Book Review: The Curse Keepers by Denise Grover Swank

Title: The Curse Keepers
Series: Curse Keepers #1
By: Denise Grover Swank
Author Info: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Age Group: New Adult/Adult
Genre Type: Urban Fantasy, Romance
Publication Date:  November 19th 2013 
Pages: 312
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Publisher: 47North

SUMMARY:

The wall between our world and that of vengeful spirits has protected humanity for more than 400 years. It’s about to come crashing down.

Ellie Lancaster has lived her whole life by the site of the mysterious Lost Colony of Roanoke, the Virginia settlement that vanished without a trace around 1590. Only the descendants of the two men who banished the spirits of an enemy tribe from the material realm know what really happened to the colony. Ellie is one of those descendants—a Curse Keeper. Her father took pains to teach her what he knew of the curse and the responsibilities of its guardians. He taught her that if the two Curse Keepers ever meet, the curse will be lifted, the gate will open, and the raging Native American spirits will be unleashed to seek their revenge.

Despite her father’s seriousness, Ellie has always taken the legend for a harmless fairy tale. Until she meets the darkly handsome, but downright infuriating, Collin Dailey and realizes everything she was told is true. For when they meet, it’s like the air is sucked from the room. Collin’s presence is electrifying… and it’s not just attraction Ellie feels, but the inexorable pull toward her destiny. The prophecy is real, and now Ellie and Collin must battle supernatural forces and their loathing—and passion—for each other to set things right.

The Curse Keepers are all that stand between the world and its destruction.

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Review

The Curse Keepers by Denise Grover Swank is the first book in her new Urban Fantasy series. Filled with magic, mystery and swoon-worthy romance this new series is off to an amazing start.

Five Reasons to pick up up The Curse Keepers

1. The Curse Keepers has a unique premise for an Urban Fantasy. One of the first things that caught my attention about this new series is the fact that it's an Urban Fantasy, but does not revolve around Vampires and Werewolves, but rather the author combines some unique elements form Native American history, folklore and myth. Gods, demons, monsters and a creation myth were all interwoven, creating a unique and exciting mystery.
    
2. The setting and historical background. The story takes place in present day North Carolina, and is based on the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Only in this version, the missing colony didn't just disappear, but was cursed. I've always been curious as to what really happened, and I was so captivated by the way the curse was interwoven into the historical context of the story. The Curse Keepers has a contemporary setting, yet so much research has obviously gone into the story that it has really the best of both world: a contemporary Urban fantasy that draws its mystery from an actual historical one.
    
3. The supernatural elements were really cool. I loved how the magic and lore were taken from a variety of early Native American sources, making it so easy to escape into The Curse Keepers world. It had the perfect mix of light and dark magical events. There's plenty of scary moments to chill you and some really beautiful ones as well.
    
4. The characters are both well written and I immediately liked and connected with both Ellie and Collin. They're both in their twenties, bridging the age gap between young adult and adult nicely, but avoids all the angst and drama that often fall into this age group. Ellie is quick witted and sassy, and for the most part she's your normal, levelheaded gal. Except, she is supposed to be a Curse Keeper, a supernatural job that she has chosen to ignore. Ellie has family and friends she loves, yet she holds back from getting too close emotionally to just any guy. She has enough on her plate to deal with and doesn't need anymore drama added to her already full schedule. Enters Collin. Also, a Curse Keeper. A swaggering, bad boy in leather that sends off dangerous warning signals and creates high hormone levels in Ellie. When he discovers that Ellie is also a Curse Keeper and that the gates between the realms are threatened, Ellie can no longer deny her heritage nor the magic that she possesses. Collin is sexy, irresistibly hot, and drives Ellie to distraction.
    
5. The romance was seriously swoon-worthy! It developed at just the right pace and was integral part of the story. When these two touch, wow, magic happens... And I'm not just figuratively speaking either. There's tons of sexual tension and verbal banter between Collin and Ellie that heats up the pages. There's no romantic triangle, just Collin and Ellie. Ellie and Collin try to deny their attraction to one another, but their magic as Curse Keepers bonds them together and the attraction to one another is undeniable. *fans & swoons*

One Reasons you may "smack you head" after reading The Curse Keepers

1. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed reading The Curse Keeper! But, it ends with a major cliffhanger. One that had me desperately flipping to the back of the story to see when the next installment comes out. All the action, mystery, and romance combusted in a epic ending - with a cliffhanger. Fear not though, because the second part of The Curse Breakers just released so there's no waiting!

My Rating: 4.5 Stars. I really liked it!

PLEASE NOTE: A courtesy review copy of this book was provided by 47North in exchange for my fair review. Thank you 47North for the review opportunity!