Glow (Plated Prisoner #4)

I'll find you, Goldfinch. I swear to you.
Now fly.

Available at Amazon.com

Glow
Raven Kennedy
Plated Prisoner, book four
Kindle edition, 738 pages
Paperback, 832 pages
Published June 25, 2024
ASIN B095G183J6
ISBN 9781464224447


"I was nothing but a road to Midas. A means to get to where he wanted to go, and I paved that path in gold."

My life has been made up of gilded lies. But death has been shaped from rot.

Like a phoenix caught fire, I will need to rise from the ashes and learn to wield my own power. Because my wings may have been clipped, but I am not in a cage, and I'm finally free to fly from the frozen kingdoms I've been kept in.

Yet the world doesn't want to let me.

That's the thing when you turn against a king—everyone else turns against you.

Good thing I have a different king in my corner.

But even with the dark threat of Slade Ravinger, the other monarchs are coming for me.

So I will fight for him and he will kill for me, and if we need to become the villains, then so be it.

Because so long as I live in this world, I won't be used again.

Please note: This is an adult fantasy series with dark elements that may be triggering, including past emotional and physical trauma, violence, adult language, and explicit romance. Read at your own discretion.

True to form, this book picks up right where book three, Gleam, faded to black. The castle is in chaos.

Auren lost control, almost burning out. Molten gold ravaged the place, killing countless in its path. Midas included.

Ravinger begged Auren's forgiveness as he was left with one recourse, to use his powers against her in order to save her from herself.

Queen Kaila of Third Kingdom survived, and tah-dah! We've unlocked another POV. It's with her that the first chapter opens up. And with the very pregnant saddle, Mist, spewing all kinds of ridiculousness about Auren stealing Midas' powers.

Convincing Kaila that Auren could steal hers as well.

With her would be fiance dead, Kaila pulls out a backup plan for seizing power over Sixth and Fifth Kingdom. Make the people, who are still rioting over Midas' wife, Queen Malina's seizure of the throne (her rightful throne, mind you) and her alleged murder, love her. Accept her.

Slade has fled Fifth Kingdom, with Auren, on the back of Argo, a timberwing. And now, the fanart finally clicks into place.

He's counting the seconds, well the fuck aware of how crucial it is that he pull his rotting power out of her before it's too late.

They land. He pulls. Most of it flows freely but there's one last speck that resists. He panics. He curses. And he tries once more to rip the last of the rot out of her, sending his body careening backwards into the snow.

But the speck remains.

And Auren still doesn't wake up.

And again, Slade is counting the seconds.

And Digby is shouting.

And the Wrath is sensing the alarm.

And this series is something else, because how are we only four percent in and my heart is pounding in my chest! Paragraph after paragraph. Page after page. Until finally, Ryatt slams his fist into Slade's face and the spell of panic is finally broken. Sort of.

Back on his feet, Slade scoops Auren back into his arms, hauls them both back onto Argo, and we're off to Deadwell while the Wrath is directed to go back for the army.

But does anyone listen to orders anymore? Apparently Lu and Ryatt have transcended that bit of expectation. And Judd just doesn't follow orders that he deems stupid.

So chapter after chapter, we're riding in Slade's POV while taking trips into his past with his brother and mother and father and then talks of Lu's past of when she came into Slade's army at just fourteen years of age. Talula Gallerin.

“She’s gonna wake up, you know.”

I swallow hard, all the light amusement draining back out of me. “You sound sure.”

“That’s because I am,” she says before she unfolds herself and gets to her feet. “You took my belligerence and tossed a uniform in my face. You met Osrik’s kill drive and decided to give him your sword. You saw every jail cell that couldn’t hold Judd and, instead of tossing him in another one, let him keep the keys. This time, you found your goldfinch and watched her leave her cage. She’ll open her eyes, just like you got the rest of us to do.”

Throughout the beginning, I was in awe as the author takes King Rot and shows him for the human that he half is. For the boy that he was, and the man that he became. One that makes mistakes, that doesn't think of everything, that loses himself in panic and desperation but has the loyalty of his comrades and the grounding of his friends to hit him, distract him, comfort him—whatever needed to get him through. And as much as I was ready for our Lady Auren to wake the hell up, I was there for Slade's story. There, beside Ryatt, and Lu, and Judd, and Digby.

Osrik alone has gone back for the army, kicking their butt into high gear to get out of dodge with haste. And cue happy dance because...

Osrik and Rissa's side quest has commenced!

Frowning, I straighten up, and then my eyes adjust to the darker lighting and the warmer air, and my gaze immediately zeroes in on the woman wearing some fancy ass dress that has no business being worn out here in these conditions. The little coat she has on isn’t doing shit either.

The blonde stands up to face me, crossing her arms in front of her indignantly. “And just who are you?” she demands.

I blink at her, then at the second woman who’s lying on the pallet next to her, white as a sheet as she sleeps. “I’m captain of the whole damn army right now. Who the fuck are you?”

