SPOILERS AHEAD...Totally torn. I love this series, and was thoroughly loving this entry...but why did Lucan have to be such an ASSHAT towards the end. Ok, to be fair, all the men in SB's series have their moments, it makes us love them more when they break through it and become the men we want them to be...but Anka's story is so emotional, tormented and real (aka, transferrable to the real world feelings of so many women) that it is easy to connect with her. More than any other woman in the series! What a great accomplishment for a writer? Right? Everything feel into place with the overall storyline, dots connected, characters flushed out, mysteries still to solve (where is Bram's mate? who is Shocks true mate?)I really did love this book. and I know I'm late to the party with reading the series, but SPOILER ALERT....I really wish she had ended up with Shock. It made so much more sense. In the end, I really never felt like Lucan loved her as much. He jusdged her and was hypocritical in the end. Only when she saved his life (really - that's what it takes these days?) did he truly want her. I know what was written, but it just didn't sit right. The wrong ending on the right story. Still, give me more Shayla Black! You are a wonderful writer.... Embrace Me at Dawn is very much the usual (strong) Shayla Black fare. I rarely read books about magic/witches/wizards but I make an exception for this series as I am a Shayla Black fan. Doomsday Brethren is a good series in general, and book 5 is a more than satisfying addition.Don’t want to give much away but, basically, this is Anka and Lucan’s story and those following the series know that their mating bond had been previously ripped asunder by the evil Mathias. Lucan went mad with mating mourning and Anka fell into the arms of Shock. EMaD gives further insight into what happened and why. It also sheds light on some issues that may not have been obvious previously, and an interesting secret or two. Anka wants to train alongside the wizards so she can fight Mathias. She is still somewhat broken and bitter about her savage treatment at his hands - when Mathias took her from Lucan, abused her, and broke their mating bond. Obviously Lucan wants to be around Anka, as we know he still loves her, but he is torn – should he help her learn how to fight, better defend herself in future, or should he encourage her to stay out of danger’s way? Quite the conundrum, because it seems he could be damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t. Mathias is still hanging around as the uber bad-guy/wizard, his evil gal-pal, Morganna, is stirring up the pot and threatening to expose magickind to humans; not to mention the Doomsday Brethren are looking for a potion that will, hopefully, rid them of Morganna for good. As a bonus they just might be able to finally rid themselves of Mathias, so it could be a twofer deal. Of course Shock still appears to be on the fence to most and, while it takes him awhile to get some (meatier) dialogue, apart from “wankstain, wanker” and “fuck off,” he does come off as a sympathetic character here, with the right intentions. He has always been enigmatic, and therefore interesting; but once he dived into the emotional dialogue he made me really want his book. If ever there was a character that needs the right partner to make it work, it’s Shock – high maintenance to the end (me thinks) for the bad boy of the series.Shayla Black is one of the best writers of erotic angst in the business. There is a lot of miscommunication here between Anka and Lucan, lots of conflicted internal dialogue, and a cement truck of angst poured into the book. Sometimes the angst was OTT, however, given the couple, and their circumstances, I guess it was always going to be an emotion-fest.This is book 5, so it is advisable to start at the beginning, otherwise it will more than likely become confusing about who has what abilites and why. So....if you like well written high octane angst, hot sex (with some minor BDSM tossed in), lost love being rekindled, and magic/fantasy, then here it is in Embrace Me at Dawn.
Do You like book Embrace Me At Dawn (2000)?
I loved this book and can't wait for the next in the series. (hopefully its Shock's book!)
—Andi
Love this series. Go Doomsday Brotherhood.
—jbuddafly
