Seduce the Darkness

I've been working on the Alien Huntress series for awhile now, and I love it for being such light reading. After reading textbooks and literary books, this was just the thing for me to sit down and relax with.

We've moved on to Devyn's story in this one, and I love it so much! It's always fun to see a playboy fall in love and became a one-woman guy. I think Showalter does a good job in keeping it realistic. He's very confused about his feelings at first and refuses to accept it, but once he does, he doesn't completely change. He's still a flirt and still obsesses over one thing. (I'm sure you know what one thing playboy obsesses over.)

And Bride is awesome! Not only for being a super-powerful vampire, but for being so self-assured and show more confident. I love her! I think she's going to be a great addition to the team. As always, this series builds up on itself very nicely. There's still the threat of the evil parasite-ridden queen who's planning on infecting Earth, and we get to know a little more about Macy, who was featured in Deep Kiss of Winter that also had a Kresley Cole story.

I do think that some things that had the potential to be really cool were just thrown away. I don't think the solution to Bride's eating problem was ever resolved as nicely as it should have been. It was hinted that she'd seen/met Devyn before, but then nothing further was mentioned.

Besides that, it was a good book. It kept me entertained, and it was a fast read. For those who need a break from more serious books or who love light paranormal romance, pick this series up! show less

I'm not sure what I was expecting from SEDUCE THE DARKNESS by Gena Showalter. I think I was expecting a good book, a fun and entertaining read. What I got instead, was a fantastic book with an absolutely wonderful story! I think I expected the passion in SEDUCE THE DARKNESS to take center stage with a plot line that moved the story forward but just added cushion to the romantic side of the story. Instead, the story was really quite wonderful with the romantic element acting as the icing on the cake.Bride McKells lives on Earth during a time after the great alien war when otherworlders and humans have learned to coexist in a peaceful but strained relationship. The world is vastly different than it was before, with real fruit, non-cloned show more animals and precious water extraordinarily hard if not impossible to come by. Bride McKells's vampiric memory of the centuries is quite acute and she misses the way things were before. Most of all, she misses the child that she befriended then mysteriously lost long ago. When she runs into Devyn, and smells her friend all over him, a game of cat and mouse is begun. Bride will do almost anything to find her friend and just might rip Devyn's head off once she finally does.Devyn is King of the Targons. He is a womanizer, specializing in having women from different worlds. If he has been with a woman from one world before, he has no interest in being with another from that world. Devyn has already been with a vampire. Two in fact. He has no interest in Bride; yet, why can't he stop thinking about her? Despite his convictions, Devyn can't seem to get his mind off this beautiful, dark haired woman. What will become of this proud man once he discovers that his heart might be the most traitorous thing out there.Amidst a plot full of romance, mystery and suspense, Showalter shows us what it means to live in a destroyed world and what love and passion are really about. As I mentioned previously, passion plays a large part in SEDUCE THE DARKNESS, but the story surrounding this is really great as well. As Bride and Devyn discover each other and the mysteries of their own lives, they also find themselves fighting a great danger. An alien race with a horribly infectious disease carried in their blood. If allowed to roam Earth free, their disease could infect the entire planet in a very short time, turning every human into a vicious cannibal shortly before dying.As you can see, Showalter does an amazing job of constructing a story. Usually, you can tell when a story is built to be a great romance and when it is built to be a great action story, full of adrenaline pumping plot. Showalter built SEDUCE THE DARKNESS in such a way, that the book encompasses both of these with really no discernible barrier between the two. As I was reading, I actually thought a couple of times, "Wow, this is a great romance. Wow, this is a great suspenseful read. Wait, which is it?" This is a wonderful book and a great story that flows well and creates a fantastic rounded story.I absolutely loved the character development in SEDUCE THE DARKNESS. Bride is, of course, my favorite character as I usually love the heroines the most. She is strong but not without her weak points. She has a fantastic personality and best of all she is quite witty with a great amount of humor. Showalter has created a very fun character that was a pleasure to read.When you've got the strong and witty Bride, you've got to have the unreachable and yet highly desirable Devyn. Despite her best efforts, Bride can't help but to find herself attracted to the tall, beautiful warrior. Why shouldn't she? Everyone else is. She refuses just to be another one of his conquests, however, and this irritates Devyn to no end. Dealing with his own demons, Devyn finds solace in bedding women but it's possible that his charm and fantastic looks might not be enough for Bride. As with Bride, Showalter has imbued Devyn with a great deal of complexity, adding multiple layers of depth to this character that makes him an absolute pleasure to read. While we get to enjoy the passionate side of him, we also get to learn more about his past and how he came to be where he is now. We get to watch him fight, love, learn and unravel the mysteries of his own past. He is a fantastic character on multiple levels and aside from the strong and passionate Bride, he is the reason this book is as great as it is.Somehow, Showalter has created the perfect duo between Bride and Devyn. Where their passionate relationship will end up I won't tell you. Be content with the fact, however, that you're in for quite a treat. Even though they are fictional characters on paper, Showalter has given them so much life that the sparks between the two can be felt just as if they were staring at each other across the room right in front of you. Her ability to create realism in her writing and make the story leap off the written page really helps to make her top notch.Just as Showalter adds depth to Devyn and Bride, she also has created a great deal of depth and complexity within the actual story itself. Multiple layers within the story and multiple side character plots flesh out the book. Really, if you like the Paranormal genre at all, it felt like there was something for everyone here.As you can tell, I really loved SEDUCE THE DARKNESS. This is the first book by Gena Showalter that I have read and I'm quite glad that I did. SEDUCE THE DARKNESS is an Alien Huntress novel, with other stories before it that follow related characters. While there are some previous books, I don't believe that not having read them will make SEDUCE THE DARKNESS any less wonderful. I haven't read the other books and Showalter does such an amazing job of discreetly filling us in with what has already happened in her world that SEDUCE THE DARKNESS really works quite well as a stand alone novel. show less