Give this woman one hell of a romance! She deserves it!

And then the words I've been waiting for...

"I'm finally going to tell you why they really call me Rip."

::squeal::

Nope. There was no expecting that.

Home is Annwyn.

I truly believed Gleam would win out as my favorite of this series, but Glow was proving to be a notable contender as time went on. Of any of the books, this is just as much Slade's story as Auren's, if not more so. He's an open book here. Sure, he prefers to turn the pages slowly, but gone is the deception. And he's his mother's son to the core.

Auren stands trial for her alleged crimes: killing Midas and stealing his powers. But, like our own system of justice, the process is rigged in one side's favor. But this time, Slade is there. Rip is there.

And the Bridge of Lemuria is restored.

Bring on the Fae!

5 out of 5 stars. Despite each book picking up right at the end of its predecessor, I've never really felt there was much of a cliffhanger. But the ending of this book? Holyfruckingshyt.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

Previously in the series:

2025/35

Chained: Brides of the Kindred #9

"And you... you're in my dreams."

Available on Amazon.com

Chained
Evangeline Anderson
Brides of the Kindred, book nine
ebook
Published November 29th 2013 by Evangeline Anderson
ISBN 9781310975165

Maggie Jordan is not supposed to be having adventures. Her mission is to go to Gaia, a new, unpopulated world, and study the native life forms there. So how come she finds herself in on the female dominated Yonnie Six instead, rescuing a huge, muscular prisoner? The same prisoner she keeps seeing over and over again in her dreams…

Korexiroth—or Kor, as Maggie dubs him, is a slave who spent his life fighting in the savage arenas of the Blood Circuit. He’s got plenty of kills under his belt and more than enough reasons to run as soon as he gets free. But somehow he can’t make himself part from the girl who was brave enough to save him from certain death.

Now Maggie and Kor are on the run together, trying desperately to find someone to remove the alien device that was implanted in Maggie as punishment for her thievery of an expensive slave. The device, or “slut button” as it is called, forces Maggie to sexual excesses the shy scientist has never known before—and Kor is the only one who can help her control her new urges.

Kor is more than willing to help Maggie satisfy her new sexual hunger but his own appetites are not so easily satiated. For there is a dark secret, a shadow from his past that stalks him and whispers of power beyond belief if only he will give himself over to darkness.

Will they find a way to return Maggie to normal? Will Kor admit how he really feels for her? Or with the shadow from his past succeed is tearing them apart?

It happened AGAIN. These darn Kindred books keep sneaking up on me. I had this one on the 2014 release shelf, but no... here it is, released November 29, 2013. Warning: This post contains major spoilers!

Kor, whose rightful name is Therron, has lived most of his life as a slave in the Blood Market, fighting, and fucking, according to his master's pleasure and greed. When he ends up sold to Lady Pope'nose, the sadistic male-hating, slave abuser from book seven, his sole focus is to survive without submitting.

And there, he begins to Dreamshare.

Maggie is an accident prone, science-loving, all-screwed-up-when-it-comes-to-men kind of female. She's been engaged for years to a man who's work obsessed, dislikes kissing, and whose manhood Maggie has come to see as a limp, little worm afraid to come out of his whole. When her paths cross with Kor as he's being paraded in his cell as a prize by Pope'nose, she risks her mission to collect the Kindred scrolls and sets him free.

And suddenly, Kor finds the single most beautiful, gentle thing his world has ever known. Her innocence and compassion, coupled with the dreams of her, leave Kor vowing to never let Maggie go.

They escape, as the situation presents itself, to a spa off world that is owned by beings who feed off of strong emotion-mostly pleasure. In playing the part of Pope'nose, Maggie is forced from her inhibitions and strangled by guilt from her disloyalty to her fiance. To save her, and to spare her, Kor mutilates himself and when an attack leaves Maggie disoriented and afraid, it's not Kor she cries out for, but Donald, and a bitter dose of reality hits Kor hard.

They part and Kor goes off on a quest for answers as to who is and why his eyes glow red and fire laser beams. Meanwhile, Maggie is captured by a vengeful Pope'nose, put into stasis for six months, and implanted with a living creature that forces sexual needs upon Maggie that she cannot escape.

Once more, the dreams set them free. Kor finds her, buys her, and goes on to fulfill her needs as they rise.  Much to Maggie's shame and embarrassment. Their relationship is rather reminiscent of book seven wherein the man is forced to constantly comfort and reason out everything in order to do that. Where everything is not about want, but necessity.

Meanwhile, there is a supporting back story between a woman and Twin Kindred that leaves me fearful I will once again have to skip, or quickly skim, through the next book. *pout* I'm just not into threesomes.

4 out of 5 stars.

Book ten, Divided, is due out in 2014 (likely February). Two more are expected to follow.

