5 Wine Glass #Audio #Review of Dark Forsaken by H.D. Smith

Title: Dark Forsaken
Series: The Devil’s Assistant #3
Author: H.D. Smith
Narrator: Lauren Fortgang
Format: Unabridged Audiobook, 9 hrs and 14 mins
Published: May 13, 2016 (Wild Fey, LLC)
ISBN: ASIN: B01FKZD1R8
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Audible | Audiobooks.com
Reviewer: Linda
Source: Author
Rating: 5 out of 5 Wine Glasses

Last Spring, Claire was framed for the murder of Junior, the Devil's oldest hellspawn. Last Summer, she reawakened the fourth realm, saved the world (after almost destroying it), and wound up with the worst job ever. Now, Claire's been locked out of her realm, given an assistant that doesn't actually assist, and told to handle a small problem in Underworld that might just get her killed. And to top it all off, Mab's made one of the contenders her untouchable. So, yeah, you could say Claire's having one of those days. Follow more of Claire's adventures in Dark Forsaken, book 3 of the Devil's Assistant Series, to find out if Claire can defeat the latest contender, survive the quads, and replace the curator before Harry figures out she's stolen his blood. 

Linda's Thoughts:
I was in the arms of my worst enemy, taking comfort from him. Would my life ever be normal?
“Normal is boring,” Mace said.

Dark Forsaken by H.D. Smith is the third brilliant installment in The Devil’s Assistant saga, the author’s dark paranormal urban fantasy series. I loved this segment as much as the first two.

Dark Forsaken picks up where Dark Awakened left off. Claire is now the presumptive queen of the fourth realm. Before she can return to her realm and people, the rulers of the other three realms, Harry, Mab and the Boss, have deemed that she must find a new curator for the museum. Ultimately, they don’t want her to succeed, so every candidate that she presents to them, they find unworthy, making this task a boring, rut-with-no-end job. In addition, the same three are holding her accountable for the growing unrest in the underworld blaming her Fallen followers. Since the four half-demon siblings, otherwise known as the Quads, now number among Claire’s followers, she works with them to resolve the issue. I love that the Quads feature much more in this tale. Finally, she must track and defeat the other contenders for her throne. If she fails, she can lose her throne or her life.

Claire is finally accepting her position in the magical world, while acknowledging to herself that she still has much to learn. But, seemingly insurmountable obstacles remain in her path.

Following please find a few of my favorite quotes from Dark Forsaken:

“I couldn’t just start killing people. That wasn’t really my thing.” 
--- 

“Is that true?” The Boss asked Mace. 
Without even batting an eye, Mace said, “Yes.”
“And you agreed?” The Boss questioned. 
“Of course. Anything for my queen,” he said, holding his glass up to me in a mock toast.” 
--- 

“I’m calling this place the Tardis,” she said, continuing to scan the different locations. “We’re not calling it the Tardis,” I said. Of course, if she knew what it could really do, I’d never change her mind.
“Why the hell not?” she asked. 
“Copyright infringement.” 

This tale is phenomenal, but complex. Please don’t attempt to read it out-of-order as you’ll only be disappointed. Almost all of the characters were introduced in the series’ debut and they all play integral parts in the story. Believe me, you won’t regret starting from the beginning and reading this series sequentially.

Lauren Fortgang continues as the fantastic narrator of this series. Her voice is clear and easy to understand. Throughout this series, her characters’ voices have remained realistic and consistent. Her performance reflects the proper emotions and pauses. I can tell who is speaking at any one time from her performance. The end product is polished and professional. Her performance enhances my enjoyment and I can’t imagine not listening to this series.

This series is akin to playing a thrilling video game with Claire where there are many possible outcomes and villains galore at every turn. It challenges my mind to keep up! Sometimes, I hit stop, just to get my breath and ponder on how astounding the previous maneuver was – and what new complications have come to the forefront from the moves just taken. I highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys intricate, riveting, fast-paced, action-packed, dark paranormal fantasy adventures.



Suggested Reading Order: 
Dark Hope (Book #1)
Dark Awakened (Book #2)
Dark Forsaken (Book #3)
Dark Contender (Book #4)