This was just an ok read. It did not measure up to the others in the series.

"Jayne" has done it again! Dark Light is a paranormal romance set in Harmony a former colony of Earth which has been cut-off when the "curtain" closed. Great Romance and Suspense, bit of mystery in as well. If you like paranormal romance you will love this book.

Absolutely love the Harmony stories. Somehow, Jayne Castle manages to have fresh, interesting stories each time. Can't wait for the next Harmony story.

Jayne Castle/Krentz knows how to spin a good tale and delivers consistantly. I like how her theme stories tie in with one another while maintaining a unique storyline. Its like watching a family grow. It means that if a sixth book comes out I will have to buy it!!

I won't bother with a detailed review. Jayne Ann Krentz writes under the pen-name Jayne Castle only for books about the world Harmony. Filled with Psychic powers and Ghost Hunters.

Its one of the best paranormal series out there and if you've never read any of the Harmony books, you're missing out.

This is an automatic 5/5 and I finished it in one sitting. I just wish she would write more books for this series.

I've read all these books and each one gets better. Start anywhere in the series and enjoy.

Story takes place in Harmony. A world that is populated with earth descendants who were able to travel there via wormhole that no longer exists. This is their new society.

Over-privileged trust-fund baby, Sierra McIntyre, leaves her posh life to be an advocate for something in another town where nobody knows her dad is like the Bill Gates of the future. She gets a job at a local tabloid and actually stumbles on a potential real story.

Her story--- veteran ghost hunters disappearing off the streets. There's this thing called "The Guild" which is like teamsters running a government branch. The parallels between the organization and mob/teamsters are relatively easy to draw. Ghost hunters are like "Special Ops" who based on their natural abilities are able to navigate the catacombs of the alien underworld left by a civilization long gone.

The head of The Guild, Fontana, is the guy she wants to interview to get to the bottom of the ghost hunter disappearances. When they meet, it is electrifying. He proposes they enter into a Marriage of Convenience (as opposed to a Covenant Marriage) which allows them to be sleazy behind closed doors while maintaining some propriety. He does so because he believes she is his best link to finding out more information and he needs to protect her because he believes she is in danger. She agrees because she believes that his role as head of the guild gives her access to things she wouldn't otherwise.

So, off they go investigating and frolicking in pseudo-marital sin while trying to determine the truth.

The whole book was pretty much okay and the juicy parts weren't all that juicy.

The best part was this dust-bunny pet/companion (although Sierra is offended that some people refer to him as a pet, but he is!). Sounded funny. Ball of fuzz that exhibited emotion. Kind of like a Star Trek Tribble. OMG. Did I just geek myself out? Yes, a freakin' Tribble.

I liked the characters and I especially liked Elvis the Dust Bunny. How absolutely cute for the coffee drinking Dust Bunny to be running around in a white sequend cape with sunglasses. Did I mention the "King" coffee cup or the dressing room? HA! Elvis definitely stole "the show." Sierra working for a gossip magazine and Fontana bribing her into marriage was fun to read about, too.

On the bright side, the plot of Dark Light has an interesting and different premise from the others in the Harmony series. Retired Ghost Hunters are being kidnapped off the streets, and/or being lured by an illegal drug called "ghost juice". Both the main characters want to figure out the mysteries of the missing hunters and the source of the new drug. Additionally, a purple ghost light that stuns or kills and seems impenetrable needs to be found and destroyed.

A little mystery (not difficult to figure out and too easily resolved, but still different from the usual), a dust bunny with Elvis aspirations, a new Hunter Talent, romance that blossoms and eventually satisfies.

Unfortunately, there is another side...

The first problem, mentioned by several other reviewers, is the instant marriage decision (within 47 minutes after first meeting) between the main characters, Fontana (a Guild boss) and Sierra (a tabloid journalist). I'll buy an honest attraction, maybe an offer of dinner and drinks, a little dancing, a goodnight kiss (oh, hell, maybe a quick roll in the sack, I'm good with that), but instant marriage? Please. Even with the ridiculous excuse of a way to protect the heroine, the premise didn't come close to credible. Tell the little woman to watch her back, hire a few guards, take her into protective custody, anything, just don't suggest marriage before even holding hands.

Second problem. Ms. Castle, most of us really HAVE read the other books in this series. I don't need the repeated (and repeated) rhetoric about the Curtain closing, UDEMS, para-resonators, etc., etc., etc. I started skimming those references four books ago, I'm sure most of your other fans have as well. We already know the history, plunking it down during the middle of conversations and action sequences is not necessary, is annoying and delays the story.

3 stars because although Dark Light is mediocre for her Harmony books, Ms. Castle/Quick/Krentz is always readable, even when uninspired.

