Dark Gold by Christine Feehan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Dark Gold was my first foray into Ms. Feehan’s books, therefore I will state up front it’s always going to be my favorite of hers; it is the one that got me hooked on the Dark Hunter series. I would really rate it more of a 3.5 Star but I’ll give it 4 since I’ve gone back to it more than once. As an avid reader, I read most genres, but if I’m totally honest about it bodice ripper romances are my guilty pleasure (blush) when I just want to read for pure fun. Things can get a tad bit steamy and well…you can learn a thing or two. I swear…you really can!
Is “Dark Gold” mind-blowing literature? No, but it is a fun escape and that’s often what I’m looking for when I want to relax or unwind; I just want something to transport me somewhere else for a bit. I don’t require deep, thought-provoking prose that I have to figure out or a ton of symbology that I have to grasp before it floats by. I want a well-crafted story with interesting characters that I enjoy learning about…and just enough drama and conflict to keep things really interesting. That’s exactly what I received in Dark Gold.
Alexandria Houton is a smart, attractive (what a shock) graphic artist struggling hard to make a name for herself (okay, I relate to her) and support both herself and her younger brother after the death of their parents. One evening the opportunity of a lifetime comes knocking in the form of her dream job but it means leaving her little brother for a brief time with a friend completely ill-equipped to protect him from an evil prowling the city she loves. Little does she know that going to this coveted job interview would end up changing her life completely…forever!
Aidan Savage protects the citizens of San Francisco from a malevolent evil they have no idea even exists; the evil he left his homeland for long ago to hunt down and destroy. This evil brings Aidan and Alexandria together in a most unexpected way.
In an attempt to avoid spoilers because I hate reading reviews that have spoilers I’m going to say. I really enjoyed the manner in which these two characters meet and eventually bond. There’s enough resistance from Alexandria that I feel she doesn’t just simply fall into Aidan’s arms like some swooning bimbo (can’t stand when that happens), and Aidan has his own reservations at first as well.
Aidan is a real alpha male, as is usually the case in “bodice rippers.” Alexandria is questioning, protective, wary, unwilling and unsure about what is happening around her. This causes just enough conflict and tension to keep things really interesting, especially once changes begin happening to her; changes she didn’t ask for.
If you read more of my reviews you will find that I don’t tend to tear down the structure of a story. I’m not going to shred a writer if I’m not crazy about what I’ve read. What you will see address is whether I like it the story or not. Did it make me feel something? Would I read it again? Would I recommend it? There’s no need to over-analyze and deconstruct the writers technical skill. That just takes the fun out of reading for me.
So, did I like it? Yes, I did. I enjoyed it a great deal. When I first found this book it was something new for me, something totally different than what I had read before. Of course it was several years ago when I first read this book, nowadays there are many other very similar books on the market. Some of which I think were influenced by Mrs. Feehan’s stories due to similarities but at one time she was quite original.
Did it make me feel something? Yes, to this as well. I wasn’t as drawn into it as I was “Game of Thrones” but I remember feeling my heart speed up as I read the scene on the cliff and I felt the tension build as the scene played out. There was even a moment or two that brought a tear to my eye. That’s what I love in a story!
Would I read it again or recommend it? Yes, absolutely to both questions, in fact…I have read this particular one many times and if you are someone who loves a romance novel with a hunky alpha male in it I would wholeheartedly recommend it to you too.
The thing I really enjoy about Mrs. Feehan’s Dark Hunter series is that each book is independent of the others. Yes, it is a series but you can pick any of them up and read them on their own and while each Dark Hunter is honestly fairly similar in many ways the women they meet are quite interesting and really help make the stories fun to read. That’s not to say that each Dark Hunter doesn’t have his unique qualities as well. I have often asked my closest friends over and over….”can I have one for Christmas?”
Pick up “Dark Gold”, curl up in a comfy chair and enjoy!
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