The Lights of Prague

By: Nicole Jarvis

Narrated by: Pete Cross

In the quiet streets of Prague, all manner of otherworldly creatures lurk in the shadows. Unbeknownst to its citizens, their only hope against the tide of predators are the dauntless lamplighters - a secret elite of monster hunters whose light staves off the darkness each night. Domek Myska leads a life teeming with fraught encounters with the worst kind of evil: pijavica, bloodthirsty and soulless vampiric creatures. Despite this, Domek finds solace in his moments spent in the company of his friend, the clever and beautiful Lady Ora Fischer - a widow with secrets of her own.

When Domek finds himself stalked by the spirit of the White Lady - a ghost who haunts the baroque halls of Prague castle - he stumbles across the sentient essence of a will-o'-the-wisp, a mischievous spirit known to lead lost travelers to their death, but who, once captured, are bound to serve the desires of their owners.

After discovering a conspiracy amongst the pijavica that could see them unleash terror on the daylight world, Domek finds himself in a race against those who aim to twist alchemical science for their own dangerous gain.

©2020 Nicole Jarvis (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLC

a sequel, please

tore through this in literally 36 hours, thanks in large part to a long drive. fantastic, fantastic. i really hope a sequel is coming. this one has it all, should be a big hit--if only more people hear of it, im sure it will be. narrator is perfect. homerun all the way.

Good “monster of the week” story

It was entertaining, just small in scale. It never really felt like there was major consequence or grandeur which held it back for me.

The action was satisfying and a very interesting relationship kept the story exciting. The main conflict fell a little short for me but a great twist I didn’t really see coming!

Solid Debut

It’s set in 1800s Prague. It follows Lady Ora, an independent, bold monster, and Domek, giant, blushing monster hunter, who are friends but don’t know about the other's alter ego. Fighting a pijavica, Domek finds a highly coveted enslaved Willow the Wisp and it sets the story in motion.

Trying to think of comp titles has me stumped because the story and the author’s voice are unique but if I had to I’d say Van Helsing meets HBOs Nevers meets a Darker Shade of Magic.

It’s a sophisticated vampire story that’s slow burn, built word by word. There is a vast cast of characters you wish you got more of and an interesting story that engages until the end.

If you like magic, fantasy, historicals, vampire, or monster hunters pick this one up!

Most eye catching book I’ve read in years.

I listened to this recording while I was cleaning and couldn’t put the story down. Nicole Jarvis is good, and I really hope she releases a sequel soon.

Nice and easy read

I really enjoyed this book as a bit of light reading. The story isn't overly complicated, it is fairly easy to predict and the characters are interesting. As a citizen of Prague, I really appreciate the setting and the very accurate descriptions of the city. It is rare to read something that isn't set in London or the US so this was a big draw for me. I wish the narrator had more time to practice some of the Czech words, though. Some of them came out fine but some were butchered and I think that could have been easily avoided. I know there are time and budget constraints, but would it have been so much more work to find a consultant who speaks the language?