Tempt Me with Darkness

Tempt Me with Darkness
4.5 Stars

Synopsis:
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned . . . this is one adage that Marrok of Cadbury learns the hard way when he is cursed by Morgan Le Fay. Forced to endure an eternity of loneliness, Marrok dreams that Morgan has returned in the body of a modern woman named Olivia Gray and sets out to find her, believing she holds the key to releasing him from his curse. However, Olivia and Marrok soon learn that all is not as it seems, and as they seek answers become embroiled in a life and death struggle against an evil wizard determined to bring about the end of the world.

Review:
A spellbinding plot characterized by cleverly interwoven elements of Arthurian legend, witchcraft and magic. It is wonderfully show more refreshing to read a book about a group of warriors who are not vampires.

The romance between Marrok and Olivia sizzles. They are a great couple with an amazing chemistry and it is very easy to identify with their conflicting emotions. I like the fact that Marrok is not without his faults, and it can even be said that while his curse is harsh, he definitely had a lesson to learn and he learns it well. Olivia is also very engaging and I enjoyed reading about her discovery of magic and her powers. Nevertheless, her inability to believe that Marrok loves her despite all evidence to the contrary, and her constant doubts regard his motives become tiresome after a while.

The book is well written with some really spicy scenes that are not overdone and contribute to the plot and characterization. The action is also fast paced and Black has established an intriguing world with its own internal rules and hierarchies. To a certain extent the social dynamic of Magickind with its various class distinctions reminds me of the Wizarding World in Harry Potter and the evil wizard who manipulates this inequality in order to achieve his own immoral goals is reminiscent of Lord Voldemort. Mathias D’Arc is an especially diabolical villain and his preferred method of torture actually made my skin crawl.

The secondary characters are also well developed, especially the various members of the Brethren (Bram, Lucan, Ice and Shock). I will definitely be continuing with the series to find out more about the underlying tensions between them, and to see how they will ultimately be resolved. show less

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

"Tempt Me with Darkness" is the first book in Shayla Black's 'Doomsday Brethren' series. This is not a new series, as it was originally published in 2008. This publication is a revamped version of the original with more content added. I didn't read the original, therefore I am not in a position to make any comparisons. However, after reading this version, I cannot wait to see where she plans to take the series.

The story introduces Marrock, a dark and sexy immortal who served as a knight in the time of King Arthur. Marrock learned the validity of the statement 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned' show more when the king's half-sister, Morganna Le Fay, placed a curse on him for spurning her. A curse which not only rendered him immortal but prevented him from achieving an orgasm for the past 15 centuries. (Poor guy). 1500 years later, he faces a major change in his when he meets Olivia, the woman who first appeared in his dream.

Olivia came to London to open an art gallery whilst searching for her father. She never expects to meet the broody, and sexy Marrock. However, their initial meeting had a rocky start. Olivia bore an uncanny resemblance to the witch who cursed Marrock. Believing her to be Morganna in disguise, he kidnaps her, intending to force her to lift the curse. He never counted on his immense attraction to her, especially knowing he despised Morganna 1500 years ago. Then he learns she is not Morganna in disguise, but her descendant and also his mate.

Despite, learning she's his fated mate, he doesn't trust her. However, the attempts of a powerful, twisted and diabolical wizard, Matthias, to steal the very book used to curse Marrock placed them in a position of learning to trust each other. Having the help of Bram, a descendant of Merlin, aided in their fight.

Tempt Me with Darkness started out slow. It took a couple of chapters before the pace intensified. However, when it did, it proved difficult to put down. This was my first time reading Shayla Black's work and it was a delightful experience. Tempt Me with Darkness possessed the perfect blend of spicy moments, humour, magic and action, all of which held me captive. The characters, despite the myriad of trust issues and animosity between them, united in the fight against the evil threatening the magic world. In addition to the POVs of the main characters, the story also provides readers with the POVs of some of the secondary characters. They played a vital role in the execution of the plot, and I look forward to reading their stories.

Readers who enjoy spicy paranormal romance featuring fated mates, enemies to lovers, a cursed and tortured hero and magic will get a treat from this new version of Tempt Me with Darkness.This review was originally posted on Totally Addicted to Reading show less

So, at first I was very unsure about this series. One of my biggest passions is Arthurian Legend, I love it, and don't deal well seeing it totally tore up. I started reading this book and I instantly felt better, Ms. Black wrote a romance in the present that has some Arthurian Legend elements, but she doesn't completely disfigure it, thank goodness. The plot was engrossing, and I enjoyed the characters, I really like Bram, he reminds me of Morganen from Jean Johnson's Destiny series, which is awesome because he is one of my favorite characters of all time. The heat between in the main characters is scorching and Ms. Black has already shown she has no problems putting her characters through nail biting terror and torment. Marrok is a bit show more more over bearing than a normal alpha male, but I think that's just part of his nature, and his female doesn't seem to mind so much. I am interested if she is going to write he own version of some of the original legend as a prequel to this series...I think that would be cool. I already have the next book in this series laid out...I hope its as enjoyable as this book. show less

While I have enjoyed her other books, both those written under the name Shelley Bradley and Shayla Black, this one disappoints. You will definitely enjoy this book if you have short-term memory loss or if you just adore shows like CSI, where they must assume the viewers are too stupid to follow along. Just like CSI or any "reality" show, this book will sum up what just happened in the paragraph or chapter before. And the author keeps doing it. Yes, it is an interesting premise that the protagonist is a descendant of Morgan le Fay. Yes, it is interesting that the man she is romantically interested in was cursed by Morgan le Fay. But do you need to be reminded of that every few pages? There exists a book full of spells that will possibly show more undo this curse. I understood that the first time I read it. The twentieth time I read it, it was just annoying. It is as though the author had an interesting story idea, but was required to fill a certain number of pages, so she repeated herself, to the detriment of the story. Read every other page and you will completely understand the story and perhaps, even, enjoy it. show less

A dark and sexy immortal knight from the time of King Arthur!! "Tempt Me with Darkness" is the first novel in Shayla Black's new 'Doomsday Brethren' series and if her next one is as good as this one, I can't wait!

Cursed by Morganna le Fay for spurning her, Marrok has been unable to achieve orgasm for over a thousand years. He can tup all night long, but never quite 'get there'. After 1500 years, he thought all anger, grief and emotion were burned out of him until he meets Morganna's only surviving descendant, Olivia. He doesn't dare trust her, she IS a le Fay after all. But when their attraction flares out of control, and they bond, they literally can't exist without each other. But now they have a horde of bad guys with magic on their show more tail and after the le Fay Doomsday Book. If they don't learn to trust each other, they'll both die...along with most of humanity.

I've enjoyed Shayla Black's contemporaries (even when she writes as Shelley Bradley), so I was interested to see what she would come up with in her foray into the paranormal world. I am not disappointed!! Hot heroes, hot sex, bad guys, good guys, and lots more characters for her to write about...YIPPEE! show less

It was pretty good. I debated at times whether or not to finish it, but I stuck with it and it got better.

O imortal e a bruxa Olivia descendente de Morgana irmã do rei Arthur