Demon's Vengeance: The Complete Final Asylum Tales

The Asylum Tales #3.1-3.3

by Jocelynn Drake

The complete novel that comprises Demon's Fury , Demon's Vow and Inner Demon . Powerful warlock and tattoo artist Gage has managed to escape the magical Ivory Towers who terrorize the rest of humans and monsters—but at a price. Now he must join forces with his nemesis, Gideon, to stop an entity that is using forbidden Death Magic to commit gruesome murders across the nation. And if that's not keeping him busy enough, an investigator recruits Gage to help her track a killer … who might be targeting tattoo artists. When Gage discovers a demon locked away, it offers him access to dark magic in exchange for its freedom—a dangerous opportunity, but one that could save his loved ones. Gage must choose between what is right and what is easy.

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Romance, Fantasy

464 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 14, 2015

About the author

New York Times Bestselling author Jocelynn Drake loves a good story, whether she is reading it or writing one of her own. Over the years, her stories have allowed her to explore space, talk to dragons, dodge bullets with assassins, hang with vampires, and fall in love again and again.

This former Kentucky girl has moved up, down, and across the U.S. with her husband. Recently, they’ve settled near the Rockies.

When she is not hammering away at her keyboard or curled up with a book, she can be
walking her dog Ace, or playing video games. She loves Bruce Wayne, Ezio Auditore, travel, tattoos, explosions, and fast cars.

She is the author of the urban fantasy books: The Dark Days series and the Asylum Tales. For gay romance, she has completed The Exit Strategy and Shadow Elite series, and is now working on a spin-off of her MM paranormal series, Lords of Discord. She has also co-authored with Rinda Elliot the following series: Unbreakable Bonds, Ward Security, Pineapple Grove, the Weavers Circle. In addition, she has co-authored with AJ Sherwood the following series: Scales 'N' Spell and Wings 'N' Wands. She can be found at JocelynnDrake.com.

Reviews

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a fan of Drake's Dark Days series, it wasn't a surprise that I instantly became fans of her Asylum Tales characters: Gage (tattoo artist/warlock-in-hiding) and his tattoo artist companions: Trixie (fae-in-hiding) and Bronx (burly troll with a big heart).

My husband & I LOVED listening to the first two audiobooks, which Michael Urie did a great job narrating, and we were anxiously, impatiently waiting for the finale to be released. I was sad to see the finale was being released in 2014 as a three-part serial (Demon's Fury, Demon's Vow, & Inner Demon), fearing this meant no audio version, which, to date, is still the case. Because I'm not a huge fan of serials, I waited until the complete finale (Demon's Vengeance: The Complete Final Asylum Tales) was released in 2015. Tired of waiting for an audio version that might never come and anxious to find out how this trio was making out following the discoveries in book two, Dead Man's Deal, I jumped in .... and was sadly disappointed. [Full Rating: ✮✮ ¾]

Since Drake broke the finale up into three parts, I'll review each part separately. * If you are new to the series or have yet to complete it, you may want to skip this part to avoid any possible spoilers. *

Tale 3.1: DEMON'S FURY [Rating: ✮✮✮½]

Powerful warlock and tattoo artist Gage has managed to escape the magical Ivory Towers who terrorize the rest of humans and monsters – but at a price. Now he must join forces with his nemesis Gideon to stop an unknown entity who is using old magic to commit gruesome murders. And if that’s not keeping him busy enough, an investigator recruits Gage to help her track a killer … who might be targeting tattoo artists.

I enjoyed this part. We got to reunite with Gage, Trixie and Bronx. We were shown a different side to Gideon, Gage's Tower-assigned partner and long-time frenemy. We met a strong, new character Serah Moynahan, a special investigator with TAPSS (Tattoo Artists and Potion Stirrers Society). We set off on a hunt for a mysterious magic-using killer. In the process, things go terribly wrong for Gage when he goes to interview some goblins. Trixie and Gage open up and share the news they've been hiding - each devastating to the other.

Tale 3.2: DEMON'S VOW [Rating: ✮✮ ¾]

Tattoo artist and warlock Gage is having a rough week. He’s trying to track down a mysterious murderer in Low Town while also chasing a powerful entity using forbidden Death Magic across the nation. When Gage discovers the two forces may be trying to unite, the stakes get even higher. With Gideon’s help, Gage is determined to stop the murderers before anyone else gets hurt – including his girlfriend, Trixie.

