Tuesday 23 July 2013

Review: South of Surrender - Laura Kaye

She’s the only one who can see through his golden boy façade to the broken god within…

Chrysander Notos, Supreme God of the South Wind and Summer, is on a mission: save Eurus from his death sentence and prove his troubled brother can be redeemed. But Eurus fights back, triggering vicious summer storms that threaten the mortal realm, dangerously drain Chrys, and earn the ire of the Olympic gods who ordered Eurus dead.

Laney Summerlyn refuses to give up her grandfather’s horse farm, despite her deteriorating vision. More than ever, she needs the organized routine of her life at Summerlyn Stables, until a ferocious storm brings an impossible—and beautiful—creature crashing down from the heavens.

Injured while fighting Eurus, Chrys finds himself at the mercy of a mortal woman whose compassion and acceptance he can’t resist. As they surrender to the passion flaring between them, immortal enemies close in, forcing Chrys to choose between his brother and the only woman who’s ever loved the real him.

Hearts of the Anemoi Series:
North of Need
West of Want
South of Surrender
East of Ecstasy

Visit Laura Kaye's website for more information

Review:
Ever since the death sentence was passed on his brother by the Olympic gods Chrys has been trying to find a way to save Eurus's life. He needs to get Eurus to repent for his crimes and ask for forgiveness but Eurus is just as determined to carry on with his evil plans and the pair have been battling against each other for weeks. When Chrys is badly injured during a fight with Eurus and plummets to earth in his sacred animal form it is a human woman who saves his life and tends to his wounds. Laney is gradually losing her sight thanks to a congenital condition so the last thing she wants to do is leave her house in the middle of a nasty storm but she can't ignore the cries of her terrified horses. She is shocked to find an extra animal in the middle of her stable, especially one that has stepped right out of the pages of a fairytale, but she has to at least try to help him. Chrys has never had anyone look out for him the way Laney did that night and he is drawn to the beautiful, independent woman like no other before her. Unfortunately his attraction just brings unwanted attention to her in the form of Eurus. Can Chrys save both his brother and the woman he has come to care for, and, if he is forced to choose between them who will he pick?

South of Surrender is the third book in Laura Kaye's Hearts of Anemoi series and it's a book I couldn't wait to read. I have really enjoyed both previous instalments, in fact Owen from North of Need is still one of my favourite heroes, so I had high hopes for this book and I couldn't wait to get to know Chrys better. I'm a massive fan of Laura Kaye's writing, she has a way of pulling me into her stories and she writes such realistic characters and heroes I never fail to fall for. Chrys is no exception and I think he may just have topped Owen to become my favourite from this series!

Chrys is the youngest of the four seasonal gods and he rules over summer and the south wind. He has always blamed himself for the way their father treated Eurus and has spent years trying to make things right with his brother. No matter how much Eurus has betrayed him and the others Chrys remains convinced he can be saved and he is determined to do whatever it takes to bring Eurus back into the fold. Some people just don't want to be saved though and Eurus seems equally determined to destroy Chrys and the rest of their family, even going so far as to steal an item of great power to use against them all. I felt really bad for Chrys for the way that his brother had treated him. He is so kind hearted and always sees the good in everyone but he has been betrayed time and time again by those he should be able to trust. He takes the blame into himself and doesn't feel that he is deserving of love and happiness, in fact he is so determined to be the one to face Eurus because he wants the rest of his family to be able to live out their happy endings in peace.

Laney is a fabulous heroine and perfect for Chrys, I can't even imagine how hard it must be to lose your sight but she is handling the experience with dignity. Her character was so real that it felt like she was a friend and I couldn't help but admire her for the way she was so determined to remain independent in the face of everything that is happening to her. I really admire the author for creating such an unusual heroine and for dealing with her handicap in such a realistic way, she had obviously put a lot of thought and research into the problems that Laney would face and ways that she could cope in different situations. I think what I liked most about Laney though was the way that she saw the real Chrys, the side he tried to keep hidden from the world, and she loved him for the person he is on the inside. Their relationship does develop quickly but that isn't something that bothers me in paranormal romance and I believed that they would be drawn together so quickly due to the circumstances. I'm going to have to point out that Chrys is one sexy summer god and I think it would be pretty hard for any woman to resist him!

I'd have to say that South of Surrender was probably the most action packed instalment to the series so far, there were some great fight scenes a few shocking twists and one moment where I actually shed a tear or two. Laura Kaye completely threw me with something that happened right near the end of the book and I'm still hoping that it is going to turn out to be some kind of awful mistake! The stakes have been raised and nobody is safe although I guess I should have expected that after reading West of Want. Fans of the series are going to love this book and you'll be left as eager as I am to get hold of a copy of East of Ecstasy when it is released next year. If you haven't started reading these books yet what the heck are you waiting for - go and buy North of Need IMMEDIATELY but don't forget to buy a tub of ice cream to eat while you read it!! (That book and ice cream go hand in hand trust me!)

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

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