Review: Dark Seraphine by KaSonndra Leigh

Title: Dark Seraphine
Series: Seraphine Trilogy # 1
Author: KaSonndra Leigh
Publisher: Createspace
Date of Publication: October 21, 2012
Source: received copy for my honest review of it

Goodreads Synopsis:"Mom always says the angels walk among us. She forgot to tell me that sometimes they're not all fluffy and nice."
Seventeen-year-old Caleb Wood has seen people he calls the walkers since he was a baby. It didn't take long for him to realize something…no one can see these strangers but him. They never stuck around or tried to touch him. And they never said a word. That was until one day on the first day of class in his senior year when an incredibly gorgeous girl strolls into his life…and things are never the same again.
Soon Caleb realizes he has stepped into the middle of a growing conflict between two ancient groups. And his ability to see the invisible ones, the half-breeds that want to modify the human race, just might be the only hope both he and the mysterious, but infuriating, Gia, have of making it out alive

My Thoughts:
 I really really am crazy about this author, KaSonndra Leigh, and her adult novel, Haceinda Moon.  I loved that book so much and it was a ghost story too *(not usually my thing but lately it fits).  She is a great writer and can really spin a tale of torture, suspense, and love.
With that being said, Dark Seraphine, just wasn't for me.  I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either.  It was just blah for me.  Nothing really stood out for me.  I like Caleb but he wasn't a spectacular character that I immediately fell in love with, but instead he was just likable.  It is typical high school drama with the slew of characters: you have the nerds, the cheerleaders, the outsiders, and then, in this case the Walkers.
The plot is a interesting one and especially coming from a guy's point of view too.
There is action in it to keep guys occupied.  I actually liked that Caleb taught self defense; this makes him even more lovable to the reader.
I think the story line is a great idea but I just couldn't get into the story try as I might.  A lot of the characters fell a little flat for me and half the time I was confused as to what was going on.
I did think our author did a great job of keeping us in the dark along with Caleb as far as who Gia really is and what she is really doing there.
There is a love triangle in this story but I felt like it was forced because so many other YA novels have it there too.  Erica was complicated.  We were able to see she was different than what the school believed her to be but then she just ticked me off when she acted so nonchalant about Caleb.   And then of course there is Gia.  She is our mysterious girl that is always there when Caleb gets his temper going but can never give us a straight answer.  I did wholeheartedly love the fact that Gia is this awesome girl skateboarder who the school is totally crushing on.

This story wasn't for me but I wouldn't pass it up totally. The author is a wonderful writer and has some great stories out there right now.  I just wasn't feeling this one but if you are really into a male's pov, love triangles, mysterious girls, and many magical moments then you should definitely give it a shot!
I gave it 2 hearts.

Get your own copy at:  Amazon | Barnes & Noble | 

Connect with KaSonndra Leigh at : Goodreads | Website | Twitter | 

Book Promo: Dark Seraphine by KaSonndra Leigh

Dark Seraphine

Author: KaSonndra Leigh
Formats: ebook- Kindle, Nook
Date of Publication: October 21, 2012

Genre: YA Paranormal

"Mom always says the angels walk among us. She forgot to tell me that sometimes they're not all fluffy and nice."
Seventeen-year-old Caleb Wood has seen people he calls the walkers since he was a baby. It didn't take long for him to realize something…no one can see these strangers but him. They never stuck around or tried to touch him. And they never said a word. That was until one day on the first day of class in his senior year when an incredibly gorgeous girl strolls into his life…and things are never the same again.
Soon Caleb realizes he has stepped into the middle of a growing conflict between two ancient groups. And his ability to see the invisible ones, the half-breeds that want to modify the human race, just might be the only hope both he and the mysterious, but infuriating, Gia, have of making it out alive.

Excerpt:
 Without Kyle by my side, I now faced with heading into my Trig class too early. Nobody blazed a trail to be the first one sitting around and waiting on the teacher. Because of Kyle’s hormones, I faced looking super un-cool and nerdy. When you put those words together, you never came away looking sexy.

Stepping into the room, I immediately noticed that I was right. I headed straight for the back row. I turned around and almost wet my pants.

