Book Review: The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole

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:

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine

My WoW this week is Taking a Shot by Jaci Burton.

Blurb (from Goodreads):

If you want to score, you have to get in the game…
The last thing Jenna Riley needs is more sports in her life. While her brothers are off being athletic superstars, she’s stuck running the family’s sports bar, whether she likes it or not. Then in walks pro hockey stud Tyler Anderson. As much as Jenna would like to go to the boards with him, she’s vowed to never fall for a jock—even one as hot as Ty.
Ty, intrigued by the beautiful bar owner, becomes a regular. He senses that Jenna wants to do something more with her life. And as he gains her trust, the passion between them grows, as does Ty’s insistence that Jenna should start living for herself. With his encouragement, Jenna starts to believe it, too...
But first, Jenna has to figure out what she wants, what she needs, who she loves, and if she has the passion and pride to take a shot at having it all—including Ty…

I finally found some time to read the first two books in the series and I totally loved them. I am very anxious to read the next installment in this series.

What are you waiting impatiently for?

Book Review: The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury

Author: Raymond Khoury

Blurb (from Goodreads):

In a hail of fire and flashing sword, as the burning city of Acre falls from the hands of the West in 1291, The Last Templar opens with a young Templar knight, his mentor, and a handful of others escaping to the sea carrying a mysterious chest entrusted to them by the Order's dying Grand Master. The ship vanishes without a trace.
In present day Manhattan, four masked horsemen dressed as Templar Knights emerge from Central Park and ride up the Fifth Avenue steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the blacktie opening of a Treasures of the Vatican exhibit. Storming through the crowds, the horsemen brutally attack anyone standing between them and their prize. Attending the gala, archaeologist Tess Chaykin watches in silent terror as the leader of the horsemen hones in on one piece in particular, a strange geared device. He utters a few cryptic Latin words as he takes hold of it with reverence before leading the horsemen out and disappearing into the night.
In the aftermath, an FBI investigation is led by anti-terrorist specialist Sean Reilly. Soon, he and Tess are drawn into the dark, hidden history of the crusading Knights, plunging them into a deadly game of cat and mouse with ruthless killers as they race across three continents to recover the lost secret of the Templars
.

This book has been sitting on my shelf for about a year after I bought it before I finally got to read it. Being the history nerd that I am, I saw the title and I couldn't resist buying it. I kept putting it off because I was afraid this was going to be another hit and miss for me, like other books on this subject were.

I can't say I didn't like the book, because I'd be lying. There were some great parts that this book had, like the flashbacks from the past. I love it when an author manages to combine the present actions with past scenes and Raymond Khoury did that very well in my opinion. And the historical details were very well introduced in the book, though I feel that at times the history lesson was too much. The suspense, the not knowing what artifact is the one being searched was good. It wasn't about what it was, but more of to whom it belonged in the first place. Who was the first person who had that artifact, before the templars got hold of it.  I think that was an interesting question to answer.

The plot isn't new, it's not something you haven't yet read. It's very well told, but it's not new. The characters surprised me though, and not in a good way. It might be a stereotype, but aren't detectives supposed to be...well, detectives? I mean, Sean Rilley wasn't the detective he came across, he wasn't intuitive, he didn't manage to get inside the criminal's mind, he lacked that certain something that I believe detectives should have. Not to mention the fact that Tess manages to somehow become the boss in this little adventure. Tess would've been a perfect detective. And it's not because she has the historical knowledge to back her up, it's because she has the traits that Sean doesn't. Then there's the romance that develops between them that feels so premature to me and a bit unprofessional. I mean, they could feel attracted to each other and explore those feelings after the investigation is completed.

I think this is a book the readers of The da Vinci Code would enjoy.

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


My Teaser today is from The Sworn by Gail Z. Martin:

The black shapes rushed toward the stone circle, and a curtain of light flared between the three men and the advancing shadows. The shadows howled and shrieked, spreading themselves across the glowing barrier until they blotted out the moonlight.

What's your teaser this week?

Book Review: Invincible by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Author: Sherrilyn Keynon
Series: Chronicles of Nick
Blurb (from Goodreads):

Just when he thought things couldn’t get any worse...
Nick Gautier’s day just keeps getting better and better. Yeah, he survived the zombie attacks, only to wake up and find himself enslaved to a world of shapeshifters and demons out to claim his soul.
His new principal thinks he’s even more of a hoodlum than the last one, his coach is trying to recruit him to things he can’t even mention and the girl he’s not seeing, but is, has secrets that terrify him.
But more than that, he’s being groomed by the darkest of powers and if he doesn’t learn how to raise the dead by the end of the week, he will become one of them...

