Genre: Paranormal
Heat Level: Hot
Rating:

“She needed a bargaining chip and this was it—Raif’s daughter’s life for hers. And he knew damned well I was right. Just as he’d assured me the night I’d killed Azriel, this was far from over. His daughter was alive; I knew it. And I was going to find her.” 

For months Darian and her Shaede guardian Raif have searched for the Oracle who attempted to overthrow the Shaede Nation—and kill Darian in the bargain. But now that they’ve finally found the half-crazed Oracle, for their efforts they are granted a possibility too painful for Raif to imagine, and too enticing for Darian to ignore. 

Darian is determined to reunite Raif and the daughter he thought was dead, but her mission quickly proves dangerous when her lover Tyler is almost killed. And when a brooding and mysterious Fae warrior offers his guidance—at an extraordinary price—Darian finds herself willing to risk everything. As her single-minded hunt turns into an obsession, and she and Tyler grow further apart, Darian finds herself caught between the man she loves like a brother, and the man whose love she can’t live without…  

Review

Not a standalone…

Normally I cut a lot of slack for paranormal novels of any type simply because a paranormal novel is similar to a fantasy and sometimes requires a chunk of the book to build a world. Unfortunately, for this story I found a world had already been created, and as a first time reader of the Shaede Assassin series I wasn’t allowed past a certain point. This is definitely a book which will require readers to absorb the first story in the series if you want to have a clear understanding of the second story.

10 Chapters in and I was still at a loss. The main character Darian is a hard-ass. She’s got a smart mouth and a vivacious nature, which naturally brings the attention of nearly every man she interacts with. Whether the attention she gets is good or bad, let’s just say she gets the attention. I don’t really like her… at all. For a being that was once human and who has been around for a century she acts a bit childish to me, very rough around the edges and more teenage-ish.

I also felt dragged through this book tooth and nail, things dragged a bunch and there were more questions than answers by the time I got to the end. But I truly think Darian killed the story for me. Too many moments of stupidity, and the villain was easy to read. This story played out to make a heroine look very idiotic and consumed with all the wrong things until just at the right minute. Darian is a character I loved to hate, and too often I felt like I would have done a better job in her shoes. At least I would have read the clues better; Darian’s no Nancy Drew.

The bright-side: super-hot action scenes and smexy guys. If you like your paranormal men sexy and wicked then Bonilla is sure to excite. We’ve got a Jinn that’s model-esque and a hot rod in bed. A couple of gorgeous Fae, and some higher ups in the Shaede world I wouldn’t mind getting to know better. There’s also plenty of fighting, alright a ton of fighting. From hand to hand combat to dagger and sword play those with a penchant for battle scenes won’t be disappointed. The ending is a cliff-hanger, I won’t say how but it is.

I give Blood Before Sunrise a 2.5 rating because I know fans of the first book will probably enjoy the love tangle, and dangerous edge to Darian in ways I was unable to. The rating also stands because Bonilla has created an interesting world, although I wasn’t impressed or interested until halfway through the book, and great action sequences. Overall, if you want to read this one start at the beginning because jumping in will just lead to confusion.

Reviewed by Landra

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