Crucify my Love: Gay Book Reviews: [29-ENG] Review: Dark Rivers

Series: Witchbane

Volume: 2/?
Publisher: Darkwind Press
Genre/s: urban fantasy, MM paranormal romance
Length: 85 000 words
Pages: 236

Read in: English
Review copy format: epub

Rate:✮✮✮✮✮✰

After getting rid of one of witch-disciples of Rhyfel Gremory, Seth and Evan hunt down another one of them, who according to their informants lives in Pittsburgh. Without knowing his assumed identity, the hunters are forced to follow the often vague leads they find during their investigation. This time Seth decides to hire a private investigator who, knowing the right people and having access to old archives, can be an invaluable help for them. Although Evan is not convinced that they are certainly doing the right thing by involving the outsider in their affairs, he fully trusts his lover's intuition and judgment. However, at some point things get out of control and as if that was not enough, Evan's painful and abusive past starts to hunt him down.

I must admit that what really appealed to me in "Dark Rivers" is the fact that the author has focused to a large extent on a character of Evan, including his past and development. Information which the reader so far has had about him are confronted with the events of this volume, thanks to which they allow us to get to know this character better. What's more, the difference between Evan from "Witchbane" and that from "Dark Rivers" is outlined to a certain extent because we have the opportunity to see the first distinct changes inside of him thanks to Seth's presence in his life. We see in fact that the runaway becomes a true warrior. If we combine it with the information we have about him before the beginning of the series, the contrast between what he was like and what he has become is even greater. Equally important is that in this volume the author in a really great manner shows us that Evan really is someone who can have Seth's back during the fight. For this man is capable of bravely confronting his greatest fears, thinking rationally in the face of danger, and using all his skills in a situation which would deprive a weak person of a fighting spirit. In short, in "Dark Rivers" Evan occupies an extremely important place and is one of the greatest advantages of this novel. The reader who has loved him so far, now loves him even more and sincerely admires his inner strength.

Just as important is certainly the fact that Morgan Brice in this volume develops the theme of influence the events presented in "Witchbane" have on Evan. In the previous part of the series there wasn't much space for it, but there is plenty of it in this one, as well as the opportunities to present the consequences of fighting the witch-disciple. Thanks to this, we have the opportunity not only to get closer to Evan and look into his psyche, but also to get to know Seth better, especially the attentive and caring part of his nature and his ability to use his own experiences to help his beloved. In this way, the problem of post-traumatic stress disorder again returns to this story by Morgan Brice and this time it is more widely and accurately presented. What is equally important, the author shows that while some problems we can handle ourselves, in more serious cases, such as PTSD, even the best, the strongest and the most courageous needs some specialist help. And in this case, it is not without significance that even Seth is fully aware of this fact and he himself takes the initiative to find someone who would be able to help not only Evan, but also him.

As another one of "Dark Rivers" advantages I consider the introduction of new supporting characters to the story presented in this volume, who stand on the same side as our protagonists, and most importantly, appear in this story physically. Until now, the hunters with whom Seth and Evan have contact only by phone were the only support they have had, while now we have the opportunity to see how these two work directly with other people of similar profession. What's more, we witness the birth of a new friendship. It seems to me to be the more important as sometimes a person needs a physical contact with another human being, someone who understands them, who they can talk to and with whom they can just be themselves, and who is not necessarily their significant other. Not without significance is also the fact that by introducing new characters into this story, the author emphasized that her leads are only people and in order to achieve their goal, be victorious in their crusade against the witch-disciples sometimes they need help from other people. And if we add to it the fact that Morgan Brice is after all a specialist in creating interesting and likeable characters, it's no wonder that we fall in love with her new heroes quickly and inexorably.

As for the whole of this volume, it should be noted that in some parts the action is definitely slower than for example in the novella that precedes this installment of the series. We are focusing on one paranormal problem, which requires the characters' full commitment and a huge amount of work, as well as tedious following the leads to eventually get to something big. But when we reach the point where the action accelerates, there is no time to rest or take a breath, as there is time for thinking and time for action.

I must also remark that this installment sometimes largely presents the events from the previous volume. While this is certainly a great help for people who have not read "Witchbane", it seems to me that for the readers familiar with that part of the series, in this one there are too many detailed mentions of those events from the first volume. It is harmless, but noticeable, like a friend who tells us the same story several times with a large number of information we already know.

To sum up, "Dark Rivers" is undoubtedly an interesting urban fantasy, which we read with great pleasure. It is also a story about love between two people, who, often in unfavorable circumstances, must find their way to keep building the relationship they care about. And finally, it is a novel about strength and courage to face the past from which there is no escape and demons nesting inside the human psyche.

Headcanon: For every anniversary of his first meeting with Seth, Evan takes a photo of them together. In the future, when they will be too old for hunting, he plans to hang them all on the walls of their house.

Fanfiction idea: After Brandon and Alex's wedding, Seth dreams of his own ceremony with Evan as his future husband.

AU idea: Shadowhunters!AU, Seth is a Shadowhunter and Evan, an ordinary guy, gets involved in the affairs of the Shadow World by his ex-boyfriend who works for a demon.