Immortals After Dark

Series Title: Immortals After Dark
Author: Kresley Cole
Publication Info: Pocket Books
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating: <3 <3 <3 <3

Werewolves and Vampires and Valkyries, oh my!

Does fated, eternal love warm your soul? Do men who snarl “MINE” make your toes curl? Does the thought of dominating Alpha Males who are hopelessly in love with their mates make you sigh in rapture? If you answered yes, then Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark series is for you. Action-packed adventure, complex world building, and endearing characters all make for a delicious read. Cole weaves a captivating tale that will keep you turning the pages for more.

Mythology: The Lore is the name for the magical immortal races that live alongside, but hidden from, the human population. The major players include Valkyries, Lykae (werewolves), Witches, Demons and Vampires. A person is “set” in his or her immortality typically in mid-twenties, before which the person is mortal. Only beheading or boiling to death in a magical fire can kill an immortal. Lost limbs can be completely regenerated. Lykae, Vampires, and Demons search their entire lives for their fated mate, who is the center of their universe and, in the case of a Vampire’s Bride, returns his manhood.

What I like best: Creative, layered storytelling. Fast-paced drama. Cole shows the powerful transformation of love in each of her characters, building compelling story arcs. Her heroes are tortured but lovable, and her heroines are intrepid and strong (which Jane writes about on Dear Author). And the books are hawt. Smokin’.

What I “bumped” on: The Accession, when all Immortals must fight each other to the death, occurring every 500 years, is essentially the Gathering. Has someone been watching too much Highlander? And Vampires that gain memories from their victims by cutting off the immortal’s head while drinking their blood? Essentially the Quickening. Yeah, Highlander. Silliest movie I’ve ever seen. I also would find living in a Lore community exhausting. Personally, I want to live in peace. Not a single species in the Lore knows the meaning of the word. Don’t we have enough violence in the world?

Book 1: A Hunger Like No Other (March 2006)

Werewolf King Lachlain MacRieve escapes from the Vampire Horde after 200 years of torture, only to find that his fated mate is his worst enemy. Half-Vampire/half-Valkyrie, Emmaline Troy has always felt like an outsider in her Vampire-hating Valkyrie coven. When she goes to Paris in search of information on her deceased parents and is kidnapped by a crazed werewolf, she must learn to overcome her insecurities and find inner strength to seize her destiny. Both struggle as they learn to trust and to love, overcoming their prejudices, their families’ objections and the evil forces that stand in their way.

I really appreciate how Cole distinguishes the Do-Not-Cross line for acceptable hero behavior. Tortured Lachlain may threaten to take Emma by force, but he never would actually hurt her. He is, in fact, horrified when he realizes how much his actions have distressed her and immediately sets about trying to right them. On occasion I find that Alpha Males driven on instinct come off as being less intelligent, which I find off-putting (this is in no way unique to Cole’s writing). Neanderthal, he iz no sexy. However, I love the fierce need Cole’s heroes have to protect and provide for their mates. It’s swoon-worthy. I really liked Emma. She has amazing personal growth through the book, changing from a shy girl who lets people push her around to a brave woman who stands up for herself.

Book 2: No Rest for the Wicked (October 2006)

Sebastian Wroth has cursed his existence ever since his brothers turned him into a vampire against his will 300 years ago. When Valkyrie warrior Kaderin the Cold Hearted, cursed to feel nothing for the last 2000 years, shows up to finish him off, he is relieved, but suddenly the unthinkable happens - his body recognizes her as his Bride and he comes back to life. Kaderin is similarly affected - she can suddenly feel. Sebastian may have finally found a reason to live, but the ruthless vampire-killer isn’t having any of it. Sebastian is forced to follow her in entering the Talisman’s Hie, a deadly Amazing Race for Immortals, with enough action-adventure to make Indiana Jones proud. (Mmmmmm, Indy!)

