Crave the Darkness: A Shaede Assassin Novel

By Amanda Bonilla

Nothing comes easy for Darian. Her heightened powers make her indispensable to the Shaede Nation, but dangerous missions have driven her lover, Tyler, to his breaking point. Darian must salvage their bond, but a new assignment to protect Anya—a fellow Shaede and the first of their kind to become pregnant in centuries—stands in the way.

It doesn’t help that the two Shaedes are longtime rivals and share nothing besides mutual hatred. But when it becomes clear that someone—or something—is bent on destroying the expectant mother and her unborn child, Darian must put her feelings aside and track down Anya’s would-be assassin.

As she probes into Anya’s past, Darian digs up long-buried secrets—and a startling connection between Tyler and the mission that could destroy everything between them.…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Release date: Mar 5, 2013
• ISBN: 9781101604021

Amanda Bonilla

Amanda Bonilla is the author of the Shaede Assassin and Sentry of Evil urban fantasy romance series. The debut novel in the series, SHAEDES OF GRAY, was nominated for Best Urban Fantasy Protagonist of 2011 by Romantic Times Magazine. Amanda lives in rural Idaho. She's a part-time pet wrangler, a full-time sun worshipper, and only goes out into the cold when coerced. She also writes romantic suspense as Mandy Baxter and paranormal romance as Kate Baxter.

Reviews for Crave the Darkness

[bookaholiccat · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Crave the Darkness is the third book in the amazing Shaede Assassin series by Amanda Bonilla.

It’s going to be impossible to write this review without spoilers from previous books, so if you are new to this series and don’t like spoilers stop right here and skip to the last paragraph where I explain about the giveaway. Proceed at your own risk if you don’t care much about spoilers.

Darian knew there was going to be hell to pay after her harsh decisions in Blood Before Sunrise, but what she never thought was that the blow off of her actions were not only going to be on a legal level but on a very personal one. She learned the hard truth when Tyler surprised her by walking out her life. Three months have passed and she hasn’t heard from him, she is a complete mess and her broken heart doesn’t let her care about anything. Her legal problems are not going away and she’s doing nothing to help her case. Luckily she has a group of people who care about her and have been by her side when she has needed them most. One of them is her best friend Raif, and the other is Raif’s brother, Xander, who is also the King of the Shaedes.
When everything seen legally lost Xander uses his influence with the tribunal and gets Darian a free pass, but he’s tired of her anguish and as her King and employer gives her the order to move to his house, she has mourned enough and it’s time for her to get her head together and go back to work. Xander needs Darian to protect Anya, somebody is trying to kill her and now that she’s pregnant, something that is very rare and difficult in their race, it’s of the most utter importance to keep her safe.
Despite not getting along with Anya Darian accepts the assignment. Darian is giving carte blanche to form her own team. Raif disagrees with one of her choices, but Darian likes Asher and wants to give him a chance, now the only thing left is trying to convince Anya to trust her enough to tell her who is after her and her unborn child, but for more probing Anya is not saying anything.
If dealing with Anya wasn’t enough for Darian to deal with, Tyler is back in the city and he didn’t return alone, a beautiful woman returned with him. The question is would Darian be able to keep her head and do what she must? Or would her obsession for Tyler make her lose everything she has fought all her life for?

It’s very difficult not to gush about this book because I really loved it and enjoyed every single part of it.

In this installment Darian is not the same Darian of previous books, she is dealing with heartbreak and that makes her vulnerable, that is something we haven’t seen in her before. She is also reevaluating her life and the decisions she has taken throughout time. Seeing Darian suffering wasn’t easy, her depression was so profound that it was almost contagious, but when the anguish was becoming unbearable Darian picked herself together and continued forward with her life.

In Crave the Darkness I didn’t like Tyler much, I can almost said I disliked him and couldn’t understand the things he did, but weeks later I read his novella, Lost to the Gray (it takes time between Blood Before Sunrise and Crave the Darkness), and then I was able to understand his behavior and it made me see him with different eyes. So I recommend you to read Lost to the Gray before reading Crave the Darkness.

