Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Light From The Grave
AUTHOR: Sara Dobie Bauer
PUBLISHER: Carnation Books
LENGTH: 352 pages
RELEASE DATE: October 24, 2023
BLURB:
I’m what nightmares are made of, but I’m not sure who’s more dangerous: him or me.
In the world of witches, Keller Rex is a legendary monster—a dark sorcerer with a gift for suffering. He has long been the protector of the Zayne coven and their ancestral home in Charleston, South Carolina. When the family matriarch, Vivian Zayne, dies under mysterious circumstances, he is tasked with finding the only person who can open her sealed Book of Shadows: the son no one knew she had.
Dylan Quinn has never bothered to figure out why cats follow him everywhere, but it’s been that way for as long as he can remember. After the unexpected passing of his adoptive mother, he had to make a new home for himself in small-town Ohio. Things have been quiet ever since, but lately, there are strange voices in his dreams and a sense of being watched.
When a striking Southern gent appears in town, Dylan welcomes the distraction. Keller is handsome and charming, but Dylan can tell there’s something else, something eerie about him. And he discovers he’s right, as Keller goes from being Dylan’s seducer… to his abductor.
Now back in Charleston, Dylan’s newfound family is shocked when it’s discovered his magical affinity is for death itself. Despite his fears, he’ll need to learn to control his terrifying powers in order to open the Zayne Book of Shadows. He also needs to keep his coven safe, and time is running out. The estate’s protective wards expire on Halloween, and power-hungry witches from all over are ready to pounce.
While Dylan’s awakening darkness threatens to overwhelm him, Keller finds himself confronted by feelings he thought long dead. Keller will do anything to protect his young necromancer and open Vivian’s Book of Shadows, but the Zaynes are in for a surprise when Dylan resurrects someone he shouldn’t.
REVIEW:
The Zayne Clan needs Dylan alive. Keller is tasked to retrieve him, but his usual methods do not work. Dylan knows there’s something bad about Keller, but bad boys are his kryptonite. Adopted Dylan, though, has no idea of his true heritage, which throws a whole load of confusion and weirdness into the mix.
OMG, what a book. Light from The Grave is everything weird, beautiful, ugly, and wonderful about the world of witchcraft, and I loved it. I found it enchantingly wicked, turned intriguing, absolutely fascinating, and then damn, there’s the big finish too. I couldn’t put it down.
The story is told in the third person from the viewpoints of Dylan and Keller. As the author provided an uncorrected proof, I won’t comment on the technicalities. Then again, I was so engrossed in the narrative that I didn’t notice anything amiss. Worldbuilding is based in Ohio and Charleston, giving super imagery of people and places. There’s everything from the lighthearted coffee shop to the spooky stately home that was once the personification of opulence, including a family graveyard and hidden passages. As for the characters, they are as eclectic as the scenery. All the characters are intelligent but vary from handsome to an Anima auntie with a pet spider in her hair.
While the story arc surrounds a spell-tomb called the Book of Shadows, which everyone wants, there is plenty of action involving cat familiars, plants, voodoo, magic, and soooo much more. As Dylan is a necromancer, he is as capable of raising the dead as he is of killing the living. His biggest problems are that time is short, and he has a lot of power to control. When the secrets of his heritage were revealed, I was tempted to utter a few famous lines from a particular wizard movie. I soon restrained my impulsion as this story contains nothing involving a ‘Harry’ – but is more akin to The Addams Family (minus the children) with a helluva dose of witchcraft.
Let’s not forget the slow-burn romance between Dylan and Keller. Both have experienced tragedy. Keller, in particular, had well-constructed barriers meant to keep everyone out, and whose demolition added an extra dept that elevated it to full marks.
I loved the eclectic variation of everyone and everything. The storyline navigated the twisted turns of the cast’s individual agendas like a master seaman; it was engaging and sent my emotions on a journey as different as the characters. The blunt, straight-talking was like a breath of fresh air, while the timing of its use was spot on, giving me giggles between the dramas. Also, at one point, I was in tears.
A superbly put-together, gripping novel that I will keep in my favorites.
RATING: 
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