Lord of Rage (Royal House of Shadows, #2) in Vampires, Weres and Fae!

Sep 14, 2011 Aimee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2011

I wasn't sure how this story would turn out. But I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the first book and the second was just as good. Breena was raised to be a gentle woman who would be married off for political reasons. I was glad to see she still had some life to her after her escape.

The only thing I'm not sure of, is the timeline. I'm not sure where this is in reference to the first book, but I have a feeling it comes into play later. The story of the berserkers was great. I felt bad for Osbor ...more

Like · see review

Oct 17, 2011 Melindeeloo rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-romance, fairy-tale-romance

When her parents' death spell throws Princess Breena to safety, she ends up on Oberon's doorstep, and discovers her Dream Warrior in the flesh. Breena is sure that Oberon is destined to be her champion and help her gain revenge against the evil sorcerer who killed her parents and murdered or enslaved the people of her kingdom. Breena is a Dreamwalker who has lived for the passion that she and Oberon have shared in their dreams. While those dreams form an instant connection between the pair when When her parents' death spell throws Princess Breena to safety, she ends up on Oberon's doorstep, and discovers her Dream Warrior in the flesh. Breena is sure that Oberon is destined to be her champion and help her gain revenge against the evil sorcerer who killed her parents and murdered or enslaved the people of her kingdom. Breena is a Dreamwalker who has lived for the passion that she and Oberon have shared in their dreams. While those dreams form an instant connection between the pair when they finally meet, they also prove to be a double edged sword for Breena, for as much as Oberon desires her, he is equally resentful and suspicious of the nighttime trysts which have left him aching.

I don't think I have read anything by Monroe before, but I really really liked Lord of Rage, I would say probably even 4.5 stars worth. All of the books in this Royal House of Shadows four-author-four-book continuity have had a fairy tale for inspiration, but while the basic story here starts with Goldilocks and the three bears with the twist that leading man is a Berserker and has a mystical connection to a bear spirit, Monroe peppers her story with all kinds of fairy tale references which add an additional element of fun to the tale.

I liked that Oberon was just as fleshed out as Breena, his back story is interesting and Monroe does a really good job giving both of her characters some depth, and even with the dream connection – which adds a bit of steam early on – I like that Monroe backs off, develops their relationship, and gives Breena and Oberon obstacles to overcome in order to win their happily ever after.

On a side note, one thing that really struck about Breena's back story was the reality of being a princess: living only to make a match that will aid her kingdom, trying to be as quiet and unobjectionable as possible throughout her teen years so as not to close off any potential alliances, and being told that once she is safely wed she will at last get to be the person she was meant to be - I find the Disney sparkly gowned princess fantasy more appealing. But while sparkles are nice, there is nothing better than a princess who decides to rescue herself and I really liked that once Breena determines that Oberon isn't going to fight her battle for her, Brena sets out to become her own champion.

I read the four books in the Royal House of Shadows series completely out of order - the third one first, then part of the first one, then the last, and finally this one which was supposed to be second - but I don't think that dampened my enjoyment one iota. My only issue? Now I am having a hard time deciding which book I liked best, Lord of Rage or Nalini Singh's Lord of the Abyss, which I also really enjoyed. I think that Lord of Rage wins though because, unlike Lord of the Abyss which is the final book in the series, Monroe's second place story had the advantage of no expectations for a wrap up.

For readers who are wondering if they can pick and choose which of the Royal House of Shadows stories to read, all of the books have done a good enough restating the rules of the series, and haven't really relied on events in other books. So that they all work just fine as stand alone reads, in case you'd like to give one or two of these fun fairy tale inspired romances a try. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Feb 13, 2012 Vannessa rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-books, paranormal-romance, netgalley-books

This is the second book in the Royal House of Shadows series and focusses on Brenna, the princess of Elden. She wakes up after being magically whisked away from the scene of her parents' gruesome demise with an urge to follow a certain path. She knows she must survive and take revenge but at the moment she's not sure why and against whom she must take this revenge. Onwards she plods through a forest, clearly marked against intruders by the bare skulls hanging up. She stumbles across a wooden cot This is the second book in the Royal House of Shadows series and focusses on Brenna, the princess of Elden. She wakes up after being magically whisked away from the scene of her parents' gruesome demise with an urge to follow a certain path. She knows she must survive and take revenge but at the moment she's not sure why and against whom she must take this revenge. Onwards she plods through a forest, clearly marked against intruders by the bare skulls hanging up. She stumbles across a wooden cottage and the scene that follows made me chuckle - it was Goldilocks and the Three Bears paranormal style. She enters the unlocked cottage, eats some oat porridge, breaks a chair and then goes to sleep in one of the beds. When she is awoken a while later, the gruff, angry man is the man of her dreams, literally. She has been dreaming of this warrior and the passion between them for a while now, but he is nothing like the man in her dreams. He also recognises her as the woman who has been invading his dreams and whilst he feels an attraction towards her, does not want to get involved with her at all.

Osborn is the oldest of 3 brothers, the only survivors from an slaughter on his village by whom he believes were soldiers/vampires from Elden. He is a berserker, following a ritual of manhood at the age of 15 in which he had to kill a bear and join their spirits together. He can call on his Ber when wearing the pelt of the bear he killed and develops an almost uncontrollable rage and strength, against which no-one will survive. Osborn's 2 little brothers were cute. They needed a big sister or mother figure in their lives and were so desperate for Brenna to stay even when Osborn made it clear that she should leave.

