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Shadow Guard #3
Darker Than Night
Third in the chilling saga
Countess Selene is the Shadow Guard's only female member. She sacrificed herself to save the people of London and is now under a sleeping spell in the Tower of London, guarded by Raven warriors. When she awakens on a dark street with a blade in her hand and a dead prostitute at her feet, everything changes. Now she must face an ancient enemy, with only a reclusive, secretive warrior to trust...
Countess Selene is the Shadow Guard's only female member. She sacrificed herself to save the people of London and is now under a sleeping spell in the Tower of London, guarded by Raven warriors. When she awakens on a dark street with a blade in her hand and a dead prostitute at her feet, everything changes. Now she must face an ancient enemy, with only a reclusive, secretive warrior to trust...
304 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 2010
2 people are currently reading
362 people want to read
About the author
Kim Lenox
4 books62 followersKim Lenox is the author of the Shadow Guards historical paranormal romance series, published by NAL (Signet/Eclipse)."
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 1, 2010
Looks like this may be the last of Lenox's Victorian era paranormals
Even trapped in a forced sleep to hold off her Transcendence, Selene's mere presence in the Raven's Tower of London sanctuary haunts Roarke, master of the Shadow Guard warriors. But when Selene is given a vaccine that hopefully will prove to be a cure to that dire fate, Roarke is not at all prepared to face the temptation Selene presents when she awakes. And Roarke's ancient vow, born of guilt and sorrow related to his past, will be sorely tested when the pair are isolated at Roarke's no-wheres-ville castle while Shadow Guard ruling council tries to determine if Selene is guilty of two murders and while they wait to see whether the vaccine will fail and Selene will turn into a monster.
I can say that I really did not at all like Selene in the previous books, but I thought that Lenox did a good job with Selene here - much as Mark improved from the first book to the second. As side effect of the vaccine Selene's Shadow Guard powers are in hiding and Selene laments the loss of the advantages she had taken for granted: power, strength and healing and this return to mortality puts Selene back in touch with her humanity. Also Selene's back story and the reason for her fear of attachments, serve to give her a sympathetic vulnerability. Selene even has moments when she's nice *gasp* and much of the oddness and cattiness which made Selene so unlikable in the past are left behind.
The romance in Darker than Night, for the most part, builds nicely between Selene and Roarke. Roarke struggles to keep to his vow of eternal misery, however he is having a difficult time fighting his centuries old attraction to Selene and Roarke has to keep remembering to distance himself each time he forgets and succumbs to the temptation Selene embodies. Roarke's internal struggle adds a few odd hitches to the romance- the most pronounced, ends a really steamy scene on an unpleasant note and another minor nit, Roarke's decision to finally let go of the past didn't feel well motivated to me.
But what bothered me most in Darker than night is that the background story seemed sort of Frankenstein'ed together. While the reader knows there might be supernatural trouble in Roarke's bucolic neighborhood - there is a death or two - neither of long time hunters pick up on the fact that their enemies are are lurking until Roarke and Selene find themselves in the clutches of the biggest of the baddies. Then it's back to London for a rushed resolution to the entire series arc.
However nits aside, the book delivered a nice bit of steam and some cameos from past characters - Leeson being my favorite - so I still enjoyed Darker Than Night.
Even trapped in a forced sleep to hold off her Transcendence, Selene's mere presence in the Raven's Tower of London sanctuary haunts Roarke, master of the Shadow Guard warriors. But when Selene is given a vaccine that hopefully will prove to be a cure to that dire fate, Roarke is not at all prepared to face the temptation Selene presents when she awakes. And Roarke's ancient vow, born of guilt and sorrow related to his past, will be sorely tested when the pair are isolated at Roarke's no-wheres-ville castle while Shadow Guard ruling council tries to determine if Selene is guilty of two murders and while they wait to see whether the vaccine will fail and Selene will turn into a monster.
I can say that I really did not at all like Selene in the previous books, but I thought that Lenox did a good job with Selene here - much as Mark improved from the first book to the second. As side effect of the vaccine Selene's Shadow Guard powers are in hiding and Selene laments the loss of the advantages she had taken for granted: power, strength and healing and this return to mortality puts Selene back in touch with her humanity. Also Selene's back story and the reason for her fear of attachments, serve to give her a sympathetic vulnerability. Selene even has moments when she's nice *gasp* and much of the oddness and cattiness which made Selene so unlikable in the past are left behind.
