*Book Review* Darkness Falls by Keri Arthur

Series: Dark Angels # 7
Published by: Signet
Released: December 2, 2014
Source: Library
Format: Paperback, 375 pages
Genre: UF, PNR

*Book Blurb*

Keri Arthur brings her Dark Angels series to a breathtaking conclusion as half-werewolf, half-Aedh Risa Jones treads a knife’s edge between the salvation of the human race and its total annihilation. 

The search for the last key to the gates of hell has begun, and half-werewolf, half-Aedh Risa Jones is in more danger than ever—and one misstep could prove ruinous. It's only a matter of time before Madeleine Hunter, the dangerous head of the vampire council, begins her hunt for complete domination. And for Risa, that comes with an alarming ultimatum: hand over the last key to Hunter or, one by one, her loved ones will die.

Now, it’s a race against time for Risa to save those she loves, and to stop Hunter's apocalyptic plan to open the very gates of hell.

Darkness Falls is the final novel in the Dark Angels series. It all comes down to the search for the final key that unlocks the gates of hell. The final confrontation with the enemies that have made Risa's life challenging and put her friends and family at risk; the Raziq, the Sorceress, and of course, Madeline fricken Hunter, the crazy maenad vampire who likes to eat her enemies. Will Risa survive, or become a Mijai like Azriel?

Right from the start, Risa and Azriel find themselves facing off against the Raziq who have chased Risa around, torn her apart, erased her memories, and threatened her friends. All this over their desire to find the keys which were created by Risa's father. Risa and Azriel have finally had enough, and take a stand. Thankfully, this particular enemy doesn't dwell in the background until the very end. Thankfully, this fight was short, and sweet, and Arthur allowed Risa and Az to move on to their next nemesis quickly; the sorceress.

Risa and Azriel have faced off against several mega villains. Lucian, her own father, the Raziq, the nasty sorceresses Lauren, and Madeline fecken Hunter. Yet, I would have been happy to NOT to see the search for the 3 keys stretched out until the very end. If Arthur ever thinks about doing yet another spin-off series, I sincerely hope she leaves Riley, Quinn, Rhoan, Risa and Azriel alone. They've done enough. If Arthur finds herself writing from Risa and Az's baby boy point of view, then I'm tossing in the towel.

I am probably one of the few readers who won't gang up on Risa for keeping her friends and family out of harms way and not asking them for help against Hunter. I truly do believe that Risa doesn't have a hero complex, or is trying to keep others from helping her so they share can the spotlight. Risa has a fearsome partner in Azriel, the Reaper Dark Angel who she loves. She also has Amaya, the blood thirsty sword with an attitude that leaves me laughing, and Dusan who is supposed to protect Risa, and does when it matters the most.

It's nice to see that Arthur manages to give Risa's best friends a bit of a happy ending as well. Even though Ilianna has her own troubles thanks to Lucian and her parents, she finds herself at home with the Brindle witches and her girlfriend Miri. Tao tries to find a way how to deal with the Elemental inside him, and he doesn't lose himself in the process. Riley, Quinn, and Rhoan have faced a world of their own problems, and I don't care how good of a Guardian she is. Hunter would have ended her, and probably eaten her for breakfast.

I am down with the romance between Risa and Az. I never, ever liked Lucian, and I was right in my dislike. After what Az did to save her in a previous novel, I really was puzzled that Arthur would tear them apart with this. BUT, no worries. The romance is exactly as it should be. Risa has put her anger behind, and even though she won't exactly have the happy ending she wants if she dies, she accepts this as well. This my friends is called character growth. Risa understands what happened to her, and doesn't take 7 books to get over her hurt feelings.

Major beef with Darkness Falls. People snorted in this book at least 100 times. 100 times!!! She snorted. I snorted. We all snorted together! What exactly are they snorting? I also didn't care for the repetitive nature of Arthur's story telling. It's fine when you say one things a few times, but when you continually repeat the same lines from the first book to the final book, then you've totally lost me.

Another relatively small beef. Risa is pregnant, right? Ok, so, if someone is pregnant and they get tossed in the air, beaten to a pulp, and punch so many times she reminds me of a punching bag, don't you think there would be some consequences? Yes, I realize this is FANTASY folks, but could we perhaps be a little more realistic? Or, are we saying that because of who the father and mother are, the baby is indestructible?

I've rated Darkness Falls satisfactory, because that's what I feel about how Arthur wrapped up this series. What do you expect? We've had (7) books in the Dark Angels series, and (8) books in the Riley Jenson series and they both ended in a pretty similair fashion. Both series could have actually ended with (3) books. The rest was just bonus material for readers. I would have loved to have seen Risa and Az chase the keys around the globe instead of searching only in Australia. No offense to Australia, but it would have given the story an added flavor and a bit more realism.