{"id":58264,"date":"2021-03-25T09:00:14","date_gmt":"2021-03-25T13:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=58264"},"modified":"2021-04-07T05:58:31","modified_gmt":"2021-04-07T09:58:31","slug":"release-black-sunshine-by-karina-halle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=58264","title":{"rendered":"Release & ARC Review: Black Sunshine (Dark Eyes Duet, #1) by Karina Halle"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Black Sunshine by Karina Halle is live!<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Amazon\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Amazon Worldwide<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

\r\n <\/div><\/div><\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n

Blurb<\/strong><\/h4>\n

All Lenore Warwick wants for her 21st birthday is to hang out with her friends, finish her second year at Berkeley with flying colors, and maybe catch the eye of a hot musician playing a show at a club that she can now (legally) get into.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, fate has other plans for her.<\/p>\n

A week before her birthday, she\u2019s kidnapped by the brooding and dangerous stranger with cold eyes and a lethal touch, who has been stalking her on San Francisco\u2019s fog-shrouded streets. Absolon Stavig isn\u2019t your average criminal though. He\u2019s a centuries-old vampire who\u2019s caught between wanting to kill Lenore and wanting to save her.<\/p>\n

You see Lenore, too, is a vampire.<\/p>\n

She just doesn\u2019t know it yet.<\/p>\n

Taken by a pair of vampire slayers when she was just an infant, Lenore was raised never knowing her true nature. All Lenore knows is that she has (normal) parents who love her, that she\u2019s exceptionally smart, and she\u2019s squeamish around blood. But once she turns twenty-one, she\u2019ll fully turn into a vampire, and Solon hopes he\u2019ll be there to guide her, opening her eyes to her deepest hunger…both sexual and otherwise.<\/p>\n

But this turning can\u2019t be kept a secret. Soon both slayers and vampires are hunting Lenore, with only Solon and his unpredictable motley crew of vampires to save her.<\/p>\n

If they don\u2019t kill her first.<\/p>\n

Black Sunshine is a dark adult standalone romance with a paranormal twist, about sex, love, secrets, and revenge, set in contemporary San Francisco.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Find Black Sunshine\u00a0<\/em>on\u00a0<\/strong>GOODREADS<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Review<\/b><\/h4>\n

3 stars<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019m a huge fan of paranormal romance, so was so excited to read Karina Halle\u2019s take on the genre, and she has delivered a dark and intense story that is unique and intriguing, with a great bunch of characters and, of course, a romance that is hot and swoony.<\/p>\n

Lenore Warwick is a smart, independent student with a love of all things grunge, who is approaching her 21st birthday. She has a good life, though she is mostly isolated except for her loving parents and her one true friend, but she\u2019s ok with that, and with the exception of feeling like she\u2019s being followed everywhere she goes, her life is pretty damn good.<\/p>\n

But that all changes when she\u2019s kidnapped by a broody stranger with fangs who informs her that he\u2019s a vampire, and that she\u2019s about to change into one. Turns out that she was born a vampire and was taken in by vampire slayers as a toddler after they killed her parents. She has been raised as a human and has no idea about the supernatural world that exists right alongside the world she knows, and she has no idea how much is about to change.<\/p>\n

Guiding her through her transition is ancient, powerful and enigmatic vampire, Absolon (\u2018Solon\u2019). He takes her into the home that he shares with two other vampires, seeing her through the change, and teaching her about her new world. But Solon seems to have ulterior motives, and when it turns out that Lenore\u2019s supernatural powers make her strangely unique in her new world, she realises she\u2019s in danger on multiple fronts, and she may actually need the big, badass vampire to save her and keep her safe.<\/p>\n

Karina Halle has created an intriguing vampire world that has a unique feel to it. It has a feel that her fans will recognise, and cleverly ties in to supernatural goings on that have been established in some of her other series, which I thought was really well done.<\/p>\n

