Author: P.T. Michelle
Publisher: Self-Published
Publish Date: June 27, 2011
Genre: YA, Paranormal
Pages: 248
Source: Author
Nara Collins is an average sixteen-year-old, with one exception: every night she dreams the events of the following day. Due to an incident in her past, Nara avoids using her special gift to change fate…until she dreams a future she can’t ignore.
After Nara prevents a bombing at Blue Ridge High, her ability to see the future starts to fade, while people at school are suddenly being injured at an unusually high rate.
Grappling with her diminishing powers and the need to prevent another disaster, Nara meets Ethan Harris, a mysterious loner who seems to understand her better than anyone. Ethan and Nara forge an irresistible connection, but as their relationship heats up, so do her questions about his dark past.
Nara lives each and every day twice. She lives them in her dreams before she ever lives in them in real life, so she always knows what to expect. It's predictable. It's monotonous. And it can be incredibly boring. When Nara dreams about a bomb going off at school, she knows that she has to stop it, or all that death will be on her hands. So, she calls in an anonymous tip about the bomb to stop it in time. Little does she know that that one action opened an inevitable Pandora's box for herself. People begin suffering from mysterious ailments, and the dangerous and rebellious Ethan seems to be the only one she can suddenly depend on when her powers suddenly stop. What's the cause of the change, and can Nara fix it in time?
I'm incredibly selective with the self-published books I choose to review these days, and it must be said that I've been entirely certain as of late that I've heard every spin on the paranormal young adult genre that there could possibly be. Brightest Kind of Darkness proved me wrong in the best possible way. The story was solid and strong, alive with fast-paced action, heart-pounding suspense and a plot that grips you from start to finish. Author P.T. Michelle has proven her merit with an incredibly well-written novel that's rife with tension, rich with full-bodied and relatable characters and a story that is so original that it's certain to make a name for itself in the genre.
I kid you not when I say that Brightest Kind of Darkness is one of the best reads I've had thus far this year. Nara was a true heroine - honest and brave, strong and fierce and incredibly passionate about life and holding fast to her gift. She wasn't popular, but she wasn't a loner. She was resilient, and she was kind; very much the type of person you would want to be friends with. Likewise, Ethan was every bit the dangerously delicious bad-boy, however, he wasn't a cliche. There was a darkness around his character, but the same could be said for Nara, and when the two connected, there became light. Their love is power, but it's also beautiful and pure, which is a rarity in a genre overrun by insta-love. It took time to develop and grow, and the plot served to foster it throughout. Brightest Kind of Darkness used two very powerful and very tangible characters to shine through a fast-paced plot. Nara's actions set the stage for a runaway train of suspense and mystery, but the twists and turns kept the story and characters fresh and alive throughout. Brightest Kind of Darkness plays off the idea that every action must have an equal and opposite reaction, which is terrifying and utterly mesmerizing. In essence, the book proves to us that Fate is real, and it is not to be tampered with.
All in all, Brightest Kind of Darkness absolutely blew me away. Fresh and alluring, it's sure to find a place in every book lover's TBR. I give it a 5 out of 5, and I can't recommend it enough to all fans of YA fiction, especially those who enjoy paranormal and paranormal romance stories.
I received this book free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.
