Pretty Dark Nothing (Pretty Dark Nothing)

by Heather L Reid

[Angie]

I received an ARC through NetGalley.

I find dreams and nightmares to be completely fascinating, so I knew I had to read Pretty Dark Nothing, especially since it has a paranormal twist. Quinn has been plagued with extreme nightmares ever since her dad walked out on her two years prior. Now the demons from her dreams are making appearances in her waking life. Is she just hallucinating from lack of sleep or are the creatures from her nightmares real? What could have been a creepy paranormal tale, turned out to be a teenage dramafest as Quinn’s relationships with her ex, Jeff, and new boy, Adam, take center stage. I was very disappointed.

Pretty Dark Nothing alternates between Quinn and Aaron’s POV. For most of her chapters, Quinn is pining after her ex-boyfriend and shooting death glares at his new girl-friend. She’s also struggling to keep it together in public now that she has demons following her and whispering rude remarks in her ear. Aaron is the new boy at school who was brought back from the dead. Now he’s telepathic and can enter Quinn’s nightmares. Unfortunately, this ability isn’t explored much, since he and Quinn spend more time fighting with each other than anything else.

They are the most dramatic non-couple ever! They argue like they’re dating, even though they’re not, and Aaron points this out several times, but it still continues! The most annoying part is that most of their bickering could have been avoided with one simple conversation: “My phone malfunctioned and I didn’t mean to hang up on you!” No need to mention that demons were the ones causing the phone problem, but still. Communication is important.

As for the plot, it felt better suited to a YA Contemporary novel than a Paranormal. The dating drama dominated for most of the book and Quinn’s demons were just in the background. In the beginning, it was interesting watching Quinn fall apart from getting no sleep and trying to keep the demon voices out of her head. I was hoping that Aaron would swoop and help her battle her demons, both literal and figurative, but that didn’t happen. Then all of that dropped off when her cheating ex came crawling back causing even more over-the-top high school drama. I do think it all could have been very interesting as a contemporary novel about mental illness and relationships, rather than demons and….whatever Pretty Dark Nothing was about.

The last 10 percent of Pretty Dark Nothing was the biggest mess of all. The paranormal aspect final returned, but the best way to describe it is WTF?! It was beyond weird and confusing. I have no idea what just happened. People die, angels appear, deals are made, and the book just ends. It’s not really a cliffhanger, more like the book just ends mid-scene. I hate that.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.