The Demon Lover (Fariwick Chronicles # 1) by Juliet Dark - Book Review

Title: The Demon Lover (Fairwick Chronicles # 1)

Author: Juliet Dark

Publisher: Random House

Publication Date: December 2011

Pages: 432

Format: E-Book - EPUB

Genre: Paranormal

Source: ARC from NetGalley

Since accepting a teaching position at remote Fairwick College in upstate New York, Callie McFay has experienced the same disturbingly erotic dream every night: A mist enters her bedroom, then takes the shape of a virile, seductive stranger who proceeds to ravish her in the most toe-curling, wholly satisfying ways possible. Perhaps these dreams are the result of writing her bestselling book, The Sex Lives of Demon Lovers. After all, Callie’s lifelong passion is the intersection of lurid fairy tales and Gothic literature—which is why she finds herself at Fairwick’s renowned folklore department, living in a once-stately Victorian house that, at first sight, seemed to call her name.

But Callie soon realizes that her dreams are alarmingly real. She has a demon lover—an incubus—and he will seduce her, pleasure her, and eventually suck the very life from her. Then Callie makes another startling discovery: He’s not the only mythical creature in Fairwick. As the tenured witches of the college and the resident fairies in the surrounding woods prepare to cast out the incubus, Callie must accomplish something infinitely more difficult—banishing this demon lover from her heart. (Goodreads Synopsis)


This is a book that took me pleasantly by surprise. I went in expecting a typical adult paranormal romance, but Juliet Dark delivered much more. This book, in addition to sexy supernatural romance, has a great gothic feel, memorable characters and plenty of plot twists, some of which I saw coming, others were a surprise.

I liked Callie as a heroine since she had a definite inner strength and she really grew through her experiences in the book. The supporting cast was fairly large but all came across as individuals no matter how much 'page time' they had. I was actually impressed that Dark didn't let the 'demon lover' take over the plot. While he is an important element, due time was given to other aspects of the story rather than relying solely on the eroticism.

The pacing was nicely done and there were no chapters or sections that dragged. The prose was readable and engaging and kept me turning each page, eager to learn what would happen next. The dialogue was well done and believable, unlike some paranormal romance pieces that get sucked into cliché.

By the end of the book, the stage was nicely set for the story to continue and I am certainly looking forward to the next instalment.