The romance in Darker than Night, for the most part, builds nicely between Selene and Roarke. Roarke struggles to keep to his vow of eternal misery, however he is having a difficult time fighting his centuries old attraction to Selene and Roarke has to keep remembering to distance himself each time he forgets and succumbs to the temptation Selene embodies. Roarke's internal struggle adds a few odd hitches to the romance- the most pronounced, ends a really steamy scene on an unpleasant note and another minor nit, Roarke's decision to finally let go of the past didn't feel well motivated to me.
But what bothered me most in Darker than night is that the background story seemed sort of Frankenstein'ed together. While the reader knows there might be supernatural trouble in Roarke's bucolic neighborhood - there is a death or two - neither of long time hunters pick up on the fact that their enemies are are lurking until Roarke and Selene find themselves in the clutches of the biggest of the baddies. Then it's back to London for a rushed resolution to the entire series arc.
However nits aside, the book delivered a nice bit of steam and some cameos from past characters - Leeson being my favorite - so I still enjoyed Darker Than Night.
April 6, 2010
Lord Rourke Avenage has been an Amaranthine immortal for eight centuries. As England's guardian Ravenmaster he is the liaison between the Primordals and the present British monarch under the rule of Queen Victoria on matters of policy that may affect the Amaranthines' interests in the mortal world. Even though the Ravens prefer to work alone, sometimes they give aid to another group of immortals called the Shadow Guards. Recently, Tantalus, a foe of the Amaranthine, was able to rise from his eternal prison and tried to take over London. Rourke and his Ravens were called upon to assist Lord Archer Black, the most ancient of all the Shadow Guards. Because of Rourke's involvement, he has taken on another responsibility in the form of watching over the only female Shadow Guard, the Countess Selene, better known as the immortal daughter of Cleopatra.
Rourke has watched Selene from a distance over the past centuries. The Countess is being guarded in the Tower of London because she was able to stop the evil called Transcendence that tried to consume her twin brother Mark's soul. Selene is in a deep sleep and may already have transcended. Lady Black believes she has a vaccine to save Selene, but in order to give it to her, Selene must be awakened.
Selene is given the vaccine and awakes. Although she is very sick, she somehow escapes from the tower and is found in an alley in Whitechapel holding a bloody knife and standing over a dead woman. She's also blamed for killing a Raven guard and surrenders to Rourke's care. She is then accused of being controlled by Tantalus.
Until Tantalus can be stopped and Selene is found innocent, Rourke will take her out of London and to his estate in the isolated town of Swarthwick. Selene, Rourke and his guards, Tres and Shrew travel by train. Selene is as weak as a new born baby and longs for her immortal strength back. She is also strangely attracted to Rourke, even though he treats her with polite care, but is somewhat cold. Not even her pet snake, Mrs. Hazelgreaves can put her at ease, and her appetite, where she literally eats pages from books has left her. She feels all alone and longs for some kindness, even if it comes from Rourke, who looks at her with heat in his eyes but continues to keep his distance.
All is not well in Swarthwick as a young woman goes missing and is believed to be dead. Rourke and Selene believe a sinister force maybe responsible. As these two walk around one another, their relationship becomes even more complicated when two locals, a Mr. Silverwest and the widow Mrs. Thrall each grow an interest in both the immortals. Soon Rourke and Selene can no longer deny their passion they have for one another and act upon their feelings with almost disastrous results.
Darker Than Night is a very dark and atmospheric, and almost gothic like paranormal romance. The characters Kim Lenox has created are very intriguing and original. Each one has a role to play even though they want no part of it. But because of their situation, they are forced to battle an evil that threatens to consume them all.
This third book in the Shadow Guard series can be confusing if you don't pay attention to every detail or have read the first two books. Kim tries her best to keep the reader interested, but I found the plot somewhat convoluted. There is just too much past information being thrown out, and along with the lackluster details, regardless of being told how dark and gloomy world of the Ravens and Shadow Guards is, I soon lost interest. Because Selene was such a well written and almost amoral character in the first two books, I was very interested in her own story. But in Darker Than Night, the Selene of the past I was acquainted with was not within these pages. Her personality is so very different and what made her appealing before is lacking here. I felt as if I was reading about a totally different character, as in she may have had a brain transplant. I understand the author has to make a character likeable when they are the star of their own book, but when you push aside all the past personality traits that makes a character unique, regardless if they may be somewhat villainous in their telling, that's where you lose me as a reader.
