Edge of Desire

Primal Instinct #3

by Rhyannon Byrd

Sheriff Riley Buchanan is a good man...but a man possessed. Plagued by vicious and uncontrollable impulses, he lives in fear of surrendering to real love. Even after years apart, he still craves one woman, Hope Summers, above all others, and will do anything to protect her from harm--even tempt fate.

Hope is a woman with her own secrets. For months she has eluded her abusive ex-husband, a ruthless creature who won't rest until Hope and her kind are destroyed. Hope's fantasies are still haunted by Riley, the one man who might help her, and the man whose searing touch she cannot forget. But surrendering to their long-denied passion could mean the destruction of everything they hold dear....

Genres: Paranormal Romance, Paranormal, Romance, Shapeshifters, Adult, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 26, 2009

About the author

Rhyannon Byrd is the national bestselling author of more than forty contemporary and paranormal romance titles, including the romantic thrillers LONDON AFFAIR and NEW YORK SCANDAL, and her books have been translated into ten languages. After years of enjoying the California sunshine, Rhyannon now lives in the beautiful Malvern Hills in England with her family and their ever-growing collection of concert T-shirts and coffee mugs.

Reviews

[Holly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hi! Are you in a good mood and wish you weren't? Or better yet, is someone you hate in a good mood and you wish you could ruin their day? Then look no further than The Primal Instinct series by Rhyannon Byrd as a surefire method of sending someone into a deep depression and looking for the nearest supplier of Prozac.

Riley Buchanan was left in a difficult position when his older brother left home, leaving him with his obsessed mother and younger sister. His mother's fanatical belief in their family's lore eventually led to him agreeing to her impassioned pleas to volunteer for a spiritual journey that would help show him what the future held. What he saw that night when he was seventeen frightened him so badly that it shattered his soul and caused him to turn from the only girl he ever loved.

Now over a decade later Riley is led to the one place he hoped never to find. The current home of the woman whose loss has haunted him nearly every day of his frozen existence. Hope Summers has been trying to keep her life on track since the end of her mockery of a marriage and the last thing she was prepared to see was Riley Buchanan walking through her door. Needless to say, she's not excited to see him but what she can't deny is that her body has come to life for the first time in over a decade. She's determined to sample what she missed out on all those years ago but only this time she will not hold out hope for a happily ever after.

While Hope may have decided to pursue Riley with her eyes wide open, she could never have imagined the horrors that followed him to her town of Purity, Washington. Nor could she have imagined that one of the Markers was buried on her land, making her a target long before Riley ever showed up at her door. Riley is determined to protect Hope, just as he's always done, be it from the psychotic fiend from hell or the flesh hungry Casus who have been greedily awaiting the moment he sinks his fangs into her body and awakens the Merrick within. Despite all his many, many attempts to be honorable and leave Hope untouched, he can't resist her and chooses her to awaken his Merrick for the first time. Their passion is exquisite, but in the morning the knowledge of what the future holds is enough to force him from her arms and into the fight alongside his brother. With unlikely allies by his side, and with his brother's help, Riley searches for the strength to take control of his destiny and choose his own future, hopefully with the woman he's always loved by his side.

While I thought the first book in this series, Edge of Hunger started off great, this series has steadily deteriorated before my eyes as I dragged myself through the following books. These characters take fighting the inevitable to new heights. The word stubborn does not do justice to their thick skulls.

The level of insecurity in these books was astronomical. These siblings really, REALLY hated themselves and only by the grace of God did they manage to find someone worthy enough (or someone with enough free time on their hands) to cajole, whine, badger, hound, nag, and and or threaten them into loving relationships. I know these siblings wish their one-in-a-billion "chosen one" status had been a MegaBucks lottery win instead but suck it up, get over it and move on, people! They could have given any morose vampire a run for their money in the doom and gloom department.

I liked how the first book, Edge of Hunger started. Oh my God was it hot. It was rough, with some cervix pounding imagery I could have done without, but it was seriously smoking hot. Since in the beginning Ian and Molly were only connected during dreamscapes, Ian was able to enjoy himself without the weight of the world on his shoulders, instead of staring at himself with self loathing - as he does throughout the rest of the book. All the characters from these books like their sex dirty and rough and since these desires make them unnatural in their eyes, we are subjected to Catholic sized guilt trips that really killed any enjoyment I might have gotten because right after coitus they are aghast and run away as if the hounds of hell are after them.

