Ecstasy (Shadow Dwellers) by Jacquelyn Frank

         I have this problem where I always have to have at least 3 books waiting for me to read next when I start a book. This book was on that list. I was reading a book that I couldn't really get into and I was like "Fuck it!" and started reading this instead.

         Among the Shadowdwellers, Trace holds power that some are willing to kill for. Without a stranger's aid, one rival would surely have succeeded, but Trace's brush with death is less surprising to him than his reaction to the beautiful, fragile human who heals him. By rights, Trace should hardly even register Ashla's existence within the realms of Shadowscape, but instead he is drawn to everything about her—her innocence, her courage, and her lush, sensual heat.

         After a terrifying car crash, Ashla Townsend wakes up to find that the bustling New York she knew is now eerie and desolate. Just when she's convinced she's alone, Ashla is confronted by a dark warrior who draws her deeper into a world she never knew existed. The bond between Ashla and Trace is a mystery to both, but searching for answers will mean confronting long-hidden secrets, and uncovering a threat that could destroy everything Trace holds precious.

Click to view the book on Amazon: Ecstasy: The Shadowdwellers

         I think that the concept for this book was really good. It was a good idea, but I think it fell kinda flat. And it went at a crazy fast pace. I found myself skimming a lot of it, especially when it switched to follow characters other than Ashla and Trace.

         It was really cool how Jacquelyn Frank made the different dimensions and how it was bad to stay faded for too long, but I thought it was a little weird how quickly the euphoria hit Trace. It was just weird. I mean she never mentioned anything about soul mates or anything like that, so it's not like he was fated to need her. It just seemed a little out of the ordinary. And all of the other characters thought so too, they even told Trace that, but Frank never cleared up why Trace was acting that way.

        As for the characters there were a lot of things that I liked and disliked about them. Firstly I liked Ashla a lot, she was really strong and sweet at the same time. I also liked Trace most of the time, but sometimes he acted kind of dumb when he blamed himself for things. I didn't really like Magnus, I mean, I know that he cares for Trace and what not, but at the same time he was kind of a dick. And I didn't like Karra, and not because of the obvious reasons (You will have to read to see) but I hated her the most for implying that she had had some sort of relationship with Trace when Ashla was feeling insecure about not having sex training.

         That was another thing that I kinda got stuck on. I understand having an openly sexual culture, I even understand being trained for sex. But in the book it seemed more slutty than cultural. Like, how everyone is going to want to sleep with Ashla because she slept with Trace and vice versa. And I understand that even in real life sex is a competition, we all have to prove that we are the ideal mate for the one we love blah blah blah... But this just seemed different to me, and it kinda pissed me off. Ashla had gone through so much to be with Trace and now they were telling her she would have to start competing for him, and that it would be perfectly acceptable for someone to try and take him away. You guys know that I hate man stealers more than anything.

         But Ashla got pregnant and I love when the main characters have babies. And Frank left off with a cliff hanger so now, despite my mild dislike of the book, I feel compelled to read the next one just so I can figure out what was going on.

         My thing with this book was that because of the POV switches to characters I didn't care about I ended up skimming a lot of the book. I would say a 2 out of 5 on this. Maybe the next one will be better. I'll let y'all know.