Elle Jasper
Everdark
The Dark Ink Chronicles, Book #2

Review brought to you by OBS staff member Heidi

Everdark is the second installment of Elle Jasper’s Dark Ink Chronicles series that follows reformed troublemaker and now tattoo artist Riley Poe.

Everdark picks up where Afterlight left off.  Riley has been bitten by both Arcos brothers, Valerian and Victorian, and she has been taken to Da Island for healing.  Her rehab has taken longer than initially expected and when she is finally recuperated she discovers her vampiric tendencies.  Eli quickly throws Riley into an intense training program to use her skills and tendencies to their fullest extent.

Once Eli is satisfied with her progress, they head back to Savannah and to their normal lives.  But they quickly discover that not only can Victorian project himself into Riley’s mind and talk to her, but there is another vampire that is forcing her mind into his body and forcing her to watch his kills.  Eli is determined to destroy Victorian and this new monster as well so Riley can live a normal life.  But then he discovers that since Riley’s DNA is linked to Victorian’s he can’t kill one without hurting the other in some unknown way.  And worse they learn that the monster is Valerian, the brother they thought they had killed; he has projected himself into a new body to continue his reign of terror.

I really wanted like this book, I really did.  I loved Afterlight and was hoping for more of the same, but this one just fell flat for me.  It seemed like basically the same storyline minus the whole your brother might become a vampire piece.  Victorian is still going after Riley to keep for his very own which brings out Eli’s possessive side and now we have a new character, Noah, who also likes her.  But luckily for Eli Noah is loyal to him and wouldn’t do anything to betray that trust.  I find it a bit annoying that everyone is so infatuated with Riley and it just comes off pretty unrealistic (as if all the vampire stuff seems real).  Not to mention I found Riley and Eli’s relationship to be kind of stale.  Her thinking something and him reading her mind and responding to it constantly got tiresome.

And while I’m complaining about Riley I have one more thing to add.  I found it excruciatingly painful that she always had to be such a bad-ass trying to take care of herself, but then throwing herself in stupid situations that could be avoided.  Like her heading back to Savannah to Valerian, knowing that it wouldn’t end well.

I also felt that there was no real end or conclusion to this story.  Victorian steals Riley away from everyone and Eli vows to come for her.  No end result has been reached with Valerian and now we must wait for the next installment, Eventide (Due out in 2012), to find out what happens.

As much as I loved Afterlight, I’m sure I will continue reading the series and I hope it can rebound after this little road bump….after all it’s very rare to have a series that you love every single book so I will not let this one stop me from continuing a series that has the potential to be great.