In this installment Mrs. Bonilla gave me a treat. I have liked Xander since the beginning and this book was Xander packed, thank you Mrs. Bonilla. I know Xander’s motives towards Darian are not clear but I can’t help it, I like him very much and after Crave the Darkness I liked him even more. In Crave the Darkness he showed us he really cares for Darian and takes care of her in the only way he can. I can’t wait to see what Mrs. Bonilla has in store for him, but I think after some events in this book I have an idea. What events? You need to read the book.

The villain in Crave the Darkness is one of the creepiest villains I have ever read, the things he does made me cringe in disgust and wish him a very slow and painful death.
Raif if the same unconditional friend that loves Darian as if she were his own sister, he has been there for her and will continue to be there for her whenever she needs him, especially after what she did for him in Blood Before Sunrise.
On the beginning Anya is the same insufferable woman of previous books, but motherhood and certain events that happened in this book changed her a bit and made her feel more real and approachable.

Asher is a new character that I really liked; he kept me on my toes page after page because as much as I tried I couldn’t make up my mind about him, on one page I was trusting him, on the next I was doubting everything he was doing. I think Mrs. Bonilla did an excellent job making him feel mysterious and intriguing. I can’t wait to see and learn more about him, I pretty sure there is a nice story behind him.

Crave the Darkness is an action-packed-page-turner-impossible-to-put-down book; one that I guarantee you will keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. The plot is smart written and with so many twists and turns that you won’t be able to see what is coming next, if you add the curveballs that Mrs. Bonilla threw in there I can only tell you to be ready to be left open-mouthed and dying for more.

Since the moment I read Shaedes of Gray (first book) I fell in love with the characters and the unique world Mrs. Bonilla created in this series, Blood Before Sunrise only corroborated with my initial assertion and Crave the Darkness did the impossible, it exceeded my expectations.
I can recommend this book and series enough. If you are an urban fantasy lover this series is a must for you. If you haven’t read these books can I ask you what are you waiting for?

[rabidreads · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Reviewed by: Rabid ReadsEvery time I read a book by Amanda Bonilla I can’t help but marvel at how much her characters evolve from one installment to the next. Darian finds herself thrust into a new role that’s at odds with her assassin nature: that of a protector. Obviously there were more than a few growing pains but that’s part of the appeal of this series; the main character’s ability to meet any challenge head on. Well that and the hunk-erific man candy! Crave the Darkness is exhilaratingly paced, masterfully written and also a major tease (in more ways than one)!I really enjoyed the premise behind this book: two people with a strong dislike for each other are not only forced to work together but one actually needs to protect the other from harm. Personally, that sounds like my own personal version of hell! The tension between Darian and Anya makes for some pretty intense face-offs, especially considering the former’s insistence on the fact that she can take care of herself. But that’s not the only challenge that gets thrown Darian’s way in this installment; she assumes her first ever leadership role as well. Our girl is definitely being pushed to her limit this time around!My pick in the guy department for my favourite Shaede Assassin has been always been Ty. I’ll admit, I was a little upset with Amanda Bonilla when Darian started to take an interest in Xander. He’s a pompous, self-righteous, spoiled brat who thinks his King title gives him carte blanche to be an asshole. There’s one particular scene that comes to mind where they almost get it on but are interrupted before the deal is sealed and Xander gets one of the worst cases of blue balls that I’ve ever read. I couldn’t resist whooping with joy at his suffering because I’m team Ty all the way! The Jinn’s stubbornness and evasive behaviour did get on my nerves a bit but I can understand his need to teach Darian a lesson after her actions in Blood Before Sunrise. They’ll makeup in the next book; you’ll see!Asher makes his first appearance as a character in this series and brings a bucket load of intrigue with him. He doesn’t obey Darian’s orders yet always seems to show up when he’s needed most, he takes blending into the crowd to a whole new level and his lineage is something else. When I wasn’t beguiled by the story or by the extreme deviousness of the villain, I was trying to figure out what the heck was up with Asher! I love characters that have a bit of mystery to them.Amanda Bonilla and her Shade Assassin series is where it’s at people! Crave the Darkness should be on the top of everyone’s must read list. Let the torturous wait for the next installment begin!