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

by Kresley Cole

[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