Title : Darkest Fear
Author : Cate Tiernan
Pages : 320
Published : 7th January 2014
Publisher : Simon Pulse
Source : Edelweiss
Vivi’s animal instincts are her legacy—and maybe her downfall—in this start to a romantic fantasy series that will appeal to fans of The Nine Lives of Chloe King.
Vivi has known the truth about her family—and herself—since she was thirteen. But that doesn’t mean she’s accepted it. Being Haguari isn’t something she feels she’ll ever accept. How can she feel like anything but a freak knowing that it’s in her genes to turn into a jaguar?
Now eighteen, Vivi’s ready to break away from the traditions of her heritage. But all of that changes with the shocking, devastating deaths of her parents and the mysteries left behind. Vivi discovers family she never even knew she had, and a life open with possibility. New friends, new loyalties, and even romance all lay ahead—but so do dangers unlike anything Vivi ever could have imagined.
My Thoughts :
When Vivi is 13 she learns of her heritage. She is Haguari, a shapeshifting Jaguar! To her its not something she is proud of, she thinks she is a freak, and she rejects everything to do with being Haguari. She fights with her parents and refuses to acknowledge what she is. Every year on her Birthday her parents bring her into the woods for a picnic and this year, even though she is 18, is no different. They get to the woods and set up the picnic but they suddenly hear a snarl. Her parents tell her to run and she does. As she runs though she is so frightened that she changes for the first time and becomes a Jaguar.
When she finally comes back to the picnic area its to a devastating sight. Her parents are dead with their hearts ripped out. She goes into shock but manages to phone for help. From then on her life is turned upside down. She has to deal with everything and live in the house without her parents. Eventually she goes through their stuff and finds a picture of 3 girls. One is her mother, her aunt and someone that looks remarkably like her. She figures out its her mothers sister that she never knew about. She looks her up and finds an address and decides to go see her to find out why she never heard of her. What she finds is her cousin Mateo and his girlfriend Aly. They run a kind of boarding house for Haguari. All their friends are Haguari and they embrace being one. Vivi is thrust into their world and either has to embrace who she is or not fit in.
This took me by surprise. While I love Cate Tiernans other books, I didn't know what to expect from this. At the beginning Vivi really annoyed me because it seemed she was constantly whining about being a Jaguari but then I realised that it is something that is hard to take. She knew nothing until she was 13 and then to be told that she turns into an animal at will, well I suppose it would be hard to believe. Once her parents are killed and she meets Mateo she really has to start embracing who she is. After that I really started to like her. She is strong, feisty and brave.
I adored how the author did the Jaguar part. When Vivi turns into the jaguar the narrative from its perspective is awesome!! Its really unique and different.
The tension between Rafe and Vivi was breathtaking. While he is only in the book for a little bit, I am hoping there's more to come in future books. I have an idea about him and I'm hoping it is what I think it is!!
All in all a solid start. Its not the most action packed book but I put that down to being the first in the series. It also needed a bit more romance for Vivi and more Rafe :) Cate Tiernan has created an intriguing world of Jaguars and I honestly cant wait for more. The author is the mistress of suspense!! She leaves you with a lot of questions about whats going to happen and definitely knows how to keep you hanging. The ending is very abrupt though. I read the ending and went to turn the page and there was nothing there. I was like, NOO way can it just end like this!!! I will definitely be adding book 2 to my Need Now list.
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