I was expecting yet another objectionable Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy mesh when my friend gave me this book, especially after having just strongly disliked Kenyon's Dark Hunter series. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised that this book worked for me. I found myself enjoying it quite a bit and rushed through it in hours. In my opinion, this is a great example of good writing - the author took a very predictable story that is similar to many in its genre, but added her own unique voice making the characters come alive on paper.

The narrative begins with Emma, who is a half breed Vampire and Valkyrie, setting out to Paris to find information about her vampire father. The quirk is that Emma is a complete coward and this is her first act of independence in 70 years of her life. Having been brought up in a Valkyrie coven by her powerful intimidating aunts and being part vampire, Emma's calm and reserved personality was quite refreshing, especially since everyone we meet from those two lines is explosive and fierce. As more becomes known about Emma's personality, we can see that despite her timidity she is in no way weak. Her growth as the book progresses is steady and realistic and makes her a very likeable protagonist.

And then there is Lachlain - who has been tortured in the catacombs of Paris by his nemesis vampire Demestriu. Then one day, as he is about to finally succumb to madness after decades of pain, he scents his mate and goes through extraordinary lengths to free himself and find her. Lachlain is a Lykae, a very ferocious breed, and they search for eternity for their mates to calm their violent natures and complete their souls. Expecting a strong and vivacious Lykae like himself, Lachlain is stunned to find a small vampire with pointy ears to be his eternal mate. This extraordinary twist of fate doesn't just attach a very pissed off Lachlain to a woman whose vampire brethren murdered most of his family, but makes a faint-hearted Emma potential queen of all the Lykae.

The story evolves around their relationship and sets up the rich world of magical creatures of the Lore. The existence of each race is well established with suitably defined traits pertaining to their people. The characters are witty and entertaining, and their personalities come alive, which is the main reason why I enjoyed this book so much. The antagonists are not all out evil creatures and there is a good rationale for their madness. Overall, the tale is light and engaging, which is what I think the author meant to create.
You won't find too many tortured souls (I call them poorly developed characters) and extraordinarily dramatic scenes (I call them page fillers), but a great cast and a fun story.

This book was a guilty pleasure. Sure, it's not the greatest piece of literature ever written, but it was good. Exactly what I was looking for in this genre, sexy, interesting and made me want to read the next in the series.

This is the first book in the series and in my opinion the best so far. Lachlain is the king of the Lykae who has been tortured almost to point of madness by vampires. Emmaline is the much sheltered daughter of a Valkyrie and an unknown vampire trying for a show of independence in Paris. Emma is gentle and easily frightened(in the beginning) and when she finds out Lachlain is her predestined mate she has reason to fear, for he hates all things vampire and with good reason. I can't express how much I LOVED this book. The storyline was intriguing and well written, the lead characters quickly pulled you into the story, you wanted to know what happened to them and cheered each new victory. This goes on my keep shelf!