Play of Passion

Play of Passion by Nalini Singh

Series: Psy-Changeling Series #9

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult, Wereshifters

Publication: November 2nd 2010 by Berkley

The Plot.

In his position as tracker for the SnowDancer pack, it’s up to Drew Kincaid to rein in rogue changelings who have lost control of their animal halves- even if it means killing those who have gone too far. But nothing in his life has prepared him for the battle he must now wage to win the heart of a woman who makes his body ignite… and who threatens to enslave his wolf.

Lieutenant Indigo Riviere doesn’t easily allow skin privileges, especially of the sensual kind- and the last person she expects to find herself craving is the most wickedly playful male in the den. Everything she knows tells her to pull back before the flames burn them both to ash… but she hasn’t counted on Drew’s will.

Now, two of SnowDancer’s most stubborn wolves find themselves playing a hot, sexy game even as lethal danger stalks the very place they call home.

The Review.

Play of Passion firmly reasserts my love for Nalini Singh. I found in the last two novels of the Psy-Changeling series that Singh had been lacking a little, but everything is hanging my a thread and the world around the characters is really starting to change. Lots of political alliances are being formed, underground movements and on the surface the tensions and strained and hostility is high between the characters. This firmly entrenches me in the Singh camp of love with Play of Passion. Singh manages to excel not only on the world and political elements and war undertones, but her characters in this blossomed, challenged and set the world on fire. Play of Passion may not have been perfect, but I am incredibly excited about what Singh has in store.

Indigo River is a character I haven’t really recalled all that much from previous novels which is probably not a good thing, but I liked that she was a strong, independent woman. She’s the only lieutenant that’s female of her pack and she doesn’t allow anybody to boss her about. Despite her dominant position in the pack hierarchy she still has emotions and vulnerabilities that Singh really played up for her character. This makes her seem more human and I liked how things crept up on Indigo suddenly and then she realised what she actually needed in her life. I liked that she wasn’t afraid of anybody and that she really fought for what she needed. I hope to see more of her family in future novels because they still felt on the fringe of the story whilst Indigo was being drawn further into the thick of things.

“She wasn’t an acquisitive person, but neither was she dead. Blinking open her eyes at last, she couldn’t resists taking a slow tour of his body as he knelt to get something from the pocket of his discarded jeans. Muscled shoulders in shadow, a back so beautiful it cried out to be stroked…and boxers. Plain black and—“Silk boxer while we’re camping?”

Drew… Andrew. Where do I begin? He is sweet, charming, fun and friendly. He genuinely cares about his pack and Indigo. He’s also smart, sensitive, tenacious, stubborn and annoying. Still, I have to say, I loved everything about Drew. He’s not without faults, but that makes him loveable. He sticks his foot in it more than once with Indigo and watching them work things out entertained me greatly. I find that many characters like Drew are ones that I just don’t get, they appear all too good and have every reason to like them, and I usually don’t, which is why I was so happy to like Drew. I think it was his mischievous side that endeared him to me and his nickname of “Indy” for Indigo. I could just feel the affection coming from him and how he cared about every member of his pack particularly the younger ones, like Sienna, she’s a troubled character but he really cares for her and my favourite quote below is him looking out for her. Drew is definitely one of my favourite male protagonists.

“That’s all I get after I sent you a whole box of premium chocolate-cherry cookies?” he said, feigning extreme disappointment. “Just ‘good’?”

Furrows appeared between her brows, dark little lines that marred the beauty of her sun-dipped skin. “Drew.”

But when he grinned and took her into his arms, she not only allowed the affection, she slid her own arms around him. It had taken him months of patient care to get her to trust him with her body in that way.”

This instalment does focus quite distinctly on the romance, but the interludes of the outside world with the council, the problems in the pack and the other sub-plots that are running on managed to round the novel and keep the overall under-plot that runs through all the novels moving forward to a point where we are at a edge about to fall into the abyss I fear in the novel which is exciting and certainly makes me want to pick up the next novel in the series. I shall be off to request it from my library ASAP I shall inform you. The romance doesn’t entirely dominant the plot-line, but there was a lack of political intent and movements we’ve seen in some of the other novels which I always like. However I was just in the mood for something light and fun that kept things moving and entertained.

The Psy-Changeling series manages to deal with serious issues and lighten them up all in the same novel with the balance of romance and political movement. I’d say that you keep going with the Psy-Changeling novel because it gets better as it goes along with a few hit and misses here and there, overall I have great love for the series and would recommend them to anybody who has some spare time since there are currently 11 novels out and more in the works. The first novel, Slave to Sensation kicks off the series and I say it only gets better from there onwards. If you like werewolf/wereshifter books this is definitely for you, if you like paranormal it’s definitely for you and even if not, I suggest taking a dabble!

