Archangel’s Blade
(Guild Hunter #4)
by Nalini Singh
Dimitri… “chocolate and champagne, pleasure and pain, the most decadent sin” an apt description for Raphael’s Second; leader of the Seven, Raphael’s elite guard, lethal, merciless, unapologetically arrogant…the sleek predator. Dimitri “was feared by every other vampire in the city…THE vampire as far as this city, hell, this country was concerned.” Extremely old and powerful, tenaciously loyal to Raphael, Dimitri vows… nothing and no one will ever harm, will ever destroy, will ever defy the Archangel, without dire consequences; “By disobeying me, he disobeyed Raphael. That can’t be permitted.”
Complex, complicated, haunted by echoes of untold sorrow, suffering, wretchedness, and despair; Dimitri survives, buries his pain, his tragedy. He smothers, suffocates his desolation with brutality, savagery, and debauchery. Dimitri, a “vicious sensuality… allowed the cold, dark predator within him rise to the surface, to fill his eyes as he lowered his voice to hold pure, silken menace. I don’t play nice and I never stop when asked”.
Meanwhile…
A mysterious killing, an ominous threat in Raphael’s territory motivates Dimitri to partner with Honor. The Hunter that survived the sadistic depraved vampires who kidnapped her, held her captive in the blackness; survived… the unfathomable torture, the humiliating torment. Rescued by her fellow hunters, Ashwini and Janvier, Honor reenters the world of the “living”; she must heal, face her demons, erase the memory of complete helplessness, her utter vulnerability dominated by an inhuman power… of the vampire. She must collaborate with Dimitri to find the perpetuator of the heinous killings; swallows her terror, trusts her Hunter instinct, interprets the ancient language of the tattooed face of the victim, clues left by the killer.
Dimitri… entices, lures, flirts, banters, and in turn, Honor reciprocates with teases and confrontations. She intrigues him, “his answer was a slow smile that whispered of silk sheets, erotic whispers, and sweat-damp skin…Come, little rabbit”
…Into the rabbit hole, they spiral, descend into the depths of the realm of the deviants, the perverted vamps who sadistically maim, terrorize without consequence or accountability. Dimitri investigates, follows clues that will lead to Her abusers. He will exact justice. He is sole judge and executioner.
And Honor…learns about His demons, nightmares, and guilt…of vulnerability and helplessness…forgotten memories of Isis, he thought long buried; her disciple Kallistos, emerges a specter from his past, his personal Hell, he thought dead, perished, along with his tormentor. The disciple seeks vengeance, Dimitri’s death, retribution for his mistress.
Do I like Dimitri and Honor?
Yeah! Both are so very broken and scarred; yet, they push, embrace, reject, comfort, and accept one another. Dimitri cannot forgive or forget “the remembered agony of cradling his son’s body in his arms, of looking into those trusting eyes…of holding his gaze until the very end, when he ended the life of his brave, beautiful boy…”
Gradually, inexorably, Dimitri opens his heart, allows Honor to see his darkness, see the quintessential predator.
Honor relives His life with Ingrede, His beloved wife and soulmate, brutally abused, savaged, and murdered. Ingrede’s spirit whispers to Honor, allows Honor to glimpse the echoes of memory of their love, their life together, Ingrede and Dimitri; shares her wisdom… accept Dimitri for who he is. Honor savors the fragments of their passionate story, their adoration, their affection. Love for husband, wife, and children… family, who they were before…Isis.
“She was the woman who awakened memories of a life he’d lost an eon ago. Ingrede’s laughter…he felt as if he could almost reach out and touch his wife.”
Archangel’s Blade is a passionate, dark erotic tale of healing, trust, and hope. Dimitri and Honor, a compelling couple worth meeting!
No comments:
Post a Comment