Review: Beautiful Nightmare by L.C. Son

The fine line between reality and hauntingly sensual dreams become blurred in Beautiful Nightmare, an intriguing and creative paranormal romance by L.C. Son.

It’s the day before art buyer Damina Nicaud’s wedding to Jackson Nash, a fiancé any woman would be proud to call her own. Hunky, refined and with a good head on his shoulders, Jackson is the perfect catch, and yet Damina can’t help being affected by these hauntingly sensual dreams she’s been having lately involving golden oaks, a white wolf and a mystery man who smells spicy and sweet. She’s sure the elusive man of her dreams isn’t her fiancée.

After breakfast and some pampering at a spa with her aunt and cousin, they take Damina to her favorite restaurant where she’s surprised to find a gathering of family and friends, lovingly orchestrated by Jackson. Things between Damina and Jackson become passionate after he drives her home but cooler heads eventually prevail when they reluctantly agree not to consummate their relationship until after their wedding – which is why Damina’s shocked to discover Jackson in the arms of another woman later in the afternoon when she goes back to his house.

With the help of her friend, Allyson, a heartbroken Damina quickly leaves D.C. for the relative anonymity of New Orleans. Once there, her vivid dreams continue, compounded by things in her appearance that she can’t seem to explain but these are the least of her problems as Damina soon discovers things about herself, including the truth about her orphaned state…

A well-written paranormal romance, Beautiful Nightmare seamlessly blends the real with the fantastic – a creative story where the element of fantastic is believable, where the romance is irresistible, and where the cast of characters add conflict yet propel the plot forward. The novel certainly delivers with a creative story and the element of fantastic that’s simply put, quite fantastic. Son uses location and setting effectively to convey emotion and atmosphere; her dream sequences are eloquent with a poetic flair and at times, there’s a careful reverence in the words she’s chosen, elevating the novel over other works in the genre.

Damina, Dalcour and Jackson make for an intoxicating combination of intrigue and sensuality but despite these many positive attributes, the novel is far too long, which is the main mark against it. While detail is important in order to effectively convey atmosphere in a fantasy universe, long passages of descriptive detail tend to bog down the narrative and impede plot development. Character descriptions about their attire, as well as long passages focused on a character’s personality traits, should be pared down to relevant details and it’s here that the old adage of less is more certainly applies.

While the novel could certainly use some paring down, at its core is an original and entertaining work of paranormal romance. With attractive and compelling characters, a solid story, intrigue, and romance, Beautiful Nightmare is sure to appeal to fans of the genre, especially those who love an epic story.