Forged in Fire by Juliette Cross
She never knew this demon
world existed. Now she just wants to survive it.
Genevieve Drake never
needed a man to come to her rescue. Not until the night of her twentieth
birthday, when some dude nearly chokes her to death in an alley behind a New
Orleans Goth club. And a hot stranger splits the guy in half, rips a monster
from inside, and incinerates it into ash.
The hunky rescuer? Jude
Delacroix—Dominus Daemonum, Master of Demons, now her guardian, whether she
likes it or not. But she’s seriously beginning to like it.
Her would-be murderer
turns out to be only the first of many minions of the demon prince, Danté, who
has all kinds of lascivious and sadistic plans. Which means when the formidably
beautiful Jude offers his protection, Genevieve has no problem accepting it.
For Jude and his fellow
demon hunters tell her she is a Vessel, one who is born to serve the Light, but
can be corrupted into a weapon of darkness. And to survive, she must trust a
man whose unearthly eyes promise heaven…but whose powers unleash hell.
Warning: Contains a dark and brooding demon hunter who
harbors even darker secrets, a snarky heroine who’s being hunted by every demon
in the underworld, and a sadistic demon prince with a fancy for violent sexual
encounters.
4 stars****
The star of this book was definitely Jude... dark, mysterious, powerful, attractive... a really great character. In fact, all of the male characters in this book were very intriguing... in particular the demon Dante. All of the scenes between him and Gen were edgy and had me glued to the pages.
On Gen's twentieth birthday she is awakened and quickly realizes that she is now being hunted by demons to claim her as a vessel. Jude is a demon hunter and her protector... he hopes to teach her to protect herself from the demons as she is thought to be a major player in a prophecy. Dante, a Demon Prince, will stop at nothing to claim her so Jude definitely has his hands full.
I loved all of the descriptive art and the inclusion of Latin in the story... it made it more visual and mysterious. Gen's mom was a painter and before she died her painting shifted to images that left some big question marks as to why she may have died. I hope we get into that more in the next two installments of this trilogy.
My only pet peeve... and it's a small one really... was that I would have preferred a more mature heroine. Her inability to "listen" in the beginning was just slightly nerve wracking... But, Jude did agree with me on that and offered Gen some words of wisdom!
"Your vessel instincts are kicking in to protect you since your brain has apparently taken a leave of absence."
**giggle** Well said Jude... well said... that's where I officially fell in love with that guy!
It didn't take long for Gen's light bulb to go off and start taking her new life seriously... that's what happens when you're being stalked by Demon Princes I guess. And, I'm looking forward to seeing her character continue to evolve.
This really was a great story... engaging, creative and edgy and I do plan on following the rest of the trilogy! I definitely need more of Jude...
ARC provided by Bewitching Book Tours!
On Gen's twentieth birthday she is awakened and quickly realizes that she is now being hunted by demons to claim her as a vessel. Jude is a demon hunter and her protector... he hopes to teach her to protect herself from the demons as she is thought to be a major player in a prophecy. Dante, a Demon Prince, will stop at nothing to claim her so Jude definitely has his hands full.
I loved all of the descriptive art and the inclusion of Latin in the story... it made it more visual and mysterious. Gen's mom was a painter and before she died her painting shifted to images that left some big question marks as to why she may have died. I hope we get into that more in the next two installments of this trilogy.
My only pet peeve... and it's a small one really... was that I would have preferred a more mature heroine. Her inability to "listen" in the beginning was just slightly nerve wracking... But, Jude did agree with me on that and offered Gen some words of wisdom!
"Your vessel instincts are kicking in to protect you since your brain has apparently taken a leave of absence."
**giggle** Well said Jude... well said... that's where I officially fell in love with that guy!
It didn't take long for Gen's light bulb to go off and start taking her new life seriously... that's what happens when you're being stalked by Demon Princes I guess. And, I'm looking forward to seeing her character continue to evolve.
This really was a great story... engaging, creative and edgy and I do plan on following the rest of the trilogy! I definitely need more of Jude...
ARC provided by Bewitching Book Tours!
I’d parked illegally on
the street, knowing full well I’d probably have a ticket on the windshield when
I returned. Campus cops were like sharks in bloody waters, sniffing out
offenders with notorious stealth. You never saw them but sure as hell felt
bitten when they got you. Dreading to see that I’d been attacked by one of
these predators, I rounded the corner, and my heart stopped.
Propped beautifully
against my silver 350ZX was my rescuer, R-and-B from last night. Faded jeans
fit snugly on his hips, and a gray T-shirt accentuated a perfect upper body.
His black hair fell just right across lovely dark eyes. With casually crossed
arms, he watched me approach.
Heart, please stop
pounding that way before he notices.
This was no accident. He’d
found me somehow. Should I be afraid? He didn’t look dangerous. Well, not in a
serial-killer sort of way. Hell, he looked good enough to eat. Totally faking
bravado, I stopped in front of him with one hand on my waist.