Rourke is your typical, angsty hero who longs for a woman he can't have because he feels she is so very wrong for him. Selene and Rourke do have chemistry but even when they act upon their desire, it doesn't cement their love for one another because of their trust issues they have. And the reason for this is not really adequately explained to begin with.
The secondary cast of characters is pretty tame and one-dimensional in their descriptions. At one point I became confused because the young girl who has gone missing has the same name of another character introduced, who seems to be important to the plot, but, I couldn't find any real reason why.
Darker Than Night should appeal to those readers who enjoy a dark setting that is very different from the other paranormal historical romances being released. Because Ms. Lennox relies on too much on building up the dark nature of the story and characters, I found myself wanting to put down the book by the time I was half way through and move onto something else where I wasn't scratching my head trying to figure out the specific characters' motivation and the complex structure of the overall story.
Rourke has watched Selene from a distance over the past centuries. The Countess is being guarded in the Tower of London because she was able to stop the evil called Transcendence that tried to consume her twin brother Mark's soul. Selene is in a deep sleep and may already have transcended. Lady Black believes she has a vaccine to save Selene, but in order to give it to her, Selene must be awakened.
Selene is given the vaccine and awakes. Although she is very sick, she somehow escapes from the tower and is found in an alley in Whitechapel holding a bloody knife and standing over a dead woman. She's also blamed for killing a Raven guard and surrenders to Rourke's care. She is then accused of being controlled by Tantalus.
Until Tantalus can be stopped and Selene is found innocent, Rourke will take her out of London and to his estate in the isolated town of Swarthwick. Selene, Rourke and his guards, Tres and Shrew travel by train. Selene is as weak as a new born baby and longs for her immortal strength back. She is also strangely attracted to Rourke, even though he treats her with polite care, but is somewhat cold. Not even her pet snake, Mrs. Hazelgreaves can put her at ease, and her appetite, where she literally eats pages from books has left her. She feels all alone and longs for some kindness, even if it comes from Rourke, who looks at her with heat in his eyes but continues to keep his distance.
All is not well in Swarthwick as a young woman goes missing and is believed to be dead. Rourke and Selene believe a sinister force maybe responsible. As these two walk around one another, their relationship becomes even more complicated when two locals, a Mr. Silverwest and the widow Mrs. Thrall each grow an interest in both the immortals. Soon Rourke and Selene can no longer deny their passion they have for one another and act upon their feelings with almost disastrous results.
Darker Than Night is a very dark and atmospheric, and almost gothic like paranormal romance. The characters Kim Lenox has created are very intriguing and original. Each one has a role to play even though they want no part of it. But because of their situation, they are forced to battle an evil that threatens to consume them all.
This third book in the Shadow Guard series can be confusing if you don't pay attention to every detail or have read the first two books. Kim tries her best to keep the reader interested, but I found the plot somewhat convoluted. There is just too much past information being thrown out, and along with the lackluster details, regardless of being told how dark and gloomy world of the Ravens and Shadow Guards is, I soon lost interest. Because Selene was such a well written and almost amoral character in the first two books, I was very interested in her own story. But in Darker Than Night, the Selene of the past I was acquainted with was not within these pages. Her personality is so very different and what made her appealing before is lacking here. I felt as if I was reading about a totally different character, as in she may have had a brain transplant. I understand the author has to make a character likeable when they are the star of their own book, but when you push aside all the past personality traits that makes a character unique, regardless if they may be somewhat villainous in their telling, that's where you lose me as a reader.
Rourke is your typical, angsty hero who longs for a woman he can't have because he feels she is so very wrong for him. Selene and Rourke do have chemistry but even when they act upon their desire, it doesn't cement their love for one another because of their trust issues they have. And the reason for this is not really adequately explained to begin with.
The secondary cast of characters is pretty tame and one-dimensional in their descriptions. At one point I became confused because the young girl who has gone missing has the same name of another character introduced, who seems to be important to the plot, but, I couldn't find any real reason why.
