Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night (Immortals After Dark, #3)

by Kresley Cole

Considering his history with Mariketa the Awaited, Bowen MacRieve of the Lykae clan should be pleased when dark forces unite against her. Yet when he discovers how vulnerable the beautiful, wee witch truly is, Bowen, a ruthless warrior, finds himself using all his strength and skill to keep her alive.

Mari can't control the awesome power she possesses and recognizes the need for a temporary Protector - even one as cold as Bowen. Though it's rumoured that no one can touch his hardened heart, soon passion begins to burn between them. Once Bowen realizes he wants Mari for his own, will she withstand his wicked seduction - or surrender her body and her love to this fierce warrior?

• ISBN10: 1849834148
• ISBN13: 9781849834148
• Publish Date: 28 April 2011 (first published 24 September 2007)
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster Ltd
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[FranJessca @ A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog]

First Read: April 2010

Second Read: June 2014

Third Read (Listened): February 2019

Fourth Read: November 22 – 27, 2021

I read this book back in 2010 for the first time. I re-read it in 2014 and then listened to it in February 2019 (Thanks to the Fated Mates Podcast). Now, for the fourth time, I re-read it in November 2021 to prepare for the next book, which will be released in 2022. I was into binge reading back into 2010 and finally reviewed it in 2014. I’m going through my reviews again to ensure I didn’t miss anything that I enjoyed about the IAD books.

Storyline/My Thoughts: In 2010, I didn’t enjoy this book like the others because of the male character Bowen. Oh, how I was not too fond of his character. I had my reasons because of the way he treated Mariketa at first. If you read the previous book, you would know why I didn’t like him. Although, after finally listening to this book in 2019, I finally understood and liked Bowen better. (I highly recommend listening to this book thanks to the narrator)

Kresley Cole managed to tell certain parts of the previous book in this book. I will always be amazed at how her books continue the story with different characters and different perspectives of specific situations that have already happened. She is a master of telling a story with her characters and world-building like crazy. That is just a couple of reasons why Kresley will always be one of my favorite paranormal romance authors.

In Wicked Deeds of a Winter’s Night, the story picks up where Bowen has to save Mariketa from the cave; he had put her in. Yup, he has to save the witch that cursed him. He believes she put one curse on him and another one that enchanted him to desire her. (Bowen is going to meet his match, and Kresley Cole did a fantastic job on giving him a character that put him through the wringer) Mariketa is making friends in that cave who are protecting her. She’s not fully immortal yet, so the demons in the caves with her are determined to keep her safe. She is the witch that supposedly is going to be more powerful than others. When Bowen goes to rescue her, Mari doesn’t make it easy for him. Bowen lost his mate a long time ago, and he was hoping to get back from winning the prize from the competition they were in together. If you read the previous book, you’ll understand why Bowen is depressed in this book. He’s only depressed for a little while, though, because he’s starting to gain feelings for the problematic witch. I could go on and on about this book. I don’t want to ruin it for anyone who hasn’t read this book/series yet.

The banter between the two main characters is what makes the book enjoyable. I love these two together. Mari was not the timid female witch in this book, and I adored her in every turn of the book because of how she handled Bowen. The very ending of this book is what was a shocker, and the narrator told it better than me having to read it. I love Robert Petkoff. He’s become one of my many favorite narrators. He gets into character for each character in the books. I love his accents for the demon characters that even played a role in this book and can’t wait to re-listen to their books. If you haven’t read/listened to these books and are a fan of paranormal romance, I highly recommend Kresley Cole’s Immortal After Dark series. I’m so glad I’m making time to do another re-read before Munro releases beginning of 2022. 2022 is going to be the best year yet for the most-anticipated books, thanks to Kresley Cole. I’ve missed my favorite PNR author. 

Standalone or Part of Series: Its part of the Immortals After Dark series, and I recommend reading in order.

Steaminess: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫

Tropes: Fated Mates; Enemies-to-Lovers; Forced Proximity

Do I recommend this book? Yes. I give this book 4.5 stars and highly recommend it to PNR readers.

Will I read other books from this author? Yes. She’s one of my auto-buy favorite authors.

[kimbacaffeinate]

Caffeinated Thoughts on Wicked Deeds on a Winter Night

Cole is a masterful storyteller who delivers a story whose plot keeps you engaged from the very first page. She also commands a brilliant cast of characters where even the secondary ones are memorable. I was so excited when the beginning of WICKED DEEDS ON A WINTER'S NIGHT overlapped the Hie (a competition) from NO REST FOR THE WICKED. Things happened to our hero, and it was fantastic seeing how it all played out and why he was so desperate to win. The whole transition from one book to the next was seamless.

Bowen MacRieve of the Lykae clan is our hero. We know from previous books he lost his mate close to 800 years ago. He has not been with another since. Bowen has been very vocal about his disdain of witches and will even cross the road to avoid them. During the Hia he and Mariketa the Awaited cross paths in their quest for one of the objects. Their encounter had me laughing as these two are shocked at the chemistry sizzling between them. Bowen thinks she is using witchery and Mariketa is confused. But the Hai is on, and Bowen escapes with the prize, but not before locking Mariketa and other contestants in the cave.

Mariketa the Awaited was such a fun and interesting character. She is very powerful but has little control over it making her somewhat of a bumbling witch. She has a tendency to have spells backfire or blow up. Her story was fascinating and when you add Bowen into the mix it became addictive.

Bowen finds he has been cursed by the witch and is unable to heal..but worse he thinks she has cast a spell to trick him into believing her his mate. The tale that unfolds was wonderfully addictive with snark, tempers, heat and twists that will keep you guessing. I loved how Cole addressed the mate bond issue.

While their story is fantastic from the romance to the suspenseful threads that develop it is the secondary characters both in Scotland and NOLA, that set this series about others in the paranormal genre. A lot of times these secondary characters help develop the plot but aren't developed. Not the case with the cast of the Immortals After Dark series. I crave page time with them, love the humor, banter, friendships and uniqueness of them all. Cole makes me NEED all of their stories. I am particularly fond of a young Valerin who is considered crazy by most. Her wit and abilities as a seer are delightful. She has been instrumental in helping all of the couples thus far. And while all of them have wanted to throttle her a time or too, they cannot help but love her.

The romance had all of the elements I love from banter, growth, and sizzling hot chemistry. The conflict came from a suspense angle and Bowen's own mouth, making it fun to watch it all unfold. Cole made it all feel very genuine allowing me to become emotionally vested.

Robert Petkoff narrates this series and adds another layer of enjoyment to an already good tale. If he narrated all the books on my wishlist, I would consider listened to everything. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer