#Review: REALM OF SHADOW by Thea Atkinson

 

5 of 5 stars

After being blown away by book 1 in this new series, I couldn't wait to read and devour this book. When we left off, intrepid monster hunter Ava Ashe, is being blackmailed into accepting a job to kill the Fae king before his coronation. If she doesn't follow through with the assignment, one of the Fae warriors, Flint, will kill her sister. Even though Ava's sister won't even accept her calls, there's no way that Ava will let anything happen to Kit. Her one weakness is a gorgeous High Fae, Stone, and they nearly get it on when all hell breaks loose. The Fae Mafia kidnaps her and brings her before the Mafia boss, Terran, in Fae land. Come to find out, Stone is the son of the boss, and now Ava feels totally betrayed that her would-be lover had an ulterior motive for being with her. 

When she is thrown into the Fae dungeon for insubordination to Terran, she finds out that another Fae she knows, Blade, the owner of the tavern where she's kidnapped from, is the boss's dark enforcer and also another son. It takes 3 days and a very horrifying lesson from Blade when he transforms into a hellhound before Ava knows she can't bluff her way out of the assassin job. Unfortunately, to be ready to infiltrate the Fae King's coronation ceremony and catch the eye of the king, she needs a special dress only available by a hermit-like dressmaker. This dressmaker can only be reached by traveling along the Shadow Road, a road filled with all manner of monsters. She still hasn't forgiven Stone for his betrayal in having her kidnapped in the first place, and when he volunteers to accompany her, Terran insists Blade be the one to take her. This sets the stage for a roller-coaster ride of emotions.

Miss Atkinson is a master storyteller and has an unbelievable imagination for all manner of bad situations and monsters for Ava and Blade to encounter along the Shadow Road. All the while, Ava is cataloging everything about Blade because her ultimate goal is to kill them all--Terran, Blade, and Stone, plus any other Fae that get in her way. Ava is one badass woman, but she's still human, and when she comes against stronger Fae and their magic, it forces her to do the one thing she hates--have patience and wait for the perfect opportunity to carry out her vengeance. Her skills and endurance are sorely tested when she's betrayed again and taken by a horde of low Fae when she and Blade stop for the night. Now our girl Ava is in serious trouble. She's half-naked and has no weapons except her bravado and skill set as a monster killer.

If you like pulse-pounding action with all kinds of twists and turns thrown in for good measure, you won't want to miss this second installment of the series. To fully appreciate how Ava ends up in a Fae dungeon in the first place, I recommend starting with book 1. You won't be disappointed!

I voluntarily read the advanced reader copy, and all opinions are my own.