Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning

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Karen Marie Moning's site
Series: Fever #5
Copy obtained: bought it
Publisher: Delacorte Press (Jan 18th)
Rating: 4.5/5
Spoiler Warning!! Contains spoilers for previous books!

"Evil is a completely different creature, Mac. Evil is bad that believes it's good."

MacKayla Lane was just a child when she and her sister, Alina, were given up for adoption and banished from Ireland forever. Twenty years later, Alina is dead and Mac has returned to the country that expelled them to hunt her sister's murderer. But after discovering that she descends from a bloodline both gifted and cursed, Mac is plunged into a secret history: an ancient conflict between humans and immortals who have lived concealed among us for thousands of years.

What follows is a shocking chain of events with devastating consequences, and now Mac struggles to cope with grief while continuing her mission to acquire and control the Sinsar Dubh- a book of dark, forbidden magic scribed by the mythical Unseelie King, containing the power to create and destroy worlds. In an epic battle between humans and Fae, the hunter becomes the hunted when the Sinsar Dubh turns on Mac and begins mowing a deadly path through those she loves. Who can she turn to? Who can she trust? Who is the woman haunting her dreams? More important, who is Mac herself and what is the destiny she glimpses in the black and crimson designs of an ancient tarot card?

From the luxury of the Lord Master's penthouse to the sordid depths of an Unseelie nightclub, from the erotic bed of her lover to the terrifying bed of the Unseelie King, Mac's journey will force her to face the truth of her exile, and to make a choice that will either save the world . . . or destroy it.

Shadowfever picks up right where Dreamfever left off, and for me there was no surprise at all to the discovery of the identity of the beast. From there we have a very different Mac to anything we've seen from her yet. And she has already changed a huge amount of the course of the series. Watching Mac grow up and develop from this very superficial 'barbie-girl' into someone who can kick ass, take the pain thrown her way and make the tough decisions she has to has been a fantastic journey. Likewise the world building has been some of my favourite. It's a dark, complex world with so many layers and so easy to get lost in. That hasn't changed for this final book.

Shadowfever is long, much longer than all the books before it. And while I never really felt like it was dragging as such, I do think it could have done with being a bit shorter. I think certain aspects were drawn out too far so that when they finally happened/were revealed, there was much less impact than there could have been. I was also a little surprised to find myself disappointed by the very last twist. Just something that got very suddenly tied up all neat and nice. It wasn't the biggest plot or anything, but it was just there then over and glossed over some at that. For the first time since Darkfever, where Mac's sunshiny, shallow personality grated on me, she irritated me again. It's late on in the book after one of many reveals and I just got very annoyed with her reaction and partly wanted her back to the Mac she'd been earlier in the book and also wishing the story would move on so I didn't need to put up with that Mac anymore. There were a couple other things I found myself a little bit disappointed with, but talking about them would be spoiler territory so I won't.

Really though, none of those little bits ruined the book for me. There is certainly a lot going on in Shadowfever and there are some real stand out moments which I loved. A few of the many twists were just fantastic and left me gaping, even when a couple had decidedly less impact. I read Shadowfever over a few days through a haze of flu, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it and while I didn't find it as impossible to put down as books 1-4, it was still a very compelling read!

Final books are so tricky. They so easily fall in to the disaster category and taint those before it, and rarely it seems can they outdo what came before (or possibly I'm reading the wrong books!!). I know there are those who would possibly consider Shadowfever one of those disasters, and I'm not denying it's flawless. It's not my favourite of the series (that lies with Faefever and Dreamfever), but I do think it's a very strong ending. I have my little issues with it, but overall I'm very satisfied with the outcome. Most of the big questions are answered and those left unanswered, I can live with. I really enjoy this final adventure in to Mac's world and I'm happy to say this is still one of my favourite series ever! KMM would have been very hard pressed to please all her many fans with this book, but I for one am very happy. Great read, and a worthy final for a spectacular series!!

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Reviews for previous books (in order): Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever & Dreamfever (joint review)

Faefever and Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning

Welcome to my non-review for Faefever and Dreamfever. Why a non review? Because it's mostly just a gush about why I love the whole series. I reviewed books one and two very recently and honestly, it's kind of hard to write reviews for these two now as well. In part because I'd just be repeating myself over and over, but also because I don't want to give anything away. So instead, here's a fairly general gush fest over these two awesome books instead. But if you are after more specifics, try my reviews for Darkfever, Bloodfever or check out KMM's site here for more info on all her books. Vague spoilers for the previous books, nothing specific.

