About this title: The first volume in the Lords of the Underworld trilogy opens with Ashlyn Darrow coming to Budapest to seek help from men rumored to have supernatural abilities. Neither she nor Maddox, a man trapped in his own hell, can resist the instant hunger that calms their torments. Original.
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Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Very Good. 0373772467 A GOOD LOOKING mass market paperback book! ! FIRST EDITION! Some creasing of the spine & minor signs of wear from reading--nothing major. SMOKE FREE HOME! Do not settle for worn, torn, throwaways. Pay a few pennies more for a nice copy! read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: HQN Books
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9780373772469ISBN:0373772467
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Edition: LIBRARY ED
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: HARLEQUIN MILLS & BOON Country = UNITED KINGDOM
Date Published: 2009
ISBN-13:9780778303596ISBN:0778303594
Description: BRAND NEW PAPERBACK. 384 pages. Part bk. 1 edition library ed (Paperback) read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Thorndike Pr
Date Published: 2008-08-20
ISBN-13:9781410409157ISBN:1410409155
Description: NEW. Hardcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781410409157. read more
Description: Good. Only lightly used. Book has minimal wear to cover and binding. A few pages may have small creases and minimal underlining. Book selection as BIG as Texas. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Harlequin Books
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9780373772469ISBN:0373772467
Description: Good. No dust jacket. Creased spine. Nay have stickers. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 379 p. Lords of the Underworld. Audience: General/trade. read more
Edition: F First Paperback Printing
Binding: S Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: HQN Books, New York, NY, U.S.A.
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9780373772469ISBN:0373772467
Description: Good. Brief summary of content available upon request by e-mail. read more
Description: Acceptable. Only acceptable because no dust jacket, otherwise great shape 1 st. ACCEPTABLE with noticeable wear to cover and pages. Binding intact. read more
"I didn't love the book at first but it kept getting better as it went along. There were A LOT of characters introduced and described and I found it hard keeping track or picturing them. Otherwise, I really enjoyed it, especially the second half of the book. There was true love, romance, action, sacrifice, suspence and some hot scenes to top it off. I'm looking forward to the next story with Anya as I liked her brief appearance at the end of this book. Not as good as JR Ward, but who is, right."
"*4.5 stars* Wow. When I started this book, I wouldn't have believed that, by the last 25 pages I would have been glued to the pages, shedding tears, surprised, and happily contemplating that there are 2 more books in this series! The Lords of the Underworld are warriors from the days of gods and goddesses who got a little frisky back in the day and ... well, suffice it to say that Pandora and her fabled box are involved. As punishment, these men have to live an eternity, each possessed by a demon. Our hero, who has had additional curses atached to him because he had been the ringleader, houses the demon Violence. The heroine, smart but vulnerable, innocent but strong, gets up close and personal with Violence and closer than she'd like to a few other demons housed in gorgeous men. There was quite a bit of hot bedroom (and shower) action, suspense, humor (gotta' love that demon Promiscuous!), romance, mystery, and paranormal action. My only complaint is that, after getting used to a certain pace through most of the book (things were fairly slow-moving, as each and every midnight was important to the story), the author rushed things in the end, sometimes having days pass "off-screen", so to speak. However, as I was in a rush to see what was going to happen, it really didn't bother me that much! If frank sexual language and explicit acts bother you, you'd better avoid this one."
"*sigh* What can I say? The Darkest Night wasn't very dark. I wanted to like this book because it came so highly recommended from friends, but I've read Showalter's writing before and I was skeptical.
Well, my first impression was unfortunately right. Showalter's writing style is still very light and sugary, only it's even more out of place in such a dark setting (i.e. constant violence).
Her heroes are supposed to be Greek immortals, exalted and admired guardians of the gods until their hubris leads the immortals to quarrel with Zeus & co. In their pride, the immortals open Pandora's forbidden Box. They loose the worst demons on mankind: Violence, Disease, Pain, Misery, everything that plagues the world. As punishment, the immortals are forced to house these demons -and their terrible desires- in their own bodies. It's many years until they learn to control these demons, and in the meantime, the carnage they inflict on the world is terrible.
This sounds like the formula for a wonderfully dramatic, angst-ridden read, but there was no drama. Main character Maddox mentions many times that he hates "what he is," keeper of a malicious demon. I'm convinced he feels angst, but we rarely ever see examples of the terror he houses inside him. I see little evidence for his guilt, his "great dilemma," besides a few fistfights with his bros (expect that if you expect conflicted characters). Why is it so terrible? It's only at the end that someone, a villain, shows evidence of the terrors inflicted by these men, and it's never explained or even verified that the horrors were actually committed by them.
His figurative "demon" sees little development, and the protagonist hardly sees more. He is never really developed beyond the loathing he has for his demon and his sin aside from a note on woodcarving, and after he meets Ashlyn he becomes subintelligent. It's love at first sight, and he must protect her because she's "his." There wasn't much else to explain his sudden, overwhelming need for this woman. It was very much like reading The Life and Times of the Caveman at points. He's literally had centuries with no company other than his own and five other private men. At least Ward's men had their hobbies. I really wish he would have had some interests or some intelligent, clever, or any observations at all to make other than his inexplicable attachment to the heroine-- who also mysteriously falls in love with him, though he has no apparent attraction for her other than that he solves that little problem of the voices in her head. Oh, and his muscles. Showalter wants to make sure we're aware that these heroes have muscles, numerous times. They're all very muscley cavemen.
But to their credit, the other men seemed to have more personality than Maddox. Promiscuity and his charm, Death and his considered, calm intelligence, Aeron and his austerity, Disease and his humor. I'm not really sure about Pain. I do hope they don't become simple like Maddox does, when they find their women.
The existence of these men is never really explained, however. They're immortal guards, but since the story's origins have some basis in Greek myth, I expected to be able identify them as demi-gods or some other familiar staple of Greek legend, but they're never really identified.
A lot in this book is unexplained, actually, such as how the most feared demons in the Underworld can apparently be "tamed" by women. The book really could have benefited with some detail, some development of the Hunters, the Lords, even the world (where angels apparently also exist).
The bedroom scenes were a little saccharine for me, but some readers will enjoy them. I found it a little strange that the dialogue was abbreviated in every scene, however. "Love you. So good. Need you." They never managed a full sentence between them, and this style does get annoying when used in every single sex scene. The plot was good, at least.
So, in essence, this is still Showalter, still sugary Harlequin romance with paranormal trappings. Don't look for another J.R. Ward here, but if you're due for a quick romance, give it a try."
The Lords of the Underworld are ancient Greek Warriors that were involved in opening Pandora's Box centuries ago. This caused a load of awful demons to posses each of the Lords. This is Maddox's story. He is possessed the by the demon, Violence.
Ashlyn struck me as TSTL right off the bat. She is wandering through the forest in the damn winter at night. Alone. What the hell? She has a terrible secret that she think the 'angels' will be able to help her with. The townspeople all believe that Lords are angels, but are still afraid of them. She hears others thoughts in her head constantly. Living, dead, other-worldly-it doesn't matter. It's enough to drive you insane.
Maddox catches her in the woods and takes her home. Even after falling for Maddox, she still doesn't impress me. She keeps putting herself in danger, whether it's with her mouth or contemplating leaving the damn fortress. Alone. Again.
I liked this book enough to keep reading, but I don't think it was that great. I kept waiting for something start happening. It picked up near the end, but then it was like the author needed to come up with a way for them to be together for eternity, so this other character barges into the story from nowhere and *poof* helps them out.
I've got the other two Lords books. I am hoping the story improves as they go on. I would recommend it to any paranormal romance fan."
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