Review: The Cursed by Alyssa Day

Bordertown private investigator Luke Oliver’s beat is the dimensional fold in Manhattan between the human and supernatural realms. But now a secret from his past—the League of the Black Swan—has surfaced. Because Luke isn’t any ordinary P.I. He’s the Dark Wizard of Bordertown, and he never backs down from a fight.

But this time the fight threatens his life and his heart. Rio Jones, the only woman he loved, needs his help against a deadly menace. Luke pushed her away once before, so she’d never fall prey to the curse that threatens to destroy him. He swore he’d never let her go again.

Luke and Rio, with the help of the newly reformed League, must keep evil forces from taking over Bordertown—all the while battling a passion on the razor’s edge between danger and desire. And going to take everything they have just to stay alive.

Alyssa Day keeps us on our toes, not letting us know whether The League of the Black Swan are the good guys or not. For Rio, they are primarily the lesser of several evils. That’s intriguing since the series is called The League of the Black Swan, and a series is usually named for the good guys (ie Black Dagger Brotherhood, Dark Hunters, etc).

Another thing I loved about this is the fact that there is no band of brothers so to speak, so I don’t feel like there’s any sequel bait; the world is rich enough that the story doesn’t need it. It sort of has a Kate Daniels feel to it, which I love, and it has many intriguing new places that the series can go.

Rio witnessed the kidnapping of a young girl who she immediately recognized as a Halfling. She goes to Luke, Bordertown’s resident PI, and little to her knowledge, Bordertown’s Dark Wizard. But he’s cursed. And he doesn’t exactly let people know about that little detail.

Luke spent what feels like several lifetimes with the League of the Black Swan, but he’s out now, and wants to keep it that way. But someone in the League has an interest in Rio, and wants Luke to bring her in.

When these two get together, the adventure really gets wild. They have trolls, bad guys, fae, more bad guys, giant ducks, a sick little Halfling to save, and Rio and Luke’s own problems to deal with.  In the middle of all of this, Rio and Luke are madly attracted to each other and the sexual tension is great!

Easy world-building and enjoyable characters lead to the very exciting beginning of a new series. The Urban Fantasy feel will draw in many new fans, even though it may lean more towards the PNR side of the genre. Can I call it Urban Paranormal Romance? Lol And I can’t wait to see where Ms. Day takes this series. Between the dark setting the steamy romance, and the dry wit, you can’t go wrong with Alyssa Day’s new series.

***ARC courtesy of the author via netgalley