I'm kind of at a loss what to say about these two books because I just want to say 'LOVE!!!' over and over about them. The third and fourth books in the Fever series build on the first two perfectly. Things are getting darker for Mac and the rest of the human world. She doesn't know who she can trust, if anyone. But she's no longer the kind of spoiled brat who thinks she can just paint her nails and pretend nothing is wrong.

Mac has grown with every page and I completely adore her now. She's gotten so much stronger! I love how Mac is playing the various people around her against each other, because the only person she really trusts is herself. Everyone has their motives, and Mac's main one is revenge. She's also determined to stop the Fae from taking over the human world, whatever that means doing. I love how Mac's no longer letting everyone push her around. She knows she needs help from the others, but she isn't waiting on it. Mac's gotten pro-active in her fight for survival and proving herself to be smart and capable in a crisis.

I think what I love most about this series though, is how I can't guess anything that's going to happen. Through both books there are very few answers. And hundreds more questions. I want answers, I need them, badly! But at the same time, I am thoroughly enjoying every moment of not knowing. Of being surprised time after time about everything, characters, the world, what the characters are really after. KMM sure knows how to tell a story!!

Through both Faefever and Dreamfever there is vast expansion of the world KMM has created, but never over doing things to the point where it gets too complicated or ridiculous. It all just fits. It's dark, scary and intense. I couldn't put either book down. The combination of a world that vivid and Mac's completely engrossing narrative makes the whole series incredibly addictive, something I felt in Darkfever and Bloodfever, but which is taken to a whole new level with Faefever and Dreamfever!!

I mentioned in my Bloodfever review how much I adore Barrons. That's only grown with these two books. I am surprised and delighted that four books in to the series, with only the final one to come, that we still know basically nothing about him! Through Dreamfever in particular, we start to see more of him. But really it only adds to the questions rather than answering them. Also, he's too damn sexy for his own good!

I am really looking forward to answers in Shadowfever. About Barrons, about Mac, the other sidhe seers, V'lane, the outcome of the Fae/human war, everything. But I wouldn't have changed one moment of the lack of answers through the first four books. I've found this series completely refreshing for the true mystery it holds, as well as for it's fantastic plot and world building. And while I crave more of Mac and Barrons (together in whatever way, because they're just as sexy and charismatic together on the page when they're fighting) I also love that there is so little romance, and what there is can barely be called that! This isn't a love story, it's a story of revenge and discovery. And it's a hell of a story!

Faefever had a killer cliffhanger which had me grabbing for Dreamfever instantly. And Dreamfever has a cliff hanger to rival it. I am beyond glad I came so late to this series with barely a month now until the final book releases. I am sad it's a journey that's almost over, but I also can not wait to discover the ending! I've no doubt there are more shocks in store because this series has been full of them so far, building more and more with each book. Faefever and Dreamfever were an emotional roller coaster, with Mac in so much danger and trying to stay strong through it all. I have no doubt that will also be the case with Shadowfever, but I say bring it on! I can't get enough of this series and if you've not read it yet, you really, really need to!!

Rating for Faefever and Dreamfever: 10/10

Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning

'"I used to be your average, everyday girl, but all that changed one night in Dublin when I saw my first Fae and got dragged into a world of deadly immortals and ancient secrets...."

In her fight to stay alive, MacKayla must find the Sinsar Dubh - a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over the worlds of both the Fae and Man.  Pursued by assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she can't trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and powerful men: V'lane, the immortal Fae Prince, and Jericho Barrons, a man as irresistible as he is dangerous.

For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans. Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them.'

I (for the most part) really liked book one of the Fever series, Darkfever [review]. But it was more for it's addictive feel and potential for greatness in the rest of the series that held me firmly in its grasp. Bloodfever sees the start of that potential realised. Mac is changing, growing from that kind of spoiled, shallow Southern girl in to someone who can keep herself alive in a world where Fae are constantly trying to kill her. Or, at least try and keep herself alive. She's still got a long way to go.

