The Dark World by Cara Lynn Schultz
Series: Dark World #1
on 1st June 2014
Pages: 368
Format: Paperback
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Paige Kelly is used to weird...

In fact, she probably corners the market on weird, considering that her best friend, Dottie, has been dead since the 1950s. But when a fire demon attacks Paige in detention, she has to admit that things have gotten out of her league. Luckily, the cute new boy in school, Logan Bradley, is a practiced demon slayer -- and he isn't fazed by Paige's propensity to chat with the dead.

Suddenly, Paige is smack in the middle of a centuries-old battle between warlocks and demons, learning to fight with a magic sword so that she can defend herself. And if she makes one wrong move, she'll be pulled into the Dark World, an alternate version of our world that's overrun by demons -- and she might never make it home.

Paige Kelly has the reputation for being crazy after being caught a number of times talking to herself in the girl’s bathroom. But Paige isn’t chatting to herself – she’s talking to her best friend Dottie, the ghost of a girl who passed away over fifty years ago. Since a near fatal accident a few years ago, Paige and see and talk to ghosts. It’s got her parents worried for her and the kids at school nicknaming her “Bellevue Kelly“. But then she meets the new kid, Logan Bradley – he’s gorgeous, funny and doesn’t think she’s crazy.

When attacked by a demon in detention, Paige gets pulled into a world she never could have imagine existed. Warlocks, magical swords and magical powers – Paige has to learn what she can to defend herself and stop from being used as the tool to open the door between the Light and Dark Worlds….

The Dark World is a great introduction to this new series by Cara Lynn Schultz. Paige is funny and entertaining. I love how even when she being hunted by demons, she still has to deal with real life issues like over protective dads and keeping up with her homework. Her friendship with Dottie is lovely because it could come across as one-sided but rather Dottie feels as real as Paige, even when most people can’t see her.

Logan is one of those leading male characters I loved reading about. I loved him for Paige and spent much of the novel eager to read each new interaction between the two. Logan brought out the best in Paige and she did the same for him. Their friendship and camaraderie was one of my favourite parts of the novel. The other characters are just as interesting. From the mean girls at school led by Pepper Dennis, to the demons out to force Paige to their will – there is a lot going on and it all blends together in a lovely way.

Paige’s parents added an extra something to the story with Paige having manage to living her regular life with the new-found paranormal world pushing its way into her life. So often in these types of books the parents are just absent leaving the children to do whatever it is they want to do. The fact that Paige’s parents are present and involved in her life makes it all just that much more believable – despite being set in a world of the unreal.

As a first book in a new series, The Dark World does a great job at setting the scene for the next book. We get to know the history behind certain characters, the rationale behind why Paige is so special as well as some of the specific nuances behind the way the worlds work within the realm in which this book is set. I am eager to see just what is next for Paige, Logan and the others.

I recommend this book for fans of Kelley Armstrong’s Darkest Powers trilogy and those who enjoy modern ghost stories. The Dark World is a great addition to the YA paranormal scene with fun characters and a plot which will keep you interested right up until the final page.

Thanks to Harlequin Teen Australia for the review copy.