Review by Vicky London

Warning: there’s no way to avoid spoilers here so read on at your own risk. I’ll try to keep some of the interesting stuff a surprise. I’ve always wondered why series books don’t have a synopsis of what happened in the last book. Sometimes if it’s been a while I can’t quite remember where the story left off. So, in that spirit, here’s what happened in the last episode of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, Lover Avenged. Xhex was kidnapped by Lash, son of the Omega when the BDB invaded the sympath colony. Xhex and John Matthew had a few “encounters” that didn’t end so well. Xhex did her best to kill any feelings that John had for her, but luckily did not quite succeed. Rehvenge has ended his reign as drug lord and nightclub owner by faking his own death and moving into the BDB compound with his woman Ehlena. Wrath, the king, has taken up daily sparring sessions with Payne, Vishous’s ass kicking sister and daughter of the Scribe Virgin. Last but not least, Lash is trying to take Rehvenge’s place as Caldwell’s newest drug lord with the help of the Lessening Society. And that’s basically the highlights…

Now, for the cover blurb of Lover Mine:

In the darkest corners of the night in Caldwell, New York, a conflict like no other rages. Long divided as a terrifying battleground for the vampires and their enemies, the city is home to a band of brothers born to defend their race: the warrior vampires of the Black Dagger Brotherhood.

John Matthew has come a long way since he was found living among humans, his vampire nature unknown to himself and to those around him. After he was taken in by the Brotherhood, no one could guess what his true history was- or his true identity. Indeed, the fallen Brother Darius has returned, but with a different face and a very different destiny. As a vicious personal vendetta takes John into the heart of the war, he will need to call up on both who he is now and who he once was in order to face off against evil incarnate.

Xhex, a symphath assassin, has long steeled herself against the attraction between her and John Matthew. Having already lost one lover to madness, she will not allow the male of worth to fall prey to the darkness of her twisted life. When fate intervenes, however, the two discover that love, like destiny, is inevitable between soul mates.

John Matthew has been a part of most of the Black Dagger Brotherhood books and he finally gets one dedicated to him and his happy ending with Xhex. You knew that was coming right? Of course you did. He’s grown up fast in a lot of ways, including physically and emotionally. There weren’t a whole lot of surprises with him and Xhex, what I found more interesting was the development of Blay and his unrequited love for Qhuinn. Blay finally reaches his limit of the self-torture and something has gotta give.

There were several subplots intertwined as usual, including one involving John’s father, Darius and flashbacks to the 1600’s which give some more background on John’s adoptive father Tohr. There’s another involving the producer and host of a ghost hunter TV show that’s pretty confusing (and frankly, distracting) until the end. The common thread throughout the plots is Xhex and in true J.R. Ward fashion, she leaves a lot of story threads to pick up in future books. Overall, I thought Lover Mine was pretty delicious. John Matthew finally got some love and there’s plenty more to discover in this fascinating world of the Brotherhood.

Release Date: April 27, 2010
ISBN-10: 0451229851
ISBN-13: 978-0451229854

Popularity: 8% [?]

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