Shadowflame (A Novel of the Shadow World Book 2) Kindle Edition

CAUTION CONTAINS SPOILERSI strongly recommend you read the previous book in the series (Queen of Shadows) prior to reading this installment.This has been one of my most anticipated 2011 releases and I wasn't disappointed. I must say, this author completely went where no author has gone before. Forget about picture perfect happily ever after.David is unfaithful to Miranda after only 3months of mating. Now this is something that I personally have NEVER read before in books where the couples have a HEA and are mated for life. If you do not fancy male/male sexual relationships, don't worry, unfortunately (since I don't mind it) the author never delves deeply into David and Deven's sex life. The sex throughout this installment was tasteful done. There's only one sex scene in this entire book that is given a play-by-play and that was between David and Miranda. All the other sex scenes are hinted at or smoothly glided over, with the acts themselves left up to our imagination.For a more realistic feel, I do approve of the three weeks of separation the affair ripped through Miranda and David's relationship. Actually Miranda was physically abusive to David (were talking black-eye, bloody-lip, etc.) when she finds out he has betrayed her. However she does eventually forgives him.Now my only gripe with the situation was David's weakness. He seemed like a complete idiot who was incapable of making any romantic decisions on this own. He was easily swayed by whomever was in his presence at the moment (Deven/Miranda). To me, the author wrote the relationship between David and Deven to be more sensual then his relationship with Miranda. It actually felt to me that David desired Deven more than Miranda.To be quite honest, David's feeble and flaccid behavior just disgusted me. I would equate my disgust with my loathing of Eugenia's pathetic character in the latest installment of Richelle Mead's Dark Swan series. I believe I called Eugenia's character (please see my quote below). MY QUOTE from Iron Crowned titled `What a Disgraceful and Outrageously Horrendous Installment!': " a pawn passed around by Dorian and Kiyo. She had no desires of her own. The men didn't have to do any work or court her in any way. She literally was bent-over-backwards or pushed down to her knees and took everything with a moronic funky-spunk happy-meal grin."The above quote of mine is how I felt about David. His behavior felt like he was always on his knees giving pleasure to either Miranda or Deven, just like a moronic funky-spunk and/or female secretions happy-meal grin. He was just a blow-up doll to put out between them both. If you make a commitment as strong as mating for life, to the point that if your partner dies so do you, I would think you'd be more careful or at least stronger at resisting other temptations. Especially if said partner could kill herself just to spite you?I rated this book 5-stars because no matter how repulsive David's weakness was to me, this installment wasn't all about him. This installment was about the rising queen. This book was pure entertainment, that I refused to put down. During the times where I was forced to put this book down, the story stayed on my mind and I couldn't wait to see what happened next.The author was spot on with the balance between delicious tension sexual and exciting action. There actually was a brilliant side story about a woman named Cora who was held captive and turned against her will, and forced to serve a master in any capacity. This installment had a very positive matriarch vibe to it, much like Vicki Pettersson's last novel, Neon Graveyard. Miranda always fights tooth and nail to save herself, in addition to a few other male-damsel in distress.I highly recommend this book to fellow dark urban fantasy readers and I can't wait for the next book in the series Shadow's Fall due out 3/27/2012.I also recommend: The Neon Graveyard This Side of the Grave: A Night Huntress Novel Shotgun Sorceress Eternal Rider (Lords of Deliverance) Etched in Bone (The Maker's Song) Lover Unleashed: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood

I love this series very much. Gives me Chicagoland vampires vibes. I'm severely ADD and didn't lose interest at all. You will not regret grabbing the series.

