ARC Review: After Midnight (Skye Druids Book #7)

After Midnight (Skye Druids Book #7)

Donna Grant

Blurb:

She was always my weakness. Now she’s my only hope.

She was my salvation once—wild magic in her blood, fire in her kiss, and a body I still dream about. I touched heaven with her.

Then dragged us both to hell.

Now she looks at me like I’m the enemy. But I see the way she trembles when I get too close. Feel her power pulse when I say her name.

She hasn’t forgotten.

And I’ll make damn sure she remembers.

An ancient evil is rising beneath Skye—older than our magic, and twice as ruthless.

Only she and I can stop it. We’re bound by fate, fueled by everything we never stopped wanting.

She doesn’t trust me. Doesn’t want to want me.

Too bad. Because I’ll fight for her. Claim her.

Ruin her all over again—if that’s what it takes to keep her safe.

This isn’t just about saving the world. It’s about us.

What I destroyed.

What I’ll never let go again.

Themes:  Paranormal, Magick

Rating: 4 stars

Heat Rating: 

Review:

Ok we are back on Skye and finally getting the story of Sabertooth and how his history led him to the Knights and to hiding his identity from them. For those that have been following along from the beginning this has been a major plot point that has left us wondering if he was  somehow responsible for some of the trouble the Knights had faced, or if the enemies that were chasing him might have been after the Knights too. Now we will learn how his past once intersected with another Knight and just how dangerous those chasing him are. The Skye druids series continues to get increasingly complex, with enemies adding up, intersecting and joining forces left and right so I have to say I am even getting a little confused from one book to the next keeping all the dangers straight. It also becomes increasingly difficult to appreciate the relationships that are developed (or reestablished) in these stories has the protagonists are always too busy either fighting battles, strategizing battles, or trying to figure out just what the hell is going on around them. With evil stacking up all around the island, their enemies becoming way too powerful, and their challenges to find tools to win the war growing in difficulty, who has time to really fall in love?

That said it makes is difficult to get detailed explaining what I liked in the story without giving away too many spoilers, but I will give it my best shot. Kurt “Saber” Barclay has been on the run from an enemy that is determined to bring him to heel—or kill him—but when he learns the danger is headed straight for the Knights on Skye he knows he can no longer stay in the shadows and has to give up his identity to save them, and especially the woman that he once gave his heart and soul too.  Sabryn Beaumont is pissed when she learns the man she has trusted all these years as Saber is really the bastard that broke her heart and left her in the dust years ago, but when she learns the truth of their time together her fury and heartbreak only multiplies. Now Kurt and Sabryn along with the rest of the Skye druids and Knights have to deal with the many dangers trying to kill them all, while at the same time coming to terms with their pasts, because if they don’t the entire island is doomed.

While I definitely enjoyed reading this story, finally getting to understand Sabryn and Kurt’s past, and seeing them find their way back to an HEA, I have to say there was so much going on around them, with foe after foe popping up, that I didn’t get nearly enough “them” time for my liking.  Sabryn has lived through a lot of pain and trauma in the time since Kurt broke her heart, but the more she learns about their past together the more she realizes she never knew. She is definitely a strong and stubborn woman, but when she finally is forced to confront the full truth and see everything from all angles she comes to understand that sometimes forgiveness and love are the greatest weapons against evil we can wield. Kurt has a lot in his past to be ashamed of and atone for, but he had never stopped loving Sabryn and protecting her has always been his goal, even if he has to do it in secret as Saber. Now that he is forced out of hiding he knows that she might push him out of her life and he’ll lose her forever, but he has to take the chance if it means keeping her (and the rest of Skye) safe from the evil chasing him down. His determination and passion fuel his mission and make him a perfect match for Sabryn once they both stop living in the past and accept that the only way forward is by living in the present and accepting their love and happiness together. Its obvious their chemistry has never faded and that their love was always predestined, so seeing them finally accept that and the way it helped them defeat their enemies was impressive. I am looking forward to more in the series, but I continue to hope that we have more relationship building and a little less craziness because I’m going to have to start taking notes on all these enemies otherwise! Donna Grant’s imagination truly terrifies me at times because I can promise you that very few authors have her ability to suck you into stories this way and make you feel right there beside her characters battling enemies terrifying and awe-inspiring all at once.

*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review. No compensation was provided.