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Nightfall Syndicate #2
Ghost Soldiers
Get in. Do the job. Get out. If only it were that easy.The Nightfall Syndicate, Book 2Vampire hit man Karl Vance has a new a rogue, charismatic sorcerer building an army of paranormal creatures in Eastern Europe. The stakes have never been higher, nor the odds so long, but he’s in too deep to turn back. If Karl fails to kill, the powerful Order of the Thorn will hunt down Maria Ricardi, the vampire he loves, and destroy everything he’s fighting for.When Karl is cut off in enemy badlands, he’s reduced to survival mode, doing the kinds of things he’d sworn would never be part of his vampire existence. Things that will forever color his relationship with Maria...if he survives to see her again.In Boston, Maria is haunted by disturbing dreams of Karl as she struggles to keep control of her mafia syndicate against a growing tide of threats—traitors, FBI agents, hostile crime families, and the fear that power will turn her into a creature like her hated Master, Delgado. Then she discovers Karl is walking straight into a deadly trap…and there may be nothing she can do to stop it in time.
- GenresUrban FantasyVampires
312 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 12, 2011
3 people are currently reading
161 people want to read
About the author
Keith Melton
14 books53 followersKeith Melton is a fantasy author originally from Arizona. He still misses the spicy food.
He is working on his urban fantasy novel Spanner Jack. Chapters can be read on his website.
He is working on his urban fantasy novel Spanner Jack. Chapters can be read on his website.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 22, 2011
This was a great urban fantasy story that I thoroughly enjoyed.
The second in the Nightfall Syndicate series.
The book starts off with a bang and never lets up. Karl is in Romania working for the Order of the Throne as an assassin. Lady Mackensie impressed upon him that he had to do this mission to protect those he loves. Helping him with the mission is a handler named Bailey Fletcher who works for the Order. The job is to find and kill Sorin Cojocan who is building an army of slave-paranormal beings. Cojocan uses strong magic and slave collars to control the beings and in turn the slaves feed him back energy for his magic. Romania is considered the badlands of the paranormal world so the Order hires Karl, as in their eyes he is expendable. Bailey and Karl find Cojocan by following a trail of death and try to kill him but he sends powerful magic toward them and Bailey takes the brunt of it. The Order is unwilling to save her since they believe Bailey disobeyed them, so she begs Karl to turn her before she dies. He does under duress because she gives him the information to contact Maria. When Bailey wakes up she finds she is an unusual vampire as she has a wolf familiar whom she names Smoke.
Meanwhile Maria has her hands full trying to head her father’s company since the war ended and her father was killed. There are those around her that do not want her in that position and try to take her out using ghost solders (Sicilian assassins). She confronts John Passerini and takes an unwanted position within the business to keep it in the family. Karl’s handler Xiesha stays near Maria to help keep her safe while Karl is gone.
Bailey and Karl make it back to Boston and meet up with Maria and Xiesha knowing that both Cojocan and the Order are following them. The books concludes with an epic battle in which we end up about where we started with Karl in trouble and the women who care about him planning to save his life.
This is a thrilling story from beginning to end about trust, love, loyalty and friendship. I am looking forward to the next book.
The second in the Nightfall Syndicate series.
The book starts off with a bang and never lets up. Karl is in Romania working for the Order of the Throne as an assassin. Lady Mackensie impressed upon him that he had to do this mission to protect those he loves. Helping him with the mission is a handler named Bailey Fletcher who works for the Order. The job is to find and kill Sorin Cojocan who is building an army of slave-paranormal beings. Cojocan uses strong magic and slave collars to control the beings and in turn the slaves feed him back energy for his magic. Romania is considered the badlands of the paranormal world so the Order hires Karl, as in their eyes he is expendable. Bailey and Karl find Cojocan by following a trail of death and try to kill him but he sends powerful magic toward them and Bailey takes the brunt of it. The Order is unwilling to save her since they believe Bailey disobeyed them, so she begs Karl to turn her before she dies. He does under duress because she gives him the information to contact Maria. When Bailey wakes up she finds she is an unusual vampire as she has a wolf familiar whom she names Smoke.
Meanwhile Maria has her hands full trying to head her father’s company since the war ended and her father was killed. There are those around her that do not want her in that position and try to take her out using ghost solders (Sicilian assassins). She confronts John Passerini and takes an unwanted position within the business to keep it in the family. Karl’s handler Xiesha stays near Maria to help keep her safe while Karl is gone.
Bailey and Karl make it back to Boston and meet up with Maria and Xiesha knowing that both Cojocan and the Order are following them. The books concludes with an epic battle in which we end up about where we started with Karl in trouble and the women who care about him planning to save his life.
This is a thrilling story from beginning to end about trust, love, loyalty and friendship. I am looking forward to the next book.