Darker Than Night should appeal to those readers who enjoy a dark setting that is very different from the other paranormal historical romances being released. Because Ms. Lennox relies on too much on building up the dark nature of the story and characters, I found myself wanting to put down the book by the time I was half way through and move onto something else where I wasn't scratching my head trying to figure out the specific characters' motivation and the complex structure of the overall story.
August 20, 2025
The heroes past and his life of tragedy and guilt has shaped him into a gruff and very antisocial immortal. Devoted to his position as ravenmaster and little else, can cares nothing for mortals or anything besides duty and responsibility. So when he's assigned guard duty over the once unconscious but now awake heroine he is furious- furious and frightened that these desires for her will cloud his judgement.
Previously, she saved a lot of lives by taking that darkness of the enemy within her and now, he-like the rest of the immortals- question her ability to deal with the consequences. If she a murderer or an innocent? That is not for him to decide, all he needs to do is keep her under strict surveillance until her guilt can be determined. The heroine awakes from her sleep confused and devoid of a lot of her powers and personality. Once she was vain and ruthless, now she is vulnerable and horribly lost in the world. Her brother is gone off his with new wife and her only female friend can not be around her unless the heroine is proven stable. Her only companions are 2 rambunctious raven warriors and their leader.
The hero is obviously very put out by his assignment and she hates the fact that she cares about his low opinion of her. He is distant and remote and she struggles to understand why. If only she knew how badly she affected him perhaps her questions would be answered. But despite his intense longing for her, he can't allow himself to become emotionally attached to anyone let alone a woman who could turn out to be his enemy. Their sexual attraction only heats up when she is proven innocent of the crimes she was accused of but while he may surrender his body to her in a heat of passion, he stubbornly remains emotionally vacant. He can't let go of the past and as such, can't allow himself any future. His jealousy towards her attention from other males, her every movement driving him crazy with desire- these things are wearing his calm. He doesn't know how long her can hold out before he is lost.
The rating for this book can be broken down like so. Characterization- including personality, back story and motivations behind behavior? 4 out of 5 stars. I adored the heroes rough and gruff personality which portrayed him as a respected but not warm man. I adored the heroine whose experiences in the previous book shaped her from a character I didn't much like to one I very much liked. She became vulnerable and more human with this weakness. Chemistry? 5 out of 5. The sexual tension between these characters was intense and present from even before the start of this book straight through to the end. Regardless of circumstances, regardless of beliefs on right and wrong, the characters wanted each other so badly that the fire nearly leapt off the pages. Plotline- including story development and intrigue? Sadly this is where the story fell extremely short. 1.5 out of 5. This story was set in an idealic countryside with charming secondary characters and not much else to excite the reader. While the battle raged in London, the author had these characters sitting on their asses basically stewing in their own repressed feelings for each other. It was like having them in a buddle and all the action and adventure happened around them but they were immune. I was horribly confused as well by the jarring scene skips, thinking I had missed a page of something. Over all, I was very unimpressed by the plot and lack of progress to the overall Shadow Guard storyline. While on the flip side, I loved the complicated and tense dance the hero and heroine partook in throughout the book. I was rather disappointed in this book and this this series in general. It seems like the 2 books following the first could not live up to the fire and wow factor. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
Previously, she saved a lot of lives by taking that darkness of the enemy within her and now, he-like the rest of the immortals- question her ability to deal with the consequences. If she a murderer or an innocent? That is not for him to decide, all he needs to do is keep her under strict surveillance until her guilt can be determined. The heroine awakes from her sleep confused and devoid of a lot of her powers and personality. Once she was vain and ruthless, now she is vulnerable and horribly lost in the world. Her brother is gone off his with new wife and her only female friend can not be around her unless the heroine is proven stable. Her only companions are 2 rambunctious raven warriors and their leader.
The hero is obviously very put out by his assignment and she hates the fact that she cares about his low opinion of her. He is distant and remote and she struggles to understand why. If only she knew how badly she affected him perhaps her questions would be answered. But despite his intense longing for her, he can't allow himself to become emotionally attached to anyone let alone a woman who could turn out to be his enemy. Their sexual attraction only heats up when she is proven innocent of the crimes she was accused of but while he may surrender his body to her in a heat of passion, he stubbornly remains emotionally vacant. He can't let go of the past and as such, can't allow himself any future. His jealousy towards her attention from other males, her every movement driving him crazy with desire- these things are wearing his calm. He doesn't know how long her can hold out before he is lost.
