Shadows Strike (Immortal Guardians, #6)

by Dianne Duvall

The Immortal Guardians protect the innocent in secret. Sometimes the secret gets out...

U.S. law enforcement agent Heather Lane can read minds. But not the future. The dream of battle and blood that recurs every night must be a fluke, some obscure terror from her own mind. What its significance might be, she can't guess: an attack from seven psychotic vampires at once, only separated from nightmare by an eighth very different immortal. A handsome, brave man fighting at her side, a man she misses when she wakes.

Then the dream comes true. Heather is flung into a war between predators and protectors of humanity, the man from her dreams beside her again. Except now that she's awake, she isn't sure she can trust Ethan, or the shadow organization he represents. The U.S. military doesn't trust either of them. But against an onslaught of evil like the one that's coming, it will take everything they have just to survive...

• ISBN10: 1420129821
• ISBN13: 9781420129823
• Publish Date: 25 August 2015
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 19 April 2022
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Kensington Publishing
• Format: Paperback (UK Trade)
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[Cocktails and Books]

This review was originally posted on Cocktails and Books

It's been some time since I've read an Immortal Guardians book, but I have to say it was very easy to step back into the IG world and fun to see what had transpired since I last picked up a book.

In this installment, the focus is on guardian Ethan as he finds himself enamored with a gifted mortal woman as certain members of the "Others" continue their bid to cause Armageddon, using this woman to infiltrate the Immortal Guardians.

I really enjoyed the relationship between Ethan and Heather. I loved how they met, when she saved him during a fight with some vampires. I loved how understanding he was, when Heather explained her gift and why she was so comfortable with him. And I loved how he kept his distance, despite not wanting to, because he didn't want to bring her into his world. He could go alpha male when he needed to, but at his core, Ethan was a squishy centered male who wanted nothing more than a woman to love him for exactly who he was. And Heather never wavered in her belief that Ethan was a good man, despite some of the horrific things she saw and fully understanding just what Ethan did. They were the perfect mix together, making me desperate to see them get their HEA.
As with the other books in this series, the romance isn't the only thing happening in the book. The continued storyline with the Immortal Guardians trying their hardest to ensure mankind's survival had me at the edge of my seat. I love the suspenseful mix with Seth, the other guardians and the human military as they combined to determine what was attacking military instillations. For this particular story, the military tied in perfectly with Heather, since her father happened to be a high ranking general who needed to figure out what was happening to his men. The entire storyline had me on edge, as I wondered if Heather, her father or anyone one of the guardians were going to get hurt as they tried to determine what was happening.

This was a perfect weekend read and jump-started my need to get back into more paranormal romances. Dianne Duvall always manages to have the perfect mix of paranormal and romance in her books, with SHADOW STRIKE continuing that tradition. If you haven't read the other books in this series, I do recommend jumping into it.

Reviewer information can be found under the Tags section of the post on our site.

[kimbacaffeinate]

Heather Lane is a U.S. enforcement agent who can read minds. She hides her gift by claiming to read faces. This allows her to learn whether a client is lying. For the past year, she has been plagued by a dream occurring in a meadow. In the dream, seven men attack a sole male dressed in black. The dream is always the same and she awakes at the very same moment. It has also led to daydreams and sex dreams about the man dressed in black. All of this leads her to look for the field and place herself there every morning. When her dream become reality Heather soon finds herself plunged into a dark world she never knew existed and into the arms of Ethan.

Duvall writes an action packed series that keeps me on edge from the present danger to the overall series ARC. However, the characters are what keep me coming back. Ethan is an Immortal Guardian with the ability to remember everything. He can describe in minute detail a room or place and can recall complete conversations. I adored Ethan; he is a little shy, sometimes cocky and a whole lotta sexy. Heather is such a kick-ass heroine. She is a military brat and her Daddy the General taught well. Mind readers generally don't have the gift of premonition and the thread about her dreams was fascinating adding to the overall suspense. We spend time with all the Immortals, and get updates as well as see hints of stories to come. Duvall has created this dynamic family with different personalities all working to save the world. I feel at home at David's and care about each of them. The banter, teasing, feuds and the way they work together as a team have made this series a hit for me.

The romance between them developed like most romances in this genre, but Duvall made their feelings feel genuine and quickly had me falling for them. Heather’s independent, take-charge nature added delicious tension and humor. From the beginning, their connection and the chemistry felt genuine. Readers are sure to fall for them and I found myself smiling as these two tangoed.