September 10, 2011
It’s been a long wait for book two in Keith Melton’s Nightfall Syndicate trilogy. As Ghost Soldiers opens, vampire Karl is in Romania working on an assignment from The Order of the Thorns. A violent organization that protects the world from the knowledge of the supernatural, they have forced Karl to help them on a dangerous mission. Karl is to hunt down a dangerous sorcerer named Sorin Cojocaru, who is attempting to join all supernatural beings into one big army. But as Karl, and Thorn associate Bailey discover, bringing down Cojocaru is going to be a very difficult operation.
Meanwhile in Boston, newly turned vampire Maria (and Karl’s lover) has her own set of problems. Now that her father has died, she wants to take control of her mafia crime family. But the problem is, she is a woman and many of her associates refuse to have a female lead them. She also must conduct all business at night (since she is a vampire) and will never age, eat etc..and keeping this a secret is tough. It’s not just the Boston mafia, but New York and neighboring states are not happy that she is in charge. With Karl overseas, she must wade through the muddy water all on her own.
That sets up the beginning of the book. There is so much more I could get into but I don’t want to give any fun details away. I had a hard time with the first 10-15% of this book. It had been a while since I read book one, Blood Vice and I didn’t really remember how it ended. It takes quite a while for previous events to be rehashed and explained. I did a lot of what? Who? Where? But something clicked around the 15% mark that really got this book moving and from that point on, I really enjoyed it.
The first half of the book almost reads as two separate stories. Karl is in Romania, kind of against his will forced to hunt down a dangerous sorcerer. He is battling heavy magic and learning to work with Bailey, the Thorn member assigned to his case. He misses Maria, and doesn’t want to be where he is. Although Karl has been a vampire for quite some time, he still struggles with what he is. He considers himself a monster, and really is at odds with that side of himself. Being as assassin has taken away a lot of his humanity – although now that he has Maria, the love she gives him starts to repair him a little bit.
Maria on the other hand is floundering by herself in Boston. Although she helped her father when he was head of the crime family, now that she wants control, that is an entirely different story. There is backstabbing and much drama for her. My favorite part about Maria is the mouth on her…she is not afraid to tell it like it is.
This book ends with a cliffhanger of sorts, and I hear all will be settled in the final book. This is a nice urban fantasy series that has tough characters that you root for. Really evil bad guys too. Low on actual romance scenes, but high on action. Definitely start with book one in this series, Blood Vice as these should be read in order.
Rating: B
Meanwhile in Boston, newly turned vampire Maria (and Karl’s lover) has her own set of problems. Now that her father has died, she wants to take control of her mafia crime family. But the problem is, she is a woman and many of her associates refuse to have a female lead them. She also must conduct all business at night (since she is a vampire) and will never age, eat etc..and keeping this a secret is tough. It’s not just the Boston mafia, but New York and neighboring states are not happy that she is in charge. With Karl overseas, she must wade through the muddy water all on her own.
That sets up the beginning of the book. There is so much more I could get into but I don’t want to give any fun details away. I had a hard time with the first 10-15% of this book. It had been a while since I read book one, Blood Vice and I didn’t really remember how it ended. It takes quite a while for previous events to be rehashed and explained. I did a lot of what? Who? Where? But something clicked around the 15% mark that really got this book moving and from that point on, I really enjoyed it.
The first half of the book almost reads as two separate stories. Karl is in Romania, kind of against his will forced to hunt down a dangerous sorcerer. He is battling heavy magic and learning to work with Bailey, the Thorn member assigned to his case. He misses Maria, and doesn’t want to be where he is. Although Karl has been a vampire for quite some time, he still struggles with what he is. He considers himself a monster, and really is at odds with that side of himself. Being as assassin has taken away a lot of his humanity – although now that he has Maria, the love she gives him starts to repair him a little bit.
Maria on the other hand is floundering by herself in Boston. Although she helped her father when he was head of the crime family, now that she wants control, that is an entirely different story. There is backstabbing and much drama for her. My favorite part about Maria is the mouth on her…she is not afraid to tell it like it is.
This book ends with a cliffhanger of sorts, and I hear all will be settled in the final book. This is a nice urban fantasy series that has tough characters that you root for. Really evil bad guys too. Low on actual romance scenes, but high on action. Definitely start with book one in this series, Blood Vice as these should be read in order.
Rating: B
September 4, 2011
Are you kidding me … another cliffhanger? Such a tease you are, Keith Melton! I’m so hooked on these characters that it’s worth the wait! BUT – If I may say … PLEASE HURRY UPAND RELEASE #3 :-)
Mission: Kill the rogue sorcerer with conniving plans; appease the Order of the Thorn; keep Maria safe even though they are continents apart. Not much pressure, right? Hold on, it gets better … he now has the added pressure of keeping Bailey (a member of the Order of the Thorn assisting on this mission) safe as well. As if just keeping himself out of the ringer isn’t enough, he has three women, who I might add are very capable in a kick-ass way, out of harm’s way.
