In CURSE THE DARK, readers are once again greeted by Wren Valere, a seasoned Talent with the ability to manipulate electricity and use it for magical purposes. Accompanied by Sergei, her long-time partner and liaison in a semi-human world, Wren embarks on another quest, this time to Italy.

Once in Italy, Wren and Sergei are sent to retrieve a missing artifact. Armed with no information other than that the artifact is old and fatal to all who get close to it, Wren and Sergei must find this mysterious object and return it safely to New York City -- or risk their fate.

In this follow-up to STAYING ALIVE, Gilman again introduces heroine Wren Valere. However, this slow-paced novel fails to provide readers with crucial expository information that one would assume is contained in the first novel. Though CURSE THE DARK is well-written, without having read the first novel, readers will have trouble making sense of it.