The worldbuilding that started off in Edge of Hunger really got the ball rolling and this series is a prime example of an author building up an incredible world then killing it off with obnoxious attitudes. My favorite of the three books is definitely Ian and Molly's book (Book 1), mostly for the worldbuilding and incredible chemistry between them. Because Rhyannon Byrd was able to start off with two smoking hot sex scenes and then fill the rest of the book with some fabulous storytelling, I wasn't (too) bothered when Ian began moaning that he was not worthy and wanted to end it all. I thought the Merrick creature (picture what Michael from the movie Underworld becomes) lying dormant inside Ian was a very interesting premise and a welcome change of pace from all the other beings littering the paranormal market out there today. I just wish someone could have tied Ian to a bed and let Molly have her way with him.

While Ian may have started this pity train, Saige and Michael from Edge of Danger, Book 2 in the Primal Instinct series, kicked it into high gear. While it too had a very interesting story, by the end of it all I wanted to do was curl up on a couch and eat bonbons while looking at pictures of dead family pets. Originally I had blamed my depression on a premenstrual influx of emotion but now I know better. I blame these books.

Saige believes since her brothers all turned away from her and her mother that she is unworthy and brings only pain and danger to those she loves. So she is definitely not worthy of Michael Quinn, the handsome Raptor shapeshifter who comes to her aid. So of course she escapes him in order to protect him and gets herself caught by the Casus who have been hunting her down, both for the power charge she will provide when she is consumed by one of them, and for her knowledge of the Markers that have been hidden around the world. Of course Quinn is severely butthurt by this and thinks back to when he lost the love of his life and can't help comparing the two of them. Quinn has loved and lost and has decided he never again wants to know the pain love brings. Because of his unnatural sexual urges and possessiveness that is inherent in Raptor shapeshifters, he knows he is definitely not worthy of someone as beautiful as Saige Buchanan, so he tries to hold out against her to the BITTER end.

While Book 2 still had a lot of worldbuilding to offer, it wasn't able to fill up the book as good as it did in the first book, so the mindnumbing inner fights and delusions Saige and Quinn suffer through stand out much more prominently in this book. Though this book gets a serious thumbs up from me for the descriptions of Micheal's wings. I heart wings.

Though I was dreading it, I picked up the 3rd book, Edge of Desire. Why, you ask? Because after reading the previous books I felt it was all I deserved.

Riley Buchanan was the absolute worst. He made me want to drop myself off a cliff just to end the pain. Riley was a boring, sad, morose fruitcake and I wanted to pass him a couple of white pills and tell him to call me when he runs out. Because of his vision quest he thinks he's going to become a monster who will hurt those he loves so he holds out As. Long. As. Possible. Even after he finally takes blood from Hope and awakens his Merrick, he still holds out when confronted by a horde of hungry Casus and tries to hold them off with a gun, his fist, heck, I think he would have tried throwing his shoes at them before he would have allowed the Merrick to overtake him.

Hope was a nice woman but I found her constant attempts to get Riley into the sack pathetic. I wanted to rent her the movie, "He's Just Not That Into You." The thing with her ex husband, while sad, was a useless attempt to fill up the book, IMHO. Edge of Desire was almost constant back and forth conversations between Hope and Riley about why they could never be, and Riley and Kellan's riveting (sarcasm) conversations while digging for the third Marker. The worldbuilding was pretty much already set in place and I felt like the chemistry between the hero/heroine was absent. We get more introductions to some more ambiguous bad guys turned good guys and poor Kellan gets used and abused.

I had a big problem with bringing some of the bad guys over to the good side. In Book 2, Quinn is severely tortured by this group called the Collective and one of their leaders is a self righteous *expletive deleted* named McConnell. He allows his men to rape and torture women to death and I didn't want him around. I didn't want him helping. And I will never trust him.

And then I come to the women of this series. Ugh. No pride, whatsoever. They throw themselves at the men as if they were The Beatles during the height of Beatlemania. I felt like bring them in for big group hug, and then gathering them into a Kumbaya circle and having them say, "I'm worth it" over and over.