I am so very glad Jayne Ann Krentz has revived the Harmony series. These Ghost Hunters get more and more interesting as each book progresses, and their talents are more and more out there. The phrase "Dark Light" would make no sense to anyone but the readers(and beleivers)of the residents of Harmony. I also love how she gives a nod to all her other series(the Arcane Society), and ties in all the past characters of the Ghost Hunters series. I suppose it would make sense, as Harmony is made up of small city-states. I would like to see her make a romance for a female Ghost Hunter, as we know it's possible(rare, but possible)for women to be hunters. Asd long as she keeps including those cute dust bunnies, I'll be buying this series! I still think she should market these bunnies as toys(I've been saying since the first book I would LOVE to own a dust bunny. I've added it in every review I've ever written about the series)and sell them on her site. I, for one, wouldn't mind owning a six pawed, four eyed piece of dryer lint with lethal teeth and a unique personality. Who wouldn't?

The books in this series are always fun to read if you like fantasy. This book introduces a ghost hunter with a different kind of power. The plot is intricate, the romance is good, and more characters are introduced. I like the series as it continues on from previous books, but each book also can stand alone. The fantasy of humans adapting to another planet is well done and the link between humans and dust bunnies is mysterious.

Before I get to the book (which was OK, not my favorite by this author but not bad), I have to rant about the cover art. If I was unfamiliar with the author, I would have passed on this book purely because of the cover. It is a throwback to the old days of barechested cover models but the model they chose didn't reflect Fontana's appearance or character as described in the book. Sierra thinks no one would describe Fontana as handsome but he is compelling and you would always know he was the man in charge. The cover model doesn't look like a powerful, intriguing man who is head of an organization of dangerous men. He looks like a vaguely pretty boy in a bad wig pouting because the Abercrombie and Fitch closed before he could get to the mall. Even though I wasn't wild about the book, it deserved a better cover than this one. I hope when the publishers do a reprint, they change the cover.

Now to the book. This book continues my general complaint of the author's more recent books (under all 3 of her writing names): there isn't enough romance. And by this I don't mean there isn't enough sex (though readers who want lots of sizzling sex scenes should know there is very little sex on the book). When I read a romance, I want to vicariously experience the characters falling in love. A good romance novelist (and I would definitely put the author in that category) knows how to convey this. I didn't feel much emotional sizzle in the book -- it was a zero hanky read for me.

The action/investigation part of the book is better than the romance aspect, but it wasn't the most compelling plot the author has written. I'm getting a little tired of novels about Guild ghost hunters and dust bunnies. The book references other paranormal abilities in the population so it would be nice to have books about people with those abilities. I liked that Sierra had her own paranormal abilities and it was a nice touch to reference the Arcane Society from the author's books under her Jayne Anne Krentz and Amanda Quick names, but Sierra's abilities weren't used enough except as a warning system. (I note from the excerpt at the back of the book, there is a new Arcane Society novel where the heroine has a similar ability.) The inclusion of the tabloid newspaper as a breaking news source was amusing. A dust bunny Elvis was less amusing. Doesn't anyone in Harmony have a different pet?

My opinion of this book is probably more negative because I had just finished re-reading (for the umpteenth time) "Orchid," one of the author's much earlier "through the Curtain" novels. This book did not compare favorably. "Orchid" (as well as "Amaryllis" and "Zinnia") had all the plot and action of this book plus a lot more romance. I hope the author will look back at her earlier books and remember how she wrote the emotional story.

In the meantime, I highly recommend that readers go out and find Orchid, Zinnia and Amaryllis. I think they are out of print but at least 2 of them are fairly easy to find.

Okay, so we all know what is going to happen in these books. Castle is going to go on and on about the Rez and the catacombs and the discussion about the curtain closing.
But, we all know this about these books when we purchase them. The things that make this wonderful are the sense of humon, wit, and sheer likeability of the characters.
Unlike some of the other reviewers I actually enjoyed the two main characters together and found them to be believable together. Elvis was a cute addition to the group.
Its a light weight book. But given that its the fifth book in the series, it doesn't come as a huge surprise, at least to me.

A huge plus for readers new to the Harmony/Ghost Hunter world is that Castle does a very thorough intro to the history of Harmony and the Curtain and explains how everything works in the Ghosthunter world where psychic talent is the power that makes their technology work. While this is good for new fans, this does make the start a bit slow for those of us that have read all 9 or so of the books.

