Invisible Chains

A fascinating premise goes nowhere in this grim novel. In antebellum New Orleans, Jacqueline is born into a family of enslaved Creole conjurers. She endures the horrors of slavery and is able to stay with her mother until her master’s daughter marries a rich young man in the city and brings Jacqueline with her. There, she meets a man who has haunted her dreams since childhood. She soon learns he’s a vampire who professes to be in love with her, but their potential romance is spoiled when a werewolf comes to town and goes on a killing spree. Soon, her new master and his wife are dead, and Jacqueline is running toward freedom with the vampire, only to be enslaved anew by him. Lane’s novel begins with particularly brutal scenes of Jacqueline suffering rape and other horrific abuse, making the tale feel like slavery torture porn. Furthermore, there is little tension, and the rapid-fire action scenes are sometimes hard to follow. Readers excited by the thought of paranormal creatures and daring escapes will find their treatment here disappointing. (July)