✨ 𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪 ✨

𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗔.𝗟. 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀𝗼𝗻

𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗 𝗜𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘:
🖤 urban fantasy
💭 forbidden romance
🖤 fated mates
💭 two words collide
🖤 morally grey MMC
💭 only one bed
🖤 on the run
💭 open door romance
🖤 dual POV

𝗕𝗟𝗨𝗥𝗕: Aria lives her life normally within society while she is awake, but lives a totally different life while asleep. When Aria falls asleep, she falls into a whole other realm called Tearsmith that she has been chosen for. Tearsmith is actually her sanctuary, but while there, it is Aria’s duty to enter Faydor, where she is to fight off the Kruen. The Kruen are threats to the human world & provide vulnerable humans with nothing but viscous & cruel thought. Within the realm of Tearsmith, Aria has a Nol who is her fated mate named Pax. Aria & Pax are only allowed to be together while in Tearsmith & Faydor. If they find each other in the human realm, it can lead to trouble. However, when Pax feels that Aria is in danger, there is nothing that will stop him from protecting her.

𝗠𝗬 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦: I truly enjoyed this first ever romantasy by Amy! I loved the uniqueness of the story with the escape to a completely different realm while asleep. Pax is the ultimate possessive & protective fated mate. There is absolutely nothing that would ever stop him from making sure that Aria is safe. I loved the forbidden aspect & all the angst & tension between them. Pax’s f*ck it moment was inevitable with how much Pax & Aria feel for each other. This one does end on a bit of a cliffhanger, but I am excited to see what happens next in the series!

Aria & Pax

I am and have been a HUGE fan of Amy's books since I rediscovered my love of reading a few years ago. As a romantasy fan knowing that Amy was taking a stab at writing one was incredibly exciting. The cover of this book is absolutely STUNNING and I think my overall excitement had me both over-hyping the anticipation of what was to come while also being afraid I wouldn't love it as much as I love her contemporary romantic suspense novels. And I do have some mixed feelings-I rated this a 3.5 but rounded up because I love A.L. Jackson 🤷🏼‍♀️

The entire premise of the story was so unique and had so much promise. I loved the idea of people not necessarily being inherently bad, but succumbing to these shadow-like demons whispering the evil thoughts into their minds and encouraging them to pursue heinous acts, while select humans travelled to a different realm in their sleep to fight off as many of the evil shadow-demons as they could. It was interesting and captivating and could be interpreted as a unique spin on mental illness in some senses.

I adored Pax's fierce longing and desire to protect Aria above all else. The angst and undeniable connection between them was palpable. It is common for Amy to write protective MMCs, but what I really liked was that even though Pax was not a fan that he couldn't be the one to vanquish her enemies in the end, he respected her decision and helped Aria execute the plan she put in place even though it put her in danger.

Pax and Aria have had a connection since they were little and while forbidden, they developed feelings for one another they knew they couldn't act on. That said, I would have loved for more on page romance. I gleaned the insight to their connection, but given they were on the run and fighting for their lives during the day, then supposed to be fighting demons in their sleep, there wasn't a ton of room for romance beyond what was implied. Additionally, because there was so much going on and everything was happening so fast, there wasn't a ton of character development.

Overall, I really liked the story and I truly believe it has so much potential as a series, however I would have loved more character development, on page romance and less telling and more showing of some of the things taking place with the other characters. I have some serious suspicions about the rules they are required to follow and am hoping that more comes to light around their validity in future books! That said, I will absolutely continue reading the series and would love if we got more information and backstory on some of the side characters too.

Thank you so much to A.L. Jackson, NetGalley, Montlake, and Valentine PR for the ARC.

Pax and Aria are the perfect match - born to fight the Kruen while they sleep. It is against the rules to meet in the real world. But a lot of things were not supposed to happen.
The Laven are only supposed to be able to bind and remove Kruen in Faydor - but Aria can dust them in the real world. Ghorls are not supposed to be real - no one has ever seen one in recent memory. But one is after Aria. What are they going to do?
I am obsessed with this! The world building is so good, the torture of the rules keeping them apart, the suspense of being the run. That ending!!!!
Main points:
❤️ Dark Romantasy - Paranormal
✨ Star crossed Fated Mates
❤️ Dual universes
✨ Chosen One & Protector
❤️ Don't touch her
✨ Cliffhanger
❤️ Found family

Wow! I absolutely loved this book. Amazing characters and wonderful plot. Very beautifully written and easy to read.