Nerd Fact: For those of you more curious about everything that’s nerdy behind the Psy-Changeling series, Singh has a brilliant section on her website called, Behind the Scenes where she talks about facts on the human brain, big cats and purring and much, much more! You can find it HERE.

Once Burned

Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost

Series: Night Prince #1

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult, Vampires

Publication: June 26th 2012 by Avon

The Plot.

She’s a mortal with dark powers…
After a tragic accident scarred her body and destroyed her dreams, Leila never imagined that the worst was still to come: terrifying powers that let her channel electricity and learn a person’s darkest secrets through a single touch. Leila is doomed to a life of solitude…until creatures of the night kidnap her, forcing her to reach out with a telepathic distress call to the world’s most infamous vampire…
He’s the Prince of Night…
Vlad Tepesh inspired the greatest vampire legend of all—but whatever you do, don’t call him Dracula. Vlad’s ability to control fire makes him one of the most feared vampires in existence, but his enemies have found a new weapon against him—a beautiful mortal with powers to match his own. When Vlad and Leila meet, however, passion ignites between them, threatening to consume them both. It will take everything that they are to stop an enemy intent on bringing them down in flames.

The Review.

Once Burned has reaffirmed why I fell so deeply in love with Jeaniene Frost. Reading her books are like taking long country walks, something enjoyable and refreshing and comforting because I always know that I will get lost in the wonderful world she paints and feel enveloped by the presence of her characters. Particularly her male characters who are always well developed and brooding and I always fall in love. Vlad was a character I loved in the Night Huntress series and I enjoyed his relationship with Cat, but here he was a little more cold and reserved, but the little cracks that came about showed his humour and personality that I fell in love with in the Night Huntress series and I’m so infinitely glad that he’s got his own spin-off. The last Night Huntress book wasn’t quite as enjoyable for me, but the new direction with Vlad is something I’m eagerly looking forward.

I want more Vlad. Yes, Frost left us hanging here. She could have given us so easily a summed up happily-ever-after that so many other authors fall into doing and I applaud her for not resolving the issues so easily because I don’t think it would have done the characters justice to do so. Frost is an author I adore so much because she doesn’t focus solely on the romance, she looks at the plot most heavily and the action and adventure that occurs within the novel and all the different events that unravel. The romance is far from being ignored, but she builds it on a realistic level. She starts at the bottom and forms foundations between the characters that can amount to relationships and this is clearly what occurs in Once Burned between Leila and Vlad. We get the sexual tension and eventually the sex between the two as we expect, but things aren’t fine and dandy like some authors create and there a lots of little pieces that I can see Frost carrying through that make for an intricate plot. However, I didn’t get nearly enough Vlad action in this novel. He is a man that’s dark and brooding, cold and calculated, but he’s so suave and archaic and I love it about him. He’s got a strong sense of loyalty and this is a man I would want, he’s not some cave man that claims Leila without a thought, there are reasoning’s to him and he’s smart. I just love everything Vlad.

“I led my armies from the front, Vlad said. The proof was all over his body, from the scars that adorned his skin in random white patterns to the muscles that flexed and bunched with his slightest movement.”

Leila is one of my favourite heroines. She’s headstrong, she takes matters into her own hands and she really doesn’t depend upon Vlad. She even goes behind his back and I liked that she wasn’t afraid of Vlad. She was strong in her own right after everything that occurred to her and she certainly was kick-ass with her powers. There was lots of elements to Leila that made her a really likeable character that I could connect with. She also had this humorous edge to her that I loved. And she accepted the powers that she had and what this meant to her character rather than shunning it and going crazy about it, Leila made a refreshing character to this genre and I’m looking forward to her return in Twice Tempted where I hope she pursues Vlad with everything she’s got.

“You’re hot, big deal,” I shot back, refusing to let his knowledge of my most intimate thoughts daunt me. “I’m attracted to a lot of hot guys. If Chris Hemsworth were here, I’d light him up like a firecracker with how fast I’d jump on him.”

“And that would kill him,” Vlad noted.”

The plot was fast-paced and full of action. I really enjoyed that side of things and I liked the peak of Cat and Bones that we saw, but whilst they were present for a very short time, they didn’t overshadow the novel which is Vlad and Leila’s story. Whilst Once Burned does not have to be read in conjunction with having read the Night Huntress series because it is a spin-off and the fact that the Night Huntress series is so brilliant, I would definitely suggest you go over and check it out right this instance. I find that Jeaniene Frost rarely disappoints and she has kept me entranced with her characters from start to finish. Her novels are well rounded with great characters both secondary and the protagonists, scorching romances and whirl-wind, guns-blazing plots that manage to become the focus of the novel whilst not detracting anything from the romance. Frost is an author for all kinds of people and I thoroughly recommend her!