Now, is this series really all that bad? Well, everything is subjective but for me I hate whiney characters. If there had been one with a more positive outlook I would have been so much happier. But instead these are really dark and violent books that have equally dark and violent protagonists, while the antagonists are all torture happy and appropriately scary. On the plus side there was a lot of fascinating worldbuilding that I enjoyed and I felt the chemistry between Ian and Molly was really good. I liked Molly before she made the decision to follow Ian to the ends of the earth and I really liked Ian before he went all gung ho for death. And I must not forget to mention Quinn's hot Raptor wings. Despite all my complaints, I will read the next batch of books and even though I hope they won't be as morose as the previous books, I know they probably will be. But I know I will be reading them when they come out because I'm a sucker who likes to read. I'll give (Book 3) Edge of Desire 2 stars, (Book 2) Edge of Danger 3 stars, and (Book 1) Edge of Hunger 4 stars.

[Tiffany Teel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it!!!!

I would recommend this book and the rest of this series. It just keeps getting better and better as they go.. this is side by side with theblack dagger brotherhood. This read is amazing. I gave it 5 stars bcuz it was an absolute page Turner while keeping u on the edge of ur seat thru every page. I love the action and romance and the fact that there's a mixture of females some small some curvier and some inbetween. All of this makes a wonderful read. Thanks rhyannon Byrd

[Barbara ★ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Riley's waffeling back and forth regarding Hope is very aggravating. I kept wanting to shout at him "make up your mind already." I found myself skipping past all these self-discussion/recriminations. This crap annoyed me so much I actually had to force myself to keep reading. I only did so because this is a series book and I want to read about other characters. If this was the last book in the series, I'm sure I would have tossed it in the garbage. I like my alpha males and Riles is definitely NOT one. The ending kinda redeemed Riley's story but still not enough to up the rating to 3 stars.

[Jennifer]

Great book. My favorite so far in this series. Previous reviewers stated that these books were boring...I disagree with that. Each and every one kept my interest. Research before you read...it will make your reading experience more enjoyable if you know what you are getting into.

With Byrd you are getting a different spin on paranormal. The main focus in these books is erotic romance, but not an overabundance of sex. Byrd also adds humor, friendship, betrayal, violence, suspense and action...making her books fun to read.

Can't wait to read what comes next. Would love to get Kellan's and Shrader's stories.

[Cherise · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

There was a lot of repetition in this book. At times the conversations between Holly and Riley were almost word for word the same conversations that had already taken place; it got a little old for me. Riley's Martyrdom and stubborness also dragged this rating and storyline down. I just wanted to smack him at times and tell him to get over himself already!

[Cindyg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy this series, the only problem I had with it is how hard each and every couple fought the inevitable, up until the end. I will be reading the next one when it comes out.

[D. Alexx Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it!

[Holly Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is book3 of the Primal Instinct series and it is Riley and Hope's story. Riley Buchanan comes to Purity Washington to get away from his darkest fears....Never believing he would find the girl he dumped and ripped the heart from 13 years before....Hope Summers is no longer a wide eyed innocent girl but tempers (and pies) fly when she sees Riley Buchanan again...Now Riley must convince Hope that there is great danger to her and her Aunt and do everything in his power to keep her safe from the monsters hunting him even though he fears HE will turn into a monster himself...coming back to this series was fun and a much needed break

[Marika · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ci ho messo un secolo per finire questo libro xD meglio del secondo volume, indubbiamente, ma non capisco perché, mi viene una sonnolenza assurda quando leggo più di un tot di pagine xD
Mi è piaciuto molto Ri e anche Hope è un bel personaggio, sa quello che vuole e nonostante le brutte esperienze passate, decide di aprirsi per il suo grande amore.
Comunque Kellan continua ad essere lo sfigato più simpatico, come avrà fatto a non accorgersi che si stava facendo un casus, solo lui lo sa xD

[Isabella · Rating 3 out of 5]

È un po' ripetitivo, potevano essere leggermente più corto e non sorbire ogni tot di pagine il dramma interiore di Ri. Ok la motivazione c'è ma ripeterla uguale a 5 pagine prima scoccia un po'.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

Enjoyable read and liked both hope and Riley. Story continues progressing with good and evil still battling away with each other.m

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edge of Desire

Book 3 was just as good as 1&2 keeping an interesting story line going, can't wait to see what happens in the next book

[book_bae7 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rating 2.5 / 5

I didn’t really enjoy this one. It’s disappointing because I remember reading a number of Byrd’s books back when they first came out and quite enjoyed them so I had hopes I’d like this one as well but, alas, it was not the case. For a book about primal monsters and shapeshifters this was remarkably dull.

