The League of Guardians series by Juliana Stone is one of the most amazing paranormal romance series I've ever encountered. So when I got the chance to read and review the upcoming new release, KING OF THE DAMNED, I jumped at it. I was certainly not disappointed.
***eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest and unscripted review.
Blurb for KING OF THE DAMNED:
For millennia the struggle between light and dark, between the upper and lower realms, has been policed by a secret group of warriors culled from every fabric of existence. They are both otherworld and human, male and female. They are light and dark themselves and known to each other as the League of Guardians. Their pledge, to protect the line between dominions and make sure neither side grows too powerful. If they fall, so shall the earth, the heavens and hell. And there will be no more.
With darkness all around him, The League of Guardians is his only means of redemption…
Azaiel, the fallen, has been given a second chance to atone for the sins of his past. With demons gathering and threatening the league, he must find out if their circle has been breached. What he doesn’t foresee is a woman—a fierce warrior—who will turn his world upside down and awaken his tortured soul.
Rowan James is a powerful witch out to avenge the death of her beloved grandmother, but she needs an ally. Will she be able to trust a man with secrets as dark as the sorrow in his eyes? Loving Rowan means risking salvation and yet Azaiel cannot ignore the hunger burning hot between them—his one last chance at happiness. With danger all around them, will these two desperate souls finally find love in each other? Or be forever damned… * * * * * Rowan James comes from a long line of witches marked by a demon named Mallick. This demon is determined now to take Rowan as his and her power, which is exceptional, to give him the edge that will turn the balance of power in his favor. Rowan has no intention of being taken and after discovering her grandmother has been murdered is determined to avenge the death of the most dear person in her life. The night she returns to her home in Salem, Massachusetts, she encounters a man who she has no reason to trust but who claims to be there to help her avenge her grandmother's death. Will she be strong enough to bring her coven together, get beyond the events of the past that threaten to keep her family separated, and forgive her mother her own tragic past in order to bring them all together to defeat Mallick? What of this stranger and his otherworld friends? Have they truly come to help or are they there merely to make sure she doesn't fall into the hands of Mallick? With her fate set one way or the other, Rowan fights to protect her world, her life, all while attempting not to fall victim to the extraordinary pull she feels toward the stranger who she has learned is called the Fallen.
Azaiel, the Fallen, has lived a long time. He's suffered the depths of Hell and has been treated, for too long, with disdain for the evil he has done. Now having been given the charge of protecting Rowan James and avenging the death of a member of the League of Guardians, will he be able to redeem himself, gain the trust of a powerful witch and that of his fellow guardians, while ignoring the burning passion that is rising between him and Rowan? To have her, will he be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice?
Extraordinary, filled with action, passion, and a dark intensity, KING OF THE DAMNED - book 2 in the League of Guardians series - by Juliana Stone is beyond good, it is incredible. Imagery that pulls you into a story that is amazingly real and terrifying - this is more than a romance, it's an adventure. A cast of characters, some of whom we've already met in both the League of Guardians series and the Jaguar Warriors series, takes this story to a new level. Whereas the darkness is deep and dark, Juliana has infused some wonderful humor that will have you laughing out loud at the images she creates. Fortunately for us, the gorgeous men in this novel, especially Azaiel, end up without their shirts on quite often but when poor Azaiel is left with only the strangest of costume, the image pulled from the reader's imagination is one that is priceless.
KING OF THE DAMNED by Juliana Stone is a riveting, passionate story about forgiveness, redemption, and giving up one's immortality (life) for true love. This is a story that everyone, who has even the slightest attraction to paranormal romance, should read. I was a bit worried that if you hadn't read any of the previous novels, you might feel lost but no! Juliana has written this story so well, so incredibly detailed that it works very well as a stand-alone. However, I highly recommend that you read some of her previous works just because they're all worth it.
I highly recommend the newest League of Guardians novel, KING OF THE DAMNED by Juliana Stone for to miss it would be such a shame as I cannot even begin to describe. Get it, read it and fall in love with the League of Guardians led by KING OF THE DAMNED.