Charmeine

Charmeine by Emily Guido

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult

Series: The Light-Bearers Series #1

Published: January 12th 2012 by WordPress

Tabbruis is an extremely attractive Blood-Hunter who has reconciled himself to be alone forever. Over millennia Tabbruis has wandered the Earth alone, aimlessly living through many historical events.

Charleen (aka Charmeine) was found in 1997 as a teenager, unable to remember where she was from or where her family was. She was sent to an orphanage where she met her best friend, Shane. With determination, she works hard and becomes a school teacher. Tabbruis comes to her aid when she is attacked by a Blood-Hunter. Charmeine’s power as a Light-Bearer, one who throws lightning, is triggered when she meets Tabbruis, and it grows exponentially. When they meet, the attraction is immediate, romantic and passionate. They are polar opposites and clash together in a dramatic way.

Will Charmeine and Tabbruis fulfil their destinies? Will they realize their importance in both the Blood-Hunter and Light-Bearer world?

My Review:

An intriguing, unique concept laid before you, a book with a general consensus to be really good, but for me, I just couldn’t connect as much as other people seem to have done. I adored the foundations of the plot and thought that Charmeine and the Light-Bearers series could really go far, but I felt that the little details of the novel weren’t quite there for me. I’m a little picky honestly and this book wasn’t perfect in the way it was written. I found the writing to be rather disjointed for myself and whilst periods of it really drew me in and engaged my attention, other scenes through me out and certain character traits.

 

Forbidden

Forbidden by Jacquelyn Frank

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult

Series: The World of Nightwalkers #1

Published: October 30th 2012 by Ballantine Books

The unexpected happens in an instant. On her way to work, secretary Docia Waverley hurtles into a crashing crossroads, and she quickly begins to suspect that things will never be the same. Then, when a tall, blond, muscular stranger intervenes on her behalf, telling her it is his duty to protect her at all cost, what is just a feeling turns to proof positive. That is, as long as Docia’s savior doesn’t turn out to be a crazed kidnapper.

When Ram finds Docia, he has no doubt that she is his queen. But as this golden warrior sweeps in to protect her, he feels something more than body heat every time they touch. He is overwhelmed by a searing connection that goes deep into the twin souls inside him. A desire rises in him that is forbidden—this woman is his queen, the mate of his king, his leader, his best friend. And yet Docia is so vulnerable and attractive that she awakens a hunger in Ram that is undeniable, a carnal craving he cannot yield to . . . not without risking the very survival of the Bodywalkers.

 

Seize the Night

Seize the Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult

Series: Dark-Hunters #7

Published: Published February 24th 2005 by Piatkus Books

Valerius isn’t a popular Dark-Hunter-he’s a Roman, which means that the largely Greek Hunters have a major grudge against him and his civilization for superceding them. To make things worse, he’s very conscious of his aristocratic background and breeding. So it serves him right when he runs into Tabitha Devereaux. She’s sassy, sexy, and completely unwilling to take him seriously. (Not to mention that she’s the twin sister of the wife of former Dark-Hunter Kyrian-Val’s mortal enemy.) What Tabitha does take seriously is hunting and killing vampires-and soon she and Val have to grapple with the deadliest of all Daimons-one who’s managed to come back from the dead, and one who holds a serious grudge against both of them. To win against evil, Val will have to loosen up, learn to trust, and put everything on the line to protect a man he hates and a woman who drives him nuts.

My Review:

Dark, enticing and exciting, everything about this book made me hunger for it more. Valerius was a sexy, sensuous man who was struggling with being estranged from society, which wasn’t entirely his fault and Tabitha is every bit of kick-ass and sensitive to what a female protagonist needs to be. The two were unconventional, they had problems, they were entire opposites and they had the gulf of family hatred, but this made it all the more thrilling, and exciting to witness forbidden romance and Kenyon really engaged me with the seventh instalment of the Dark-Hunter series. I think these get better as they go along!

“Perhaps, but it wouldn’t bother him so much if he was the one who bored the brunt of it. The disaster always seemed to fall onto the ones he tried to help.”

Valerius is a character I haven’t liked all that much up until this point. However, I think this is the perception from other characters who don’t like Valerius and in ‘Seize the Night’ we really get the opportunity to see Valerius flourish as a character and develop his own identity. I feel like in the other novels he’s been forced to conform to other’s expectations and here was our chance to see Valerius free and wild. He’s certainly a man who’s pompous, an ass and a little snobbish, but beneath the surface is a nice guy who needs to be comforted and accepted.

