Mini Me: Dark Predator by Christine Feehan

As brutal as the undead he hunted, Zacarias De La Cruz was a master executioner. Over the long, dark centuries, he plunged into so many battles they blurred into an endless lifetime of evil that hardened the soul of this merciless, ruthless and implacable dark predator.

Now his stark and savage journey is over. After a thousand years in a gray world, he has accomplished everything he set out to do. His brothers are safeguarded. Each has found a woman who completes them. And they are at peace. For his brothers, Zacarias has walked the edge of madness, but with centuries as a killing machine now left to the past and without a hunt to define him, Zacarias wonders, for the first time in his life, who he really is.

The answer awaits him back home in Peru , in the betrayal of a woman who is readying her trap, in the vengeance of an old enemy, in the inevitable consequences of a bloody family legacy, and in the deliverance of a lifemate he never could have imagined.

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I think there's been a lot of buzz about Dark Predatory and while I wish I could argue with it....I really can't. This book is odd. Like really odd - odd to such an extent that while I wasn't as offended as some reviewers I had squeeky uncomfortable feelings through most of it. I'm just not sure how Feehan thought her romance audience would be ok with a 'hero' who walks the fine line of rape (mental and physical) who doesn't even seem to have the same emotional connection we've seen in previous novels. 

Bleh. I think BABBLING ABOUT BOOKS AND MORE! has a good review of the book that hits most of the low points and I'm torn about whether I'll buy more of this series. I've read it for so long and every few books Feehan releases a pretty incredible installment. We'll see folks, we'll see. 

I can't in good conscience recommend this one but if you want to go back in the series and pick a book that works pretty well as stand alone, I'd say read Dark Slayer. Unlike the other books you have a very kick-ass heroine that's not afraid to go out and fight the vampires - and fight to save her Lifemate as well. I really enjoyed it and thought it harkened back to the beginning of the series, where there was much more of a balance of power between the hero and heroine. I was hoping it was going to be indicative of a new direction for the Dark Series but unfortunately I haven't seen that trend continue.

Never After by Laurell K. Hamilton, Yasmine Galenorn, Marjorie M. Liu, and Sharon Shinn

#1 New York Times bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton spins a story of a princess who decides to take her own destiny in hand and rescue a pampered Prince Charming from an evil sorceress in 'Can He Bake a Cherry Pie?'

A selkie on the run from a century-old broken marriage arrangement has finally found true love- only to have the darkness from her past return to threaten both her and her dearly beloved in New York Times bestselling author Yasmine Galenorn's 'The Shadow of Mist.'

New York Times bestselling author Marjorie M. Liu tells the tale of a young princess who escapes bethrothal to a warlord by entering a magical forest. But when an evil queen sends her on a quest to 'The Tangleroot Palace', she faces dangers more perilous than marriage.

When a princess refuses her boring betrothed, the king holds a competition to see who will win his daughter's hand. But in matters of the heart, is a winner truly worthy- or can a loser offer even more in national bestselling author Sharon Shinn's 'The Wrong Bridegroom'.

This was actually a really disappointing anthology. I'm a big fan of Ms. Hamilton, Ms. Galenorn, and Ms. Liu but the stories were just unsatisfying. They all just felt short and unfinished, kind of like these authors were asked at the last minute to throw something together and this is what was given to the audience. OR I could see this as being a kind of publicity vehicle for the last author, Sharon Shinn. Even as a relative new comer to me, her story offered a kind of depth and character development that the others lacked (though this could also be attributed to her story being twice as long as almost everyone elses). I could see readers picking up this anthology because of the bigger names and being introduced to Shinn in a very flattering light.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs down. It's just not that great and 1 enjoyable story out of 4 does not a good anthology make. Either get it from the library or don't even bother - especially for the too high price of $9.99.

Series - None