I struggled with Race the Darkness. I liked Xander but I found myself getting annoyed with him as well. You got hit by lightning, got scars and now you hear things in your head that are driving you bonkers. Got it. I kinda sorta got the family connection between Isleen and Xander but it seemed for me to be a weird thing to even have in the story. Isleen is…I get you’ve been dreaming of him, but you get rescued from death and now you’re ready to bump uglies a few days later. I get insta-love, but this seemed a bit farfetched to accept.

There’s a lot of suspense to this thriller and yet, I always felt I wasn’t getting it. The secondary characters were not that great. The bad guy was a truly wacko religious fanatic that has quite the ick factor. I wasn’t a fan of Xander’s dad, uncle or Kent. Could someone please explain Row to me. Cook and housekeeper I get but at times I felt she was the one really in charge.

I finished the story and while I had some questions answered, I felt like the ending was lacking something. It just didn’t do it for me. This is my first book by author Abbie Roads and while I have no intentions of continuing with this series, I would be will to try some of her other titles.

Stars: 2.5
I received this book from Netgalley. I was not compensated for the book other than the entertainment it provided. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Race The Darkness was such a surprise to me really! Even with an intriguing blurb, I didn’t really expect it to grab me by the throat and never let go. It was the perfect amalgamation of paranormal with romantic suspense. It sucked me in from the first page, first because it was something totally unexpected that it took me a whole to get myself oriented but when that happened? It was one wild crazy ride and I enjoyed every second of it!

This romance reminded me of a twisted fairy tale, and being the weird quirky reader that I am, I abso-freaking-lutely enjoyed every twisted second of it!

Xander is an anamoly – hit by a lightning strike, he can hear the minds of the people around him, but that makes him all the more brooding and a bit of a tool – but working as a consultant to the Police Department, he definitely gets the job done and that is all that matters. So what if his personal life is in shambles? And that loneliness is his companion.

Isleen – this woman was amazing! Even through everything that she had suffered, she still remained a survivor – and though she might have wanted to give up, she always found that smidgen of strength within herself to fight, to survive and I couldn’t help but admire her for that!

Telepathic connection aside, it is very easy to see that Xander and Isleen are meant for each other – on one hand you have a broody hero who is nothing but rude to everyone around him and on the other hand, you have Isleen, who is strong yet gentle enough counteract the boorishness that Xander presented to the world. Their connection is soul deep and that connection pretty much jumps out of the book to grab you.

My only issue though is that that the “bad” in this book wasn’t quite bad enough – somehow I was expecting the villainous aspect to give me chills, but mostly it left me “meh”. And that was the only negative aspect I could find – the writing is pretty much cut-throat and grabs your attention from the first page, the characters and the plot are pretty wonderful – making Abbie Roads an author that I am putting on my watch-list for the foreseeable future! <3

I had been wanting to read this title for forever it seems, I was drawn to the cover and the synopsis sounded unique and instantly had me wanting to know more. One of my favorite series deals with a character that gains a skill from being struck by lightning so I was super excited to read another book with a similar concept.

Ok, this book was incredibly hard to follow, half the time I was so confused as to what was going on, if it was even real, and who was narrating, there were no transitions, just jumping around between everything going on. Also, I struggled with how all the characters had a very firm grasp on their pleasure/pain connection- they all basically were aroused every time something painful occurred and to be perfectly honest I found it a turnoff on the book in general. Actually, now that I think about it, basically every interaction was somehow related to sex or a turn on for the characters- to me, it felt super unrealistic and at times icky (to use a super adult word). Moral of the story was that this was a pretty dark and gritty (and sexualized) story dealing with abuse, torture, kidnapping, murder. I will say that the overall plot (or at least what I picked up from it) seemed really interesting and unique- and it appears to be the first in a series, each featuring a different couple fight for love.

Xander was the main narrator, a man who doesn't fit in due to his very visible scars from a lightning strike as a kid- not to mention his unwanted gift where he can hear the thoughts of everyone around him. The female love interest is Isleen, the damaged woman who sent most of her life in captivity being tortured. There was lots of angst featured in the this book (mixed in with the sex) and the push and pull between the characters existed on each page of the story. Occasionally another narrator was thrown in, King, the acolyte who's goal it is to murder the Dragon, which it is always interesting to see through the villain's eyes.

RACE THE DARKNESS by Abbie Roads. This is a paranormal tale that is a bit dark. Xander, our Hero, was struck by lightning and his whole world changed. Isleen, our heroine, has lived a sad life filled with horror so far. Can they help each other find peace? Or will their demons destroy their chance at happiness and love? Ms. Roads filled this book with danger and suspense and an underlying fear of what was to come. Not a bad start to the series and I look forward to the rest. (received NetGalley ARC for honest review)

I loved reading about Xander and Isleen! They are a perfect match and the turmoil that they went through only brought them closer. I recommend this novel to all readers who enjoy a suspenseful romance with a streak of romance.

