Fun book but totally like all the other books in this series. Best character is Elvis. ( )

I've read the four books proceeding this one (After Dark, After Glow, Ghost Hunter and Silver Master) plus the novella that (I believe) started it all, Bridal Jitters and to date I think that other then the duo in Bridal Jitters I haven't fully liked any of the romantic couples featured (to be fair its the same couple in After Dark and After Glow) until this book.

Sierra was a little too reckless to be honest, but other then that I really enjoyed the interaction between Sierra and Fontana. That said the book has 'two' endings, depending on how you look at it. The bad guy is seemingly found out, but a twist near the end makes that just turn upside down slightly. The twist made sense, but was tacked on and not given a lot of development before being pounced on the reader.

The world of Harmony is such an intriguing adventure to be sure. Endless possibilities, but the details given about the original inhabitants of the planet the humans call 'Harmony' make me wish this was more of a scifi book series that would give us a whole book or at least novella with more concrete clues then 'educated' guesses. ( )

In this fifth volume of the Ghost Hunters series, we have the elements we've come to expect: feisty heroine who usually has a downer on ghost hunters, controlled, powerful, hunky hero, cute dust bunnies - the indigenous life form which likes to pair up with (usually) the heroine, a mystery of some kind involving murderer(s) who would stop at nothing, and lots of alien tech and psychic powers.

In brief, Harmony is a colony cut off from Earth for 200 years after being established in the late 21st century. During that time humans have developed psychic powers, perhaps from exposure to psychic energy from the ruins left by departed aliens, which each major city and town has been built around and which extend underground for unknown distances - plus are probably connected by the recently discovered artificial rainforest environment - although the author seems to have found the original powers developed in the first two books rather limiting. We now have various additional abilities which are known to have been brought from Earth by members of the Arcane Society - another of her series - and which do not depend on the mineral found on Harmony, named amber by the colonists, to provide a strengthening focus. Similarly, the ghost hunter talent - the ability to control the errant energy clouds which manifest in and around the underground catacombs, and which are a serious hazard to human explorers - has developed so that as well as its usual manifestation in controlling and manipulating green energy, we have encountered heroes who manipulate blue, silver and now dark energy, all of which have different properties than the usual green light.

As the story begins, reporter Sierra McIntyre is in the office of John Fontana, new chief of Crystal City's ghost hunter Guild. She has been doing a series for her paper alleging Guild involvement in drug manufacturing - a new drug called juice has had an unfortunate and rapid effect on some ex-Guild members who have become homeless addicts. Fontana has recently come into office to replace the former chief who was involved in corrupt activities, including serious drug trafficking. McIntyre is taken aback when Fontana suddenly proposes they enter a Marriage of Convenience that afternoon - he convinces her that her inquiries into the disappearance of the homeless ex-hunters has placed her in danger as well, something that is proven when two men in motorcycle gear attack her as she leaves her apartment to travel to the registrar office. Luckily she is able to reach the nearby tavern where she knows several retired Guild members who come to her rescue, and deliver her in time for her wedding, somewhat dishevelled and bruised.

Sierra is an unusual heroine for this series, rather a dilletante. Most of Castle's previous heroines are career businesswomen, often down on their luck due to previous adversity not of their own making, but trying to get their own businesses going. Sierra at first appears to be a crusading do-gooder as Fontana calls her, but she actually comes from a privileged background and has never settled on a vocation. She has tried one dead end job after another, her stint on a despised tabloid newsrag being the latest. We learn by the end of the story that, despite her zeal to get justice for the washed up guildsmen, and to find out what happened to those who disappeared, she is just as quick to quit the newspaper job for one her new husband provides. Also, unlike the heroines in the previous books, she has no special psychic ability. She has an unexplained claustrophobia, but that doesn't actually impede her from doing anything in the story. I wasn't that keen on her, to be honest, and it was difficult to grasp what Fontana saw in her.

As is usual for this series, the hero and heroine are strongly attracted to each other, and the man is convinced she is the only woman for him, but the heroine needs a lot of persuasion. Despite her friendship with the old guildsmen, Sierra has a low opinion of the Guild itself. The story of their ups and downs romantic journey is interwoven with danger from the motorcycle gang, who are soon shown as working for more powerful figures behind the scenes, and the resolution of the various threads of the drug running and disappearances. For light relief, we again have the heroine's companion dust bunny, this time a bit too cute perhaps with the author milking it for all she's worth: the dust bunny is called Elvis and has a little cloak, miniature pair of glasses and little guitar, plus he spends quite a bit of the time literally floating around on a balloon-powered platform in the newspaper offices. This and Sierra's character were both starting to grate a bit by the end, but the book does just about scrape a 3-star rating. ( )

In the fifth Harmony series book, reporter Sierra McIntyre is investigating a powerful new drug called Ghost Juice and the disappearances of several drug-addicted ex-hunters from the local guild. When the new guild boss promises her an interview, she never expected he would propose marriage.
As the head of the organization, it’s John Fontana’s job to stop the drug flow in his city and to find the missing hunters. Since his and Sierra’s investigations are running side by side, Fontana wants to team up. As the boss’s wife, she’d be safe from their mutual enemies, and they can work together to take down the bad guys.
Fontana and Sierra are amazing together. Though the book takes place within the span of a few days, they fall in love fast but it’s believable.
Though I really liked this book and the series, it’s getting repetitive. Most of the hunter population on Harmony can only harness green ghost light. Blue, silver, and now dark light has been introduced in the last three books. It’s rare when hunters can access different colors of light on the wavelength spectrum, but since it’s been the same plot device for the past three books, it doesn’t seem all that special anymore.
The dust bunnies are my favorite part of this series. Sierra’s bunny, Elvis, loves the spotlight. He wears a leather jacket and serenades other bunnies with his little guitar. I absolutely love this, but it doesn’t make much sense. When the humans settled on Harmony two hundred years ago, they didn’t bring over any art with them. Since music is an art form, I don’t understand how the humans would even know about rock and roll legend Elvis and why the bunny would choose to impersonate him.
Even though I find this book similar to the previous few books, I really enjoyed it and plan to read more in the series.
4 Stars

Disclaimer – I bought this book for my own enjoyment. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
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Dark Light
4 Stars

Intrepid tabloid journalist, Sienna McIntyre, bites off more than she can chew when she confronts Crystal City's new Guild Boss, John Fontana, over the disappearance of several former ghost hunters. Realizing that Sienna's investigation not only imperils the Guild, but also places her life in danger, Fontana convinces her to enter into a Marriage of Convenience for her own protection. But how can Sienna protect her heart from her new husband...

While not the best installment in the series, Dark Light contains all of the elements that make Jayne Castle aka Jayne Ann Krentz a mainstay of the romance genre. Sienna and Fontana are very appealing both as individuals and as a couple. Sienna's occupation as a tabloid journalist has the potential for going seriously wrong, but Krentz presents her as someone who truly cares about others as well as revealing the truth (albeit the Curtain is hardly a source of reliable information). Fontana is a typical stoic Krentz hero, but this is why we love them.

The mystery itself is pretty straightforward with some exciting scenes. While it was initally difficult to wrap my head around the setting on Harmony and the strange terminology, I am getting used to it now. The inclusion of references to traditional psychic abilities as well as the Arcane Society opens up the series to new directions. ( )