This review was first posted on http://www.rubysreads.com. 
 Oh, man, was this ever my Most Highly Anticipated Historical Fantasy of the year! It has everything! A handsome lord! A historical setting! A fantasy element! Yeah, that's pretty much all I need to make me happy. However, while this story has a few things to recommend it, it's not the shivery, delicious Gothic fantasy I was hoping for. I think Darker Still reads well on the surface, but it's not a novel with great substance. It will appeal to the same audience that adores the Fallen books and maybe the Rebel Angels series, but not the reader of Song of the Nile or Daughter of the Forest. 
 As the description mentions, the main character in Darker Still is seventeen-year-old Natalie Stewart. What it doesn't tell you (bizarrely in my opinion) is that Natalie is mute due to a childhood trauma that also resulted in her mother's death. Also interestingly, Natalie isn't an Elite New Yorker. Her world isn't the Golden Age described in the Luxe novels. Her father is the director at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which is still in its infancy. Natalie's father is her connection to the art world and, thus, to the painting of Lord Denbury. 
 Natalie's muteness has kept her from interacting with many people. Lord Denbury's portrait and its entrance into her life, mark a radical change for her. And while Natalie may not speak, that doesn't mean she's shy and retiring. She can take care of herself, and keeps her head held high when confronted with those who have little sympathy or understanding for her condition. 
 I'll admit that Darker Still was strong coming out of the gate. I was titillated by the idea of a portrait of a handsome lord whose life had (supposedly) ended in mystery taking New York by storm. I think I would have enjoyed the novel a little more if the main twist hadn't been in there--that is, if Natalie had never gone in the mirror. Lord Denbury, once met in person, quickly lost his charm. I didn't like him nearly as much in three dimensions. And you know me--if the hero fails me, the story is pretty much a wash. 
 Lord Denbury was not, unfortunately, the only character that palled. Margaret, Natalie's potential friend, is as disappointingly boy-crazy as our first glimpse of her suggests, and her aunt is ponderously heavy-handed with her knowledge of the occult, her faith in Natalie's ability to save Denbury, and the flaws of her niece. I kept waiting for Hieber to redeem Margaret in some way, but her storyline (and character arc) was dropped like a sack of potatoes. 
 Finally--and this is really just me nit-picking--but I hate it when authors refer to characters as Lord Fragglerock and don't give them an actual title. There are plenty to choose from. If one is a lord, one might be a baron, a viscount, an earl, a marquis or a duke. One might also be a younger son (though in that case he'd be called "Lord Jonathan" and not "Lord Denbury." Also, I presume he's the heir because of the property he was set to inherit pre-being stuck in a painting. Just, I don't know, roll a die or something. One can be "younger son" and six can be "duke." Since the turn of the century was known to be the era of Robber Barons and Dollar Princesses, you can be sure New Yorkers would have known whether Denbury was a baron or a duke. 
 3 1/2 Points 
 I'd flirt with this book over drinks.