This is the second novel in Duvall's creative series centered around Chalice, a member of an order of knights (The Hatchet Knights) who have been around since the Crusades and mate with the Arelim, the lowest form of angel, to propagate their order. The same original and quirky ideas for magic present in the first are contained here in second, but I have to say that overall, Ms. Duvall definitely got off on a better foot with this second effort in her UF/PNR offering. While the plot I thought would be the center of Darkest Knight (restoring Aydin back to humanity from his cursed gargoyle form) wasn't at all what this novel was about, I wasn't disappointed. The antagonist created for the events of book two neatly tied in with the mythology and lore of the first and was on the same malevolence level as the previous antagonist, the evil sorcerer-kidnapper Gavin. And while I wasn't as surprised as I could've been at the "reveal" of the Big Bad of the book and the heart of the murders/mystery, I thought it left an interesting possibility for the plot of the sure-to-follow third installment.

I felt tepid and 'mehhh' about the first (Knight's Curse) when I read it last year and a large amount of my dissatisfaction had to do with and centered around the main character Chalice. I liked it well enough, was certainly entertained by it but the knight had a way of frustrating very simple situations, either by not listening or assuming she knew all the answers. Chalice in book two is a bit more aware, a bit more intelligent and a whole lot easier for me to like. I despise when heroines are convinced they shouldn't let allies into their plans because only they can do it, only they know the risk, etc and so on! And while Chalice was like that in the first, I found that her uneasy relationship with guardian-angel Rafe brought out a more mature side to her. While I still didn't wholly invest in Chalice or closely identify with her, I do like several aspects of her personality: her independence, her openness to magic finally, her fighting abilities; I love a heroine that can fight well and Chalice is one those few. Her martial skills complement her prickly personality quite well. One of the few major issues I had with Chalice here in this was her "instructing" the new squires of her order when Chalice has been a knight for less than three months, known of the order for only that long, has never had any formal training herself and there are older, more indoctrinated knights able to do the job....so why pick the newbie who is clueless to teach new members?

What also improved my experience the second time around is the romance of the novel. Or, to be perfectly clear, the lack of stressing the romance and love between Aydin and Chalice. I didn't buy their almost insta-love connection from book one and since they're separated more often in Darkest Knight, I actually got to see them on their own for extended periods of time. They both actually have to work for the relationship (and get over their dumb decisions, like Aydin's particularly stupid rejection in the beginning), and work together to fix Aydin's curse. It brought out another dynamic to their relationship and also helped to flesh out Aydin a bit more independently. I truly like that both people fight and struggle for the other: Aydin wants Chalice just as much as she wants him. Another bonus originality point for this series? Aydin is the swoon-worthy love interest and he is not a typical WASP. Diversity brings a lot to the table and for Aydin especially, it sets him apart from the thousands of UF/PNY love-interests out there. The whole 'gargoyle' thing doesn't hurt, either.

Back to the mythology of Darkest Knight: the world Duvall has created for her novels is a potent one. There are charms, magic, sorcerers, gargoyles, curses, guardian angels and Fallen angels - all with their own conduct, rules and uses. While the lore behind the angels can be confusing sometimes, it is unique and presents an interesting structure for the Hatchet Knights to find mates within. While the charms didn't impress me as much as the creativity shown in the first seems to have waned a tad (except for a pen with ink that makes the writer invisible - not the words being written. That's creative.) with a few exceptions: the "soul-stain" (which reminded me of Lord Denbury's condition in Darker Still), the non-dead non-living "life" of St. Geraldine, the half-sylph half-necromancer exorcist that I picture as an English man who says things like, "My dear chap, I daresay I couldn't possibly...." I also really liked that that the plot of the second book could be found mentioned/hidden within the first; there are references within Knight's Curse that, in hindsight, seem to set up the stage for book two perfectly.

The abrupt ending seemed slightly rushed to me, but definitely did not pull any punches. Characters die, lose their powers, fight and have an all-might brawl that made this quite hard to put down. This is action-packed and though some of the fights seemed redolent of earlier clashes (Evan and Zee, both specifically seemed to pop up for an altercation one too many times - especially Zee!) the pages turn quickly and Chalice's story is amusing for an hour or two. Though I found the uncovering of the Hatchet murderer to be too drawn out and arduous for how obvious it was (C'mon now guys: who has acted weird and sketchy and arrived just before the murders? Who repeatedly lies and sneaks around, getting into forbidden areas and trinkets? Come on now, it shouldn't take 300 pages!) Darkest Knight is a fun and enjoyable read. The ending leaves several key plotlines open for a continuing third volume and since this is one of the few series where I've liked the second more than the first, I can guarantee I'll be on the lookout for more from Chalice, Aydin, and my favorite: Ruby.
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Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Dark Urban Fantasy with a likeable heroine and a steady plot.

Opening Sentence: “You’re coming with me, right?” I asked Rafe when he opened the silver veil that separated the physical world from the realm of angels.

Review:

After the events of Knight’s Curse, Chalice has spent the last month in the light veil learning from her father how to control her gifts. Now that she has been released from her gargoyle curse and her evil mentor is dead, she finally has a chance to make a new life for herself. The first item on her to do list is to free Ayden from his curse, which leads Chalice to a not so surprising encounter with Shojin, the gargoyle that Ayden is bonded. With the gargoyle’s heart she finally has a chance to free Ayden but he refuses to end his curse.

After being rejected by Ayden, Chalice journey’s back to Colorado with her guardian angel Rafael. There she meets up at Halo Home, the home of her grandmother and grandfather. There are also Hatchet Knight’s living in the home, Chalice finally gets to meet up with her sisters, something that she has wanted to do since she learned of her heritage. Unfortunately just before she gets to Halo Home someone has murdered forty Knights’ in their sleep.

In Knight’s Curse, Chalice absolutely hated magic. It was a big cause of a lot of her problems but she is immune to some charms and curses which makes her the perfect person to handle the charms that Ayden has collected over the years. Chalice’s job at Halo Home is to teach her fellow sisters how to use magic to their advantage. The Hatchet Knight’s are dwindling in numbers and need all the help they can get to defeat the bad guys. A Hatchet Knight is murdered and Chalice brings her back with a charm. Then Chalice is nearly murdered herself but when a fellow Knight runs away with some of the charms Chalice takes it upon herself to go find her.

Ayden and Rafe join Chalice in her search for the missing Knight. Ayden believes he is better off helping Chalice as a gargoyle and he definitely comes in handy. Chalice tries to search for her missing comrade while trying to avoid the Vyantara from learning she is back in town. Chalice’s mission leads her to the black veil, the home of the Fallen angels, where she discovers a devious plan in works for the creation of a whole new order of Knights.

Chalice is still the resilient heroine that she was from Knight’s Curse. She never had family around her and now that she has seen what could be she doesn’t want to lose the family she could now have. She fights hard for acceptance while still remaining true to who she is. She is delivered bad news about her love life but she doesn’t care. She makes no excuses about being in love with Ayden even though he is not human anymore.

The world-building expands in this book to include the white and black veil, dimensions where angels and other creatures live. The plot is a little more straightforward in this book compared to the first book in the series. Darkest Knight does work well as a standalone novel. The main plot points are resolved by the end of the book, a few points are saved for later in the series. The tone is still one of doom and Chalice puts herself in another situation that I have no idea how she is going to get out of it.

In the end, Darkest Knight is a suitable follow up to Knight’s Curse. It is the tale of a thief turned hero who wants to help save the world from evil. Darkest Knight is an urban fantasy that has the potential to be a great series but so far just manages to ride the fence.

Notable Scene:

Rusty’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe what I heard about your mother was true.”

If she said one bad thing about my mother I’d make sure she lost more than just her powers. I felt the weight of the knife sheathed between my shoulder blades.

“What was that sorcerer’s name?” Rusty’s eyes rolled as if she tried to think of the answer. “Oh, yeah. Gavin. The Vyantara’s head honcho and your mother’s lover.”

I sprang at her.

It was totally impulsive and completely driven by some primal part of my brain. Anything having to do with my mother was a sensitive issue. To hear the name of that sociopathic sorcerer and my mother in the same breath sent me over the edge. I couldn’t stop myself.

The knife was in my hands so fast I barely registered my fingers wrapping around the hilt and my thumb springing the latch to pop the blade.

The Knight’s Curse Series:

1. Knight’s Curse

2. Darkest Knight

FTC Advisory: Harlequin/Luna provided me with a copy of Darkest Knight. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2012/03/darkest-knight-knights-curse-2-by-karen-duv...

In Darkest Knight, Chalice has joined her fellow sisters of the Hatchet Knights at Halo House, which is run by her grandmother, Aurora. Chalice is thrilled to meet her grandmother and is also excited (and nervous) about her role in teaching the squires in the art of using charms. She has her guardian angel along with her, and is no longer under the thumb of her evil adoptive father, Gavin. Not everything is good, though. Her lover, Aydin, is still a gargoyle, and the only way he can become human is to eat the heart of another gargoyle. Also, someone is killing Chalice’s sisters, and if she doesn’t find the culprit soon, more lives will be lost.

I enjoyed this one, although it didn’t dazzle me like Knight’s Curse. I think the reason for that is that I was already familiar with the worldbuilding, so it wasn’t a matter of uncovering the coolness on a near constant basis, which happened with Knight’s Curse. Most of the first half takes place in Halo House, getting to know the various squires, and Chalice learns that her new job may not be as easy as she thought. When she gets into the nitty gritty of chasing the unknown killer is when things really get fun, though, and definitely get darker. Chalice will not only have to confront an ancient evil, but she’ll also have to also confront her own destiny, which is, after all, to join with her guardian angel and conceive a child that will eventually become a knight. Like I said, the action in the second half really picked up, and that’s when I found myself turning the pages a little bit quicker. I like Chalice, a lot, even if she is a little bit more forgiving than I would be (you’ll see what I mean), and I’m looking forward to the next book in the series! ( )