[ARC Review] Shadowdance by Kristen Callihan

Shadowdance
Book 4 of the Darkest London Series
Kristen Callihan
December 17th, 2013
Forever


ARC Provided by publisher via Netgalley for an honest review

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Once a heart is lost in shadow . . .
Life has been anything but kind to Mary Chase. But the Society for the Suppression of Supernaturals has given her purpose. Now she's been tasked with catching a vicious murderer dubbed the Bishop of Charing Cross. But someone is already on the case-and the last thing he relishes is a partner.

Only someone who lives in darkness can find it.
Jack Talent has been alone with his demons for many years.
He never expected to have the willful Mary Chase assist him on the Bishop case. Their age-old rivalry reaches new heights-even as their desire for one another reaches a fever pitch. Though he aches to bring her close, Jack's dark secrets are a chasm between them. With dangerous enemies closing in, Jack must find the strength to face the past . . . or risk losing Mary forever.

I just finished Shadowdance by Kristen Callihan and first thought I had after reading the last word was "man that was good". Shadowdance is the fourth book in the Darkest London series and it has become an auto buy for me. The thin I like most about this series is it has elements of classic gothic horror novels mixed with everything I love about a romance novel. In Shadowdance I really liked the sexy, horrific, and suspenseful twist on Frankenstein this story had to offer.

Shadowdance stars two characters previously introduced in earlier books, Jack Talent and Mary Chase. Jack Talent was first introduced as Ian Ranulf's valet in earlier books who was a mysterious and cheeky shifter. Mary Chase was first introduced as Poppy's assistant who was a GIM (Ghost in the Machine). In the last book there were working a case and it was interesting to see they hated each other but yet there was an attraction. Shadowdance takes place two years after the events in Winterblaze. I was excited to see this book would star Jack and Mary because I knew their attraction would be explosive.

They get thrown together to work a case of a series of murders. Someone in London is killing demons and shifters and turning them into half machine monsters. I really liked the mystery in this book because it was very suspenseful and had me guessing until the end. I liked that the villain was so horrific because it really gave the book that mad scientist Frankenstein feel. As always, the romance was hot, steamy, and of course explosive. I liked the teasing, push each other's buttons, and just rip each other's clothes off relationship between Jack and Mary. Their bantering made me laugh out loud at times. What I also liked, which is a running theme through all the books, is love and happiness can only be found through forgiveness and trust. I liked that Mary and Jack are both deeply wounded souls that through their love become a force strong enough to bring down a powerful enemy.

For me, even though this book started out a little slow, in the end I had a hard time putting it down. Shadowdance had everything I was looking for: horror, drama, romance, and witty dialogue. The way the book ended I can not wait to pick up the next installment in the series. I give SHadowdance four laser pistols and highly recommend this book.