The second installment of the Chronicles of Nick series is just as good as the first one, Infinity. Invincible continues the story of Nick Gautier's teenage years with a little glimpse in the future. You get to spend one more day with fun, sarcastic Nick and his new friends. I love this Nick, the Nick we got to meet in the beginning of the Dark Hunter series, right before his death, before his anger and his need to punish the one person he trusted most changed him. Nick isn't the type of teenager that fits in or the one who could be invisible. You can't pretend he's not there. I think he's the perfect mixture between the fun, easygoing guy and the smartest kid in the class. Because, let's face it, Nick is very smart, even though he doesn't always use his head. I also love the relationship he has with his mother and how even though he's not very proud of her job, he's proud that he's her son and she defends her every chance he gets. And you can see it's genuine, he's not doing it for show or to get something out of it. Like in the first book, he'd rather wear a weird-looking T-shirt at school and take all the mockery his classmates throw at him, than see her mother suffer because he refuses to wear it.

I think this book helped me understand the first book better. For those of you who've read the Dark Hunter series, you know that in Infinity Nick meets a character he's not supposed to meet yet. That was very confusing for me at first, but then the little glimpse in the future we get in this book helped me understand that this series is not only a story of how Nick became a Squire, but it's more a series about redeeming yourself and about the changes you would make if you could turn back and how that would affect you. I just wished I'd caught on earlier :P

I also love the fact that we get to meet some of the characters and how they were before the Dark Hunter series. We get to see more of their backgrounds and how they got to be what they are in the Dark Hunter world . We get to see Kyrian again, which is always a pleasure. We also see Ash in his "mysterious" days, back when  his story wasn't yet told and when the mystery surrounding him was getting bigger and bigger with every book. And we get inside the Sanctuary and meet the Peltiers. I do hope we get to see more of them in the following books.

And the new characters are awesome. I loved Bubba! He sounds like a computer tech I could probably have a real conversation with about why my computer is damaged and not look at him with a blank look on my face while he's explaining me technical stuff.

There is one thing that I'm hoping to change about Nick's life, a character's future. I can't say much, because it would be a major spoiler for those who haven't read the Dark Hunter books. But I'm hoping that Ambrose will help change that certain character's course.

I don't think I can say a bad thing about this book. There's nothing I didn't like. Maybe just the fact that I had to wait that long to read it, but in the end I think it was worth it.

The next book in the series, Infamous, is scheduled for publication on February 2012 *pout* It's so far away, I want it now...*sighs* Anyway, like I said earlier, I totally love this series. I agree that some things are confusing, but I like that, they keep me on my toes.

My rating:

Follow Friday

Welcome to Follow Friday hosted this week by Parajunkee and Alison!
The main idea behind FF is just to go see a bunch of new blogs you may never have seen before, and follow the ones you like (and they’ll follow you back!) It’s a total win/win, so take a peek around and follow me!

This week’s question is:

Q: Do you have a favorite series that you read over and over again? Tell us a bit about it and why you keep on revisiting it?




The series I read over and over again and then some is Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series. There are a few reasons for that. One, because I really love these books. Who couldn't? They have everything: romance, funny moments, vampires, weres, ancient gods and myths and so much more fun elements. The second reason is that I need to refresh my memory. Sometimes, I confuse characters (oops, sorry!) or I forget if something happened or not. The myths and characters are numerous in this series, so it's bound to happen at some point, but it's not bothering me. Another reason would be the sarcastic comments some of the characters make. I love a good sarcasm now and then, and in this series it's like another language. I totally love that. I could probably think of some other reasons, but these three are the main ones.

Another series I'm currently re-reading is Harry Potter. The reason is that, even if it doesn't feel the same way as it felt when I first read these books, it's the book I grew up with. I remember getting grounded for staying really late one night (I think it was about...2 in the morning or something) and reading with a flashlight, under the covers. Before you ask, yes, it was a school night. And the waiting for a new book, trying to figure out who's going to die at the end of the book and who's going to live, waiting for hours to buy the newest book and refusing to do homework before finishing it. It's never going to be the same, but I can't help but reread this one.

What's your favorite series to re-read?