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Review
ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!
4.5 stars
OMG, I love this book! 10 books in the series and Kresley Cole keeps on surprising me! This one has a very different feel from the other books in the series with less action and more emotion, but the intensity was still there, as was the laugh-out-loud humour and steamy hot passionate romance, and I thought the change in pace was fantastic.
This time around we have the story of witch, Carrow and vemon (half vampire/half demon), Malkolm Slaine.
Malkolm was born a demon and lived a torturous life before being taken prisoner and forced to ingest vampire blood which turned him into an abomination that is a vemon. Feared in the lore and outcast because of the danger he represents, Malkolm has existed in the hellish realm of Oblivion for three centuries where he has been isolated from all but his nightmarish memories of the past.
Carrow is a powerful witch, the best friend of Mariketa, and is an absolute riot! When the book begins she is being held Captive by the Order, and is offered freedom and safety for her family if she enters Oblivion to entice the dangerous mystery that is Malkolm Slaine back to her captors. She is powerless to refuse.
So what happens when a smartass witch meets an emotionally tormented and solitary Vemon who instantly recognises her as his mate? Freaking hilarity happens, that’s what! And it’s made all the more funny by the fact that they don’t speak the same language so there’s lots of attempts at communication and misinterpretations which had me laughing out loud.
“I should name you Wilson, the volleyball. You understand as much as Wilson did and respond as infrequently. What’s that?” She cupped her ear as if the demon had spoken. “No, no you’re right. Wilson was more hygienic.”
“He’d swiftly collected those monsters’ heads, tying them together with a piece of the rope she’d hoped never to see again, then strung them over his shoulder. Periodically, he offered his catch to her.
“No, no, I have a pair just like them at home,” she’d said. “I would just regift them.”
But underneath everything is their strong attraction to each other. Of course Malkolm wants Carrow, she is his destined mate. Carrow recognises his response pretty quickly and she’s immediately horrified. But as they learn how to communicate and Malkolm shows his tender side, allowing Carrow to get close to him, things start to change.
This is such a beautifully developing relationship. I absolutely adored both Malkolm and Carrow, and revelled in every little moment as they got to know each other and came to care deeply for each other. The sexual tension builds perfectly, and their whole situation is incredibly intense as they fall for each other – all the while Carrow (and the reader) knowing what’s going to happen the moment they return to her realm.
He interlaced his fingers and said, “We are bound.”
“Bound?”
He collected a piece of rope, knotting it.
“Oh, you mean bound?”
He gave a nod, then drew in the sand.
An infinity symbol? “Clever demon, how did you know that…?”
He was gazing at her with a question in his eyes. “Bound forever?”
And somehow she met his gaze and lied, “Yes, demon. Bound forever.”
As if to make her feel guiltier, he gathered her into his arms, cupping her face against his broad chest. His voice a deep rumble, he said, “Carrow is Malkom’s.”
She wanted to sob.
“Yes?”
“Yes,” she answered, wishing that it could be so simple between them. Demon meets girl. Girl might be falling for demon.
It’s a heartbreaking situation and SO freaking intense! And it all plays out sensationally. There is some action and excitement, and the chance to catch up with other characters from the series (from both past and future books), but more than anything, it’s the emotional love story and Malkolm’s journey that make this book so special. And with Carrow fighting for her man, and Malkolm learning what it is to love and be loved for the first time in his life, it’s such a beautiful story (and sexy! Did I mention the sexy?). And the addition of Ruby is just the icing on the cake.
Malkolm and Carrow are both wonderful characters, and together they are something really special. There is heartache, yes, but there’s no stupid behaviour, and I loved the way their story played out.
I loved this book so hard! Definitely one of my favourites of the series, and with the intensity remaining at high levels I am, as always, excited to carry on.
Fantastic – 4.5 stars
And once again, Robert Petkoff is perfection in his narration of the audio version of this book. He inhabits these characters brilliantly, and totally brings the story to life. I haven’t considered actually reading a book from this series because I would miss him too much! I highly recommend listening to these ones!
For full series info, see our Immortals After Dark series page.