Romance Readers Retreat: Review: Dark Hearts (Light in the Dark #3) by Micalea Smeltzer

*****5 Stars*****

I've been not so patiently waiting for this book ever since Micalea announced that she was going to give Nova and Jace a book of their own. These two characters have had me curious to know more about them since they got introduced in Rae of Sunshine which you don't have to read before this one, but I highly recommend!! This book was everything and more!! It was emotional and angsty and passionate and humorous and you couldn't help but to fall in love with these two amazing characters and the story that they tell. The ways in which Nova and Jace grew and changed one another just amazes me and has me falling in love with them even more. And let's talk about that gorgeous cover!! The cover models match Jace & Nova perfectly.

Jace and Nova are both running from and trying to hide from their pasts. They are proof that like and like attract just as much if not more than opposites. No one really knows Nova, not even her closest friends, but Jace sees the real her and the demons she is struggling with on a daily basis, but he's not afraid because he is just like Nova. However, you can never completely run and hide from your past because it always comes back to find you and change everything.

Jace and Nova are my favorite characters that the author has ever written. They have chemistry and such a strong attraction to one another, not just as lovers but they are best friends as well. I loved the connection between these two and how their friendship grew into something much much more. Jace is cocky, broody, and uber mysterious and you can't help but to fall in love with him and want to peel back all the different layers to him. Nova is sassy, smart, and spirited and the perfect fit for someone like Jace. They have both built up walls around their hearts and vowed to never fall in love but you can't choose who you fall in love with and when love knocks on their dark it is impossible to turn it away.

This is a story about love in it's purest form; A story of struggles, loneliness, friendship, love, and ultimately, healing. Dark Hearts will have you captivated and turning the pages till you are all finished and left wanting more which lucky for us Jace & Nova will be getting a second book!!! I can't wait for more from the author!

Reviewed by Ashley Ziegler

I’ve learned that not everything is what it seems. If you start to look too close, you uncover things people don’t want you to see. It’s why I hide. It’s why no one knows the real me. But he sees me. He sees the darkness in my heart but he’s not afraid, because he’s like me. They say opposites attract, but we’re proof that like-and-like are a far more potent combination.

Novalee Clarke is hiding from a past she wants to leave behind, and Jacen Kensington is running from his.

The thing about hiding and running is eventually the thing you’re trying to escape catches up to you.

And when it does?

It changes everything.