The Dark World and I started out as the best of friends. At the beginning, I really liked Paige. I felt for her, as she tried to figure out how to deal with her lot in life. Being able to see ghosts, and not being able to explain it to anyone else? That's unbearable enough. Add in a high school setting, with all it's requisite evil popular crowd and overprotective parents? Well, let's just say I liked Paige's fire. It helped that her specter friend Dottie was equally as snarky and fun.

Then the demon world came into play, and I was so intrigued. I'll admit that I wanted a little bit more build up to the lore of this other world, but the action scenes featuring demons were enough to keep me involved. I desperately wanted to find out how Paige factored into all of this. Why she was so important.

Alas, this is the point that Logan came into the picture. Now, I have nothing against him as a character. There's nothing wrong with Logan. He's sweet, tough, if a little bit of a cookie cutter hero. What drove me crazy was that Paige's whole entire character shifted when he came into the picture. Logan made Paige different. There was insta-love. There was way too much internal dialogue. Drama. Too much drama. What happened to the Paige I fell for earlier?

Things went slowly downhill from there. I lost interest in the story line, and started skimming. My one happiness here was that there was never a love triangle. Plus, towards the end, Paige did start to come back into her own. It's possible that the next book she'll be even stronger. But I'm not sure if I'll be continuing on. So, three stars it is. ( )

I've been asked for an honest review, and I will try to give it without being to hard. I hate writing reviews for books I didn't love, because the truth is I didn't, when I know that I will get back to the author as its a NetGalley review or that others might change their opinion on it. But the fact of the matter is I really didn't love this book, I didn't hate it, but I wasn't blown away and because of my lack of interest in it reading it too a while.

One thing I did love about this book was how well I thought Cara Lynn Shultz had developed the world around Paige. I loved the idea behind this book and I think that's something she managed to pull of perfectly, One thing I didn't like though was how the relationship between her and Logan seemed to move too quickly, maybe not as quick compared to others but still pretty sharpish. I think one thing that did help though, was knowing Logan was pining for from the beginning, it wasn't just fast paced thing for him. Although with Paige, it felt like because he was the first boy to show her interest she latched on to him and the idea of him.

The back stories are another issue for me, with Paige we only really know her from the time of her accident, we never really got to fully grasp what she was like before. There was hints that she was once popular, and that now she's been labeled as a nut job, and seen talking to her self, she's the school's outcast , so personally for me I feel like I would be able to to connect with her more if I knew was she was like. Logan's back story wasn't that well developed either, but I know its a series so I'm hoping that's something that changes as the books go on, because as characters they weren't all that bad. As for Dottie, well I loved her. And some of the first chapters where Paige is talking to her are my favourite of the book, they really had me gripped and wanting to know what happened to her in the first place. As the book goes on, you do get a sense of how Dottie came to die, but with the risk of repeating myself that's something that was only lightly talked about. What I would love to see in the next book is flash backs to Dottie when she was in school, because her story seems so interesting there's just lack of it, it would also help to gives me/us a better idea of how long demons have been walking around freely. (well I think it would anyway)

As I've said, this book didn't wow me and I didn't end up loving it. But I am interested to see what happens next. It may have been slightly predictable, and there was a lot that I feel could have been better but the book has a lot of potential. The foundation of the story are well set, all I feel is really needed is a better character development for all of them ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: I loved this novel. The rich world-building and romance grew on me with every page!

Opening Sentence: I peeled away the cheap, greenish-gray paint on the wall of the third-floor girls bathroom.

The Review:

In this novel, dark forces are hidden closer than the normal human world would expect, and Paige is the ultimate weapon for each side. Ever since she died and was revived in a hospital, she has been able to talk to ghosts, among other powers. Though this doesn’t fair well in social life, as she can never tell if the person is real or not, it is coveted by the warlocks and demons that are in a raging battle. When she meets her protector, Lucas, a romance also begins to blossom as the demons attempt to kidnap her for her rare powers.

I loved the main character Paige. Her strength is evident every time she pushes away a jibe from Penny, or gets called insane or crazy for a power she didn’t ask for. She takes what life gives her with a grim determination and through the book learns to use her power with more control. I also loved her subtle blend of fear and insecurity that made her realistic, and the way she felt guilt and loss sting her. She doesn’t trust easily and knows when to forgive and when to be mad. Basically, Paige Kelly is the kind of character that makes a YA book series amazing. She reminds me of Alyssa from Splintered, and her point of view is easy to fall into. The best thing about Paige is how hilarious she is, even in the darkest situations finding a way to make me laugh. Her point of view carried me through a brief 50 page period in which I was bored.

