Love Bites

Book Review by Pauline Reid
Love Bites (darkness and light duology) by T.L Clark
Genre – Fantasy Fiction – Paranormal – Paranormal Romance

What This Book Is About
Shakira had never felt at home growing up in Surrey, but as soon as she entered the quaint Welsh village she knew she belonged. Maybe it was because of the welcoming villagers. Or perhaps it was the presence of the others whom she sensed nearby; the ones she saw in her dreams, with their strange glowing eyes.
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Fate is not always kind. It gives with one hand and takes with the other. There is a reason she didn’t grow up with her own kind.

Here is an excerpt read by the author, herself
https://youtu.be/wTa53oOGmyM

What I Thought About This Book
T.L Clark’s wittiness and friendliness comes out through her writing in this book, however this is a dark/light book. I enjoyed the contrast, the balance between the dark and light writing flowed well. T.L Clark is known as a romance writer. The sexiness was a bit too lustful for my taste, but I took note, and understood that this is part of the story line. Love Bites, is a blood thirsty book, although not heavy, I had a hard time digesting this side of it, but again, I understood that this was a very important part of the storyline. Shakira the main character, I adore, especially when she was going through the transforming stage, her wittiness I, too, enjoyed, loved the way Shakira tried coping with new teeth and limbs that weren’t human.
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I learnt a bit of Welsh, twp, means foolish/stupid.
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T.L Clark is notorious for making up words, one I stumbled across was – Elinefae (which are cat people) .. believe me, I looked it up, but no luck with Google this time. Wolfy-wotsit, was another one I enjoyed.

Quotes I enjoyed
It made her think of that film where they say that an angel gets their wings every time a bell rings.
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The scenery changed from fields and hedges to trees as she drove. They grew denser, and developed into an immense forest. It called to her, filling her body with a buzzing sensation, almost like the vibration of a ringing telephone.
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Rain had been falling most of the morning, and the smell of pine invigorated her senses.
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Frydah finished off the rest of the honey and the lid of wine. Lily had taken the open bottle with her. Feeling giddy, she drunkenly found the nearest mushroom and curled up underneath it.
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T.L Clark is a Reiki teacher/master, does yoga, likes to stay healthy by making what she eats, being careful what she eats, loves writing in her pjs, is a cat lover, infact her cat Pusskins was her muse for this book, and I see what she means by that as T.L Clark takes us through the motions of what it’s like to walk like a cat. I follow T L Clark on different social media sites, and thought I would include the ones I follow.
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https://www.bookbub.com/authors/tl-clark Bookbub
https://instagram.com/tlclarkauthor?igshid=tfkdosaunrxd Instagram
https://www.facebook.com/TLClarkAuthor/ Facebook
https://twitter.com/TLClarkAuthor?s=20 Twitter

Recommendation
Love Bites, is a good one to read if you like like forests, paranormal, paranormal romance, fantasy fiction, fairies, fae, vampires, witch craft, dragons, sorcery and fantasy fiction also don’t forget that this is a duology.
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Love Bites (Darkness & Light Duology Book 1) by TL Clark

This is an awesome fantasy, mystery, and romantic story. This book starts out telling us about Shakira, who never felt like she fits in anywhere. She decides to move and start new, when she makes this decision she doesn’t actually know where she’s headed. She moves to Wales because she feels drawn to this place, more specifically the mysterious forest near the small town. I truly enjoyed how the story starts out with hints of what’s going on and then onto more details adding more characters and more magic and definitely more action the build up was awesome!! This story had me hooked from the beginning, I couldn’t put it down till I read the whole thing. I had an all nighter because of how much I enjoyed reading this story. The author did and amazing job creating this magical fantasy, and making the story flow so well. Now that I have finished this book I cannot wait to start reading the next book especially since there was a twist in this story that I need to know how it turns out and I won’t know until I get my hands on the next book. I highly recommend this book it is an exceptional story, just talking about it makes me want to dive back in and get lost in it again!!!