A pretty good first in a new series of supernatural romantic suspense. If you like this genre, you should enjoy this. I am curious to see what the rest has in store.

Author Abbie Roads describes “Race the Darkness” as a dark romance, which is a proper description of this hard to put down book. What Roads did not say though is that it is also a romantic suspense that grabs you from beginning to end.

The story of Xander and Isleen, “Race the Darkness” is about finding love in the most unexpected place. Two tortured souls, both literally and figuratively, Xander and Isleen immediately found peace when they met. It should have been happily ever after, but there were entities unknown to both of them who disagree. And thus, these star-crossed lovers have to race the darkness so that they can get to their happily ever after.

A great read that can overwhelm you if you don’t pace yourself. Abbie Roads writes a good yarn. This is the first book I have read from her and I’m truly impressed. She can give writers of American Gothic a run for their money.

Not for the faint of heart, make sure you don’t read this book at bed time to use it so that you will fall asleep because I can guarantee that it will keep you wide awake. You will want to know what happens next, which will make you want to read the whole night through.

Race the Darkness is Rated M for Mature due to violence and sexual content.

Sadly, this one was a DNF. I liked the first half of the books but found the last half couldn't hold my attention.

I couldn't get into this story. Just didn't hold my interest.

I've said this here many times, but I am a big fan of romantic suspense. Although I haven't been reading the genre a lot in the past few years, it has always been one that kept me intrigued. It's a genre that I've wanted to get back into for awhile and now that I have been slowly reading more romantic suspense, I'm having a blast discovering new authors. One of the authors I'm most excited about is Abbie Roads. First of all, I love this cover! I don't usually judge a book by its cover, but to be honest, it was the first thing that drew me to Race the Darkness. Of course once I started reading the book, it was Xander and Isleen that stole the show. The paranormal elements of this book were fantastic. I loved how those elements intensified the connection between Xander and Isleen. As much as I enjoyed the scenes where they used their abilities for the greater good, it was their ability to save and keep each other away from the darkness that became my favorite element of the story. From start to finish, Race the Darkness took me for a ride that I won't soon forget. It kept my attention until I finished it in the wee hours of the morning. I'm in awe of Abbie. She may be a debut author, but I know she'll quickly become an auto-buy and a new favorite of mine in no time.

Race the Darkness is the first book in the Fatal Dreams series by Abbie Roads. Criminal investigator Xander Stone doesn't have to question you—he can hear your thoughts. Scarred by lightning, burdened with a power that gives him no peace, Xander struggles to maintain his sanity against the voice that haunts him day and night—the voice of a woman begging him to save her. Isleen Walker has long since given up hope of escape from the nightmare of captivity and torture that is draining her life, her mind, and her soul. Except...there is the man in her feverish dreams, the strangely beautiful man who beckons her to freedom and wholeness. And when he comes, if he comes, it will take all their combined fury and faith to overcome a madman bent on fulfilling a deadly prophecy.

Race the Darkness is the start of a new series, but many parts of the world building and even character set up felt like there was much more going on, and that readers are not aware of. I often felt like perhaps there was a prequel of related series that I missed. Xander is a complicated character- serious family issue that I feel like I never got a full understanding of- are a major part of the story, as is the fact that getting struck with lightning at some point gave him the ability to hear other's thoughts. Using the ability hurts, but he tries to use it for good more than for selfish uses. Isleen has been held captive for a long time, along with her grandmother she has faced torture and pain and has to deal with the psychological damage that has done, along with the implications of who and why. When Xander rescues Isleen and brings her home the story gets more complicated, and family life more bizarre. Conflicts abound, as does confusion. Xander is the only character that I really felt like I knew by the end of the story, and so much back ground still feels out of reach to me. I found the read interesting, but a little to esoteric for my tastes.

Race the Darkness is an interesting read, and there were parts that I really enjoyed. However, I never really connected with the characters or felt fully invested in the story. I know there are people that will love this, it just was not for me.

REALLY impressed with this debut from Abbie Roads!

As Race the Dawn’s premise is quite complex, I really didn’t know what to expect from the title. Preternatural elements, religious fanaticism, and convoluted interpersonal relationships make this a difficult read to categorize. For me, it strikes a balance between my two favorite genres, romance and mystery/suspense, with a sprinkling of paranormal thrown in to keep readers on their toes.

Learning about Xander’s ability, post-trauma, gets the novel off to an interesting start. The hook did its job of investing me in the characters and action, and the momentum never lapsed. Thankfully, there was no sagging middle to contend with. Instead, the action chugs along at a steady pace, offering readers a new discovery in nearly every chapter.

The author’s writing really impressed me. Her vivid descriptions held me captive (no pun intended), and even the villains had a complexity and depth to them that goes beyond the typical good guy-bad guy scenario.

Race the Dawn is unlike anything I’ve ever read before. As this one was a win for me, I’ve already started on another from the author (Hunt the Dawn).