These books have become sort of formula, but I like the world and the leads are normally pretty good, with the heroine that doesn't quite fit into her role in Harmony's society and the hero who starts from his bad boy beginnings to rise to wealth and power while retaining his honor. But of course there is an instant physical and psychic attraction. I like both tabloid journalist/socialite Sierra and Ghost Hunter/Guild Boss John Fontana but Dark Light just didn't have the intensity of previous Harmony and Ghost Hunter books. The time frame of the story is short, about a week or so and even though the leads get married the day they meet, the development of the relationship and consummation doesn't happen 'til late in the book. Though John derezes five ghosts on the wedding day and he later melts amber, both incidents happen before they've formed any type of connection, so we don't get the expected payoff either time. Which was a bit disappointing - the sizzling effects of the 'hunter burn' are one of the best parts of the Ghost Hunter formula.

Oh and dustbunnies I almost forgot, the wierd little sidekicks, I normally love them, but the whole dressing up 'piece of lint' dustbunny Elvis as 'the King', just didn't do it for me. What I did like were Sierra's fellow tabloid employees, they brought a bit of life to the story as they jazzed up the facts of Sierra's wedding and honeymoon to come up with outrageous scoops and headlines when Sierra's life becomes front page tabloid fodder.

So while this was not an episode to die for it was still entertaining. I am hoping that Castle hasn't gotten tired of writing these and she rezzes the next one back up to her normal levels. If you like these light paranormal mystery romances where the leads have psychic powers, check out Castle's Arcane Society books. She has both contemporaries and historicals written as her alter egos Jayne Krentz, and Amanda Quick. And if you are already an Archane Society fan, now you can enjoy stories set in the past, present and future.

I enjoyed Dark Light but not as much as the past Harmony and Ghost Hunters books. I am content with the formula for the books, and both the leads were just fine, but this one just didn't have the intensity of earlier books. It could be due to the short time frame of the story, and the leads don't connect 'til late in the book AND we don't get the expected payoff either the time Ghost Hunter/Guild Boss John Fontana derezes five ghosts or the time he melts amber. The sizzling effects of the 'hunter burn' are one of the best parts of having a Ghost Hunter lead, otherwise he might as well be just some other 'para'.

Also the dust bunnies are normally one of my favorite parts of the story but the whole dressing up a 'piece of lint' as Elvis, just didnt' do it for me. So I guess the best parts of the story were the parts with Sierra's fellow tabloid employees jazzing up the stories of Sierra's wedding and honeymoon to come up with outrageous titles as Sierra's life becomes front page tabloid fodder.

One good thing about the book for new readers, besides not being tainted by expectations of what the story should be, is that Castle does a very thorough intro to the Ghost Hunter world and explains how everything works, this does make the start a bit slow for those of us that have read all 9 or so of the books.

So while this was not an episode to die for, I still enjoyed Darklight and I am hoping that Castle hasn't gotten tired of writing these. If you like these light paranormal mystery romances where the leads have psychic powers, check out Castle's Arcane Society books she has both contemporaries and historicals written as her alter egos Jayne Krentz, and Amanda Quick. And if you are already an Archane Society fan now you can enjoy stories set in the past, present and future.

Another fun book in this series. Fast paced, great characters, and the added bonus of my favorite 'dust bunny'. This 'dust bunny' has lots of character. It's not as romantic or sexy as it could have been, but it was still a good read.

Jayne Castle's Dark Light is another tale of her imaginary land of Harmony and along with a wonderful hero and heroine she gives us a dust bunny named Elvis complete with cape and guitar. It's a great story with memorable characters and spooky evil doers, but have no fear the good guy always prevails.

Jayne Castle excels at writing crisp, believable dialog and this book was a delight to read. At times I found myself laughing out loud or repeating aloud a particularly humorous line. Sierra was a strong, stubborn woman who could (usually) be reasoned with and I thought John Fontana was very sexy -- sure he was a "take charge" kind of guy but Sierra did a good job of standing up for herself and not letting him run roughshod over her. They were a good match and I enjoyed watching them each come to realize that as they solved the mystery together.

My favorite character in this story was the Dust Bunny, Elvis. I liked that he was prominent throughout and was fully fleshed (fuzzed?) out. Some of the best and funniest segments of the book featured or co-starred Elvis. He was so very cute and quite protective of Sierra. Adorable chemistry between Sierra & Elvis!

I thoroughly enjoyed this light fun read and look forward to visiting Harmony again soon.

Earth has colonized the world of Harmony but they were not the final sentient species to do so. A mysterious alien race built underground catacombs filled with psi energy that over time manifested among the earthy colonists with each generation growing is psi skill. The mysterious aliens are gone leaving only their infrastructure.

