Born of Shadows

I think I love The League series most of all of Kenyon's series! And that's saying a lot :) I loved how Caillen grew in this book, and to get some more background on him as well. The book was really well written, with so much excitement and incredible twists. I loved every single word here, and I now feel like reading the whole series once more. ( )

What is with everyone in this series being royal? I know not everyone is, but it does seem like it sometimes. ( )

Ladies' man, mercenary, sometime smuggler, and all around deadly he may be, but Caillen Dagan is most of all a family man. His sisters' survival and safety comes before his own, which is why he just gunned down his sister in a filthy back alley in the Garvon system. But when everything he knew about his past turns out to be a lie, Caillen has to decide on which future he wants - before he ends up dead.

Princess Desideria's sole goal in life is to be recognized as an adult and a full member of her system's matriarchal society. Named as a bodyguard for her mother the queen, when she uncovers an assassination plot no one will believe her.

If the unlikely pair can't escape their pursuers and find someone who believes them, neither one of them will survive.

Entertaining, but not stellar. ( )

At first I was skeptical about the latest edition to the League series, but after reading it I am definitely satisfied. In fact, I enjoyed it more than some of the previous League novels. The characters seemed more realistic and less determinedly stubborn. The plot was also more complex, and while it was certainly still a romance, it had more focus on the oh-crap-we're-screwed plotline than the kiss-me-you-fool romance.Of course, Sherrilyn Kenyon is still following her typical League novel outline. Love/lust-at-first-sight, terrible situations, terrible pasts, a complication in the romance, a scene at the end in a hospital waiting for the (usually male) main character to survive, and an epilogue featuring the heroine telling the hero she's pregnant. But it's amazing how much variety one can get out of that outline, and Kenyon somehow manages to make each novel interesting and irresistable. She never disappoints.

Second time reading:
My impressions are mostly the same as the first time around. I think "Shadows" is more well-written than the previous League novels. The plot is more engaging and interesting, and the romance itself is more believable. It seems that Caillen and Desideria actually got to know each other before falling head over heels, rather than falling head over heels and -then- having a conversation.

Plus, we get more of Hauk in this book, and we finally get to meet Fain! Fain is epically awesome. ( )

Read this a few days ago and some of the details have already floated away from me. There were some parts in the book that seemed choppy.

I think the synopsis should be written differently. By the time Desideria even meets Caillen, which is some 50+ pages into the book, he's not considered a convict anymore because of his father. I don't understand how Caillen got let go from his 'crime' so easily, even though his father is the ruler of that planet. While marooned on an Andarion(?) planet it isn't only his enemies after them it's hers too.

Keeping in mind I haven't read the other three books in a while before tempting this one, I was fine with Darling not being gay. I was surprised when it came out in the other books being that not many romance authors, that I've read anyway, will touch gay romances - besides JR Ward. I was excited to see my favorite author attempting a gay romance but it isn't to be. I hope the gay character in her Dark-Hunter series doesn't suddenly turn straight or bi too.

I think I liked these characters more than the other books especially Ria. When we first see her she's a warrior on her planet but still innocent - might be why her and her sisters are considered children still? But then she beats her aunt and is considered an adult.

At first I thought Caillen was acting childish. Even some of his and Ria's bickering was childish. I think SK did it in order for him to look more bad ass but what she's doing is trying to make every male character more bad ass than the last. She does this in her other series too, especially the Dark Hunters. Anyway back to Caillen. The old girlfriend of his. I don't know why she was brought up. She didn't make an appearance in the story and the background story with her birthday wasn't all that touching. I wish she'd been added to the plot to somehow make his life all the worse. ( )