Aside from some bonding between Gideon and Gage and some interesting uses of magic - albeit in an evil manner, this part is where things start to go downhill for me. Gage, already knowing Lilith is after his soul, makes some terribly bad decisions, which felt very out of character to me. Yes, Gage has always been one to do whatever was necessary to protect those he loves, but this decision would destroy far more than it would protect. Granted, he's probably not thinking too clearly after finding out he's about to lose the one he cares for most.

Tale 3.3: INNER DEMON [Rating: ✮✮☆☆☆]

Gage is a powerful warlock in Low Town, where elves, faeries, trolls, goblins, and vampires walk free among humanity. But there are two dangerous entities murdering families and children, and Gage needs to stop them before anybody else gets hurt.

When Gage discovers a demon locked away it offers him access to dark magic in exchange for its freedom – a dangerous opportunity, but one that could save his loved ones. Gage must choose between what is right and what is easy … except he’s running out of time.

Well, that last line says it all really - "Gage must choose between what is right and what is easy … except he’s running out of time." Throughout the two prequels and the first two books in the series, I never saw Gage as the guy who would take the easy road ... until now. He's convinced himself that using the dark power he's offered will set everything to rights. He'll be able to stop the Towers once and for all while also ensuring Trixie's and their baby's safety. Again, seemed really out of character, in my opinion. The best part of this story for me was learning more about Chang, the mysterious black-market dealer.

The final lines of the story, plus the epilogue were the icing on this foul-tasting cake. While Gage's poor decisions may have stopped the evil they were chasing, the other evil he had been consistently determined to defy had won. Parts of epilogue:

Defeat Lilith and free the Underworld from her grasp, and we will lead an army to destroy the Towers.
[...]
It was a fair trade and I had nothing left to lose.
[...]
When my two years in the Underworld were complete, I'd have all the powers of the demons with me. I would reduce the Towers to nothing but fire and blood.
[...]
I'd make this world safe for my love. Or I would make it burn.

Overall, a very unsatisfying end to this series. In my mind, Gage's story remains incomplete and I hope Drake will eventually release another, more fitting end down the line.

I found it interesting that, in the blurb for Demon's Fury (#3.1) it says, "Jocelynn Drake continues her successful urban fantasy series, Asylum Tales, with Demon’s Fury...", yet in the acknowledgements for Demon's Vengeance: The Complete Final Asylum Tales the author states, "There was a time when I didn't know if this book would ever see the light of day." If it were successful there wouldn't have been any question about the finale getting published. I'm disheartened to hear this because that probably means no more Asylum Tales to be told.

[Maja · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was gonna keep it at 3 stars but knock of half to make it 2,5. But I'm kinda pissed so I'm knocking off the other half too, making it a 2 star

It was unsatisfying as fuck and left too much unfinished. It's one thing having an open ending. But leaving it like this pure shit.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary from Goodreads:

"Jocelynn Drake continues her successful urban fantasy series, Asylum Tales, with Demon’s Fury, set in a world where elves, faeries, trolls, werewolves, and vampires walk free among humanity.

Powerful warlock and tattoo artist Gage has managed to escape the magical Ivory Towers who terrorize the rest of humans and monsters – but at a price. Now he must join forces with his nemesis Gideon to stop an unknown entity who is using old magic to commit gruesome murders. And if that’s not keeping him busy enough, an investigator recruits Gage to help her track a killer … who might be targeting tattoo artists."

My Thoughts:

I'm starting with my overall thoughts on this series as a whole because I read them back to back. I absolutely loved this unique urban fantasy series and am sad to see it end. It was a completely engrossing reading experience filled with twists, turns, and everything else that left me wanting more. Really. I want more. More Gage and his world filled with dark wizards and witches. More of the other supernatural creatures that inhabit his world and make it one of the most unique worlds that I've read about in urban fantasy. I'm a bit sad to not have more books to look forward to but it was overall an amazing reading experience and I would read these again in a heartbeat!

For me this was a really great way to tie up many of the different threads that the author created within the first two books. Gage is caught up yet again in way too many things and actually the summary I shared is meant just for the first part of this book. The book is broken into three separate sections but they all tie together so nicely that really it felt like just one book to me. I love how the author isn't afraid to really put Gage in situations that almost seem hopeless for anyone else. The reader is really given the chance to see what he is made of and I loved that we were shown different sides of the situation as Gage struggled to find the answers. There was a darker side to Gage in this book then we have seen but I really understood it after all that he has been through. He was ready and willing to fight for what he wanted and that really sums up his personality brilliantly.

