Hello, reader!
It’s time for a blog tour! Today, I’m participating in the tour hosted by The Write Reads for the sequel to a book I read (and enjoyed!) through a different tour hosted by the same company in 2021. Dark Eyes, White Lies by M.R. Noble picks up right where the first book leaves us and it’s even more of an intense, wild ride!
But, before I get to my review, I have people to thank. First, thank you to Dave @ The Write Reads and all of the crew for giving me a spot on this tour! Second, thank you to the author for providing me with a free e-copy of the book so that I could participate in this tour. It is, as always, appreciated!
Now, let’s get the post!
Blackmailed into espionage, Karo must lie to one man while she fights her cravings for another. As spy partners, Karo is forced to work with Andre, the vampire she swore to never trust again. The accidental vampiric bond they have threatens to bend her into submission. But is her will actually weak, or does she want an excuse to give in?
Roman’s patience teeters on Karo’s deception. Bitter, desperate, and vengeful, Karo dutifully completes her missions while withholding data from her uncle Loukin’s operation. She swore to get out from under his thumb, even if she has to break a few hands. Each assignment brings her closer to uncovering his goal, and using it against him, but she also draws closer to new foes. And they all want the same thing—Karo’s secrets.
Author Links
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M. R. Noble has played a tug of war between science and art her whole life, but the rope broke when she wrote the first line of The Dark Eyes Series. Immersed up to her keyboard in paranormal romance and urban fantasy, she enjoys blending the real with the surreal. The only drawback is she misplaces her mug while dreaming up her next scene, and soon finds herself six cups overpoured.
Keeping to her Lake Simcoe roots, she is a member of the Writers Community of York Region (WCYR), where her muse is made not found.
Thank you to The Write Reads and the author for providing me with a free e-book in exchange for an honest review! All opinions contained within are my own.
Now, before I jump into my review of Dark Eyes, White Lies, I have to preface this by reminding y’all this is the second book in a series. If you haven’t read Karolina Dalca, Dark Eyes and would like to read it without spoilers, you might want to skip this review. Or you can read my review of that book instead! If you don’t mind spoilers, however, let’s continue.
Dark Eyes, White Lies drops us back into the life of Karolina Dalca right where we stopped at the end of the first book. Karolina has been blackmailed into becoming a spy for her despised uncle, Loukin. Karolina isn’t willing to just do her uncle’s dirty work, however. She is working to get out of his clutches and start a new life far from the Russian supernatural underground. But it’s hard to focus on that when the man who betrayed her trust and tricked her into forming a vampiric bond is also her new spy partner.
Where the first book in this series felt like it was a lot of build up to an explosive ending, this book was like a thrill ride from beginning to end! I was hooked from page one and was eager to see what happened next. I loved watching Karo really lean into learning and controlling her powers. I felt like we got a lot more worldbuilding in this one, too, so I felt more immersed in the story. This is definitely a gruesome one and not for the faint of heart! But learning more about the supernatural world and all the elements operating in it was probably one of my favorite parts of the story.
Karolina also really grew in my eyes as a character. It was great watching her plot and plan and really come into her own in this book. And, though I wasn’t a huge fan of the romance in book one, I have to say I ate it up in this one! I have to chalk that up to the fact that I actually started to like Andre! We got to see more into his character in this book and it helped to make him come to life on the page. Still hated Roman, though 😂 But that doesn’t mean he was a poorly written character! I just wanted to fight him every time he opened his mouth.
I think the only thing that left me feeling a little wanting was the ending. We’re given a cliffhanger that has me vibrating because what the heck is going on? And why aren’t there 100 more pages to tell me?! Cliffhangers can be hit or miss for me and this one was more of the latter, unfortunately. That being said, I can certainly see how others would absolutely eat it up!
Overall, I have to say I enjoyed this book more than the first, which rarely happens to me when I’m reading series! You can see the author’s growth in not only her worldbuilding, but her characters and plot, as well. This was an incredible read that had me completely engaged. Though I wasn’t the biggest fan of the cliffhanger at the end, I can guarantee I’ll be picking up the next book in the series because I need to know what happens next!
Star rating:
Kerri McBookNerd 
Great review!
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Thanks, Ellie Mai!
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