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lillyenrose's review against another edition
4.0
Action & Romance
The Darkest Night was an absolutely wonderful read! I was hooked! There was romance and action and supernatural forces! Everything I love all in one book. I’m amazed that it took me this long to start this series. This is definitely for an older audience as there are explicit moments in it, but they are well done in my opinion. Highly recommend for a mature audience who is looking for supernatural beings, love, violence, laughter, and romance.
The Darkest Night was an absolutely wonderful read! I was hooked! There was romance and action and supernatural forces! Everything I love all in one book. I’m amazed that it took me this long to start this series. This is definitely for an older audience as there are explicit moments in it, but they are well done in my opinion. Highly recommend for a mature audience who is looking for supernatural beings, love, violence, laughter, and romance.
livinliterary's review against another edition
4.0
This was a very good story. I liked Ashlyn and Maddox. There's a ton of info in the story as it's the beginning of the series so you do have to pay attention or you could miss some pertinent info.
beth313's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The plot behind this book was very intriguing and I would have loved to read more about it. But since it is a romance novel the plot was an afterthought. To be a romance novel it was decent but I still wanted more. Very slow start and middle but quick paced in the last few chapters.
ilia_'s review against another edition
3.0
~3.5 stars~
Probably late to the party, as this is the first time I read Gena Showalter. I found the whole idea of borrowing elements from Greek mythology with immortal warriors cursed to carry inside them the demons released from Pandora's box very interesting. The description of the daily punishment of Maddox who is the keeper of the spirit of violence made me feel sorry for him. I have to say though I got strong BDB vibes early on in the book (the BDB mansion, the physical appearance and darkness of the characters, Rhage and his beast) and even an air of IAD series in later chapters (a female character reminding me of Nyx and the valkyries). Not a deal breaker though- I kept reading. The love story btw Maddox and Ashlyn goes from raw attraction to love in a blink which is not uncommon and rather stereotypical in PNR but I feel I am getting a bit tired of this and would have liked to see their relationship building more- at least he wanted to talk to her before completely blowing her mind with sex.
Among the many characters introduced in this first book, I was intrigued by Torin (keeper of disease and starved of touch - so cruel) whose story may not be exactly unique but I look forward to reading it. I switched between kindle and audiobook and I think the narrator did a good job, especially with Maddox's voice. Overall, I did not love it but I liked the introduction to the series and I think it has the potential to be good.
Probably late to the party, as this is the first time I read Gena Showalter. I found the whole idea of borrowing elements from Greek mythology with immortal warriors cursed to carry inside them the demons released from Pandora's box very interesting. The description of the daily punishment of Maddox who is the keeper of the spirit of violence made me feel sorry for him. I have to say though I got strong BDB vibes early on in the book (the BDB mansion, the physical appearance and darkness of the characters, Rhage and his beast) and even an air of IAD series in later chapters (a female character reminding me of Nyx and the valkyries). Not a deal breaker though- I kept reading. The love story btw Maddox and Ashlyn goes from raw attraction to love in a blink which is not uncommon and rather stereotypical in PNR but I feel I am getting a bit tired of this and would have liked to see their relationship building more- at least he wanted to talk to her before completely blowing her mind with sex.
Among the many characters introduced in this first book, I was intrigued by Torin (keeper of disease and starved of touch - so cruel) whose story may not be exactly unique but I look forward to reading it. I switched between kindle and audiobook and I think the narrator did a good job, especially with Maddox's voice. Overall, I did not love it but I liked the introduction to the series and I think it has the potential to be good.
catseye6773's review against another edition
3.0
I know they need to explain the world. But it was kinda slow. Will continue, but not rushing to get the next one. I know the second one will be better because the characters are developed.
kim_brockway_gatehouse's review against another edition
5.0
What A Fantastic Story - I Loved Every Minute!
Ok, so this book/series has been popping up on my recommendations listing, groups and friends' feeds since joining Goodreads. Oh why did I wait so long?!?
I found Ms Showalter's writing style very easy to read; she captivated my imagination with her world building, the complexity of her characters and the balance of violence, humour, passion and romance.
I knew that these demon possessed warriors were men I could get behind when they battled internally with the "evil"; fighting the urges, feeling guilt, regret and shame for their less than angelic actions.
But it wasn't just the alpha warriors that keep me hooked, the female characters are written with plenty of gumption and intelligence.
This book is cliffhanger free (woohoo!) regarding our romantic main couple, however the background story arc is definitely not over and we are left with a myriad of questions and mysteries to solve in the subsequent books as well as other demons to tame. ;-)
Ok, so this book/series has been popping up on my recommendations listing, groups and friends' feeds since joining Goodreads. Oh why did I wait so long?!?
I found Ms Showalter's writing style very easy to read; she captivated my imagination with her world building, the complexity of her characters and the balance of violence, humour, passion and romance.
I knew that these demon possessed warriors were men I could get behind when they battled internally with the "evil"; fighting the urges, feeling guilt, regret and shame for their less than angelic actions.
But it wasn't just the alpha warriors that keep me hooked, the female characters are written with plenty of gumption and intelligence.
This book is cliffhanger free (woohoo!) regarding our romantic main couple, however the background story arc is definitely not over and we are left with a myriad of questions and mysteries to solve in the subsequent books as well as other demons to tame. ;-)
debsalko's review against another edition
dark
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I just simply love Maddox. I love that he was willing to do anything for Ashlyn. Vise Versa she’s annoying because I hate the classic damsel in distress but by the end I didn’t even care lol
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
rainysakura's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I randomly inherited/bought/somehow obtained a copy of the second book in this series back when I was in high school (read: I was curious about the world but otherwise clueless about healthy relationships and good romance material - importantly, I'll add that I worshipped Edward Cullen), and I read and gave it four stars. Decided to give this first book in the series a try after all these years just in case the series is actually as good as the star ratings suggest.
I might just not be the target audience for this book, because I sincerely disliked it. This is not a criticism of the author in any way. The premise of the book is so fascinating that I really wanted to like it. It started out as a 3.5 or even a 4 for that alone, but by the halfway mark, when all of 3 things had happened, the star situation started looking precipitous.
Vapid women written by women is a major ick for me apparently, something I've come to learn in 2024. This book feels very Stockholm-y. The only character who made any realistic sense was the non-main female character basically screaming "WTF is wrong with you? No, I DON'T want to live in your castle dungeon with you, weirdos". While I disagreed with the methods, I started really siding with the villains' central thesis, and that's when I knew this book was a loss for me.
I really do want to reread the second book just out of curiosity, so I may keep it on my TBR to be picked up randomly once I've had some time to calm down from my frustration with this one.
I might just not be the target audience for this book, because I sincerely disliked it. This is not a criticism of the author in any way. The premise of the book is so fascinating that I really wanted to like it. It started out as a 3.5 or even a 4 for that alone, but by the halfway mark, when all of 3 things had happened, the star situation started looking precipitous.
Vapid women written by women is a major ick for me apparently, something I've come to learn in 2024. This book feels very Stockholm-y. The only character who made any realistic sense was the non-main female character basically screaming "WTF is wrong with you? No, I DON'T want to live in your castle dungeon with you, weirdos". While I disagreed with the methods, I started really siding with the villains' central thesis, and that's when I knew this book was a loss for me.
I really do want to reread the second book just out of curiosity, so I may keep it on my TBR to be picked up randomly once I've had some time to calm down from my frustration with this one.
boosmummy's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this first book in the series, it was a quick read for me. The characters were all interesting and it didn't drag over endless boring plot lines like some in this genre do. I'll definitely read the series so I can find out more about Maddox's friends.