Books like this are why I read and love urban fantasy so much! I flew through the pages of this one on my kindle and didn't want to put it down. In fact, I was avoiding putting it down as much as possible just so I could read one more page. The ending of this book was done really well in my opinion although I still think the author could write one more. Pretty please one more? I would love to see Gage's adventures continued myself. It was wrapped up pretty well but left open enough for the reader to decide on how a few things must have ended. I liked that even when I wanted more. Really that is what a book is supposed to in my opinion!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and the series overall! I have lots more to say as I haven't yet shared my thoughts on the first two books but I will be doing that very soon. I just ran out of time on posting the reviews before this one. This is a series that is not to be missed for urban fantasy fans and I really, really recommend reading them back to back like I did. It really allowed for me to fully immerse myself in this dark and magical world that Drake has created. I just am sad that I won't be going back any time soon. Oh well, that is what rereads are for, right? Recommended but with the addition that you should really read this series in order. So start with Angel's Ink!

Bottom Line: A great and satisfying conclusion to this urban fantasy series. I'm sad to see it end!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher as part of a Pump Up Your Blog book tour through Edelweiss. Thoughts are my own!

[Jordan Lombard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've loved these books since the first one came out, and while I really, really enjoyed this one, almost as much as the first two, the ending turned me off. I'd actually like to read a full length tale about what happens in the epilogue rather than leaving things open ended like that. Also... I just can't believe Gage is getting even more embroiled in stuff at the end. It's not really an ending, but an opening for more stories which aren't going to happen as the author states in the acknowledgements.

I read this as the three part serial. I don't know if the single book version got edited, but the serial edition could have used a proof editor. There were too many minor mistakes that pulled me out of the story to correct them before I could continue on, missing words, hyphens all over the place where they didn't belong, and other things like that.

All of that said, I would still recommend this series. I love all the characters, especially Gage, Trixie, and Bronx. Though I would have loved to see more of the witch cat, whose name I'm forgetting. She was in one mysterious scene and then never shows up again, even though she appears to have moved in with Gage.

Anyway, I'm beginning to ramble. Read the first two books. You won't be disappointed.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are wanting to discover what author, Jocelynn Drake is about or the Asylum Tales then this is a good book to check out. You can read it as a stand alone book. All three short stories that are featured in this compilation work well together as one whole book. Right away I fell for Gideon and Gage. I can't pick a favorite between them so I choose them both. Gideon was more mature and seasoned which I was drawn too but on the other hand Gage had the bad boy feel with a heart of gold. The way that he reacted to the news involving his girlfriend, Trixie was sweet. They make a cute couple. Both guys are sexy as Hell. So as you can see Gideon and Gage worked well together. Although at times it was iffy. The storyline was good. It did feature some magic and was believable. Yet, It did seem like nothing really happened until about the middle of the second story or middle of the story. The ending was good. I will check out more books in this series.

[Lu · Rating 2 out of 5]

This urban fantasy series has one of the most likable characters I have read in a long time. As a tattoo artist in Low Town, Gage is hiding his warlock magic in plain sight.
He has friends, an elf girlfriend and all he wants is to live his life and be left alone, but magical circumstances has other plans. As this book went on I could feel Gage's hopelessness as events overtake him. When he finds out what he has to do to save his girlfriend he goes into it selflessly but it's not enough as he losses everything. Gage deserved better than the ending he got. The ending is really no ending and I feel a little cheated and I really feel Gage has one more tale to tell.

[Jewlsbookblog · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gage’s character had a 180 role reversal with his moral compass that..gah! I can’t believe he chose the direction he did with Trixie, Lilith, the Towers... Argh! I was so disappointed by the ending of the Asylum Tales I’m still stewing over it!

[Louisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, this was a really great book, so enjoyable, really enjoyed these characters, and I'm going to have to read the first two books!

[Jessica (a GREAT read) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Demon’s Vengeance is the final book in the Asylum Tales by Jocelynn Drake, a series I started too many years ago and somehow slipped to finishing this final tale and what tale it was! I do remember that Jocelynn decided to do something different with this book and tell it in three novellas instead of one grand novel. Though when they are combined together, they still make that grand novel! That was part of the reason of my waiting at the time because I wanted to read them all together.

A lot of time has passed since I was last in Low Town, but diving back into this one was rather easy. Past events were mentioned and my only struggle was wondering if this even happened in the previous books or before the series started, as I remember a great deal of Gage’s past was mentioned throughout. Gage is a tattoo artist and ex-mage. He gave up the Tower life years ago, but has been drawn back in little by little. This time he’s forced to work with an old acquaintance in trying to track down a murderer.

