I usually like Kenyon's books but somehow this one didn't work for me. Maybe because I haven't read the first Dream-Hunter novel.

Ever think Scrooge had it right before the ghosts ruined his life and left him vulnerable?

At one time Aidan O’Conner was a world renowned celebrity who gave of himself and his money without wanting anything in return. Until those around him took without asking. Bitter betrayal came at him from all directions. Even those closest to him. Now he’s a man who wants nothing of the world or anyone who’s a part of it.

Until the night he finds a stranger on his doorstep that he’s seen before... in his dreams.

Born on Olympus as a goddess, Leta knows nothing of the human world. But a ruthless enemy has driven her from the world of dreams, into the home of the only man she knows. Her immortal powers are derived from human emotions and Aidan’s anger and hostility are just the fuel she needs to defend herself.

One cold winter’s night that will change both their lives

Trapped together by a storm, the two of them must do the one thing they swore they never would. Trust.

This is the second Dream-Hunter novel that I've read and although I am a huge fan of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s - I was sorely disappointed by this one. It’s lacking in a lot of things. Her characters weren’t developed enough for you to actually grow fond of them. Aidan was just to whiny and needy for me to like him, and Leta just never really amounted to much when it counted either.

Too much happened in too short of a time period. It didn't feel very believable and it almost felt more like a chore to read rather than a delight for the mind. If nothing else, this book was used just to fill us in on some of the background information on Zeus’ curse on the Oneroi.

When you see this book, it seems short for a paperback. When you open it, it seems REALLY short for a paperback - they have used double spacing, wide margins, and a large font. Now, either Kenyon's publisher is formatting books for her older, more myopic fans, or this was a short-story that was made into a novel. Add a little padding and a huge font and, presto-change-o, you have a very short paperback that you can still sell for the full paperback price. Grrrrrrr!

On the bright side though, at the end of the book there was a short story called Holiday Gatherings - It brought back some of her other characters and was really a treat to read.

If you haven't read any of Sherrilyn Kenyon's books, I would suggest to stay away from this book. Start off by reading the "Dark-Hunter" series and then make your way to this new Dream-Hunter spin-off. ( )

http://allbookedup-elena.blogspot.com... ( )

Synopsis: The novella Upon the Midnight Clear is part 20 in Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter saga of romances. Our hero is a human for a change this time. Aidan O'Conner is an extremely jaded world-famous movie star who has been betrayed by everyone he ever loved, even his family. Fed up with being stabbed in the back by his friends and family, he retires to the snowy backwoods of Tennessee to live out the rest of his days in isolation where no one can hurt him. His evil brother Donnie, however, can't let it go. He hates his famous little brother so much that he summons an ancient god (Dolor) to kill Aidan. Leta is a Dream-Hunter who has spent most of her life fighting Dolor. She seeks out his next victim, Aidan, to try to save him from the evil god. She has her work cut out for her, though, because Aidan isn't interested in seeing, talking to, or being saved by anyone - much less a strange woman who shows up at his door in the middle of a snowstorm claiming to be a dream goddess out to protect him from the mythological god of pain.

I liked the hero and heroine in this book all right, but felt that their romance developed much too abruptly. It is not quite a full-length novel, so there is a limitation on time, but I still felt that the two characters decided they loved one another and were willing to sacrifice everything for one another WAY too quickly after meeting for the first time. Aidan is a pretty vulnerable guy who has erected a lot of barriers to protect himself from being hurt again. Leta works pretty hard to show him that he can trust her, but she's still somewhat underdeveloped as a character. The story was interesting though and you learn a bit more about the different players in the Dream-Hunter world.

*Note: This book contains a short story (more of a series of short vignettes) at the end entitled "Holiday Gatherings" where you get to see little snippets of all the different characters from the previous books in the series and how they were celebrating the holidays. Interestingly, this was my favorite part of this entire book. ( )