Lucinda, Darkly

**Courtesy of CK2S Kwips & Kritiques**

A princess of Hell, the only thing the demon Lucinda rules over is the territory she is charged to protect in her role as guardian. Demon she may be, but she is honorable as well. When she is tasked with the capture of a rogue Monére warrior, she soon finds herself in the role of protector rather than hunter, adding her prisoner to her troupe of companions: a rare Floradëur, Monére warrior Stefan, and the Mixed Breed Jonnie.

Although determined to not become attached to those under her protection, she finds Stefan irresistible, and is pulled into a web of erotic desire with him unlike any she has felt before. Knowing he needs more than she can ever give him, she intends to find him a place with a show more Monére Queen, leaving him and the others behind.

But an unforeseen danger binds her to her men in a way she could never have anticipated, making the very idea of separation impossible…

Lucinda, Darkly is the first book in Sunny’s The Demon Princess Chronicles which is connected to her Monére, Children of the Moon series, but works very well as a standalone series for those who have not read the other books – like me. This was the first book by Sunny I have had the pleasure of reading, and it will not be my last. Not only am I eagerly anticipating the sequel to Lucinda, Darkly, but I have already added the Monére, Children of the Moon series to my book shopping list. Although I was able to follow this story without issue, the references to characters in the other series made me intensely curious!

This book has been compared to Laurell K. Hamilton’s writing, and I can definitely see why. While classified as a romance and it has some romantic elements, the story is more an adventure following the main character, Lucinda, and her companions. Yes, there is love, and oh my gosh are there some sexy scenes – but this book doesn’t fit the ‘mold’ of a classic romance in that her story does not end in this book. While this particular part of her story has completed, her exploits will be continued in the following stories, if the series title is any indication. Most noticeably, there isn’t a traditional happy ending in this book. Yes, the story ends well for our main characters, but since this isn’t really the end of Lucinda’s tale, it is largely up in the air still as to who she will end up with in the long run. Fans of sagas that star the same hero and/or heroine in each of the books will appreciate this immensely, as did I.

Lucinda is an extremely likable heroine. She might be a demon, but she is nowhere near evil, as she proves by her actions over and over again. It is easy to fall for her, just like the men who accompany her do.

I see the next book in this exciting new series is due out in *sigh* 2009!!! I suppose I am going to try to have some patience, but it will be extremely hard when I am so anxious to see what happens next with this intriguing group of people! I will be using that time to catch up on Sunny’s other stories in the meantime… show less

Hmmm... where to start with this book?
First off, I would dearly like to know what Anne Bishop thinks of Sunny and her work, as Sunny incorporates many aspects of Bishop's Black Jewels world building into her story. The rest of her story is filled in with "Laurel K. Hamilton style" action, including lots of sex and a paranormal menagerie of creatures. So, while stylistically Sunny has much in common with LKH, as a reader, I found the Black Jewels type elements to be more jarring. This is probably because Anne Bishop's series and world building was so unique, and being a fan, I've developed some loyalty. In fact, I almost feel like I can't appreciate the book on its own merits without knowing the back story in its creation. Is Anne Bishop show more okay with this inspired work?

I also think that Sunny could have changed many of the Black Jewels-esque details in her story to add her own personal stamp, without it affecting the overall story or logic of her world building. For example, she could use some other title besides High Lord for the ruler of Hell. And stating that the High Lord of Hell looks almost exactly the same as his son, the High Prince of Hell is just too similar to Saetan and Daemon in the Black Jewels series for my tastes. In case you think I'm being petty, these are just a couple examples out of the numerous world building and character details that are similar between the two series.

As this review indicates, I was so caught up in the similarities that I found the actual story to be less than memorable. Sure, its readable and fast paced; short and sweet. The titular character, Lucinda, is a demon-dead princess who can kick butt, but unfortunately also came off as a bit of a Mary Sue. The supporting characters were better, especially Nico. However, Stephan, the love interest, was boring. There was no sexual tension between him and Lucinda. They hop into bed right away and fall in love. There was no intrigue. The book is also set up to be a series, so there were lots of details that weren't tied up at the end.

Anyhoo, to summarize, I guess I'm just one reader who is having trouble judging this book solely on its story due to the similarities to another series. But even on its own merits, I found it to be pretty forgettable. show less

Princess Lucinda is demon dead. In life she was a Monere Queen and in death she is a guardian who brings back demon dead who have escaped or Monere who have left their Queen's to become rogue warriors. She also feeds off the Monere, both their blood and their sexual pleasure. The Monere are a race that started the vampire mythology as they feed on blood and can only really survive at night time. They Bask in the moonlight of their Queens who rule groups of males often killing them when they become more powerful than them.

Lucinda accidentally stumbles across rogue warrior Stefan and his mixed blood ward Jonnie. She saves them both when they are attacaked by humans who believe them to be vampires. She feels something for Stefan she has show more not felt since she was alive and he is able to give her pleasure she has not experienced in many centuries. She has to leave to return another rogue, Nico, to his Queen and in her court meets Talon who is a floradeur (a flower of darkness). Talon is a very rare creature from Hell who was stolen by another demon and hidden on earth with a Monere Queen.

I have to say I adored this book. One of my favourite series is The Black Jewels series by Anne Bishop and this was very similar in style and content, but with enough differences to make it more than just a clone. Talon was my favourite character and I look forward to learning more about him hopefully when the next book (Lucinda, Deadly) comes out in 2009. It was a lot more sexually charged and erotic than Anne Bishop's writing which is more sensual than explicit like this was. I look forward to reading her Mona Lisa series and learning more about the Monere. show less

A huge honking pile of meh. Lucinda kinda bored me. With Mona Lisa the heroine became such an over the top Mary Sue it was fun to go along for the ride. Lucinda, the demon princess was a more rounded out character but she didn't really move me in any way. Stefan is supposed to be her great love but much of the book is spent on the other rogue Monere Nico and the Flouradeur Talon. I kept wanting the story to go back to him and Lucinda but it went everywhere but. Characters kept telling me Lucinda and Stefan were in love but I really didn't feel the love since they spent so much time apart. Lucinda showed more concern over Nico than her so-called beloved Stefan. The pacing felt uneven and the POV whiplash made this an exhausting read. show more It's first person Lucinda. Then third person Talon. Then third person Stefan. I like multiple POV's but don't think it worked in this tale very well.

Think I'll stick with the Mona Lisa series. show less

I really enjoyed this book, then again anything Sunny writes is ...enjoyable...Can't wait for the next Lucinda book!

Like Lucinda a lot. Liked her when she showed up in the Mona Lisa books. Hope there will be more seen of Lucinda!