The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman (InfoSoup)

The author of Eon and Eona returns with an amazing book of fantasy set in Regency London. Lady Helen Wrexhall is getting ready for her presentation to the Queen, something that her aunt and uncle are depending on to offset the claim that Helen’s mother was a traitor to the crown. Helen has also noticed that her senses are growing more acute. Soon she is told by the intriguing Lord Carlston that she has a destiny inherited from her mother that makes her one of only a few people alive who can hunt demons. As part of the upper class, Helen must figure out how to navigate the dangers and darkness she is discovering without losing sight of her place in society.

Goodman makes a great choice here, creating a Regency England setting filled with a secret layer of darkness and intrigue. She keeps the society of the time intact throughout, allowing everything else to seethe under those strict and proper restrictions. This creates a feeling of dread, harrowing danger at every turn, and the reader has no idea who to trust. Goodman keeps revealing new details and truths throughout the novel, even towards the end, creating a book that is rich and detailed.

Helen is a fabulous protagonist. She is a woman who is fighting against the strictures of her place in society already and then given a way to move forward that is exciting and tantalizing but also scandalous. It is to Goodman’s credit that Helen does not leap into action without hesitation, making her someone who really fits into her time period and setting in a natural way.

Add in a little heat with male protagonists and you have a fantasy-laced romantic novel that is luminous and riveting. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from library copy.