First things first: this book is exceptionally well written. It's very lyrical and poetic, which might explain why it took me forever to read. I had to stop to look up words or admire a particularly evocative passage. Lovely, lovely prose. Having said that, the same stunning writing confused me numerous times while I was reading. The action became murky at times, and I had a difficult time figuring out what was happening. I also had some issues with the romance between the characters -- it never quite felt believable to me, even at the end. Despite that, the beautiful writing and the intriguing worldbuilding made this a fairly entertaining read. I will look for the next book in the series. (B ) ( )

The heroine lives is a shadow of her old life. Crippled in a car accident when her mother kidnapped her and tried to drown them both in the lake she now lives with constant pain-both psychically and psychologically. So it's really no surprise when her lack of joy with the world attracts the attention of a demon. What is a surprise however is the beautiful and equally tortured man who comes to her in her darkest time of need. Demon possessed himself the hero stays with her-looking after her as she goes through the possession. Though he says his motivations are to kill her if the wrong demon comes through, he secretly grows attached to the tortured woman who manages to make him feel more alive in the few days he's known her than in the 200 years since his own possession. He's her guardian, her teacher and the one constant thing in her life of chaos and confusion. But he's own somber and depressed SOB. He's always quick to note the dark side to every positive she minds. But it actually helps her in a lot of ways. Firstly he's brutally honest-nothing sugar coated or frosted over with pleasantries. He tells it like it is-lays it out in the open. But his habit of spurting out melodramatic metaphors and overall being a Debbie downer allows the heroine to become a more positive person. No way can both of them be super depressed and emo. She's now become the first demon possessed female in recent memory and with that title comes the ability to not just drain the demons that they hunt but to actually banish them back across the void. Something that changes everything. Suddenly they feel a small sense of hope for a future where once they was none. I really really liked this story. I thought It to be super imaginative and dark and moody but charming and real. I loved the hero with his dark cloud and overall lack of positivity. I found it actually quite funny at times-as the heroine did. He was tortured but charming and extremely quick witted. In fact both of them were and their conversations were at times heavy and other times teasing with banter. I loved the heroine who could be stupid at times but smart enough to learn from her mistakes. I loved the fact that her becoming possessed and damned was just the thing she needed to feel alive again. As I said, it was a clever story with engaging story telling and character development. Highly recommend this author for anyone with a dark sense of humor. ( )

I wanted to give it 3 stars, but I just couldn't. While I like the storyline idea, the 'religious' portions were just too technical and 'too' much. I really don't think I can explain myself adequately, but I felt like the author was trying too hard to make her world metaphysical, and it just became confusing.

I also found it hard to believe that one lone woman, who shows up and is around for less than 2 weeks, is able to do and say things that changed the makeup of a man who has been alone for centuries and this little demon fighting group.

I think when it comes down to it, I like the synopsis of the book, better than the book itself. I say that because I just read the one for Liam and it makes me want to read that one as well. But I'm afraid the setup will be the same. ( )

After losing her mother to suicide as a child, her father to dementia, and now her job after a car accident that left her emotionally and physically broken, Sera Littlejohn unwittingly succumbs to temptation in the form of a demon - damning herself to a semi-immortal life waging an unending war against evil. Ferris Archer, who himself was damned at the time of the (American) Civil War, is charged with watching and guiding her through her transition to her new life - or killing her, if necessary.

The world building is complex and the language walks the edge of purple prose through much of the book, with the word-play resulting in occasional missteps. I'm actually okay with the author's willingness to experiment and play with prose, though. It makes reading this more fun and distinguishes it from the slew of of nearly-identical plot-lines in the paranormal romance genre at the moment. I also like Sera's constant questioning of everything and how she and Ferris try so hard to do the right thing.

There are maybe a handful of love scenes, none of which are overly graphic. There are some references to torture, mostly off-scene. Most of the violence is of the cartoon, battling demons variety. There are some references to (Christian) religion in general terms, but it's more in a questioning way than a preaching way.

All in all, this was a lot more enjoyable than I expected - don't get me wrong, there's minimal humor and lots of angst - but as a fast-moving romantic adventure story, it really hit the spot. ( )