Review: The Soft Edge of Midnight - Stella & Audra Price

After a horrible ordeal and lengthy captivity, Illori Swain is resigned to wither her life away in loneliness.  Then she meets Karsten Morris, a male unicorn she has been searching for, the other half of her soul.

A man of worth and a stallion of breeding, Karsten Morris sees Illori as his salvation, the love he's searched for all his life.  The luck and light that rule their existence finally bring them together, but everything worthwhile is tested, and fate isn't against making the good suffer.

After escaping her captivity, free from the bonds of hell that held her, Illori is now hunted by two of Hell's minions.

One, Sammael, a fallen angel with one foot in Heaven, is set on the scent by Lucifer himself.  The other, Nybras, is a devil vying for Sammael's job.  Nybras will stop at nothing to get what he thinks he deserves.

When the devil cheats to gain his prize, Sammael must join forces with Karsten to save the mare Illori to make sure the balance of the verses are not compromised.

Keepers of Twilight Series:
The Soft Edge of Midnight
Astoroth: Her Last Sin (Short Story)
A Bitter Kiss of Chaos (release date TBC)

For more information visit Stella & Audra Price's website

Review:
Illori has spent a thousand years held captive by a demon who wanted to use her abilities, and now she has finally managed to escape she just wants to find a mate and settle down.  But the Glimmer was sealed off from the mortal world years ago and she believes she is the last unicorn remaining so has resigned herself to loneliness.  Karsten is a stallion who has been trapped on earth since the portals were sealed, he has been searching for his kind and a way home ever since.  When he stumbles across Illori he is thrilled at finding a potential mate but there are dark forces searching for her - can he find a way to keep her safe?

Illori has been through a lot and has given up on having any kind of happy ending, unicorns are supposed to be lucky but she is convinced that she is the unluckiest unicorn to have ever existed - something that she has quite a lot of evidence to back up.  I did feel that she came across a little too innocent at first but I was pleased she had a backbone to her and was prepared to stick up for herself so that she didn't end up being captured again.  Karsten was a hot stallion who has a bit of a dark background and has worked as a spy in the past.  I really would have liked to have learnt more about both of their backgrounds as I feel it would have helped me become more invested in them as a couple but I still liked them both and wanted them to find a happy ending.

We spend a lot of time with Sammael, a fallen angel who seems to straddle the lines of good and evil working for both sides.  At first I didn't think I would like him at all but as you get to know him better I became really curious about him and hope that we get to see more of him in the future.  It'll be interesting to see how things change for him now he has become involved with a certain character (I don't want to say more for fear of spoilers).  I'm also looking forward to finding out more about the other fallen angels and seeing if there is a way for them to redeem themselves.

While the sex scenes were definitely steamy (and there were plenty of them!) I would have liked a bit more of the focus to be on Illori and Karsten rather than the side characters.  The plot was good though and I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Source: Received from the author in exchange for an honest review

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Paperback / Kindle

Review: Dragon Bound - Thea Harrison

Half human and half Wyr, Pia Giovanni spent her life keeping a low profile among the Wyrkind and avoiding the continuing conflict between them and their Dark Fae enemies.  But after being black-mailed into stealing a coin from the hoard of a dragon, Pia finds herself targeted by one of the most powerful - and passionate - of the Elder Races.

As the most feared and respected of Wyrkind, Dragos Cuelebre cannot believe someone had the audacity to steal from him, much less succeed.  And when he catches the thief, Dragos spares her life, claiming her as his own to further explore the desire they've ignited in each other.

Pia knows she must repay Dragos for her trespass, but refuses to become his slave - although she cannot deny wanting him, body and soul . . .

Elder Races Series:
Dragon Bound
Storm's Heart
Serpent's Kiss
True Colours (Novella)
Oracle's Moon
Natural Evil (Novella)
Devil's Gate (Novella)
Lord's Fall (November 2012)

Visit Thea Harrison's website for more information

Review:
Pia is half human and half wyr but due to her mother's protectiveness she has always tried to remain hidden from the rest of the wyrkind.  When she is blackmailed into stealing from the most powerful dragon she knows her life will never be the same again.  Dragos is incensed when he discovers something missing from his hoard and fully intends to make the thief pay but when he tracks down Pia he is surprised at the response she brings out in him.  He is intrigued by this woman who may be scared of him but still refuses to back down and he is determined to discover the secrets she is hiding.

I've been wanting to read Dragon Bound ever since I first heard about it, I love dragons but you so rarely find them as the main character in books that I automatically want to buy any books I come across.  After seeing nothing but positive reviews for this book and reading the amazing comments on the cover from some of my favourite authors I was expecting to be blown away by the story.  Although I enjoyed the book I found myself somewhat disappointed, it just didn't quite manage to live up to all the hype that I've seen.  Perhaps I went into things with my expectations too high but it was hard not to with the comments I'd read.  Having said that I still liked the story, I like Thea Harrison's writing style and I'm very curious to see where the series will lead to next.  I have already bought the next book Storm's Heart and am looking forward to giving it a try.

As a heroine Pia was full of contradictions, at times she was strong and brave but there were other times she was so weak that I wanted to shake her.  When she was standing up for herself against Dragos I was happily cheering her on but I found it frustrating that there were occasions when she just went to sleep and let him deal with whatever problems came their way.  I was very intrigued to find out what her secret was though and although I'd made several attempts at guessing what kind of wyr she was I didn't come close to the truth, I love it when an author can surprise me.  Dragos was a character I really liked, he was a strong alpha male and could be too protective and possessive but he did learn to temper his behaviour as the story goes on.  The attraction between the couple was intense and just what I look for in a paranormal romance.

I was impressed with the world that Thea Harrison has created, it was nice to read about something other than vampires and werewolves for a change.  In Dragon Bound we see dragons, fae, goblins, harpies and even thunderbirds - I'm looking forward to getting to learn more about them all as the series progresses.  There are some interesting side characters and I was pleased to see that Tricks will be the heroine in the next installment as she was definitely my favourite.  Although Dragon Bound didn't amaze me it was still a good start to a new series from a debut author and I have high hopes for how things will continue.

Source: Purchased

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