by Kresley Cole
A series that has it all. Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, Berserkers, Ghosts and Valkyrie and these are just the good guys. I started with 'A Hunger Like No Other' (technically book 2) but it was like jumping in the pool on a hot summers day and the water is beautiful and refreshing.
Cole has created a huge universe for her characters and some unbelievable personalities that have you giddy to get to their book.
Each book has its own separate story within this universe and its fun to see which characters are going to end up finding their 'mate' and what new kinds of characters will be introduced. But all the characters pop up in each book and as each story is told you learn more about their history and their different species.
It's very much like watching a TV Show, but with lots of sex, bad language, trash talk, violence, more sex, some very impressive special effects, time travel, sexual tension so thick you choke on it, comedy, more violence and more sex... Damn when is HBO going to knock on Kresley's door.. come on!!!
You know you would watch it! You're nodding aren't you?
The Warlord Wants Forever - 5 stars
This is where it all starts, the Origin of the Valkyrie..
"When a maiden warrior screams for courage as she dies in battle, Woden and Freya hear her call. The two gods give up lightning to strike her, rescuing her to their hall, and preserving her courage forever in the form of the maiden's immortal Valkyrie daughter."
These Valkyrie are some pretty awesome chicks, they take sustenance from electrical energy of the earth and also project their strong emotions through lightning. They have preternatural strength and speed, are all drop dead gorgeous, and kick some serious ass. They also like their men big, mean, rough and beefy. Where do I sign up?
Myst the Coveted One is a Valkyrie, locked in a dungeon by Ivo the Cruel, and since there is no HBO she is watching a battle for Mt Oblak Castle from her cell window, when she sees Nikolai Wroth, the Warlord, slaughtering his way through his enemies, but always keeping one eye on her at her cell window.
Nikolai is a Vampire, but a Forbearer, meaning he doesn't drink blood directly from the flesh. Wroth has never seen anything like Myst before. Not only that, Myst bloods him, meaning she gives his dead Vampire body life again, makes his heart beat, his body warm, his lungs to breathe and his loin to-a-stir... She is his Bride.
But you see Myst is not interested because she is trying to escape. So after some rather unorthodox interrogating and her little lapse in judgement in her cell with Wroth is cut short, by her rescue party. Which means Myst leaves poor Wroth in a rather uncomfortable situation, if you know what I mean. And because she is his Bride and she leaves him with a tiny taste of her blood he will remain in that 'state' forever until she can give him release.
5 Years later and Nikolai is still hunting for Myst. So what ensues is some awesome cat and mouse chase and finally Nikolai gets his hot hot revenge on Myst.
It's a great start and will most certainly wet your appetite for more of Kresley Cole's unreal stories.
You can get this Novella for free online here The Warlord Wants Forever PDF if this doesn't work, just google it.
A Hunger Like No Other - 4.5 stars
The second book in the 'Immortals After Dark Series' and a fantastic story. I actually read this one first, but it was all go from the start.
Lachlain MacRieve the leader of the Lykae Clain has just chewed/bitten/severed his own leg to escape a prison after catching the scent of his mate, Emmaline.
Emmaline a half Valkyrie, half vampire, is his mate. But she's terrified of Lachlain, he runs her down in a park and tears off her blouse just to feel her skin against his own. Emmaline is sweet and innocent and just so happens to have family ties to the Evil Lord that locked up Lachlain for countless centurys' in never ending torture, so you can imagine the family issues this couple has.
The story centres around Emmaline and Lachlain building a trust of one another. Lachlain needs to claim Emmaline at the next Full Moon to complete their mating. Our heroine knows that he will break her and so she does everything she can to resist his persistent seduction. She is smart and cunning and she tries to escape, only to get caught up enjoying the chase.