Happy Reading Everyone!
KING OF THE DAMNED, a League of Guardians novel by Juliana Stone, Avon Romance, release date - November 27, 2012, available in print and ebook formats.
I wanted so much to get this League of Guardian novella as an eARC but just didn't have time to get it read and reviewed by its release date so I splurged and bought it for my e-reader. One of these days I'll get my own copy of its companion, WRONG SIDE OF HELL but for now, I'm happy. If you read the first part then you will definitely need to read TO HELL AND BACK by Juliana Stone - it's the rest of Kira Dove and Logan Winter's story ... sort of.
Blurb for TO HELL AND BACK:
Logan and Kira’s epic love story, first seen in Wrong Side of Hell, continues… All Logan Winters wants is to be left alone with the woman he loves. But fate isn’t on his side and the demon Lilith isn’t to be trifled with. She wants to know the secrets he will never give up and he’ll do anything to make sure they stay hidden. On the run, with a secret of her own to keep and protect, Kira Dove must do whatever it takes to survive. But Kira and Logan soon discover that the path to salvation is littered with treachery, and they’ll each have to journey to hell and back to make sure their love survives the oncoming storm… * * * * * * Logan Winters had rescued Kira Dove from the gray realm (Hell) for a second time and in the midst of his second unsanctioned trip below, he'd fallen in love with her. Or perhaps he'd always been in love with her, but now she loved him too. Now on the run from Lilith's demons, the pair are racing against time to get to the north and to safety.
It's Halloween and the small town they've stopped in is celebrating. Logan is uncomfortable with the idea of being there but Kira had missed so much in her life, locked away in a mental institution, that he couldn't deny her this simple pleasure. Trouble, however, had other plans. Morning comes and Kira discovers that Logan is missing. A strange man named Priest has told her that Logan might not be returning and that she must come with him if she wishes to survive. Her instincts keep her unsettled and on guard.
Logan has been dragged back to Hell and is in Lilith's evil hands. She tortures him, attempts to seduce him then tortures him some more but Logan refuses to tell her why he was in the gray realm and who he took out. Will Kira be safe? Will Logan survive Lilith or worse? The angst keeps this story going and us begging for a happily-ever-after for this brave pair.
TO HELL AND BACK by Juliana Stone is the continuation of the story first introduced to us in the WRONG SIDE OF HELL - the first entry in the League of Guardians series. We met Logan Winters, a hellhound who has been sent on a mission to bring out Kira Dove from the gray realm. At the end of the first novella, he and Kira had escaped and were heading north to a safe place where we hoped to finally get the answers to why the demons of Hell wanted Kira and the secret to what makes Logan different than other hellhounds. Juliana has created a cast of characters and two worlds that are so opposite yet similar that you can believe that the unreal is as solidly real as the one we know as reality. With each story in the League of Guardian series, we meet new characters but revisit past ones and are comfortable with their reappearance. I'm hoping that as each story is interwoven to draw you to the next, that this is NOT the end of Kira and Logan.
I am a huge fan of Juliana Stone's novels and will read anything she writes but that is not to say that every one will hit the mark. The writing in TO HELL AND BACK is exceptional. When she takes you to the gray realm, a sense of uneasiness surrounds you and you can almost smell the evil that permeates this place. But - yes, there's that word - because the writing is so creative, imaginative and vivid, we get drawn into her stories so deep that we always come away needing more. I was VERY disappointed with how TO HELL AND BACK ended. Not because it was a poorly written ending, not because I thought Kira and Logan didn't deserve to be together again - no, none of these things. I simply think the story isn't finished. I turned the page and thought - What? Am I missing some pages? The ending lacked resolution. The ending left more unanswered questions. It felt rushed and left me feeling letdown. I can only assume that because this was a novella that Juliana was forced to fit the story into a tight word count and since the scenes in Hell could not possibly be cut because of their importance, the ending suffered by being truncated to accommodate.
