda O'Brien · Rating 1 out of 5]

Saw this book in the library & as I'd read the rest of this series & enjoyed them, thought it would be nice to read this one. It is classed as erotic fiction. To be honest, I found the storyline confusing & a very strange read, until chapter 8, when the story suddenly starts to make sense & pick up slightly. I didn't think it much of a story anyway & a fair bit of repetitive explaining, which grew boring. It certainly doesn't match up to the rest of the series which came before this book. Personally I wouldn't waste my time on it. Can't see why the authors bothered to write this one. In the end, I started skipping some of it, just to finish it quicker, to see how it would end. I don't like giving up on books. My opinion is don't waste your time. The other books in this series are so much better.

[Barbara Elsborg · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've not read any others in this series. I was given this book so I had no idea what to expect. I thought at first it was YA and so not going to be my thing - the protags were in their teens and I'm beyond being interested in that. BUT - it was an intriguing premise that kept me reading. I hadn't expected the eroticism - there was no warning on the back - but it was nicely written. My problem was lack of character detail - there was plenty of other detail and very good detail at that. But I didn't care about Aurelia, didn't care about her friend or about Tristan and Andrei and without that emotional connection the book went totally flat for me. So I'm sure many will love it, it just wasn't my sort of thing.

[Sxtn · Rating 4 out of 5]

C'est plutôt étrange comme roman. J'aurais tendance à le qualifier de fantastique, tellement ce que s'y passe exsude une ambiance onirique et fantasmagorique. C'est étrange, c'est inspiré et ça a un côté délicieusement pervers et débordant de créativité.
Les seuls liens avec les tomes précédents sont les personnages de Lauralynn et de Luba (et Summer, même si elle n'est pas nommée), qui apparaissent très secondairement et très fugacement, et ça n'est pas gênant de ne pas avoir lu les précédents.
Au final, on peu dire que c'est le Bal qui est raconté à travers Aurélia, surtout à cause des chapitres dans le passé qui racontent les Bals précédents.
Une histoire étrange mais excitante, qui mérite le détour...