ARC Review: After Dark by Gena Showalter and Kait Ballenger

“Funny, yes. Cute and romantic, yes. HOT, absolutely. And … totally memorable” ~Under the Covers

Shadow Hunter by Kait Ballenger

I was pleasantly surprised of how good this novella turned out to be. Shadow Hunter is the prequel for Execution Underground but not one time that this book felt like it was a prequel. The author’s execution of a good world building and character build up was awesome. Ms. Ballenger delivered a good blend of action, suspense and an ending that will have you panting for more. This author certainly captured my attention and believe me, I will be keeping an eye out for more of her work.

Damon Brock and Tiffany Solow had several things in common. First is the loss of a loved one. Tiffany’s brother, also Brock’s best friend was killed by a vampire. Unfortunately, Mark’s death is not something neither of them can forget. They also have the same drive to seek out revenge. Brock continues to work for Execution Underground waiting for the opportunity to kill his friend’s murderer. And Tiffany’s goals are the same but has become an undercover vampire hunter. Fate has a funny way of bringing them together. As the infected vampires and deaths are on the rise, they will end up working side by side toward the same goal but ultimately to revenge Mark’s death.

I really like Damon and Tiffany. Damon is a classic hero who is strong physically and mentally, very sexy and respects a woman who is just as strong. And Tiffany is equally strong. I mean this girl can kick ass and has balls bigger than most man I know. Their relationship was cute and heartfelt throughout the book until the story took a turn at the end. I honestly didn’t expect a tearful and jaw dropping end. By the way this book ended, gave me the impression that this series will be of UF genre. But looking at Twilight Hunter’s blurb, looks like Execution Underground is PNR. I have not had much interaction with the author and I have not had any discussions with anyone about this book, so, I’m not really sure, but damn it, I am hoping to get more of Damon and Tiffany. I know that this is not…CANNOT be the end of their story. If the rest of the books from Ms. Ballenger are as good as this prequel, She will most definitely be added to my favorite authors list.

The Darkest Angel by Gena Showalter

The harpies are my favorite females in this series, well with the exception of Anya, of course. The Darkest Angel is the story of how Bianka and Lysander got together. We’ve known from the series books they are a couple, but how did a harpy manage to get with an Angel?

I think these two could’ve gotten their own book, they were certainly amazing together and I would’ve loved to see their relationship more developed. But what we got was full of humor, tensions, battles of will and naughtiness.

Lysander wants to convert Bianka from her evil and impure ways. So he decides he will kidnap her and bring her to his home, in a cloud, keep her there, and teach her how to be good. Not counting on the fact that he wants her too much, and he can’t help it if she affects him in ways he doesn’t even understand. What are these feelings? How can he deal with them? Well, maybe he shouldn’t. And he leaves her alone in his house for long periods at a time.

This just makes Bianka furious. Doesn’t he know that a harpy can’t even eat or drink unless she steals! There’s nothing for her to steal, how is she going to survive? And why is her traitorous body warming at the mere sight of the Angel.

Funny, yes. Cute and romantic, yes. HOT, absolutely. And … totally memorable. Let’s just say if you’ve ever thought about Paris half naked in a mud fight with another hot half naked guy, then you have to read this story!

Favorite Quotes:

“The bus. No question. That, I’d recover from.”

“Her motto: if it’s unethical and illegal and you’ve got the cash, I’m your girl.”

*ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review

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