Taste of Darkness (Darkness #2)
by Katie Reus
Blurb:
He spent more than a thousand years
imprisoned in hell…
Drake
is an ancient dragon shifter, one of the most powerful beings in existence, but
a millennium trapped in utter darkness has left him ill-equipped for modern
society. If it wasn’t for Victoria, the sweet female brave enough to befriend
him, he’d be lost. She’s smart and gorgeous and everything he never dared dream
of during his years of agonizing loneliness. He may not have anything to offer
her, but one thing he knows for sure: he’d die to keep her safe.
Only to fall into the heaven of her
touch.
Victoria
is a wolf shifter, healer of the Stavros pack. She’s seen a lot, but she’s
never met anybody quite like Drake, the fiery, fascinating shifter who can
blaze through the skies unseen by mere mortals. He’s lost, dangerous, and the
last male she should fall in love with, but the more time she spends helping
him navigate modern life, the deeper—and hotter—their connection becomes. She’s
thrilled when they finally locate his family, but reuniting with his people
plunges them both into unimaginable danger. It’s a race against the clock
trying to figure out who wants them dead and who they can trust, especially
when the threat is closer than they ever imagined.
Themes: paranormal,
shifters, dragons
Rating: 3.75 stars
Heat Rating: 
Review:
Well that was a different take on the world of
the noble and dangerous dragon shifter… guess even they can have the human
faults of jealousy and self-entitlement. I have read all kinds of stories about
dragon shifters, where they are villains, heroes, killers, and protectors, but
this story is one that takes a unique spin on the myth and I just loved seeing
how human these dragons really were.
While I continually try to categorize paranormals romance into being
either a shifter, vampire, or magick user subgenre, Katie continues to
challenge me, intermingling all the different types of magic and
having worlds colliding in a beautifully well constructed way again and
again. I must say that while I liked book
one in the series a lot, this story really grabbed my attention in a way a lot
of books haven’t been able to do lately.
With a full host of emotional baggage, sexy men, great dialogue and the
emotional connection that can only be found with your mate, Taste of Darkness
is more a taste of greatness in my opinion.
Drake
is finally accepting that he really has escaped from Hell and is determined to
make himself worthy of the woman he knows is his mate, Victoria, the sexy as
hell she-wolf healer that has captured him heart and soul. Victoria thankfully is just as hooked by him,
seeing that they could have a great relationship if only he would trust in
them. But when his past intrudes in
their somewhat shaky courtship, Victoria is determined to give Drake the
options he has been lacking in hell, the chance to reunite with his family,
even if it means she loses him. Drake
has other plans for them, not really caring about this family who left him to
rot in hell, though proving that to Victoria is difficult to say the
least. Is it possible for Drake to
embrace his past and still have a chance for a future with Victoria or will he
have to give up his mate for the vengeance his soul screams for?
I
have been dying for a few months now to find out more about Drake, ever since
he crawled out of the Hell Gate and immediately began protecting the wolf pack
and others in book one. I could tell
immediately I would like his character because honestly how many others—man,
woman, demon, witch, shifter, or other—would be able to survive fifteen hundred
years in hell and come out swinging to protect others instead of lashing out
and becoming evil? Drake is sexy as hell and very intense in his emotions, when
he is with Victoria especially, but being around his mate we get to see the softer
sweeter side of the dragon. When he is
faced with his family he lashes out at first, his pain leading him to reject
their advances, but once he thinks things through better he knows he can’t
ignore them completely, not if he wants to uncover the truth about his
imprisonment. Only when the truth comes
out, the villain is someone that even I didn’t see coming, a particular skill
of Katie’s and it rips through this dragon family, and Drake, like a tornado
through a corn field. Drake’s inner strength and the love of his mate is only
way he can maintain his sanity and defeat all foes, so he and Victoria have a
chance at a long happy mating.
Victoria
is a the kind of she-wolf that always seems to capture my attention and make me
wish I could turn into a wolf myself; her skills as a healer make her a prized
and coddled member of the pack, but in recent months she has started to chafe a
bit at all the smothering, specifically ever since Drake appeared and she
understood he was to play a major role in her future. Falling in love with Drake is easily done,
but keeping her heart from breaking as she tries to help him heal and recover
from his centuries in hell is another story.
Victoria’s strong will and determination to give Drake the greatest
chance at recovery shows the true depth of her feelings for him and reminds
readers that while males are supposedly the stronger of the species, we women
know that the emotional strength we provide is what really keeps the world
functioning.
All
in all this was a really great sequel to the original story in the series. Continuing to introduce us to all new characters,
Reus brings all different types of paranormals together to form strong and
amazing mate bonds between completely unexpected matches. Victoria has a inner
strength and deep beauty is the type of woman that every man wants for himself
and every woman aspires to be. Drake is an uber-sexy and dangerous male that is
in many ways as new to the world and vulnerable as a youth, but in others
is as world weary and educated as the oldest veterans of war. Together they
blend in a beautiful and heartwarming couple, determined to overcome all odds
and find a way to be together. As they battle to find the truth of Drake’s past
the darkness they uncover is more and more heartbreaking to see Drake
discover. I am thrilled and excited to
learn where this series will take us next and cannot wait to find out who finds
a connection in the future. Dragons,
wolves, and witches Oh My!
*eARC provided by publisher (via
netgalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review. No
compensation was provided.
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