Karen Chance: Touch the Dark
I first read some Karen Chance in the On the Prowl anthology. I wasn’t too impressed but not every author is perfect all the time. There was some promise in her writing so I decided to give her a chance. Touch the Dark is the tale of Cassandra who was rasied in a vampire household/stronghold and ran away when she learned her ability to see into the future was being used for evil (vampires, duh!). I have some problems with the character being able to see the future and understand the workings of vampires well enough to know they are vicious and dangerous, especially the master she lives with, and not see that they would use her ability for their own profit. That aside the story and characters have much potential but I don’t really feel that it reached it. I was left wanting more and feeling cheated out of a better story. I am considering reading the second book in the series but other reviewers have mentioned that it is much of the same.
Overall, it wasn’t bad but it also wasn’t that good. There were parts where the story built up momentum only to have it fizzle without climax. There were hints dropped with grave significance that did not develop into anything and continuity problems from chapter to chaprter with some of the characters and developments. It was a unique twist on the old classic human vampire interaction story but not so new or well written that I think I will keep reading Karen Chance. Maybe someday when I run out of others to read I will try her agian but for now Touch of Dark will travel to the “books to be donated” pile that is slowly building instead of the “books to be reread” pile.
