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A review by naomilane
Burning Dawn by Gena Showalter
5.0
I have no words (well, that’s not entirely true, I have words, just not enough to express how I truly feel). Gena did it again, she’s surpassed herself. Burning Dawn was one of Gena’s best books. And I’ve read most of Gena’s books. I’ve loved them all. THIS one, this book, however, had something more.
I was hooked from page one, I’ve read it in less than a day. I read while I ate, I read while I talked on the phone with my lovely Gran (I don’t even remember what that was about), I read while peeing (and I’m not even kidding, I have no shame), anyway I read everywhere and without stopping. That’s how much I loved that book (445 pages, by the way, for the curious).
Thane, my sweet, sweet, Thane. Once again, I am speechless. I fell in love with him right away, he took my heart and I will never get it back. Thane is such a complex, dark and scarred character. If you’ve read the first two books in the Angels of the Dark series, you know him a little, so you understand what I’m saying. In Burning Dawn the real Thane is revealed. His true emotions, how he feels about himself, his weaknesses, all the love he has to give, all the love he already gives to Xerxes and Bjorn, all the love he’ll give to Elin. Thane is a good man (he’s an angel, a Sent One), he’s strong, fierce, loyal, smart but he has a dark and horrible past whose hard to forget (he was tortured, in a way, and imprisoned by demons). He thinks he needs pain, real pain, in order to feel pleasure. Reading about him, at times, broke my heart. Thane is just so broken, full of guilt, full of disgust towards himself. But he is perfect in his own way. He tried so hard to be a better man, for himself, for his friends and especially for Elin. I loved reading about his evolution, how he changed for the best, how he grew in maturity. I loved seeing different sides of him, not always angry and detached Thane but also sweet and caring Thane, funny and teasing Thane, serious and protective Thane… Gena did a great job with him, I think she wrote his story perfectly and I couldn’t ask for more.
You know what? Before writing about Elin (whom I loved), I will tell you about Xerxes and Bjorn, because they are a big part of Thane. They understand Thane like no other, the trio is always together, no matter what. They have the “same” past as Thane, they actually met during Thane’s imprisonment. They were prisoners themselves. They endured terrible things together, they escaped together and since then, they always stayed together. I absolutely loved the love and loyalty between the three of them. How they supported each other, how they always tried to make each other smile. It was beautiful to witness. Gena did a wonderful job with their friendship, it made the book so much better. Thane needed all the love that he could get and Gena made sure of that. Xerxes and Bjorn needed all the love that they could get and Gena also made sure of that. She gave them Thane but also Elin and other friends. While reading a scene with the three of them in it, I could actually feel their love for each other. Brotherly love, maybe even more powerful. Just, perfect. I hope that Gena will write their own book because they sure deserve some happiness as well.
Now, Elin. What a female! Gena knows how to write a funny, strong, independent, sassy female character but she did something more with Elin. Elin is all of that but she’s also very vulnerable, fragile, weak even. Elin is a halfling, half-human, half-phoenix. Well, more human than phoenix anyway. She also has an awful past, the last year for her was not easy. At the beginning of the book, she’s young (well, she stays young during the entirety of the book), inexperienced, scared, sad and, same as Thane, seeing her evolve, becoming a brave, strong, sassy woman was just great. Elin touched me, she is such a good person, trying to help everyone, trying to make friends, trying to stay faithful to a dead man… I cried with her, I felt with her. Elin was funny, not afraid of Thane, not afraid of Thane’s friends (maybe a little, but, you know, details!).
Thane and Elin were perfect for each other, Gena created the perfect pair. I won’t got into details because I don’t want to write spoilers, I really want you to enjoy the book as much as you can. I loved how they met, how they saved each other right away. They tried to fight their attraction, they did, for different reasons, but they did…and failed. It wasn’t insta-love, Gena wrote their relationship beautifully. It was full of need and sexual tension. I could feel it, it was palpable and I actually had to stop reading at times to fan myself. Both characters are complex, both have a hard past, obstacles to surmount, secrets…but don’t worry, the building of the relationship is perfect. Not too fast, not too slow. The sex scenes were scorching-hot and heck yes! Not lies, I had missed that. So much hotness. I loved them individually and even more together. They completed each other, they mended each other, they brought each other happiness and love.
The secondary characters kicked ass, as always. Especially the Multiple Scoregasms. You heard me. Multiple Scoregasms, a dodge-boulder team (yes, it’s dodge-ball but with boulders): Octavia the Vampire, Chanel the Fae, Bellorie the Harpy and Savanna the Siren. They’re also Elin’s roommates and co-barmaids at Thane’s famous bar. And they made Elin a part of the Multiple Scoregasms, which is hilarious. And the game by itself is hilariously crazy. I loved those girls and hope to read about them. I’m intrigued with Adrian, the bodyguard and, of course, we see characters from the Lords of the Underworld series, which make the book even better.
Burning Dawn is full of action, battle scenes, funny moments, the bad guys are present as well, badder than ever. But you’ll also read beautiful, heartbreaking scenes, steamy scenes, you’ll feel ALL the feels, you won’t want to stop but make it last…make it last because once it’s over, you’ll be lonelier than ever.
