Bound By Darkness [Mass Market Paperback]

A throughly enjoyable link in the "Guardians of Eternity" chain of books. Good as a stand alone novel too.

Synopsis:
Ariyal is the Prince of the Sylvermyst. (Think supersized elves on steroids.) Centuries ago, he convinced his people to break away from serving the Prince of Darkness, but they paid a terrible price of enslavement to Morgana who tortured them and murdered their mates. Now freed, Ariyal is determined to stop the Dark Prince from entering our world and save his Sylvermyst at any cost, including killing an innocent baby that Jaelyn protects.

Jaelyn is a Hunter vampire. She is described by Ariyal as

"A beautiful, lethal predator in spandex who had managed to kick-start his lust into hyper drive and reminded him in vivid detail the pleasure of being a fully functioning male."

She is charged with capturing Ariyal for the Oracles, but is shocked when he turns the tables and manages to take her hostage to the mysterious Avalon. Hunters have been trained to ignore their hearts, desires and emotions. But Jaelyn finds herself tumbling for the big Sylvermyst Prince who proposes she join forces with him to track down his missing kinsmen.

Together, they track down the rogue Sylvermyst who are under the control of a spirit intent on the destruction of the world, battle the newly resurrected Dark Prince, and help join together natural enemies the Vampires and the Werewolves to save the planet.

What I like:
I love the chemistry between Jaelyn and Ariyal. They naturally fell together and both seemed to embrace with inevitability and joy that they would be `mated'.

I love the strong female characters that Ivy creates. Jaelyn is the baddest of the Hunters and doesn't have to rely on the hero to save her tush. She isn't afraid to face death, and gives everything she does her best effort. She has nightmares about people she was forced to kill, and people she wasn't able to help, and when she decides she loves Ariyal, knowing she will face certain death for leaving the Hunters, she does so with such magnificent dignity and honor that made me want to shout YES!

In eager anticipation of this book I re-read all 7 books in this "Guardians of Eternity" series. They were even better the 2nd time around or actually the 10th time around for book "Embrace the Darkness" which is still my all around favorite paranormal romance book. Alexandra Ivy also has a cool web site that details her books and the assortment of upcoming novelettes about the "Guardians" characters.

I heartily recommend Ivy for action packed vampire and werewolf romance literature.

I have followed the Guardians of Eternity series for a while now and Alexandra Ivy never disappoints. I'm always enthralled in her books and end up reading them in a day. Bound by Darkness was no different and I enjoyed this one just as much as the others I've read.
In this book we have Ariyal who is a Sylvermyst, sinister cousins to the fey. Ariyal and his tribe have been slaves to the evil Morgana for centuries but in the last book Morgana was killed and his people are free. We also discover Jaelyn, a vampire warrior sent to capture him.
These two butt heads from the beginning and I was engaged and loving the characters from the first chapter. I love when I can relate to my characters and I fell right in with Jaelyn and Ariyal.
Part way through her mission to capture him, her advisors have basically told her to work with him because there's a prophecy brewing that will mean the end of the world if it's not stopped. One of Ariyals tribe has gone rogue, a Sylvermyst by the name of Tearloch, who's working with the mage Sergei. The two are basically working together to try and bring back the Dark Lord. Basically, the Slyvermyst's aligned with Morgana so they wouldn't be banished back to hell right along with their master many years ago.

Jaelyn is an excellent heroine with a lot of spunk and fire. Ariyal is a delicious and dominating hero. I really enjoyed watching these two clash heads along the way, wondering if they'd find a way to make it work. Alexandra is one of my favorite authors and Bound by Darkness does not disappoint. If you've liked all her other books you'll love this one just as much.

Reviewed by Paranormal Addicts

Ariyal and his fellow Sylvermysts, cousins to the fey, finally have their freedom after centuries spent in the twisted harem of Morgana le Fey. The Dark Lord's minions have set a plan in motion to bring him back into our world, once again enslaving Ariyal and his brethren. Having no desire to ever call anyone master again, Ariyal will do whatever it takes to keep the Dark Lord from crossing over. Even team up with a vampire who is as beautiful as she is deadly.

Jealyn is a Hunter for the Addonexus, an elite group of vampires who are revered for their lethal skills. Sticking close to a member of a race that once pledged their allegiance to the Dark Lord isn't something she was given a choice in. Jealyn doesn't trust Ariyal at first but he soon works his way past her defense and into her heart. Before they can explore the possibility of a future together, Jealyn and Ariyal will need to fight to stop the fulfillment of a prophecy that will destroy them both.

Ariyal has changed from the villain in the last book, Devoured By Darkness, to the hero of this one. His kind, the Sylvermysts, are hated among the supernatural because they were once allied with Dark Lord. After regretfully agreeing to be part of Morgana le Fey's harem in exchange for protection in Avalon, Ariyal and his tribe are now free of all masters and he wants it to stay that way. One thing I love about this series is how the heroes are no knights in shining armor. They have their flaws and don't always behave like gentlemen but in the end, they do the right thing. Ariyal fits right in with these other fantastic males. He's arrogant, powerful, gorgeous and everything else you'd want in a hero. The fact that he has the same goal as the good guys doesn't necessarily make him one and I liked that he walked that line.

Jealyn is sent by the Commission, supernaturals who govern all demons, to keep tabs on Ariyal. As a Hunter she takes her mission seriously but doesn't really want to be around Ariyal because of the emotions he makes her feel. As a Hunter, she has been brutally trained not to have any feelings so they don't interfere with her assignments. Ariyal's constant touches and promises of pleasure threatens Jealyn's control. I was a little worried that Jealyn would be too cold and uncaring but she has a great mix of wicked fighting skills and feminine sensuality. There's a vulnerability behind the tough mask she puts on for everyone and Ariyal gets her to show that. There's depth to Jealyn that makes her a really good heroine.

Once their fighting ends, Ariyal and Jealyn join together to try and stop a mage and a few Sylvermysts that have been persuaded to fight against their leader from using a baby as a vessel to bring the Dark Lord back to this world. The action scenes aren't too long and the twists aren't that huge but there is a lot to keep you reading. Ariyal and Jealyn's relationship was the big draw for me because they had such great chemistry. It was really nice to see familiar faces like Styx, Salvatore and the always charming Levet and we learn what happened to the missing pureblood were Cassie and the cure somehow turned pureblood Caine. Their story will be told in the next book. Guardians of Eternity is a great series that has a bit of everything a paranormal romance fan would want. This is book 8 in the series and I suggest starting from book one because even with a recap, there's still a lot you will miss.

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