Author: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-7783-0382-4
Copy provided by the publisher.
Release: 27th June 2010
Summary:
'In this riveting new installment of New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter’s Lords of the Underworld series, Gideon, keeper of the Demon of Lies, fights to uncover the truth….
Forced to his knees in agony whenever he speaks the truth, Gideon can recognize any lie—until he captures Scarlet, a demon-possessed immortal who claims to be his long-lost wife. He doesn’t remember the beautiful female, much less wedding — or bedding — her. But he wants to . . . almost as much as he wants her.
But Scarlet is keeper of Nightmares, too dangerous to roam free, and a future with her means risking everything. Especially as Gideon’s enemies draw closer . . . and the truth threatens to destroy all he’s come to love . . .'
Review:
Intense, earth-ridden and solid, the sixth instalment within the highly acclaimed Lords of the Underworld series possesses a steady pace, intriguing storyline and unveiled truth.
Mayhem, myth, love, deceit. All bound together in one vial of seduction, promise and fragile hope.
Constant action engages the reader. The subplots entangle, running red against the main, delivering the answers I had hungered for in the previous books to date. The scenes for secondary characters elicited emotion from me and captivated my senses.
In comparison to The Darkest Passion, The Darkest Lie isn’t as hypnotic a tale overall; not possessing the fire passion or laugh inducing qualities of its predecessor, but rather a more sarcastic and wistful tone that transpires for the duration of the main protagonists POV.
Throughout the entirety of TDL, both heroine and hero are in hot pursuit of memories (in one form or another) and the enlightenment of the truth.
The characters each having their own appearances - are knotted in a web of interconnected plot lines. Running, fusing; bleeding together whilst blossoming like rivulets into pockets of the unknown with the taunt of danger.
Six shades in and the world the Lords inhabit has evolved into a slightly grittier place, where the elements of the first remain but the stakes have increased. Immersed in a whole lot more layers of mythology, it’s poised to absorb any reader who is intrigued by the subject.
Remorse, guilt, trust, companionship.
Scarlet encompasses all the strength and sensuality hinted at along with a core vulnerability. A darker frame of mind than most other female protagonists in the series as of yet, I near adored her. Part warring indecision, part feral from emotion, she possessed flaws I could relate to if only her character breached the gap between eliciting no-feeling and sympathy for me for a major percent of the novel.
Rather than being fully invested in both the romantic side of the story and the individuals, I remained disconnected to an extent, feeling as if I was on the sidelines of the developing relationship.
Deception, betrayal, connection.
Before this book, Gideon’s character proved elusive, the spotlight muted. Here he wrests attention and firmly retains it for a time.
His outward appearance – ink and piercings spread – belies his inner embrace of emotional self. His character is constructed in a way unique – and presents an advantage taken by his heroine; deliberately taking what he says at face value, twisting his meaning. On the other hand Scarlet also translates, understands and is akin to him in many ways, rendering her a double edged blade of truth and misinterpretation. The flaws and strengths of them each – embraced and denied – infiltrating the dialogue between them.
Desires, hate, loss – entangled.
Gideon and Scarlet complement one another. All the conflict, danger, suspicion, despair shadowing their characters; determining their strengths and weaknesses, works with their budding relationship/romance.
The array of obstacles and barriers – physical and mental – forge their feelings towards one another as much as their pasts and present experiences do.
Their pasts are equal to sacrifice, but also salvation.
All conversing from Gideon is done in lies, his expression and tone often the opposite of the words falling from his lips. It was with trepidation that I approached this particular aspect of the book, an all-new take on interaction. There was no difficulty understanding the play on words my end; the speech woven in ways combined with thoughts and more flowing from the pages.
The war between the Hunters and Lords although present, takes a backdrop to the romance between the couple. Whilst other characters appearances (hint: William . . . . hint: Sienna . . . .), engage you all the more.
The Darkest Lie is a compelling mixture of hurt and surrender, fraught with subtle passion and a future tarnished by the past.
I am highly anticipating the next instalments within the series, The Darkest Secret and The Darkest Surrender, (release dates March 2011, July 2011) along with the multiple POVs that seem to be steadily making an appearance in each instalment.
Overall:
The plot grabbed me more than the romance – and the interweaving scenes from other characters were attention-riveting worthy.
I enjoyed. I didn’t savour. I didn’t turn the pages with pulse-pounding anticipation as with Ms. Showalter’s May release, The Darkest Passion.
Rating: 4 stars out of 5.
Recommended to: all Lord lovers and Gena followers.
2 comments:
I felt the same. I've read all the LOTU books and have loved all of them. The Darkest Passion was awesome. I look forward to reading about the rest of the lords and see what happens in the end. Do they find the box? I can't wait to find out =) Thanks for your review.
I was just let down by this book. Part of what makes Lords series so good is the hero/heroine interaction (and not to mention hot smex!). This book just didn't have it and Scarlett was annoying. Oh well... The next book will be fab!
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