Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
I love the IAD series and this book was no exception. Centuries of Trehan - Prince of Shadows of Dacia has found his mate in young sorceress Bettina. Young Bettina loves demon Caspion. However, Bettina - powerless since her sorcery was taken from her has agreed to wed whatever suitor wins her in a Tournament. This was so much fun and it was wonderful to watch Bettina grow up and realize what she really wants. Fun to watch logical, ruthless Trehan lose his self control. Bummed I have to wait til January for the next in the IAD series.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Audio listened on:
31/1 2022 - rating still 1 star for now.
12-13/2 2021 - rated 1 star.
------------------------------
Trehan deserves all the stars. The rest of this book doesn't so it gets 1 star.
31/1 2022 - rating still 1 star for now.
12-13/2 2021 - rated 1 star.
------------------------------
Trehan deserves all the stars. The rest of this book doesn't so it gets 1 star.
This book in the IAD series reminded me a lot of the 2nd book - No Rest for the Wicked in a good way! NRFTW has the Talisman's Hie and Shadow's Claim has the blood-sport tournament for Bettina's hand and kingdom. The tournament was bloody enjoyable - and just plain bloody ;). Bettina is a sheltered ward who comes into her own and realizes her power through finding her mate Trehan (who I fucking love almost as much as Rune), a Dacian vampire who forsakes everything for her. The energy in this book was great, it was continuously exciting, Bettina & Trehan's relationship made me melt. The inclusion of Salem (Bettina's bodyguard phantom) was hilarious. Lothaire popping up and telling Trehan to stop being a pussy will go down in IAD history as one of my favorite scenes.
The ONLY reason this book is not 5 stars is because of fucking Caspion, Bettina's best friend who she thinks she's in love with. God, just fuck Caspion. If there was ever a character who personfies "fuck boy" its him. His role in this book dragged on too much for me and I wanted him to suffer at the end more then he does. The fact that the next book is about him makes me cringe.
The ONLY reason this book is not 5 stars is because of fucking Caspion, Bettina's best friend who she thinks she's in love with. God, just fuck Caspion. If there was ever a character who personfies "fuck boy" its him. His role in this book dragged on too much for me and I wanted him to suffer at the end more then he does. The fact that the next book is about him makes me cringe.
This falls into my good, but not great category, I think in large part because I just really didn't like Bettina all that much. I love Trehan and he was epic amounts of awesome. But Bettina just felt so young, and too naive for someone like Trehan whether she's his fated Bride or not. I wanted her to stand a little more on her own as the story went along . Sure she had crazy things in her past to overcome, but after some of the really awesome kick butt women in this series Bettina just doesn't stand up to the rest of them.
Now I did love watching Trehan destroy all comers in the tournament to win her hand. And I do want her best friend to get his own story, because really all he needs is the same thing she needs, to grow up and learn to stand alone as an immortal. So yay for more in this series, but overall not my favorite...might also be because we just plain didn't have enough Nix in this one too. ;)
Now I did love watching Trehan destroy all comers in the tournament to win her hand. And I do want her best friend to get his own story, because really all he needs is the same thing she needs, to grow up and learn to stand alone as an immortal. So yay for more in this series, but overall not my favorite...might also be because we just plain didn't have enough Nix in this one too. ;)
Would've given five stars but am not a fan of quick one chapter endings!
I may have just contracted the Kresley Cole fever….because I really enjoyed Shadow’s Claim! After finishing this in one sitting, I have the itch to go back at read her Immortals After Dark series, which I own but have never gotten into (I’m ready for my tar and feathering). Shadow’s Claim is a spin off series of Immortals After Dark and takes place after Lothaire’s book in that series. Now, I don’t live under a rock and so I’ve heard readers rave about Cole and her IAD series, so I knew who Lothaire was, but not reading that series before did not interfere with my understanding of this book at all.
What really made this book for me was Bettina and Trehan. Regardless of all the lore and complex world building (or in lovers of Cole’s case, continual world building) that was spot on, but the growing relationship between these two was what pulled me in. Bettina, a virgin princess and heir to her throne, is being auctioned off to the winner of a brutal and bloody contest for her hand in marriage. Suffering from acute panic attacks and her power stolen, she needs a protector but the thought of some of these warriors being her husband unnerves her. She only craves the touch of a man who doesn’t return her feelings, her best friend Caspian. Until she mistakes Caspian for the man who steals into her bedroom late one night. Trehan knows instantly she’s his chosen bride because after centuries of not living, his body is suddenly in the throes of a mating lust. A rare Dacian assassin, he lives in shadow and he leaves no one alive who has seen him. Leaving all that behind for a chance with Bettina comes as a easy choice. Convincing Bettina of his determination to have her and Caspian’s unwillingness to love her become his top priority and he joins the competition to win her hand.
