Review: Dark Tempest by Annette Marie

Dark Tempest (Red Winter Trilogy #2)
by Annette Marie

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Fantasy/ Mythology/ Paranormal Romance
Age Category: Young Adult
Type of romance: m/f

Blurb:
Emi has dedicated her life to becoming the perfect vessel for the goddess Amaterasu, but the insidious betrayal of another deity has changed everything. Now Amaterasu has charged Emi with an urgent mission: to find and free the earthly gods before mankind is brought to its knees beneath divine tyranny.

At her side is Shiro, the mysterious fox spirit. When she first saved his life, she could never have imagined that behind his cunning and confidence, he was lost–his power bound by a devastating curse and his memories obscured. His veiled history is somehow tied to the missing gods, but he can’t remember how or why.

As their search leads them into the murky depths of the spirit realm, the shadows of Shiro’s past begin to emerge. With each brief awakening of his true self, she loses a little more of him. The fate of the heavens and earth rest in her mortal hands, and she must find the missing gods before time runs out for her world–and for Shiro.

My Review

I received a copy from Tantor Audio and voluntarily reviewed it.

After listening to book 1 I dove straight into book 2 afterwards. I really enjoyed the first book and wanted to know how the story continued. This book starts shortly after the ending of book 1. Emi has been given the task to find the missing Kunitsukami, the leaders of the yokai, who are all missing and are essential to save the world.

Dark Tempest was a great read and kept my attention from start to finish. I have to admit the begin was a bit slower as Emi has to return to Shion to get a lead on the missing Kunitsukami, but I felt it was still an important part of the story and showed Emi’s growth and determination. Once they leave that place the story really picks up. There is plenty of action with battle scenes involving strong yokai and epic powers. I liked how Emi is an integral part of the group and while she might doubt her effectiveness the others don’t doubt her and never try to exclude her.

There are some great twists and turns, although one of the big reveals was one I predicted since book 1. I was a bit disappointed to be proven right, but on the other hand I was glad I figured it out. The implications of it and how the characters dealt with the reveal were interesting to see, so I still enjoyed reading about it.

Emi is such a great character to read about, her determination to do this task and the way she steps up to the responsibility was admirable. She feels very real and human with her fears and worries. And I admired how she pushed through even when she was afraid. There is so much change and growth in her character throughout the series so far and I like reading about her. It’s fun to see her interact with the other characters as well.

I liked seeing the bond between Shiro and Emi deepen. I really like their romance and connection and seeing them grow closer was great. I especially liked the ending, although I am still wondering how their romance will play out with what is in store for Emi. There are some really awesome scenes involving the two of them and I liked reading about them.

This book introduces new side characters and allies that are great to read about as well as fierce enemies they have to battle. The world really comes alive and I liked reading about all the yokai and their powers and seeing more of this magical world. The narrator does an awesome job with the narration and I was really happy to listen to this book.

To summarize: This was a great sequel and I really enjoyed this book. The start is a bit on the slower side, but after a certain event it gets really good. There are plenty of action scenes with the characters battling fierce enemies with epic powers. I liked reading about Emi and seeing how she changes throughout the book. There are again some twists and turns as well as a big reveal I had predicted when reading book 1. I enjoyed seeing it all play out as well as meeting new characters and allies. I enjoyed seeing Emi and Shiro grow closer and seeing their romance build, there are some great scenes involving the two of them. All in all this was a great sequel and I look forward to the third and last book.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon
– Audible
– B&N
– Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.