Nightwalker by Jacquelyn Frank
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Title: Nightwalker
Author: Jacquelyn Frank
Series: World of Nightwalkers, #5
Pages: 327
Publisher: Loveswept
Date: August 25, 2015
Summary:
From New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Frank comes the final chapter in the Nightwalkers saga! As the momentous showdown with a powerful demon unfolds, a passionate encounter breaks the ultimate taboo.
Kamen is a Bodywalker, an ancient soul reborn in one human host after another. He’s also a prisoner of his own kind: for it was Kamen who released Apep, the deadly god who threatens the existence of their world. To atone for this grievous error, Kamen accepts an urgent mission: to convince the other nations of the Nightwalkers to set aside their centuries-old conflicts and band together. If he fails, all will be lost. And no tribe presents a greater challenge than the Wraiths, the spectral beings who are feared and despised for their lethal deathtouch.
Kamen makes first contact with a stunning, ghostly pale beauty named Geneviève. Part Wraith and part human, scorned as a half-breed, Viève shares the hunger for redemption—and for connection. Her scintillating touch holds the kiss of death, and yet it makes Kamen feel more alive than ever. Soon his lips are pressed against hers, sending Viève into fits of desire and forging a bond that breaches the divide between them. Now they must unite all the Nightwalkers, from Vampire and Shadowdweller to Djynns, and fast—for Apep is ready for war.
Review:
Do NOT read this book as a standalone. As a matter of fact, you need to read ALL of the Nightwalkers, Shadowdwellers, and previous World of the Nightwalkers before reading this book. You will have no clue what is going on otherwise.
Whew! Now that I have that out of my system. This is a great book, but it is not a standalone. It is the culmination of a fourteen book saga that was broken into three series. Do not be overwhelmed. These are wonderful, engrossing, sometimes funny books and I love them. They are well worth the time invested.
Kamen was one of the primary bad guys throughout the World of the Nightwalkers series. There was some foreshadowing that he was more misled than evil, but he still did horrible things. I never expected to feel sorry for him and come to like him as much as I did. The fact that I was rooting for him by the end of this book and wanting everyone to forgive him is an example of how good a writer Jacquelyn Frank can be.
Of course, if the male lead is the most hated man in the series, then the female lead must come from the most hated and feared species. Vieve is half Wraith and half human. Fortunately, her human half is dominant, so she is not as vicious and untrustworthy as the rest of the Wraith species. And that brings up a small problem I had with the book. Every other species is acknowledged as having good and bad individuals. The Wraith are feared universally. Yes, I understand they have the death touch, but there aren’t any good Wraith?
As I said before, this is the culminating book in a series of fourteen. It has a good solid ending and ties all the threads together. I did see one chance for another spinoff, which would be wonderful because I love the world of the Nightwalkers. We will just have to see.
One other thing, and this has nothing to do with the author or the story. For some reason, the publisher has decided to only release this book in ebook and audio format. The rest of the serie(s) have also been available as paperback. This ruins my set. I have all of the books in paperback, but cannot get this one in that form. Obviously, I am ticked. Will I buy it in ebook form? Of course I will, but I am not happy about it.
This book was sent to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Elaine Reads . . . constantly! 