Aria Rialta lives in two worlds. By day she is a normal girl, but at night she is a warrior, that saves people. Her parents think she’s unstable.

Aria desperately wants her Nol, her soulmate, Pax, but know it’s impossible for them to be together, or is it?

Overall I loved this book very much. If you’re looking for a forbidden, dark romantasy then you’re going to love it.

2.5 ⭐️ 2 🌶️

😮‍💨 that was a tough one to get through.

Let me just start by saying that the synopsis of this sounded amazing and like something I have never read before. Aria is struggling to make her parents believe that she’s not hurting herself. In truth she travels to a world (Tearsith) while she sleeps and helps battle the demons that inhabit people minds in the human world. Those battles leaving scars on her the next day. But she’s not alone, there are others out there who are like her. All pale with grey eyes who travel to the same realm every night. But there’s one person she years to see more than anyone, Pax, the boy who’s always been there for her. And he’s not gonna let anything happen to her. Especially as the two worlds seem to be colliding and rules have to be broken.

But getting to understand all of that within the first 20% was extremely difficult. It switches from first pov to third when she enters Tearsith and there are a few chapters where it switches within. So trying to understand the world it’s building is confusing at first. And unfortunately it only slightly gets better. After deciding to finish it, I’m left with almost the same amount of questions as I started with. The concept was there, it just didn’t click for me.

Tropes:
•dual realms
•battle of good/evil
•fated mates?
•graphic violence

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦."

Ok, I really wasn’t sure what to expect with this book but I’m so glad I signed up through @valentine_pr_ on a whim! I truly haven’t read any romantasy like this before! And the fact that it’s @aljacksonauthor first romantasy book?? I’m impressed. I was confused for a bit of this but is it really good fantasy/romantasy if you don’t think “wtf is going on” at the beginning a few times 😂 I did not expect the cliffy!! Now I (im)patiently wait for book 2!

Thank you @aljacksonauthor & @valentine_pr_ for the early copy!!

OKAY AL JACKSON!! We see you!! Romantasy moment and I’m here for it.

I thought this book was so elegantly written. I felt like I was living in this world with Aria and it helped me really see this Romantasy and be immersed.

Aria and Pax were so good together. They had some tortured moments for sure but the struggle made the romance that much better - THE TENSION! The depth of the characters, the double life, the connection, I had so much fun.

It was action packed, had a good ol’ cliffy and I can’t wait to gobble up the next one! Thank you so much to the author and Valentine PR for the ARC!

This is my first romantasy of the year and what a good start!

“Visions of Darkness” has everything that I think anyone who is not used to reading fantasy would love: the world building is really easy to understand as well as the powers and everything in between. It’s dual POV and undoubtedly well written.

I love this couple so much, especially how loyal, protective and fearless Pax is - if you, like me, completely love a boy obsessed and protective, Pax will take over your top book boyfriends immediately.

One of my favorite things about this story was seeing Aria so loyal to her own family. The way she loves them and trying her best to be the best possible to all of them is heartbreaking and brough to this story a deeper meaning.

My favorite thing about this book was by far the writing. There’s always something so poetic about A.L. Jackson words: the way she describes love and how the main characters see each other is mesmerizing and made me love them even more.

I am really excited to read about them and I am hoping and praying for a book two in this series!

A spellbinding story!

I have to say I was not prepared to be pulled into an overpowering, intense and intoxicating fantasy world in the blink of an eye, that had me on the edge from page one.
Visions of Darkness is the first romantasy by A.L. Jackson, bringing us the story of Aria and Pax.
Introducing a dream like world where evil is defeated before it corrupts the real world more, with a race of supernatural beings destined to protect. A story filled with power and a purpose, of two worlds ready to collide, of two souls tethered in both worlds, a forbidden relationship and an overpowering touch of darkness that will leave your heart in your mouth.
I do have to say that at the beginning it had me a tad confused but as the story unfolds I couldn’t put it down and then the twists and turns they had to confront along their journey until the very end and the cliffhanger left me only wanting more.
So if you are looking for a fantasy world to loose yourself into, be prepared.