Previously in the series:

Kiss of Snow (Psy/Changeling #10)

“From my perspective, it was hilarious.” -Lucas

Available at Amazon.com

Kiss of Snow
Nalini Signh
Psy/Changeling, book ten
ebook, 415 pages
Published August 11th 2011 by Gollancz
ISBN 9780425242094

Since the moment of her defection from the PsyNet and into the SnowDancer wolf pack, Sienna Lauren has had one weakness. Hawke. Alpha and dangerous, he compels her to madness.

Hawke is used to walking alone, having lost the woman who would've been his mate long ago. But Sienna fascinates the primal heart of him, even as he tells himself she is far too young to handle the wild fury of the wolf.

Then Sienna changes the rules-and suddenly, there is no more distance, only the most intimate of battles between two people who were never meant to meet. Yet as they strip away each other's secrets in a storm of raw emotion, they must also ready themselves for a far more vicious fight...

A deadly enemy is out to destroy SnowDancer, striking at everything they hold dear, but it is Sienna's darkest secret that may yet savage the pack that is her home-and the alpha who is its heartbeat.

A story, nine books in the making. Hawke is the SnowDancer alpha who lost the female that would have been his mate long, long, LONG ago. He was seven when he met her. Ten when she died. He has lived every day since, believing his one chance at forever was stolen from him. A wolf only mates once. Therefore, to Hawke, it only *chooses* once.

Sienna, a Psy, came to the SnowDancer pack after her family's defection from Silence with a death warrant on their heads nearly three years ago. She was seventeen at the time. Expecting death from the wolves, their one hope was that the children- Sienna's brother, Toby, and niece, Marlee-would be spared and taken in. Her uncles, Judd and Walker were, instead, welcomed into SnowDancer where Judd eventually mated Brenna, the sister of Riley and Andrew Kincaid, and, piggybacking this story, Walker finds his mate in the SnowDancer healer, Lara.

I'm going to share with you the moment this book got good for me.

“You wanted to talk. We’ll talk.”

Her palms went damp at that smooth, silky tone.

“I’m putting aside my ‘alpha status.’ ”

Oh, he was furious.

“So let’s see if you can win this argument.” Turning in his seat, he leaned his arm along the back of hers. “Now explain to me how you would’ve stopped a massive fistfight in the bar tonight.”

“That’s not on me,” she said, trying to breathe past the sheer power of him. “The women were an excuse—the males were itching to go at each other since the minute we walked in. They’re always playing dominance games.”

“So you knew that, and still you amped up the sexual energy in the room?”

The truck was suddenly too small, too confined, Hawke’s hotly masculine scent seeping into her very pores, touching parts of her no man had ever stroked. “It wasn’t my responsibility.”

“Oh?”

“No.” A sudden crash of anger. “I’m not accountable for everyone! Maybe I wanted to have fun for a change. Maybe I wanted to not be in control for a few short minutes! Maybe I just wanted to dance.”

Hawke’s lashes came down. When they lifted back up, his gaze was night-glow, a brilliant ice blue shot with light. She sucked in a breath, realizing she was talking to the wolf now.

“You want to dance?” Husky words that stroked along her skin like the softest fur. She nodded. “Then we dance.”

Reaching out, he switched on the vehicle’s sound system and input a selection before stepping out.

Yeah, chick was dancing on the bar. From Coyote Ugly to Dirty Dancing in a blink. Not really. Still... Nineteen year old girl and a man many years her senior. Would have loved an exact number in that regard.

Hawke takes control to a whole new level. Oh dear gods. Call him a saint and dip him in bronze, because this guy should be idolized. He's older than Sienna. Like, my guess, decades older. And Singh does oh so well at capturing the differences in the maturity level between them. However...! This book had *way* too much going on. The constant interruptions. The staggering amount of postponements. All too much for little old me. By the end, it felt like this book had doubled in length. It's only fitting that I take a break from the Psy/Changeling world for a bit. Sheer coincidence that that was already my plan.

3 out of 5 stars. 4 stars had it gotten to the point and stayed there.


Previously in the series:

Ablaze

Ablaze
Dahlia Rose
ebook, 50 pages
Published April 9th 2012 by Sugar And Spice Press

Hailey knew the consequences of her actions. Heaven would cry for what she was about to do, but her charge was to be kept safe at all cost. Her glory, her immortality, was no question. She was an angel, and the boy she protected was to be a leader of men, a peacemaker like no other. While heaven would protect him, hell wanted him dead. They sent their best, Pennemuel, a demon enforcer, and what he wanted more than anything was her. Hailey gave herself to him, willing to stop a war between heaven and hell, to protect the boy she now loved more than anything. She carried a secret, one that only few knew. In the taking of her body, Penn would become hers as well, tethered by love. He would be her strongest ally in the fight that was to come.

