Book Review: Into the Dark By Bree Despain

COMING SOON: MARCH 11, 2014

Book Description:
Haden Lord, the disgraced prince of the Underrealm, has been sent to the mortal world to entice a girl into returning with him to the land of the dead. Posing as a student at Olympus Hills High—a haven for children of the rich and famous—Haden must single out the one girl rumored to be able to restore immortality to his race.

Daphne Raines has dreams much bigger than her tiny southern Utah town, so when her rock star dad suddenly reappears, offering her full tuition to Olympus Hills High’s prestigious music program, she sees an opportunity to catch the break she needs to make it as a singer. But upon moving into her estranged father’s mansion in California, and attending her glamorous new school, Daphne soon realizes she isn’t the only student in Olympus who doesn’t quite belong.

Haden and Daphne—destined for each other—know nothing of the true stakes their fated courtship entails. As war between the gods brews, the teenagers’ lives collide. But Daphne won’t be wooed easily and when it seems their prophesied link could happen, Haden realizes something he never intended—he’s fallen in love. Now to save themselves, Haden and Daphne must rewrite their destinies. But as their destinies change, so do the fates of both their worlds.
My Thoughts:
Wow! I loved the creativity behind the world-building! The world building is the first thing you notice in this story.The Underworld had it's own hierarchy system with it's own backstory. The author made this world dark and haunting and was quite fascinating  This was a fresh new take on the Persephone & Hades myth, and the world felt so real, with the re-imagining so inventive! I really liked how the author integrated the Greek mythology into the narrative and we got to see all the workings of the Underworlder court and how it came to be that way and it was all original and brings in Orpheus who plays a rather large role in the story as a whole. Taking the Hades and Persephones' myth and twisting it into the author's own creation, somehow making this retelling so much more fascinating. It was all a bit of breath of fresh air. I just love mythology stories and retellings.

We've got the protagonist, Daphne a mortal, and Haden (her male counterpart) an Underlord. We get to hear from both in alternating chapters through their eyes. And the author did a good job with keeping the characters both strong and independent voices.

As the main plotline focuses on Haden's quest which is getting Daphne to consent to accompanying him to the Underworld. Haden didn't have an easy life. His whole journey is by believing that Fate controls everything, and he really has no options. I had a hard time liking him at times because I thought he was self-centered and ignorant at just plain annoying. I kept thinking, "man you are whining and act spoiled!" So he has a quest to find a particular girl (which he's never met a girl before) and get her to come back with him full heartedly. He was never trained for a quest like this because his father and everyone else thought he'd never be chosen so he doesn't realize he has to make this girl fall in love with him till later and it was kind of annoying (to me).
Daphne is set on controlling everything she's stubborn and has some spitfire which is always fun. She has big plans that don't involve staying in her little home town in Utah. One random day her father (whom left her mother just days after their wedding and became a huge rock star) comes back into her life with court papers telling her he now has rights to her and she needs to come back to California with him. Grudgingly she agrees with the main focus that he can help her with her dream of singing and making it on her own.

It doesn't take long for Haden and Daphne to meet and along the way they learn that your destiny (or fate) is shaped by the different choices you make along the way. And this journey is one worth taking with them.

Sexual Content: mild
Language: mild/moderate (PG)
Violence: moderate (PG a little gore not too graphic)
Drugs/Alcohol: none