BLURB: Fionn Mór was once a high king of Ireland; a fierce warrior who led his tribes against the invading fae. It was a war he couldn’t win and to save his family he turned consort for the Fae Queen. Fionn escaped as the thing he once despised, and the people he loved betrayed him for it. Now, centuries later, it’s time to reopen the gates to Faerie to take his revenge against the Faerie Queen. At sixteen Rose Kelly discovered family secrets that changed her forever. Years after, she’s still lost, traveling across Europe in search of that elusive missing ‘something’. When she’s attacked by a vampire, not only is she wrenched into a supernatural underworld she never knew existed, a knock on the head releases a spell on her mind and unlocks powers beyond her wildest imaginings. And with them more questions. Questions Fionn Mór claims to have answers to. Following the powerful and enigmatic Fionn to Ireland, Rose quickly realizes she’s a pawn in his plan for vengeance. What begins as a passionate battle of wills leads to an inexplicable but undeniable connection. One that will force them to face an impossible choice between the deepest love… and the darkest revenge.
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BOOK REVIEW
Genre: Paranormal romance
Plot: 4.5
Characters:4
Writing style:5
Personal enjoyment: 4.5
Overall rating: 18/20
So I have been reading Samantha Young books for years now. I've loved all her contemporaries and her YA Fantasy/paranormal books are amazing (highly recommend her Ankh series!!) When I heard she was going to write Adult paranormal I was over the moon. Her first, War of Hearts did not disappoint and I have been waiting eagerly for her second standalone; Kiss of Vengeance. So you can imagine how ecstatic I was to be approved for an ARC! Ok enough fangirling onto the review!
KoV follows Rose, a woman whose eyes are opened to a world of supernaturals when she survives a Vampire attack. She then finds herself in the middle of a centuries old war against the Faes. With her newly awakened powers she has no choice but to turn to Fionn, who has his own reasons for helping her. And it's not as benign as he leads her to believe!
Samantha Young did a wonderful job in bringing this world alive. I love how she sets the scene from the very first page. It draws you in, with mystery and the promise of magic. That's why I love fantasy and paranormal reads so much, you don't have your usual reference points and anything can happen. We get dual PoVs so it is hard not to feel for Fionn, as we slowly find out the reasons behind his quest for revenge. The dreamwalking scenes were particularly enlightening as we get flashbacks of events from the past. The plot was fast paced, as we follow the characters trek across Europe in a cat and mouse game. I never felt bored. All the characters are interesting and some familiar faces from War of Hearts appear here too. That's why even though they are standalones I would recommend reading WoH too to enhance the enjoyment. There are a few secondary characters that deserve their own stories, and I hope they get one.
I am excited to read the next book in this series, even as this book ends with the main plot resolved, I feel an epic confrontation is still brewing and I cannot wait! If you like, werewolves, vampires, faes and romance and adventure, then this book may be for you. Would definitely recommend.
READ ON FOR AN EXCERPT FROM KISS OF VENGEANCE
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EXCERPT:
A thudding, prolonged bass, followed by electronic pop filled the club. The ethereal voice
of Ruelle echoed around the room. Rose knew the song. It was called “Live Like Legends.”
She looked out into the crowd of dancers to see they were writhing together, their
movements becoming more sexual as the music built to a crescendo. Wondering at the
strange feeling that had descended over her, Rose searched the dancers for something—she
didn’t know what. Perhaps for something that was out of place in the sixteenth-century
building turned nightclub.
“Hej, ti, naša pića!” A customer snapped his fingers in her face.
It successfully yanked her from her study of the dancers. “Don’t snap your fingers at me.”
She didn’t care if he couldn’t understand her. Her tone was of the universal language of, “I
don’t take shit from anyone.”
He sneered but thankfully shut up.
She’d just finished serving the rude guy when the music hit its peak, the bass and drums
deep and booming, strings—most likely violins—frenzied, beautiful, and the electronic pop
sound Ruelle was known for building to a climax in the same style of an epic movie trailer.
Awareness scored her spine, turning the damp, warm skin of her nape cool. It felt like strong
fingers clasping her neck.
The feeling was so ridiculously powerful, for a moment Rose thought there was someone
touching her. She spun away from the cash register, nostrils flaring as she took in the space
around her, finding not even her colleagues near. Both Petra and Josip were on the other sideof the circle.
And that’s when she felt it.
Like all the air had evacuated the room.
Chest tight, Rose gasped as her gaze shifted over the parting crowds. Her feet moved
without her command, stumbling toward the bar counter—as though someone had tied a rope
around her, lassoing her. Holding her captive.
Then she saw him.
Head and shoulders above everyone else, she saw a hulking figure, hair of indiscriminate
color illuminated every few seconds by the dancing beams of light. The crowd parted for him
as he glided through the sea of bodies. For such a big man, he moved gracefully, light as air,
impossibly so … almost otherworldly.
Longish hair framed his bold face, the ends tickling his angular jawline. His nose was a
sharp blade to match the sharp angles of his cheekbones. Thick stubble covered the lower
half of his face, surrounding a mouth pressed tight with concentration as his head swung from
left to right, as though he were searching for something or someone.
Rose swallowed hard, her mouth dry. The man was mammoth. He had to be over six and a
half feet tall. If his height wasn’t enough to draw attention, the way he dressed was. The club
was hot, yet he swept through the rabble wearing a dark three-piece suit and a long, black
wool overcoat.
He paused, his heavy brows drawing together. His body language reminded her of an
animal catching a scent, alert, rigid—a hunter beneath that civilized attire. Then his head
snapped in her direction and their eyes locked.
An invisible weight slammed into Rose’s chest, and she wheezed. Thankfully, the loss of
breath lasted seconds, and she sucked in a huge gulp of air. “Fuck,” she whispered, shaking
as the stranger continued to stare at her.
The lasers of light bounced off his face, highlighting eyes so green they couldn’t be
human.
It’s the lasers, Rose told herself. No one’s eyes are that color unless they’re wearing
contacts.
Nothing, however, explained the intensity of feeling that held her still beneath the man’s
regard.
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