Zoe Forward

I grabbed Zoe Forward‘s Forgotten in Darkness (Scimitar Magi #2) from the Amazon free list. I read and reviewed book one, Dawn of a Dark Knight last year.

Also of note is the giveaway currently running on Goodreads to win your own copy. Can’t really beat that.

Description from Goodreads:
After an unjustified two-century stint in purgatory, Scimitar Magus Dakar returns to the human realm, renewing his eons-old curse. Either he or the woman he loves must murder the other within days of meeting in each new lifetime. To break the vicious cycle, he must kill her before she strikes her deathblow, something he’s never done in the past.

Archaeology grad student Shay McGinnis suffers a near-death attack in pursuit of a piece of Scimitar Magi lore. But did the magnificent warrior who pinned her to the wall injure her or the daemon he fought? In her search for answers, she draws the attention of both an ancient evil sorcerer and the warrior Dakar. The attraction between her and Dakar is instant, and for Shay confusing. She wants to be with him, but intuition equates him with death. Not random death. Hers.

Will this be the lifetime they break the curse before they are murdered by an age-old enemy or worse kill each other yet again?

Review:
This is a fun continuation of the Scimitar Magi series. We meet up with all of our old friends from book one, see some change in a couple of them and then meet a few new ones.

Shay and Dakar make a fun couple. Shay is pretty much fearless and, though Dakar was supposed to smoulder what I enjoyed most were his lost-little-boy moments as he tried to acclimate to modern times. I also have to say ‘thank you’ to Ms. Forward for the formula-breaking new addition to the team. I can’t wait to see them interact with the crew in future books.

I did feel like everything was a little too easy for everyone though. The addition of Bochnori seemed to provide a boost that could solve any problem, the Gods popped in more than I would expect, and Shay’s final bluff worked a little too well to feel realistic. I can’t really imagine the big bad demon feeling enough affection about ANYTHING to compromise. But that might just be me.

All in all, I enjoyed the book. It was well written. I didn’t notice any editorial issues and the cover is a vast improvement on book one. Again, I’ll be looking forward to the next book.

I grabbed Forward‘s PNR Dawn of a Dark Knight off of the Amazon free list.

Description from Goodreads:

In the shadows of our world, a secret band of warriors fights to protect us. They are the last line of defense against an evil no human can stop.

An ancient nemesis has resurfaced. Duty demands that Ashor Vlahos, Scimitar Magi commander, recruit a magical healer to fortify the remaining eight magi. The gods’ choice is the woman who helped him escape torture a decade ago. Ashor couldn’t have imagined a better punishment for his vow-breaker homicidal incidents than for the gods to bind him irrevocably to the only woman in the universe he cannot have. The soul-searing desire she ignites in him is strictly forbidden.

Kira Hardy, M.D. is a brilliant, hardworking internal med resident with big secrets. But when Ashor asks for aid after a brutal daemon attack, she is sucked into his dangerous, secret world. Enslavement to the magi, no matter how hot they are, may be an unattractive life plan, but being targeted for death by their enemies is less tolerable.

She must trust the sexy, tormented Ashor to keep her safe while he must deny his ultimate desire and keep Kira at arm’s length lest he bring destruction down on them both. As a centuries-old evil catches up to them, they face a crucial decision–follow the gods’ rules or follow their hearts.

Review:

My first thought on reading Dawn of a Dark Knight is that the cover doesn’t match it. IMO it needs one a little more like those of J.R. Ward‘s or Elisabeth Naughton‘s, something that screams PNR because that is what this is. Like the Black Dagger Brotherhood or the Eternal Guardians the men of Dawn of a Dark Knight, the Magi, are a bonded group of hard as nails, hot as fire, destined for one woman defenders of the innocent. And like other such books in the genre the sexual tensions run high and the sex smolders, but my favourite part is the males’ interactions with one another. They fight to the death for one another, but also rag each other constantly. They laugh at each other’s pain and wheedle anyone with a perceptible weakness, all in good fun of course. This made for plenty of funny moments.

Though side characters I also loved Kane and Markus, especially Kane. Next to the two main characters I think he was my favourite in the book. I expect he will play prominent role in future books in the series, but of courses that is only my speculation…or hope.

It did feel a little bit like after fighting her destiny the whole book, Kira suddenly and for no apparent reason (other than that she should have already) finally gave in to it. I couldn’t identify a single causal event or moment. Maybe there didn’t need to be, but I found myself thinking, ‘Hey, when did she change her mind?’ There were also a few noticeable editing mistakes, but nothing that irritated me enough to put me off reading further.

Since Wild Rose Press only just released this one I don’t know when a second is expected, but I’d be happy to read it when it is out.