Book Review: Into the Dark by Gena Showalter

Into the Dark contains three stories Gena Showalter. The first story Darkest Fire and the last story Darkest Prison happen within the world created in Showalter's Lord of the Underworld series. The second story The Amazon's Curse takes place in the realm created in her Atlantis series. After all three stories there are fantastic bits of inside information about the Lords of the Underworld series, the characters of the series, and the author.

I found this selection of stories to hold the same level of quality and artisanship as Showalter's novels. For readers that have been intrigued or interested in the Lord of the Underworld series but have not taken the plunge to start then I suggest starting with the two related short stories included in this book. Darkest Fire and Darkest Prison are prequels to the series, and will not ruin any of the great surprises within the series. However, if this is your first visit to the series then I would skip reading the insider information in the book, as it would spoil some of the series for you.

In The Amazon's Curse, we return to Showalter's Atlantis series, closely following the action seen in The Vampire's Bride, which is the fourth book of the series. I do not suggest reading this story without prior knowledge of the series. I found the story to be well done, but it is the resolution of The Vampire Bride rather than an independent story.

The extra in the back of the book includes an interview of Gena Showalter by fellow paranormal romance author Kresley Cole. The interview is very fun and conversational. The two authors have a friendship and mutual admiration that makes for an entertaining interview. There are also brief statistics of each of the Lords; another short story that gives more background on the Lords, interviews with the Lords, a conversation with the women of their world, answers to frequently asked questions and a sneak peak at the next book of the series.

I recommend this book to anyone that is already a fan of Gena Showalter, as well as anyone that has heard about her books and tempted by the summaries or reviews that they have read so far. If you enjoy the writing of J.R. Ward or Kresley Cole, you will enjoy the works or Gena Showalter as well.