The rating for this book can be broken down like so. Characterization- including personality, back story and motivations behind behavior? 4 out of 5 stars. I adored the heroes rough and gruff personality which portrayed him as a respected but not warm man. I adored the heroine whose experiences in the previous book shaped her from a character I didn't much like to one I very much liked. She became vulnerable and more human with this weakness. Chemistry? 5 out of 5. The sexual tension between these characters was intense and present from even before the start of this book straight through to the end. Regardless of circumstances, regardless of beliefs on right and wrong, the characters wanted each other so badly that the fire nearly leapt off the pages. Plotline- including story development and intrigue? Sadly this is where the story fell extremely short. 1.5 out of 5. This story was set in an idealic countryside with charming secondary characters and not much else to excite the reader. While the battle raged in London, the author had these characters sitting on their asses basically stewing in their own repressed feelings for each other. It was like having them in a buddle and all the action and adventure happened around them but they were immune. I was horribly confused as well by the jarring scene skips, thinking I had missed a page of something. Over all, I was very unimpressed by the plot and lack of progress to the overall Shadow Guard storyline. While on the flip side, I loved the complicated and tense dance the hero and heroine partook in throughout the book. I was rather disappointed in this book and this this series in general. It seems like the 2 books following the first could not live up to the fire and wow factor. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
April 5, 2013
The final instalment of the Shadowguard Trilogy which tells the tale of the previous femme fatale Selene, Countess Pavlenco, daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony and Ravenmaster, Roarke, Lord Avenage. This is probably the best instalment in the trilogy with a lot of the world building set up and the character of Selene softened quite considerably, it reads much more like a romance with only a couple of chapters at the end to the beat the big baddie and send him back to hell.
This was a Victorian historical paranormal series which had a lot of potential but somehow just didn't quite reach a four stars rating.
3.75 stars.
This was a Victorian historical paranormal series which had a lot of potential but somehow just didn't quite reach a four stars rating.
3.75 stars.
July 13, 2010
I enjoyed the first two more than this one. I thought pacing in this one was too slow. Will interested in what else this author puts out.
April 17, 2020
Not quite as good as the 2nd one, but I still loved it. I loved seeing the vulnerable side of Selene, and Roarke is pretty damn hot.
May 24, 2016
I'm very surprised that I actually liked this novel more than I thought I would. I wasn't a real big fan of Selene in the first two novels, but she really started to grow on me in this one. I'm not quite sure how this all happened, but it did and I'm really glad that I read this novel. It was a rather exciting and fun to read. It was a big guessing game with some really hot, exotic scenes too. It's one of those that I'm glad to own, because I may just end up reading it over again.
In this novel Selene is more or less still crippled by what she did for her twin brother. She sacrificed herself in his place and took all of his evil inside of her. But by doing this she's also cursed herself with the same fate of death. So until then she's been placed under a sleeping spell, so that they may hopefully find a cure for her. Watching over her sleeping form is the Ravens and more importantly Avenge. Lord Avenge is the oldest Raven and also the Ravenmaster. He watches over all of them and even recruits a few here and there. Now after centuries have gone by Avenge finally sees Selene again for what she truly is. The daughter of the most famous Queen of all that may even still have a few of her old tricks. Some of those tricks may also include tricking him into thinking that she's innocent of all crimes. A fact that has yet to be proven and may not ever be. Because if Selene is indeed still under the spell, then it be up to Avenge to kill her. A feat that everyone is well aware of and is waiting for. In the meantime they've been sent, along with a few other Ravens, to live in a remote place. A place that Avenge hasn't been to in quite some time. All in the hopes of curing Selene once and for all of her madness. However, Selene may be closer to madness than anyone would have thought.
As last novel of the series it wasn't a bad one. It's one that I thoroughly enjoyed and I think the next reader will too. For a romantic novel it had a rather tragic feel to it and perhaps that's what made me like this novel even more. Despite the fact that it was all romantic it's still based in the late eighteen hundreds, which was a tragic period itself. This is what made it so fabulous to me, because with all of this in mind you'd think that it wouldn't fit together so well. But the fact that it does is what makes this novel so unique to itself. Well that and the fact that the cover is very different from the way you'd imagine it to be. The fact still remains that this is an excellent novel and should really be read right along with the rest of the series. Otherwise there's really no point to reading the series whatsoever.
