Review: Black City by Elizabeth Richards

Black City (Black City, #1) by Elizabeth Richards
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons BYR
Publication date: November 13th, 2012
Number of pages: 374 pgs
Format: Hardcover

Purchase: Amazon | The Book Depository

A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war.

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-old Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed—but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

AH. Black City. This has been a novel which I had heard many things about, mixed and I was a tad hesitant to read it, although I will always trust my own judgement first and foremost in the end.
I'm glad I did pick this book up when I was in Sydney after my cruise in July because it surprised me so much. I was shown that even those you were unsure about could appeal to you.
In this case, it did with me.

I loved the whole dual POV as it makes me think this is not just Natalie's story, nor is it Ash's.. It's both of their stories individually and together.
I loved them from the beginning and couldn't wait to discover what was exactly was happening. There was definitely shocks I did not see coming even though I was warned of one by a friend but had no idea just what it was. I felt in the end the shock ended up being for the best in the long run.

We're quickly introduced to our main characters, Ash and Natalie. While they come from two separate lives, their paths soon cross in an interesting and maybe predicable way. The rest, as they are is history.
We're dealt with a world where humans and darklings live separated from one another with a wall between them. It may be for protection or some other stupid reason, but I feel it made things worse than it did better. When Half-Darkling, Ash meets human, Natalie, daughter of the Emissar they find this connection forming between the two of them. Slowly, they fall in love. This may be Insta-love to some, but I quite liked it. As you go along in the story and things start to get revealed, you can understand that their bond is more than you might assume... that they really, are in love.  It is beautiful and pure and romantic and totally forbidden.

Soon, the two of then find themselves in the center of more attention than they may want or need. The things between them are much bigger than each of them and they may have to decide is their love worth ruining everything over. They have many decisions ahead of them. Many choices to make. Lots of questions and not many answers available.

This is a dystopian world with a twist. I loved how it was both paranormal and dystopian. Mixing both genres together was an interesting thing and it definitely worked.
I adored this book so much that when I discovered I couldn't find a paperback for book 2, I had to then buy both books in hardback right then and there. I was not one for waiting, and I actually am gonna start on Phoenix very soon.

I look forward to seeing the world and what happens in the second installment and what happens for our lovebirds. Will they be able to survive it all?

Rating: 4.5/5