Romarin Demetri is a Featured Author in the January 2017 issue of Uncaged Book Reviews. To read an interview with her, and to read an excerpt from The Frost Bloom Gardens (Book 2), then please see the issue!
A Mirror Among Shattered Glass
Romarin Demetri
Paranormal
Unable to contain the deadly nature of her family secret and powers, nineteen year old Romarin Demetri hails from California, USA to unearth her heritage as a descendant of serial-killer Countess Bathory, the woman that lent Dracula his legend, and cursed Romarin with an appetite for blood.
Unenthusiastic about relocating to her birth city of London, a charming paranormal investigator with claim to the throne could change her mind, as he leads her to the only living and distant relative she has: A raven-haired recluse named Talia, who has taken refuge in an old castle in the heart of the city, and doesn’t seem to have a heart of her own.
After a rough introduction to the lethal, inappropriate, and enchantingly sarcastic people Romarin calls her housemates, perhaps the other misfits will be her first true friends; however, as much as these people are like her, they still have hidden vendettas, a taste for revenge, and will struggle between what is just and what will settle their psychological upheaval. There is only one way for Romarin to become part of the Supernatural London Underground: Can she be the one who challenges them to put down their ghosts and demons and make their world together?
Uncaged Review: Being the first book in a new series, the author gives a nice introduction and development to her cast of characters, getting deep enough that you get a good feel for them. The story is character driven for this first book, and the relationships that are developed with these misfits of Talia’s home, a castle with a dark history.
Romarin (yes, our main character is named after our author’s pen name) is different. But she doesn’t know why she’s like she is. When you first start this book, Romarin is in a very bad place, she needs to have blood to survive, but she’s been literally starving herself. And she’s wasting away. Sent by her parents to a charm school in England, she barely has the strength to leave the hotel she’s staying at. When she manages to get moving to get to her school, a man’s body falls to the pavement right in front of her and the hotel, a jumper suicide.
Next thing Romarin knows, is she’s in an asylum, as she was caught licking up the blood from the pavement. When she drinks fresh blood, she takes on the memories of the one who died, to the point she doesn’t know her own memories from the one she drinks from and it takes time for her body to rid itself of those memories. She receives a visitor in Talia who offers her a safe haven, and manages to break out with the help of another patient and finds her way to Talia’s castle. Here is where the story really begins to take shape. Talia’s home is a safe harbor for supernaturals, and she meets the others that live here. A strong bond grows between them all, and she learns about herself, and the others.
This story is told in two writing styles, when we are reading about Romarin, it’s in the first person, and when it goes off into the other characters, it’s written in the third person. But it’s easy to get used to, and it works for this book. Most of the time, when you read a book fully in first person, you don’t get any extra information except what the main character sees, in this way of flipping, you get a bit more information that’s happening beyond the main character – one of the reasons I’m not a huge fan of first person narratives.
I really haven’t gotten a handle on where this story is going, or what the main story arc will be for the series, and what Romarin and the others roles will be yet. But it’s fresh and original and well written. Reviewed by Cyrene
4 Stars
The Frost Bloom Garden
Romarin Demetri
Paranormal
As if the Supernatural London Underground couldn’t open up any further, Romarin is immersed in different cultures, struggles, and factions– including the revelation of her first dangerous foe–that make the hidden world what it is: treacherous. As a detective in pursuit of a Jack The Ripper type killer, Romarin’s sole purpose is to destroy evidence of their secret world, reminding her of how blurred all of their roles are, and that the price for that could very well be one’s life. With rumors of a safe haven, an island where people like her can go to be free and understood, perhaps she won’t need the cure she vehemently seeks. A cure for a broken heart however, that’s another story. And then a cure for a burning heart? That’s just impossible.
Uncaged Review: The second book in this series is a lot more action packed than the first one. This one also has three different arcs to it, and it keeps a nice pace. One of the main reasons for Talia’s company is to keep the supernatural community quiet and to find any more labs that may be experimenting on more supernaturals like they did her. Romarin gets her first job, and it’s to stop a supernatural serial killer to keep their secrets. And you won’t guess the outcome right away, and it keeps the pace well. Second story arc is Audin gets kidnapped, and the gang will stop at nothing to find him. And the third arc, is the crew going back to the fae realm, to try and stop a Changeling war by warning the royal family, Audin’s parents. But what they didn’t know, is that their lives will be in danger, and there are more secrets to the royal palace than meets the eye.
There is a lot going on with this book, more so than the first one and the gang is closer than ever. The witty banter between the characters is better than ever and the suspense and intrigue is ramped up considerably. I would definitely not recommend this as a standalone, I would definitely recommend reading the first book in the series before jumping into this one, or you will lose a lot of the impact of this book. This book ties up its own storyline and sets up nicely for book three. Reviewed by Cyrene
5 Stars