The Dark-Hunter series has lots of elements that get drawn into making a complex, exciting and thrilling read. We link back to the previous novels where Tabitha’s sister ends up in trouble and the ideas continue to develop and become ever the more intricate. There was lots of elements from demons, ghosts and God powers that intervened in the everyday life of Tabitha who is one of my favourite female characters. She ploughs headlong into everything and engages with all the fights, takes not crap from anybody, but beneath it all like Valerius she’s a little jagged on the inside and needs somebody there for her. She made a Batman reference and boom, I loved her.

“Good evening, my lord.” His butler didn’t comment on the fact that Valerius was coming home wet. There was something about the rigid, older Englishman that reminded Tabitha of Alfred from Batman.”

The romance was crafted well and I think Kenyon has become a bit of an expert about this by now. She doesn’t throw the two together, but generally they fight and struggle before settling into a equilibrium that works whilst we get some intense, steamy moments there always seem to be a moment for humour and light-heartedness.

Kenyon really keeps up the standards with this one and all I can say is she had a real stunner of an ending. I’m excited to get hold of the next novel and immerse myself in the adventures and twists and turns of the next Dark-Hunter book because Kenyon never seems to bring two things the same with every new plot twist. Although, I swear if she makes one more character immortal, there will be nobody left who can die!

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Beneath a Rising Moon

Beneath a Rising Moon by Keri Arthur

Genre: Werewolves, Paranormal-Romance, Adult

Series: Ripple Creak Werewolf #1

Publication: July 31st 2012 by Dell

There’s no turning back for Neva Grant. To find a killer, she must seduce the boldest male in the Sinclair pack. Her twin sister lies in a hospital bed, fighting for her life, the fourth and only surviving victim of a vicious attacker. The werewolf rangers suspect the Sinclair pack, and the only way Neva can infiltrate their close-knit ranks is to unleash the wildness within and offer herself to Duncan Sinclair.

Duncan’s appetite for women is legendary on the reservation. But when this new woman stirs his hunger, he finds his desire for her goes deeper than anything he’s ever felt before. When he realizes that she’s playing a game and he’s taken the bait, he is determined to push her to the breaking point. As Duncan and Neva engage in a dangerous dance, they must somehow find a way to join forces—before a cornered killer bites back.

My Review:

So begins the tale of the werewolves… Although we don’t really get the howl at the moon, the shot by silver bullet, we get more of wereshifters that can change at will. Still, this has to be one of the better wereshifters/wolves tales that I’ve read. Still not the blow my mind paranormal-romance I’ve been searching for from the shifters genre, but brilliant enough to keep me hooked and reading.

Another surprise about this novel is although within the first 20% you begin to wonder about the plot, but there is a complex, exciting and engaging plot to be discovered as you delve further into the novel and really uncover the layers beneath the romance. I found Arthur to have developed an intricately woven tale of romance and mystery that induced enough excitement and anticipation to engage your attention enough to keep reading.

Duncan was certainly an enigma all on his own. He was a brute, harsh and a total gentleman all in one, but he could make any woman weak at the knees and he had me melting in a puddle at the thought of him. At times he took on the brooding aura and complex, frustrating male character that we tend to find appear often in paranormal-romance novels who are obnoxious and demanding.

“While it was a female’s right to pick and choose as she pleased, once she had said yes to mating, the male had the right to enforce it.”

Duncan takes on this role very seriously and a times it can really offend the feminist inside me, but then if you take it as part of the culture, it became easier to take and whilst Duncan may have been an ass, he knew how to become a gentlemen when the time was right and his behaviour was fully motivated and supported by his own assumptions—however wrong—within the first phase of the novel.

Neva is a head-strong and non-nonsense woman. For much of the novel, she shelters beneath the demands and morals of her parents and their strict social conventions, but with the aid of her sister and Duncan’s pushing she blossoms into a woman of her own.

We get quiet a few sex scenes, but I didn’t feel they were over done or crash and we recognised a change in the scenes as the characters matured and adapted to their relationships over time.

I liked the wereshifters set up of different “packs” that depended upon their colour and family. The Sinclair pack are definitely the wild bunch and the moon phase and dance they hold is frowned upon by Neva’s parents and it makes for an interesting development in the plot. In addition to this, we have the complexity of the murders and events that follow certainly push the packs and test their bonds. The Sinclair pack and Neva’s family are the main pack focuses in this novel, but it would be interesting to discover a greater range of the wereshifter community and their culture. After all, parts were hinted, especially where they talked of the locals recognising them, but not really accepting them which is why they had so few children. So more in-depth exploration of the history and world surrounding the shifters would add to more enjoyment for this novel to develop the background more.

