Dark Awakening (Dark Dynasties #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Jul 08, 2011 Lisarenee rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

"Your mark is your destiny."

In a hierarchy of vampire society the Cait Sith are the lowest on the totem poll. With no leader and their bloodline rumored to be tainted with Fae blood, they are looked down upon. Referred to by others as gutterbloods they are one of the lines who can change to animal form (cat). Each line has it's own mark and when you enter into the society you are branded by the mark of your sire's line. It can be modified, but never removed.

"It was dangerous to question the pow "Your mark is your destiny."

In a hierarchy of vampire society the Cait Sith are the lowest on the totem poll. With no leader and their bloodline rumored to be tainted with Fae blood, they are looked down upon. Referred to by others as gutterbloods they are one of the lines who can change to animal form (cat). Each line has it's own mark and when you enter into the society you are branded by the mark of your sire's line. It can be modified, but never removed.

"It was dangerous to question the power structure, to question why one mark should be venerated while another should be spat upon"

Tynan (Ty) MacGillivray was on a mission. The Ptolemy, the oldest and most powerful of the vampire dynasties, are being hunted and wiped out by a Mulo, a flesh-eating spirit conjured by a curse. Ty was sent out to hunt down a Seer in the hopes they could predict when the Mulo would strike next and who might have sent it. Seers are rare and no one has come across one for a very long time. They may have died out. If the Mulo can't be stopped the Ptolemy face extinction. Ty is a Cait Sith who chose to become the equivalent of a slave for the Ptolemy. While searching for a Seer he finds Lily Quinn. He's uncertain if she's a Seer, but all the signs are in place to suggest she is. There is one problem, however. She carries the mark of a vampire, yet is human. Such a thing should be impossible for vampires can't reproduce. What started out as a straight forward mission is now complicated, and Ty knows he must figure out what it means before turning her over to Arsinoe, the leader of the Ptolemy. What Lily is will change everything.

A friend and I were discussing, okay arguing, about a vampire series. I said there are only so many variations of the creature that could be told. I insisted there just wasn't much that could be done with the being that hadn't already be done. I, Lisarenee, am now eating my words and am happy to do so. Castle put a fresh spin to her vampire series that I hadn't seen before. With vampires being able to change into smoke, mist, or animals, and roots linking them back to Egypt I found myself spellbound. The world building was superb and I found myself captivated from the very first page. An underdog, er, cat and tortured hero, I found Ty to be simply irresistible. The chemistry between Ty and Lily was entrancing. When your heart gets set a flutter, and you need a fan for a love scene that goes no father than second base, you know you're in for a treat. I HIGHLY recommend this one and found this to be a total and complete book seduction. I gave this one 5 out of 5 roses. Yay! I've got another author to add to my ever growing list of favorites. *sigh* I am so looking forward to the sequel.

Midnight Reckoning by Kendra Leigh Castle

1.Dark Awakening
2.Midnight Reckoning - tentatively schedule for release on January 1st 2012.

To see more of my reviews check out my blog at www.seducedbyabook.com ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Sep 06, 2011 Dahlia (yadkny) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

A war is looming in the night world. A war in which many will suffer or die and few will benefit. However, one mortal woman stands in the way and can forever tip the balance of power. A new dark destiny begins with bloodshed.

Tynan MacGillivray was given what was to be the simple yet all too important task of retrieving a Seer for his Queen. His superb Cait Sith (cat shifting vampire) hunting skills gives him the edge needed to find this seeming needle in a haystack. Unfortunately, it was his lac A war is looming in the night world. A war in which many will suffer or die and few will benefit. However, one mortal woman stands in the way and can forever tip the balance of power. A new dark destiny begins with bloodshed.

Tynan MacGillivray was given what was to be the simple yet all too important task of retrieving a Seer for his Queen. His superb Cait Sith (cat shifting vampire) hunting skills gives him the edge needed to find this seeming needle in a haystack. Unfortunately, it was his lack of self-defense with his prey that was to be his ultimate downfall. No one had ever breached the walls of his hardened heart, nor managed to challenge him in such unexpected and desirous ways. Yet this one did and by the time he realized it, it was too late. Torn between loyalty and desire, Ty must choose and suffer whatever consequences. His actions will dictate not only his fate, but the whole of the night world as well.

Lily Quinn thought she had finally gotten her life together after dealing with the traumatizing fallout of absent parents and barrage of psychiatric evaluations. Most of the unexplainable could be left behind, but no matter where she goes or what she does the nightmares continue. Then in one night she is kidnapped and forced to start living under the cover of darkness where her significance in the night world is revealed. There are those that want her enslaved, those that want her dead, and those that want her forever, but the formidable force that is Lily hasn't had her say yet.

