Most helpful customer reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
You'll Want More, And It STILL Won't Be Enough!, Oct 15 2006
The first book, "Dark Lover", in the unique Black Dagger Brotherhood, was no big thrill for me. Sorry to all those instantly loytal fans out there (as I take a formal bow of respect), but I found that the first book fell flat in so many ways: underdeveloped characters, silly comic book style names that were just so at odds with such a strong new concept for a vampire series. There's a thrill that readers experience though, when they've picked up a book they had high expectations for, and you just KNOW after the first few pages that the author has come through for you in a big way. That rush of satisfaction was my intro to J. R. Ward's fabulous second book in the series and I'm still flying high.
Within the Black Dagger Brotherhood resides a set of warrior vampires dedicated to the protection of their endangered race. Rhage is such a warrior - Proud, aloof and fiercely loyal to his kind, he's fighting everyday to keep his inner cursed self from wreaking too much havoc on their lives. Punished for an unforgivable and negligent slight, the Scribe Virgin (The vamps goddess) has cursed him with an alter ego, one that is only to happy to break out when the going gets tough and tough calls for a little more force. With the Lessers becoming an even more frequent problem, Rhage is finding it difficult to keep his beast from taking over. Of course, shy and innocent Mary Luce may have something to do with that too. Mary knows about curses. She's survived a gravely personal one of her own. When that same curse comes back to bite her where it counts, she's not looking for commitments of any kind. She's going to need all her strength to focus on her coming battle. So maybe that's why she didn't see Rhage coming. And man, does he ever come on strong. It's the kind of instant, primal attraction that every vampire knows is his body's way of saying "mine". And Mary is his. He'll have to fight literally tooth and nail for her, but he'll get what he wants, even if it means sacrificing what he wants most.
I was torn whether or not to continue with this series. Wrath's story in "Dark Lover" was an okay debut, but Rhage's story blew me away. With this second installment, readers are blessed with stellar character development and the continuation of a very unique plot that keeps getting better and better. The story has flowed nicely from the first book into this one and I was very pleased to see more details about the world that Ward has created. The subplot involving Zsadist and Bella was excellent and has left me weeping for the next book (releases Sept. '06, entitled "Lover Awakened"). We still get lots of Butch's smart alec comments, though I fear he may continue to be a supporting character only (I want to know more about him and Marissa, not just the snippets we're getting in this book!). Rhage was a much more interesting hero, and I felt I really came to know him and what made him tick. His helplessness about his curse intermingles nicely with his solid determination to have as much a life as possible with Mary. Mary, thank goodness, is just as interesting a heroine. Her own battle with a recurring medical problem draws readers in and her zeal for life invokes honest emotions that many of us have felt. My only wish was for a better insight into the lessers' motives and machinations. But hey, all in good time I suppose. I just love the way this series is going now, and I feel the tide has turned with this installmnet. It can only get better. Ward, we're all eagerly anticipating Zsadist's story!!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rhage Is Every Womans Fantasy, May 14 2009
LOVER ETERNAL is Rhage's story and oh man are we in for a treat. Continuing directly after DARK LOVER, we find The Black Dagger Brotherhood now living together in Darius's mansion. Wrath has stepped up to the throne with his Queen Beth by his side, as the battle with the Lessers continues. One of the things I loved about the book is that we get to know all the brother's a whole lot better here, their unique personalities along with all their quirks, fears and flaws. The constant teasing and smart a** comments are hilarious and the bond between the men instils in us a true sense of family.
Rhage, as this books hero is a great character. With a boyish style of charm he's funny, sexy and fiercely loyal. Throw in the playboy model good looks and yes he's every woman's fantasy except for one small thing. Rhage has been cursed by the Scribe Virgin and now bears the mark of a dragon inside and out. The only way for him to keep the beast quiet is with violence or sex, and Rhage hates himself for it. Struggling each day to keep from harming those closest to him because once the beast gets out its so violent and unpredictable that even the Brothers fear for their lives.
Mary has been fighting a curse of her own and fears that the cancer which robbed her of her looks and youth may have returned. She is, in her own words nothing special, plain and past her prime with a body battered by chemotherapy. When she befriends a young mute boy named John Mathew her life changes forever. Bella, Mary's friend and neighbour recognizes the boy as one of her own, a pre-transitioned vampire and strangely baring the mark of a warrior. Acting as John Mathew's translator, Mary finds herself at the Brotherhood mansion where she meets Rhage. He is instantly attracted to her, coming on strong although she can't understand what he sees in her. On their first date Mary assumes he's being polite and just wants to be friends but as Rhage continues to pursue her she is thrown into the world of the paranormal.
For Rhage Mary is IT. Her voice soothes him and he finds her to be the most beautiful, interesting woman he's ever met, wanting her like no other before, but unfortunately his beast wants her too. After being told repeatedly to `scrub' Mary's memories and defying direct orders Rhage ultimately must pay the price for his insubordination and this is quite the scene as the Brother's are forced to perform a `rythe' (a ritual where the recipient is struck by a weapon without defending himself) However this turns out to be only the first of his many sacrifices for Mary.
Rhage and Mary's love story is well done, heartbreakingly sweet but also erotic as hell. As Mary attempts to `tame' the chained beast while Butch and V stand guard. I honestly didn't know if they were going to get there HEA until the last few pages and Rhage's final meeting with the Scribe Virgin contains an absolutely heart wrenching scene that kept me gasping as I know her enjoyment of sacrifice.
Throughout this story we have of course go back and forth to the Lessers who have set up a torture facility and a side plot develops which finds Bella irresistibly drawn to Zsadist. He of course pushes her away but not before allowing us a glimpse of softness within `the cold one.' Phury warns her to leave him alone, explaining that his twin is ruined not broken but when the Lessers kidnap Bella's it's Zsadist who makes it his personal mission to find her. Setting up the premise for the next book in this fantastic series, LOVER AWAKENED and this story is not to be missed.
This series just gets better and better and if you like your paranormal romance than I can't recommend LOVER ETERNAL enough.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
"Hollywood" Rhage was amazing!, Sep 22 2009
I loved this book. It was even better then Dark Lover! I loved how Rhage loves Mary right from the beginning. He hears her voice and it soothes him like never before. The story of him falling for a human when it is against all the rules was so exciting. If she only knew about the Dragon inside of him - Would she leave him?? You'll have to read and find out! What a beautiful love story and OMG the intimacy scenes are wild! What a great series so far!
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by J. R. Ward
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