5 Wine Glass #Review of Torched by Donna Grant

Title: Torched
Series: Dark Kings #13
Author: Donna Grant
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 368 pages
Published: May 29th 2018 by St. Martin's Paperbacks
ISBN: 1250109590 (ISBN13: 9781250109590)
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Reviewer: Linda
Source: Purchased from local independent bookstore
Rating: 5 out of 5 Wine Glasses

The stakes are raised and the passion burns hotter in one of the most anticipated Dark Kings novel from New York Times bestseller Donna Grant.

The King of Silvers. Cunning, perceptive, resourceful. Determined. Banished from Dreagan eons ago because of a betrayal that shattered his entire existence, his sole focus in life is to exact revenge against the Dragon Kings. A formidable fighter with centuries of rage on his side, Ulrik will stop at nothing to take down those who exiled him.

He has been alone, trusting no one for thousands of years. Until she walks into his life. He should not yearn for her, but there is no stopping the fiercely burning attraction. When he’s with her, he isn’t thinking of war or revenge. He only thinks of her, craves her. Burns for her. But soon he will be forced to choose: Will he continue on his course of destruction or will he be able to set aside his vengeance to save the woman who risked everything for him.

Your Thoughts:
The most anticipated installment since the series’ inception does not disappoint!
He needed no one.
For to trust was to be betrayed.

There’s no doubt that Torched by Donna Grant has been the most anticipated installment since the series’ inception! I’m a huge fan of Grant’s and her Dark Kings’ series. Ulrik’s story is hands-down one of the most powerful redemption books I’ve ever read and unquestionably my favorite of the entire series. If you are a newbie to Grant’s Dark Kings, they are men of power and magic who can shift into dragon form and have ruled over all other creatures for millenniums. When humans appeared, the Dark Kings protected them until they were betrayed and thousands of dragons were killed. The betrayal was made worse when they discovered that it came from a woman who had vowed to love one of the Dragon Kings – namely, Ulrik.

               Ulrik is the King of the Silvers. He has been banished from the home of the Dragon Kings, Draegan in Scotland, for centuries. All this time, Ulrik has been building up his revenge and planning his expected challenge to his former brother, Con, the King of Kings. Ulrik has been painted as a super villain since the beginning. Grant’s heroes are especially delicious, and Ulrik is no exception. It’s amazing how having a new love in your life can change your perceptions and outlook.

That said, each page of Torched is teeming with doubts, betrayals, plans for revenge, and power plays. But, in the end, Ulrik’s story teaches us that love heals. His long-awaited tale told from his point-of-view tore at my heart and Grant succeeded in making me want to let him in.

The druid heroine in this tale has appeared in a few prior installments where she, too, has been villainized. My hat is off to Grant for redeeming them both so splendidly! That’s not to say that their path to redemption is easy. Readers will need to hang on for a roller-coaster ride!

This is the thirteenth installment in this series. I cannot conceive reading this book as a standalone as much that occurs is predicated on the past. However, if you are determined to do so, the romance in this installment is developed and comes to fruition in this book. Just know that there is a complicated overall series arc with many supporting characters with their own subplots. Grant interweaves it all beautifully – but I would think that it would be confusing for a newbie to be assailed with so much. This series is one of my favorite paranormal urban fantasy series. You will not regret starting this series from the beginning and reading it in order.

Following please find a few of my favorite lines from Torched:

“Fate will chew you up and spit you out many times, taking you away from those you love and dumping you into places you never wanted to be. It’s up to each of us where we choose to belong. We can either fight everything, or accept what we’re given and make the most of it”
---

“You and me,” Ulrik said. “No friendship has ever been stronger, and there’s nothing that will ever tear apart our bond.”
Con looked at him, a wide smile in place. “Brothers.”
“Brothers.”
---

“Do you normally take the time to get to know those you’re sent to kill?”
---

“We talked about a lot of things yesterday…”
She nodded, frowning. “Yep. Like the fact that you haven’t watched Guardians of the Galaxy. We need to remedy that. Actually, I need to baptize you in the entire Marvel Universe.”
“As you wish…”
---

They came together in a tangle of limbs as they touched each other, the kiss wild and feverish. A groan tore from him as her hands roved over his shoulders and down his back. Her caress was light and sensual, as if her desire seeped like magic from her fingertips into his skin everywhere she touched.

Torched contains jaw dropping revelations, kickass battles, steamy love fests, and fabulous twists that will keep readers guessing and on the edge of their seats. This emotional-whirlwind-of-a-story marks a BIG development in the series and is one that should not be missed if you are a fan. I confess that Torched kept me up until 3am on a workday – because there was no way I could put it down until I’d read every single word! It was a treat to see so much of Rhi and Constantine in this book. I am delighted that it appears that the time is fast approaching for thorn-in-our-side Usaeil, the Light Fae Queen, to be dealt a huge dose of comeuppance. I was also happy to see Erith aka “Death" from the Reapers spin-off series finally reveal herself to Con. I will be kept busy pondering over the many revelations herein until the next books.

Thankfully, next month will see two releases in this series: Dragon Night and DragonFire! Generating so much excitement over a book’s release is quite an accomplishment for Grant this many books into the series. She has managed to keep this series feeling fresh and interesting. She certainly did an exceptional job with this book. Bravos to Grant on such an amazing story! I’m still blown away days later!



Suggested Reading Order:
The Dark Kings series is a spin off Donna's Dark Warriors Series and Dark Sword Series.
DARK CRAVING (Book # 0.1)
NIGHT'S AWAKENING (Book # 0.2)
DAWN'S DESIRE (Book # 0.3)
DARK HEAT (Books # 0.1 - 0.3 plus a bonus story)
DARKEST FLAME (Book #1)
FIRE RISING (Book #2)
BURNING DESIRE (Book #3)
HOT BLOODED (Book #4)
NIGHT'S BLAZE (Book #5)
SOUL SCORCHED (Book #6)
DRAGON KING (Book # 6.25)
PASSION IGNITES (Book #7)
SMOLDERING HUNGER (Book #8)
SMOKE AND FIRE (Book #9)
DRAGON FEVER (Book #9.5)
FIRESTORM (Book #10) 
Blaze (Dark Kings, #11) 

Heat (Dark Kings, #12) 

TORCHED (Book #13)
DRAGONFIRE (Book #14) – Coming Oct 2018!