I cannot express completely how much I loved this book, the characters, everything. I wish I could, but I simply cannot. You’ll have to trust me and believe me when I say that Burning Dawn is THE book of the year. Gena worked hard on this one, she did a fantastic job. Thank you for that. This story will forever stay with me.
I was hooked from page one, I’ve read it in less than a day. I read while I ate, I read while I talked on the phone with my lovely Gran (I don’t even remember what that was about), I read while peeing (and I’m not even kidding, I have no shame), anyway I read everywhere and without stopping. That’s how much I loved that book (445 pages, by the way, for the curious).
Thane, my sweet, sweet, Thane. Once again, I am speechless. I fell in love with him right away, he took my heart and I will never get it back. Thane is such a complex, dark and scarred character. If you’ve read the first two books in the Angels of the Dark series, you know him a little, so you understand what I’m saying. In Burning Dawn the real Thane is revealed. His true emotions, how he feels about himself, his weaknesses, all the love he has to give, all the love he already gives to Xerxes and Bjorn, all the love he’ll give to Elin. Thane is a good man (he’s an angel, a Sent One), he’s strong, fierce, loyal, smart but he has a dark and horrible past whose hard to forget (he was tortured, in a way, and imprisoned by demons). He thinks he needs pain, real pain, in order to feel pleasure. Reading about him, at times, broke my heart. Thane is just so broken, full of guilt, full of disgust towards himself. But he is perfect in his own way. He tried so hard to be a better man, for himself, for his friends and especially for Elin. I loved reading about his evolution, how he changed for the best, how he grew in maturity. I loved seeing different sides of him, not always angry and detached Thane but also sweet and caring Thane, funny and teasing Thane, serious and protective Thane… Gena did a great job with him, I think she wrote his story perfectly and I couldn’t ask for more.
You know what? Before writing about Elin (whom I loved), I will tell you about Xerxes and Bjorn, because they are a big part of Thane. They understand Thane like no other, the trio is always together, no matter what. They have the “same” past as Thane, they actually met during Thane’s imprisonment. They were prisoners themselves. They endured terrible things together, they escaped together and since then, they always stayed together. I absolutely loved the love and loyalty between the three of them. How they supported each other, how they always tried to make each other smile. It was beautiful to witness. Gena did a wonderful job with their friendship, it made the book so much better. Thane needed all the love that he could get and Gena made sure of that. Xerxes and Bjorn needed all the love that they could get and Gena also made sure of that. She gave them Thane but also Elin and other friends. While reading a scene with the three of them in it, I could actually feel their love for each other. Brotherly love, maybe even more powerful. Just, perfect. I hope that Gena will write their own book because they sure deserve some happiness as well.
Now, Elin. What a female! Gena knows how to write a funny, strong, independent, sassy female character but she did something more with Elin. Elin is all of that but she’s also very vulnerable, fragile, weak even. Elin is a halfling, half-human, half-phoenix. Well, more human than phoenix anyway. She also has an awful past, the last year for her was not easy. At the beginning of the book, she’s young (well, she stays young during the entirety of the book), inexperienced, scared, sad and, same as Thane, seeing her evolve, becoming a brave, strong, sassy woman was just great. Elin touched me, she is such a good person, trying to help everyone, trying to make friends, trying to stay faithful to a dead man… I cried with her, I felt with her. Elin was funny, not afraid of Thane, not afraid of Thane’s friends (maybe a little, but, you know, details!).
Thane and Elin were perfect for each other, Gena created the perfect pair. I won’t got into details because I don’t want to write spoilers, I really want you to enjoy the book as much as you can. I loved how they met, how they saved each other right away. They tried to fight their attraction, they did, for different reasons, but they did…and failed. It wasn’t insta-love, Gena wrote their relationship beautifully. It was full of need and sexual tension. I could feel it, it was palpable and I actually had to stop reading at times to fan myself. Both characters are complex, both have a hard past, obstacles to surmount, secrets…but don’t worry, the building of the relationship is perfect. Not too fast, not too slow. The sex scenes were scorching-hot and heck yes! Not lies, I had missed that. So much hotness. I loved them individually and even more together. They completed each other, they mended each other, they brought each other happiness and love.
The secondary characters kicked ass, as always. Especially the Multiple Scoregasms. You heard me. Multiple Scoregasms, a dodge-boulder team (yes, it’s dodge-ball but with boulders): Octavia the Vampire, Chanel the Fae, Bellorie the Harpy and Savanna the Siren. They’re also Elin’s roommates and co-barmaids at Thane’s famous bar. And they made Elin a part of the Multiple Scoregasms, which is hilarious. And the game by itself is hilariously crazy. I loved those girls and hope to read about them. I’m intrigued with Adrian, the bodyguard and, of course, we see characters from the Lords of the Underworld series, which make the book even better.
Burning Dawn is full of action, battle scenes, funny moments, the bad guys are present as well, badder than ever. But you’ll also read beautiful, heartbreaking scenes, steamy scenes, you’ll feel ALL the feels, you won’t want to stop but make it last…make it last because once it’s over, you’ll be lonelier than ever.
I cannot express completely how much I loved this book, the characters, everything. I wish I could, but I simply cannot. You’ll have to trust me and believe me when I say that Burning Dawn is THE book of the year. Gena worked hard on this one, she did a fantastic job. Thank you for that. This story will forever stay with me.