Book #9 of the Lords of the Underworld
Publisher: HQN Books (February 2012)
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format: Paperback (504 pages)
Source: Personal Bookshelf (Bought)
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 stars)
At long last, New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter unveils the story of Paris, the darkest and most tormented Lord of the Underworld .
Possessed by the demon of Promiscuity, immortal warrior Paris is irresistibly seductive—but his potent allure comes at a terrible price. Every night he must bed someone new, or weaken and die. And the woman he craves above all others is the one woman he’d thought was forever beyond his reach until now.
Newly possessed by the demon of Wrath, Sienna Blackstone is racked by a ruthless need to punish those around her. Yet in Paris’s arms, the vulnerable beauty finds soul-searing passion and incredible peace. Until a blood feud between ancient enemies heats up.
Will the battle against gods, angels and creatures of the night bind them eternally—or tear them apart? ~ Goodreads
At a Glance
I have been waiting for Paris’s story for quite some time, and though it wasn’t what I was expecting, I am still satisfied by the book overall. Paris and Sienna are a cute couple who deserve their happily ever after. Could the book have been a little better? Sure. But I turned the last page with a smile on my face.
The Good
Paris and Sienna…
Finally, Paris is going after Sienna. She has been locked in some sort of prison by the asshat Cronus for what seems like forever. But when Paris finally reaches the only woman his demon has ever wanted to sex-up twice, things just get awkward. They are enemies, they are lost, and they both just want to be loved. But Cronus has other plans for Sienna. Now Sienna is torn between staying by the side of the man she loves or following through with Cronus’s plans and taking down the people who continue to be a threat to the Lords.
I enjoyed watching Paris and Sienna battle their emotions and their attraction. I truly didn’t know how Showalter was going to figure this one out. How were they going to be together when everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, wanted to tear them apart? The twists and turns were simply amazing, actually making me gasp a few times. And the ending was EPIC. This book is a game changer. Nothing will ever be the same. We finally get some answers and some resolutions we have been waiting for since book one.
Willam the Sexy…
Though I love Paris and Sienna, they simply weren’t the stars of this book. The numerous subplots and secondary characters are what kept me reading. First, we have William. Oh God, William. *shivers* That man is so vain and selfish, but also sexy and brave, sexy and hilarious, sexy and adorable. Did I mention how sexy he is? He added that extra oomph that this book needed to be ridiculously entertaining.
War of the Roses…
Cronus and Rhea’s scenes were brilliant. We have never gotten such a close look at these all-powerful adversaries. They are both evil, but getting inside Cronus’s head really helped me understand their sides of things. The lengths they both go to to ruin each other is awe-inspiring. And they finally get what they deserve. That’s all I am saying.
A Man Should Never Know What His Own Liver Tastes Like…
In The Darkest Seduction we also get to learn more about Zacharel, a fallen angel. He’s story is in Showalter’s Angel of the Dark series that I now must read because Zacharel is too damn fascinating for his own good. I want to know his whole story: why does it always snow around him, why does he not understand the concept of love, why does he know what his own liver tastes like? Oh yeah, you heard right.
Galen and Legion…
But the best part of this book was Galen and Legion. Now that’s going to be an awesome story if their own book ever comes out. Galen, the bad guy who might just have a heart buried under all that hate, and Legion, the once haughty, feisty demon/woman who is now damaged and meek. She has known so much pain and misery in her life that I don’t see how she’ll pull herself out of the abyss she is now in. Galen does not seem like the man to save Legion’s soul, but I would love to see him try.
Ch-Ch-Changes…
We meet a slew of new people, so I can’t go over all of them. But suffice it to say, not one of them was boring. We also get updates on the other Lords and sneak peeks at how their lives are doing. This book is the most important one by far when it comes to the direction of the rest of the series. Everything has changed, the future is uncertain, but the new path looks promising.
The Bad
I think some of the other couples in the series have had way better chemistry than Paris and Sienna had. Their relationship seemed forced in the beginning, though, by the end, I did feel better about their love for each other. Waiting for this couple’s story built up a huge expectation that I don’t think Showalter could quite meet.
Paris turned out to be a cry baby for most of the book. His lack of confidence and self-pity left me wanting more of the old Paris.
Sienna was way too self-deprecating. Definitely not as strong as the other females in the series. I don’t know how she is going to handle her new role.
The story was slow in the beginning and dragged a bit in the middle. Showalter could have easily cut 100 pages and had a better book.
The Snuggly
Though I felt Paris and Sienna’s relationship seemed forced and lacked the spark I was hoping for, they did have their cute moments. They even got a bit sappy at times (is that good or bad, you decide). I actually felt bad for Paris’s demon, Promiscuity. He didn’t have a natural connection with Sienna and was actually forced/blackmailed into being with her. I prefer the books in which the demons also fall in love with the love interest. Now, if you are looking for hot sex, well, you get that in abundance. It’s not as scandalous as I was expecting–since we are talking about Promiscuity–but it was still a hot book overall.
Overall
I wish I could have talked more about Paris and Sienna, but they really weren’t the best part of The Darkest Seduction. I’m happy they finally got together, but I’m more interested to see where the other stories are going to go. There are so many possibilities now with the new characters and new potential love interests. A must read for those who follow the series.
Dangerous as a lightening strike, as lethal as a pair of crisscrossing short swords, William whispered, “You’re about to find out how your liver tastes, my friend.”
“I have tasted it already,” Zacharel said, his voice its usual monotone. The snowflakes began to fall in earnest, tiny at first, but growing in diameter. An arctic wind blustered around him. “It was a bit salty.”
How the hell was a guy supposed to respond to that?
Apparently William didn’t know, either, because he gaped at the angel. Then, “Maybe if you added a little pepper?”
O-kay. It was official. William had an answer for everything.
Lords of the Underworld Series:
Book #1: The Darkest Night
Book #2: The Darkest Kiss
Book #3: The Darkest Pleasure
Book #4: The Darkest Whisper
Book #5: The Darkest Passion
Book #6: The Darkest Lie
Book #7: The Darkest Secret
Book #8: The Darkest Surrender
Book #9: The Darkest Seduction
emaginette
Thanks for the heads-up. 🙂
Jennifer L. Bielman
🙂