Winterblaze (Darkest London, #3)

by Kristen Callihan

Once blissfully in love . . .
Poppy Lane is keeping secrets. Her powerful gift has earned her membership in the Society for the Suppression of Supernaturals, but she must keep both her ability and her alliance with the Society from her husband, Winston. Yet when Winston is brutally attacked by a werewolf, Poppy's secrets are revealed, leaving Winston's trust in her as broken as his body. Now Poppy will do anything to win back his affections . . .

Their relationship is now put to the ultimate test.
Winston Lane soon regains his physical strength but his face and heart still bear the scars of the vicious attack. Drawn into the darkest depths of London, Winston must fight an evil demon that wants to take away the last hope of reconciliation with his wife. As a former police inspector, Winston has intelligence and logic on his side. But it will take the strength of Poppy's love for him to defeat the forces that threaten to tear them apart.

• ISBN10: 0349406049
• ISBN13: 9780349406046
• Publish Date: 30 September 2014 (first published 1 January 2013)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Piatkus Books
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amanda]

How I love this series. Though I can't say that book 3 is my favorite, I adored Winston and Poppy. Through Firelight and Moonglow, we've only had the privilege of seeing this couple from the perspective of others.

And such a distorted perspective it is.

Both Winston and Poppy carry their own secrets. Moonglow left Winston nearly dead and his marriage to Poppy shattered. It was the kind of ending that had me dying to pick up Winterblaze as soon as possible.

DYING. (Figuratively, not literally. In case you were worried.)

So when the boyfriend's mom asked me if I wanted to borrow her library copy while she had it, I said, "YES!" (I also said thank you. I'm polite like that.)

The Darkest London series has a way of cutting through any type of reading "slump" I seem to have. This series just has that quality that pulls me in and doesn't let go. The world we were exposed to in Firelight has grown and expanded and gotten smaller at the same time. Winterblaze builds on what Moonglow opened up and I am excited and anxious to get my hands on Shadowdance.

Though I loved Winston and Poppy as characters, their romance wasn't my favorite. They loved each other--clearly. They made mistakes--obviously. But what kept them apart was their stubborn pride and it made me want to sit them down and tell them, "Listen. Let it go. Move on. You two are meant to be together. Also? A little more sexin' and a lot less wantin' would be nice. Y'all are hurting me a little too here."

I sincerely hope that the Darkest London series does not end with Shadowdance. This world that Kristen Callihan has created--and the love stories within it--has made this series one of my favorites. Winterblaze has only strengthened that.

[Angie]

I received an ARC through NetGalley.

I normally don’t care about married couples, but Poppy and Winston are oh so different! At the start of Winterblaze, they have been separated for three months when Poppy receives a letter stating that her husband is the target of a demon. She immediately boards the ship he’s traveling on in order to serve as his protector. Of course, Win’s male ego does not appreciate this at all, and other male parts can’t seem to stop wanting inappropriate contact with certain female parts. Quite the predicament! Even after fourteen years of marriage, those two still have chemistry through the roof and a ridiculous amount of sexual tension!

This series just keeps getting better and better, so it’s no surprise that Winterblaze is the best so far! The plot is dangerous and fun, with just the right amounts of action, humor, and steam! Even though they’re at odds in the beginning, Poppy and Winston must work together in order to destroy the demon who wants Winston and something even more precious to the both of them. Those two work amazingly together, never letting their fight get in the way of solving this case. However, working that closely together, and sorting out their marriage also stirs up plenty of lust. Their romance…wow…smokin’! Their separation certainly hasn’t put them out of practice! We also gets peek into when they first met and were courting. Even back then it was obvious that they’re perfect for each other.

The plot of Winterblaze is also the most interesting yet. I’m loving seeing this darker side of nineteenth century London! That demon who’s after Win has so many tricks and secrets up his sleeves, I couldn’t even begin to guess what he was going to do or say next. There were several “What?! No way!” moments for me, so I could barely put this one down!

If you haven’t started this series yet, you really should! I was iffy about the first book, enjoyed the second, but I loved this one! Winterblaze definitely takes this series to the next level, and I cannot wait to see what the author has in store for us next!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[EBookObsessed]

This was an exciting story. Couldn't figure out how they were going to get out of this mess. When we left Winston and Poppy at the end of Book 2, Winston had abandoned Poppy because she had been hiding things from him. He hates liars and to find out his beloved Poppy was lying to him was too much. Only to find out in Winterblaze that Winston his hiding the worst secret of all.

I loved how the story was interspersed with flashbacks of when they first met so even though they were currently separated, we saw them first coming together mixed in with rebuilding their relationship.

Great characters and great secondary characters who weren't willing to stay blended in the background. There is a teaser at the end so it is nice to know we are going to branch out from the Ellis sisters's stories. Looking forward to seeing where we go from here.

See more at http://ebookobsessed.com.