Daria Karpova is a rising author with a sharp newsletter available at her website (http://www.dariakarpova.com/impressions.htm). As she explains on her site, she writes "fantasy noir, urban fantasy, romantic action/adventure, thriller and the occasional horror." Loose Diamonds is kind of a cross between Indiana Jones and The Mummy (only not), with a little bit of Hawaii Five-0 thrown in. It is an adventure, but there is more.

We meet our heroine in Rio; she is Cherise Sartori, a rich babe with a rock and roll lifestyle, a rock star party hearty boyfriend we never meet, and a private plane with a missing pilot. When her chauffeur eventually shows up, he is none other than Leif Gerritsen, the famous--or rather infamous--archeologist who takes her to a pit stop to meet with her uncle's partner. Cherise is supposed to deliver a mysterious briefcase to said partner and then be off on her merry way. Instead of being in control as she normally is, she feels woozy--as if she were drugged, has a confrontation aboard the helicopter and then wakes up two hundred miles from Rio de Janeiro. Then she is more than just kidnapped--she is . . . but I shouldn't say any more.

In Loose Diamonds, we cross over from an "Indiana Jones" type story into the paranormal world of vampires, and beyond. Toward the end, there's a suggestion that indicates there could be more of Cherise's story to come. This is a good thing, because Cherise and Leif have a very hot developing relationship, and definitely there are events pending in the green room. Daria just scratches the surface of her paranormal world and leaves me, as a reader, eager to read more of the mythology unfolding behind her paranormal characters. Cherise and Leif have an interesting relationship and highly sexual encounters, which are enhanced by the tension of a situation that menaces them both. A sexy read, with adventure on the side.

Reviewed By Maîtresse
© Dec 2004