Ms. Showalter has created a wonderful futuristic world where humans and aliens or otherworlders co-existed. Maybe co-existed isn't the right word. They exist together it's just not all that peaceful. That's were AIR (Alien Investigation and Removal) comes in.

Devyn is the King of Targons, a warrior race. He is self-assured and his one goal is to sleep with as many different species of women he can find. He never get jealous or territorial and he never sleeps with the same species twice. That is until he meets vampire, Bride McKell.

I really enjoyed this story. Devyn and Bride work well together. They bicker and annoy each other. But they also can't get enough of each other. That always makes for a good story. Seduce the Darkness is a show more wonderful addition the series, steamy, with action packed excitement. If you want to escape to another world. This series/book is the way to go. show less

Seduce the Darkness by Gena Showalter
4th book in the Alien Huntress series. Can be read as a stand-alone. I have read the previous three books but more than ten years ago so remembered nothing of the world building. I had no problems understanding the world environment.
Paranormal sci-fi romance crossover.

Bride is a vampire living alone in the human world. She doesn’t know her powers or any other vampires. When she runs into Devyn, literally, because he smells like an old friend she’s lost track of, she is confused. Bride is determined to backtrack his steps so bargains and cajoles and threatens. Devyn is amused and intrigued by the vampire. His work with AIR (alien investigation removal) makes him uniquely qualified to find out show more what makes Bride thrive.

Bride and Devyn are amusing together constantly arguing and trying to one-up each other. They also have significant chemistry though they both try to deny it. The deep world building is creative and clearly explained even though it was started in prior books.
I’m a little uncertain about the ending, resolution of one character. I won’t spoil it though while I move on to the next in the series. I loved the strength and power of Bride and the romance in the end for the two.
All the secondary characters added a depth to the story and expanding need to find their stories in the other series books. show less

Devyn, King of the Targons, has had a lifelong goal to sample a female from every race and breed of alien and human. When he meets Bride McKells, he's not terribly interested, since he's already had a vampire, but as it turns out, he just can't get her out of his mind.
Vampires are an interesting addition to Showalter's Alien Huntress series. She weaves them in nearly seamlessly, implying they are another race of alien, just one who's been here on earth much longer than the more recent alien immigrants. The action regarding the Schon and their queen is moved forward slightly, but almost as an aside, since it's merely a subplot to Devyn and Bride's story. The two heroes are more than a match for each other. The Targon's vast powers were show more going to be difficult to top, but Bride holds her own and more. Their humor and arrogance are also compatible. An excellent pairing, and much fun to read about. show less

Seduce the Darkness
4 Stars (mainly for the romance)

Abandoned as a child, Bride McKell has survived on Earth by using her wits. As a vampire, Bride needs blood to survive and is desperate to learn more about her race. When she encounters Devyn, King of the Targons, he promises to be both a source of information and irritation. Devyn, a notorious womanizer, is used to getting his own way with the fairer sex, but Bride pushes every button he never knew he even had. As Devyn and Bride grow closer, an unexpected threat surfaces to tear them apart forever …

Bride and Devyn’s love-hate relationship is one of the sweetest and most endearing in the series. It is impossible not to enjoy their snarky repartee and having Devyn succumb to a show more female’s spell when he has vowed never to do so is exceedingly entertaining - the bigger they are, the harder they fall!

Unfortunately, the plot is one of the weaker elements. The pacing of the first 2/3s is on the slow side and the final third is exciting but lacks foundation and development. The Schon storyline is progressing but gets relatively little page time and is ultimately unrelated to the major plot points at the end.

All in all, worth reading for the romance and the characters, but adds little to the overall story arc of the series. show less

I am a little ashamed to admit that I could not put this book down even though it meant ignoring all the other things I had to do. It just caught my attention that much. Showalter creates another fascinating world that blends the everyday with the supernatural. A world where not everyone is human and everyone knows it. I loved Bride’s toughness and vulnerable side. Devyn was a little harder for me to like. In the beginning I did not like to see that he was willing to force Bride to do certain things against her will. Luckily he does manage to redeem himself and work his way back into my good graces. It probably helped that the chemistry between he and Bride was undeniable so of course you want them to end up together. Being a fan of show more Showalter’s Lords of the Underworld series had me eager to read this book and I was not disappointed. show less