There is very little focus on lots of flowery descriptions to create strong visual descriptions, but Arthur’s drive to keep the pace strong and flowing really take away the necessity and it’s easy to visualise most of the scenes and events. My only desire would have been a little more description to embellish and really fulfil all my thoughts in certain parts of the novel so I could feel entirely absorbed in the world and feel the snow surrounding and encasing her in the storm and the desperation Neva felt to get back to her home, rather than the distance Arthur seemed to put between us and the main character and her setting.

Overall, I felt like Arthur delivered us a solid novel to add to the paranormal-romance genre, and I don’t think this one will disappoint. Although if werewolves/shifters aren’t your favourite paranormal creature, I’d probably stay away from this novel. For me, I’ll be coming back to Keri Arthur in the future because she seems to hold promise.

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Lover Eternal

Lover Eternal by J.R. Ward

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult

Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood #2

Publication: 2010 by Piatkus

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there’s a deadly war raging between vampires and their slayers. And there exists a secret band of brothers like no other – six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Possessed by a deadly beast, Rhage is the most dangerous of the Black Dagger Brotherhood…

Within the brotherhood, Rhage is the vampire with the strongest appetite. He’s the best fighter, the quickest to act on his impulses, and the most voracious lover-for inside him burns a ferocious curse cast by the Scribe Virgin.

Possessed by this dark side, Rhage fears the times when his inner dragon is unleashed, making him a danger to everyone around him. When Mary Luce is unwittingly thrown into the vampire world, she must rely on Rhage’s protection. Knowing that Mary feels the same intense animal attraction, Rhage must make her his alone…

My Review:

Prepare for my gushy-ness over this novel. Okay, it might not be perfect, but it’s from my favourite author, J.R. Ward and it’s my favourite character from the Black Dagger Brotherhood, Rhage. He’s just so dreamy and sexy and ooooh, which is why I love this book so much! So I can’t get much happier when it comes to the re-reading of this novel. To be truthful, the only reason I started a re-read was to re-read this novel. That’s how bad I am!

Nevertheless, I think we’re developing much more on the series from the last novel, Dark Lover and if you didn’t like Dark Lover, I’d still suggest moving onto this one because I think we have a deeper emotional connection and a much more developed plot and the world building continues to be great. The story lines just seem to get better. Whilst I could have done with less of the Lessers again, they really do add to the whole “air” of the novel.

Do you want to know why I love Rhage so much? I honestly cannot summarise him with actual words because he leaves me with none, but I’ve picked my favourite quotes of him to show you!

“Oh, Mary. Will you let me pleasure you? Will you let me take that sweet arousal of yours where it wants to go?”

Yes, he is a man all about pleasing a lady and he’s so suave.

“What you had is nothing compared to what I want to do to you. I want my head between your legs so I can lick you until you scream my name. Then I want to mount you like an animal and look into your eyes as I come inside of you. And after that? I want to take you every way there is.”

Can the room get much hotter? Rhage is all around just a sex machine. However, that is not the soul reason I love him. He’s so incredibly kind and caring and sensitive. He’s been cursed and it dominants his life, but every moment he lives in fear of hurting one of his brothers and then when Mary comes into his life he’s terrified off hurting her. Over this novel we really watch Rhage grow as a person and he comes into his own. I think this is why by far he’s my favourite character because he makes such a monumental change. He may seem like the bad-boy who is hard-core at fighting and has lots of women, but there is a real emotional and tender side to Rhage that Mary reaches out to and soothes.

“He softened his voice. “I’m not going to hurt you. But you don’t belong here, and I want to know who you are.”

Her throat undulated under his hand, as if she was swallowing.”

Not only that, but Ward’s descriptions of everything are so vivid and the words she uses are fancy whilst really working to drag you into the forefront of the setting and really visualise everything. It’s one of the reason’s I really love reading her books so much. One of my friends on Goodreads said to me after I’ve been through a bout of “bad books” don’t I have a few “sure thing” authors who I know will be good, and J.R. Ward was certainly one of them for me to say, yes!

Mary is by far one of the greatest women I’ve read about! She struggles through so much with cancer, losing her mum and yet she always manages to put other people before herself and stay up-beat and strong. I couldn’t pick anybody better for Rhage and not only does she help Rhage, but as you progress through the series, you really see her blossom as a character who reaches out silently to others and really tries to help. It’s a truly beautiful quality in a person and I think to top of my love for Rhage, the two beautiful personalities of their characters mesh well and make for a fantastic book!

“Sometimes, pretending to be normal was the very best antidote to weirdness. Fake-it-until-you-make-it was more than psychobabble bullshit.”

And with that, I shall end my rather short, gushing review of Lover Eternal. This is certainly a love romance to pick up this tissues with and one I should probably have added to my top ten romances I’d think would make it in the real world because Rhage and Mary are so beautifully perfect and this novel has a very touching emotional element to it!