She looked like she was made of bronze, and her glow actually made his eyes hurt. Pennemuel thought he would be the toast of all his peers by taking an angel and could see himself climbing to the highest level in the demon realm. He didn't know by sleeping with her, love would be the punishment. When the fist affects of it punched his heart like a fist, he regretted his actions. He was not meant for love or redemption, yet when Hailey looked at him, he was lost and would do anything to protect her. With hell nipping at their heels, they fought side by side to protect the boy she loved. All the while, he tried to decipher his new feelings and actually try his hand at romance.

Together they were united in a common good, yet for the first time in his existence, he couldn't see his future. She kissed him, and in her arms he felt alive, almost whole. Could a demon in love find his place in the world, in the embrace of an angel, or would his sins damn them both?

After Rogue Rider, I went hunting. Because, seriously, who could get enough of Larissa Ione? And did I ever find! She has a new vampire book out, the first of a new series. She *also* co-wrote an entire series, ACRO, with Stephanie Tyler (author of the Shadow Force series, which I loved!) under the name Sydney Croft. They date back to 2007, and yes, I so snatched up book one: Riding the Storm.

But those will wait.

I also have Boone Brux's third book of the Bringer and The Bane series on hold. Right now, I need some more demons and angels.

To protect her charge, Hailey offers up her body to the demon, Pennemuel, in trade for his aid in keeping the boy safe. Penn has no trouble at all accepting her offer. He delights in the thought of not only screwing her of her innocence, but bringing about her fall from heaven. What he doesn't expect is losing his own soul in the process, and that of his heart. 

Now a traitor to Hell, Penn takes Hailey and Sam on the run. Allthewhile, Hailey shuts him off. Won't look at him. Except to scowl. Won't touch him. Unless absolutely necessary. Her only care is for the boy she believes has the power to change the world. And Penn can't bear to leave her. 

This definitely satisfied my craving. A tad over the top but pleasant nonetheless and easily comes together with a happily ever after ending. 3 out of 5 stars. 

Hunter's Moon

Hunter's Moon
Bernadette Gardner
ebook
Published February 20th 2011 by Bernadette Gardner, via Smashwords
ISBN 2940011216213

When an inhuman scream silences the night creatures in a Pennsylvania woodland, Alliana Cambridge isn’t afraid. She’s angry. When she goes in search of the source of that tortured sound she expects to find another drunken hunter injured by his own gun.

Instead she finds something indescribable. He’s six feet of sensuous panther-black skin stretched over taut muscle. His green eyes glow with feral intelligence and though she can’t speak his language, Alli knows he’s asking for her help. She watches as his magnificent body heals itself of a vicious gunshot wound and she wonders if he’s come to enslave humans, starting with her.

Of course, she’s probably dreaming. After all, magnificent feline aliens don’t normally roam the woods behind Alli’s home. If he’s still there, in her bed, in the morning...well, she’ll worry about it then.

Alli is a survivor of domestic abuse, and the trauma has left her loath to start up another relationship. Living alone in the woods, enjoying a calm September night, she hears gunshots in the forest and the sharp cry of the wounded. What she discovers is a creature built like a man but with the fur of a beast.

The most appealing aspect of this story was the language barrier between the two main characters before Alli ultimately swallows a translator that screws with her brain and makes communication a possible thing. However, K'vshtin, or Adam as she calls him, isn't all that different from us earthlings. When I read about alien sex, I'm expecting something out of the box but, oh no, he took her like every other earth man.

And the ending, it was horrible. One more chapter might have brought about the closure of so many unanswered questions but it was not to be had. What becomes of Adam now? And how does this all get explained to Ben? 2 out of 5 stars.

Farewell, 2025!