This could have been a good book, it was not as good as Book 1 but the basic story was entertaining, good story, good mystery and characters.Bad side: Yes, the author apparently has a problem with alpha males in general and it shows. Yes, the author destroyed image we had of almost everyone we loved from Book 1, that sux and was unnecessary. Yes, she made him bisexual for no reason that added to the book unless she thought she could grab a few gay people to sell extra copies (there is NO reason that makes ANY sense)Good Side: Yes it WAS a good story. Yes it had a good mystery to solve Yes she DID add several plot lines that could have become really good books for the future. Yes it would have been a worthy addition to the series and if the author had not used it as a vehicle for her excursion into bitterness and "alternate lifestyle sexual drama".When you put it all together, I DETEST authors who bring moralistic issues (immoral issues in this instance) into a book for no reason. She could have done better and maybe you ought to drop the author a note if you feel that way.UPDATE 5 Aug 2011: The author pretty much flipped her readers the finger and Twitter comments coming from her are along the lines of "anyone who hates the book must be homophobic". How about I realize you are a whacko and just not buy your books. Do some research and you might find get an idea why she hates good relationships. The author created a novel in Queen of Shadows that people loved on an emotional level and then she betrayed/cheated her readers in Book 2 by pretty much destroying that emotional attachment. The idea of this book with different characters and localities would not have bothered anyone, but when she took established characters and turned them into something akin to doppelgangers of the ones created in Book 1 they realized they had been cheated by the author. The horrible thing here is not the book itself or even the subject matter, it is that she used a base of readers to sell a book 2 that destroyed what most of them loved in the first book. I still think it shows a total disregard for the people who bought her first book. If she wanted to write "alternate" sexual drama, she should have used a new set of characters, not destroyed the ones she created for readers in Queen of Shadows.

this is a good read it tells of a girl that becomes a solider to servie and lead, it has another part to it so enjoy both books to understand it

This is the follow up to queen of shadows. I actually enjoyed this more than the first book, not that there was anything wrong with that but I was drawn into the sequel very quickly and wanted to see how the relationships would play out. In the first book it was pretty clear that Miranda and David would get together and the signets would be flashing but this felt more unpredictable because of past loves intruding in the new marriage. Miranda is coming into her powers and David is welcoming the additional depth that comes from being a pair. But trouble arrives first in the visit of a less than pleasant prime from another district but then more importantly from attacks on our hero and heroine and on the humans close to Miranda. Add in David's emotional turmoil and mirandas understandable feelings of hurt and betrayal. It's an interesting mix and I recommend.

I thought Nalini Singh was my favourite author until I read this series. Love it! It has a fabulous story line and this is book 2 in the series. I will be checking regularly to see when the next one is due out.

Shadowflame ist ein gut zu lesendes Buch, das spannend geschrieben ist.Die nun verheiratete Heldin Miranda muss feststellen, dass das Leben als Vampirkönigin und Ehefrau nicht so rosig ist, wie sie eventuell zuerst annehmen konnte. Man trachtet ihr und vor allem auch ihren menschlichen Freunden und Bekannten nach dem Leben. Und sie muss feststellen, dass man als Vampirin ein so anderes Leben führt, dass Freundschaften schlecht aufrecht zu erhalten sind.Das alles fand ich gut und nachvollziehbar.Nun kommt der Grund, warum ich dem Buch trotzdem nur drei Sterne geben kann: Die Tatsache, dass ihr Ehemann eine leidenschaftliche Liebesverbindung zum Prime von Kalifornien hatte, die beide keineswegs verarbeitet und ad acta gelegt haben, ist im ersten Buch gar nicht angelegt und deshalb sehr überraschend und nicht logisch. Man bekommt die Idee, dass es der Autorin erst beim Schreiben des zweiten Buches eingefallen ist, so etwas einzubauen.Im Buch Queen of Shadows wird die Beziehung zwischen Deven und seinem Consort als leidenschaftlich beschrieben und Davids Heterosexualität wird mit keiner Szene angezweifelt. Versteht mich nicht falsch, ich finde die Auseinandersetzung damit, dass der Seelengefährte jemand anderen liebt und auch noch vom anderen Geschlecht eine gute Idee, nur eben nicht im ersten Band vorbereitet.Und am Ende des zweiten Buches kommt dann auch noch ebenso unvorbereitet heraus, dass Faith wohl auch David liebt, was in zwei Bänden vorher nie angedeutet wurde. Das hat mich dann nochmal geärgert.Aber trotzdem ist das Buch wie gesagt spannend, zum Teil auch tiefgründig und vor allem gut zu lesen.

Perfect thanks !