Hearts in Darkness

by Laura Kaye

Passionate and Tender Novella

Reviewed: April 24, 2011

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Series: N/A ~ (Non-Series / Stand-Alone)

Rating: 5 Stars

Length: 230 Pages

Formats: eBook

What I Read...

As a forensic accountant who has Friday night plans that include nothing more exciting than a bottle of wine and her couch to cap a hopelessly bad day, Makenna James was desperate for that helping hand that was holding the elevator for her as she struggled with her bags in her rush to get out of the building. She didn't even get a chance to look at the Good Samaritan who was so patient before the elevator jerked to a stop and they were pitched into utter darkness. Perfect way to end a perfectly crappy day, that's for sure. In fact, the thought makes her laugh.

The laughter of the put-together redhead he had waited on was the only thing that kept Caden Greyson from tripping over into the panic attack that always hit him when he was caught in enclosed places in the dark, a phobia deeply instilled after a horrific childhood trauma. All he caught before the lights went out was the sweep of hair and a tight bottom, so he didn't even know what she looked like, but if he was going to make it out of the elevator sane and whole, he was going to have to depend on her soothing voice and inherent kindness.

Two strangers alone in the dark, needing the other to get through a trying time, and finding that when the superficial preconceptions that are the pitfalls of physical appearance is stripped away, all that's left is the heart of the person. And that heart can be just what you never knew you so desperately needed.

What I Thought...

Short, sweet, and so very sexy, this novella by Laura Kaye was passionate, emotional, and satisfying. In a rather stunning way, I was captivated by these two characters as they reached out in the darkness and bared their souls. It's a simple story, really, but told with such poignancy and honesty that it touched me on an emotional level long before it heated up and thrilled me on a different level entirely.

The whole story felt truly, wonderfully genuine, and I loved how Makenna and Caden learned each other, how Makenna was the one who had to calm the troubled Caden, how his insecurities were just as apparent, not to mention deeper and more prevalent, than hers. That was a nice role reversal, and yet it didn't diminish the significance of Makenna's own insecurities. I especially like how simple yet almost profound it seemed that Caden's fears were raw in the dark, but Makenna's rushed forward after the lights came back on. That spoke to me as a surprisingly spot-on acknowledgement of one of the many intrinsic differences between men and women.

The sensuality and sexuality truly made this novella shine. It's been quite a long time...if ever...that I've read sex scenes that were just as emotionally moving as it was physically passionate. I freely admit I'm greedy. I wish this story had been longer. I just adored Caden and Makenna together and would really have loved spending more time with them. The ending though, was as poetic and hopeful as it was perfect for a conclusion. It capped a truly spectacular reading experience that just made me hungry for more of Laura Kaye's work. I'll be watching and eagerly waiting for more!

Happy Reading! ~ Tracy