Review: Pretty Dark Nothing by Heather L. Reid

What: Pretty Dark Nothing (Pretty Dark Nothing #1) by Heather L. Reid

Who: Month 9 Books

When: 2013

How: A copy of this novel was provided on behalf of the publisher via Net Galley.

It’s been twenty three days since Quinn has slept for more than minutes at a time. Demons have invaded her dreams, stalking her, and whispering of her death. The lack of sleep and crippling fear are ruining her life. Energy drinks and caffeine pills don’t make a dent. When Quinn dozes off in the school hallway, Aaron, an amnesiac with a psychic ability, accidentally enters her nightmare. The demons are determined to keep them apart, and Aaron from discovering the secret locked away in his memory. Together, they could banish the darkness back to the underworld for good. That is, unless the demons kill them first

Quinn Taylor isn’t sleeping. She hasn’t slept for 23 days, to be exact. It’s the shadows that keep her from the realm of sleep. The shadows that turn into demons, and want her. Dead.

The only thing keeping her awake are the caffeine pills, the energy drinks, and the music. But her body can’t keep up with her lack of sleep, and when she collapses in the school hallway, Aaron is there to catch her. Like he is every time.

But Aaron’s got his own problems, like his ability to feel and influence people’s feelings just by touching them. But with Quinn, it’s different; she’s different. And, despite his own wishes, he just cant seem to stay away from her.

Okay. I just finished this book about fifteen minutes ago, and I am reeling. But I’ll get to that in a minute.

The synopsis of this novel had me wanting to read it immediately. I love paranormal YA novels, and I feel as if demons have not been explored as much as all the other types of paranormal/supernatural beings. It intrigued me.

From practically the first sentence of this book, I was hooked. I loved the alternation between Quinn and Aaron’s points of view (even though it wasn’t first person *sadface*). I liked the crossovers between them, and how they had similar reactions to the same thing, but just didn’t know it.

The main reason I really liked this book was Aaron. I adored his character. He is one of my favourite YA love interests. He struggles with his feelings for Quinn, and he doesn’t like how they overpower him. And he’s not self assured, like most love interests in YA novels. He’s kind of broken, and I loved that about him. Yup, I love this boy.

I am not a big fan of Quinn, however. I know demons are evil, and can be pretty influential, but come on, girl, get yourself together! Be strong willed, and kick some demon butt. I felt like she was swayed too much by the demons, and didn’t have a mind of her own sometimes (but maybe that was the point? I’m not too sure).

Approximately 100 pages form finishing, I was wondering: how the heck is this book going to tie everything up in 100 pages? And then, all of a sudden, goodreads tells me that it’s the first in a series. I am so happy! I can already tell this is going to be an awesome series.

Okay, back to the reeling. The ending! I cannot begin to describe my feelings about the ending. I loved it, for one. But it was so twist-y, and there are so many questions I need answered (NOW), and so many open ended things, and just give me the sequel. Now. I need it.

Overall, I did like this book, as you can probably tell by my erratic response to its ending. I would highly recommend it to fans of YA paranormal, as it is not your run-of-the-mill YA paranormal romance, but in a good way.

I will be keeping my eyes peeled for the sequel.

© 2013, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.