“Book Review: Fallen Dawn”

Reviewed by Jaylynn Korrell

The stakes are higher than ever in this riveting second installment

E. W. Roberts picks up right where he left off. In Fallen Dawn, Book 2 of the City of the Dead series, we are introduced to interesting new characters and get closer to some of the biggest vampire authorities in their world. With a main goal of finding something that was stolen from her, Iliana Dawn is determined to get the job done and save the people around her. Iliana Dawn is still unsure how she feels about being a vampire. She didn’t really have a say in the matter, but she can at least admit that she has some sort of will to continue on. This will to live is proven when the Council of Elders requires her to find the special briefcase she lost or be killed permanently.

Inside the briefcase holds vials of Dothariam, something that vampires treasure most of all. There’s just one problem, the briefcase has been stolen from her possession by the man who killed her. With little time to work with, Iliana Dawn is forced to use every ally she has to retrieve what the Council of Elders wishes for.

Unfortunately, she’s not the only one who has their eye on the prize.

In this second book, Iliana is picking up the pieces of her new life and trying to stay afloat. With her little sister constantly on her case, her old partner Kershaw anxiously waiting for her to return to her old career, and her mentor Knight trying to guide her as best he can, Iliana has a pretty good support system to lean on.

But the ones closest to her are the ones she has to fight the hardest to save, as a fellow vampire Jewel threatens to kill them all if she doesn’t give her the Dothariam. As Iliana begins to get the hang of being a vampire, her skills and intuition are tested more than ever before.

If you enjoyed the first story in this series, you’ll definitely have fun reading the second. Fallen Dawn delivers a truly thrilling story filled with mystery and action. This book gives us new insight into Iliana’s past, as it’s revealed that she once saved a woman from being abducted by a serial killer and that the encounter is what led her to her career in the police force. Her bravery is given the spotlight, and it helps readers understand why she chose the path she did and why it means so much to her. As she struggles to depart from the job she loves, she also battles with whether or not to tell her closest colleagues the real reason why she can no longer continue there.

That dilemma also haunts her in her personal life. She stays on the fence about whether or not to tell her younger sister about becoming a vampire. Because we know how strong- ly Iliana felt about vampires before becoming one, readers will be able to understand why she can’t bring herself to break the news to the humans around her. This internal conflict brings a softness to Iliana that is rarely felt throughout the rest of the book. She is forced to show a little more emotion in this book as those closest to her are put in danger, and I enjoyed unlocking different parts of her personality.

The biggest conflicts that Iliana has in this book depend on figuring out who is trustworthy and who isn’t. Early on in the book we find out that Knight is purchasing dead bodies from a coroner, making him a less reliable force of good than we previously thought. And his assistant Ava only further builds on her sketchiness as she continues to taunt Iliana and partakes in some mysterious actions as well. With those two acting questionably, most of her allies in this book will have readers on the fence as to their intentions. This brings about a kind of mystery to the story that has me on the edge of my seat more than a few times.

Fallen Dawn is a terrific second installment to this series. I can’t wait to find out what happens next.

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