#BookReview – “Dark Lycan” by Christine Feehan

Blurb

After spending centuries in a prison of ice, Tatijana of the Dragonseekers was freed. Awakened in human form, Tatijana yearns to explore the modern world—one with more mysteries than she is prepared for.

Fenris Dalka has returned to the Carpathian Mountains, scarred by battle. Though the reason for his return could prove fatal if found out, he is drawn to the beautiful stranger who carries the scent of fresh earth, of forest, of the night itself.

In time, Tatijana and Fenris will discover all that unites them—their secrets and pasts, their predators, and the hot flush of passion that stirs their souls. Yet just as surely, they’ll also discover everything ancient and evil that exists to destroy them.

Review 

In the twenty-first book of the Dark/Carpathian series, Tatijana Dragonseeker has been healing in the earth for the past two years, alongside her sister Branislava, but she’s growing restless and wants to explore the modern world. After centuries of starvation, torture, and enslavement, she needs time to find out who she is and what she wants. Secretly rising on her own to explore the nearby human village, she feels inexplicably drawn to a rough-and-tumble tavern in the forest.

Carpathian hunter Fenris Dalka hasn’t traveled through his homeland in centuries, but he’s in the Carpathian Mountains to track down a rogue werewolf pack that’s been murdering Lycans and humans alike. While hunting down the pack, he finds Tatijana, his brother Dimitri, and befriends Zev, an elite Lycan in charge of the Lycan pack that’s also hunting down the rogues.

Wow. I haven’t liked a Dark/Carpathian book as much as I do this one in a long time. Fen and Tatijana are wonderful, strong, likeminded characters. Though she didn’t want a lifemate, she didn’t expect her heart to need Fen or that he would be so understanding and kind to her. Likewise, Fen didn’t want to bind her to him because doing so would put her in danger from the Lycans.

You see, Fenris isn’t like most Carpathian males. Years earlier, he and a Lycan friend shared blood on several occasions, and they both transformed into the other species. Fen is now part Carpathian and part Lycan with the abilities and weaknesses of both species, and he’s physically stronger than both of them combined. The Lycans call mixed breeds like him Sange rau and they always kill the ones they find, so Fen hides his true nature from them and pretends to be fully Lycan. The Carpathians, however, have no prejudices against mixed breeds, and Mikhail, the prince, wants the Lycans as their allies.

Other than his mixed blood, Fen is considerate and respects his woman’s wishes and feelings. Being part Lycan has helped him keep the darkness at bay, so he’s not that close to turning into a vampire. He’s also not controlling or a chauvinist, so he doesn’t mind if Tatijana is around other men or if those men talk to her and touch her in friendship. He’s one of my favorite heroes in the entire series.

There wasn’t any internal conflict between the H/h, which made for easy reading. The problems they faced came from outside forces, and I loved the way Fen and Tatijana worked together as equals. After all, she’s a Dragonseeker and very knowledgeable when it comes to fighting and performing mage spells. She’s an asset in a battle, not a hindrance, and Fen recognized that.

Also, there were only three sex scenes in this story, and one of them was fairly short. That’s basically unheard of in Ms Feehan’s books. Even though I found the number of sex scenes refreshing, the H/h still make love in a natural pond, which typically happens in almost every book in the series.

The Lycan history and their society was pretty interesting, and their hatred toward the Sange rau is understandable but still wrong and horrible. I’m not too sure what the difference between Lycans and werewolves are, other than one being the good guys and the others bad, but hopefully I’ll figure that out in the next book.

Zev is awesome and just as strong and skilled as Gregori, but I don’t think he’s as domineering. Branislava is going to need a gentle man to help her overcome her past trauma, and I’m really looking forward to their story.

One of the best scenes is the celebration showing all the children and how the Carpathian race is beginning to grow. That was just fun and definitely needed for longtime readers of the series.

Overall, I loved the plot and characters, but sometimes I found myself skimming because the writing is wordy and repetitive. The story ends with a HEA for Fen and Tatijana, but it ends on a cliffhanger with Dimitri. I’m so anxious to read his story and find out what’s going to happen next.

5 Stars