The Dark Awakening
The Chosen Coven Book 1
by D.L. Blade
Genre: Paranormal Thriller, Romance
He was there, in the shadows again, watching me.
Now I wait for him to strike. But I’ll be ready.
Just as Mercy pieces her life back together after a vicious attack, she notices a stranger lingering in the shadows, and watching her every move.
Mercy isn’t certain if what she’s seeing is real, but when Mercy crashes her car on the side of the road, she’s rescued by a handsome and mysterious man named Caleb, who she finds herself both drawn to, and afraid of.
Caleb reveals to Mercy that she’s strongly linked to an ancient coven; the roots slowly dragging her back to Salem. He also claims to be in love with her, but can she trust him?
This story takes you on a journey of magic, secrets, betrayal, and abduction, in a world filled with witches, vampires and werewolves, which Mercy and her friends never knew existed.
Mercy must discover who she truly is, and find the powers within her to save mankind.
The Dark Awakening has hit #1 on Amazon’s Best Sellers in Vampire Thriller and Occult Horror, and is a top 10 finalists in the Author Academy Awards.
“Hands down, one of the best series ever I’ve read!” ★★★★★
“I really loved this book! I was constantly on the edge of my seat while reading, constantly wanting to know what’s going to happen next.” ★★★★★
This was such an intense and amazing read! It has witches, vampires and werewolves and all in just the right amount.
Usually, I would feel overwhelmed with so many magical creatures around, but the author managed to introduce us to this world at the perfect pace. We learn together with Mercy what her purpose is and who the bad guys are. She feels lost, she feels she has no one to trust, but she also feels the bond. This first book is about her, getting her accustomed to her power and reintroduce her into the supernatural. To fulfill her mission, she has to face family and best friends. Mercy needs to face her childhood trauma and perform the worst act of all.
While I loved all we see in the magical sphere and how this was created, I did not enjoy the romance that much. I could not decide between Caleb and Reily simply because I did not feel such a connection to them – and I mean here only from Mercy’s perspective. I did not feel the love she may hold for them. Later in the book this becomes a bit more relevant why, but it is still a question mark. Still, I am only reducing 0.5 stars because of this.
“Dark Awakening” introduces us to a story with great potential. The writing was amazing, the pacing was great and it made me read it in one sitting. 4.5 stars and my devotion to the series!
Cover Review: I do not dislike it. I like Caleb in the back, harnessing his element, but I don’t like how Mercy has been positioned, first of all. I would have preferred her a bit more …centered. And second, she has nothing to show she’s the most powerful of them all. The green eyes and the necklace are not enough for me …
So I went right on to book 2 🙂
The Dark Underworld
The Chosen Coven Book 2
“While the first book of this series introduced you to the characters and the fascinating world the author has created; this book brings the story to a whole new level.”
Mercy’s life changed forever when she discovered that not only is she a witch, but that she was born to rid the world of vampires once and for all.
After a year of intense training to hone her powers, she and her coven are pulled into a murder case in her hometown of East Greenwich. The coven, with the help of a friend with direct ties to
the investigation, discovers that a vampire attack claimed the victim’s life. Mercy suspects the killer belongs to a new clan in town, The Black Horse, and goes undercover in the vampire underworld. There, she’ll discover dark, long-hidden secrets and face her father from her previous life, who she learns is the leader of this ruthless undead.
New relationships will develop, friendships will be tested, and lives will be lost.
As Mercy draws closer to finding the killer, a villain from her past creeps out of the shadows. Maurice, centuries-old vampire, is thirsty for revenge after her coven took down his clan.
The Chosen Coven will now have to combine the forces of the Universal Elements, to fight the darkness that falls on their city.
★★★★★
“The plot of this book moves quickly. Complete with murder, intrigue, and romance. The story will appeal to a wide audience of readers–particularly to those who enjoy a blended genre of fantasy and mystery–and of course, a touch of romance.”
Author Notes & Disclaimer:
Violence, mild language, non-graphic intimacy scene and attempted rape scene.
This is a three-book series. It is highly recommended to read book one, ‘The Dark Awakening,’ before reading book two. Their final battle will conclude in book three, ‘The Dark Deliverance,’ and will be released in the fall of 2019.
Now this is the masterpiece of the series (for now at least, until I get my hands on book 3). Immediately after finishing book 1 I started “The Dark Underworld”. It took me a few hours to go through it, I devoured it in the same crazy manner as the previous one.
This time we see the entire coven in action and we have a dual perspective: Mercy and Caleb. They have to face so many threats, I feel like they don’t manage to have a moment of tranquility. Again, the plot was great, with so much action that you never realize when time flies by. It was so easy to become wrapped up into the magic of the elements. I was also annoyed that some enemies just don’t want to stay dead! Caleb’s perspective complements the story, especially since he has his own feelings to deal with. After the shocking decision Mercy takes at the end of book 1, there’s a lot on his plate.
Now, I must speak about the romance again. I have the same problem as with book 1, but this time worse. I was confused. I did not understand if what Caleb felt for Mercy was love or not. I did not understand Mercy’s feelings – did she love Caleb or Dorian? The ending does provide some clarification but… I am not convinced. I did not feel the romance as profound as I would have liked. Probably because of the spell at the end of book one (the ones who read it know what I mean). Also, Mercy ran a lot. She was constantly hiding – either with relatives, or friends. Not cool. And I did not understand Melissa. She is part of the story until one point when she exists out of the blue. Mercy has to witness a mass murder and I was expecting her to be more affected by the loss.
So while I enjoyed the book very very much, I find more points that could have been better treated. I have to go with 3.5 stars, which I will round to 4, since in the end it was an very good lecture!
Cover Review: taking into account the description of the two guys, the one occupying the front is Dorian, but … I was expecting Caleb, since we get his POV. We see a werewolf in the background, but I would have preferred to see the symbol of the coven, since the werewolves don’t have much to do in this book. Same issue with Mercy – I would have wanted to see something on her that would remind us she is the most powerful witch! So again, I do not dislike the cover but…
The Dark Deliverance
The Chosen Coven Book 3
**Contains spoilers from book two. Read once caught up in the series**
The upper world is ruled by the gods, the underworld by demons, and the center—our earth—holds the inhabitants which the Chosen Ones were sworn to protect. In the darkest hour, on the darkest night, these three worlds will collide, and the gates of Hell will open.
Mercy is barely holding on after losing her coven, who sacrificed themselves to save her life. But even in death, Caleb opens a path for Mercy to rediscover the ancient power that once revived her after she died the first time on Gallows Hill in 1692.
To find the magic she needs to bring back her coven, Mercy and Dorian journey to a desolate island off the coast of Barbados and uncover long-hidden secrets from a native shaman tribe. But their presence is unwelcome, and Mercy finds herself harnessing the universal elements to save the lives of her beloved coven.
Meanwhile, Maurice continues plotting to destroy the supernatural world until every last human on earth bows to him. Knowing he can’t kill Mercy, he conjures up sick and twisted games he can play with her in order to crown himself the Master of Hell.
Where there is pain and destruction, a new power emerges, and Mercy must hold on to faith that good will triumph over evil because, if not, Hell will consume them all.
Hopefully, Review comming soon 🙂
D.L. Blade grew up in southern California, but relocated to Colorado with her family in 2014.
She always loved writing, concentrating on poetry rather than prose when she was younger. That changed however, when she had a dream one night and decided to create a story about it.
In her spare time, D.L. enjoys a wide variety of hobbies, including reading, and attending rock concerts.
In the future, D.L. hopes that she can continue to write exciting novels that will captivate her readers and bring them into the worlds that she creates using her imagination.
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