Tabloid reporter Sierra McIntyre is interviewing new Ghost Hunter Guild Chief John Fontana, who can manipulate psi energy so that it doesn't hurt anyone. Sierra is worried about former and homeless Guild member addicted to ghost juice and believes Fontana should tale care of the problem. She is also concerned that former impoverished hunters have disappeared without a trace and demands John investigate. Less than an hour after they meet, John proposes a marriage of convenience so they can combine their resources to investigate the issues that he feels generate from within the guild and to protect Sierra who is in danger from those shadows behind the disappearances. On their first night as husband and wife, someone using an alien artifact breaks into John's property with nasty intent. They escape into the catacombs for now, but traps and danger await them on every turn as the conspirators need to kill Mr. and Ms. Fontana to avoid discovery and disclosure.

It is always great to visit Harmony where Jayne Castle escorts readers through great romance and compelling mystery in an alien combo sci-fi fantasy world. The latest thriller is exciting and fast-paced as the alien objects are used by avaricious people to gain more power. The pairing of Sierra and John enhances their inquiry into what is going on inside the Guild as fans of the saga will relish this strong paranormal romantic whodunit.

Harriet Klausner

This is Jayne's most recent story of the world on Harmony with it's great characters, Ghost Hunter Guilds, and animal companion dust bunnies. This is John Fontana and Sierra McIntyre's story of meet, instant attraction, work together to find out who is dealing the new drug "ghost juice" and what is happening to the disappearing retired ghost hunters. Of course, good triumphs over evil. Not going to spoil the plot for you. This particular bunny "Elvis," was adorable. I loved the way Jayne gave him such personality and he wore a sparkling cape, sun glasses, had a miniature dressing room and floating around in a box attached to balloons. The "King" was alive as a dust bunny. The whole story was great. Also liked that Sierra was not the normal denizen psychic powered resident of Harmony using amber, but was a non-Harmony related talent inherited from relatives of the Arcane Society that migrated to Harmony...thus tying in her Victorian and Modern Arcane Society books in with this series. Great job and an enjoyable read.

I was excited to hear about a new Ghost Hunter book. The first two were really good and the others were good. This one was just so much fluff.

The two main characters were instantly attracted to one another and married later in the day on the thinnest of premises. What is it with having your pet with you all the time. It is like someone carrying around a Poodle - an affectation. Elvis? Costumes? This is the only developed charcter in the whole book. The mystery wasn't one and easily resolved. The love scenes rote.

I was disappointed in the book. Perhaps Ms. Krentz needs to stop writing for a while and recharge her creative juices.

I thoroughly enjoyed this audio book. I couldnt put it down. I'm curious to find out if Harmony is the setting for a future Arcane Society book. In Dark Light we found out that Sierra's entire family are still members of the Arcane Society. Her ancestors were members when they came thru the curtain. Sierra's psychic gifts have nothing to do with alien psy energy. This reader wonders what Jayne has in store for us in the future!!!

I just love reading Jayne Ann Krentz whether she writes under Krentz, Amanda Quick, Jayne Castle, or Stephanie James, I've been her fan for years. Right now, she is writing futuristic romance under the name Jayne Castle. This series is about Harmony which is another world which mankind discovered by going through the "curtain" and got stuck there when the curtain closed. Over the past couple of centuries, people have developed psychic powers.

Dark Light is the latest in a series; however, it is not necessary to read the entire steries to understand this story. It is complete in itself. While there is some information provided for the new reader to understand Harmony, it is not so much that it bores the loyal reader.

If you like your romance with suspense and a touch of the paranormal, this story is for you!

Jayne Krentz (Jayne Castle is one of her nom de plumes) is always a good read. She has a real gift for dialogue and strong characters. This book is no exception.

Her books have always been somewhat formulaic and have become more so, but that's probably unavoidable when you've written a gazillion of them. Here's the plot for this and most of her other books - plucky do-gooder woman meets somewhat emotionally closed-off but good man, instant attraction ensues which they approach cautiously (because, you know, they're not easy), some outside, evil force is threatening them, man resolves it with woman's help. In the meantime, the woman (just by being herself) resolves whatever family problems the man had which led him to be closed off in the first place.

In Krentz's paranormals the characters each have some sort of paranormal ability which is outside of the normal range of paranormal talents. In this case, the man (Fontana) can produce "dark" light, as distinguished from the normal green that virtually all ghost hunters use. This men-who-use-light-other-than-green thing has been the exotic aspect of the heroes of the last several books, but in this one it wasn't integrated into the story much at all as it had been with previous novels. The female lead (Sierra) has a highly developed intuition, also not particularly integral to the plot.

All in all, not one of her better efforts, but I love Krentz's writing and will continue to read all of her new releases, although perhaps not at full price as soon as they're released.