*Read on December 19th, 2015
In this novel Selene is more or less still crippled by what she did for her twin brother. She sacrificed herself in his place and took all of his evil inside of her. But by doing this she's also cursed herself with the same fate of death. So until then she's been placed under a sleeping spell, so that they may hopefully find a cure for her. Watching over her sleeping form is the Ravens and more importantly Avenge. Lord Avenge is the oldest Raven and also the Ravenmaster. He watches over all of them and even recruits a few here and there. Now after centuries have gone by Avenge finally sees Selene again for what she truly is. The daughter of the most famous Queen of all that may even still have a few of her old tricks. Some of those tricks may also include tricking him into thinking that she's innocent of all crimes. A fact that has yet to be proven and may not ever be. Because if Selene is indeed still under the spell, then it be up to Avenge to kill her. A feat that everyone is well aware of and is waiting for. In the meantime they've been sent, along with a few other Ravens, to live in a remote place. A place that Avenge hasn't been to in quite some time. All in the hopes of curing Selene once and for all of her madness. However, Selene may be closer to madness than anyone would have thought.
As last novel of the series it wasn't a bad one. It's one that I thoroughly enjoyed and I think the next reader will too. For a romantic novel it had a rather tragic feel to it and perhaps that's what made me like this novel even more. Despite the fact that it was all romantic it's still based in the late eighteen hundreds, which was a tragic period itself. This is what made it so fabulous to me, because with all of this in mind you'd think that it wouldn't fit together so well. But the fact that it does is what makes this novel so unique to itself. Well that and the fact that the cover is very different from the way you'd imagine it to be. The fact still remains that this is an excellent novel and should really be read right along with the rest of the series. Otherwise there's really no point to reading the series whatsoever.
*Read on December 19th, 2015
March 5, 2015
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just the result
Fazit:
Verschenkt! Alles verschenkt! Auch das hier: S. „Sie schob einen kleinen Gedichtband in die Samttasche, (…) und verschluckte schnell die erste Strophe auf Seite zweiunddreißig.“ Ich bezweifle nicht, dass Kim Lenox Ideen hat! Schöne, sogar sehr schöne Ideen. Aber die Umsetzung ist absolut mangelhaft. Dieses Buch konnte mich nicht überzeugen. Ich habe den Eindruck die letzten Szenen mit Leeson waren die hervorragendsten, aber alles davor war absolut unnötiges Geplänkel zwischen Charakteren die nicht füreinander bestimmt sind und deswegen auch gar nicht überzeugen konnten. Die Handlung bröckelt an so vielen Ecken, dass es lächerlich geflickschustert wirkt.
Die kleinen Bröckchen vom Savoy, dem Bahngleis und Ascot vereinen sich beim Auftritt der Queen höchstpersönlich und diese Frau ist glaub’ ich ein Wechselbalg. Das war jedenfalls nicht mehr die Lady die im ersten Band ganz kurz reingeschaut hatte. Und was Archer nebst Lady Black geborene White und Mark nebst Willomina-ich-werd'-nicht-warm-mit-der-Schwägerin in dem Buch zu suchen hatten entbehrt sich auch wieder jeder Logik. Denn beim Auflauf zum Finale ... richtig: verpatzen sie mal wieder ihren Einsatz. Sind dann aber doch noch da um alle in den Arm zu nehmen! Das kommt einem nicht nur halbgar vor, das war es auch.
Armarinthinisches Schwert, Elfenbein-Aufwickelstäbchen und 'die Pupille des Auge des Pharao‘ sind zeitgleich nötig um das hier schnell zu vergessen: Gewollt aber nicht gekonnt.
just the result
Fazit:
Verschenkt! Alles verschenkt! Auch das hier: S. „Sie schob einen kleinen Gedichtband in die Samttasche, (…) und verschluckte schnell die erste Strophe auf Seite zweiunddreißig.“ Ich bezweifle nicht, dass Kim Lenox Ideen hat! Schöne, sogar sehr schöne Ideen. Aber die Umsetzung ist absolut mangelhaft. Dieses Buch konnte mich nicht überzeugen. Ich habe den Eindruck die letzten Szenen mit Leeson waren die hervorragendsten, aber alles davor war absolut unnötiges Geplänkel zwischen Charakteren die nicht füreinander bestimmt sind und deswegen auch gar nicht überzeugen konnten. Die Handlung bröckelt an so vielen Ecken, dass es lächerlich geflickschustert wirkt.