Lucas, the love interest, was at first not my favorite. Usually I go for the witty, confident ones that make me laugh, but Lucas had the shy, sweet approach. Plus, towards the middle —- remember that boring stretch I talked about? Well, that was during a point in which the growing romantic tension dominated the actual plot. That irritated me so much I thought 4 stars, but after that stretch ended I was dunked back into the plot with the alertness I started the book with. And that was when Lucas started to grow on me. His sweetness became endearing and romantic and I loved the way he and Paige had a true spark. In one chapter he writes a letter to her, kind of a love letter, but not cheesy in the slightest. It made my heart melt. And in the last fifty pages when a huge secret was revealed, I just grew to enjoy him more and more. Straying off the topic of Lucas, the last fifty pages: wow. Lots and lots of action and stuff going on. Fortunately it wasn’t rushed, so I understood what was happening, and the events sunk in for hours after I finished the last page.

The setting and idea of the Dark World had me hooked. The Dark World —- a darker, more deadly version of our own where demons and monsters roam freely and the sky is a bloody hue. We get to see a tiny sliver of the Dark World from Paige’s perspective, but if I did have one thing I didn’t like it was that more time wasn’t spent there. Other than the sliver at the end we just have second-hand stories from Dottie, Paige’s best friend. However, it is evident at the end of the book that most of the second will be spent in the Dark World. I can’t wait to start the second, by the way. What a cliffhanger!

The Dark World was an amazingly intriguing and suspenseful start to what promises a wonderful series. The action and world-building were amazing and the romance grew on me every page towards the end. I loved the writing style, and it made me laugh and smile, then sit on the edge of my seat at other times. I started this book with not huge expectations, not because I had heard any bad reviews, but because the synopsis didn’t draw me in very much. However, the inside of the story is so much richer and juicy with detail than the synopsis makes it out to be. I am so excited that I might receive The Dark World 2 (I’m going to make a wild guess that the title is The Dark City… We’ll see!) You guys should check this out if you love the way that Vampire Academy was written and if you love the world of demons and shadowhunters that is built in Cassandra Clare’s books. Happy reading!

Notable Scene:

“So… how do you feel?” I asked, hoping his answer wouldn’t crush me.

Logan stared at the ground as he collected his thoughts. “You, Paige Kelly, are a wrecking ball to my routine, colorless life,” he said, finally meeting my eyes. “And I couldn’t be more terrified about it.”

FTC Advisory: Harlequin Teen provided me with a copy of The Dark World. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

Cara Lynn Shultz’s books went on my auto-read list after her debut duology. Admittedly, the Spellcaster books weren’t hugely popular with bloggers, but they were total Christina catnip. I love Cara Lynn Shultz’s banter-focused writing and her pop culture references. Something about what she does really just works for me, and that definitely continued into The Dark World.It’s in the dialog and the humor that Shultz really shines. The Dark World has a fabulous narrative voice, but the paranormal plot line was a bit much for me at times.

Read the full review at A Reader of Fictions. ( )

The Dark World begins as we are introduced to Paige and her best friend. It doesn't take long to discover that her best friend is a ghost. Paige saved the life of a little boy, she was hit and flat lined. She came back with the ability to talk to ghosts, only she didn't realize that they were not people everyone else could see. She received the label as a crazy person. She lives her life being teased, but holds her head high.

Life becomes even more weird when new kids enroll in her high school. There is something creepy about them, they don't feel right to her. Her suspicions are confirmed when she and a classmate are attacked. Her life is then turned upside down when she finds out about the Dark World. (Demon world parallel to Earth) Opposing sides want to use her and her talents in a way, she is a critical element to whichever side gains her cooperation.

A large part of the book is about Paige learning about the Dark World. She is learning from a classmate, Logan, who is not exactly as he appears on the surface. At first he appears as a shy young man who borrows Paige's girly pens. As the story progresses, he is a sword wielding Demon Slayer. Little bits of information are released throughout the book that paint the picture of Logan and why he is good at his job.

There are some great moments in the book, but the plot also moves slowly at other times. It takes some time to get to the climax at the end that will leave you wanting to read the next book.

I recommend this book to readers 16+. There is swearing, violence and sexual innuendo. ( )