#BookReview – “Dark Storm” by Christine Feehan

Blurb

Awakening after all this time in a world of absolute darkness and oppressive heat, Dax wonders in how many ways the world above must have changed. But it is how he has changed that fills him with dread and loathing. Buried alive for hundreds of years in a volcano in the Carpathian Mountains, Dax fears that he has become the full-fledged abomination that every Carpathian male fears, a victim of the insidious evil that has crept relentlessly into his mind and body over the centuries. But there are some things that never change.

His name is Mitro, the vampire Dax had hunted all these long centuries. Second in command to the prince of the Carpathian people he is the epitome of everything malevolent, and perpetrator of one of the most shocking killing sprees known to man - and beast. Even his friends and family weren't safe from Mitro's bloodlust. Neither was Mitro's lifemate, Arabejila, an extraordinary woman with extraordinary gifts. But now that Dax has re-emerged, so too has Mitro. The ultimate battle between good and evil has been re-engaged. Between Dax and Mitro, a violent game has begun - one that has marked Riley Parker, the last descendent of Arabejila, as the reward.  

Review

In the twentieth book of the Dark/Carpathian series, Riley Parker and her mother travel to the Andes (not the Carpathian Mountains as the blurb mistakenly states) every five years to perform a binding spell on a particular mountain. Since Riley’s father just recently died and both she and her mom are still grieving, they arrive later than usual. That proves problematic since the mountain is actually a once-dormant volcano that’s now ready to blow.

Carpathian hunter Dax and his mortal vampire enemy Mitro have been trapped beneath the volcano for centuries. Mitro had betrayed his lifemate Arabejila, became a vampire, and killed a lot of innocent people. Dax and Mitro were evenly matched, unable to kill one another, so Arabejila trapped them both beneath the volcano. Now, Arabejila’s descendents must return to strengthen the bonding spell to keep Mitro, and unfortunately Dax as well, in the ground. Finally, the men escape and head straight to Riley, Arabejila’s last descendant.

Riley and Dax got along amazingly well, but they didn’t even met until the end of chapter eight, over 100 pages in. He’s not an over-the-top alpha and is accepting of Riley of who she is. She isn’t a warrior woman, but has a strong affinity for healing the earth—which is a common trait for Carpathian females. Riley, however, is more human than Carpathian but apparently very powerful. Dax, likewise, has evolved while sleeping in the earth and isn’t a normal Carpathian anymore. There is very little drama, angst, or frustration with this H/h. They were of the same mind on almost every subject, which made their relationship a little boring.

Dax and Riley are new characters to the series, not mentioned in any prior books. Sure, previous secondary characters return—I love Gary and Jubal—but I just don’t understand why Ms Feehan wrote about this particular couple without first introducing at least one of them in another story.

There are unanswered questions. Mitro was sick in the head, obviously, but how could he really betray Arabejila and become a vampire (a female lifemate is “light” to the male’s “darkness,” which is supposed to balance each other out)? How did Arabejila survive without him since their souls were bonded? How is Riley connected to Arabejila? Did Arabejila have a child with another man, a human? Also, how is Mitro a Daratrazanoff and related to Gregori, Lucien, and the others?

The scenery, as always, was intricately described, right down to a little bug in the gorgeous jungle. I’ve become accustomed to such description in the series and usually skim over it.

3 Stars