Someone is attacking military bases leaving those on the base for dead. The government is scrambling to figure out who is behind these attacks. When Heather’s Dad asked her to analyze a survivor, it becomes clear to her and the Immortals that vampires are involved. Shadows Strike plot was well crafted, with high body counts, suspense and twists to keep you guessing. As dark as the story was, Duvall manages to lighten things up with banter between the characters and tender moments between the couples. A scene involving Heather’s Dad while intense had me laughing aloud.

Copy provided by publisher. This review was originally posted on Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[EBookObsessed]

Fan Casting: Immortal Guardians


I love this series and it truly just keeps getting better and better with each book. The Other is no longer plotting against just the Immortal Guardians. Now they are looking to start the apocalypse. Priorities have changed. It’s no longer just about keeping the vampires and the Immortals a secret. Can the Guardians stop the plot to end the world before it’s too late?

In Shadow Strike, I am torn between what I liked better, the romance between Ethan and Heather or the growing tension as the Other is attempting to start World War 3.

Heather has been waiting in the field next to her house every day at 5:43 a.m. for the past year. She has done this every morning since she began dreaming the same dream that at 5:43 vampires and the most gorgeous man she has ever seen come bursting into that field fighting. Heather can hear other people’s thoughts, but she has never been precognitive. Yet something compels her to wait each morning to see if her dream becomes a reality. Imagine her surprise when one morning they actually burst through into the clearing. It’s a good thing she brought her 9mm with her.

Ethan doesn’t know what Heather is doing there in that field, but if he wasn’t for her he might have had more problems taking on seven vampires without injury. At only 100 years old, Ethan hasn’t yet built the strength and speed needed to take on so many vampires by himself.

Even though their introduction was unconventional, there is no question about the instant attraction both feel. Sadly, there might not be enough time left in the world for them to get to know each other better.

The Other who is working against Seth and his Immortal Guardians is ready to take things to the next level. He is no longer satisfied with just trying to torture and torment Seth. He wants to destroy the world. He is building an army of vampires in hopes of sparking World War 3.

The head of the Guardian’s Network, Chris Reordan, wants to sway Heather’s father, an army General, onto their side. Heather wants to help but is concerned that if her father won’t agree then erasing his memory of the Guardians could cause him irreparable brain damage. Ethan is torn between his loyalty to the Immortals and to protecting the humans, and forcing the woman he is falling in love with to chose the fate of the world over the life of her father.

Time is ticking and if they can’t find the Other soon, they may no longer be able to leave the choice to Heather. The entire world is a risk from an unstoppable vampire army. If the Other succeeds in unleashing the vampires against the United States Army under the guise of a terrorist attack, it may be too to stop Armageddon.

THOUGHTS:
This book is full of tension and suspense I couldn’t put it down. It was to the point that I was thinking “This is no time for sexy naked time! Do you realize what just happened?” Really, who wants to hurry along the hot sex scenes to get back to the storyline? That’s crazy talk! But I just had to know what they were going to do next.

With just a few changes, the whole story could have become very dark and depressing. I would have hated to see that happen because I like this series and these characters so much. I was concerned during several scenes that things were going to go really bad, but thank God it’s paranormal romance where everyone has sex and a HEA and not an Urban Fantasy where main characters get tortured and chewed on.

I loved Ethan when we first met him in Night Unbound. I thought that Ethan’s special and very boring ability would become crucial in this story, but it seems it is actually so boring and useless and she couldn’t even write in a scene where it would be helpful.

I am not certain whether Aiden will be hero of the next story. I am torn between wanting to give the guy his HEA and telling him to stop his f*cking whining. “Everyone has found love but me.” “I’ve been so alone for so long.” He really does sound desperate and pathetic and he is actually getting quite stalkerish since there was a scene where he helped a woman change her tire which he had flattened in an attempt to meet her. Stalker! And what is he going to do if they hit it off. Someday she’ll be telling him how lucky she was that he came along to help and he is going to have to confess to his stalker attack on her car. I am not sure if I am sorry for him or completely annoyed by him.

I can’t recommend this series enough. I just love this group of characters and the stories just get more interesting. Bastian is still my guy although Zach comes in a close second. I guess I just like the black sheeps.

Received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.