Goldilox and the Three Weres: Review: Crave the Darkness by Amanda Bonilla

Crave the Darkness
(Shaede Assassin #3)
Amanda Bonilla
Release: March 5, 2013
Add to Goodreads Buy at Amazon

Nothing comes easy for Darian. Her heightened powers make her indispensable to the Shaede Nation, but dangerous missions have driven her lover, Tyler, to his breaking point. Darian must salvage their bond, but a new assignment to protect Anya—a fellow Shaede and the first of their kind to become pregnant in centuries—stands in their way.

It doesn’t help that the two Shaedes are longtime rivals and share nothing besides mutual hatred. But when it becomes clear that someone—or something—is bent on destroying the expectant mother and her unborn child, Darian must put her feelings aside and track down Anya’s would-be assassin.

As she probes into Anya’s past, Darian digs up long-buried secrets—and a connection between Tyler and the mission that could destroy everything between them…

Review:

Crave the Darkness is the third book in Amanda Bonilla's Shaede Assassin series and packs quite the physical and emotional punch. Each book in the series has gotten stronger and more enthralling and Crave the Darkness is by far my favorite in this series!

The ending of the previous book, Blood Before Sunrise, was very tumultuous with the exit of heroine Darian's sort-of boyfriend, Tyler. That ending tore me apart and I wondered where Darian and Tyler's relationship would go in this book. When the story starts, Darian is depressed and has holed up in her apartment. As the story progresses we see Darian heal from the loss of Tyler and a stronger bond start to form between her and Xander. I've always had a soft spot for the Shaede King, so I was pleased that he gets a lot of face time in this book. He reminds me a lot of Dorian from Mead's Dark Swan series and I love his cocky, sexy attitude. In the first two books I've found myself torn between Xander and Tyler as love interests for Darian and I've got to say, Crave the Darkness didn't really clear up those feelings for me! Xander gets to show a softer side as well as a sexy sexy sexy side. I still love Tyler, but his actions angered me in this book and I felt like he was over-punishing Darian. Of course, Darian is no relationship genius sometimes, always assuming the worst in people.

The plot involving a pregnant Anya and a secret enemy that is out to get her was really engaging and I was totally drawn in by this mysterious culprit. I loved watching Darian and Anya go head to head in their verbal bitch fests and also really loved watching as they realized that they actually have a lot in common. Readers also get introduced to some new characters working under Darian on the protective detail for Anya, and I look forward to seeing more of these Shaedes in future installments, especially the enigmatic Asher.

Crave the Darkness is darker, sexier, and even more emotional than previous books in the series and lovers of urban fantasy will devour this book!

Recommended for fans of: urban fantasy romance, stomach knots, assassins with a lack of social skills, sort of love triangles, lots of mysterious people, and bitchy chicks in leather.

This review is based on an advanced copy of the book provided by the publisher.