
Title: The Darkest Night (Lords of the Underworld #1)
Author: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
Tour Organizer: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: May 3, 2008
All her life, Ashlyn Darrow has been tormented by voices from the past. To end the nightmare, she has come to Budapest seeking help from men rumored to have supernatural abilities, not knowing she'll be swept into the arms of Maddox, their most dangerous member--a man trapped in a hell of his own.
Neither can resist the instant hunger that calms their torments...and ignites an irresistible passion. But every heated touch and burning kiss will edge them closer to destruction--and a soul-shattering test of love....
My Review
I've never considered myself a romance reader. True, I'll read the occasional historical romance as a palate cleanser, but it's never been my go to genre-of-choice. I haven't read paranormal romance in years, as I tend to prefer high or urban fantasy. However, as I read The Darkest Night, I realized that there might be a romance reader inside me after all.
When I started The Darkest Night, I thought it was the typical, formulaic PNR novel. But it was more than that - it was FUN. As I fell into reading the book, which I finished in two days despite my reading slump, I realized a lot about myself as a reader while enjoying the heck out of the story. I didn't start the book with any preconceptions of how I thought it would be, and I was able to accept it for what it was. The Darkest Night is sexy, steamy, and honestly, I'm ready for more of the series.
Yes, there is the typical instalove that you find in romance novels. In it's defense, don't we all experience that to an extent early in a relationship? Showalter was really able to capture that early, lusty attraction that you have with a new lover. It did get a little cheesy, and the losing of the heroine's virginity was way over the top, but that didn't take away the enjoyment for me. Rolling my eyes at the exaggeration is part of the fun.
I didn't get quite enough of the worldbuilding and the history behind the warrior lords, but that may just be because I love anything to do with Greek mythology. These "Lords of the Underworld" house the demons that escaped from Pandora's box, which is a super cool concept. I'm sure more about this will be in later books in the series, which is another reason I plan to keep reading.
So as a newly minted "Romance Reader", I hand The Darkest Night off to you. I had a great time reading it, and I look forward to reading more from Showalter.
Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | iTunes

Coming Soon!

Title: The Darkest Torment (Lords of the Underworld #12)
Author: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
Release Date: May 31, 2016
New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter returns with her most explosive Lords of the Underworld tale to date, about a fierce warrior on the brink of sanity who will stop at nothing to claim the exquisite human with the power to soothe the beast inside him...
Driven to his death by the demon of Distrust, Baden spent centuries in purgatory. Now he's back, but at what cost? Bound to the king of the underworld, an even darker force, he's unable to withstand the touch of another... and he's quickly devolving into a heartless assassin with an uncontrollable temper. Things only get worse when a mission goes awry and he finds himself saddled with a bride—just not his own.
Famed dog trainer Katarina Joelle is forced to marry a monster to protect her loved ones. When she's taken hostage by the ruthless, beautiful Baden immediately after the ceremony, she's plunged into a war between two evils—with a protector more dangerous than the monsters he hunts. They are meant to be enemies, but neither can resist the passion burning between them...and all too soon the biggest threat is to her heart.
But as Baden slips deeper into the abyss, she'll have to teach him to love...or lose him forever.

About the Author

Gena Showalter is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty books in paranormal and contemporary romances, as well as young adult novels. Her series include White Rabbit Chronicles, Angels of the Dark, Otherworld Assassins, Lords of the Underworld, Alien Huntress and Intertwined.
Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated all over the world. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
Follow the Tour

Lords of the Underworld Tour Schedule
Monday, March 28th
Read Love Blog – Series spotlight
Tuesday, March 29th
Supernatural Snark – The Darkest Craving
Booked on a Feeling – The Darkest Night & The Darkest Kiss
Thursday, March 31st
Bewitched Bookworms – spotlight, The Darkest Passion
Friday, April 1st
Reading Reality – The Darkest Touch
Monday, April 4th
Reader Girls – The Darkest Lie
Tuesday, April 5th
Bibliotica – The DarkestSecret
Wednesday, April 6th
Romancing the Book – The Darkest Seduction and The Darkest Craving
Thursday, April 7th
From the TBR Pile – The Darkest Night
Monday, April 11th
Lovely Reads – The Darkest Whisper
Books that Hook – The Darkest Touch
Tuesday, April 12th
Stranded in Chaos – The Darkest Night, The Darkest Kiss
Wednesday, April 13th
Romancing the Readers – The Darkest Seduction
Friday, April 15th
Bibliophilia, Please – The Darkest Night
Monday, April 18th
Stuck in Books – The Darkest Pleasure
Tour-Wide Giveaway
Thanks to the very generous people at Harlequin, we have a pretty fantastic giveaway!
Ends at 12:01am EST on April 23rd
a Rafflecopter giveaway

This is an amazing giveaway chance for an awesome series. I guess it would be The Darkest Night since it's the first book to get me.
ReplyDeleteCarol L
Lucky4750 (at) aol (dot) com
This is an amazing giveaway chance for an awesome series. I guess it would be The Darkest Night since it's the first book to get me.
ReplyDeleteCarol L
Lucky4750 (at) aol (dot) com
I'm not really a romance reader either but perhaps this series will convert me as well!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour.
I haven't read any of the LOTU books but it looks like a great series. Thanks for this amazing giveaway.
ReplyDeleteThe one I'm currently reading is my favorite - any time you ask me! Hehe. I read the 3rd book first and have since started over with the prequel and first book. So yeah, whichever one I'm reading is my fav. I adore Maddox! Such a great series.
ReplyDeleteThis is a new author for me but the books sound very intriguing, so I'd love to learn more!
ReplyDelete