4.5 stars
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"Dark Dreamers" contains 2 stories by 2 highly imaginative and well established fantasy romance authors.
Dark Dream by Christine Feehan
This latest "Carpathian" novella is the story of Falcon, an ancient and powerful being sent to the new world to battle evil vampires; his brethren which have succumbed to the beast lurking in every Carpathian male. At last reaching the end of his own endurance, Falcon travels towards his homeland to suicide in the Carpathian mountains rather then succumb to his strengthening inner beast. Only his destined mate can chase away his monster; but after living for thousands of years, Falcon's given up hope of finding her in time. Yet whilst in Romania he meets an American woman helping the homeless children in the area, and suddenly his world is again full of colour; a sure sign this woman is his life mate. This woman, Sara Marten, has been evading an ancient vampire for 15 years and since the night he slaughtered her family, has been reluctant to open her heart. Yet immediately recognising her bond to Falcon, she finds herself again fearing for the safety of a loved one.
Showing her concern by wanting to home 7 very special children, the ancient vampire uses them as bait in an attempt to capture Sara, leaving Falcon no choice but to call upon the assistance of the Carpathians; warriors he has never met and who have no knowledge of his existence. With the sun setting, it soon becomes a race as to who will reach Sara first; her beloved Falcon or an ancient evil.
4 stars
A Dream of Stone and Shadow by Marjorie M Liu
This novella is the 4th instalment in the "Dirk and Steele" series; a detective agency which employs people with paranormal abilities. Clairvoyant Aggie often sees the future playing out before her eyes; yet for the first time she experiences someone else placing images in her mind, that of a kidnapped and abused little girl named Emma.
Although imprisoned in Scotland, each time Charlie dies he uses the time it takes for his body to heal to comfort a frightened child in America. Without corporeal form and so unable to help Emma himself, he searches for the right individual to take on the task of rescuing her, and finds exactly what he's looking for in Aggie. Already investigating a child smuggling ring Aggie soon takes on the job of hunting for Emma; however she remains somewhat wary of her informant, a faceless man who, if she's to believe her own visions (and they're always accurate), she becomes intimately involved with in the future. Learning that Charlie is in fact a gargoyle and held captive by a witch (working for Dirk and Steele certainly makes you more accepting of the unbelievable) Aggie vows that after Emma is safe, she'll travel to Scotland and free the being she's fallen in love with. Unfortunately there is only one variation of the future in which Charlie and his brother gargoyles are freed, and in that vision Aggie witnesses her own death.
5 stars
Both these stories are great; however as a die hard fan of MML, I'd like to take a moment to rave about her absolutely fantastic "Dirk and Steele" series. If you're unfamiliar with this authors works then I urge you to give the following books a try; "Tiger Eye", "Shadow Touch" and "The Red Heart of Jade". CF fans will also be left well satisfied with the latest offering in the lengthy "Carpathian" series. Both stories although not full length novels, contained cracking leading lovers battling for their love amid some strange circumstances; aided by well developed secondary characters and opposed by believable evil enemies. Both authors really excelled in creating a highly addictive paranormal romance (again) and I cannot help but recommend this book to fans of both genres.
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