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Midnight Awakening

Lara Adrian

Published 2007          370 pages

Summary (from the book cover)

With a dagger in her hand, Elise Chase prowls Boston’s streets in search of retribution against the Rogue vampires who took from her everything she cherished. 

Using an extraordinary psychic gift, she tracks her prey, well aware that the power she possesses is destroying her.  She must learn to harness this gift, and for that she can turn to only one man – the deadliest of the Breed warriors, Tegan.

No stranger to loss, Tegan knows Elise’s pain.  He knows fury, but he is perfect in his self-control, until Elise seeks his aid in her personal war.  An unholy alliance is forged – a bond that will link them by blood and vow – and plunge them into a tempest of danger, desire and the darkest passions of the heart…

The Review

Lara Adrian’s Midnight Breed series goes from strength to strength.  Midnight Awakening is the third novel in the vampire romance series and possibly the best to date.  The story in Midnight Awakening follows on shortly after where Kiss of Crimson left off, and concentrates on the romance between Tegan, a dangerously cold Gen One warrior vampire, and Elise, a breedmate who has lost both her husband and her son to Rogue vampires.

As with the previous novels in this series the story is set against an exciting backdrop of warrior vampires from the Order battling it out with blood addicted Rogue vampires on the streets of Boston.  Only this time the action spills over to Europe when Elise manages to acquire some vital information suggesting that Marek (the leader of the Rogues) has a special interest in a book belonging to a vampire family in Berlin.

The relationship between Tegan and Elise hits all the right notes as the unlikely couple meet, and fall in love.  There is plenty of romantic conflict between them.  Tegan is a Gen One warrior vampire who long ago lost a Breedmate to the Rogues - and nearly lost himself to bloodlust as a result.  His cold, deadly demeanour is a mask that he wears to protect himself from caring for anyone and to keep his bloodlust under control. 

Elise is an aristocratic Breedmate widow who has lived a sheltered life in the Darkhavens.  She wants to avenge her son, which makes her leave the Boston Darkhaven and start tracking and killing Minions on the streets of Boston (Minions are the human slaves of rogue vampires.)  This course of action puts her on a collision course with Tegan but it’s a case of opposites attract as the two of them are thrown together in the hunt to discover Marek’s evil plans.

Fast paced and thrilling, Midnight Awakening serves up satisfying romance along with exciting action and an original fantasy background and plotline.  If you haven’t read the previous novels in this series don’t start with this one.  While Midnight Awakening is a self contained romance and works as a stand alone story there is a larger story arc at work, from which the most benefit will be gained by reading the novels in order, starting with Kiss of Midnight. 

If you are a fan of J.R. Ward, Lynn Viehl or Sherrilyn Kenyon you want to add Lara Adrian’s Midnight Breed series to your reading list.  Take my word for it you won’t be disappointed.  The Midnight Breed novels have sexy, troubled vampire heroes finding love while fighting an unending noble battle against an evil foe of greater numbers and strength.  What’s not to like? 

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