My Rating:

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Dark Lover

Dark Lover by J.R. Ward

Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Vampires, Adult

Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood #1

Publication: 2007 by Piatkus Books

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there’s a deadly turf war going on between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other-six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Yet none of them relishes killing more than Wrath, the leader of The Black Dagger Brotherhood.

The only purebred vampire left on earth, Wrath has a score to settle with the slayers who murdered his parents centuries ago. But, when one of his most trusted fighters is killed-leaving his half-breed daughter unaware of his existence or her fate-Wrath must usher her into the world of the undead-a world of sensuality beyond her wildest dreams.

Review:

Well, this is my second reading of the book and I loved it just as much as when I first picked up the series. I find that J.R. Ward is a refreshing addition to paranormal-romance when she brings in a multi-perspective third person view of the story and we delve into multiple plots with the romance at the forefront, it’s truly thrilling.

For our female protagonist we have Beth, but due to the multi-perspective Ward writes from, we feature Wrath as a strong male protagonist to balance the novel out and give us a level of both male and female time that can appeal to either gender. Not only do we feature these two, but then we have the Lesser society who feature strongly as the enemy and being able to track both sides of the field only adds to our anticipation and excitement.

Beth is stuck in the human world, unaware of her vampire heritage and longing for something she doesn’t realise. Whilst some of you may be a little perturbed by her throwing herself straight at Wrath and the high sexual energy and sex that enters the story early on, the romance develops across the story and unfolds to represent a strong relationship. I felt that the sex really gave a zing to the early plot whilst things were just starting to build and really kept you hooked for how the relationship between Beth and Wrath could pan out. As a character, her personality and profile are relatable and you just can’t help but root for her character. She’s strong and doesn’t allow the dominant male aspect of Wrath’s character to push her around and she represents a strong female counterpart which I like to see in romance.

“Woah. Fangs. She had fangs.

She leaned in, prodded them a little. Eating with those puppies was going to take some getting used to, she thought.”

Beth’s thought patterns were certainly amusing and watching her move towards a new direction in life and grow as a character was really entertaining.

The plot is pacey and intermingled with lots of different aspects that make it enjoyable. I find that we get humour, soppy moments, sexy moments and raw action that really keep you turning the pages and gritting your teeth.

I found that Ward gave us lots of twists and turns and that we were never at any moment expecting the direction. Whilst certain points of the plot could be called “predictable” we were always guessing as to what was going to happen in large for the thrill side of the plot. In amongst the tenser side, the humour lightened things up and I think the male characters of the Brotherhood have a really dry, entertaining humour.

“I’m going to talk to her.”

“And how’s that going to go? You’re just going to walk up to her and say, “Hey, I know you’ve never seen me before, but I’m your dad. Oh, and guess what? You’ve won the evolutionary lottery: You’re a vampire. Let’s go to Disneyland.”

I think without this humour, the Black Dagger Brotherhood series would be much darker and overshadowed by the darkness that surrounds the world of Caldwell with murder, violence and death. However, with the humour the tone of the novel is much lighter and it makes it easy to lap up the words that Ward feeds us.

In addition, we get some fantastic secondary characters that make up the brotherhood, with Rhage, Torhment, Vishous, Zsadist and Phury. The introduction to these characters is just the tip of the iceberg. Be prepared to meet a tonne of characters all with their own backstory which are slowly unveiled across the series.

Two negatives I have of the novel are the acronyms Ward uses, such as SOB. It took me several books to realise this meant Son of a Bitch and then there was another which I still haven’t worked out. I wish she’d just write it out because although it’s part of the character traits of the brothers and their rugged edges, I don’t quite understand the acronyms and it’s annoying to try and work them out.

Ward does have her own terms from the vampire world, but she gives us a dictionary at the start for these words which is really useful and I enjoy reading through to discover all the vampire words and culture they have.

Leelan: Aterm for a female bride of a male vampire, term of endearment roughly meaning “Beloved”.

The other point I have is at times I get bored of the lesser society interludes and I have to admit in my re-read I did skip a couple. However, they do add to the novel and are interesting. It’s just sometimes I find that I really hate the lesser society that I can’t bring myself to read about them.

Other than that, I think the novel is really good solid addition the paranormal-romance genre.

I’d suggest to everybody male or female to give this series a try and even if you don’t quite appreciate the first book of the series, move on to the second because once again the tone changes and things really start to move along with the world building and character developing of all the characters we’ve recently met in this one. So give the Black Dagger Brotherhood a try if you haven’t already!

