cover image Darkfever

Darkfever

Karen Marie Moning, . . Delacorte, $20 (309pp) ISBN 978-0-385-33915-5

Drawing on elements from the paranormal world that bestseller Moning (Spell of the Highlander ) created in her earlier romances, this suspense novel takes readers on a darker journey, one dominated by the search for a powerful Faery magic and bereft of the romantic magic Moning's fans have come to expect. When MacKayla Lane, an ordinary young woman, travels to Ireland to track down her sister's murderer, she is sucked into an extraordinary world filled with ancient secrets, vampires, assorted Fae nasties and other tough-to-kill beings. In the process, Mac learns of her own unusual talents and finds an unlikely mentor in the wealthy and mysterious Jericho Barrons. Moning's newest foray contains suspense and plenty of setup. Indeed, this reads like a fragment of a larger story, an introduction to character and place that, while entertaining, skims the surface. But it's a compelling world filled with mystery and vivid characters, and this, combined with the hint of sparks between Jericho and Mac, will stoke readers' fervor for Bloodfever , the next installment. (Nov.)