▬▬ APRIL ▬▬▬ (3)
1. Fourth Wing (Empyrean #1) by Rebecca Yarros (04/03)
2. Iron Flame (Empyrean #2) by Rebecca Yarros (04/23)
3. Lights Out by Navessa Allen (04/30)
▬▬ MAY ▬▬▬ (3)
4. Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry (05/27)
5. Onyx Storm (Empyrean #3) by Rebecca Yarros (05/30)
6. The Emperor's Wolves by Michelle Sagara (05/31)
▬▬ JUNE ▬▬▬ (9)
7. Dire Bound (Wolves of Ruin #1) by Sable Sorensen (06/04)
8. A Court of Thorns & Roses (ACoTaR #1) by Sarah J. Maas (06/08)
9. Eidolon (Wraith Kings #2) by Grace Draven (06/10)
10. Shadow Wars by Sherrilyn Kenyon (06/12)
11. A Court of Mist & Fury (ACoTaR #2) by Sarah J. Maas (06/17)
12. The Ippos King (Wraith Kings #3) by Grace Draven (06/19)
13. Metal Slinger (Fire & Metal #1) by Rachel Schneider (06/21)
14. The Devil You Know (Mercenary Librarians #2) by Kit Rocha (06/25)
15. To Kill A Fae (Dragon Portal #1) by Jamie A. Waters (06/30)
▬▬ JULY ▬▬▬ (14)
16. Eve of Destruction (Eve of Destruction #1) by Sherrilyn Kenyon (07/03)
17. Born of Blood (League #14 / Eve of Destruction #3) by Sherrilyn Kenyon (07/06)
18. Avidian (Demon & the Savior #1) by Ashley R. Odonovan (07/06)
19. Betrayer (Cursed Bloodstone #1) by LiAnne Kay (07/08)
20. Dance with the Devil (Mercenary Librarians #3) by Kit Rocha (07/11)
21. Assassin's Blade (TOG #0.5) by Sarah J Maas (07/12)
22. Throne of Glass (TOG #1) by Sarah J Maas (07/14)
23. Gild (Plated Prisoner #1) by Raven Kennedy (07/16)
24. Heir of Fire (TOG #2) by Sarah J Maas (07/19)
25. Aurora's End (Aurora's Cycle #3) by Amie Kaufman (07/21)
26. The Silversmith (Selvaren #1) by LJ Claren (07/23)
27. The Moon and Its Eyes (Cain's Song #1) by Mehrin U (07/25)
28. Glint (Plated Prisoner #2) by Raven Kennedy (07/26)
29. Captive (Cursed Bloodstone #2) by Lianne Kay (07/28)
▬▬ AUGUST ▬▬▬ (10)
30. Gleam (Plated Prisoner #3) by Raven Kennedy (08/01)
31. A Star of Darkness (Scented Court standalone) by A.L. Knorr (08/03)
32. Come For Me (The Hunt #1) by CJ Sweet (08/05)
33. Daughter of No Worlds (War of Lost Hearts #1) by Carissa Broadbent (08/11)
34. By Blood and Magic (Dragon Portal #2) by Jamie A. Waters (08/21)
35. Glow (Plated Prisoner #4) by Raven Kennedy (08/26)
36. Bound by Dragons (Bound by Dragons #1) by Alisha Klapheke (08/27)
37. Kingdom of Spirits (Bound by Dragons #2) by Alisha Klapheke (08/28)
38. Crown & Dragon (Bound by Dragons #3) by Alisha Klapheke (08/30)
39. Storm of Flames (Bound by Dragons #4) by Alisha Klapheke (08/31)
▬▬ SEPTEMBER ▬▬▬ (7)
40. The Cruel Prince (Folk of the Air #1) by Holly Black (09/03)
41. Keys to the Crown (Rellmira Duology #1) by Leah Mara (09/08)
42. Powerless (Powerless Trilogy #1) by Lauren Roberts (09/15)
43. The Wicked King (Folk of the Air #2) by Holly Black (09/17)
44. The Queen of Nothing (Folk of the Air #3) by Holly Black (9/19)
45. Gold (Plated Prisoner #5) by Raven Kennedy (9/23)
46. Kissed by the Gods (Eternal Wars #1) by Caty Rogan (9/27)
▬▬ OCTOBER ▬▬▬ (8)
47. The Keeper's Codex: World Guide and Dark Fae Novella by Celeanne Dorrington (10/01) ARC
48. Lightlark (Lightlark #1) by Alex Aster (10/02)
49. The Serpent and the Wolf (Dark Inheritance Trilogy #1) by Rebecca Robinson (10/04)
50. Goldfinch (Plated Prisoner #6) by Raven Kennedy (10/07)
51. How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories (Folk of the Air #3.5) by Holly Black (10/08)
52. Siege to the Throne (Rellmira Duology #2) by Leah Mara (10/12) ARC
53. The Stolen Heir (Stolen Heir duology #1) by Holly Black (10/23)
54. The Prisoner's Throne (Stolen Heir duology #2) by Holly Black (10/28)
▬▬ NOVEMBER ▬▬▬ (2)
55. The Death-Made Prince by Lisette Marshall (11/21)
56. Carved in Crimson (Heirs of Lirien #1) by Annabelle McCormack (11/26)
▬▬ DECEMBER ▬▬▬ (4)
57. Your Knife, My Heart (Dark Forces #1) by K.M. Moronova (12/02)
58. Queen of Shadows (TOG #4) by Sarah J. Maas (12/09)
59. My Blade, Your Back (Dark Forces #2) by K.M. Moronova (12/17)
60. Children of Fallen Gods (War of Lost Hearts #2) by Carissa Broadbent (12/30)



53 Fantasy | 04 Paranormal | 02 SciFi | 01 Contemporary


ARCs: 3

Hardcopies Acquired: 30 (20 Hardcover | 10 Paperback)

DNF

In the Veins of the Drowning (Siren Mage #1) by Kalie Cassidy (08/14)

When Vengeance Bleeds Royal (Blood Descent #1) by LZ Cathcart (10/16) ARC 11/12 release

A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOTAR #2)

There you are.
I've been looking for you.

