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Book Review: Born of Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Reviewer: Lindsey Fairleigh

Title: Born of Night (formerly "Born of the Night")

Series: The League (book 1)
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon

Indie or Traditional: Traditional (St. Martin)

Genre(s): Romance, Science Fiction, Space, Aliens

Main Character(s): Kiara Zamir, Nykyrian Quiakides/Nemesis

Rating: 4/5 stars

Goodreads

Amazon

Sherrilyn Kenyon's website


PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION:
In the Ichidian Universe, The League and their ruthless assassins rule all. Expertly trained and highly valued, the League Assassins are the backbone of the government. But not even the League is immune to corruption . . .

Command Assassin Nykyrian Quikiades once turned his back on the League—and has been hunted by them ever since. Though many have tried, none can kill him or stop him from completing his current mission: to protect Kiara Zamir, a woman whose father’s political alliance has made her a target.

As her world becomes even deadlier, Kiara must entrust her life to the same kind of beast who once killed her mother and left her for dead. Old enemies and new threaten them both and the only way they can survive is to overcome their suspicions and learn to trust in the very ones who threaten them the most: each other.

LF'S REVIEW:

I liked Born of Night quite a bit, though there were a few negatives that kept it from being a five-star book for me. This is my third Sherrilyn Kenyon book, preceded on my virtual shelf by Fantasy Lover and Night Pleasures of the Dark-Hunter series, and I have to admit it's my favorite of her books so far. Though each is engaging and nicely steamy, all three romances left me with the questions: Why do the h/H love each other, and how did that happen so quickly? That being said, BoN is the least guilty of this, and I have to admit to thoroughly enjoying Kenyon's writing style. Okay, let's get down to some details...

WARNING: Spoilers may lie ahead!

WHAT I LOVED:

• The world building. Period. It was so fan-freaking-tastic I don't really know what to say. The way I see it, there are two options for introducing readers to a fictional (especially a science fictional or fantastical) world: (1) Let the reader discover the world with the MC(s), or (2) describe it so dang well that even though it's completely different from the world we're currently living in, it's easy to see--it's believable. BoN falls into the latter category, with plenty of alien races and planets and crazily spelled names, but despite those complexities, my mind remained unboggled thanks to the skill with which the world was crafted. 
• The characters, especially Nykyrian and Kiara. Nyk was the quintessential tortured hero with a very troubled, often gray past, and Kiara, despite being a super wealthy and adored princess/dancer, had about as kind of a heart as a person can have. Her kindness is essentially the balm that soothes Nyk's many devastating emotional wounds, and that makes her character eternally lovable in my opinion.
• There was an amazing "Oh shit! No she didn't!" moment reminiscent of one from KMM's Fever series, though the succeeding anticipatory "How the hell is Kenyon going to fix this" moment didn't last nearly as long. It was very well done. I shall say no more.
• The Lorinas. Who doesn't love a temperamental cat-like alien creature that is utterly devoted to its humanoid owner?
• The super steamy but not gratuitous sex scenes. For not having much experience, Nyk sure seems to know what he's doing!
• By the end of the book, I was really rooting for Nyk and Kiara to find a way to be together. 

WHAT I DIDN'T LOVE :

• The "Oops! I'm pregnant!" phenomenon strikes again. This cross-genre trend is driving me bonkers. Our MC, Kiara, who just happens to be the princess of an entire freaking planet in the future, affording her all the education and social grace that customarily come with such a position, is oblivious to the basic facts of life. Yes, sweetie, when a man and a woman have sex--repeatedly--without using any kind of protection (or even considering it, either in prep or in regret post-coitus), it is quite common for said man to end up impregnating said woman. 
• Syn's mood swings. First, he thinks Kiara is great, then he hates her with a fiery passion and isn't afraid to show her and Nyk evidence of his hatred at any possible moment, and then...viola! He marches back on page and is the most compassionate, kind, supportive friend to Kiara. I suppose it is possible that I missed something and this abrupt change from "I hate you and hope the assassins succeed in killing you" to "I'll be here for you, whatever you need" is actually explained...
• Kiara's dad is such an uber-douche. Really? Really? Was it absolutely necessary to order Nyk's immediate execution after he saved your daughter's life about a thousand times and returned her safely to you? Really? Fine, whatever, but would an apology be so difficult? Maybe just a teeny weeny one?