5 Stars

Love Bites is the first book in the Darkness & Light Duology by T.L Clark. This is such a gem of a find! A wonderful Fantasy/paranormal romance with so much going on in it- I couldn’t have read it any quicker, demolishing it all in a few hours because I HAD to find out all the spellbinding details. The author wove a superb tale that came to life under her creative touch. There are witches, faeries, sorcerers, Elinefae, magic, mystery, suspense, and so many more fascinating additions and details. This story is completely original from anything that I have read in this genre before. It has its own unique identity, which the author has lovingly crafted. I wasn’t sure of what to expect going in but I loved the cover and was intrigued by the blurb, so I took the plunge…. And I am SO happy that I did! This may be my first read from Ms. Clark- but it definitely won’t be the last. She has confirmed her place on my must-read authors list and I can’t wait to devour everything she will write/or has written. How excited was I to discover that she has also got quite a few other books to her name- which I will definitely be one-clicking, and devouring ASAP.
Shakira, Pryderi, Cerys, Lily and all the other wonderful characters really brought this story to life. They are wonderfully developed individuals with their own personalities, quirks and flaws. They led me on an incredible journey that I won’t soon forget. I love Kiera and Pryderi so much! I am blown away by all the unique touches that Ms. Clark gave her characters- it really made the story quite an exciting ride. Then, there is the matter of the exceptional world building skills that Ms. Clark demonstrates throughout this story. She brought everything to life, with fantastic descriptions and attention to details. Right down to having a world history, backstory, languages… and so many more unique features.
I have already jumped into the second book as I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen! I can’t recommend this book/duet highly enough, especially if you love fantasy/paranormal stories that are unique, enchanting and well written.
Brilliant!

Thank you, Ms. Clark!

When Shakira leaves her parents and drives away to find a new life for herself, she is completely unaware of just how complete that change will be.

‘Love Bites’ is a story of learning to deal with change, but also one which emphasises the power of the struggle for supremacy between light and dark, and goodness and evil. Shakira grows and develops from a young woman fully aware of the fact that she doesn’t fit in to someone who must accept and learn to embrace her origins in order to survive.

The story is cast with well developed characters, none of them perfect but many of them very likeable. Shakira herself is developed not only through her experiences and relationships, but also through how she deals with what is imposed upon her. There is more than one lesson for all of us in this, and the reader is challenged to consider their own choices and ethics in the way they communicate and relate with others.

The narrative is well-crafted, weaving together a number of plots and subplots, various settings and significant challenges for the characters that often leave the reader holding their breath without even realising. The dialogue is engaging, reflecting both the author’s and the characters’ intelligence and adding further depth to the characters and to the action of the story. Clark’s design and development of characters, including a new and unique species of creatures, and of rich and varied settings, is elegant and complex, paying careful attention to detail without causing any wordy distraction for the reader. The pace of the story is effective without being overwhelming, making this book an absolute page turner.

There is some adult content so it is not recommended for younger audiences, but ‘Love Bites’ is sure to please adult lovers of both fantasy and paranormal reads.

Love Bites is the first book in the Darkness & Light Duology by author T.L. Clark. Shakira is lost, she’s far away from her home in Surrey, England. She’s looking to find a place where she fits in and has come to a small town in Wales where she knows that she’s found where she is meant to be. Shakira begins to settle into her new life when she meets, Cerys, the owner of a metaphysical shop across the street from the coffee shop Shakira works and while Shakira finds Cerys to be a bit odd she still feels like she has made a friend.
As Shakira’s life begins to settle she finds out that her life may not be everything she thought it was. In fact, she may not be as “normal” as she once believed herself to be, and there may be a reason that she never felt she fit in. This story is so much more than your typical paranormal romance, the author has done a terrific job world building and the story grabs your attention and holds it until the very end. It does end on a bit of a cliffhanger but the main points of the story are settled prior to the ending.

This book was an unexpected enjoyment. I was intrigued from the onset but couldn’t tell what direction the plot would take me until I was a few chapters in. I really enjoyed the universe TL Clark created with this book. Severa unexpdctwd turns for me that made it a page turning experience. I enjoyed the read and look forward to reading the next installment.

