Gwen’s review of Dark Needs at Night’s Edge (Immortals After Dark, Book 4) by Kresley Cole
Contemporary paranormal romance released by Pocket 29 Apr 08
This series is just getting better and better with each book. I read the ARC of this book and I understand there may have been changes by the time it got to final printing. I can honestly say, I don’t think it needed any changes – it was excellent as is.
The hero and heroine of this book, Conrad and Néomi, were wholly likable, believable, and sympathetic. I liked and believed in their relationship. I liked and believed in the challenges to their being together. I read romance novels to get into the heads of other people (albeit fictional ones) and see how they deal with life and love. I totally got that from this book. We crawl up inside them for a good long look and it’s wonderful.
I think what I liked best is DNaNE is very much a character study of a very flawed hero. Conrad is quite literally mad for much of first part of the book. He’s only a bit less mad by the end, but he’s dealing with life better because of an amazing woman. I love that.
What came in second in my “what I liked” was I’d be sitting there reading and wondering how the hell were the h/h were going to make it. The hurdles to their love and to a life together just seemed insurmountable. And it’s all resolved in a believable manner. Cole does a tremendous job suspending disbelief.
A third thing i liked was the secondary characters are important to the book’s plot, driving key elements of the story. They’re not just visits with old friends from books past. That is a nice change to what I frequently see in series romance. In addition, the house where most of the action takes place is as much a character in the book as the characters themselves.
If you’re a fan of this series you canNOT miss this book. For those of you new to the series, this one stands alone just fine. I highly recommend this book to fans of contemporary romance and paranormal romance. It’s very paranormal, though, so if that’s not your bag, you may not like it. Though it is an excellent character study and you’ll be missing out if you don’t read it.
Grade: A
From the back cover:
Bestselling author Kresley Cole continues her seductive Immortals After Dark series with this tale of a vampire shunned even by his own kind and a beautiful phantom, bound together by a passion they cannot resist.
A RAVEN-HAIRED TEMPTRESS OF THE DARK… Néomi Laress, a famous ballerina from a past century, became a phantom the night she was murdered. Imbued with otherworldly powers but invisible to the living, she haunts her beloved home, scaring away trespassers — until she encounters a ruthless immortal even more terrifying than Néomi herself.
A VAMPIRE WARRIOR CONSUMED BY MADNESS… To prevent him from harming others, Conrad Wroth’s brothers imprison him in an abandoned manor. But there, a female only he can see seems determined to drive him further into madness. The exquisite creature torments him with desire, leaving his body racked with lust and his soul torn as he finds himself coveting her for his own.
HOW FAR WILL HE GO TO CLAIM HER? Yet even if Conrad can win Néomi, evil still surrounds her. Once he returns to the brutality of his past to protect her, will he succumb to the dark needs seething inside him?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
 |
 |
 Read Sandy’s review of Book 3. |
Coming next:
 |
Dark Desires After Dusk (Immortals After Dark, Book 5) , coming 20 May 08! |
I am so looking forward to this book!!!
I read this book and it rocks! I’m now rereading the whole series again. This is one of the very few series that gets better and better.
I feel like I’m the only one who wasn’t totally thrilled by this book. I liked Conrad and Neomi well enough, I suppose, but I have to admit that her vamp characters just don’t do it for me. I thought the premise was interesting, but I also felt like too much time was spent at the house and that there wasn’t enough action. Basically, the pacing felt really slow. I enjoyed her continued world building and the appearances by secondary characters, but . . .I don’t know, it’s not one of my favorites.
This book is already out at the Hastings in Kerrville (near where I live). So those of you waiting, get thee to the bookstore…
Loonigrrl – I would normally agree with you on the “need more action, less talk” if I hadn’t been so fascinated by how the eff these two characters were going to come together. The obstacles just seemed insurmountable and were resolved so interestingly. I’m all for action.
I’m glad I have a copy of this book waiting for me to get home. ^_^ So glad this is the last day of school . . . so sad I still have finals.
Katie(babs) has a terrific review up that fills in what I left out of my review.
This really is a good book.
I don’t know how to do that table thing you do and you forgot to link to the Hunger review Shannon just did ;). I tried to do it and it went go boom.
Awww thanks Gwen!! *blush*
I loved this book too! I think what caught me the most was that none of the plot line is standard “ghost story romance” or standard “vampire romance” and it’s really not a standard “werewolf/demon/valkrie/phantom romance.” (if there even is one of those?). I kind of wished that Neomi could have been not a ghost for most of the story, but I still liked it all the same.
It didn’t feel cheesey, and that’s important to me when I’m supposed to suspend belief.
It helps that the guy on the cover is hot too.
Sounds like this one might end up being my favorite. Just got a book GC, off to get it later today.
I have loved all of Cole’s IAD books so far and I’m thrilled that this one is getting so many awesome reviews. I can’t wait to read it!
Just finished this one last night. I’d rate it my second fav in the series so far (first is still No Rest for the Wicked, cuz the Hie rocked!). Loved both the hero and heroine…also enjoyed the time they spent getting to know one another. Negatives for me would be the multiple endings. Just when you think it’s “over”, it’s not…a few times. I think the last 1/4 could have been tightened up. That said, a very solid book. I very much enjoyed it and look forward to a reread. Oh and I’m still angsting for Rydstrom’s book. gimme!
I’m beginning to think I’m too critical and should lighten up on the grading scale. [But then what would angry authors snark about?] :X
No, I liked this book. Hehe – but I liked Bowen and Lachlain’s stories more. Well, I liked Bowen a lot more. AHLNO is the best of this series though. DNaNE got a teensy bit maudlin for me – though that’s not the exact word I’m looking for… still – I did like it.