Lover Eternal

I gave this book 4 stars because I sincerely think the next book will be even better. I liked the first one, Dark Lover, and I agree with the other readers that this one is even more compelling. She really creates a world with this series, and as a reader who gave up on romance some years ago (in favor of fantasy), I have to say this series is bringing me back. This isn't your typical Nora Roberts cookie-cutter story. The author has a punchy urban style that has improved markedly between the two books. She creates her own idiom here, like some of the great pulp-fictionists of the past. There are some awkward moments–e.g. it's “wreaked havoc,” not “reeked havoc,”–but overall it was good enough to read twice over two days. The women in this series are a little flaccid for my taste (pun intended, if you've read the books)–I'd like to see what a really powerful woman would do with these testosterone-flooded vampires–but the world of the Brotherhood is truly seductive. One does need to get over the names. They seem a little silly, and no one seems to notice that they are real words in English–I mean, Wrath, Rhage, Vishous, etc. don't seem to be overly allegorical to anyone in the stories. No one says “Wrath, huh? as in the seven deadly sins?” I pretend they're pronounced Euro-style, and that helps. But as a lit prof who reads a lot of pulp, I have to say this is some of the most promising stuff I've read in awhile. And I swore off vampires after Anne Rice got boring. I can't wait for the next one..