Dance with the Devil by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Hero: Zarek of Moesia
Heroine: Astrid
Grade: A++
Date: 1/24/06

Zarek's Point of View:

Dark-Hunter: A soulless guardian who stands between mankind and those who would see mankind destroyed. Yeah, right. The only part of that Code of Honor I got was eternity and solitude.

Insanity: A condition many say I suffer from after being alone for so long. But I don't suffer from my insanity-I enjoy every minute of it.

Trust: I can't trust anyone...not even myself. The only thing I trust in is my ability to do the wrong thing in any situation and to hurt anyonewho gets in my way.

Truth: I endured a lifetime as a Roman slave, and 900 years as an exiled Dark-Hunter. Now I'm tired of enduring. I want the truth about what happened the night I was exiled-I have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Astrid (Greek, meaning star): An exceptional woman who can see straight to the truth. Brave and strong, she is a point of light in the darkness. She touches me and I tremble. She smiles and my cold heart shatters.

Zarek: They say even the most damned man can be forgiven. I never believed that until the night Astrid opened her door to me and made this feral beast want to be human again. Made me want to love and be loved. But how can an ex-slave whose soul is owned by a Greek goddess ever dream of touching, let aloneholding, a fiery star?

This has got to be one of my best reads of 2005. My reread of it this year in 2006, by far it's still my favorite read. So much emotion, so much feeling, for the characters, for the things that happen to the characters and then a sense of wellbeing at the end of the book when the person you think deserves a bit of happiness gets it. I don't think I've cried as much in any other book as I did in this book.I loved Zarek from the moment I met him in Talon's book, but in his book, my love grew all the more and his tortured sould called out to mine. (LOL) Because man, I don't think I've read another hero that I love as much as I love Zarek, except of course Sam Starrett.

But this story was action packed, heart breaking and all ooey gooey good. The roller coaster is the bomb diggity and you seriously need to get out and read this series if you haven't yet, because you're going to love the heck out of it.

Reading Order:

Fantasy Lover
The Beginning (found on the site and in the back of Sins of the Night)
Dragonswan
Night Pleasures
Night Embrace
Phantom Lover (in the anthology Midnight Pleasures)
Dance with the Devil
A Dark-Hunter Christmas (found on the site and in the back of Dance with the Devil)Kiss of the Night
Night Play
Winter Born (in the anthology Stroke of Midnight)
Seize the Night
Sins of the Night
Unleash the Night
Dark Side of the Moon
The Dream-Hunter