The new girl was sitting in a desk at the front of the room. She wore that same faraway look they always have, these Walkers do. I gave them that nickname because sometimes a ghostly film trailed behind them. It always reminded me of angel wings. Otherwise, I guess they might be considered plain old ghosts. To label them as spirits kind of took away from their magic. The mystery people were always super gorgeous, like this chick: slick, dark hair that stopped just below her shoulders, a long oval-shaped face, and nice skin. And they always wore something dark: black jackets, jeans, and a tee shirt.

To admit this girl made my skin crawl sounded sissy and weak. This wasn’t the time to be a wuss. Manning up, I squared my shoulders before I sat down. The little kid in me wanted to run away like a baby. But then she laughed. It was a high-pitched giggle, a normal girl’s chuckle. It surprised me. That wasn’t right. I couldn’t ever remember the Walkers laughing before.

“Go ahead and run. I’ll just simply find you like I always do,” she said, her face still turned toward the teacher’s wipe board.

Her voice was smooth like a forgotten song, a hypnotic one. I could listen to it all day long. But even super sexy voice didn’t change the fact that she pretty much read my mind.

“Have you decided whether you’ll run or not yet? I have an awful lot of things to take care of.” She turned her head the slightest bit to the side

My underarms prickled. I was glad that Mom forced me to start using the clinical strength deodorant this morning; to say I was nervous wasn’t even close to how I felt.

“Are you an angel?” I asked, my voice squeaking on the last word. What a dork. She didn’t frighten me too badly, but I wasn’t exactly ready to get her phone number either. As a little kid, I remember talking to a few of the Walkers. As soon as I hit my thirteenth birthday the ability to communicate with them disappeared. This was the first time I’d spoken to one in years.

“I hate to tell you this, but I’m not a ghost an angel or a zombie. Sorry.” She turned around to face me, an amused expression on her ridiculously gorgeous face. I inhaled sharply and held my breath. The word beautiful didn’t do this Walker-girl any type of justice. Her strange, dark eyes with the specks of blue and green inside the irises pierced into me.

I swallowed hard and found my voice. “So then, what are you? You’re not the only one I’ve seen or talked to. And why do I have the honor of being the stalked one?”

She made a light laugh and tilted her head. Her slick black hair flowed around her face as if it were made of silky thread.

“Others have come before me?” She seemed to have said it to herself rather than asking me. One thing I did know for certain. I was probably going to be committed to the loony ward after all of this. “I’m going to need your help soon, Caleb. So be ready.”

“Be ready for what?” I asked, crossing my arms and feeling just a tad flirtatious. A desperate idiot. Kyle was chasing Erica the Stiff. And me, I got some sort of angel girl sitting in front of me. A good man always knows when to aim for the right goal.

She glanced behind my head just before a sudden crash thundered behind me. My heart leapt into my throat. I jumped up and spun around thinking it sounded like gunshots. But I was being paranoid. It wasn’t a gun or anything at all threatening. The classroom clock had fallen. Bits and pieces of it lay all over the floor.

I groaned. “Oh hell. They’ll think I did this.”

“What in the world did you do, Caleb Wood?” a girl’s nasal voice asked me. I turned around to find Jillian Bowman and her tortoise shell glasses grinning at me. She was the last person I wanted to see. What, or rather who did I not find?—the Walker girl. She’d vanished.

Something hitched in my chest. I wanted to know more about her. I’d never gotten so intimate with them before.

She told me to be ready.

Exactly what did I need to get ready for? 

About the Author:

I live in the City of Alchemy and Medicine, North Carolina. I write about teens doing fantastical things in magical worlds. Sometimes they fall for each other and make sacrifices for their friends. Oh, and sometimes they love music and nature too. I live with two teens, mentor other teens, and write with them. Some of them have made me promise to write a boy book next. Now that I have completed my MFA in creative writing, I find that I have a little extra time to play CLUE more often. I live in an L-shaped house dedicated to my grandmother. It has a secret library complete with fairies, venetian plastered walls, and a desk made out of clear blue glass.

When Copper Suns Fall is my debut novel.

 Reach KaSonndra Leigh:



Release Day Party at 6pmEST at the Young Adult Teen Readers Group https://www.facebook.com/events/288064814642558/

Author website: http://www.kasonndraleigh.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/kasonndraleigh
Facebook: http://facebook.com/kasonndraleighbooks
Facebook#2: http://facebook.com/kasonndraleighbookspage
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/alestasia/the-lost-immortals/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13628670-dark-seraphine