Review: a great read
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 7, 2013
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this title from the author in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way affected my opinion of the book.When Ms Reine contacted me and asked if I'd like to read Sacrificed in Shadow, I thought Sure. I mean, I read Six Moon Summer a little while ago, and have the following books in that series of S.M.'s to check out (if I ever get five minutes to do so), and I enjoyed what I sampled of her writing, so I figured I'd be safe. What I hadn't banked on was the massive part played in SiS by certain characters from SMS (I don't read blurbs--so, shoot me), and the fact I suddenly realised just how much of their development I've missed by not having read those already.That being said, this didn't hinder my enjoyment of Ms Reine's latest read. It merely made me want to get my finger out and read those books of hers even more. There also seems to be a crossover (though smaller) from her other--Death's Hand--books, but other than to mention what I have already, I'm not going to delve into that because I think you should find out how they all intertwine for yourself.Now, onto the story. We have a few of POV's in this title--what I'm going to consider as the two MC's--as well as very small amounts from another POV (I *think* I recall there being only one other).Elise seems to be the biggest player through the book, despite it not being her POV that opens the story, and in truth, I wasn't so sure I'd like her at first. I mean, those female MC's with an attitude that seems borne of just their knowledge that they're faster and tougher than most usually makes me annoyed with them, and means they have to work harder for my approval. Well, Elise most certainly managed to pull me over to her dark side, and trust me when I say it wasn't long before I totally TeamE and egging her toward working everything out.Alongside her, we have Lincoln--the seemingly straight-laced, law-abiding, small-town, good Christian (did I miss anything?) cop. Now, don't be fooled by my description, as this guy is not all that he appears, and he certainly has plenty of demons (heh) of his own to battle, as well as inner turmoil, and boy, oh boy, did I want him to be strong--because, man, I LOVED Lincoln's character. He's so ... FULL! And HOT, but without even seeming hot. Hot, in an understated, unassuming, unaware, kind of way--if that even makes sense?And around both of those, we have everyone else. And there are a LOT of them. However, the only place I found myself slightly confused and straining to keep up was the second time we get to meet the brothers, Seth and Able, as well as everyone else who comes with them, and I had to try and keep track of who all of these good folk were. Not to mention the `baddies', and the sturdy sidekicks working for Elise from the sidelines, and the ex-lover, who I simply could not get a handle on because he was just THAT good at manipulation he easily had my mind yanking in all directions. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, YES, there's a big cast. But Ms Reine does such a fab job of making each and every one of them so individual, hence making them easily recognisable, that getting to know them was a cinch. This is certainly one full-bodied bunch of peeps.And then we have the plot. This plot will keep you guessing. EVERYTHING about this book will keep you guessing. Any time I thought I had it all figured out, I turned out to be wrong. Any time I thought I had a character's number, turned out I had them all wrong. Even characters who were on the `good guy' team kept me on my toes and trying to figure them out--because this is so craftfully weaved, it appears so many times that pretty much any one of them could be on the `dark side', and absolutely not a one of them is safe from manipulation and betrayal--NONE of them are as safe as they think.To wrap up: this book has mystery and intrigue and sex appeal from the off, and each of those combined with a great body of characters will keep you turning the pages for more. From werewolves, to demons, to angel, and filled with magic, it pretty much covers all bases, and I'm really looking forward to finding out where S.M. takes this tale next. Hopefully, I'll have read the preceding books by then and caught up.