Book Review: Her Dark Curiosity

Her Dark Curiosity (The Madman's Daughter #2)

By: Megan Shepherd

Published By: Balzer & Bray

Publication Date: January 28, 2014

Page Count: 368

Buy it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound

Source: ARC Kindly Provided by Publisher via Edelweiss

Audience: Young Adult - Gothic, Classic Inspired

Review of Book #1: The Madman's Daughter

I loved The Madman's Daughter. In fact, it made my Favorites of 2013 list. I was lucky to be able to dive into this one so quickly after finishing the first novel. Sadly, now I must wait for the next novel. It's going to be a long, frustrating wait. So much happens in this novel and I am so anxious to find out how everything will play out. Megan Shepherd certainly knows how to keep readers on their toes.

Her Dark Curiosity takes place after Juliet makes her way back to London after her adventures on the island. She is attempting to mend her broken heart as she searches for a cure to heal her illness. The serum that has always kept her symptoms at bay is working less and less frequently. If Juliet does not find a way to cure herself, she fears that she will slip into a coma. The science and medicine aspects pulled me in the first time around and I found that they also kept me glued to my Kindle this time as well.

In addition to the medical components, I really enjoy the romance in this series. I can't speak on it without providing spoilers, but I find that I don't mind that Juliet's heart is somewhat divided. In spite of having a dreaded love triangle, this one seems realistic. I can understand why Juliet feels as she does about both of her potential beaus. While I strongly support one more than the other, I don't despise the other option. I did question some of Juliet's romantic choices in this one which made me enjoy this aspect slightly less than in the first novel.

Her Dark Curiosity also gathers inspiration from a different classical source - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This is one of my favorite classical pieces of literature; I was excited to see how Shepherd would adapt the tale into her lore. I loved the fast paced intensity of this installment.

Juliet is a little different in this one. She's struggling so much with the dual sides of her nature that she doesn't act like herself. I missed the Juliet that I met in The Madman's Daughter. I caught glimpses of her, but her self doubt plagues her actions and thoughts in this one. Juliet is also struggling with the reconciling the life she knew and her new one. She has been adopted by a wealthy professor and is thrust back into London's elite. Juliet's dual lives mirror the story of Jekyll and Hyde.

I am so excited to read the final book. There are some hints at the end of this one about which classic will lend its influence and I am over the moon about it. I hope my hunch proves correct. 

All in all, this was another entertaining read from Shepherd. I love the combination of gorgeous writing, classical influences, and adventure.

One Last Gripe: I liked this one, but slightly less than I liked the first one.

My Favorite Thing About This Book: the connection to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

First Sentence: The air in my crumbling attic chamber smelled of roses and formaldehyde.

Favorite Character: Juliet

Least Favorite Character: Dr. Hastings

Summary:

To defeat the darkness, she must first embrace it.

Months have passed since Juliet Moreau returned to civilization after escaping her father's island—and the secrets she left behind. Now, back in London once more, she is rebuilding the life she once knew and trying to forget Dr. Moreau’s horrific legacy—though someone, or something, hasn’t forgotten her.

As people close to Juliet fall victim one by one to a murderer who leaves a macabre calling card of three clawlike slashes, Juliet fears one of her father’s creations may have also escaped the island. She is determined to find the killer before Scotland Yard does, though it means awakening sides of herself she had thought long banished, and facing loves from her past she never expected to see again.

As Juliet strives to stop a killer while searching for a serum to cure her own worsening illness, she finds herself once more in the midst of a world of scandal and danger. Her heart torn in two, past bubbling to the surface, life threatened by an obsessive killer—Juliet will be lucky to escape alive.

With inspiration from Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, this is a tantalizing mystery about the hidden natures of those we love and how far we’ll go to save them from themselves.