While the premise of the book was promising, the execution was riddled with problems and plot holes. There was a lot of telling rather than showing so you feel somewhat removed from the action instead of being in the thick of it. It didn’t help how overwrought the prose was and I kept rolling my eyes at how soap opera-esque it all felt. Pacing was another big issue - there were loads of useless scenes just repeating the same things over and over while neglecting to develop the characters’ past and their prior relationship, which would have added so much colour and context to the characters and their story which instead ended up flat and one-dimensional. The progress of the plot was haphazard and erratic, and the various threads were badly mismanaged - e.g. Riley discovers he has telekinesis at the start of the book and by the end is able to take out a group of mercenaries without any training, Riley and Kellan are ostensibly in town to find the third Marker but we only have one scene of them looking for it (but multiple scenes of Riley beating his chest and tearing his hair out over his dark lust for Hope).

Both leads are so annoying, I honestly didn’t care if they got together or not and had to force myself through the second half. Riley was sooooo tiresome, just going on and on about the same two things - how dark and dangerous he was despite any concrete evidence to the contrary until the very end of the novel (when it’s sprang on us out of nowhere instead of having hints peppered throughout to lend some credence to his moaning) or agonising over how much he wanted Hope but couldn’t have her because he was so D&D (dark and dangerous). Hope wasn’t much better - she comes in strong by throwing pies at Riley when he walks into her cafe years after they broke up but this is pretty much all we get from her. Even that is somewhat ruined when you find out what the terrible thing he did was - breaking up with her and taking another girl to the prom 2 weeks later, which awful but hardly worth all of that (especially when it’s apparently totally out of character for her). She’s so bland and lacking in personality or agency that it’s difficult to see what inspires so much devotion in Riley for her, except maybe the fact that she’s so hapless and foolish that only she could tolerate someone that emo. There was also the dreaded body betrayal syndrome - despite him having wronged her so terribly (roll eyes here), it’s a matter of days before she’s literally throwing herself at him because she’s so hard up. She literally begs the man to bang her and he’s all "no, no, my lust - it is so DARK". And she doesn’t care about any of it cos she wants him sooo bad. Woman…PLEASE! STAND UP!

In sum, this had a great premise and some of my favourite tropes, but poor execution ultimately made it a disappointing and frustrating read.

[Serena · Rating 3 out of 5]

TRAMA: Dietro la facciata di integerrimo braccio della legge, lo sceriffo Riley Buchanan nasconde un terribile segreto: nelle sue vene, come in quelle dei suoi fratelli Saige e Ian, scorre il sangue dei Merrick. Diversamente da loro, però, che sono riusciti ad accettare la propria natura, Riley non riesce a superare il terrore che il suo lato oscuro possa prendere il sopravvento, e per questo ha troncato ogni rapporto con Hope, la ragazza di cui era innamorato. Tredici anni dopo, tuttavia, le loro strade si incrociano di nuovo, e in un lampo l'acerbo e innocente sentimento di un tempo si trasforma in una rovente attrazione fisica impossibile da ignorare. La dolce Hope è diventata una donna affascinante e sensuale che suscita in lui una fame insaziabile, e Riley non vuole altro che possederla, anima e corpo. Ma fino a quando riuscirà a resistere all'istinto primordiale che gli grida di bere il suo sangue?
Terzo volume di questa bella saga come sempre mi ha saputo attrarre fin dalle prime pagine. Il mondo in cui ci troviamo è il nostro,ma ci sono sempre i derrick e i casus che lottano fra loro. Abbiamo a che fare con un nuovo fratello dei Buchanan,Riley. Lui ha sempre sacrificato sé stesso per paura di cosa sarebbe presto diventato abbandonando Hope,l’unica donna che abbia mai amato. Ritrovandola sul proprio cammino e ad un passo dalla trasformazione Riley si sforza di resistere,ma al destino non si sfugge e tra scene hot e combattimenti arriviamo alla fine del libro con un ritmo serrato e appassionante. La storia è scritta in modo semplice e lineare,ricca,mai pesante. I personaggi sono ben delineati e con tante sfumature di sentimenti . E’ facile rimanere catturati dalle emozioni cupe di queste nuove creature che proteggono il mondo dalle tenebre. La storia d’amore è ben articolata,non nasce dal nulla,ma ha una base solida e affonda in un passato di sofferenza per entrambi. Viene introdotta una nuova specie e Gregory,il cattivo di turno,darà da fare parecchio ai fratelli Buchanan. Una trama avvincente e atmosfere calde fanno di questo libro una piacevole lettura.

[Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd give this one a 3.7/5.

It was entertaining, but it was sooo repetitive when it came to many of the interactions between Riley and Hope. I get that Riley "couldn't" but sometimes it was starting to sound like fluff... Filler.. Not to mention that I had a hard time with some of the logic that was not being used... Once they learned the whole reason behind their past... Couldn't the others provide more convincing arguments to show him he was wrong?

Anyways. There was definitely glue missing in this few-shades mosaic... But it was entertaining nonetheless and once you get pass the narrative-inclined style, you can get into it.

One question though... Why were there suddenly so many Cacus? The other novels never made any allusions to so many having made it over... Where are the other "awakening Merricks"? Oh, and Noah could make for a good story (just FYI :P)... maybe a much better tortured soul ;)

Okay... One more comment: I'll admit I often grit my teeth at the slow descriptives (instead of using action oriented dialogue between characters) in these novels, but when the author did use dialogue...? This one sounded, too often, like a bad doctor evil script... Ohhh... Let me explain everything to you through dialogue so you know everything we--your enemy--have in store for you! It's like a cop out... And it sounded so fake... I mean who would do that in reality? And they ALL seemed to do it! It also had the effect of slowing down the momentum of action scenes--a big no no. Either that or the author would continually slip in sentences like "so he explained all of blah bla blah, and told him about meh meh meh, and when he'd done that he went on to mention hoi hoi hoi... Etc etc" but riiight after we'd just read/witnessed the blah meh hoi live. Is that really necessary? Couldn't you find another way of communicating events to absentees?

Anyhow. I really liked the other watchmen :P Maybe the next one will be better.

[Sabrina (Soter) Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 e 1/2

"Stava scivolando in un territorio cupo e pericoloso e l’unica che potesse salvarlo era Hope. Lei era la sua ancora di salvezza. Il luminoso faro di luce che poteva guidarlo attraverso le lande deserte e tenebrose della sua anima."


Questo terzo libro della serie, dedicato al fratello di mezzo (ed ex sceriffo) Riley è quello che fin'ora mi è piaciuto meno >.< Dopo Ian infatti pensavo che avessimo chiuso con tutta la storia del "reprimere l'oscurità in me" ma....non avevo ancora incontrato il Santo Riley XD Sì, non solo si ripetono tutte le patunie ma se possibile si elevano pure all'ennesima potenza, impedendomi di apprezzare come volevo questo protagonista, che per il resto non è niente male XD Anche la sua storia con Hope però non mi ha convinta, i due sono stati fidanzati da ragazzi, ma si è trattata di una storia talmente rapida e superficiale 8l'idea della visione per spiegare la rottura non è stata male però) che dopo più di un decennio (e nel caso di lei un matrimonio fallito alle spalle) l'autrice non mi può ritirare fuori la carta del "grande amore" XD Il tira e molla tra i due va troppo per le lunghe e Hope, rispetto a Saige o a Molly, comincia a lottare per la sua storia d'amore (e ad incalzare il maschio riluttante di turno) troppo tardi per i miei gusti XD Coppia protagonista un po' deludente a parte però, la storia diventa sempre più coinvolgente e gli altri personaggi contribuiscono all'avanzare deciso della storia (adoro lo scanzonato Keller XD). Non mancano rivelazioni e colpi di scena e qualche cattivo si leva anche di torno per lasciare posto a nuove reclute (ovviamente il boss deve essere ancora sconfitto!) Finite le storie dei tre fratelli merrick ora l'attenzione si sposta sui guardiani mutaforma e la cosa mi ispira molto (viva la varietà! XD) perciò speriamo che la storia della tigre Aidan sia all'altezza delle aspettative! *ç*

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another action-packed read complete with a 'second-chance romance'. This is Riley's story, the third Buchanan, who has come to a small town in Washington to locate another weapon to fight the Casus. What he finds is the woman he walked away from fifteen years ago when he became aware that his future would be a threat to them both. His Merrick is rising and both of them want her...

