Review + Giveaway - My Immortal Assassin by Carolyn Jewel

Tempted by Revenge, Bound by Desire...

TITLE:    My Immortal Assassin

AUTHOR:    Carolyn Jewel
INFO:    Paperback, Fiction, 358 pages
PUBLISHED:   Forever, 2010
ISBN#:   978-0-446-56386-4

HOW I GOT IT:   Received from Forever Books for Review & Blog Tour

FROM GOODREADS:  Revenge. It's all Grayson Spencer wants. Christophe dit Menart, a human with dark magical powers, destroyed the life she loved. She wants the pleasure of killing him, no matter the cost to her. If not for Durian, a dangerously sexy demon fiend charged with keeping Christophe alive, she would have succeeded, too. Now, she's certain all hope is gone. But he has a plan and an offer she can't resist...

Durian has spent his life as a trained and sanctioned assassin. His duty: to enforce the laws against demons harming humans. He's always prided himself on staying out of the fray, carrying out his orders and honoring his fealty to his warlord, but never getting attached. Never until Grayson, a spunky and determined woman clearly gifted with magic herself. He convinces her to swear fealty to him so he can protect her and teach her to use her magic to taste the revenge she so desperately wants.

They're soon bound together in a forbidden desire--a dangerous passion that calls into question Durian's oath of loyalty to his warlord. When he refuses to return her to Christophe, his disobedience threatens to inflame the tumultuous war between demons and the magekind. Can they--and their love--survive?

MY TAKE:   Fiends aren't usually what comes to mind when I think of a love story.  That was before I read My Immortal Assassin.  I have to admit that the hunky Durian really changed my mind on that matter.  Carolyn Jewel has conjured up some extremely yummy good bad boys! 

I haven't yet read the first two books, My Wicked Enemy and My Forbidden Desire so I wasn't familiar with the storyline.  It didn't take long to catch on to the plot.  These are all stand alone books, but I think reading them in order would definitely enhance the enjoyment of the series.  The included glossary in this book is very helpful with the terminology and helped me fill in any gaps I may have found. 

The author has taken us into a fascinating world where magic and evil are prevalent and out there for anyone to see, if they know where to look.  Demons, mages and witches walk the streets and rub shoulders with humans.  It's an interesting underworld to our every day, oblivious lives.

Durian is a very complex man/fiend/hero.  He's tough and tender, scary and sentimental all at the same time.  He's a very disciplined and methodical killer.  Of course it always helps to be devastatingly gorgeous and possess magical skills.

Gray is an interesting woman.  She starts out with the rage and motive for revenge that an assassin needs, but not the training.  Her courage and perserverance make Durian want to learn more about her while he's teaching her the art of killing and survival.  When she starts to come into her own magic, she really turns things around and sets Durian on his heels.

I think the only negative I would have is that the ending was a bit rushed for me.  I felt that it could have been drawn out a bit instead of tying things up so quickly.  Of course, that could just be me - I wanted more!  I am thrilled that there is more to come with a fourth book out this summer My Dangerous Pleasure.

     

You can learn more about the author at her website, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and don't forget to check out the author interview I posted earlier today. 
   

Out of 5 JEWELS, I give it:

WHERE TO BUY IT:   Amazon,  The Book Depository, Indiebound, Powell's Books

Thanks to the generosity of the author and Hachette Books, we have a copy of My Immortal Assassin for TWO of you lucky ducks.  Whoo hooo!  Entering is simple:

• Leave a comment WITH your email.
• Contest closes February 9th. Winners will have 72 hours  to reply with address.
• Open to readers with US and Canadian addresses only.  NO PO BOXES
• One prize per household no matter how many times your name is drawn (here or on other blogs)

~~~~~ Disclaimer:  All opinions expressed on this blog are 100% my own.  I do not receive monetary compensation for my reviews but do utilize affiliate links.  I may receive books in  order to facilitate a review, but this does not guarantee a good review - only a completely honest one.  Each review post denotes how I obtained the book.