Cassandra Palmer #1
“Party later. Right now I need my stuff.”
Cassandra Palmer
There is certainly a lot of paranormal stuffed into Touch the Dark, the first entry in the Cassandra Palmer series. Vampires, ghosts, witches, and more populate the world of Cassandra “Cassie” Palmer and most of them want to use her powers for their own ends. While this is a paranormal fantasy book, there is a fair amount of sexual content, including sex scenes.
Cassie thought she’d left the world of the supernatural behind after she had her vampire boss, Antonio, thrown in jail. Unfortunately for her, they’ve found her again, and everyone has an agenda. Fortunately for Cassie, she grew up surrounded by vampires and is willing to forge her own path even when it means defying the wills of the vampire Senate and others. I like the fact that she is not terrified of the more disturbing elements of vampire culture because she grew up with it. This means that she is cautious of their power but not cowed by them.
The ghosts are my favorite side characters, especially Billy Joe, Cassie’s regular companion. It is especially amusing that other supernatural creatures cannot see or hear them. So, they are often surprised by events that Cassie sets into motion with them.
The plot is fast-paced and full of action as Cassie dodges assassins and hunts down answers about her parents. Some of the elements are not all fully explained in this book. Cassie is just coming into her powers, so we readers are just as blind about them as she.
This book is an excellent first book in the series, and hopefully, further entries will flesh out the world-building and Cassie’s place in the hierarchy.
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