Darkness Betrayed (Torn Series #2)

PARANORMAL:  No worries. No big deal. All Samantha has to be is the balance between the Faithful and the Exiled—warring beings of light and darkness. And all she has to do is keep from falling in love with her guardian angel, Ethan, knowing they can never be together. And all she has to find is the Box of Hope so she can stop Sebastian from killing everyone she loves. And all she has to stop is being tempted by Damien—the very devil himself. Easy-peasy right? Ugh.

Samantha embarks on a mission to stop Sebastian. He’s killed friends and family members by coercing people she cares about into betrayal of the worst kind. But Samantha can’t seem to control the conflicting light and darkness within her, no matter how much training she’s put through, and now the devil wants to get into the details.

Without reading the first in the series, “Darkness Betrayed” is difficult to follow. Once immersed in the story, it feels a bit like a carnival roller coaster that jerks uncomfortably through its twists and turns. The heroine is constantly berating herself and is told by the other characters to grow up and become a leader, but she never does. Hughes does a great job building tension and the idea, itself, holds a lot of promise, but it seems to be overwhelmed with too many unnecessary paranormal details that detract from its potential.

Sofia St. Angeles