Heat (Dark Kings, #12)

by Donna Grant

[chymerra]

If you have followed my blog for long enough, you know how much I dislike picking up a book mid-series. You would think that I know better by now and skip books that even exude that they are in a series. But I don't. I am a bookaholic and I can't pass up a book that interests me. Which Heat did. I was fascinated by the whole Dragon King/Druid/M15 triangle that was going on in this series. So I decided to chance it. Glad I did because I enjoyed this book....even if I got irritated when past books were referenced.

Heat was a bit different from the other shifter romances that I have read. The main female character was damaged but strong. She didn't have conflicting emotions about her Dragon King. She didn't try to lead him on a merry chase with him trying to guess her feelings. Everything was upfront. Which was very refreshing for a book like this. What got me also was how fresh this book was. Let me explain. I have found the longer a series goes on, the story seems too stagnant. Plotlines flounder and characters start to get boring. So for an author to keep the story as exciting and as fresh like it was the first book, I am impressed.

Heat has 3 main plotlines. The first plotline is about Nikolai and Esther trying to recover Esther's memory. They also come to the realization that there is more to Esther and her brother than what they thought. Plotline 2 is about the Druid and her uneasy alliance with Ulrich and his uncle. Plotline 3 is about the Dark Elves/Light Elves and their hatred of each other. All 3 plotlines are brought together for a spectacular finish.

Esther came across as such a vulnerable character at the beginning of the book. But the more the author revealed about her, the more I came to the realization that she was not vulnerable. She was a strong woman who was trying to track down the person who violated her. She was relentless, even at the cost of losing her mind/life.

Nikolai was also a strong man. He saw his parents being murdered by members of their own clan. He was taken in by the Silvers and raised by their king. He had to make a terrible choice when his King went, for all purposes, insane. He was everything that I love in a fictional guy. He stood by his woman, he protected her and he loved her.

I liked how the line was blurred between the bad guys and the bad, bad guys. The people who you thought were bad guys did a sudden turn around towards the end of the book. The bad guys who I thought were turning good did a 180. I like it when a book keeps me on my toes about who is bad and who is acting it to keep themselves safe. People that I started the book off having zero sympathies for ended up with my sympathy. The people who had my sympathy lost it. Like I said, I love it when a book does this.

The sex scenes in Heat were ah-maz-ing. Nikolai and Esther generated so much sexual tension in the first few chapters that I thought my Kindle was going to catch fire. When they finally had sex, it was off the off the charts hot. As was every sex scene with them afterward. I couldn't get enough!!

The end of Heat was pretty good. Nikolai and Esther's plotline was ended. But the plotline with Druid and the plotline with the Dark Elves/Light Elves were not. There was also another plotline added in towards the end of the book that made me very excited to read the next book. I cannot wait to see what will happen to some of the characters mentioned in this book.

Heat was a very fast read. Alternately action-packed and sensual, I couldn't put the book down. The author did a great job of keeping the plotlines fresh and engaging. I would reread this book and recommend it to anyone 20+. There are sex scenes, violence and language that I would feel are inappropriate for anyone under that age.

I would like to thank St. Martin's Paperbacks, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Heat.

All opinions stated in this review of Heat are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**