Aside from my complaint about the left me hanging ending - TO HELL AND BACK by Juliana Stone rocks it! Here's hoping Kira and Logan will back to really finish their tale.
I highly recommend TO HELL AND BACK, a League of Guardians novella by Juliana Stone if you have already read WRONG SIDE OF HELL and are, of course already hooked by this incredibly imaginative, action-packed, scintillating series that is some of the best paranormal romance work available. If you haven't dipped your reading toe into this world of good and evil yet, then get yourself a copy of both of these novellas and join the rest of us as witnesses to the epic battle to save our world from destruction.
Currently reading KING OF THE DAMNED, a League of Guardians novel by Juliana Stone - release date - November 27, watch for my review coming soon.
Happy Reading Everyone!
TO HELL AND BACK, a League of Guardians novella by Juliana Stone, Avon Impulse, available now in ebook and print formats. Great price for a little indulgence.
When I opened this month's goodie box from Avon, I got so excited I literally danced around. Inside, along with other delights, was a print copy of Juliana Stone's upcoming release, WICKED ROAD TO HELL, Book One of the League of Guardian series. WICKED ROAD TO HELL hits the bookshelves and ereaders on April 24, 2012 but I am very glad to give you a little insight into this incredible world created by the wickedly incredible imagination of Juliana Stone.
Blurb for WICKED ROAD TO HELL:
With the legions of the underworld gathering and chaos close at hand, Sorcerer Declan O’Hara’s deadly skills will be tested. But nothing will sway him from his duty…
Rescued from eternal darkness, vampire Ana DeLacrux owes her life to a mysterious stranger who asks for only one thing—her absolute allegiance. She serves this master without question until Declan, the one man who can make her forget her vow, returns. His magic is stronger, darker…more compelling than ever. His blood awakens a hunger she must resist, or risk deadly consequences.
As Ana and Declan join forces, the streets of New Orleans become a dangerous place for both humans and the otherworld. And the most dangerous place of all is a road Declan’s traveled before…the wicked road to hell.
* * * **
For those of you who have read Juliana's Jaguar Warrior Series, you're already familiar with Declan O'Hara and Ana DeLacrux but those who haven't let me introduce you to them.
Declan O'Hara is a sorcerer who has seen his share of trouble. He runs in the company of Angels (Seraphim), Demons, Vampires, Werewolves, Shifters (Jaguar Warriors) and other assorted otherworld creatures. Having spent too long in the depths of Hell, he's back and partnered with Nico, a Jaguar shifter (we met him in the Jaguar Warrior Series also). Declan and Nico have been given a mission by Askelon (a Seraph who insists everyone just call him Bill) to hunt down a person of interest but they've been told nothing more. Their search leads Declan to New Orleans, a city saturated with more magic than any one place deserves. Declan knows retrieving his prey may not be easy since he has learned there's a protector involved - a vampire. After recruiting the help of Ransome, an Alpha Werewolf, Declan zeroes in on the location of this stranger. The last thing he expects is to discover the vampire guarding his prey is a past associate who he had seen killed by his own father two years earlier. The vampire is the one person who could twist his heart in a million directions and leave him panting for more, Ana DeLacrux.
Ana DeLacrux died when Cormac O'Hara plunged a stake into her heart two years ago but Bill had other plans for her and so rescued her from the icy fingers of death. Now pledged to serve Bill, she's been placed in charge of a young teen named Kaden who wears a mark signifying him as one of the Mark of Seven. Her charge is incorrigible and powerful but a sweet kid who has never known a real family. Ana has come to care about him like the son she believes she'll never have since she's in love with a man she can never claim, Declan O'Hara. She's a vampire, he isn't. She's of a royal line, he's not a vampire. She can only mate with a vampire and Declan is not a vampire - yet!