Lenore is a great character \u2013 quirky and relatable, and I loved watching her take in, and come to terms with, her new world, and her new reality. And then there\u2019s Solon. Broody, secretive and super sexy, he has this quiet intensity that Lenore finds completely irresistible, and there\u2019s a complex, and really entertaining dynamic between them.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re my weakness, Lenore,\u201d he says gently against my skin. \u201cI never had one until now. Until you.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The romance begins as a slow burn, with Solon keeping Lenore at a distance. He has his reasons, which Lenore promptly dismisses, and we get this flirtatious teasing, with Lenore testing him and pushing for more.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know what you\u2019re asking of me,\u201d he whispers against my hand.
\n\u201cI know I want you. There\u2019s nothing else.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And when the switch is flipped, it\u2019s all on.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to be gentle,\u201d he says hoarsely, breathing hard\u2026
\n\u201cI don\u2019t want you to be gentle,\u201d I say, digging my nails into his back. \u201cI want to feel everything you have for me.\u201d
\n\u201cFuck,\u201d he says gruffly, grabbing my chin with hard fingers, searching my eyes with something like amazement. \u201cYou\u2019re going to be my ruin, aren\u2019t you?\u201d <\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It\u2019s super-sexy, and fast moving, with lots of intense declarations and swoon. But I confess, I didn\u2019t really feel it as much as I was hoping to. Maybe because it was too fast? Maybe because of Solon\u2019s initial disconnect and earlier actions? \u2026

<\/span>Spoiler<\/div>
In an eye-brow raising scene, Solon arranges for Lenore to get \u2018relief\u2019 from the mad lust phase of vampire transition with his fun and playful roommate, Wolf. Solon actually watches their first encounter where Wolf enthusiastically goes down on a near-delirious Lenore, and we hear later on that Lenore shared two days of wild sex with Wolf, before he stepped back and became the teasing, jokey friend. Only for Solon to later make statements like\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re mine, Lenore. You always have been, Mine and only mine. Forever mine.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Hmmmmm. It doesn\u2019t really mesh with the protective, possessive alpha vampire vibe.<\/div><\/div>\n

I don\u2019t know, but I just didn\u2019t connect with them together, and wasn\u2019t really feeling much for them as a couple.<\/p>\n

And then everything seems to come to a head with action, danger, and supernatural badassery, but it kinda felt rushed and didn\u2019t bring the excitement and intensity that I think it was supposed to. Again, it\u2019s fast moving, and I was actually left with more questions than I began with as it all plays out.<\/p>\n

This book originally started as a standalone, but you can see that it\u2019s set up for more books in this world. It\u2019s a happy ending for now, but not only is Lenore\u2019s story left somewhat unfinished, but there are still details of Solon\u2019s history to explore, and his two roommates are screaming out to have their stories told, and I would definitely be intrigued to read more.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an interesting concept, but this one didn\u2019t grab me as much as I was hoping. I\u2019m curious to see what more we get from this world.<\/p>\n

3 stars.<\/p>\n

An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dark Eyes Duet<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\" \u00a0\"\"\u00a0\u00a0\"\" \u00a0\"\" \u00a0\"\"<\/p>\n

Black Sunshine (#1) <\/strong>(Absolon & Lenore)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy: \u00a0Amazon\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

The Blood is Love (#2)<\/strong> (Absolon & Lenore)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

Nightwolf (#3) <\/strong>(spin-off – Wolf & Amethyst)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

Blood Orange (#4; Dracula Duet, #1) <\/strong>(standalone spin-off – Valtu)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

Black Rose (#5; Dracula Duet, #2)<\/strong> (standalone spin-off – Valtu)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Meet Karina<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Karina Halle is a former travel writer, music journalist and screenwriter, and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of over 55 bestselling novels, ranging from horror and suspense to contemporary romance. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband, and her adopted pitbull Bruce, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books.<\/p>\n

Halle is represented by the Root Literary Agency and is both self-published and published by Simon & Schuster, Hachette and Montlake. Her work has\u00a0been translated and published in 20 languages.<\/p>\n

Hit her up on Instagram at @authorHalle, on Twitter at @MetalBlonde and on Facebook. You can also visit\u00a0www.authorkarinahalle.com<\/a>\u00a0and sign up for the newsletter for news, excerpts, previews, private book signing sales and\u00a0more.<\/p>\n

Connect with Karina:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Facebook\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0\u00a0Amazon\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Join her Reader Group<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Stay up to date with Karina by signing up for her\u00a0newsletter<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For more great reads, check out our\u00a0Karina Halle Author Spotlight<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Black Sunshine by Karina Halle is live! Amazon\u00a0 |\u00a0 Amazon Worldwide\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback   Blurb All Lenore Warwick wants for her 21st birthday is to hang out with her friends, finish her second year […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58024,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,9,29],"tags":[59,38,634,48,76],"class_list":["post-58264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-paranormal","category-romance","category-steamy","tag-arc","tag-karina-halle","tag-release","tag-review","tag-standalone"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Black-Sunshine-AMAZON-1.jpg?fit=200%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-f9K","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58264\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/58024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}