There is a great attraction between Brenna and Osborn right from the minute they meet. He believes she only wants him for his berserker power and the revenge she wants to take. She believes that he is her warrior, the man in her dreams who would protect her at all costs. Their relationship is not quite a smooth ride and even at the very end, I thought Osborn was going to leave her for good.

Brenna came across as a typical "princess". She only wanted Osborn to fight for her against those who killed her parents and didn't really care about him and his brothers initially. It was obvious she had a very good upbringing (she didn't know how to cook for example, something in this world, women would have done if they had to) and her selfishness irritated me a bit at the beginning. She did eventually start becoming more independent. Her own magical powers developed a bit, although we didn't see a great deal of that and she did learn how to fight with a sword, taking many hours practising and training physically. But ultimately Osborn, her warrior, had to save her!

Osborn was an angry man! Yes he had to go through 2 life changing events in the same day - his Bärenjagd (the bear killing ritual) and the battle in his village which cost him the lives of his parents. Not something I can imagine was an easy thing to do. He also had to bring up his two brothers on his own and became an assassin to help feed them, but boy he could have smiled some times! With Brenna's help, he realised that he had sheltered his brothers too much and was not preparing them to become the men and Berserkers they have be.

I was also a little confused to the timing of this book. Nikolai, in the first book and Brenna's brother, had been kept in the witches' palace for 20 years as time moves differently there, but this one seemed to take place immediately after Brenna's teleportation. Not sure how all the books will merge together or even if they will. I hope so! Would be good to see all 4 siblings back together, taking on the Blood sorcerer.

This book was ok. I liked it, but didn't think it was great. I think because it was so short the relationship between Brenna and Osborn was developed fully and the characters themselves were not fully developed either. I will be reading the rest of this series as I want to find out about the other 2 brothers from the kingdom of Elden - Dayn and Micah.

I would like to thank the publishers for providing this ARC free through Net Galley. ...more

Like · see review

Sep 27, 2011 Nichole ~Bookaholic~ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr-uf, arcs-netgalley-edelweiss

This is the first book by Jill Monroe that I have read and while I knew it was PNR I was not sure what to expect. I love fairy tales and PNR and I got the best of both with this one. This is the second in a series of four books...while I own the first one I have not read it yet (just need to remember where I put it) but this is one that can be read on it's own.
I won't go into a summary or plot review as you can read the good reads blurb for all that. The book sucked me in from beginning to end, ...more

Like · see review

Sep 05, 2011 Lori {Romancing the Dark Side} rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2011, magic, paranormal-romance, witches, reviewed, netgalley-reviews

An original Romancing the Darkside Review:
http://romancingthedarkside.blogspot....

A sexy paranormal re-telling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears!

Forced out of her castle by an evil Blood Sorcerer whose mission is to rule her father's kingdom of Elden, Breena, along with her three brothers, are cast into different realm by their parents' magic. Not a vampire like her brothers, Breena is a powerful witch with the abilities to dreamwalk. Each night she encounters a handsome warrior in her dreams wh An original Romancing the Darkside Review:
http://romancingthedarkside.blogspot....

A sexy paranormal re-telling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears!

Forced out of her castle by an evil Blood Sorcerer whose mission is to rule her father's kingdom of Elden, Breena, along with her three brothers, are cast into different realm by their parents' magic. Not a vampire like her brothers, Breena is a powerful witch with the abilities to dreamwalk. Each night she encounters a handsome warrior in her dreams who satisfies her innermost desires, it's in the midst of one of these dreams that she awakens in a strange land and after much time walking she finds an empty cabin and seeks refuge there. When the owner of the cabin makes it home, he finds Breena sleeping in his bed and instantly recognizes her as the beautiful woman who invades his dreams every night.

Osborn is an Ursa warrior who lives with his two younger brothers Torben and Bernt. He is known as a "Berserker" and has special abilities he can summon from his bear spirit. He lost his parents to the betrayal of vampires in a time of peace and has never forgotten the horrors he experienced at the hands of the people of Elden. Now Breena seeks his help in avenging her family, concealing her true identity. Osborn hesitantly agrees, but when Breena's true identity is discovered, he is torn between his own vengeance and helping the woman of his dreams.

I found this second installment in the House of Royal Shadows more exciting and sensual than the first. The chemistry between Breena and Osborn is spectacular! We learn more about this world in Lord of Rage and are given a great back story of each main character. The story is definitely character driven and has less action than the first book but the developing romance makes up for that. There's more than just passion between Osborn and Breena with plenty of tender moments and soul bearing, that adds more meaning to their connection. Breena is a strong heroine who is surprisingly bold and less "maidenly" than one would imagine. She's determined, brave and loves unconditionally. Osborn is the perfect complement to Breena's character, he's a warrior, possessive but also has a soft and romantic side to him that captures your heart. The pairing of these two is just magical to say the least.

Lord of Rage is feel good paranormal romance with plenty of heart. Jill Monroe's writing style reels you in from the first page with her simple yet captivating storytelling. The character development is well executed and there is a bit of danger and adventure, along with the sexy romance! The supporting characters, Osborn's brothers, bring a fun and lightheartedness to the story that is quite enjoyable, and what story is complete without a vile villain? Yeah there's one of those too! Breena and Osborn are my favorite pairing in this series so far and I can't wait to meet the rest of the Royal family!

{ebook courtesy of NetGalley} ...more

1 like · Like · see review