Once Declan discovers what Kaden is, he decides to add his protection to Ana's and enlists Nico, Ransome and his pack of werewolves to join the cause. It's after they discover that the Demon Lord, Samael, has already taken two of the other Mark of Seven into the underworld that another Seraph, Cale, joins the cause. When Samael fails to make an aggressive move at taking Kaden, Declan with Cale's assistance meets with Samael and the Demon Lord makes Declan an offer he CANNOT afford to refuse.
Declan has no choice but to return to the last place he ever wants to see again - Hell. His old nemesis, Lilith, has stolen the two teens from Samael and is determined to gather the remaining Marks, including Kaden. Samael has agreed to give the teens over to the care of the League of Guardians which Declan has just learned exists. He discovers that Cale, Samael, and Bill are members of this group of natural enemies whose sole purpose is to keep the balance between Heaven and Hell. He's told that if the members of the Mark of Seven turn out to be good, so be it, but if they turn out to be dangerous to the world as they know it, the League will see them destroyed. Their greatest fear until that time is that either the Seraphim or the Demon Lords will obtain control of them at which time the fate of the Human world will certainly be at risk.
So Declan returns to Hell only to discover that Ana has followed. Now he's responsible for trying to get the two teens, himself and Ana back out of Hell in one piece. Samael gives him a special magick to mask his signature as a Human in Hell but Ana is unprotected even with her vampire strengths. The only solution is for her to feed on him and absorb some of that magick only she gets carried away because of her insatiable desire for him. With Declan on the verge of death she has no other choice, so against her better judgement for she knows the consequences of turning a Human, Ana turns the only man she's ever truly loved.
Declan has what he wants - Ana - but fears when she learns of his despicable past in Hell that she will not want him, vampire bond or no vampire bond. Ana is terrified that when Declan's turning is discovered by the Vampire Council that the Queen of the Vampires will have him destroyed. What will these lovers face in Hell? Will they succeed in rescuing the teens and manage to escape their dangerous journey into Hell? Even if they succeed and survive the depths of Hell, what does the future hold for them since they have broken the very rules that destroyed Ana's relationship with her own twin brother? Sorry, I'm not telling. I've probably given you more than I should but you're going to have to discover those answers on your own by reading WICKED ROAD TO HELL.
Even if you're not a fan of paranormal, Juliana Stone's writing has developed into an incredible force of which I feel everyone should experience. She's truly come into her own with this series and I expect great things to come. She writes with such depth and imagination that it's like watching an artist paint a portrait with an extensive pallet of colors and then have the portrait come to life. WICKED ROAD TO HELL is a journey into a world where the action is dark, gritty, and never-ending. The taste of the underworld that we were given a glimpse of in WRONG SIDE OF HELL is incredibly expanded and enlarged in such a way that you nearly smell the sulfur emanating from the pages.
I was worried that as a reader it would be absolutely necessary to have read at least some of the Jaguar Warrior series to grasp the complexity of the storyline in WICKED ROAD TO HELL but was happily surprised to find that it works excellently as a stand-alone novel. If you're a lover of all things paranormal or are new to it and wish to give it a try. If you love a dark, gritty, action-packed story, you're going to love this adventure into Hell. WICKED ROAD TO HELL by Juliana Stone is an incredibly well-written, expansively character driven, steamy paranormal romance that will keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. I highly recommend the wicked, sexually charged, and intense WICKED ROAD TO HELL by Juliana Stone to anyone who loves an action-packed, can't put down once you pick it up, kind of read. I'm eagerly looking forward to the rest of the series which I'm happy to say you get a taste of at the end of the book.
Happy Reading Everyone and please, come back on Wednesday when you'll get to meet the lady herself, Juliana Stone, plus have 5 chances to win in an awesome giveaway!!
WICKED ROAD TO HELL by Juliana Stone, published by Avon, release date - April 24, 2012 in both ebook and print format. Definitely a MUST READ!
The League of Guardians series by Juliana Stone is one of the most amazing paranormal romance series I've ever encountered. So when I got the chance to read and review the upcoming new release, KING OF THE DAMNED, I jumped at it. I was certainly not disappointed.
