Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Blog Tour: The Dark Ones (The Dark Ones Saga #1) by Rachel Van Dyken




Rating 5 out of 5 stars
Release Date: Sept 20, 2015


BLURB:


To touch a Dark One is death.
To talk to an immortal is suicide.
Yet, I've been marked by both.
A Vampire.
And the King of the immortals.
My life is no longer my own.
And now I know the truth, my life was never mine to begin with.
It was theirs.
It's always been theirs.

GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24470460-the-dark-ones?ac=1
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-dark-ones-rachel-van-dyken/1122037625?ean=2940151940955
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/546999
iBooks: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-dark-ones/id1001782899?mt=11



Review:

First, I would like to thank Rachel Van Dyken for writing a book that made me say one more chapter and then sleep and it turned out that the one chapter was actually thirty and I stayed up way longer then I planned. I just wanted to read a couple of chapters before I went to sleep and I ended up finishing the whole book!

The action picked up around the last fifteen chapters and I couldn't put the book down. The story for the second book has been set up and I want to go to Rachel Van Dyken and make her give me the second book right now. Probably it's not even yet and I am expecting it (the con of having an ARC). The book ends with a cliffhanger if I might say so. You can just end a book in that point! Genesis story ends in this book in a nice happily ever after. She gets her man and a family that loves her. The cliffhanger is mostly about Cassius. 

And now you will probably ask; who is Genesis and Cassius? The blurb doesn't reveal a lot about the story or the characters. Genesis is a human who is the protagonist of this story. Her number is called and she must serve the vampire whose name is Ethan. The dark one from the blurb is Cassius and he is a lot more than the villain he wants us to believe he is. I don't want to give away too much, but I will say that in the universe of the saga we meet several species of paranormal creatures.

Since The dark ones are a Rachel Van Dyken book I didn't even bother to read the blurb when I requested an ARC and I wasn't happily surprised when I finally read the blurb. I knew from Elite/Elect that the author writes love triangles so I wasn't sure how I was going to handle this. I had nothing to worry about though, because there is no love triangle. Genesis develops a mating bond with her man and she has eyes only for him. I hope that works for some of the other species too.

What I liked was how easily I came to like Stephanie, Mason and Alex. They are great secondary characters who have their own stories to tell and I can't decide whose story I want next. They author made it obvious who is going to be the main couple in the second book, but the other two deserve equally a happy ending.

The one problem I had with this book was the names of Genesis and Cassius. Genesis name is explained in the story and it serves a purpose, but every time I read it, I kept thinking of the book Genesis in the bible. Cassius is also the name for some kind of nuts and I had a craving most of the time for those nuts.

I am recommending this book to all the paranormal lovers and to the ones who want to try this genre out. The pace is quick and you see something new in every chapter. I mean we see the form of flashbacks, some back story of Ethan and Cassius and how they started hating each other and I liked that. The hero is a hot alpha male and the sex scenes are hot, so I don't see why you should read this book.



EXCERPT:

