Author: Kresley Cole
Series: Immortals After Dark
Blurb (from Goodreads):
Nikolai Wroth, once a ruthless human warlord in the 1700s and now a general in the rebel vampire army, needs to find his Bride, the one woman who can render him truly alive. As a turned human, he doesn’t enjoy a heartbeat or breaths and is consequently weaker than fully blooded vampires. He wants his Bride for the power she will bring him and can hardly believe it when his heart beats for Myst the Coveted, a mad, fey, mythological creature.
Myst is known throughout the world as the most beautiful Valkyrie, part chillingly fierce warrior, part beguiling seductress who can “make you want her even as she’s killing you.” She has devoted her life to protecting an ancient, powerful jewel and to fighting the vampires, and she now sees a way to torment one—for with Wroth’s heartbeat comes consuming sexual desire that can only be slaked by her.
She eludes him for five years, but he has finally chased her to ground and stolen the jewel which commands her, giving him absolute power over her. While he possesses it, he can make her do anything, and he plans to in order for her to experience first hand the agonizing, unending lust she’d purposely subjected him to for half a decade. Yet when Wroth realizes he wants more from her and frees her, will she come back to him?
A few months ago a friend of mine managed to convince me to try this series. I've heard a lot about these books before, but I wasn't very convinced to read it. Not because the subject didn't appeal to me, but because it was another series. Since most of the books I've read this year are part of a series I was seriously trying to stay away. As you can imagine, the curiosity won and here I am, hooked on another very good series.
The Warlord Wants Forever is a novella that was first published in the Playing Easy to Get anthology and is the first story in the Immortals After Dark series. It tells the story of Nikolai Wroth, the eldest of the Wroth brothers, and Myst the Coveted, a Valkyrie. Now, while the vampire hero was enough to finally convince me to read the book, it was the valkyrie that made me curious. I've never read another book with that particular creature, so I was very intrigued.
Nikolai Wroth is such a powerful character and I don't say that because he's a vampire. First of all, his name, Nikolai, is one of my favorite names for some reason. I don't think I've ever met a hero named Nikolai that I didn't like. He's also very devoted to his brothers and sisters and he loved them so much, that he preferred facing their hatred and their wrath than letting them die, when he had the power to save them. That might sound selfish to some, but not to me. He's also very devoted to the cause he's fighting for. He swore he would never drink blood from another human being and he didn't. On top of that, he's such an honest guy. I mean, he had the power to make Myst do whatever he wanted her to do, and yet he never used that power to hurt her. For a guy that has been left without his mate for five years, I think that says a lot about his character.
Myst is the most beautiful Valkyrie. She's also the seductress, the one who distracts the enemy, while her sisters attack and destroy him. I think it was a surprise for her the fact that she liked Nikolai enough to spare his life. And I also think a small part of her wanted him to find her, to capture her. The fact that he manages to take hold of the jewel commanding her makes her realize they are destined to be together.
I do believe this novella is a good start for the series. And the fact that the series is full of new creatures is so refreshing. Or at least they're new to me. This novella also introduces some of the major characters in this series. It also leaves some subplots unsolved, like what happened to Nikolai's brothers and where are they.
The next installment in this series, Lothaire, is due January 2012. It's so far away, but I know it will be worth it.
My Rating:
