Flein wanders the world, traveling wherever his feet take him. On his latest excursion he happens upon the village of Glenfinnan, a village with troubles of its own. Women are being raped and murdered and the villagers believe that a waterhorse from a nearby loch is responsible. Flein and Donnchadh meet, first in Donnchadh’s waterhorse form and then in man-shape. The attraction that they feel is mutual but must take a backseat to finding the true murderer and proving Donnchadh’s innocence before the villagers decide to take matters into their own hands.

This was an intriguing little tale. With lots of references to Irish folklore and the mysteries that go along with those tales, Dark Waters roused my curiosity Flein was very interesting. He is the result of the god Loki and his mortal mother having a liaison. Being a half-god isn’t always easy but Flein has tried to make the best of his long life and the adventures that he has had. It’s easy to see why the mystery of women being murdered by a mythical creature would snare his interest. Donnchadh, as part fairy and a shape shifter as well, is probably the character that grabbed my attention the most. He isn’t human, he spends the majority of his time in his horse shape and he considers the village and villagers his to do with as he pleases. Although the villagers are quick to lay blame at his feet, after all he is otherworldly and they can’t imagine how someone human could commit these atrocities, Donnchadh isn’t the killer and is very angry at whoever is behind the violence, but not for the normal reasons, he’s not human and his emotional reactions don’t always match what would seem to be the right response. Because of this I found him most intriguing and wished that the author would have delved a bit deeper into his origins and past. I really liked Chris Quinton’s style and look forward to reading more by this author.

Reviewed by: Hayley