If that wasn’t enough on his plate, a second murderer is stalking the pregnant women of Low Town and killing them and their unborn baby. But still more gets added onto Gage’s plate when Trixie, his girlfriend makes a shocking statement that will change Gage’s life forever. You might be able to guess part of it, but it’s a two-fold kind of reveal. Lol.

This was quite the intense read. The mysteries were driven rather thick in this one. I liked that though this was originally a set of three novellas to tell the final story that it read seamlessly when binged all together. I guess I didn’t know what to expect when starting the first one.

I guess I was sadden that Gage and Trixie didn’t have enough time together in this one. Gage was very committed to this case and Trixie just wasn’t a part of it for reasons. It had me wondering if in the previous novels if she helped him with whatever was going down. The same can be said of Bronx, his other friend and coworker. Though we did get to see a bit more of him in the second part. I just kind of remembered these guys being unlikely friends and then really good friends, that they didn’t spend a whole lot of time together in this final book made me sad. But again, I can’t quite remember how much of a role they played in Gage’s doings the first two times, so maybe this was normal.

Things were wrapped up rather nicely in the end in regards to the mysteries, but I still felt like there were more tales to tell in this series. But sadly, I know, that this is the end. Gage has a set of goals in mind for his future plans but we won’t be seeing what any of those plans are. Things were kind of up in the air in terms of happy endings wise and that always leaves me feeling morose at the series finale. I like my happy endings when a series comes to an end and while yes, I can imagine after Gage does the THINGS, things will be happy again, but it’s the whole not seeing that part that makes it harder to believe.

Jocelynn was a favorite Urban Fantasy author of mine and this series was really a lot of fun. I guess I just wished for an ending that was a little more on the happy side. Things were left a little tense and somethings were left unsaid, it’s not a happy feeling for a reader. I don’t want to make it sound like I didn’t enjoy this one because I did. Truly. But when you know it’s the series finale, you kind of expect some sort of happy ending instead of a big question mark. But still, I don’t regret reading this one! It was still one helluva ending! The series is the perfect kind of dark, edgy read of the Urban Fantasy world and even more surprising was that the hero of the tale, was a guy in what’s become a more female dominated genre! A delightful and exciting series to be sure!



Overall Rating 3.5/5 stars

[Ash · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall the series was fine. Development of the main character was fine however some of the side characters could have been more multi-dimensional and felt kinda of flat. The plot was fairly predictable but had a couple of interesting twists.

However the “open ending” of this final book kinda of ruined the series for me. It was more of a cliff hanger than a true open ending. I don’t know if the author is leaving the ending ambiguous in hopes of returning to the series but when I first read the ending I imminently Googled for the next books release date. That should give you a sense of the incompleteness of the series. It completely ruined the series for me.

Overall verdict is that its a nice fluff read that I will problem forget and never reread due to the “open ending”. Not going in my wall of favorites, I would recommend it to people who don’t mind cliff hangers but in all honestly I probably wont remember the book to remember.

[Maggie Mcdonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really, really, really want more. So sad it's over. So sad it took me this long to find these books

[Synnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not expect that ending. Throughout the book I was upset a lot. Nearly cried a couple of times. I agree with Trixie when she said she missed who Gage was. He did change a lot in this book but in a believable way. That being said, he's still my fictional husband. The ending felt a little rushed and a little flat. But I still adored the book and even though it's the last, I still wanna read more.

[John Walkenford · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the first two books and the novellas, this book ended up being too long, too dark, too depressing, as reflected in the massive increase in Gage's bad language. I just did not enjoy this one as much as I did all of the others. Maybe if I had read it separately in three parts as originally released it might have been different but I'll never know.

[Roachie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will leave you wondering if Gage is still one of the good guys or if he's finally gone 'round the bend. But man, what a finish!

If you don't like your main characters with a healthy dose of inner conflict and a questionable level of darkness, then put this book down and go find a nice squishy paranormal romance with a HEA.

[Kara Callahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been waiting for this book for a long time. I thought it was really good but I was incredibly disappointed in the ending. As far as I can tell, this is the last book in the series, but it felt like there was still more to be told. The ending left me hanging! Not pleased with that.

[Shannon Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

this can't be over.....

[Katherine Hill · Rating 1 out of 5]

disappointing ending. wish there were more stories, as i was really enjoying the characters and i feel like its not a finished story line

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending was beyond disappointing.

[Katrina Berry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wowza...what a finish! Loved this book and the series as a whole. With engaging characters and a world that is just so fantastically put together you really can't go wrong.