Touch of Darkness – Book Review

Title: Touch of Darkness

Author: Dawn Husted

Genre: Urban fantasy

Rating: 5 Stars

“Wanting to leave his supernatural family behind, seventeen-year-old Thanatos runs away. Against his better judgment, he befriends an ordinary girl. But it won’t be long until the darkness he’s hiding from comes calling–he can’t hide forever.”

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My Review

My instincts were right, this was a great little short story!

Thanatos is only seventeen years old, although he acts a lot older, especially as he has a job as a custodian at a hospital. While at work, he meets Molly, a young woman who has just gone into remission. The two become fast friends but Thanatos is worried that his past will catch up with him.

Thanatos is a supernatural entity, a reaper. Although there isn’t a lot of context about what a reaper is, I could just about gather that they feed off souls. At the very least, they are able to kill people with their powers. It’s this that has caused Thanatos to flee his family, who believe human life is worthless, expendable, almost trivial. It’s his conscience that makes him want to fight the urges his powers foist on him and to live a normal, guilt-free life.

The story follows Thanatos and Molly in the three weeks from Molly leaving hospital to leaving the city. There’s so much rich detail and the characters were clearly constructed thoroughly. For a story so short, it really brings out the feels.

Let’s count off the pros for this story: well written, great characters, awesome twists. There is a special magic this story has and I can’t put my finger on how to describe it or what it is exactly. All I know is that by the end, Thanatos is going to embark on an epic journey of self-assertion and fight for the chance to live his own life.

This is one series I’m glad I started, even if I only managed to read the prequel short story. I definitely recommend this book and as of right now, I think it’s free in the USA. As I’m UK I paid 99p but that’s still a win in my books. (Pun unintended but I’m going to roll with it).

Touch of Darkness has earned The Secret Library Recommended Reads seal!

If you want to read this for yourself, here’s the Amazon link a-right here.

Thanks for reading! Did you know I also write urban fantasy books? Check them out here!