Three and a half stars for this one.

The fifth in the Castle (Krentz) Harmony series, sees Sierra McIntyre, a tabloid journalist, in danger due to her stories exposing the Crystal City Guild. Enter guild boss John Fontana who decides the best way to keep her safe is to marry her. The two delve into the mysterious disappearances of retired ghost hunters and the emergence of a new destructive street drug. All appear to be tied to the Guild. For comic relief there is a dust bunny that dresses as Elvis.
This is not one of the strongest books in the series, though it has its moments. It was slow moving in parts and the mystery was not fleshed out as well as in previous books. But if you're a fan of the Harmony series, you'll pick it up and be satisfied. It is probably a 3 1/2 starred book but couldn't give it that.

Love all of her work. Loved this one. Could not put it down. I actually stayed up late reading it, and paid for it the next morning.

Sierra McIntyre is an investigative reporter who is determined to uncover the Ghost Hunter Guild's secrets. Sierra has reason to suspect that homeless hunters are being kidnapped off the streets for criminal purposes, and she is determined to find out the truth. John Fontana is the newest guildmaster. Granting Sierra an interview, Fontana is immediately overwhelmed by the strong feelings he has for Sierra and offers her a business arrangement marriage in order to give her access to the guild, and at the same time woo her. Together, Sierra and Fontana, face numerous dangers to uncover the conspiracy that is going on in his guild.

This latest offering of Castle on her imaginary world of Harmony is easily the weakest yet. Castle assumes that none of her readers have discovered her previous books and spends about 100 pages retelling the history of Harmony, the ability to work amber, the different psi talents, the alien artifacts, etc. etc. I was never so bored with a book in my life. Finally, we get past all the tedious background and get to the story, which really wasn't much better. The chemistry between Fontana and Sierra seemed forced at times, the other characters seemed one dimensional and the mystery/suspense was really flat. The romance was only good in spots. Naturally one can't help loving Jayne's dustbunnies, but even this one was overdone and over the top. Do we really have a heroine who dresses her dustbunny up like Elvis and characters who make lame jokes about "Elvis has left the building"? Yes, we do. One last beef, the hero's name was John Fontana. Throughout the entire book - even in the love scenes, the heroine calls him Fontana. I don't know about you guys, but when I am in an intimate moment, I don't call my lover by his last name, even if he goes by it a lot. I waited eagerly for this book, as I truly enjoy Castle's Harmony series. Most of the books are 4 to 5 star reads. Sadly, this one stunk.

Anytime Jayne writes about the planet Harmony, I will buy it. I like the ambiance of the tunnels and the psi powers. There are alot of similarities between AFTER GLOW and this novel I still enjoyed it. I read to be entertained and I was. The mystery was good and the story was OK, I liked the romance. I really enjoy the dust bunnies and their antics. I also find that we learn more about the governing of the Guild's with every new book in the series. I will still buy each and every book set on Harmony. Jayne Castle aka Jayne Ann Krentz is able to take me on a journey every time I read one of her novels.

Sierra McIntyre is a reporter on the "Globe" of Harmony. Wild stories and wilder headlines, but she is seriously writeing about the Guild. She has very intense intution and has picked up tales of an alien lab being found in the jungle under Harmony. She is also worried for the burned out hunters, who are winding up on the street addicted to the new drug, ghost juice. Sierra comes from a very rich, prominent family. She is from a family of over-achievers.

John Fontana is the Guild Boss of Crystal City. He is the new boss. The old boss was corrupt and Fontana can't trust anyone in his new administration. He is also born out of wedlock. Which is not a usual thing on Harmony. The ability to enter into a Marriage of Convenience or an MC, instead of a Covenent Marriage or CM, has virtually eleminated the birth of out of wedlock children. But Fontana is nothing if not driven. He has pulled himself up the Guild ladder to his new position.

Finally Sierra manages to get an interview with Fontana. Both feel the sizzle when they meet. He convinces her he needs her help to find out what is happening in the Guild. He has been sent here with one other guy to staighten out the mess. He needs at least one more person he can trust. Sierra is friends with many of the hunters on the street, and many of her stories come from them. Fontana needs access to her informants.

I like the way the story reveals each of the main charactes intermost feelings and thoughts. It opens up the romance and gives you a better understanding of these complicated people. I really did enjoy it and I am willing to spend the 8 dollars to be able to visit Harmony again.

Great addition to the Ghost Hunter series. I could not put this book down! It was a fun read cover to cover. I liked the primary and secondary characters. Plot moved along well, had some nice twists along the way. Gotta love those dust bunnies.