“Are you stalking me?”
He didn’t answer, eyeing
me from bottom to top. His gaze paused at my throat, then finally made its way
to my eyes. Still mute. I hated awkward silences.
“Didn’t your mother ever
teach you it’s not polite to stare?”
That seemed to jar him a
bit. He straightened, his expression grim at best.
“I apologize. I was—”
“Checking me out. Yeah, I
got that loud and clear.”
Damn, I was brave. He
cleared his throat, hiding a smile now.
“I was going to say,
examining you.” He gestured to my neck.
“Examining? Why? Are you a
doctor?”
“Of sorts.”
“What sort of sort?”
“I have a doctorate.”
No way. He seemed too
young to have a PhD.
“A doctorate in what?” I
asked skeptically.
“Philosophy.”
“Your expertise?” I asked,
noting the rather sarcastic lilt in my voice. He didn’t bat an eye.
“My thesis was on how
weapons reflect the savagery and sophistication of a culture.”
That accent again.
Definitely European. But what country?
“Well, a PhD in weaponry
may give you some idea how to inflict injuries, but it doesn’t qualify you to
examine and diagnose them.”
“True.”
Ha! One point for me.
“So…” I let the word hang.
“How could you possibly have a PhD in anything at your age?”
“I’m older than I appear.”
A slow, slow devastating
smile. A fluttering in my stomach felt like a frantic flock of blind birds.
Re-lax, Gen. Thank God he spoke, because for the moment, my lips had completely
forgotten how to form words.
“I simply wanted to
determine whether you’d recovered from last night’s attack,” he said, pushing
off my car and coming closer.
Oh no. He was going to
touch me. Genevieve Elizabeth Drake, do NOT faint. He reached out and gently
folded back my hoodie. He lifted my chin and angled it so that he could see the
marks I knew were purpled along the left side. Why was I letting this stranger
get so close? Even if he was picture-book gorgeous. I pushed his hand away and
stepped around him to my car.
“I’m fine,” I mumbled,
pulling the keys from the front pocket of my backpack. “What I want to know is
how you knew where to find me. And why are you following me? It’s a bit creepy,
even if you did save my life last night.”
We’d now switched places.
I leaned back against my car. He stood there, examining me again, thumbs hooked
in the front pockets of those yummy jeans.
“Yesterday was your
twentieth birthday, wasn’t it?”
Okay. Double creepy.
“How did you know?”
My question confirmed
whatever idea he had in his head. I could see it in the nod and drop of his
perfect cleft chin.
Two girls flitted by,
engrossed in a conversation. One nudged the other when they caught sight of
him, ogling shamelessly. They giggled. Couldn’t blame them, but it pissed me
off for some reason. R-and-B gave them no real notice, turning back to me.
“I think we should go
somewhere private to talk.”
Said the creepy man to the
little girl with a lollipop and a white van waiting around the corner.
“Um, I don’t think so.” I
crossed my arms. “I don’t know you. And no matter what you did for me last
night, at this point, I don’t trust you.”
He shifted weight to his
other leg. “As you wish. We’ll talk here.”
“Not that I’m ungrateful,
but why were you following me last night? Into the alley?”
“I wasn’t following you. I
was following the demon.”
“Fair enough. How did you
know it was my birthday?”
“Last night, I wondered
but thought it impossible. I had not thought to meet another like you in all my
time as a…” He paused, glancing around and lowering his voice. “As a Dominus
Daemonum.”
I shook my head. “Okay,
hold up. Met one what before? And what the hell is a dominus
da-whatever-you-said?”
Dark enchanting eyes kept
me still, even with my saucy attitude. A face chiseled in stone regarded me
with care. I would never admit it, but I was afraid to move. Something in those
almost-black depths warned me what he spoke of now would change my life
forever. What’s more, I knew those words. They were Latin. But the translation
in my head didn’t make sense.
“The what is a Vessel,” he
finally said. “And a Dominus Daemonum is a Master of Demons.”
“Do you mean like a…a
demon hunter?”
He nodded. No smile.
“That is what I am,” he
said.
“And what’s a Vessel?”
“That is what you are.”
Juliette calls lush,
moss-laden Louisiana home where the landscape curls into her imagination,
creating mystical settings for her stories. She has a B.A. in creative writing
from Louisiana State University, a M.Ed. in gifted education, and was
privileged to study under the award-winning author Ernest J. Gaines in grad
school. Her love of mythology, legends, and art serve as constant inspiration
for her works. From the moment she read JANE EYRE as a teenager, she fell in
love with the Gothic romance--brooding characters, mysterious settings,
persevering heroines, and dark, sexy heroes. Even then, she not only longed to
read more novels set in Gothic worlds, she wanted to create her own.
Website: https://www.juliettecross.com/
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Juliette-Cross/e/B00MQ18Z1W/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Juliette__Cross
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/crossjuliette/
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Thank you for hosting me today! Much appreciated. :)
ReplyDeleteAnytime!! Good luck on this release :)
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