A Mulo curse, power shifts, new alliances, love, and death will all take place by the time this story is finished. It's a twenty-first century paranormal tale with throwbacks in history to monarchs, hierarchies, court politics, and archaic practices. Ms. Castle creates vampiric Dynasties separated by blood with different abilities and tattoo symbols that can change as bloods merge. Even the infamous Vlad Dracul makes an appearance. The complex world-building is very creatively well done and the characters described with perfect detailing.

I'll admit that Ty for me lacked a certain finesse and charm that I find quickly enough with other romance action heroes, but after spending some quality time with him throughout the story I found a very loyal and passionate man instead. He still hasn't fully realized his self-worth, but he has potential. On the other hand, Lily was appealing to me from the beginning and grew to be more so as the story continued. Her mysterious heritage and unique back-story make for good reading, but I really enjoyed her caring personality. Although slow going, the connection between the pair is formed over conversations and mounting forbidden touches until it all becomes too much to deny. Our tortured hero and heroine may just stand a chance. In the heat department, these two have that down with a soul mate kind of passion that's easily read in their more intimate scenes...

“...she continued her gentle exploration of him, threading her fingers through his hair. It was soft, silken, as she stroked it, and she lifted her other hand to do the same. He tipped his head back slightly, giving in, just a little. A soft thrumming sound reached her ears, and it took her a moment to place it.”
“I've never made a man purr,” she said. “I like it.”

“When I touch you,” he said softly, “I want my teeth in you.”

The climax and ending left a bit to be desired as both came and went without enough of the expected heart-pounding rush and excitement for more now not later. However, Ty, Lily, the secondary characters, and the yet to be fully engaged and revealed other Dynasties do have me wanting more and more. The plot I am sure will continue to thicken and new characters will emerge with the next installment to the Dark Dynasties series. It's all more than enough to have me coming back to Ms. Castle's particular brand of night world. This is one not to be missed by any paranormal romance fan!

Review soon-to-be posted @ Night Owl Reviews ...more

Like · see review

May 01, 2021 Rachel-RN rated it it was ok

Shelves: read-2021

Interesting caste system with vampires. Each group originates with a god/goddess and has a unique to them ability (turning to smoke, being super fast, shifting). However with most groups, you have ones who think they are better and treat others as such. So, not surprising in this world, vamps can e snobby assholes.
Tynan is a Cait Sith. He can shift to a cat. The Cait Sith are also considered to be the lowest class and serve the Ptolemy (considered to be the highest). The Cait Sith that don't go ...more

Like · see review

Nov 17, 2011 Michelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: michelle-mcm-s-2012-reading-list, read-january-2012, kendra-leigh-castle

I was a little unsure of this in the beginning but once I was about 35% in, I couldn't put it down! I loved the mythology that Kendra used and adapted to make her world, using Lilith & Cleopatra's little sister to build her world of vampire's. The Cait Sith - I'm fascinated by! I adore cat shifters (although I tend to lean towards the big cats) but giving a breed of vampire's the ability to shift into cats - oh yes! I was a very happy lady by the end and I can't wait to continue the series.

I wa ...more

Like · see review

Jun 11, 2011 Lisa M rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-romance, kindle, vampire, shifter

An interesting take on the vampire mythos.

Like · see review

May 23, 2011 Talin marked it as to-read

Like

May 25, 2011 Lakisha marked it as to-read

Like

May 29, 2011 Yulia marked it as to-read

Shelves: vampires, shape-shifters, paranormal-romance

Like

May 29, 2011 Michelle marked it as wishlist

Like

Jun 04, 2011 Trish marked it as to-read-paranormal

Like

Jun 20, 2011 Sandra rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: own, pnr-uf, vampires, col-blue, col-red

Like

Jul 10, 2011 Cindy (eclecticfirefly) marked it as wish-list

Like

Jul 14, 2011 LooLoo rated it liked it

Like

Aug 05, 2011 Serena marked it as to-read

Like

Aug 27, 2011 Amy ~Lover of Books~ marked it as to-read

Like

Sep 17, 2011 Midu Hadi marked it as to-read

Like

Oct 02, 2011 Heather Minor marked it as to-read

Shelves: a-fave-tbr-definitely

Like

Jan 05, 2012 Felicia (Ferishia) marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: pr-vampire, pr-shifter, ebook, kindle-format-ebook, series, fantasy-futuristic-sci-fi, urban-fantasy, romance, first-book-in-series, 07-madame-livres-cochonnes

Like

Jan 24, 2012 Lisa Kay marked it as to-read

Shelves: authors-l, authors-k, series-d, authors-c, genre-romance-paranormal

Like

Feb 07, 2012 Kristina marked it as to-read

Shelves: 1st-in-series

Like

Feb 08, 2012 Cindy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: shifters, vampires, pnr, fave-pnr, magic

Like

Mar 04, 2012 namericanwordcat rated it liked it

Shelves: romance, abandoned-by-parent, kind-h, redhead, american-h-or-hero, american-setting-romance, cool-dangerous-hero, tortured-hero, cynical-hero, vampire

Like