ARC Review: Moonglow (Darkest London #2) by Kristen Callihan

Title: Moonglow
Author: Kristen Callihan
Series: Darkest London
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Releases : 31st July, 2012
My ratings: 4.5 out of 5 stars.

FireLight left me wanting for more Kristen Callihan's outstanding writing abilities. At the end we were left with an excerpt of Moonlight which implied the next story would be Daisy and Ian’s story.
Ian is a Lycan. He has the capability if being a werewolf but he has to keep his animal in control. If for once he lets it out the wolf will take control and the man would never be able to come back. He is in exile, the circumstances of which are revealed later. He meets daisy by accident when she is attacked by a werewolf and it seems that Daisy’s life will be in anger until the threat is eliminated.

“Cock?” he intoned, a hairbreath from laughing. Blue eyes twinkled. “My dear. I’m the wolf.” He leaned in, bringing all his tempting warmth and masculine strength closer. His voice rumbled over her skin. "I eat the hen,” he murmured, “before I carry off what’s left of her.”

Sparks fly straightaway as soon as these two meet. There was instant attraction and the banter which ensued was funny. Callihan let the fire build up between them and when they came together they lit up likes flames. In Firelight I loved Daisy. She was sassy, funny and seemed liked a genuine character. Since her introduction I had been anxiously waiting for her story. Her spunk and forwardness was all there in Moonlight and it amused Ian (and me) to no end. She is forward and is not afraid to get what she wants. She is not like you coy historical romance heroines who says something and means something else. Once she made up her mind she would go through it. A woman of her own. During her marriage to the horrible Mr.Craigmore she has been emotionally scarred and trying to out herself back together piece by piece which made reading abut her all the more interesting.

“However, I doubt that you could handle me. Somehow I think you prefer your women either unavailable or subservient. I am neither"

Ian on the other hand was our alphalicious hero who sulked about, feeling sorry for himself both for his past and for his unsuccessful indiscretions with Miranda. I loved how he was introduced when his hydraulics in the south were not working properly. How often we get a hero who is an ideal alpha male but can’t get it up. He was fierce yet loyal and even with this tough exterior he had this tenderness about him which made your heart melt. To make him complete he had a tortured past and was a lonely soul who had lived for many years but has never had a true companion. In Daisy he finds it all. She would be his ideal mate loyal, strong yet soft with a steel core, someone who could keep up with him. To top it all off he had a wonderful vocabulary which would give even Daisy a run for her money. I leanrt so many new phrases thanks to Ian. My favourite was

"It smells fouler than a dock whore’s twat down here"

At this point I was speechless.

What I love about Callihan is her writing style. The way she describes a dreary London scene makes you feel you were right there experiencing it down to the wet fog cloaking your senses. She weaves the plot and storyline so well with her characters that at no point did you feel it was simple a paranormal romance or just another Historical romance. The story plot is intriguing and the tension the characters is the air is palpable. Paranormal aspects are well-done and I like how the Werewolf/Lycan angle was handled.

“Police.” He snorted. “They couldn’t find their cocks to take a piss.”

Overall I really enjoyed MoonGlow, but it wasn’t FireLight. I loved that book. I’m not sure why. Was it the sheer surprise of finding a hidden jewel or discovering a new author or perhaps it was the storyline and the mystery behind Archer's masks or maybe it was the perfect mesh of historical and paranormal romance? I figured out the identity of the werewolf from almost the start so I wasn’t surprised the way it ended but I didn’t see the way the Callihan took with Daisy and Poppy.

“Hasn’t it seeped into your thick head yet, Daisy-Meg,” he whispered, “there isn’t anything you can do that will make me stop loving you. You might break my heat but it’s yours anyway.”

I’m can’t wait for the next book in the Darkest London series and see how Poppy’s story unfolds but I do have some ideas.

Read my review for the first book in the Darkest London series by Kristen Callihan, Firelight, here
Realeases 31st July, 2012

ARC provided by Grand Central Publishing via NetGalley