OVERALL:

So, despite the negatives listed, this book had strong enough positives and was just so dang enjoyable that it earned four out of five stars from me. I liked it, a lot, and I think it's safe to say I'll be reading Born of Fire, the next book in the series. I would recommend Born of Night to anyone who loves a sexy romance with a reality-bending twist. Fans of PNR would probably find this a good gateway book into the SFR genre.

4/5 stars

Goodreads Book Giveaway

After The Ending

by Lindsey Fairleigh

Giveaway ends August 21, 2013.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

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Move Review: World War Z Movie Review

Reviewer: Lindsey Pogue

Rating: PG-13/ 116 minutes
Genre: Action | Adventure | Horror
Starring: Brad Pitt, David Morse, Mireille Enos, Daniella Kertesz
Director: Marc Forster
Book Adaptation: World War Z, By Max Brooks (Apocalyptic Horror)
LP’s Rating: 5/5 stars


Basic Overview: A pandemic spreads throughout the world infecting billions of people, and in turn collapses armies and governments leaving everyone who's left to scramble for answers. Retired United Nations investigator Gerry Lane (Pitt) is called upon to investigate the origin and science behind the virus that’s threatening to destroy humanity itself. In order to keep his family protected, Lane agrees to traverse the world, digging up and following leads he hopes will lead him to the origin of the virus.

My Review. Although I’m an avid reader and I co-author a post-apocalyptic sci-fi book series, I’m not typically an end-of-the-world sort of reader. Movies, however, are a completely different story. When I heard they were making WWZ into a movie, and that Brad Pitt was going to star in it, I instantly thought, “this is going to be…interesting.” It was difficult for me to picture and really get excited about Brad Pitt and zombies. However, going into the movie knowing little about it, I had little to no expectations about the film, and I ended up being very pleasantly surprised by the story line. Don’t get me wrong, I like Brad Pitt as an actor. Who doesn't? But Brad Pitt and zombies didn’t seem like a believable or satisfying pairing to me. I was wrong.

Why did I like it? WWZ isn’t your typical zombie story—it has complexity, science, intrigue, and tons of on-the-edge-of-your-seat suspense and action.

It’s realistic. WWZ isn’t about a genetically altered badass or crazy gunslinger who single-handedly try to save the world nor was it about power hungry extremist. It's more organic than that. Yes, Lane is the hero of the story, but he doesn't save the world on his own, or do it with any ease whatsoever. Lane's drive is more human and relatable than say, Alice from Resident Evil (even though I love her). This movie is thoughtful and realistic in terms of what actions would be taken, the anatomy of the virus, and how and who might actually be able to get to the bottom of it and discover weakness, cures, and so on. WWZ, to me, seems feasible, which makes the story that much more frightening and realistic. It's more of a behind-the-scenes look at what the government (at least what remains of it) would do in order to stop the virus, who they’d call upon to help, how the world as a whole is affected, and so on.

Suspense. Without giving too much away, this movie is stressful—in a good way—to watch. Just when you think Lane might catch a break, that some of his team members might live or that answers may have been uncovered, the situation gets worse and the plans fall apart. Lane is forced to think of his feet and work with strangers in nearly every scene just to stay alive. Nothing in life is ever easy, right? There is little about this movie that's convenient, another reason why I appreciated it so much. All 116 minutes are a struggle and every minute of it you're hoping Lane will catch a much needed break.

The science. The more “interactions” Lane has with the infected, the more he observes. What sets them off? Who is it that they kill? Is it everyone, or…? Why? The more he sees, the more questions he has about their weaknesses and the way the virus works. Everything has some sort of weakness, right? What is the biology of nature? As a hypothesis begins to form, Lane is forced to make some very hard decisions as to how exactly he’s going to test them, making every moment up until the very end, thrilling.

My recommendation. I really enjoyed this movie, but that’s me. I’m not a fan of over-the-top horror movies like so many of them are. For a movie to be truly unsettling and considered “scary”, it needs to be plausible and this story does that for me. It makes me think…what if? I would recommend it to anyone who likes a deeper level of involvement from the audience—an action/horror film with complexity, humanity, and a character's sheer will to stay alive--if not for his family than for himself. This movie makes me want to read the book.

Check it out.

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