Karl’s now deeply in love with Maria, determined to complete his mission and torn by making a decision he has never wanted to make. A decision that goes against all he has stood for and one that can cost him Maria’s trust and love. In so doing, though, he ensures the safety of his loved ones. What is Karl to do? To quote Xiesha, “Never underestimate Karl.” Maria still aspires to be the new mafia boss since her father’s demise and is on her own mission while Karl is off-continent. A daunting task to say the least while she is overwhelmingly worried about Karl’s safety. Xiesha is still her quirky, but ever helpful spell caster/scryer/ammo expert self, but has formed a bond with Maria … a bond bound together by their mutual love for Karl, as well as out of newfound respect for each other. Bailey is the new addition to this functionally dysfunctional motley family. She’s punky, yet resourceful … young, but loyal.
My favorite quotes from this book? “A rifle never worried if it was about to be used for murder.” & “Jesus, Mary and Jackson Browne …” Evidently Joseph got kicked out of the normal threesome!
Keith packs it all into this book so sinuously … mystical vs. traditional warfare, mafia hits and misses, losses and love. Grab your favorite munchies and cold drink of your choice and get ready for a thrilling adventure! A BIG thank you goes out to Keith for writing such an entertaining novel!!!
**My munchies included Kit-Kats, a cape cod (and Prilosec) for this book – I do NOT advise mixing chocolate with alcohol … heartburn galore and lesson learned!**
Reviewed by LolaLovesBooks for daydrmzzz.blogspot
Mission: Kill the rogue sorcerer with conniving plans; appease the Order of the Thorn; keep Maria safe even though they are continents apart. Not much pressure, right? Hold on, it gets better … he now has the added pressure of keeping Bailey (a member of the Order of the Thorn assisting on this mission) safe as well. As if just keeping himself out of the ringer isn’t enough, he has three women, who I might add are very capable in a kick-ass way, out of harm’s way.
Karl’s now deeply in love with Maria, determined to complete his mission and torn by making a decision he has never wanted to make. A decision that goes against all he has stood for and one that can cost him Maria’s trust and love. In so doing, though, he ensures the safety of his loved ones. What is Karl to do? To quote Xiesha, “Never underestimate Karl.” Maria still aspires to be the new mafia boss since her father’s demise and is on her own mission while Karl is off-continent. A daunting task to say the least while she is overwhelmingly worried about Karl’s safety. Xiesha is still her quirky, but ever helpful spell caster/scryer/ammo expert self, but has formed a bond with Maria … a bond bound together by their mutual love for Karl, as well as out of newfound respect for each other. Bailey is the new addition to this functionally dysfunctional motley family. She’s punky, yet resourceful … young, but loyal.
My favorite quotes from this book? “A rifle never worried if it was about to be used for murder.” & “Jesus, Mary and Jackson Browne …” Evidently Joseph got kicked out of the normal threesome!
Keith packs it all into this book so sinuously … mystical vs. traditional warfare, mafia hits and misses, losses and love. Grab your favorite munchies and cold drink of your choice and get ready for a thrilling adventure! A BIG thank you goes out to Keith for writing such an entertaining novel!!!
**My munchies included Kit-Kats, a cape cod (and Prilosec) for this book – I do NOT advise mixing chocolate with alcohol … heartburn galore and lesson learned!**
Reviewed by LolaLovesBooks for daydrmzzz.blogspot
July 21, 2011
Karl Vance is a vampire assassin - meaning he's a vampire and kills the bad guys for money. He is a bad-ass, but a lover too. He knows that he's got this one job to do for the Thorn and then he can get back to his Maria. Easy right? Sadly life doesn't always work that easily, even if your a vampire.
Ever since reading the first book Blood Vice, I have been eager to read more about Karl Vance. It was definitely worth the wait. The opening sequence grabs a hold of you and brings you right into the thick of things. I loved it. Gritty and electric. Ghost Soldiers is a non-stop action ride. I like that we get to see both Karl and Maria's point of views. I have to say the ending wasn't what I expected, but I enjoyed it all the same. Looking forward to see how things will turn out in the next book.
Ever since reading the first book Blood Vice, I have been eager to read more about Karl Vance. It was definitely worth the wait. The opening sequence grabs a hold of you and brings you right into the thick of things. I loved it. Gritty and electric. Ghost Soldiers is a non-stop action ride. I like that we get to see both Karl and Maria's point of views. I have to say the ending wasn't what I expected, but I enjoyed it all the same. Looking forward to see how things will turn out in the next book.
December 27, 2011
Even better than the first. It's a thriller where the protags and antags are paranormal. Semi-spoiler--ends on a cliffhanger.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 10, 2012
What a fantastic book - but it is a cliff hanger. Can't wait for the next release.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews