Veil of Midnight

So far this one is my favorite of the series. It was dark and often grissly, but so good. Nikolai, the often reckless adrenaline junkie of all the warriors, gets sent on a solo mission to meet with the Gen One vampire Sergei Yakut. He finds the recluse who rules his contingent with a cruel and iron fist. Among them is Renata, a Breedmate. She's a fierce fighter and very adept with various weapons and a powerful ability. I warmed to Renata immediately.

Dangerous circumstances throw Nikolai and Renata together as they race to save the Breedmate child, Mira from a sadistic traitor of the vampire nation. Nikolai is torn between his duty to the Order and to the blooming relationship with Renata.

The incident at the German Darkhaven was emotional and made me cry a little. No doubt it is the catalyst that will hopefully bring Andreas Reichen into the Order's fold. I can't wait to read his story, which is the next book.

I wasn't disappointed with the ending at all because it brings a new and probably exciting new development that might give the Order a fighting chance against Dragos and his diabolical scheme.

This may be a weak review on my part but I really don't want to spoil this story for anyone. I couldn't put this book down so it's easily an absolute favorite. Five stars soothe way. ( )

Veil of Midnight
4.5 stars

Synopsis:
What happens when two warriors clash? Renata cannot be bested by either vampire or mortal, but she meets her match in Nikolai, a combat addicted Breed warrior who will do anything to catch his quarry. Can these two reconcile their differences for a love that my save or consume them?

Review:
An emotional story, a sweet hero and a formidable heroine.

Adrian touches on several exceedingly dark issues in her complex and gripping plots, and this book is the darkest so far with references to pedophilia, human trafficking, breeding programs and experimentation. Nevertheless, this is all mixed in with an intensity of emotion, chemistry and connection between the lead characters.

Niko is not the most intense or charismatic of the Breed warriors but he is definitely the sweetest and the one with the best-developed sense of morality. While some details of his back-story are provided, the focus is on Renata, and Niko’s character development is somewhat neglected.

Renata has overtaken Elise as my favorite Breedmate. Although she may appear cold in the beginning, her stoicism is completely in line with the harshness of her background and it is thrilling to see her innate compassion for others come to the fore as she learns to love and to be loved. On a side note, one of the aspects of Adrian’s series that I most appreciate is the fact that the mates have their own abilities, actively participate in the battle against the villains in the books and do not sit around waiting to be rescued.

The romance between Niko and Renata is another strong point in the book. They seem to have an immediate connection but are wary of taking it forward for their own reasons. However, they make a great couple once the obstacles are removed.

Unlike the other books in the series, there is more than one villain, each with their own diabolical agenda but Adrian is able to successfully merge them together into a unified whole.

The story is captivating with some seriously disturbing moments, and one or two twists and turns that advance the overall series arc, which makes me especially eager to read both Andreas and Hunter’s books. ( )

Renata has to be my favorite heroine in this series so far (I wonder, do I say that about everyone of them?) I liked Niko, but I liked Renata more (no shock that).

It was a little odd that Niko wasn't near Boston for all of this book. The Order is based there, so it was really strange to see one of the Order Warriors anywhere but Boston. ( )

Veil of Midnight features Niko, the Russian member of the Order. Niko's current mission for the Order is to warn (and protect) an ancient first generation vampire who he believes has been targeted for assassination. This takes him to Montreal, where he meets the cold and prickly Renata - who he soon finds himself thinking about all too much, which is bad for both Niko and his mission since she seems to be blood-bonded to the Gen One vampire Niko needs to protect. Renata completely surprises the "untouchable" Niko by actually laying him on his behind....quite a few times, and for being a "normal" human this is feat! Circumstance throws Niko into the company of Renata and there is plenty of opportunity for relationship development between the pair leading Niko to find out that Renata is anything but cold. Renata's past is revealed along the way which helps to make her a more appealing character than her initial cold-hearted bodyguard appearance would lead you to believe. I found the introduction of Hunter to be superb and am looking forward to his story. However, within this novel, even though I saw it coming, I am sad of the events that happen to a certain friend of the Order. Definitely another good read and recommended across the board. ( )

I'm generally not a fan of the pure paranormal romance, but Lara Adrian threatens to change my mind. She packs a lot of action into every book, and there's an overarching plotline that connects all the books in the series. Although the romance is the central theme of each book, there is a lot more going on.

Her world has several interesting twists on the usual vampire myths. I don't advise reading them out of order. Start with book 1, it's worth it. Each book focuses on a different warrior, and I enjoy getting inside the head of characters I've liked from previous books.

There were more than a dozen scanning errors in the Kindle version that I found distracting. Fm instead of I'm, Gome instead of Come, that sort of thing. A single proofing pass after the scan would have gone a long way.

If I could give it a 4.5 I would, but those errors make it so I can't quite give it a perfect score. That said, it's certainly far above average in its genre and a highly recommended read. ( )