This was such an interesting concept and I don’t think I’ve read anything like it! This was a sloowwwww burrnnnnnnn. I was literally yelling at my kindle “JUST KISS ALREADY” 😂 I think this was a great start to the series and the cliffhanger has me wanting book 2 asap!

A very interesting storyline w/ different worlds & a unique magic system. It reminds me of this one movie that I’ve been wracking my brain to remember, but basically Aria & Pax see each other in their dreams- Ik there are probably a tons like it, but this was such a great romantasy take on it. Esp this slow burn w/ a forbidden romance trope? Love. Most of it was a very strong world building & heavily storyline focused, which was a great set up for Book 2 ‘cause she def left us on a cliff w/ this one!!

Entering my AL Jackson romantasy era! 💫

I’ve fallen in love with Amy’s writing the moment I read one of her books for the first time. Back then, I might not have realised I’d discovered a new favourite author, but by the time I read her second book, I was sure of it.

Considering this is a fantasy genre, and I refuse to spoiling this story, I’ll be brief with my thoughts.

Meet Aria, a sweet girl living an ordinary life by day. But when night falls and she drifts into sleep, she enters another existence—much darker and more dangerous. In this world, it’s her mission to help destroy an enemy that brings sin, chaos, and terror to everyday human world.

Thankfully in this different reality and different life of Aria’s, she isn’t fighting for the good alone. She has a family there, and more than that—her soulmate, Pax.
He will stop at nothing to protect her and keep her safe.

Pax and Aria’s connection is incredible. There was never a doubt in my mind that they were soulmates—destined to be together, created to spent an eternity side by side.
The way Pax cares for Aria, protects her, loves her… this man. ❤️

I really enjoyed the concept of this story. And honestly after talking with a friend about this book, I saw it in a whole new light. It ended up being more impactful to me than I initially expected.

Now, the ending of this book definitely left me on edge. Saying that I’m a bit (or very much) scared of what’s to come would be entirely accurate.

Still, I’m excited to see what Amy brings us in the next instalment—and hopefully, it won’t completely destroy me.

What a thrill this book is as Ms. Jackson deviates from her usual trope to bring readers a romantasy fit for the ages with Aria and Pax. The beauty of this book is the way the mind creates the scenes so while reading it feels like you are seeing everything play out as if watching a movie. In some ways, I was reminded of the film Ladyhawke meeting Escape to Witch Mountain because you have two people, Aria and Pax, who meet at night but live separate lives during the day and are on a quest to find answers. However, Aria and Pax are fated mates and their bond is strong. They are tasked with ridding the evil that infects humans created by the Kruen. Buckle up and ride this journey alongside these two dynamic characters. I cannot wait to see what the author has coming next!

🌸 🅰🆁🅲 🆁🅴🆅🅸🅴🆆 🌸
3.75⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝘼𝙫𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 on KU and Audio🎧

I already adore A L Jackson's writing . Her time series is 😚👌 so I was very excited to see her branching into Fantasy/ Romantasy.

◇Fates mates
◇Dream Realm
◇Fighting evil creatures
◇Forbidden Love
◇Mutual pining
◇Chosen one
◇I will always come for you

This is a very unique premis , not your typical fantasy romance setting.

The basis of this being that there are evil creatures that can " talk " to normal humans and corrupt them into committing unspeakable acts. Then there are the Laven ( good guys) who work in pairs (their Nol) to fight the Kruen in a dream realm. They are taught that they have no power in the waking world and they must never seek out their other half ( Nol) in real life else it will draw the creatures them and corrupt them into harming each other.
𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙽𝚘𝚕𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚘. 𝙰𝚜 𝚒𝚏 𝚠𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝙻𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚎𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚞𝚜.

Battling the creatures in the dream state though does come with its own issues , even though they can't die in this realm, they can bring back with them any injury sustained.
Making it hard for a just turning 18 Aria to explain her injures to her family over the years, they don't believe her when she confesses the truth of the injures so they think she is s3lf harming. This leads to her parents committing her against her will into a mental facility and forcing the hand of her Nol to make contact.

