Darkness Bound

An ENE Review of the novel
Darkness Bound by Larry Brooks
 

Reviewed by JZ Sharpe
My favorite regular columns in any women's magazine are the ones about marriage and all the potholes and pitfalls encountered along the way. "Can this marriage be saved?" such articles ask. The experts suggest all sorts of things, from intensive counseling to a vacation in Maui. But I had yet to see someone suggest murder as a way to patch things up - until I read Darkness Bound.
 
Darkness Bound is a swift-moving thriller that examines the dark side of feminine power. When the book opens, stockbroker Dillon Masters has just taken up residence in a hotel, having been kicked to the curb by his wife Karen. While nursing his wounds, he meets a dangerously beautiful woman whose very name is a secret to him for quite some time. "The Dark Lady", as he calls her, captures his imagination and his libido, and manages to weave her way into young Dillon's life in an insidious and irrevocable way. Hang on tight, kids, because this book will take you for a wild ride, with more twists and turns in the plot than you'd find on a Rocky Mountain back road. And talk about captivation! I was glued to this book, right up to its last pages. Will Dillon and Karen reconcile? And who performed the many bizarre murders that are the centerpieces of this book? Darkness Bound is full of surprises, with hardly any dull moments to be plowed through in order to get to those surprises. It's definitely an engrossing read.
 
Now, I do know the preferences of this web site's readers, and I must deliver the bad tidings that there is not a whole heck of a lot of explicit sex in this book. The sex is alluded to, quickly described before the book moves on -- but that's okay, I don't think you'll miss it. This novel's main purpose in life is to thrill and chill, to surround the reader with an unforgettable story. In that respect, it succeeds and then some.
 
But you know what really drives me nuts about this book? I turn to the back and discover a picture and bio for the author, Larry Brooks. He's handsome, multi-talented and get this, kids - Darkness Bound is his first novel. Yikes-a-hootie! I sure do hope there will be more.
 
 
Darkness Bound
 Darkness Bound by Larry Brooks is available for purchase through Amazon.com.

The author, Larry Brooks, August 12, 2000
Love is the ultimate psychological thriller.

"What's a nice writer like you doing with a steamy book like this?" I get asked that a lot lately. Thanks to the great cover art (with gratitude to the talented folks at NAL), it's easy to make assumptions about my new novel, DARKNESS BOUND. Go ahead, assume away, because chances are your "thing" (and this is definately a book about "things") is probably here. This is a story about the ultimate intimacy, the most powerful opportunity, the greatest pleasure, and the most dangerous game of all -- getting inside the head of your lover. I wrote it for women as much as men; any woman who has felt the conflicting emotions of being in a position to forgive a man who has betrayed her will understand this story, and any man who has felt the twinge of desire when a dangerous woman enters his world will understand the meaning, and the thrill, of vulnerability. Have a great time reading DARKNESS BOUND. My hope is that you'll have something interesting to talk about with the person in your life when you're done.

Many thanks to my agents, Mary Alice and Anna at Cine-Lit; to my editor, Dan Slater, for believing in me; and to my wife, Laura, for everything."

For the past five years, JZ Sharpe has been making up for the time she lost in a 20-year writer's block. She lives in the Pennsylvania mountains, where most of her friends and coworkers would be shocked and amazed by her secret life as a writer of erotica and science fiction. JZ Sharpe is a regular contributor to ENE. You can also find her work at About's Amateur Erotica, Adult Story Corner, Biblio Eroticus, Blood Moon Zine , Dare , Erotica Readers Association, HotErotica.Com and Scarlet Letters . Get lashed by the Sharpe Tongue.
 
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