I still tasted her blood on my lips, was embarrassed for the first time in a century when Alex glanced up from his spot at the kitchen table to see me licking my lips like I'd just devoured the poor girl.
He shook his head. "Been that long, huh?"
"Alex…" I closed my eyes and prayed for patience. "…remind me why I let you live here?"
"I'm good-looking," he answered simply. "Besides, I'm a hell of a fighter — scrappy, I think is how you define my kind. You need me."
"Stop." I pressed my fingertips to my temples and rubbed. The ache to have her had consumed me so much that I'd run down the stairs moving so fast I'd nearly collided with a wall, and grabbed blood from the fridge.
I didn't need it.
But I craved it.
And if I didn't drink the donated blood, I sure as hell was going to drain her and enjoyed very last drop.
"I wonder…" Alex's voice pierced my thoughts. "What's it like?" He leaned forward. "Having to learn self-control all over again… being as ancient as you are?"
I ignored him.
He kept talking.
"Blood-free for a century and now…" He grinned and licked his lips. "Kind of like falling off the wagon, yeah?"
"You're giving me a headache." I threw the empty bag of blood at his face. He moved to the side and snickered. "And I'm fine. Everything is just—"
Her smell was intoxicating. She was walking down the stairs, so her heart picked up speed, her body giving off a scent of burnt vanilla and oranges with a hint of sugar. My mouth literally watered.
"Fine?" Alex said in a mocking voice. "Was that what you were going to say? Damn, man show a little decorum, you look… starved."
"I am," I whispered and fought the urge to rock back and forth. That was the problem with mating — with bonding. Nothing tasted like her, nothing ever would, and typically, having her as my mate gave me full access.
But the more I took…
The stronger the bond.
And the more I wanted…
It was a vicious overwhelming cycle. It would lead me to become emotionally invested while she, as a human, could simply pretend.
It wasn't fair.
Immortals, in essence, were cursed with a deep desire to be like a human — to possess them, to bond with them forever — while humans only felt the same draw to us if they actually loved us.
Ridiculous.
"Oh, there you are." Stephanie pushed Genesis forward and pulled out a chair.
Slowly, Genesis took a seat and glared at each one of us. "Where's Mason?"
It shouldn't have pissed me off.
But it had.
"He's none of your concern," I spat.
"Easy!" Alex chuckled. "Rule number one, don't ask your mate where the other dude is. Just… don't."
Genesis blinked at Alex then back at me. "Because you guys have the capacity for jealousy."
Alex whistled while Stephanie laughed.
Immortals were the most jealous beings on the planet. Had her school taught her nothing?
Was I to be her tutor as well?
"So…" Alex trained his eyes on her, putting her at as much ease as he could without stopping her poor heart. "Now that the mating is complete, you get to learn all about us and service your man here." He slapped my back.
Really. Really. Poor choice of words.
Genesis paled.
I rolled my eyes. "He's kidding."
Alex laughed. "I think it needs to be said that having a human at the house has already helped my mood immensely."
"That makes one of you," Genesis said under her breath.
Alex leaned forward and whispered, "Ethan, try not to be so grouchy. Keep the fangs in and all."
I extended them just to prove a point.
Genesis recoiled.
I instantly felt guilty.
Damn it.
"You won't…" I licked my lips. "You won't have to service me, as Alex so delicately put it."
"Is that what mates do?" Genesis asked, her eyes searching mine. "They…" She lifted her hands into the air and dropped them.
"If that's what you think they do, we have a very big problem." Alex mimicked her movements and winked.
She blushed.
I hissed at him and returned my attention to her. "It's like a human relationship, only stronger. You'll attend functions with me, be by my side, at my beck and call for as long as you live."
I didn't want to say until one day she just didn't wake up. It sounded too cruel.
"And when I'm bored out of my mind… I do what?" She crossed her arms. "I mean, what could you possibly need from me?"
"Adorable." Alex sighed happily. "I'm so glad we kept her."
"Alex…" I was two seconds away from slamming him into the nearest wall. "Make yourself useful and find our human a snack."
"I'm not a pet!" Genesis yelled. "And I'm not your human!"
"You are," I yelled right back, "mine!"
"Kids." Stephanie stepped between us.
I didn't even realize I'd gotten out of the chair and was towering over her, fangs out, hands raised. She'd turned me into a monster. And still, my eyes found her erratic pulse. One more taste…
"Ethan—" Stephanie pushed against my chest. I didn't move. "Ethan!"
"Friend…" Mason walked into the room. "Sit your ass down before she hands it to you."
"Like she could!" I roared.
"Like I have!" Stephanie pushed me again. "Don't tempt me… again."
I sat, while Mason made his way over to Genesis and offered an easy smile. The man had nothing to smile about, yet he was smiling — at my mate.
I growled.
Mason gave me the finger and kept his attention trained on Genesis. "How do you feel?"
"Better." She returned his smile and squeezed his outstretched hand. "Thanks for not… killing me when I asked."
"Damn…" Alex said from the kitchen.
"You were in pain." Mason shrugged. "And I'm glad you're alright."
"She's fine. We're fine. Everything's fine," I said through clenched teeth. "Now it's probably time to give her answers before she thinks she can run off and actually survive in the real world without being hunted by a Dark One, or worse, found by Cassius."
"He isn't all bad," Stephanie said defensively.
We all glared at her.
"What?" She lifted her hands into the air. "I'm just saying he's been trying as hard as we have. So what if he's gotten a bit possessive over the last few numbers that have been called."
Alex slammed his fist onto the table. "He stole Ethan's—"
"Enough." I held up my hand. The pain in my chest grew until it was hard to breathe. I knew what would take that pain away.
Genesis.
But I was too angry to ask for it. Too ashamed to fall to my knees in front of a mere mortal and beg for her to end the pain by allowing me one solitary drop of her blood.
As if on cue, another bag of blood hit me in the head.
Alex must have sensed my mood.
I bit into it and looked away from Genesis's horrified expression.



ABOUT RACHEL VAN DYKEN:


Rachel Van Dyken is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author of regency and contemporary romances. When she's not writing you can find her drinking coffee at
Starbucks and plotting her next book while watching The Bachelor.
She keeps her home in Idaho with her Husband, adorable son, and two snoring boxers! She loves to hear from readers!
Want to be kept up to date on new releases? Text MAFIA to 66866! You can connect with her on Facebook www.facebook.com/rachelvandyken or join her fan group Rachel's New Rockin Readers. Her website is www.rachelvandykenauthor.com.

Links: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RachelVanDyken
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RachVD
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4882127.Rachel_Van_Dyken?from_search=true
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Rachel-Van-Dyken/e/B0054TW5AA/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1407369649&sr=8-2-ent
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