Die kleinen Bröckchen vom Savoy, dem Bahngleis und Ascot vereinen sich beim Auftritt der Queen höchstpersönlich und diese Frau ist glaub’ ich ein Wechselbalg. Das war jedenfalls nicht mehr die Lady die im ersten Band ganz kurz reingeschaut hatte. Und was Archer nebst Lady Black geborene White und Mark nebst Willomina-ich-werd'-nicht-warm-mit-der-Schwägerin in dem Buch zu suchen hatten entbehrt sich auch wieder jeder Logik. Denn beim Auflauf zum Finale ... richtig: verpatzen sie mal wieder ihren Einsatz. Sind dann aber doch noch da um alle in den Arm zu nehmen! Das kommt einem nicht nur halbgar vor, das war es auch.
Armarinthinisches Schwert, Elfenbein-Aufwickelstäbchen und 'die Pupille des Auge des Pharao‘ sind zeitgleich nötig um das hier schnell zu vergessen: Gewollt aber nicht gekonnt.
January 4, 2011
Is this a beautiful book cover, or what? I found myself staring at it quite frequently! LOL. I must admit, I think this series is just phenomenal. Lenox has done a remarkable job with the mythology of the Shadow Guard. Selene was not a favorite character of mine in the previous books (though I loved her relationship with her beloved snake), but she really grew on me with this story. And Roarke? Incredibly hot and tortured...my favorite type of hero! There was no cliffhanger at the end of the book; yet I hope that this series will continue. Whatever Lenox comes up with next will definitely be on my automatic to-buy list.
May 10, 2011
A slow start, but like the previous books picked up in the middle. Sometimes I felt like the author concentrated more on the romance between the hero and heroine and not enough on the fight with villian. I was dissapointed that the spunkineess the heroine showed in the previous books wasn't present in this one. She acted more like the damsel in distress instead of the kick-ass immortal that she was. Overall I enjoyed the book even if the ending of the series was anti-climatic.
September 2, 2011
Ok, I will admit that the reason I bought this book was because: 1. It only cost .89 2. The model on the cover is really good-looking. Other than that I really couldn't tell you what this book was about. The story was not memorable. The leads did not spark an interest for me. I wish I could review more about the story but, I cannot. The synopsis on the back really peaked my interest as well as the prologue. Sadly, it was not enough. It is a wobbly 2 star rating at best.
February 14, 2012
I hope the author will continue writing this series. Since there so many thing left that not explain yet. The idea is great, about gothic English at Victorian era and include some historical characters, such as Cleopatra Selene and Alexander Helios.
Three for the story, add one star just for the cover alone
Because from this cover I know about Paul Marron!! <3
Three for the story, add one star just for the cover alone
Because from this cover I know about Paul Marron!! <3
February 20, 2021
Amazing Series
This series is amazing. I was captivated from beginning to end. I couldn’t put it down and read the whole series in one seating. The author created it such amazing world of supernatural creatures mixed with the times of Jack the Ripper. I truly wish the author to write more and to make this series in audiobooks as well.
This series is amazing. I was captivated from beginning to end. I couldn’t put it down and read the whole series in one seating. The author created it such amazing world of supernatural creatures mixed with the times of Jack the Ripper. I truly wish the author to write more and to make this series in audiobooks as well.
October 5, 2012
The story line seemed as though it could have been great had the author developed it. The book is great to read in one setting over a long flight, but don't expect a complex plot line, character development or a strong female heroine.
July 6, 2010
Sad to see this series end but it ended well. Curious to see what new series or books this author comes up with next.
October 1, 2011
3½ stars
September 1, 2011
Rated 4.5 Blue Ribbons. My review courtesy of Romance Junkies: http://romancejunkiesreviews.com/artm...
February 19, 2015
awesome series so enjot books
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