I didn't necessarily know what to expect when I picked up the Dark Secret, but I have to say I wasn't disappointed. We meet Ava, a young witch who is hell bent on protecting her coven and getting revenge on the creatures that threaten them and took her father away from her: vampires. She's not the most experienced witch in her coven, but she's certain that she should trust her instincts no matter what her mother says. You have to respect her determination and fire, but unfortunately, this is exactly what also gets her into trouble. After disobeying her mother to go hunt vampires, she unknowingly leads the vampires right back to her coven, which spells disaster for her and everyone around her.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book and the fact that it's written in novella format wasn't a bad idea. I will say that I didn't feel much development for Ava, the coven or the vampires. While I like novellas, I think a little bit more time could've been used to develop the characters and the mythology of the two groups (coven and vampires). That may happen in future books though. Ava was also very stubborn, which borderlined on reckless for no reason at times. At one point I found myself rolling my eyes at some of her actions because I KNOW she should be smarter than that.

Overall, I think Danielle has created a world that has all the possibilities of being interesting, especially in future installments. She doesn't shy away from the grittiness of vampires or the innate prejudices that the different species have for one another. With a bit more development and a deeper look into how we got to where we are with these characters, I think this could be a real gem.