Wench Review of...

Dark Skye by Kresley Cole

Readers probably know by now that most of us got into the Immortals in the Dark series a long time ago, and I personally went with Wench Shau's recommendation (she talks about the series here.) of this being a fun, light, sexy read, and I wasn't disappointed. At least not until the last few books. 

But then came Lanthe and Thronos, and the upcoming release of Dark Skye. And I was intrigued again. I had been looking forward to this one for the past few books. The few snippets of Lanthe and Thronos we'd gotten had me eager for more. But the way the last few books have gone, I wasn't very hopeful on me enjoying these as I had most of the earlier books.

You can read my MacRieve review here (I wasn't a fan). I still picked Dark Skye up when I got a chance. And read it. Click through to see what I thought!

Spoilery. Not too spoilery. But spoilery enough for the spoiler prudes among us! Did I say spoiler too much?

So let me start with, I am very glad I didn't give up after MacRieve. Yes, it did start off as the same old story we've been stuck with the past few books, with a childhood sweetheart twist. Boy meets girl, they become best friends, families hate and kill each other, etc, etc. At this point I was rolling my eyes thinking "Great, he hates her, but must have her because she's his destined mate. Cue the verbal, psychological, and almost physical abuse!" Yay. 

Not that again.

BUT, things weren't what I expected. For starters, there was an actual foundation for a relationship here. Their childhood friendship was a nice change from the formula most of the IAD relationships follow, especially lately. And the way that friendship ended lead to misunderstandings that seem a lot more legit than ones I've gotten used to reading, things that happen just to excuse some screaming and name calling and threats of violence, that eventually end up with people in bed together. 

And most interesting of all, SHE fucked him up BAD. Physically. And emotionally. His obsession and single mindedness in finding her actually MADE sense even without the whole fated angle (that both me and Barb aren't too fond of).

Later, Carrow had pressed, so Lanthe had admitted, “He’s broken because of me. I ‘persuaded’ him to dive from a great height. And not to  use his wings.” Most of his skin had been slashed and scarred, the bones  of his wings and limbs fractured—before his immortality had taken hold, before he could regenerate.

Ouch. Harsh. 

OK instead of teasing you with random sensational stuff, I'll do what I'm here for and review the book for you.

Thronos, Vrekener, hot, winged, demon-like/fallen angel people. Also puritanical, boring buttholes. (If angry right wing religious nuts had wings and power and lived a stark, boring life in a secret plane in the sky...incidentally called Skye, where EVERYTHING is an offendment. Reminds me of certain places...) Did I mention the hot and winged thing? And Thronos, while angry and almost unhinged in the first quarter of the book, learns fast. And learns to question stuff he holds most dear. 

Lanthe, Sorceri. Queen of Persuasion. Living the hedonistic Sorceri lifestyle. But constantly in fear of being caught by Thronos. The boy she "persuaded" to jump out a window. Lanthe is unsure of her powers, has had them stolen PLENTY of times by guys she's slept with (douchebags) and basically just wants to go home to her sister, Sabine, and brother-in-law after her torture at the hands of the Order. 

We've been hearing about their back story for a few books now, the whole mess with the Order and the island brought it all into focus since it seemed like Thronos deliberately got caught to be where Lanthe was. And he does finally get his hands on her once everything at the Island goes to hell. 

(Basically the image of Thronos you get from
 Lanthe when he first captures her.)

Now, normally, things would have gone from bad to worse to "OHMYGOD HOW IS THIS ROMANTIC?!" for me if the past couple of books were any indication. But instead, I was pleasantly surprised. I was not totally put off by the guy being an abusive asshole, he was angry, and rightly so. And so was she! Lanthe did not take any shit from him. And stopped his slut shaming in it's tracks and REFUSED to apologize or make excuses for any of her past. And he gradually learned to accept that he was being a douche and change his tune. 

Both the characters had a journey, a place where they start from, and a place they got to together, and learn to work as a team. Which I have MISSED in this series lately. Remember Lucia and Garreth? Holly and Cade? Sebastian and Kaderin? They were great at being a team without being a toxic, hateful mess. I missed that. Lanthe and Thronos portal jump to many different (horrid and wonderful) places and learn to work together, and maybe enjoy each other a little too, and I liked reading them coming into their own as both individuals AND a team. 

Lanthe became a stronger Sorceress, and a more confident person, and was pretty fucking kick ass, I mean not many others from the Lore would sit through someone cutting off their tongue even though they knew it would grow back because they had a plan. And Thronos learned surprising truths about Vrekener history and origins and begins to question their overly strict lifestyle and the hundreds of rules dictating what they should and shouldn't do. (I mean, no loud sounds during sex?!?!!? Where's the fun in that?!)

Also, HOT sexy scenes. I mean, damn. Kresley Cole really knows how to write GREAT (pre/during/post) sex  scenes.  I LOVED reading the scenes where Lanthe is CLEARLY the seducer (and the seduced) and the one in charge. And the build up to the eventual sex really has you eager for more!

In a throaty voice, she said, “Thronos, understand me: if I ever decided to bed you, there would be no doubt. You’d be completely undone, absolutely taken, forever mine. If you were ever inside me, you would be broken down at a molecular level—altered irretrievably.”

Is it hot in here?
Or is Thronos just really bad at controlling himself around Lanthe?

There were some delightful revelations about what Nix has been up to, FINALLY. And really, I don't want to give anything away, but wow! I cannot wait to read more about Nix and whether she succeeds with her plans. Small teaser : Goddess meeting.

We meet Nereus, the sea god with his GIANT penis. I've wondered about him since sex with him was one of the items on the list for the Hie and Cindy the Siren couldn't walk straight for days after that. But most importantly, after all this time (SPOILER: Avert your gaze if you do not want to be spoiled and just skip to the next paragraph) we actually catch a glimpse of Furie. And oh man. Is it something. I feel like things are finally picking up again and like the Accession might actually be something I WANT to read. Because, I won't lie, the last few books kinda bored me. 

All in all, it was a pretty good read, and was the first time in a while this series made me want to revisit earlier books I enjoyed. Nix and Furie are getting their own books, right? Please tell me they are.

Definitely recommended for people who have enjoyed Immortals After Dark from the beginning. But especially for those of you haven't really enjoyed the stories since Lucia and Garreth's book. This is a return to the romance minus the side of verbal and psychological abuse that we all dream of. 

One of my favorite things about this book was the fact that Lanthe and Thronos were friends before and after everything else was said and done. And that it meant something to them. What can I say? I'm a sucker for those stories. As Thronos says : 

"Before you were my enemy, you were my best friend.”

Come here, Thronos.

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