King Arthur Movie Tristan

title: The Darkest Pleasure Book 3 in the Lords of the Underworld Series

author: Gena Showalter

genre: paranormal romance

published: 2008

pages: 374

first line: Reyes stood on the roof of his Budapest fortress, five stories up, his feet balanced precariously on the highest ledge.


rated: 3 1/2 out of 5

Reyes is a man possessed. Bound by the demon of pain, he is forbidden to know pleasure. Yet he craves a mortal woman, Danika Ford, more than breath and will do anything to claim her—even defy the gods.


Danika is on the run. For months she's eluded the Lords of the Underworld, immortal warriors who won't rest until she and her family have been destroyed. But her dreams are haunted by Reyes, the warrior whose searing touch she can't forget. Yet a future together could mean death to all they both hold dear.…

The Darkest Pleasure is book 3 in Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld Series. In this series, after opening Pandora's Box, a group of immortal men have been cursed to house demons for eternity. They live in a remote castle in Budapest.


Just to name a few, Maddox is the Keeper of Violence, Paris is the Keeper of Promiscuity, Reyes the Keeper of Pain and Lucien is the Keeper of Death.




Each one of these immortals keeps these demons inside himself, the demon always part of his thinking and awareness, almost like an inner voice. These demons make life for these men nearly unbearable and love almost impossible.
Each book in the series involves all of the immortals, but centers on one in particular and adds a heroine to the mix.



Book three centers on the immortal Reyes, the Keeper of Pain. I've actually been interested in reading Reyes story since I read the first book in the series.
Reyes houses the Demon of Pain which will not rest until Reyes injures himself, badly. *see the first line quoted above* His demon craves agony and Reyes finds himself craving it as well. It's almost like an addiction. He'll injure himself, heal quickly, only to have to do it again and again, for all eternity. Small injuries don't please his demon. Reyes jumps off buildings, shatters bones, has his spleen removed, stabs himself...stuff like that. If he doesn't injure himself on a regular basis, Reyes will have to injure others.




Reyes falls for Danika Ford the first time he sees her, in book 1. Danika and her family are on the run after being held captive by the Lords themselves.



One of the Lords, Aeron, has been ordered by the Titans to kill Danika and her family. Aeron however, does not want to kill the family, but his demon is craving it. He begs Reyes to trap him deep underground, near Hades, where he won't be able to do harm. This is where the storyline with Danika and Reyes begins in book 3.


Danika also finds herself unable to forget the beautiful and haunted Reyes since she first sees him. She is confused however as to whether the Lords are friends or enemies.





While on the run and in disguise, Danika is captured by Hunters, humans who dedicate their lives to finding and capturing the Lords of the Underworld. However, these Hunters use extreme measures and aren't in their right minds themselves.


When Reyes finds out Danika has been captured, he goes to save her.
Danika and Reyes are instantly drawn to each other when they reunite but Reyes wonders if Danika is secretly working with Hunters to bring the Lords down.
He also wonders if his 'angel', which is what he calls her, can truly love him despite his demon constantly craving physical pain.



As the story unfolds the Lords discover that Danika has a special power of her own.

He was right and wrong wrapped in the same sensual package, with a kiss and flavor that transported her at once to the heights of heaven and the depths of hell.




He had sprung from her nightmares, yet he had become her fantasy, weaving gossamer wings of desire through her every cell. He was the only thing she wanted and everything she shouldn't have.

I like how Gena Showalter gives her heroes heart and soul and makes her heroines smart and sassy. These reads are fun. Plus I'm a sucker for Alpha males. Funny enough I don't read many paranormals, but this author has become a favorite.






I read and really enjoyed the first book in this series, The Darkest Night. I stumbled upon it at the bookstore one day and am very glad I did. The second book is called The Darkest Kiss, and was so-so for me mostly because of the influx of different characters and a plot that was a bit too busy for me. I didn't want to give up on this series and have been meaning to get back into it. I am glad I finally did.



I liked reading about Danika and Reyes and I wondered how these two would work it out. The love scenes were well written, thankfully they weren't 'over the top', considering Reyes loves pain. The author found a way for these two characters to be together despite the violent demon Reyes houses.


