Review: Beauty

Reviewed by Shelly
 

I can't tell you how many times I put off reading this book for the simple reason that I didn't want the series to end. But alas, I grew some you- know-what and took the plunge. Oh my, my, it was totally worth it.

Beauty picks up right after we left Dante and Kaja from Beast. This story is about Bronwyn (how cool is that name, huh?) and her Dark Ones, Lachlan and Shim. Bronwyn, the sister of Beck and Cian (from Bound) is alive and living the life of the working class while her bonded mates are searching for her from one plane to the next.

For Sophie Oak fans, she offers a lot of characters from other series in a non-distracting way, but I think that if you’re a new reader to her work and read this as a stand-alone you can still enjoy the storyline because it’s just that good.

I found myself reading this story and thinking, WOW, I can’t believe Oak was able to pull that off! One of the wonderful things that I’m really coming to appreciate from this writer is that she’s able to blend unlikely genres/categories and make them very believable. Who knew BDSM was so popular, even with Unseelie Fae (or is it Faeries?)

Even as new characters were introduced, we really got a chance to get to know some of the characters from previous stories a little more, like vampire mercenary Simon Roan and Dante’s father, Alexander Dellacourt. I’m kinda hoping we see more of Roan, Harry and Gillian later on in a spin-off (*fingers crossed*).

Lachlan was my favorite hero in this story; he was the epitome of the tortured hero, both physically and mentally. He was by no means perfect and that’s what made him ideal for the other half of his symbiotic twin and such a great foil for Bronwyn’s ‘pureness’. As a necromancer, it’s by accepting his ‘gift’ that he finds his true purpose and his amazing strength.

Shim, the pyromancer, and the more affectionate of the twins, was wonderful as a Bronwyn’s number two. He clearly was such a likeable hero who was totally in-love with his wife that it was hard for me to see any wrong in him. Whatever he had to do to protect her, even the not so nice things, he would do. We get to see him going from being weak because of his love to a very strong and driven King --and let me tell you it was a wonderful journey to take.

The sex between these three was WOW! The boys definitely made drawing ‘first blood’ seem like every girl’s unlikely fantasy come true.

Of course, I have to mention something about Dante because that bad boy always make me laugh... His wife Kaja had some of the funniest lines – after Bronwyn tells her she doesn’t have to come along (and get in trouble) Kaja responds with all seriousness – “I do. I cannot break the sacred code of chicks before dicks…”

Overall, I completely enjoyed this ride and I’m hoping that there will be more about these families because they sure were a pleasure to read about.

Rating:  A

Beauty

by Sophie Oak

Release Date: June 15, 2012

Publisher: Siren