My Rating:

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The Darkest Day

The Darkest Day by Britt Brury Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult Series: Immortal Heat #1 Publication: July 3rd 2012 by Grand Central Publishing   ALL-CONSUMING DESIRE . . . Izel Campbell was raised to believe she is an immortal Fionn with the magical skills of persuasion. But when she travels to Scotland to visit her ancestral home, Izel discovers that she is actually the world’s last living human. Forced to run for her life, Izel crosses paths with Kelvin Kerr, the Campbells’ greatest foe-and the most magnificent warrior she has ever seen. BURNS BRIGHTEST . . . A thousand-year-old battle chief of the Kerr clan, Kelvin lives only to avenge his father, who died at the hands of the bloody Campbells. Honor demands he kill the Campbell heir, but when he learns that the lovely Izel is both Campbell “and” human, Kelvin is torn between duty and desire . . . ON “THE DARKEST DAY.”

Review:

I’d heard some very positive things about this book before I even began reading, so I had hopes that it would reignite some of my passion for the paranormal-romance genre. I have to admit, this is the genre I read the most books for and truly adore reading books in. So I was hoping for something new and different and I certainly got it. I’ve never read the books that reside around highlanders or any of those sorts, but this is set in Scotland with a world full of paranormal creatures and just one remaining human. The premise for this story already had me hooked from the very first moment. At that point I’m just going to revert to the cover and I can I say, I drooled just the tiniest bit. A man holding a sword, with a toned, tanned body, can it get much more enticing?

From the very first moment this story had drawn me in and I found myself picking up a pad of paper to jot down a few quotes I liked—this is the first time I’ve done this. In large it was to help writing my review, but still, the fact that I wanted to do this, surprised me. One of my favourite quotes from the first few minutes of reading was…

“Too bad her cell phone didn’t work. Otherwise her Maps app would have taken her straight there.”

At this moment I knew we were in modern world, but then we seem to revert into a medieval setting with the castles and swords. It was so bizarre to see it meshed together, mobile phones, castles and swords. It took me a while to get my head around because when you get drawn into the trekking across country by foot and then suddenly Kelvin whips out a mobile phone it certainly caught me out. However it all becomes part of the story and you get really integrated into the world. I think it’s a fantastic idea to see modern and medieval all together and Brury took on a challenge and combined it perfectly!

The world itself is made up of four realms, The Earth Realm, The Cypher Realm, The Low Realm and The High Realm. A particularly useful feature was the glossary at the back to really go into depth about these. We didn’t really go into much detail about the four realms in the story, but I’m hoping this is something Brury will build on because I really appreciate a solid world. From the glossary we get a lot more information and some fun little descriptions about the worlds than Brury reveals in the whole of the novel and I found this a little disappointing. I want to be immersed in the four worlds whilst I’m reading not when I get to the end. Hopefully Brury will rectify this for the future and not leave us with some great little quotes at the end instead.

“Hell is not where a dark soul goes to rot…it is where an evil soul goes to thrive.”

See?! I want to know why she couldn’t have given us this IN the novel rather than as an addition at the end. I would have adored to read some world building to truly top this novel off.

Kelvin. He was melt in a puddle, oh-my-gosh worthy. Kelvin takes the dominant male to a whole different level, but he also has a sensitive side that comes across as the novel progresses. He’s also a dumbass male and needs to be reminded, hit and left to ponder his misdeeds for a while, but that only adds to the entertainment. He’s Scottish and Brury never lets you forget this with the accent she creates and upholds the whole way through the novel. And even whilst he’s Scottish, I could still understand him and imagine the voice in my head. I really love being able to do that! I thought he was a really strong male lead and you have to remember he’s a typical male so his thoughts are very sex related, but it’s not bordering on an obscene level.

“ But just the thought of tasting her olive skin and sucking on those crimson lips made his cock throb. He couldn’t remember ever wanting a female this bad.”

I liked that Brury didn’t take the obscenities and sexual language to an unbelievable or crass level which piqued my interest and kept me reading. Rather I felt absorbed and integrated in the passion of the moment. Everything felt intense and butterflies-in-your-stomach worthy. I really felt like the romance evolved over time, went through realistic challenges and whilst sex was used as an anchor and escape route, isn’t that all part of human nature in pushing aside problems with sex?

The creatures Brury created were not your vampires—although these got a mention—or even a werewolf but we had Fion and Pooka as the two main breeds. They each have their own paranormal aspects which get unveiled as the book goes along—I wouldn’t want to give too much away describing them—and they really add to the unique creation of this book!

Izel is a female character I found believable and a little bit tedious at times. I wanted to throttle her and say “GODDAMMIT STOP CRYING AND JUMP THE MAN!” However she had valid reasons for most of her behaviour and I did really like her character in the end. She was cute and quirky and she ended up being a little bit of sturdy no-shit character by the end of the story. I appreciated that about her because she developed as a character and really blossomed on her own.

