This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This was a book I went into without doing my homework first. I knew it was a paranormal romance which are always appealing to me, but that was about it. It was even a new-to-me author. I love the feeling of anticipating I get when I choose to read a book this way. The book jumped right into the story with not a lot of introduction which should have been a red flag to me, but I thought hey, its just one of those ones that will come back later to get the reader caught up. After it never really did that and there were many references back to past events, I decided to check out a sneaking suspicion I had that I was not reading the first book involving these characters- and I wasn’t. Note to others, it’s not labeled as a sequel, but Sweet As Sin seems to be its predecessor. Once I worked that out, I just went with it and enjoyed it for the most part.
The story opens on a magical island setting for New Years in the 1940s when Captain Drake Devilin, a genetically altered human who becomes a werewolf and his wife Sienna, a powerful witch, receive a pair of government officials. The officials are more than what they seem, but they bring news that Drake and his men have been ordered to take an assignment in Germany to fight the Nazis. Drake doesn’t want to take the job, but he is threatened with the promise that his loved ones will pay the price if he says no. Drake leaves a dissatisfied Sienna behind, but has a premonition about this mission so also leaves a request with their friend, Percy the vampire, to look after his wife.
After Drake is gone, Sienna receives an unexpected visit from her best friend, Maddie, that makes Percy suspicious and sure enough he has a right to be because Maddie tries to kill him under the influence of a powerful spell. Through the incident, Sienna learns that Drake is in danger and being held by a powerful sorcerer who makes her a deal. She plays his games. If she wins, she gets Drake back; if she loses, she agrees to be with the wizard. Sienna has no choice and so she places herself in the hands of the sorcerer. Meanwhile, a hostile Percy teams up with the sorrowful Maddie to rescue Drake and his men before it too late.
The plot was interesting enough, but I enjoyed most the creative take on the paranormal world set in the near past of the 40s. I enjoyed that the main characters were a variety of paranormals and races too. The characters were intriguing and I enjoyed that they were written with both a light and dark side to them though their intentions placed them as good or bad. The overall story has a darker, grittier feel than the average Paranormal read and it’s a very sensual read too. I will caution those who are sensitive to ethnic slurs that there are some horrid comments made by the villains in this one regarding the heroine.
I did have trouble with a few things. For one, the story felt choppy to me as it switched from scene to scene or even to new perspectives within the same scene. This left me with a disconnected feeling until I could settle back in again. Then there were the word usage, spelling, and other editing issues. Normally, I’m not too particular, but I mention it this time because a few times forced me to stop and work out what was being said. I found the ending a bit abrupt and wanted more in the way of reunion since the two main characters spent such a long time parted, but that was just a personal wish.
But overall, I did enjoy the story and was really rooting for both plot lines to have a happy result. As to recommendations, I would say this is for those who enjoy a darker toned, not in the ordinary way Paranormal Romance featuring multi-racial characters.
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