Of course Riley resists madly, the bad guys [including Westmore and his soldiers, the Casus 'meant' for Riley AND Gregory the villain from book 2:] lurk in the wings waiting to strike at the optimum time, and Hope wants some quality time with Riley. We are introduced to a female Casus for the first time, a femme fatale with the accent on fatale... We meet an enigmatic character who seems to be a Casus but is apparently trying to help.

Riley's sidekick for this adventure is Kellan, a Watchman shifter from Ravenswing. I suspect he might be getting his own book in the future... Read the books in order, these books are very closely linked and sequential...

Primal Instinct
1. Edge of Hunger (2009)
2. Edge Of Danger (2009)
3. Edge of Desire (2009)
and more to come according to her website...

[Darcy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my favorite of the 3 so far. Right from the start I liked Riley even though he could have very easily come off as a bastard. I loved Hope's instant reaction to seeing Riley for the first time in years. The visual of the scene was enough to have be giggling at the absurdness of it, while it rang true and I loved Hope from that moment on.

Their history and present made for an interesting contrast. Riley made choices he didn't want for the greater good, already earning his nickname of "St. Riley" even though no one knew but him. Hope's past was heartbreaking and as we learned what she over came you started to root for her even more.

Other great parts of this book was Millie, she was a feisty fun character and had no problem putting Riley in his place when he needed it. I also loved getting to know Kellen more. In past books he has always been described as being distracted easily while thinking with his little head not his big head and this time around was no different. We also learned more about others that are in this world and I love to see how it is expanding.

[A.S. Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Least favorite of books in this series. Riley is not as attractive of a character personality wise either. I just had trouble staying focused on this novel and didn't really want to continue reading it at several points because it slowed and slumped too much. Lots of repetative: shoving hands in his pockets type stuff that became annoying after seeing it pop up in every chapter over and over, being overused as well as the tossing the cig on the ground and rubbing it out with his boot. Seriously, how many times do we ever see a man shove is hands deep in his pockets? Rarely if ever. No compeling enough for me to like it. Didn't really get why Kellan was even there and he also wasn't as enjoyable to read about in this book as he has been in the other. It just didn't flow as well as the other novels have and lacked in pulling the reader in while keeping their attention.
If given a choice I'd skip over this book in her series all together, it was just boring compared to the faster pace of the other novel in this series.

[Francesca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carino, ma non bello come i primi due. Speriamo nei prossimi.

[Riona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 3 of the Primal Instinct Series.

This is the Story of Riley and Hope.

Riley hides the fact that they way him and brother and sister grew up bothers him better than even Ian did. St. Riley as Ian likes to call him is hiding a broken heart and a fear of the beast within.

Years ago, Riley and Hope were in love. Until Riley's mom basically strong arms him into doing this vision ritual that would allow him to see what the future had in store for him. What he sees scares him. Scares him so much that he breaks it off with Hope in an effort to keep her pure and away from the evil within.

Hope never got over what happened between her and Riley. But she moved on, and it didn't exactly work out well for her. Since Riley left she was married and divorced and her ex-husband is now in prison, or so she thought.

This is probably my second favorite book in the series so far. Riley had good intentions and is steamy. It's just too bad that he didn't share what he saw with anyone.

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alright I am officially done reading this series. It's the craziest thing, I love the idea behind the story. It's a freaking great story, original even. And I was really looking forward to this one because I love me a strong female and male character. BUT I didn't like the story itself because it gets way to caught up in the emotions. I end up skimming through a good quarter to half the book because I can't stand to listen to him dealing with his feelings, coupled with her dealing with her feelings coupled with them dealing with their feelings. Especially when they're the same thing over and over and over again but said with different words. You have issues we get it, move on or push it back for the love of God. These books are way over emotionalized. I can't stand it. Get the damn characters out of their own heads! Once that happens I would gladly come back for more.

[Mhollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the 3rd book in this series. I really like the storyline & the world the author has created. The author is highly descriptive. I usually like descriptive authors and I never thought I would be saying this but, this author way, way too descriptive, to the point of run-on. I have a hard time following the conversations of the characters, because the author breaks away from the interaction to wax on about the characters feelings or thoughts. It is to the point where you read a scene, then you go back and only read the dialog, just to figure out what actually was said between all the pages of excessive fluff. I'll probably finish the series, just because I want to see how it all shakes out. I believe these would be must better books if the author just laid off on the excessive run-on description. Its not doing her work any favors, sorry to say.

[July · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought the third book in this series was good although it did drag on some. Riley is Ian and Saige Buchanan's brother. He is a sheriff and he was left behind to take care of Saige and Mom when Ian took off when he was young, which led to some very hard feelings between Ian and Riley. Riley had it rough being the man around the house after Ian ran off, and it lead to problems with relationships.
Holly was his high school sweetheart. They lose contact and years later, when his mission to find the marker for his awakening leads to Purity, Washington. Holly just happens to have ended up there. Fate has plans for Holly and Riley that he wants no part of. As soon as he see her, he aches for her. The Merrick part of him wants Holly, for her blood. He must fight the need to possess her and keep his distance. But now her safety is at risk.

[Sammie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg I totally love Riley , he's dark and broody and I just loved his whole story,him & Hope were totally made for each other, I thought it was crazy how Riley was fighting his feelings for Hope but in the middle of the book you finally see why he was so determine to keep her out of this war between the Merricks & the Casus .

I really liked Hope , from the moment she threw a pie at Riley's head I knew that their story was gonna be really good, I felt so bad for her after we find out what happened to her , but I loved that in the end she & Riley are able to get past it and start a new life together.

Loving the Side characters so much , I can't wait to read Aiden's book, it sounds so awesome :) .

Overall this series is fast becoming one of my favs & I can not express how much I am loving these books :) .

[Book · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like this book but it did lack much of what the first and second book had in it as far as the relationship between the two main characters were concerned. I just didn't find them as exciting or interesting and that took some of the zest out of the story for me. I found it seemed to drag on in the middle for me and needed to be moved on more quickly. I didn't like the whole high school sweetheart thing. I also found her complete devotion to him less believeable with the way he ended it between them in high school. There were many more little wholes in the story for me thoughout this book but I don't want to ruin it for anyone who might read this. I do like the series and this is a decent book, but just not as good at the rest of the series for me.

[Shawna · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I really enjoyed the first book. This 3rd one as okay for me. It isn't something I would need to read again. The steam factor felt mellow compared to the first 2 books. If I would have like a little more connection between Hope and Riley. We are told that they once were together like 13 years ago and that he loved her deeply but let her go. Now a decade later they reunite and he still feels that connection. I would have loved maybe some flashbacks or something to when they were teenagers so I could feel that connection.

So for more me I did like the book but it just didn't reach my expectations of the first book. However I am looking forward to reading about Kellan at some point. I do look forward to reading Aiden's book next

[Chills · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an intriguing paranormal read-one in a triology-but this
I think stood by itself. The concept is much like JR Wards Black Dagger Brotherhood or Sherrilyon Kenyon's Dark Hunters.
New words-"the Merrick" rising in Sheriff Riley and the search
for the "Dark Marker" had me a bit confused at times but I got
the gist.
There were some very sexy scenes and the vulnerability of the
characters were exposed and you felt for them and yes there was
the drinking of blood and the inevitable monsters.
All in all I did not think it was as strong as the two aforementioned
authors' works but I would be please to read the other two in the
series.

[Franjessca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full Review posted at Book Lovin' Mamas

I look forward to reading the next book in the series because it's not going to be about a Merrick this time. I do still want to follow the Buchanan's though. I also want to know about the Cassus who has turned good in "Edge of Desire." What is up with that? I'm confused. =(
Hopefully, the next book can keep my interest like this one did...although I don't want another sad one. I read this one when I was pregnant and believe me that was a horrible idea.  I was bawling like a baby because of my heightened emotions.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Riley and Hope's story. Hope was Riley's childhood sweetheart but when he had a vision of his future he broke it off with her and broke her heart. Now they are back together again and all his memories of her come flooding back with a vengence. He still feels as strongly for her now as he did when they were young, only now he is not fully human and the vision he had as a young boy is coming true.

Loved this story. Again with the tortured hard headed male who keeps thinking he is doing the right thing by staying away from the woman he loves and again its the strong determined female that saves him from himself.