Touching Darkness by J. Rush

JRush-Touching DarknessOut of the Darkness by Jamie Rush is the first book of hers that I’ve read, and the second book in the offspring series.  Being introduced to the series in the second book,  I had a small difficulty with following along. Which probably explains my luke warm feelings towards the series when I started Touching Darkness by Jaime Rush.

They live ordinary lives, but they are extraordinary. They are the Offspring, children of a mysterious experiment gone awry—and they are in terrible danger.

Nicholas Braden has an uncanny psychic talent for finding things—which is why he’s been recruited for a covert government program designed to hunt down terrorists. While his work for a shady controller named Darkwell is leading him down some very questionable alleyways, it’s also bringing him closer to Olivia, Darkwell’s stunning young assistant. A “good girl” with a wild, secret side, Olivia tempts Nicholas in ways he never believed possible—and in his business, a loss of control could prove fatal.

But there is something not right about the operation. And as Nicholas and Olivia’s passion reaches a white-hot intensity, chilling reversals of good and evil, of right and wrong, suddenly threaten their very survival.

Having already been introduced to the series by the second book, I had no trouble following along with the story this time. In fact, I would say that having the back story helped tremendously (imagine that!). In my opinion, the hero and heroine were both much more likeable than in Out of the Darkness. Nathaniel is an offspring that works for the antagonist Darkwell.  On one hand he’s being told that the rouges are terrorists who would be willing to commit any number of atrocities to further their causes, and on the other hand that the rouges are just people like him who’ve been persecuted against by Darkwell. His search for the truth makes him doubt everything, and I loved when he decided to get information for himself instead of just blindly following his employer.

Nathaniel isn’t the only offspring that Darkwell’s hired either. There are other, more blood thirsty, individuals who buy everything they are told hook, line, and sinker. They want to destroy the rouges because they believe that it’s for a good cause, and they try any way that they can to weaken the rouges whether it be psychically or physically.

Without a doubt,though, my favorite in Touching Darkness was Olivia. Her personality is pure fire on the inside. Out of necessity she’s been forced to play the part of quiet good girl. Her whole life she’s been lead to believe that it was for her own good, and Olivia’s been loyal to that idea. However, when Nathaniel starts forcing her to ask questions that she’s avoided, some of that attitude starts to shine through. I enjoyed that aspect of her personality immensely. Even more so when she brought the fire to the relationship between her and Nathaniel.

And when I say fire, I’m not even talking about sex. Nope, if anything the tension that was built by these two was better than the actual consummation.   Their interactions throughout the story definitely made for a compelling read, and with the revelations about the BLUE EYES program and Darkwell, had me glued to my seat. Seriously, that ending had me very excited to read the next in the offspring series.

Which goes to show you that just because I wasn’t over the moon for Out of the Darkness, it doesn’t mean (much like I thought it might in the beginning) that I wouldn’t love Touching Darkness by Jaime Rush.  There was action, romance, mystery, and an ending that I didn’t quite see coming. Basically, all my heart desires, and so much more,  when reading a PR book.

Read Order:
A Perfect Darkness
Out of the Darkness
Touching Darkness
Burning Darkness
Beyond the Darkness (Nov 29, 2011)