Book Review: Sparkwood by Daria Defore
4/5 stars Sparkwood promises magic, intrigue, and strong-willed bisexual men, and it definitely delivers on those promises. After a sluggish start, the book drew me in and demanded that I finish it. THE POSITIVES My favourite aspect of this novella was the setting. I didn't connect with the characters immediately (I did by the end!), but thanks to the initial description of the small town of Sparkwood, I started to really engage with the writing. I also loved how much the author managed to convey about the 'other' Sparkwood (a different realm) with very few words. The enemies-to-lovers story-line that acts as a backdrop to the central mystery is handled very well. I, personally, don't tend to enjoy books where the romantic elements overpower and overshadow the genre tropes and/or genre conventions. As such, the fact that Sparkwood lets the romance develop as a result of the paranormal mystery, rather than using the mystery plot as a convenien...