Name: Darkness Becomes Her
ISBN: 9780857071453

Kelly Keaton

With teal eyes and freakish silver hair that can't be changed or destroyed, Ari has always stood out. And after growing up in foster care, she longs for some understanding of where she came from and who she is. Her search for answers uncovers just one message from her long-dead mother: Run.

Darkness Becomes Her

Darkness becomes her

Monicap

first read: April 13, 2013:
I actually enjoyed this one quite a bit. Put book 2 on hold at the library.

Plot: 4.5/5
This WOULD be a 5/5, but I’ve just read so many Medusa Greek myth retelling lately. We have Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs (which I actually read back in the summer of 2012) but then, not even a month ago, I read Touch of Death by Kelly HAshaway, and was like “Wow, Medusa’s getting popular, isn’t she?”
And then, I opened this one, and I was liking it. I was like “Well, I never expected THAT take on Athena” and I liked how everybody in New 2 was weird, and it was cool and I liked the atmosphere, and they said Medusa and I was like. “Wow. ANOTHER Medusa book?”
But, if I’m being entirely honest, this one had the best, most compelling plot of the three. I just happened to read it last.

Characters: 5/5
Protagonists:
Ari: I liked her voice. She was snarky and smart and self-depricating and it all blended into a character who was enjoyable to read.
Crank: First of all, what a name. I love how she was so cynical at twelve, and I just loved her.
Sebastian: he seemed hard at the beginning, uncompromising, but as we got to know him better, I just liked him more and more. How he takes care of Crank and the other kids, it’s just so touching.
Violet: I’m kind of predisposed to like people named Violet, because I love the name, but she was so cute, in a I’m-crazy kind of way, and I’m also predisposed to like kind of crazy people, so, yeah, I loved Vi.
Antagonists:
Athena: as I said in my plot analyzation, I was surprised by this new take on Athena. When Ari got kidnapped and the other prisoners were talking about the “Bitch” and how she’d kidnapped Ari because she was a “beauty” drawing attention away from “herself” I was expecting one of the goddesses that’s usually cast in a vain light, like Hera, Aphrodite or Persephone. But I was pleasantly surprised.
Josephine: I do love vampires. I like them better when they’re male, though, and Josephine was just plain old slimy.

The romance: 5/5
I just read Prince of Wolves before reading this one. In that one, we the two Protagonists fall in love in three days and I didn’t like it. In this one, they fell in love in two days. But it flowed better, made more sense, and seemed more natural. It also helped that I was THIS CLOSE to certain that Bastian was either drunk of high when they had their first kiss (He wasn’t. at least, I think he wasn’t. he might’ve been. I don’t know). But it probably helped a LOT that I thought that at a time. But also, it just… it flowed better. In Prince of Wolves, the instalurve was jerky and sudden and I didn’t buy it. In this one, there was attraction as a lead-in, it was smooth, and it happened in such a way that it didn’t feel like it came out of nowhere. 

Overall grade: 14.5/15

In post-apocalyptic New Orleans, now a sanctuary for supernatural beings, a hardened teenager on the run searches for the truth about her monstrous heritage and discovers a curse that could ignite the ancient war between gods and monsters.

Annalissa Powner 

Loved the new plot! Didn't see it coming but really enjoyed it.

I'm extremely biased because I'm met the author, but this was still a really good read. I got it when I was a teenager but didn't fully appreciate the writing style until now.

The characters were fascinating, and the world building was very well done and immersive. I will be tuning it for the remainder of the series.

Sarah Campbell

I'm extremely biased because I'm met the author, but this was still a really good read. I got it when I was a teenager but didn't fully appreciate the writing style until now.

The characters were fascinating, and the world building was very well done and immersive. I will be tuning it for the remainder of the series.

Nicki

I wish we could give half stars because this was a 2.5 Throughout the novel something just didn't quite click and didn't feel right. There was an over abundance of swearing and I'm not prude by any means because I swear like its my fucking duty, but here it felt so over done. I do like the premise of the book though so I'll probably continue reading the trilogy. Am I gonna dive right in and read? Probably not but in its own time I suppose.

Marissa Scudlo

Danielle H.

Ari can’t help feeling lost and alone. With teal eyes and freakish silver hair that can’t be changed or destroyed, Ari has always stood out. And after growing up in foster care, she longs for some understanding of where she came from and who she is. 

Her search for answers uncovers just one message from her long dead mother: Run. Ari can sense that someone, or something, is getting closer than they should. But it’s impossible to protect herself when she doesn’t know what she’s running from or why she is being pursued. 

She knows only one thing: she must return to her birthplace of New 2, the lush rebuilt city of New Orleans. Upon arriving, she discovers that New 2 is very…different. Here, Ari is seemingly normal. But every creature she encounters, no matter how deadly or horrifying, is afraid of her. 

Ari won’t stop until she knows why. But some truths are too haunting, too terrifying, to ever be revealed.

I was initially drawn in to this book by its cover. It's dark and mysterious; an immediate plus for me ;)
Reading the description, I was intrigued. It didn't sound like all the other supernatural books out on the market now. Silver hair and teal eyes? I found myself constantly wondering, What could she be? 'Course, there was a whole slew of supernatural creatures crawling around in New 2 (aka New Orleans). You had your vampires, shapeshifters, witches, etc., but it was refreshing not to have them dominate the story. 

What I really enjoyed about this book was how I didn't find it as predictable as many other novels. I honestly didn't see any of what happened coming because I hadn't expected all the different twists. This book was part paranormal romance, part dystopian, mythology, mystery, urban fantasy: the list goes on. Keaton found a way to make all these genres come together and flow in such a tantalizing way that keeps you hooked throughout the whole novel.

Aria was also a strong heroine. She wasn't one of those annoying, whiny, or awkward characters that you sometimes just want to punch in the face for being an idiot. She was independent, determined, and held her ground. And then there was Sebastian. I was actually surprised they hit it off so fast, I mean, one minute Aria passes out, the next, she making out with Sebastian. Alittle much, but hey, I'm a sucker for that stuff and I loved them together. Wished you could have seen a bit more of their romance though.

Violet: ha, now she's a character. A strange, strange little girl with sharp pointed teeth who always wore mardi gras/masquerade masks. Yeah, she was one of my favorite characters. I found her amusing and lovable...in a freakish kinda way :) The rest of the kids in their group sort of made me think of the Flock (from James Patterson's Maximum Ride books) and the Lost Boys of Peter Pan, only supernatural.

The end: CLIFF-HANGER!! The ending, don't get me wrong, it was great. But it leaves you hanging and dying for a sequel.

Darkness Becomes Her

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