Book Review: Becoming Red

Becoming Red  (The Becoming #1)

Author: Paula Black and Jess Raven
Publication:  Kindle Edition

Publication Date: 11/30/2012

Source: E-book owned by reviewer

Buy it at Amazon

Audience: Paranormal romance, adult

Synopsis

From Goodreads.com:

‘You got me back. You always said you would.’

Ash DeMorgan, graduate, orphan, ice maiden, has long since consigned the fairytale nightmares of a troubled childhood to the realm of fantastical childish imagination. 

Now, lured back to Dublin, the scene of her tragic past, Ash encounters a city pulsing under the dangerous sexual influence of a new street drug the locals call Rave. Nothing is as it seems. Ash is about to discover that her nightmares are real, ancient Irish myths are larger than life and roaming the streets of the medieval city, and she has become the prey in their erotic hunt. A step back into her past is about to become a high adrenaline race for survival.

Connal Savage, outcast, assassin, and living, breathing hunk of ancient mythology, has lived a thousand years servicing a debt of revenge. Dead inside. Until he encounters his boss’s granddaughter, an infuriating woman who threatens to lead him to hell with all his good intentions, who manages to chip away at the hard encrusted defences of a lifetime spent at war and burrow herself deep into a part of him that hasn’t breathed for centuries. He is about to discover that when it comes down to the wire, when you’re bargaining with the Grim Reaper for the life of the one you love, you will do anything...

My Review

Well now *rubs hands in glee*- at last, a fresh new take in paranormal mythology and world building has arrived. Black and Raven are a new paranormal author duo who have struck gold in the originality stakes with their first novel!

I am a sucker for a well constructed plot especially if it incorporates classical mythological themes. Using Celtic lore and developing the idea of Dubh Linn and the Fomorians is something I've not seen before so it's fresh (as fresh as ancient myths can be) and the authors have set up an intriguing premise for the paranormal world and romances that isn't about the usual vampires and werewolves and fae. Although a large proportion of the main characters were ‘wolf-y’, they felt very far removed from the usual werewolf/shifter premise and that made the story much more intriguing. As a first book, leading into the series, it's got the hook. There isn’t a point where I felt the authors were ‘padding’ the story or playing for time. There is also a cliffhanger ending, possibly involving cliffs (but I will leave that to you to explore further….)

The story starts with Ashling DeMorgan getting some bad news about her only living relative- her grandmother has had a stroke and Ashling must travel to Dublin to manage her grandmother’s affairs. Little does she know just what role her ailing grandmother plays in the the Dublin otherworld, but she soon finds out when she meets the totally droolworthy Connal (imagine a dirty blonde version of Jack Sparrow!) He is the Big Bad Wolf to her Little Red Riding Hood (with a twist). He also has the unenviable task of inducting Ashling into the world she now inhabits by virtue of her lineage, while trying to follow Nan Demorgan’s directive not to bonk her grand-daughter. He does well on the former, and fails spectacularly well on the latter.

While I found Ashling to be a young and occasionally naïve character (understandable given that she is in her early twenties while Connal is closer to 800 years old), she was a perfectly well-written foil to Connal. His character development is great- little hints dropped until toward the end of the book, we see his tragic heroism writ large! The two spark off each other both sexually, but also with a sharp repartee that is refreshing. They both have tragedies that they have lived through, and are still living through, which gives them a depth that goes beyond the usual ‘insta-love’ prevalent in this genre.

All in all, this was a great read and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series… Erm, when do you think that will be? *hint hint*

Blysse’s Hot:Plot Ratio

Cracking plot and oh yeah,  the sex was hot. That is all.