Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Shades of Wicked (Night Rebel #1) by Jeaniene Frost

It started in the summer of 2014 (at least for me..) when I found Cat and Bones. It used to be my absolute favorite UF series, yet then came the spin-off "Night Prince" of Vlad and I fell in love even harder. Putting Ian against Vlad isn't a fair game.. So I'll just say I LOVED this book. It was AWESOME. Can't believe how much I missed all these characters.. Jeaniene made us wait a whole year and a half since the last installment of Vlad and Leila's story and though it was a long wait it was totally worth it!

I'll just say that if you haven't read any of the "Night Huntress" books YOU TOTALLY SHOULD, but actually it's not a must.. you'll just get to know many of the characters in advance.. and there are naturally a few spoilers.. up to you. Chronologically speaking this book continues right after the end of "Into the Fire", the 4th and last installment of the "Night Prince" where Ian made a bargain he shouldn't have and now it seems he has very short time to live before his soul goes to the Demon he bargained it for - Dagon yet he didn't see Veritas coming.. NOT AT ALL.



We've met Veritas along the way, she is a Law Guardian so you'd think a stuck up especially for rules and restrictions yet she has a very PERSONAL issue to settle with Dagon, one she have been waiting for, for almost 5,000 years. Yeah, you've read that right.. She have been patient but she is out of it and Ian might be the answer to her prayers. She might be a LOT more powerful that people give her credit for, but she needs help to defeat such a strong demon.. She expects the worst from Ian, and that'st what she gets - in the beginning. As they get to know each other, they both realize there is SO MUCH MORE to each of them than actually anyone knows. NOTHING about these two is straight forward, not even their names. It's the ones they chose to be called, not the name they were given and it's the least of their secrets..

As with all the books in the "Night Huntress World", this as well is told solely from the female POV. So though we've known Ian for a long long time, we don't get to settle inside his head - but hers, and even with that, Jeaniene keeps us guessing for a long time about who Veritas REALLY IS, what's her heritage and what are her reasons for seeking to destroy Dagon. Her powers are IMMENSE yet to unleash them she needs to be in her right mood. It was beautiful seeing how Ian and Veritas sort of complimented one another - they had so many similarities even if on the surface they looked and behaved like total opposites. Veritas enjoys her position, sort of hiding in plain sight as well as getting the information and power she craves yet she isn't what or who everyone thinks she is.. Ian plays the fool but he is FAR more smarter and capable, as well as powerful himself than ANYONE gives him credit for. He is also loyal to a fault what Veritas sees MUCH clearer than even his best friends do (quite sad really), he keeps company anywhere and everywhere he goes but only Veritas sees how truly lonely he is.

This adventure is different than either of them expected. They didn't expect to even like each other and certainly not trust one another, yet they did. The attraction might be almost obvious but what happened once they acted upon it was FAR more than just a physical act it made both of them strip masks and be more than just naked in front of one another. It was little by little as they removed one layer and then the other - starting with barely allies to friends and then lovers and actually a lot more. There's A LOT going on in this one, though there is quite a bit of romance there is also action galore especially near the end as they are getting closer to finally trapping Dagon. We get a bit of the gang - Mencheres, Cat, Bones, Vlad and Charles but the story is still mostly theirs which I really liked.

As this is the beginning of a series (I'm guessing 3-4 novels?) though there is a little bit of closure there is FAR more to be revealed and explored. Though Ian and Veritas grow very close throughout the book things change very near the end. I was PISSED at first, right till I realized like many I didn't give Ian the credit I should have and so I settled on just being exasperated that I have to wait long months till "Wicked Bite" the next installment is released on July 30th, 2019.

OUTSTANDING!

Rating:
E-Book
Edition
384
pages
Read on:
30 October 2018
   
  

ABOUT THIS SERIES

Night Rebel is the second spin-off in the "Night Huntress" World which started with the story of Cat and Bones where we originally met both of out MCs - Ian and Veritas. Jeaniene Frost built a wonderful world full of vampires and it has been a true joy right from the start. I especially adored the first spin-off "Night Prince" of Vlad the Impaler (Just don't call him Dracula - to his face!).

Readers have been asking for Ian's book for a LONG time now so getting a trilogy is more than great.  First novel started with a BLAST! LOVED it! The second I enjoyed though I wanted to punch Veritas too many times to count. When the 3rd was finally out, honestly, I felt a bit over the series. I think my reading preferences has changed too much in the last few years and so I think it's better to say goodbye in a rather positive note. I'll add I'm not actually sure if this will be the last instalment as Jeaniene has more in store for Cat and Bones and the reviews do state the ending of the 3rd was abrupt, so maybe? It would take a lot, currently to make me revisit this world even with my undying love for Vlad.  
 
Books:
1. Shades of Wicked (published 30 October 2018) ★★★★★  
2. Wicked Bite (published 28 January 2020) ★★★★
3. Wicked All Night (published 23 February 2021) 
 

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