Love Bites by TL Clark is book 1 in the Darkness & Light Duology. This is a self discovery/ fantasy/ romance book. I really enjoyed the plot line and pace of this book! TL Clark has me questioning my own ethical decisions in the past. I loved that this book was not only entertaining but thought provoking too! I can’t wait to see what this author has for us in Love Bites Harder!

Love Bites is the first novel in the Darkness & Light duology by T.L. Clark.

Shakira has always felt she was out of place. It’s not til she moves to Wales.

While sure she was going when she left England, she finds a village in Wales and she likes and finds a job at a coffee shop.

“Shakira’s life was evolving. She had changed her location and job, but there was also something deep inside which couldn’t quite be identified, yet refused to be ignored any longer. “

She is drawn to the forest nearby. Has she finally found a place to call home?

The cover originally drew me in to the story and from the first chapter I was hooked. I loved Shakira’s narration. Her voice and how she described things made it so engaging.

I absolutely loved the world building. The plot and romance was so refreshing and different than other books I’ve read.

Looking forward to reading the next book.

“Elinefae: ee -LINE-fay”

This was my first book that I have read by TL Clark. Not one to usually like the world of fairies and witches, and magnificent dragons, it was the reviews that hooked me on this one. I could tell that this was going to have a spin on the genre that I had not read before. I am glad that I chose to pick it up and ultimately can’t wait to see what comes after that shocking and abrupt ending. I say ending because this wasn’t your typical cliffhanger. It just real serious real fast at the end. I will definitely be going to get the other book now, as it is available already.

Shakira has always felt like something was off about her. Like she didn’t fit in amongst anyone that she knew. This feeling grows more intense and she feels it drawing her to somewhere different. She isn’t sure where that is but one day she decides to follow her senses and gut. She packs up her car and hits the road.

Stumbling upon the town of Wales she knows immediately that this is where she should be. It becomes very apparent that while she felt different before she fits in amongst this town. When she realizes that there are shadows lurking in the forest and discovers that there is a magical world she didn’t realize ever existed.

As she begins to settle in and discover more about herself her ‘father’ reenters her life. In fact he may be out to kill her!! Could he be the evil she has been warned about? Is he on the dark side of magic or did he just become lost in his past? Maybe he is just trying to protect the fact that Shakira is still special even among who she feels the most at home with. Is Shakira able to keep herself safe?

This book had a twist in the typical paranormal romance that I had not yet read. It was unique and I enjoyed the imagination behind that. In the same right it was quite confusing to figure out or make sense of as you are getting used to the concept. It was a bit of an annoyance but eventually the book got faster paced and less confusing. Overall this was a four star read for me. Oh, and fyi this is one steamy book. Not suitable for readers under 18. This is definitely an adult romance novel. That is my cup of tea, but I know some aren’t so into that in this genera category. Still a great read worth giving a one click for!

“Upon this mirror you may gaze,

To witness the horrors of former days.

When once more all the past pain you can feel,

Then at last you can start to truly heal.”

Love Bites (Darkness & Light Duology #1)
By T. L. Clark
Rated 4 stars

This story is intriguing. This book isn’t what I thought it was. I assumed it was a vampire story. Hence the title. It’s not. It is full of witches, fairies, sorcerers and some panther-like people (elinefae). The story was a bit confusing at first since I didn’t really know what was going on. Then things started happening and moving along quickly. We meet Shakira at first while she is still human. She was a little shaky but as the book moved forward she grew. By the end I was impressed in all she could do. This became much more than just of story of a girl and her guy (her mate)whose family (clan) would prefer to execute her than let her join the family. There was some background stuff going on that took over the book. Oh and I don’t want to forget the cute little (don’t tell him I said that) dragon. Although not a large part…who doesn’t love and want a dragon??
I was shocked at the ending and had to go back and reread the last couple paragraphs in the book. I needed to make sure what I read was right!
In the title of Darkness and Light. At first i assume that dark is evil and light is good. But I was impressed in the Darkness of this story was not what i thought and the Light was actually the problem.
This is my first book by the author. The story flowed nicely and there is character growth. I am Interested in what will happen to the characters next! So on to book two!