Lover Awakened (BDB #3) by J. R. Ward

Book Description:

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. Of these, Zsadist is the most terrifying member of the Black Dagger Brotherhood.

A former blood slave, the vampire Zsadist still bears the scars from a past filled with suffering and humiliation. Renowned for his unquenchable fury and sinister deeds, he is a savage feared by humans and vampires alike. Anger is his only companion, and terror is his only passion—until he rescues a beautiful aristocrat from the evil Lessening Society.

Bella is instantly entranced by the seething power Zsadist possesses. But even as their desire for one another begins to overtake them both, Zsadist’s thirst for vengeance against Bella’s tormentors drives him to the brink of madness. Now, Bella must help her lover overcome the wounds of his tortured past, and find a future with her…

Christina's BookReview

“I was dead until you found me, though I breathed. I was sightless, though I could see. And then you came...and I was awakened.”

“She is more beautiful than I have words for. And last night, I was blessed beyond measure to serve her”

I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book! My favorite book thus far. Z has been my favorite brother since the beginning. I couldn't wait for Z's story and it was PERFECT!! His story was so heart-wrenching and to be able to see him "Awaken" is just wonderful!

Bella was an Awesome mate for him and I"m glad she did not put up with his tortured soul crap. I loved that she wasn't a weak character, which none of the girls have been yet.I also liked that she didn't let her brother get in the way of her life. Her push to get Zsadist to finally open up is so wonderful that you just want these two to have their HEA. One that they both deserve.

I loved that all the brothers were in this story and even their shellans.

And John, I soooo know who he is!! Knew it from the get go!

But WOW,Tohr...Gosh, my heart is still hurting.

Dark Lover (BDB #1) Review HERE

Lover Eternal (BDB #2) Review HERE

Lover Eternal (BDB #2) by J. R. Ward

Book Description:

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there's a deadly turf war raging between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret bound 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 appetites. He's the best fighter, the quickest to act on his impulses, and the most voracious lover-for inside him burns ferocious curse cast by the Scribe Virgin. Owned by this dark side, Rhage fears the time when his inner dragon is unleashed, making him a danger to everyone around him.

Mary Luce, a survivor of many hardships is unwittingly thrown into the vampire world and reliant to Rhage's protection. With a life-threatening curse of her own, Mary is not looking for love. She lost her faith in miracles years ago. But when Rhage's intense animal attraction turns into something more emotional, he knows that he must make Mary his alone. And while their enemies close in, Mary fights desperately to gain life eternal with the one she loves...

Christina's BookReview

“All I know is, she's a pounding in my chest that I can't ignore. . . hell, that I don't WANT to ignore."

I cannot believe I never wrote my review for this book!

The second installment of the BDB series sucked me right in. After this book I was lost to the BDB world. Happily lost that is. Just like Dark Lover, I could not put this book down. I read it in one day and automatically jumped into the rest of the books.

Book two is about Rhage, or Hollywood as we know him best. :-) I was looking forward to reading about Rhage because he was portrayed as such a ladies man so I wanted to see who would catch his attention. And Mary caught his attention alright, one look at her and she already held his heart in her hand.

I loved Mary's characters and was rotting for their relationship to work out even though she was human and Rhage wasn't. The complications and struggle with their relationship was so heartbreaking but also so sweet and beautiful.
I have to say that I was really intrigued with Rhage's "beast". He has struggle for a long time with it and it was heartbreaking when he turned and then turned back. I felt like i was feeling his pain. I loved that just like Rhage, Mary affected the beast as well and could control it. Those part where pretty great.
I LOVED this book just like the first and again would recommend it to anyone that loves a great love story and action.

Dark Lover (BDB #1) Review HERE

Lover Awakened (BDB #3) Review HERE

Dark Lover (BDB #1) by J. R. Ward

Book Description:

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.

Christina's BookReview

“Thank you for caring for my brother."
He took his sunglasses off.
And looked at her with total adoration.” 

After much persuasion from friends I decided to give this series a try. And boy am i happy i did! I LOVED the book! I LOVE The brothers of The Black Dagger Brotherhood....everyone one of them. This book is about Wrath. Boy is he just HOT! Everything about him is HOT! from the bad boy persona to the sweet protectiveness. You can't help but fall in love with him. And Beth was born for him. They make the perfect couple. She isn't a weakling and isn't afraid to set him straight. Shes great!
And back to the brothers....OMG! I am moving on to book two immediately and will read them all! I am curious to read Thorments story and can't wait for 2012 to be here already. I think all the stories will be interesting to hear.

Jan. 2012-Reread

It has been a while since I read the first book in the series so it was great to be able to go back and reread it. Just like the first time around I could not put the book down. Beth and Wrath are awesome together and I can't wait to find out what happens down the line with them. And everyone of those delicious brothers are my favorite! Zsadist holds a special place at the top of the list!

I would recommend this series to everyone that loves romance and action. In fact, I do recommend it to everyone since its my favorite. :-)

 

Lover Eternal (BDB #2) Review HERE

Lover Awakened (BDB #3) Review HERE

Radiant Darkness by Emily Whitman

Book Description:

He smiles. "Hello."

It's a deep voice. I can feel it reverberate in my chest and echo all the way down to my toes.

I know I should leave, but I don't want to. I want to keep my senses like this forever. I'm all eye, all ear, all skin.

Persephone lives in the most gorgeous place in the world. But her mother's a goddess, as overprotective as she is powerful. Paradise has become a trap. Just when Persephone feels there's no chance of escaping the life that's been planned for her, a mysterious stranger arrives. A stranger who promises something more--something dangerous and exciting--something that spurs Persephone to make a daring choice. A choice that could destroy all she's come to love, even the earth itself.

In a land where a singing river can make you forget your very name, Persephone is forced to discover who--and what--she really is.

Christina' BookReview

 What can I say about this? Hmm.....

So its been a couple of days since I finished this and I'm still angry with the book! I had high hopes about this book. The storyline seemed interesting. Who wouldn't find an twist to mythology interesting? Well I did, and I hoped that I wasn't disappointed. I was.

The first line in the book catches your attention quickly:

"Persephone, Daughter of DEMETER, the harvest goddess. Kidnapped and forced to—”
Wrong! In every book of myths, the same; in every book, wrong!"

Because of that and the summary I was excited to get started with this book. And then we continue to read and through the first few chapters I tell myself, well this is just the beginning it will get better. It has to get better, right? Nope. Wrong.

One minute you see the glimmer that it is and then whoosh! back to the lousy writing. That was my problem with this book.

Not the storyline. The writing.

This book had so much potential but fell flat. I felt like this book was written for an 8yr old not teens. It jumps from one sequence of events to another without so much as a line break. Most of the characters come and go, you don't get attached to any of them and just wish that you could. The idea of the Underworld not being such a terrible place was intriguing and I wished that more time was spent on it as well as more time on the vale.

Unfortunately, I believe if this book was given to a more experienced author or the author spent more time on it,this book could have been a top seller. I also believe that it had potential to be a series.

I would recommend this book to those that love the Persephone and Hades story only if they can see past the horrible writing.