Review Detail

Thank you to the lovely people at HarperTeen and Susan Dennard for sending me an ARC in exchange for a honest review. Something Strange And Deadly is one of those books that I instantly loved, I mean what's not to love about that book. Before starting, A Darkness Strange And Lovely I was a bit nervous that I wouldn't enjoy ADS&L as much. ADS&L exceeded any expectations I had and was a stronger book than it's predecessor.

I have never ever been to Paris but after reading ADS&L, I feel like I have. Susan Dennard has a way with words and she does a superb job of making her books very atmospheric. I got a good sense of what Paris was like and how Parisians acted during Victorian Times. It's quite obvious that Dennard did tons of research was done while writing this book because she captures the essence of the "Steampunk" age perfectly. Due to Dennard's fabulous writing, I felt like I was in Paris with Eleanor, Mr. Sheridan and the whole gang.

Even though ADS&L is set in the City Of Lights (Paris), I feel like it has a darker tone than book 1. There is more focus on the dark and mystical nature of necromancers in this book. Susan Dennard spends so much developing necromancer and demon mythology. I have read countless paranormal books yet no book has portrayed demons like Dennard does in ADS&L. I applaud Dennard for being extremely creative with her necromancers and demons. I already tried to use my necromancer abilities to score a copy of book 3, it turns out the command, sum veritas doesn't work for me! Bummer :(

Susan Dennard doesn't ever hold back with the spectacular, awesome zombie scenes. She writes scenes that will make your heart race and have you plead that your favorite characters come out alive. These zombies aren't as sweet and benevolent as R, these zombies are extremely terrifying. In the case of apocalypse, I suggest taking a parasol with you because Dennard taught me how powerful a parasol can be.

ADS&L has just the perfect dosage of romance for me and I just love Daniel and Eleanor as a couple. Cheers to Susan Dennard for not including a love triangle! There is only a little bit of romance in this book but there was enough to satisfy me. If you enjoy heavy dosages of romance, I suggest you look elsewhere because this book is more focuses on characterization and plot development.

I love the characters Dennard has created, especially Oliver! Oliver annoyed me so much yet at the same time I couldn't get enough of Oliver. The Spirit Hunters are as awesome as ever and I love seeing them return in this book. I really wanted to see more Jie in ADS&L but she wasn't in this book as much as I would have liked. Dennard really knows how to create a terrifying villain, I can honestly say that the villain is pure evil. I don't want to spoil who the villain is because that's one great plot twist that I will not ruin.

ADS&L doesn't suffer from middle book syndrome (usually I don't enjoy the 2nd book in a series as much as the 1st book). I can honestly say that Susan Dennard books are my weakness because I can't resist their awesomeness. I can proudly say that ADS&L perfectly captures the grim yet beautiful tone of Paris during Victorian Times. I can't recommend reading Susan Dennard's zombie books enough and I can't wait till book #3 releases. I need the sequel to this book more than zombies crave brains!