To add to all the fabulous romance, steamy sex scenes, action and thrills, this book had some real humour and quirkiness for me that was brought with Kelvin’s cheeky character.

“I did no’ see a photo of a man in there. Can I assume—?” “That is none of your business.” “Aye, so no man.” His face stretched into a victorious grin as his eyes roamed over her body.”

Overall I really enjoyed reading this book and found it a refreshing change in the paranormal-romance sector. I hope to see more from Brury soon and I don’t think you’ll find her disappointing!

My Rating:

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Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my honest review.

* Quotes are taken from and uncorrected proof copy and may change in the final draft.

When Darkness Hungers

When Darkness Hungers by J.K. Beck Genre: Paranormal-Romance, Adult Series: The Shadow Keepers #5 Published: June 26th 2012 by Random House Publishing Group FBI agent Alexis Martin knows that vampires exist—because one of them killed her sister. Assigned to investigate a series of bizarre homicides in Los Angeles, Alexis believes the murders are the work of rogue vampires—perhaps even the monster responsible for her sister’s death. Now she finally has a chance for retribution. Even better, Alexis receives unexpected help from a sexy stranger as hungry for rogue blood as she is. Serge is a centuries-old bad boy who stays off the grid—keeping his secrets, his hunger, and his heart safe from exposure. A new breed of vampire that feeds off other shadowers, Serge finds sweet torture in Alexis’s arms. Loving her is a chance to be free from the hiding, the loneliness, the secrecy. But the truth about what he is, and what he’s done, may banish him to the dark confines of his own private hell—and destroy the beginnings of their love.

Review:

I’ve never read any of the books in this series so I can’t speak for the rest of the books and how it interlinks with the series. However the premise for this sounded great so I just had to scoop it up of NetGalley! I’m glad to say I did because it was a very good paranormal-romance book and I think I may have to invest in the previous books to this series.

Lets start with the bad parts first. There aren’t many. I felt like this was predictable a lot, but I guess when you come to read paranormal-romance books you expect the guy to get the girl and all to end happily. So that probably is something I’m going to have to accept, but nevertheless it can make the reading a little redundant at times. I also found aspects of the plot to follow my assumptions and this makes it a little tedious. Although I’m quite perceptive at times, but it still makes me feel like J.K. Beck could have altered things a little to make it less of what we expect and more spicy and new.

However, on the good side I found the book well written and engaging throughout. It was enjoyable and full of action. We integrated lots of different aspects that I haven’t read in other paranormal-romance books with the FBI, paranormal divisions in government made up of other creatures and little gangs of vampires. It certainly made for an exciting read when we had many different aspects dragged into this book to keep a changing scene regularly.

Alexis was a strong female character and I appreciated her kick-ass enthusiasm and personality. She was set upon tracking down the killer of her sister and avenging her. Her morals were strong and she could fight for herself. We witnessed a build up of history and a tragic past. I suppose that could become predictable for most heroines these days since they tend to have to have a reasoning for their behaviour. She wasn’t all that smart at times, but her physical strength tended to overrule this and I enjoyed the aspect of her training herself to be a fighting machine. I found that she didn’t push Sergius away in a whiny way because she hated vampires, but she accepted him and who he was and this allowed me to enjoy the novel more.

Sergius was the character I fell deeply in love with. He was a tormented, sexy man who never believed himself good but recognised the world as it was. I found it very easy to fall in love with the man and he certainly swept Alexis of her feet. He was a brooding man, who could easily seduce Alexis and me! The seduction was rather satisfying and not overdone or crude which I appreciated. I felt like we lacked a real build up to the actual relationship, but this was probably due to the whole relationship being a whirlwind one of instant attraction. At the end I don’t think we covered a real talk to satisfy my need of their relationship being solved, but it fitted well-ish together to be appreciated.

I appreciated the novel starting in the past where we witnessed Sergius in his youth as a vampire and a key event that has moulded his life. It also allowed us to see characters that would be seen in the future and create real problems and I enjoyed being able to link past and present together. It also added to the ability of being able to reflect the length and torment of Sergius’ long life.

Something that I thoroughly loved was Beck bringing lots of the paranormal aspects and creatures into this story. We concentrated more on witches and vampires in this one, but other creatures were mentioned and lingered upon to open the world up wider. I feel that sometimes in the paranormal-romance sector we focus on a single type of creature and don’t witness the intertwining of the paranormal world and I really enjoyed reading about more than just one supernatural creature. It was nice to see a broad width of the paranormal scope rather than a sheltered view.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and happily read it. Whilst it wasn’t mind-blowing I’d be happy to read the other books in the series! A nice addition to the paranormal-romance genre. I’ll also be looking out for the next novel in the series out later this year!

*This was provided to me by the publishers in exchange for a review*

My Rating:

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