Dark Enchantment

The fast-paced third installment of Bast's Dark Magick series (after 2010's Cruel Enchantment) is a sexy thrill ride flawed only by its melodramatic cliffhanger denouement. Accountant Charlotte Bennett is terrified and furious when brooding Unseelie Fae Kieran Aimhrea uses irresistible magic to draw her to the magical city of Piefferburg, hoping her ancestral memories will open the city's wards and free the Fae. Anyone Kieran falls in love with will die horribly. Charlotte despises the Fae, so there's no risk of that... right? Watching their reluctant slide into love is part of this intricate novel's pleasure, along with dastardly betrayals, complex subplots, and skillful world-building. Bast's writing packs a punch, offering humorous lines even in the blackest moments. The premise of the curse wears perilously thin, but the rest of the tale weaves a sinuous spell that will leave readers eager for more. (Apr.)