“𝙼𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚗𝚘 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎, 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚏*𝚌𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚛𝚞𝚕𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚊𝚏𝚎.”


The yearning here is absolutely delightful , nothing beats a good Forbidden love. I'm looking forward to the next instalment to find out what's in store for these two.

Thank you to @valentine_pr_
And @netgalley for my arc copy 🥰

“It wasn’t like being reborn. It was realizing why I was born in the first place.” “You were the truth inside me when I never knew what was real. My hope. The hollow place inside that only you could fill,” she whispered.


Aria and Pax are meant to fight against the evils of the world, together. Living between two realms, and having to keep the one place they meet secret.
As Aria falls into trouble Pax can feel it, he knows she needs him. As forbidden as it may be to see each other in the real world he can’t stop himself. He must find her, his soulmate, and protect her. With Aria’s powers become more than either of them imagined possible, the Kruen begin hunting her. They must stop this evil before it’s too late. But can they keep fighting this pull to one another that echoes in the deepest parts of themselves?


I absolutely loved the idea of this other world where people are fighting the nasty evil that plants seeds into our vulnerable human minds. Putting a face to that evil was very interesting. The battles Aria and Pax face are so very real and intense, showing how dark the Kruen can be when planting their evil.
At first I thought the story was going to end on a high note and was thinking it was a light hearted ending, it got ripped away! The cliffhanger had me yelling at my kindle, seriously. 😐

Thank you NetGalley for this eARC. Can’t wait for book 2!!! I need more of Pax and of course Aria 😏

This story is unlike anything I have personally read so far. I'm actually still trying to wrap my head around it and understand it more. It's very intriguing and confusing at the same time.

I liked both Pax and Aria. But I was more drawn to Pax and his dark side yet his compulsion to save the innocent. I also loved his true devotion to Aria and the fact that no matter what he was thought or what he promised she came first. His love for her was strong and true.

Aria was an interesting character. I loved her but also wasn't a big fan. She loved her family completely but didn't seem to think first when it came to them. It was Pax who helped her keep her thoughts straight. Her strength and power was amazing and I would love to learn more.. I have a feeling we'll get that chance.

I'm still waiting for the proverbial shoe to drop (as Ellis keeps warning them) but I'm truly hoping it won't. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more and getting a better understanding for these Laven's.

*I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book for my honest and unbiased review*

Forbidden Mate

Different realms, double lives and the fate of their worlds what more can you ask for in a fantasy romance? While this story captures your attention, the end leaves you anxious for another installment. Forbidden love between Aria and Pax keeps them from meeting in the waking realm but their connection draws them towards each other despite the danger that follows. The world building and character development added an element of suspense and intrigue. It was an interesting premise, and I hope to continue find out what will come next in another book.

I received an ARC of this book and voluntarily leave this review.

An AL Jackson contemporary fantasy?! Color me intrigued! I was super excited to dive into Visions of Darkness and even more excited to get my hands on the audio- Teddy Hamilton playing a fantasy protector? YAS. AL brings her trademark angst emotion and intense chemistry to a forbidden romance that takes place in two realms- as we follow the journey of two magical protectors who quite literally slay evil thoughts. It’s immersive and unique- and a solid start to a series that could be quite addictive.

The premise of this was creative- a bit of a sandman type dream walking vibe but with dragon slayer vibes, if, of course, you slay the tangible representation of darkness/evil. Heroine Aria is a high schooler trapped between both worlds. In her human world, she’s an outsider in her own family who can’t make meaning of the life she says she lives at night. They make assumptions about her mental health and do harmful things to her with good intentions- like having her committed for what they see as self-harm. She’s isolated and judge by her own family, and gah I felt that it in my bones.

But her other being is equally isolating. She’s a Laven, and in a dream state she goes to Faydor in Tearsith where she fights Kruens (kind of dark thinking) with their partners called Nols. Nols protect and fight with Lavens, but they can only interact and be together in Tearsith - which is hard for Aria since she’s madly in love with her protector Nol, Pax. He longs for her too but he knows they can never be together- until Aria finds herself in grave danger in the mortal realm and Pax breaks all rules to save her.