I loved the gradual warm up Bettina experienced with Trehan while realizing her love for Caspian wasn’t a romantic feeling. She’s young compared to Trehan and so her confusion of her emotions was easily understood but no less as aggravating. I don’t usually enjoy the virgin heroine as much as I enjoyed Bettina. Cole’s depiction of her warring personality and her set backs in her recovery from the attack made her seem very human. Trehan was patient and his protective nature made him extremely endearing to me. Even a fierce warrior such as himself can be gentle.
I would have liked the competition to be a bit shorter and perhaps the dispatching of Bettina’s enemies to actually be shown. In fact I wish they would have tried to attack her again so we could truly see Trehan’s passion and protectiveness first hand. I wasn’t a fan of how that was handled in the book and thought it really took away from what the reader got to experience. There needed to be a bit more threat to Bettina. It felt unfinished in that respect for me.
All in all I enjoyed this one. Kresley Cole lovers will no doubt agree with me. If you’ve never read a Cole book, like myself, this would be a good starting point and as a first book in a new series, it’s well done. I’m really looking forward to continuing this series and learning more about the elusive Dacians and the powers they posses!
I give Shadow’s Claim by Kresley Cole 4 stars!
What really made this book for me was Bettina and Trehan. Regardless of all the lore and complex world building (or in lovers of Cole’s case, continual world building) that was spot on, but the growing relationship between these two was what pulled me in. Bettina, a virgin princess and heir to her throne, is being auctioned off to the winner of a brutal and bloody contest for her hand in marriage. Suffering from acute panic attacks and her power stolen, she needs a protector but the thought of some of these warriors being her husband unnerves her. She only craves the touch of a man who doesn’t return her feelings, her best friend Caspian. Until she mistakes Caspian for the man who steals into her bedroom late one night. Trehan knows instantly she’s his chosen bride because after centuries of not living, his body is suddenly in the throes of a mating lust. A rare Dacian assassin, he lives in shadow and he leaves no one alive who has seen him. Leaving all that behind for a chance with Bettina comes as a easy choice. Convincing Bettina of his determination to have her and Caspian’s unwillingness to love her become his top priority and he joins the competition to win her hand.
I loved the gradual warm up Bettina experienced with Trehan while realizing her love for Caspian wasn’t a romantic feeling. She’s young compared to Trehan and so her confusion of her emotions was easily understood but no less as aggravating. I don’t usually enjoy the virgin heroine as much as I enjoyed Bettina. Cole’s depiction of her warring personality and her set backs in her recovery from the attack made her seem very human. Trehan was patient and his protective nature made him extremely endearing to me. Even a fierce warrior such as himself can be gentle.
I would have liked the competition to be a bit shorter and perhaps the dispatching of Bettina’s enemies to actually be shown. In fact I wish they would have tried to attack her again so we could truly see Trehan’s passion and protectiveness first hand. I wasn’t a fan of how that was handled in the book and thought it really took away from what the reader got to experience. There needed to be a bit more threat to Bettina. It felt unfinished in that respect for me.
All in all I enjoyed this one. Kresley Cole lovers will no doubt agree with me. If you’ve never read a Cole book, like myself, this would be a good starting point and as a first book in a new series, it’s well done. I’m really looking forward to continuing this series and learning more about the elusive Dacians and the powers they posses!
I give Shadow’s Claim by Kresley Cole 4 stars!
One of those ffs just talk to each other 3rd act conflicts but otherwise I found this engrossing and fun in that full-Kresley over the top way.
5 out of 5 on my personal IAD rating - if I could consume a book into my soul, these would be it - my favorite MC's, the quotes to end all quotes for me, the pinnacle of IAD. I'll listen to or read them again and again and enjoy it every time.
Truly one of my favorites of the series, I have re-read it numerous times and will always happily re-read.
Truly one of my favorites of the series, I have re-read it numerous times and will always happily re-read.
- Trehan and Bettina are one of my favorite couples. She is a bit of a softer FMC (and gets a lot of hate, which is crazy imo) and he's constantly so gentle with her. We see her struggle with PTSD and I swoon over how he treats her, talks to her, calls her strong even when she doesn't believe she is.
- The tournament is very interesting and sets up other books (Wicked Abyss, Munro) and it does feel very...fitting for what an old school realm would do (going back to the "old ways" as they say at one point in the book)
- I love that we see more of Dacia in this book and meet a whole new cast of characters
- Obsessed with the side character of Salem, I hope we get to somehow learn more about him in coming books...very interesting guy..