I liked how Reyes was torn between his love for Danika and just leaving her be. He's a great hero, tormented and sensitive. He didn't want to corrupt Danika, he considers her an angel.

The storyline was fun, the writing was fast paced and I do look forward to the next book in the series. I also liked how the author weaved in other characters to the plot, new and old. It wasn't overwhelming. One thing I disliked was the length of the book, I felt like it could have been 50 pages or so shorter. Other than that, this was a good read.




If you enjoy paranormal romance, Alpha males and lots of action, you might like this series. I recommend reading them in order though.


Next in the series is The Darkest Whisper, which centers on Sabin who houses the Demon of Doubt.










R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril Challenge

title: The Darkest Kiss (Lords of the Underworld, Book 2)

author: Gena Showalter


genre: paranormal romance

published: 2008

pages: 384

first line: He was known as the Dark One.


rated: 3 out of 5

He is Death, destined to be her executioner.



Ordered by the gods to escort the tempestuous Anya’s soul to hell, Lucien is an immortal warrior torn between duty and desire. For Anya sparks the flames of passion inside him as no one else ever has.


She is Anarchy, as beautiful as she is deadly.



There is nothing Anya wants more than to be Lucien’s lover. His half-hearted attempts to kill her are exhilarating. His kisses – electrifying.



They should have been enemies but they become allies, traveling the world to find and destroy an ancient relic of the gods before it can be used against him -- separating them for eternity.

After reading The Darkest Night (Lords of the Underworld, Book 1), I knew I wanted to continue reading Gena Showalter's Darkest Night Series.

The Darkest Kiss (Lords of the Underworld, Book 2) takes right off where The Darkest Night left off. In the
Lords of the Underworld series, a group of immortal men live have been cursed to house demons for eternity. They opened Pandora's Box and now have to live with demons inside themselves. In The Darkest Kiss, Lucien, is the Keeper of Death:

Because he was the one to open the box, he had been given the demon of Death. A fair exchange, he supposed, for his action had nearly caused the demise of the world.

Now he was charged with the responsibility of collecting human souls and escorting them to their final resting place. Even if they opposed.

As soon as Anya, goddess of Anarchy, finds the Lords of the Underworld, she falls in love with Lucien. She keeps herself hidden, and basically begins to stalk Lucien, following his every move. When she makes herself known to him, Lucien is weary of her. Hunters are always on the lookout for the immortals, wanting to kill them, especially the Lords of the Underworld. But once Lucien realizes Anya is not a hunter, he still wonders why she wants him. He is badly scarred and all the brothers consider him to be 'the ugly one'. But Anya won't give up that easy, she knows she wants Lucien and sets out to seduce him.



Lucien has been ordered by the gods to kill Anya, but he can't bring himself to do it. As the Lords of the Underworld travel distant locations in search of an ancient relic, Anya and Lucien pair up. Anya does everything she can to seduce him.



I enjoyed The Darkest Kiss (Lords of the Underworld, Book 2) . Lucien and Anya are great characters and the chemistry between the two is hot. I liked that Anya is a strong woman, she doesn't take 'no' for an answer and can take care of herself. Lucien is a great hero.



This is a fun series. I'll be reading book three. If you like paranormal romance, Alpha males and a fun and sexy plot, you may want to give this series a try. The love scenes were done really well.

Lucien's tongue thrust against hers in a white-hot kiss that would haunt her waking and sleeping for thousands of years to come. Dead or alive. It was bliss and it was agony. It was heaven and it was hell. Having his flavor drown her so perfectly, his strength and heat at the ready, craving more.

The one thing I didn't like about this book was that towards the end, there was too much involved. The plot kept jumping from Anya and Lucien to a few of the other Lords. I felt like that made the book longer than it needed to be. But all in all, this was an enjoyable read.











The Lords of the Underworld have thier own website: http://www.lordsoftheunderworld.net/









About the author:

Gena Showalter sold her first book at the age of 27 and now, four years later, is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thirteen books, with eleven more on the way in a thrilling blend of genres: breathtaking paranormal and contemporary romances, cutting edge young adult novels, and stunning urban fantasy.


Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, MTV, Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in French, Italian and Korean. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.

visit her blog: http://genashowalter.blogspot.com/

Hear Gena talk about her books:

title: The Darkest Night


author: Gena Showalter

pages: 374

published: 2008

genre: paranormal romance

first line: Every night Death came, slowly, painfully, and every morning Maddox awoke in bed, knowing he’d have to die again later.

rated: 4 out of 5

An immortal warrior cursed to die every night, only to awaken the next morning knowing he has to die again. A mortal woman with a power beyond imagining...



All her life, Ashlyn Darrow has been tormented by voices from the past. To end the nightmare, she has come to Budapest seeking help from men rumored to have supernatural abilities, not knowing she’ll be swept into the arms of Maddox, their most dangerous member – a man trapped in a hell of his own.



Neither can resist the instant hunger that calms their torments. . .and ignites an irresistible passion. But every heated touch and burning kiss will edge them closer to destruction—and a soul-shattering test of love...

In The Darkest Night, a group of immortal men live together in a remote castle in Budapest. These men have been cursed to house demons for eternity. Torin is
Keeper of Disease, Maddox is the Keeper of Violence, Paris is the Keeper of Promiscuity, Reyes the Keeper of Pain and Aeron is the Keeper of Wrath. Each night at midnight, Maddox is cursed to die a painful death then spend the night in Hell with his demon, Violence.

Maddox had been given Violence, the demon who was now as much a part of him as his lungs or his heart. Now, man could no longer live without demon and demon could no longer function without man. They were woven together, two halves of a whole.

Ashlyn Darrow has the gift of being able to hear the past thoughts and voices of the people who had been in that same location.

She couldn’t live with the voices anymore.



Ashlyn had only to stand in one location and she could hear every conversation that had ever taken place there, no matter how much time had passed. Present, past, any and all languages, it didn’t matter. She could hear them in her mind, translate them even. A gift, some assumed. A nightmare, she knew.

Ashlyn travels to Budapest, in order to find these men who have been rumored to live in a fortress and are said to be angels...or demons. The men are said to have supernatural abilities, and Ashlyn hopes they can help her to get rid of these voices.




Once she is in the forest nearing the castle where the men live, she runs into Maddox.
He warns her to leave, or she will be killed. The men live a secluded life and are always on the lookout for those who may be hunting them. Maddox wonders if Ashlyn is a hunter, but something about her draws him to her. She notices that the voices are silent when she is around him. It is near midnight, and he is trying to get rid of her so he can go and 'die' violently. It also doesn't help that as he is 'dying' each night, he needs to be chained up so he wont hurt anyone, since his demon forces him into fits of violence.
He ends up taking Ashlyn home with him, and having her stay there while he 'dies' that night. Soon enough he tells Ashlyn what he really is.


I really liked The Darkest Night. Gena Showalter's writing keeps you hooked and the characters are likeable and interesting.


***NEW favorite hero alert****



Maddox makes a great hero. He is strong, tormented and well...hot. I liked Ashlyn's character too. I like that she and Maddox don't rush into sex right away. The love scenes were well done. There's romance and tension between the two, it made it a believeable storyline.

Air burned his throat, his lungs. "Tell me you want me."

"I want you," Ashlyn all but shouted.

"Tell me you need me."

"I need you."

"Tell me you'll never betray me."

"I'll never betray you."

At least she hadn't hesitated. Something inside him softened, melted. "Where do you want to be?" he asked, the words almost a plea. Need me as much as I need you.

The plot is interesting and the story is well written.
I also like the other 'brothers'...mostly Reyes. I am interested in the other books in this series and will be reading them as well.



The Lord of the Underworld have thier own site: http://www.lordsoftheunderworld.net/



About the author:

Gena Showalter sold her first book at the age of 27 and now, four years later, is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thirteen books, with eleven more on the way in a thrilling blend of genres: breathtaking paranormal and contemporary romances, cutting edge young adult novels, and stunning urban fantasy.


Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, MTV, Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in French, Italian and Korean. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.

visit her blog: http://genashowalter.blogspot.com/


Here's an author interview with Gena:





Special thanks to j.kaye, I won this book at her blog over the summer, and I'm glad I finally read it.