Review--Black Heart by Christina Henry

As a former Agent of Death, Madeline Black is no stranger to witnessing violent ends. But being the one to cause them is an entirely different story…

Despite her having saved Chicago from a vampire invasion, the Agency wants to get Maddy off their payroll—permanently. With the deadly Retrievers hot on her trail, she has no choice but to trust Nathaniel to port her to safety. But even the exotic and dangerous world that she winds up in is not as peaceful as she would have hoped. Caught in a turf war between a group of fae and a disturbingly familiar foe, Maddy soon discovers that the twisted plots of her grandfather, Lucifer, and his brothers extend even into this unknown realm.

Now, with enemies gathering on all sides, Maddy’s fate is looking darker than ever. And to protect her unborn son from her adversaries, she may have to tap into a power she hoped never to access…

Christina Henry's Black Heart continues the saga of Madeline Black's life and the chaos within it. Maddy has been having it rough lately. Ever since she lost Gabriel really. The darkness inside of her that has been showing its face more and more continues to grow. Enough that it has pushed all her friends away from her. Other than Nathaniel that is. 

When we last left Maddy the Retrievers were coming for her and she had very little time to escape. Nathaniel quickly created a portal for her to exit through in the nick of time and she finds herself in a very strange place. Not a world she's ever visited before. It's not long before Maddy realizes that this place is too dangerous and that she's better and safer back home where she at least knows what the dangers against her are. But before that can happen, she is taken hostage by a group of fae who live in this land.

But there are more dangerous creatures in this world than these fae. Strange and yet familiar looking "monsters" inhabit this place and attack the fae near daily. They are called Cimice and are just mindless creatures and Maddy feels that destroying them all is the only way to protect the fae. And its while in this world that she meets the fourth brother of Lucifer and Puck's lot. Daharan even helps Maddy out. He seemed like a nice guy and I can only hope that he's the "black sheep" of the three other more evil and conniving brothers.

When Maddy finally returns home--about the halfway point--much has changed in her city. Her house is gone, burnt to a crisp. The city seems to know of most of the paranormal beings that walk the streets. Things are tense. You can pretty much feel it in the air. And now that Maddy is home, three months after she jumped into the portal, the game is about to start up again. She's still wanted by the Agency she once worked for. But she isn't going to go down without a fight.

I'm really starting to worry for dear Maddy these days. The darkness inside of her that we saw come to fore last time around, was scary. And that stuff is still inside of her, ready to leach out again at any moment. Beezle even worries for her, yet he did come back this time around to continue to help and protect her...in his own way. He's still the same lovable, hungry gargoyle that I enjoy each and every time he opens his mouth...to speak, not eat!

Maddy's love life remains utterly complicated. Although there was a lovely scene in Chapter 9 that pretty much had me in happy tears! Or nearly, since you know, I don't cry too much when reading! But then there's Nathaniel and he's a complicated guy. I hated him pretty much the same moment Maddy did, but then he was just there. He was there for Maddy, protecting her and helping her. Trying to become a better person. I enjoy the romance between the two, because it was just surprising and kind of nice for Maddy. But the skeptic in me still feels like I shouldn't completely trust Nathaniel yet. I don't know why. There wasn't any hints to it that I was aware of. Just a feeling I get since he wasn't a character I expected to like several books down from meeting him.

The ending was epic! Needless to say things went down, big time! In the game changing epic-ness sort of way! This series is definitely not over, not by a long shot! (Unless fate is being insanely cruel, then Christina, please self-publish what you have in mind for the finale. I will buy any and all said books!) I wouldn't call the ending a cliffhanger, not like we got in Black City when the s**t was about to hit the fan, but it's sort of a nice settling ending...with danger and action just on the horizon. The calm before the storm is the best way of explaining it. And that calm is definitely momentary! 

The Black Wings Series is an insanely amazing series that I recommend to all Urban Fantasy fans! Maddy is a lovable and realistic kind of heroine and she's just fun to be around--or read about! Plus, Beezle is there and who doesn't love a smart-mouth, hungry-all-the-time gargoyle?!


Overall Rating 5/5 stars