Other Editions Available at Amazon.com

A Court of Mist & Fury
Sarah J. Maas
ACOTAR, book two
656 pages, Paperback
Audiobook, 19+ hours
Night Court Edition published April 29, 2025
ISBN 9781639736706


Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court – but at a steep cost. Though she now possesses the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can’t forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin’s people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, the mesmerising High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates his dark web of political games and tantalising promises, a greater evil looms – and she might be key to stopping it.

But only if she can step into her growing power, heal her fractured soul and have the courage to shape her own future – and the future of a world cloven in two...

Everyone deserves a second chance. This was Feyre's.

Three months have passed since what went down in A Court of Thorns and Roses, and Feyre is miserable. And yet... Rhysand come get this damn woman. She's being stupid again!

She's haunted by her kills. She has nightmares. She's vomiting at all hours of the night. She's trapped under guard, in a house, losing weight, turning pale, panic driven at the color red... and she's still f#€^£;#% Tamlin!! I know women like this exist but there is not an iota of my being that can relate to this kind of insanity. Feyre is the only person to go from human to Fae and actually have a glow down instead of up.

Part 2 ::

Being in Velaris, at the restaurant, sitting round the table and sharing their history - how they met and the obstacles they'd overcome - was so very reminiscent of the League. It took me back to Nykyrian and yes, Rhysand very much gave Syn vibes, and I had all the feels as this small team divulged how Rhys had come to have his Inner Circle: his Second, Morrigan; his Third, Amren; the commander of his armies, Cassien; and his spy, Azriel.

Page after page, chapter after chapter, I was trying my best to like Feyre. I was desperate to see her through Rhysand's eyes and kept reminding myself that she does have redeemable qualities. She is a survivor. When faced with a challenge, she will drag herself up to meet it. What she loves, she will destroy herself to protect. But she's being so *difficult*. The way she thinks. The choices she wrestles with. The mantra she clings to only to forsake.

I was a wolf. I was a wolf. I was a wolf. ...I'm not an animal.

What dafuq?!

And then there's her relationship with Tamlin.

“I had done everything—everything for that love. I had ripped myself to shreds, I had killed innocents and debased myself, and he had sat beside Amarantha on that throne. And he couldn’t do anything, hadn’t risked it—hadn’t risked being caught until there was one night left, and all he’d wanted to do wasn’t free me, but fuck me, and—”

And when Amarantha had broken me, when she had snapped my bones and made my blood boil in its veins, he’d just knelt and begged her. He hadn’t tried to kill her, hadn’t crawled for me. Yes, he’d fought for me—but I’d fought harder for him.

And he had the nerve once his powers were back to shove me into a cage. The nerve to say I was no longer useful; I was to be cloistered for his peace of mind. He’d given me everything I needed to become myself, to feel safe, and when he got what he wanted—when he got his power back, his lands back … he stopped trying. He was still good, still Tamlin, but he was just … wrong.

And then I was sobbing through my clenched teeth, the tears washing away that infected wound, and I didn’t care that Cassian was there, or Rhys or Azriel.

How. Many. Times. Will this woman break apart over this pathetic cretin before enough is enough.

But we press on and in true Maas fashion, after about thirty chapters, we find our stride and all is going swimmingly. A visit to the Summer Court. A side quest with Amren.

And then...

I swore as I slammed into the post of the stairwell landing.

You're wrong for that, Maas! I laughed then and I laugh now but you're wrong for that.

Then there came a point, however brief. And I don't know how I got there, but I didn't want this book to end. Maybe it was the spice of 42. Maybe it was the rage of 43. Maybe even the hope found in 44. Maybe it was the culmination of knowing the hell that Rhysand had been suffering for years was reaching its end.

Details got caught up in my consciousness that I would dwell on for hours. The words that he'd said. The questions he'd asked. For Feyre's benefit or his own?

Here was the High Lord of the Night Court with a mate—once in love with the High Lord of Spring—now telling the High Lord of the Summer Court how easy it would be to fall in love with him. Feyre darling, you are lethal to this man's self esteem.

Oh yes, this book was under my skin.

And then finally, finally, it happened: Feyre became the main character I needed her to be. She effortlessly yielded her powers, declared her independence, stood against Lucien (Not Tamlin, but meh), molded her wings and made her choice. Yes, we had faltered a bit when she oh so appallingly told the man who had spent fifty years placating his captor as a whore that all she wanted was fun and a distraction from him... But, fine, push passed, ignore that trigger...We were here.. and then, just.. as.. swiftly...

You bitch.

"...take whatever pieces that you offered"

He was willing to take whatever she offered and all I could hear in my head as my eyes flew over the words on the pages was Stop, Feyre. StopitFeyre. Stop. It. Feyre!

"I don't want to hear this."

That's what she'd said to him as he poured his heart out. Before she demanded he, poisoned, bloodied, and weak from torture, use whatever power he had left to winnow her home where she left him on his elbows and knees in the mud.

