Under the cover of wintry dark shadows, passion's magic ignites a fire too hot to touch -- and too wicked to die....
Deep Kiss of Winter
Two never-before-published paranormal stories to delight the senses and tantalize the imagination!
KRESLEY COLE delivers a breathtaking tale of a brutal vampire soldier about to know love for the first time...and a Valkyrie aching to be touched.
Murdoch Wroth will stop at nothing to claim Daniela the Ice Maiden -- the delicate Valkyrie who makes his heart beat for the first time in three hundred years. Yet the exquisite Danii is part ice fey, and her freezing skin can't be touched by anyone but her own kind without inflicting pain beyond measure. Soon desperate for closeness, in an agony of frustration, Murdoch and Danii will do anything to have each other. Together, can they find the key that will finally allow them to slake the overwhelming desire burning between them?
GENA SHOWALTER puts a daring spin on a tale of huntress and hunted...and concocts a sensual chemistry that is positively explosive.
Aleaha Love can be anyone -- literally. With only skin-to-skin contact, she can change her appearance, assume any identity. Her newest identity switch has made her an AIR (alien investigation and removal) agent and sends her on a mission to capture a group of otherworldly warriors. Only she becomes the captured. Breean, a golden-skinned commander known for his iron will who is at once dangerous and soul-shatteringly seductive, threatens her new life. Because for the first time, Aleaha only wants to be herself....
Note: This review focuses solely on the first part of this book written by Kresley Cole. You can see the second part of this review about Gena Showalter's story here.
Obtained: Bought
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Immortals After Dark
1. A Hunger Like No Other
2. No Rest for the Wicked
3. Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
4. Dark Needs at Night's Edge
5. Dark Desires After Dusk
6. Kiss of a Demon King
Deep Kiss of Winter
7. Pleasure of a Dark Prince
8. Demon From the Dark (book review)
9. Dreams of a Dark Warrior (book review)
My Rating: 
My Opinion:
I haven't gushed about Kresley Cole much on this blog. In fact, the giveaway I posted the other day was one of the few times that I've mentioned the Immortals After Dark series with such fondness. I should be ashamed.
I was ashamed that I didn't touch a Kresley book for half a year. I had a book... I simply just could not open it. Daniela's story sounded amazing when I heard the blurb for it. I love people who have an affinity with an element (as you may or may not see in the near distant future with the current book I'm writing), and yet... here I was, avoiding Deep Kiss of Winter.
I think it was due to this intricate situation I had imagined for Daniela and Murdoch. So in the fear of shattering my dream, I put it off. Plus, the cover was positioned perfectly so that I could turn to stare at it. Yum!
When I finally did read this story last week, I was once again absorbed by Kresley's awesome writing skills. Yet, in the back of my mind, something seemed... well, off. Halfway through the text, I was growing slightly bored, which is strange since I never grow bored reading the IAD series.
The characters are, as always, engaging. Daniela and Murdoch were painted beautifully, and I felt an initially strong connection with the two of them. I was confused though, and would have appreciated a warning due to the story starting off way before A Hunger Like No Other. I kept flipping back to the start, tilting my head in confusion, which distracted me. As I continued, it began to make sense.
Which is probably the first problem I had with this shorter story: it spanned so many years, with not a lot happening between the two, that I didn't fully believe in the romance. One hears lots and lots of snippets of what occurs in the first four books, but I felt as if I were wasting away with Daniela because she was living in such solitude.
The two had settled after a certain amount of months, which also seemed strange to me. I understand why there was this sort of... apathetic acceptance, but Daniela was Murdoch's bride! Man up and be more passionate (I say that half-seriously, because Murdoch does try at times). And Daniela was apathetic in her own way, secluding herself the way she did. I missed the fun immortal interactions one usually experiences when reading an IAD book. Everything was just secluded and lonely, and yet, it worked. It worked for the story and those two characters.
The scenes where Daniela and Murdoch did interact melted my insides. I felt the connection when the two weren't at odds with each other, and that pleased me. The start to the book reflects that urgency perfectly, which is the kind of writing I've come to expect in regards to Kresley's books. An icicle. A freakin icicle! Pure genius.
Ultimately, Kresley's part in this book summoned both positive and negative feelings. I simply felt that stretching the story out over so many years didn't work for me. I enjoyed the start, and I loved the passion, which was there and wasn't at the same time. If this is your first time reading one of Kresley's books, I highly suggest you begin from the start. This story might turn you off from her writing, which would be a horrible crime, considering her books are amazing. And for those of you who are already familiar with Kresley? This book isn't mandatory for the storyline, but it's still a nice addition.
- Paperback - 436 pages
- Price: $21.99
- ISBN-10: 1439159661
- ISBN-13: 978-1439159668
- Released: October 13, 2009
- Kresley Cole's Website
- Buy it at Simonandschuster.com
- Buy it at Amazon.com
About the Author
I read the story from Kresely Cole because I LOVE her Immortals After Dark series and the Wroth brothers are some of my favorite characters. I liked it and thought it was a nice addition to the series.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read the Gena Showalter's Alien Huntress story because I haven't had a chance to read that series yet. When I do I will come back to this book and read it.
Stephanie G
I have this book because I have both GS and KC series on my kindle waiting to be read. I am not the hugest fan of the shorter stories but I do like that they continue stories in series :)
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if it's entirely tied in to her AH series? I don't know, I read it without reading her AH series and was perfectly fine.
ReplyDeleteI love the Wroth brothers too. I was so excited for Murdoch's story, but something about it just made it fall a bit flat for me. Maybe it was just my mood that night.
Felicia, I'm not a huge fan of short stories either. Both of these are great, though! :)
I have this book to read... and apparently research to see in what order they need to be read in... Yeah, I am ocd like that. LMBO!
ReplyDeleteGreat review you did honey!! Couldn't ask for better!
Hope all is well!!!
I put it in order (according to Kresley's website) right under the summary :D
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, I'm OCD about it too! haha
Thanks for your detailed review Tori, I've also had it on my TBR for quite some time. My problem is that short stories/novellas usually leave me unsatisfied, I find them too short and not deep and detailed enough. But sooner or later I will pick this up and read it, I think even before the new IAD book comes out, i'm starting to ahve IAD withdrawal symptoms ;-)
ReplyDeleteThat's my problem too... which is why I typically avoid reading them. There have been, however, quite a few authors who have blown me away in short stories.
ReplyDelete