I found Mac much easier to like in Bloodfever than I did Darkfever. Her continual growth impresses me as much as it makes me like her more. She can be selfish at times, but she doesn't pretend to be otherwise. She knows it and admits it. She screws up, she doesn't trust people when maybe she should, she assumes a lot of things when sometimes she shouldn't. But she doesn't pretend to be someone she's not. I find her oddly refreshing and thoroughly entertaining. I completely adore the growing chemistry between Mac and Barrons. The way they play off each other is exquisite at times, in a very brash, in your face kind of way. I kept finding myself wishing for more of them together on the page because most of the very best moments of the book are the two of them together, whether they're agreeing about something, fighting with each other, fighting other things, doesn't matter. The two of them together are just fantastic reading!

Bloodfever is a great continuation of the story started in Darkfever. There is further exploration of the world Mac's found herself in, more and more questions popping up that I desperately want answered. And yet, the lack of true information is something I'm loving. I can't for the life of me figure out where this series is really heading (aside from a war between the Fae and humans). Specifics are constantly twisting and turning offering many different possibilities. Nothing is what it seems. And Barrons! Dammit, I want to know who and what he is as badly as Mac does! I thoroughly enjoy the way he always calls her 'Ms. Lane' so formal and distant and...I don't know, but I love his character and my curiosity about him is growing with each page he features on. The Fae creatures continue to make me shiver in fear and V'lane...well, V'lane scares me more than the rest because he comes across as a 'good' guy and I can't begin to believe that that's true.


Really great read! So addictive and engaging. It's better than Darkfever and still promises that there is a lot more to come from this series. The ending was very dark and intense and left me begging for more! If you've not started this series, do because it's already a new favourite for me and with two books still to go, I'm already anxious for the final book, Shadowfever, which releases January 18th 2011.


Rating: 9/10

Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

"MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death–a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone–Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed–a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae….

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane–an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women–closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book–because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands…."

This is the first book in the Fever series, and it's been sat on my shelf for months. I originally bought it on recommendation from the fabulous @evilqueen21, aka Nikki, who has seriously awesome taste in books. But while I liked the sound of it, I liked the sound of others more and then more new books, and more, and months have gone by before I actually pick it up. Well that was a mistake wasn't it?!

MacKayla 'Mac' Lane is a blond, pink loving 22 year old who loves her small town, her parents, her sister and she's a little on the spoiled side. Then her world is destroyed and turned inside out with the news her sister, who was studying in Ireland, was brutally murdered. Grief stricken and hungry for vengeance she flies to Ireland determined to get the police to reopen the case and discover the truth. Instead, the truth finds her and she suddenly faces the fact that she is not what she believed. That the world is not as she thought. And she is in every bit as much danger as her sister was.

It took very little time for me to get sucked in and get to a point where I couldn't put Darkfever down. I just wanted to keep reading and reading. Mac's voice, the style of writing and the world building hooked me. Mac's voice struck a cord, but at the same time I found her so frustrating at times. Shallow, spoiled and bratty. But the writing kept me hooked even when she was being a bit of an idiot. Mac's shock and grief though, felt very real, very understandable. I think that more than anything gave her the substance she needed to not make me want to give up on her early on.

The world building is fantastic. There are great twists and turns, plenty of action, and plenty of gritty, dark scenes with the fae. It's so hard to figure out who can and can't be trusted, what matters and what doesn't. I felt like I was fumbling through the world right along side Mac. I thoroughly enjoyed her development over the course of the book, along with some of her sassiest moments. She may be seen by most as weak and helpless (and yes, she really is at times) but she's not about to get pushed around any more than she can help. Sometimes that bratty, spoiled nature was a very good thing. Something else I really enjoyed, and found surprising, is the complete lack of romance. There is a little casual flirting, but that's the extent of it. This is pretty strictly, for now at least, a story of a girl looking for revenge. It makes a nice change actually, for a young, pretty protagonist to not suddenly fall in love and focus on this amazing guy rather than what she's meant to be. I enjoyed the change of pace a lot.

If I'm being honest though, it takes a while for things to really start happening, despite there never being anything dull going on, and while I really liked most of the book (Mac's spoiled, over girly moments aside) I didn't love much about it. And yet I barely put it down. Darkfever has a very addictive feel to it, like it's just the warm up act for something special. I hear from Nikki and several others lately that the series does just keep getting better. That, along with the potential in this book and how it left me wanting much more, had me convinced that I wouldn't be making a mistake buying the rest of the series that's currently out (books 2-4) all together. Its the way Darkfever is written, the mystery and some of the character interactions that made this un-put-down-able for me I think, and I can't wait to read the rest! May just be on to a new favourite here!

Rating: 7/10