I loved intelligent Sebastian. He’s my kind of man. If we judge romance novels based on how much we want to date the hero and be best friends with the heroine, this one is batting 50/50. Kaderin is a ruthless competitor, which I, to be honest, find intimidating. Even when she gets her emotions back, she doesn’t lose her killing edge. Where is her compassion? However, compassion seems to be an emotion lacking is most of the Immortal races, especially the Valkyries. So I can’t hold it against her. She is what she is. At the same time, I felt that Sebastian gave everything for Kaderin, and she didn’t meet him in the middle.

I bumped on the idea of destiny. A major lesson that Kaderin struggles with in the book is that one’s fate cannot be escaped, so one should meet it bravely. The Valkyrie queen tells a young Kaderin this as she heads off to centuries of torture at the hands of the Vampires, because it is her fate. Kaderin, upon hearing the prediction of her own doom, realizes the truth of her queen’s words and tells Sebastian “It’s my destiny to go, and I’ll meet it head on,” (p302). So, why doesn’t this acceptance of destiny make Kaderin realize that it was her sisters’ fate to die on that battlefield 2000 years ago so that she can let go of her guilt and find peace with their deaths? Nope, she still sacrifices herself, even though now she has something to live for - true love. Fortunately it works out, but I feel the lesson wasn’t learned. What is Cole trying to say about fate?

Book 3: WIcked Deeds on a Winter’s Night (October 2007)

Lykae warrior Bowen MacRieve has been desperately searching for a way to bring his dead mate back to life. So when he learns that the prize for the Talisman’s Hie is a chance to go back in time, he throws himself into the race with all the deadly ruthlessness of someone with nothing left to lose. Young witch Mariketa the Awaited was prophesied to do great things, but she has yet to gain any control over her powers. She enters the race to prove herself, only to be entombed with murderous incubi and no food or water for weeks by a ruthless competitor. When Bowen returns and claims she must be his reincarnated mate, how can she possibly stand to be connected to her worst enemy? Mari can’t stand to be second in Bowen’s heart, while Bowen struggles with guilt at being unfaithful to his dead mate. They both learn to overcome their prejudices and to seek truths within themselves while meeting each other in the middle.

Bowen was one of my favorite characters in A Hunger Like no Other, but his personality changed dramatically between that book and this one. In the first he was charming, suave, and knew how to talk to the ladies, while Lachlain was gruff and inept at reading Emma. In this book he was more like Lachlain. He lost his charming edge. I still like him; he was just different. Mari was a great heroine - funny, ballsy, kind.

Book 4: Dark Needs at Night’s Edge (April 2008 )

Conrad Wroth is a crazed murderous Vampire. He was turned against his will 300 years ago by his brothers, in order to save his life, and he went, quite literally, mad. When he comes to kill them in revenge they trap him and try to bring him back from the brink of bloodlust by chaining him in an old mansion. In his madness he hallucinates, but one of the hallucinations helps to bring clarity to his raving mind and he eventually realizes his vision is real. Ballet dancer Neomi Laress was murdered in her house 80 years ago. No one has been able to see her since she became a ghost, until a mad vampire arrives. She helps him heal and eventually makes a devil’s deal to get her body back.

This book lacks the action-adventure of the first three, simply because both hero and heroine are trapped in a house for most of the book. I turned the pages just as fast. Conrad is a fascinatingly complex character. Cole uses present tense during his scenes of madness to great effect, and as his mind slowly clears she changes to past tense. Imagine a hero and a heroine who can’t touch each other. Talk about a barrier to overcome. Cole capitalizes on dialog and imagination to create delicious sexual tension. Great writing!

Book 5: Dark Desires After Dusk (Coming May 2008!!!)

I can’t wait to read the next one!

Explore posts in the same categories: Book Recommendations, Booklust, Four Heart Reviews, Paranormal Romance

Tags: "romance novel", "vampire romance", book reviews, Immortals After Dark, Kresley Cole, Paranormal Romance, Valkyries, vampires, werewolves

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