Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club (Lady Helen Trilogy, #1)

by Alison Goodman

Bridgerton meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the seductive series by award-winning author Alison Goodman

London, April 1812.

Lady Helen Wrexhall is about to make her debut at the court of Queen Charlotte and officially step into Regency society and the business of marriage. But Helen is about to discover that beyond the glittering ballrooms of Mayfair is a shadowy world of strange powers, missing housemaids and demonic conspiracies.

Standing between those two worlds is Lord Carlston, a man of ruined reputation and curt manners. He believes Helen has a destiny beyond the ballroom; a sacred and secret duty. Helen is not so sure, especially when she realises that nothing around her is quite as it seems, including the mysterious Lord Carlston.

Set against a backdrop of whispered secrets in St James's Palace, soirees with Lord Byron and morning calls from Beau Brummell, Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club is a delightfully dangerous adventure of self-discovery and the dark choices that must be made ... whatever the cost.

A tantalising trilogy set in Regency London from the award-winning author of Eon and Eona.

PRAISE FOR THE LADY HELEN SERIES

'I LOVED this book! It's a page-turner from start to finish' -- Amazon review

'A delicious collision of Regency romance and dark fantasy' -- Publishers Weekly starred review

'A mesmerizing marriage between Regency romance and urban fantasy that is both impeccably researched and wonderfully paced. I devoured this series' -- Sabaa Tahir, author of the bestselling An Ember in the Ashes series

'Brilliant! Enthralling mix of history and fancy -- it's Downton Abbey meets Buffy!' -- Amazon review

'Amazing research, really fun characters and such an original idea' -- Goodreads review

AWARDS FOR THE LADY HELEN SERIES

Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club (Book 1)

Notable Book -- 2017 Children's Book Council of Australia Awards

Lady Helen and the Dark Days Pact (Book 2)

Winner -- 2016 Aurealis Awards, Best Young Adult Novel

Lady Helen and the Dark Days Deceit (Book 3)

Shortlisted -- 2018 Aurealis Awards, Best Young Adult Novel

AWARDS FOR EON

Winner -- 2008 Aurealis Awards, Best Fantasy Novel

Honour Book -- 2008 James Tiptree Award (UK)

Notable Book -- 2009 Children's Book Council of Australia Awards

Shortlisted -- 2009 NSW Premier's Literary Awards, 2009 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, 2008 Western Australian Premier's Literary Awards

• ISBN10: 1743097948
• ISBN13: 9781743097946
• Publish Date: 1 January 2016
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: AU
• Imprint: HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 450
• Language: English

Reviews

[Beth C.]

Lady Helen is getting ready for what *should* be the best time of her young life - her society introduction. Starting with the Queen, then moving to balls and soirees, it should be nothing but fun and excitement. Unfortunately, memories of her dead parents are intruding, including questions about why her mother was seen as treasonous to the crown. A housemaid has gone missing. A dear friend has, by all accounts, gone crazy. And Lady Helen herself is...changing...and doesn't understand how or why. The only person who seems to be able to help her figure it out is the last person she should be having anything to do with - Lord Carlston. Accused of killing his wife but acquitted when her body was never found, he is recently back in London and seems to be everywhere. As Helen begins to learn the truth about her mother, as well as about her heritage and her changes, she has a choice to make. But sometimes, neither option is a good one.

Frankly, what drew me to this novel was the "Regency London" and the possibility of a fantasy world intertwined. I was hesitant, simply because I am not a romance reader, and often Regency London and romance are horribly intertwined. Thankfully, that was not the case here. There is a smidge of romance, but it is tasteful and minimum. The majority of the story revolved around Helen and her background, while also dealing with monsters that l thought were unusual and interesting.

It was quite apparent that Goodman did quite a bit of research on this period in time, and the use of actual historical people within the story adds a layer of realism that worked quite well. The characters are all well fleshed-out, and the settings are done almost as well.

Frankly, I went into this novel a bit skeptical (this is the first novel I have read by this author), but I finished the book far into the night, knowing I had to be up early the next day. It was just that good. I look forward to the continuing adventures of Lady Helen in the next book!