And I just sat there as the chapter closed—raging, tearful, devastated—with a book in my hands too pretty to throw.

Part 3 ::

I don't have the words for Chapter 54 but Feyre is Cauldron blessed that she managed to sort herself out before nightfall. Even if it did take five days for her to face Rhys again. Five days! Just go paint your little pictures, Feyre, it’s not like we’re preparing for a war or anything.

Hasn't that man suffered enough from a volatile female? Feyre... Maas... What are you doing? Why is the lead female continuously lashing out against a far more traumatized leading male? Out to single-handedly exemplify that hurt people hurt people? Using his vulnerabilities against him. It’s gross.

And from that point I was just ready to be done. No more rollercoaster. No more struggling to love a character hell bent on jumping from victim to villain and back again.

I love this world. I like Lucien and Rhysand and Mor and Azriel and Cassien and Amren. It's Tamlin and these damned humans that keep ruining things. I don’t know if I’ll venture again into the Maasverse. Certainly not anytime soon.

5 out of 5 stars. I can give it no less. This book emotionally wrecked me.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook


Previously in the series:

One good thing about coming into a series ten years late is that the fanart is abundant and on point!

2025/11

- Soul Stealer (Prologue)

December 23, 2009


He tries to blend in, just another man caught up in the Christmas rush surging down Main Street . Pulling up the collar of his worn bomber jacket, he keeps his chin tucked down. It won't help matters to be recognized.


He glances through the window of an overstocked toy store. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" blasts from inside. Searching, searching, his eyes rake over the shoppers clamoring for last-minute gifts. Nothing.


The night air sears his lungs, but the icy grip squeezing his heart is not from the cold. He swipes at his watering eyes. He needs to focus, stay alert.


Forcing his legs into a normal gait, neither too fast, nor too slow, he keeps walking. He is almost to the corner with the two-story brick apartment building, the one he walks past every night. The old lady who lives there now refuses to help him. The people down at the shelter are no good to him either. They all say they don't know where she is.


They lie.


Since his release three weeks ago, he has walked Main Street morning, noon and night, hoping to get lucky. Tonight he wonders if he ever will. The old anger creeps into his chest.


He stops, throws his head back and silently demands of the heavens,How long will I be punished?


There is no answer.


People bump into him as they hurry by, cursing as they go. "Silent Night" blares from the store behind him. Exhaling deeply, he blows white vapor toward the stars.No. He won't stop searching for her. Not until the day he dies.


And then, for the first time in his long-lived existence, his prayers are answered.


He has the sensation of being shot out of a cannon. His blood explodes through his veins and pounds in his ears. Dizzy, he can't tell if his feet are still on the ground. The street noises become background static. Colors fuzz.


He sees only her.


Walking at a fast clip on the other side of the street is the flesh-and-body version of the woman in his dreams. Nightmares.


She stops to talk to an old man who lives on the streets. Putting a hand on the man's shoulder, she points off in the distance toward the homeless shelter. When he balks, she vehemently shakes her head. It's a cold night and she doesn't want anyone out in it. Smiling, she watches the old man shuffle off in the direction of the shelter.


He is shocked to see the years on her, especially the curves where she once was athletic-slim. Her long ponytail has been reduced to a short bob cupping her chin. He wonders how different this woman is today, but when she tosses the hair out of her eyes, he sees the confidence of old, and he smiles. She hasn't changed, at least not in the ways that matter.


Somehow, she senses him. Does she feel the heat from his stare? Slowly, she turns.Across the busy street, her eyes lock onto his. With the golden glow of the lamplight catching like flames in the strands of her blond hair, she is more angelic than he remembered. And when she smiles?


Lord help him, when she smiles, she is even more beautiful than she'd been the night he killed her.

Dangerous Cravings

Dangerous Cravings
Evangeline Anderson
ebook, 448 pages
Published  March 21, 2006  by Loose Id, LLC
ISBN 9781596323889


By day, Tampa homicide detective Alex Reed is fiercely intelligent and tougher than any of the men in her department. By night, she explores her darker side by writing highly erotic novels of bondage and submission under the pen name Victoria Tarlatan.

Detective Cole Berkley is Alex's longtime partner and best friend. He doesn't know anything about her secret hunger to be mastered, but he's about to find out. A serial killer is working his dark magic, transforming wicked women into works of erotic art. His hapless victims are found tied to the bed in classic bondage poses, strangled and tortured in unspeakable ways. To crack the case, Alex and Cole go undercover in the BDSM community, posing as Master and slave, Dominant and submissive.

Can Alex hold on to her secret while being forced to play out her most private fantasies with her partner? And can Cole handle the change in his tough-as-nails partner from one of the guys to a woman with deeply erotic needs? The friction between them will soon be the least of their worries. The killer has a list of intended victims. Victoria Tarlatan is on it, making Alex next in line for the killer's transformation. Will she pay for her Dangerous Cravings with her life?

Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations some readers may find objectionable: Strong BDSM theme and content, violence.

Earlier this week I was needing something sweet in my reading. But then... I'm the type of person that needs a bit of sadism with her sugar. And that's where Dangerous Cravings comes in...

Stay with me now.

Erotic romance writer, and one of the best might I add, Evangeline Anderson, has outdone herself with this thrilling read about a serial killer targeting authors whose books focus on BDSM.

Cole Berkley and Alex Reed haven't spent the last five years of their partnership pining for one another. They're friends-friends who trust one another explicitly and have a very close, very comfortable relationship. But their newest case is about to bring out Alex's long kept secret and give the attraction between the two a very forceful shove.

Couldn't help but be completely engrossed by the gradual process Anderson wrote for Cole coming around to noticing Alex. First her voice. Then, her legs. And so on and so forth. It's one of those things where you're on the edge of your seat, waiting for the passion to explode, and yet, the high you get from that bit by bit is just as an intoxicating. Tease me... no, don't tease me! Gawd, I was dying to know how the first kiss was going to go down. And HOT DAMN I was not disappointed. Daddy issues make for the *best* drama. And some rather hot moments of weakness.

Cole is a virgin to the very idea of BDSM. He has no clue what the hell is going on. Alex writes the stuff, craves it, but won't speak a damn word about it so Cole is forced to use the investigation to try to make some sense of it all. He can't bring himself to comprehend what makes his best friend need to be held down and have pain inflicted during sex. But he loves Alex. He wants her. And he wants to be the lover she needs him to be, even though the idea of hurting her makes him physically sick.

Get over it, Cole!

“What the hell,” I said, slowly and distinctly, “was that about?”
     She turned to me and there was so much need, so much pain and confusion and shame in her eyes,that I felt my insides clench. God, she’d never even hinted at anything like this. Or maybe she had, and I just wasn’t paying attention ... Maybe I was ignoring her because I didn’t want to know.
     “Cole ...” Her voice was soft and tentative. The look on her face said she expected me to hit her at any time. I wanted to shake her, this vulnerable stranger. Shake her and demand what she had done with my tough, no-nonsense, takes-no-crap-off-anyone, one-of-the-guys partner.
     “Never mind,” I said, feeling the muscles in the side of my jaw bunch and tense. “Just get out.”
     “No.” Her eyes cleared a little, my rough words seeming to bringing her back to her senses. “No, I’m not leaving like this. I need ... I need ...” Her mouth worked uncertainly.
     “What?” I asked, my voice dangerously soft. “What do you think you need, Alex?”
     “I need you to understand,” she burst out, desperately. “I need you to know that I’m not ... thatI don’t ...”
     “Don’t what? Don’t get off on --”
     “Don’t say it.” She slid across the seat and pressed her small hand over my lips. In the dim glow of the lamp her eyes were wide and drowning deep. I felt in danger of falling in and never getting outagain. I wanted her so badly I ached. But I didn’t want to lay her down and take my time -- didn’t want to bring her gently or take her softly. I wanted what she wanted. I wanted to be rough with her. I couldn’t let myself want that.
     I pulled back from her, afraid that her touch, the press of her small, warm fingers against my lips, would set me off. “Get out,” I said again. I felt like a loaded gun with three pounds of pressure already on the trigger. “Get out, Alex.”
     “No.” She was trembling but determined. “No, come in with me.”
     “I can’t.” I heard a low grating sound and realized it was me, grinding my teeth. “I can’t -- I’ll hurt you.”
     She looked up at me, eyes wide and serious. “I know.”
     I could hear the steering wheel creak beneath my palms as I gripped it. I was holding it like a life preserver, knowing that if it left my hands, and my feet took me into her small dark house, I was lost. I can’t let that happen. I said it to myself over and over.
     “Cole,” she said, stroking the side of my face. “Cole, please ...”
     My control snapped and somehow my traitorous hands left the steering wheel and buried themselves in her silky hair, the same way they had the night before. I was again conscious of wanting to own her -- of wanting to possess her totally. Her mouth was as sweet as a bruised berry. I crushed her to me, wanting to own and if I couldn’t own, wanting to mark. To leave a sign on her skin that would let the world know I had been there.

Eventually Cole finds a balance between his own fantasies and Alex's needs and the scenes are a beautiful balance of the two. Despite the drama of a bitch of an ex wife and having an eight-year-old daughter, I found Cole-as Redd would say-extremely lickable.

Readers who find themselves opposed to BDSM may want to veer around this one but I would actually encourage it's reading for the very same reason. It's very light in the bondage... a few lashings, a bit of restraining, very little sex, but overall it's a very psychological approach to the topic, which is so Anderson. She gets me to respond on a mind level no other author ever has. I question so much when I read her work. About myself. And about the world around me. 5 out of 5 stars.

Another great thing about this book? It has an itty-bitty sequel!