Review: Shadowfae by Erica Hayes

Title: Shadowfae

Author: Erica Hayes

Genre: Erotic Dark Urban Fantasy

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Series: The Shadowfae Chronicles #1

~*~Blurb from Author Website~*~

In a city infested with psychotic fairies and run by sadistic vampire mafiosi, life as a soul-sucking succubus rarely involves lacy lingerie, hot guys or great sex.

Enslaved by a demon lord, Jade must spend her nights seducing vampire gangsters and shapeshifting thugs. After two hundred years as a succubus, she burns for freedom and longs to escape her brutal life as a trophy girl for hell's minions.

Then, she meets Rajah, an incubus who touches her heart and intoxicates her senses. Rajah shares the same bleak fate as she, and yearns just as desperately for freedom. But the only way for Jade to break her bonds is to betray Rajah—and doom the only man she's ever loved to a lifetime in hell.

If you like your fantasy stories edgy, dark, and highly sensual, then this may be the book for you! This is an erotic and dark urban fantasy playground for the not-so-nice, sensual creatures that go bump in the night. It is a story of betrayal, self-loathing, passion, cruelty, and absolution. Shadowfae will introduce you to a new way of thinking about fairies, demons, other fantastical creatures, and the tales that surround them. You will be captivated in an unique urban setting of Australia where creatures 'glamour' their wicked selves to hide amongst humans. 

In Shadowfae, the first book of The Shadowfae Chronicles, you are introduced to a world that is dominantly ruled by arrogant and highly dangerous demon lords and vampire mafiosi. Jade is a succubus who is enslaved by one of the most dangerous demon lords, Kane, to work her alluring magic -- called rapture-- at his bidding. But, it's a dangerous catch-22 for Jade. For not only does she seduce at Kane's demands, but she also needs to, in order to gain the needed 'energy' she gains through sexual satisfaction to survive. 


Unfortunately for Jade, her horrible enslavement causes her to be looked down upon by  not just men, but herself as well. She loathes her life, one of which she never asked for, but was thrust upon her by someone in her past who she loved and trusted. You really do feel sorry for the cards that were dealt in her life.


But, Jade is not alone in being Kane's property. Rajah Seth, an incubus, is also working through his 1,000 year enslavement, much to his own abhorrence. However, unlike Jade, he thinks he may have found a way to break the tie that binds him to that life of hell-- by stealing souls. When Jade becomes aware of this loop-hole, she and Rajah seemingly work together to rid themselves of Kane, while unexpectedly falling hard for one another. Unfortunately, fate has made their task quite difficult. For one can not gain freedom without damning the other. And, in the mix of trying to free themselves, they are also still bound by duty, which puts them in the path of a wicked creature trying to poison the fae.


Both the hero and heroine have tragic pasts that thrust them into the aweful present.-- both are essentially sex slaves -- hence, succubus and incubus. They are both survivors and pawns in a dangerous game of seduction. But, both are tired of being used and abused at the hands of others, and seek out affection and acceptance, neither of which are forseeable in their present circumstance. Rajah is a fantastic hero that has a perfect mixture of affection, dominance, and arrogance. He knows he's found something  special in Jade, but after a life time of living alone in a cold-hearted world makes you cynical.


Jade is just the same. I found it interesting that her name is in fact Jade, because I immediately think of her as jaded with her life of promiscuity due to her enslavement. While she is a true survivor, I often wished she had more faith in herself. Sometimes her self-berating got a little much.



Shadowfae is a highly erotic and dark story. You are introduced to a host of creatures, of which you can get lost and confused in different mafiosi names, and 'sides', if you don't pay attention. This sometimes made it hard for me to have a solid connection with the characters. The fantasy world of magically glamored creatures that walk amidst the unsuspecting humans is creatively and vividly wrote. Ms. Hayes writing style is detailed and sprinkled with unique ways of describing the atmosphere and objects. The story is told by alternating between first person through Jade's perspective, and third person.


Ms. Hayes uses rich descriptors to describe the atmosphere and dark sensuous creatures that make up this unique world, who are unapologetic in their use of drugs, sex, and unlawful activities in order to have fun, as well as survive.  

"The queue outside the club stretched down the street outside a black velvet rope, blue neon glowing overhead. Bats flapped in the streetlights. Cars cruised past, drivers hanging out the window to check out the scenery, and there was plenty to check out. Unseelie Court attracts the finest and freakiest Melbourne has to offer, and the line was a flashbulb forest of Lycra-bursting breasts, tanned female legs in fishnets, buffed boy muscles in rainbow colors, and the glitter, glass, and glamour of gorgeous fae. The hottest action, the coolest drugs, the most expensive drinks in town -- the Court had it all."

~*~Final Thoughts~*~

This is definitely an adult category book based on the high amounts of sexual content and language. If you don't like a lot of sex in your reading, than this book isn't for you. However, if you're a lover of erotic dark urban fantasy, with an unique setting, wicked and sensual characters, with a dash of paranormal romance, then I'm sure you'll love Shadowfae. 


And because I accidentally read the series out of order, if you read Shadowfae and are intrigued by world and characters, then I also recommend that you check out the next installment of the series, Shadowglass, which I liked even better (rated 4.5).

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