Last year I stumbled across a book whose cover looked very much like a “smut” book. It’s name was
Dark Lover
. I had just finished the light reading of the
Sookie Stackhouse Series
. I was having book switching adjustment issues at first. I wasn’t going to like it. Then…WOW!! Not a smut book but an amazingly clever world altogether that gave me a new appreciation for paranormal/urban fantasy. Since that day, the WARDen, as her loyal followers call her, has captivated me with the Black Dagger Brotherhood.
I tore through each book one after the other and then…I had to actually wait for her to finish the last one. Talk about agony. Ha! Ha! The latest book was a much anticipated book because it was the story of a character that anyone who follows the BDB series absolutely LOVES…John Mathews.
In the darkest corners of the night in Caldwell, New York, a conflict like no other rages. Long divided as a terrifying battleground for the vampires and their enemies, the city is home to a band of brothers born to defend their race: the warrior vampires of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. John Matthew has come a long way since he was found living among humans, his vampire nature unknown to himself and to those around him. After he was taken in by the Brotherhood, no one could guess what his true history was- or his true identity. Indeed, the fallen Brother Darius has returned, but with a different face and a very different destiny. As a vicious personal vendetta takes John into the heart of the war, he will need to call up on both who he is now and who he once was in order to face off against evil incarnate. Xhex, a symphath assassin, has long steeled herself against the attraction between her and John Matthew. Having already lost one lover to madness, she will not allow the male of worth to fall prey to the darkness of her twisted life. When fate intervenes, however, the two discover that love, like destiny, is inevitable between soul mates.
I have loved the series and the intense world that JR Ward has built but I have to say that some of the books have had flaws. Not great big ones that kept me from reading on but just little things that I thought could either be left out or done differently. Well, Lover Mine was not one of those. It was also the book that made me eat my words. Ward has an amazing ability to see a picture light years away and put bits and pieces into each book. For me, this book tied in some things from long ago and even planted a few seeds for future books. She’s great at the soap opera addictive style which is why after each book I’m begging for more.
Lover Mine has been long anticipated because readers have watched John Mathews basically grow up into his vampness. From a helpless, damaged pretrans to a bad arse Brother to be (he’s not a full member of the Brotherhood just yet technically) we watch him struggle and he’s become like one of our own. In most romance books you know there’s going to be that HEA but Ward always puts some kinks into things; after all, this band of merry men are damaged to nth degree.
Xhex, a warrior in her very much deserved own right, has fought her attraction to John throughout the series. She’s tough as nails and she doesn’t give a dam about anyone. Yeah, right. The attraction has been there the entire time and we all saw. The great thing with Lover Mine is that the heroine isn’t the stereotyped weak woman turned strong woman because of her man. Nope, that would not be Xhex in anyway fashion or form. Xhex is strong as nails but she goes through some rough crap that would break anyone. John does help stable her but not by doing things for her. He’s there for her and lets her be who she is. I love that about this book. Ward didn’t take an already strong (yet damaged) character and make her weak for the sake of love. She did give her weaknesses but they way she handles them and the way she incorporates John’s role is brilliant. They really become a true team on and off the battlefield. Yet you still aren't sure throughout the book if they have their HEA moment.
With all of Ward’s books she never lets the focus leave the other Brother’s completely. We still get a taste of the household and glimpses of the others’ lives. Especially they tension between Quinn and Blay. This was heart breaking and I am still raw over this relationship. Ward handles it beautifully though and I'm respecting her in her vision. One of my greatest loves of this series is that none of them are perfect. They all make mistakes, have serious mental issues, yet no matter what they care for each other. Even when they deny their feelings outwardly.
This book also introduces some new characters like No’One. Other secondary characters (Layla, Saxton, Payne) return from previous books and their stories began to grow. I can see a future with these characters and I love that they won’t just pop up from out of the blue. This makes you feel like you are a part of their story in some ways. We get to watch their lives unfold over time not just in the time frame of the cover of the book.
This has been by far one of the greatest books in a series I’ve read in a while. Especially in the paranormal romance/urban fantasy/kick butt genre. It’s powerful, moving, and has just the right amount of action for the story. I would recommend reading the books in order if you haven’t started them yet. You can read them as stand alones but you get so much more from learning the worlds.
I’m so happy for John Mathews and Xhex to finally get their story and now dear WARDen, I want MORE…Please?
Happy Reading
Reading order:
Jim glanced over at Mr. Matchmaker. Adrian Vogel was the reason he’d ended up here, and the Iron Mask was definitely the guy’s scene: Ad was dressed in black from head to toe and had piercings in places most people didn’t want needles anywhere around.~By JR Ward 
between heredity and all levels of environment. To illustrate, providing a baby with a healthy diet increases brain growth, leading to new connections between nerve cells, which transform gene expression. -pg 74 Developing Through The Lifespan.