Truth be told, I’m not a huge heavy fantasy person, and this one seemed more light touch. And, it was. So much so that I’m not even quite sure I fully understand it- information is pretty heavily laid at the outset and then from there most of the story is in the human world with a monster hunting them. It doesn’t FEEL very fantasy because so much of it is just them on the run and Aria having intrusive thoughts that are basically her hearing darkness trying to harm others. On one hand, the diet-fantasy lover in me appreciated that, on the other I found the world building to be a bit lacking. The characters, the other realm, the monsters themselves were not heavily described or constructed. I found myself at the end feeling like I still didn’t quite understand this world…and a huge part of that is that they spend very little time in it, with the focus monster on what ARia hears and the forbidden nature of their dynamic.

Narratively, there are also some interesting choices I think some may not enjoy. Because the worlds themselves are super clearly delineated in terms of how our characters experience them, AL uses 3rd person POV for one and first for the other. I think it’s a clever and interesting narrative choice, though I’m not quite sure how effective. I think in text it might work better- for audio it was a little disorienting.

But, the characters and the action itself are great though. I do think the pace felt a bit slow in place, but it takes a minute for these to truly end up in the same space, and the burn is even lower from there. I had calibrated my expectations to this being more like AL’s other works in terms of spice and romantic progression…and that was not the case at all. This definitely reads and feels much more like YA- especially Aria’s perspective. She turns 18 in the book and is really inexperienced- both in relationships but also as a functioning adult in both worlds. So, I had to recalibrate my orientation to this story, and once I did and started to consider it a YA, I was able to sink into the story more.

There is lots of angst, Pax and Aria definitely have that forbidden but sweet/innocent longing vibe, and Pax is utterly delicious as protective and possessive book boyfriend. The relational side of this story really excelled, it’s more the fantasy dynamic that I wanted a bit more developed. I'm not even confident I explained it correctly in this review because it still feels so hazy to me. At this point, truthfully, the fantasy element and plotline itself I’m not quite invested in, but I am all in on these teenage angst.

I do think I'd enjoy this more on audio, and those a bit more finicky about their fantasy might not find the world building worth the squeeze.

There is a cliffhanger, and I’m invested enough in Pax and Aria as characters to want to dive into the next (hopefully with the same narration). Definitely curious to see where AL will go from here!

I could not stop listening to the audiobook!! I was so intrigued, wanting to know that's going to happen next. That ending though?! ⁣
⁣
Aria and Pax are in two worlds, one when they're dreaming and reality. When Aria's dream world collides with her reality and danger comes after her, she has no choice but to survive. Pax was her fated mate in the dream world, but in reality, he's not. He's forbidden to get together with her in reality, but he went against it and helped her. What's going to happen when danger chases them everywhere? And there's a possibility that them being together in reality can cause them to die? ⁣
⁣
You guys heard it lots of time. I'm someone who loves a protective hero so I immediately love Pax. Lol I swooned so many times. I do have to say, it's definitely a slow burn. The beginning was quite slow for me, but when I got into it, I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook. ⁣
⁣
If you're debating if you should read it because you're not a romantasy girl, don't be scared. It's romantasy set in the modern times so there's not a lot of words that will be confusing. 🥰

WOW. JUST WOW. I am totally blown away by this book!

I did not read the synopsis prior to reading this book because I feel like they give too much of the story away. I'm glad I avoided it because I feel like going in blind really blew my mind!

For that reason, I don't want to say too much other than this is a dark romantasy that follows a young FMC (17-18) and MMC (22), with lots of plot and character building, a little spice, and found family, and I could not put it down!

This story was unlike anything I've ever read before. The "magic" and storyline are remarkable and merge seamlessly with the real world in a way that is pretty terrifying! I found myself being pulled in and questioning reality at times and had to remind myself that I was reading a fiction book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and it's cannot get my hands on the next one soon enough. I'm going to need all of the special editions, please and thank you!

*Mental Health Note*
If you have ever suffered from psychosis or delusions, I recommend proceeding with caution- this book might be quite triggering.

Visions of Darkness releases on January 7th so get ready! Come back here after you read it and tell me what you think!

Thank you @valentine for providing me with a copy of this book! These opinions are my own and given freely