Beyond the Night by Sharon Long

TITLE: Beyond the Night
AUTHOR: Sharon Long
PUBLISHER: Samhain Publishing
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 89k)
GENRE: Historical romance
COST: $5.50

India Ashton’s entire life has been about one thing – searching for the mythical city, Pagoria. Ridge Hadley’s entire life has been about researching it. When a journal and an unexpected letter entwine their lives together, they are sent on a journey across the continent in a quest for truth, answers, and love. Even if loving Ridge is the last thing India wants – or needs – right now.

I wanted to like this story so much. It’s got an absolutely gorgeous cover, with a ton of elements, and the blurb had this grand adventure feel to it that was only made grander by the sense of myth the cover evoked. And I tried. I tried a lot. But by halfway through the story, I realized that it just wasn’t going to happen.

First of all, the writer’s style never engaged me. In the beginning, there were a lot of paragraphs with only a few sentences apiece, all of which started exactly the same way. He did this. He did that. He did this again. It was jerky to read, not to mention boring. It doesn't help that the pace plods along for the first half of the book. Add in the occasional typo and misused word – very atypical for Samhain books – and it was enough to keep me on the periphery of the story.

Then there’s the heroine, India. She starts out quirky and interesting, but by the last third of the story, she’s crying for one reason or another in every single scene. At least, it feels that way. Any potential she had is lost, especially when she spends all her time bemoaning how she’s betrayed Ridge by lying to him. Enough already! Ridge, for his part, was adorable in a geeky kind of way. I felt for him and his desire for a more adventurous life. Too bad he got saddled with a big ol’ crybaby for most of the book.

What promises adventure and romance comes across as a too-long melodrama that devolves into more tears for India. Not my style. I don’t mind heroines showing weakness, but damn it, own your choices. That’s the way to write a heroine I’m going to love.

Readability	6/10 – The author’s writing style is too jerky for me to enjoy, and it doesn’t meet the usual high standards of editing I’ve come to expect from Samhain.
Heroine	5/10 – Weepy through most of the book and I’m not sure I agree with her supposed motivations
Hero	7/10 – Sweet in a geeky kind of way
Entertainment value	4/10 – A heroine I wanted to shake through half the story and a pace like molasses made this a ponderous read.
World building	7/10 – Lovely detail regarding the period, but the author’s style couldn’t get me to appreciate it.
TOTAL:	29/50