Dark Lover (Black Dagger Brotherhood, #1) by J.R. Ward ~ Review

Audiobook cover

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there's a deadly turf war going on between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other-six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Yet none of them relishes killing more than Wrath, the leader of The Black Dagger Brotherhood.

The only purebred vampire left on earth, Wrath has a score to settle with the slayers who murdered his parents centuries ago. But, when one of his most trusted fighters is killed-leaving his half-breed daughter unaware of his existence or her fate-Wrath must usher her into the world of the undead-a world of sensuality beyond her wildest dreams.

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Review...

I listened to the audiobook on this one.  The narrator added to the entertainment and that is such a good thing.  

As the first book in a series, this book does a good job of setting up a complex world of vampires and the human world they live in.  It's an interesting twist on the vamp world as they drink the blood of another vampire, not the humans around them.  I found the twist that they drank from the opposite sex quite provocative.  It certainly makes for some sexy times as well as some drama.  But as someone who has always preferred the shifter paranormals to the vampires, I did find the world to my liking.

That being said, I am a shifter girl at heart.  Vampires are just not my thing.  I enjoyed this book and read it pretty quickly but I'm not sure if I want to read on in the series.  There are one or two of the brotherhood who have my interest and if I could safely move to their books, I would for sure do that.  But the complexity of the series makes that problematic.  I may continue.  I may not.

Wrath is the blind king that doesn't want to be king.  He leads the brotherhood instead of his people.  His vision issues don't hold him back in a fight though.  He sees some but not Beth's face clearly.  It was a strange thing really and was a bit odd, almost opportunistic at times.  He's dark and dangerous but truly protective.  I'm not sure how he got his name, or any of the brothers really.  I wanted to know but it wasn't explained.  Though Wrath is emotionally removed he does melt for Beth.  I enjoyed the way their relationship developed.  They can hardly keep their hands off each other from the start but the emotional bond develops slowly.  That was nice.

Beth is interesting.  Raised in foster care, she's strong and independent.  She just isn't interested in any of the guys she meets, though they are interested in her.  It takes Wrath's male body to really ignite hers for the first time.  She resists the draw to him as much as he wants to push her away but as what she really is overtakes her, she accepts quickly.

Really, I'm only giving this one 3 1/2 stars but I rounded up on it.  It's pretty good paranormal though far from a favorite.  Just not sure if I will read more or not.