Review: Lover Reborn by J.R. Ward

Note: I have many things to say about this book so I’ll skip the part where I explain the plot and go directly to my thoughts. If you haven’t read the books you should probably skip this review (and go read them!) because it won’t make sense to you.

I never thought I was going to be glad I broke my ankle, but the fact that I had to stay home all day doing basically nothing this week was a blessing, and this book helped me pass the hours pain free! It is insanely good! If I wasn’t completely hooked before, now I totally am.

Lover Reborn is the 10th installment of the Black Dagger Brotherhood Series. I honestly wasn’t too excited about the heroine and the hero, in my opinion Tohrment was too damaged and still in mourning mode and No’one was completely crippled -and I’m not talking about her limp-. But the beauty of this book is that the very thing that made me reluctant in the first place is the thing that today makes me love it so much. There is no instant cure for the pain in Tohrment’s life, nor an easy solution, but you see him working towards a better future and making a lot of mistakes along the way. The same goes for No’One, she has her own issues and we get to see her work on them.

The whole story develops slowly, a whole year passes, and it’s divided in four parts representing the four seasons. This is a nice, albeit common, allegory that fits quite well with what is happening to Tohr and No’One. We have to remember that those two characters are coming from really tough situations so they needed the time to heal and move on.

Tohr is completely torn inside, he is still in love with Wellsie, still grasping the fact that she is not coming back and he is full of anger. In addition, after accidentally seeing No’One naked, he is feeling lust for the first time after Welsie’s dead. This obviously makes him feel guilty but at the same time helps him move on, something that he has to do in order to help Welsie and their baby to move into the Fade.

On the other hand we have No’One. What a complex character, she is stubborn and annoying with her need to please and serve, but then I guess you would feel that way if you kill yourself after giving birth to a half-breed kid product of a rape. There is a question about her being alive after committing suicide, I wondered that, Tohr wondered that and we both got the answer. And what an answer it was. It’s almost at the end of the book and there are no words to describe it:  heartbreaking, great and completely logical.

Besides Tohr and No’One there is a lot going on with the Brotherhood. The story arc that started in Lover Unleashed with the Band of Bastards continues to get better. In this book the Lessening Society is more background noise, the real antagonists are the new kids on the block. Verily, they are a Royal pain in the butt, but the more you know them the more you get where they are coming from.

Other mayor subplot is John and his struggle to deal with the implication of having a shellan who is also a soldier. Xhex is not a happy camper in the brotherhood compound, and her problem is not only with John but with the vampire society as well. Those two can’t find an easy solution and their fight to be together is a twist that enhances the reading experience.

As usual with the series we get glimpses into the live of other characters. If you are vouching for Quinn and Blay beware, this book is a hard one to read. They both find a middle ground for their lives and is not one that makes them particularly happy; but don’t worry, there is still hope. Butch, Vishious, Rhage, the whole brotherhood and their shellans get some screen time. Lassiter plays a big role and from now on I declare myself at his feet, I so want to read his story. His character grows up and becomes a truly hero. Trust me; you’ll be rooting for him too.

Lover Reborn doesn’t lack in the romance department, there are a lot of troubles but there is also love and lots and lots of sex. Couple sex, solo sex, group sex. My description makes it sound funny but it was actually refreshing in a steamy way because sometimes when reading a series as long as this one the sex scenes begin to look the same and you can almost predict what is going to happen next. J.R. Ward was creative enough to create something stimulating, without making it more explicit or gruesome.

There are unfinished stories and plots, and for once I am happy about it. This was a book that was worth waiting for, and that’s something that I haven’t been able to say about the series for a while. I think that in a way is a great comeback for the series, the characters we love are back, lots of sexy times, and the enthralling stories and worldbuilding that made me fall in love with the series.  I am going to give it a 5 because it was an excellent book, but also because it is rare to find a series that keeps being this good after so many installments.

Review by Marie

Grade: 5

Sensuality: McBurning
Purchase: Amazon

Synopsis:

In the darkest corners of the night in Caldwell, New York, a conflict like no other rages. The city is home to a band of brothers born to defend their race: the warrior vampires of the Black Dagger Brotherhood.

Now back in the Brotherhood - and unrecognisable as the vampire leader he once was - Tohrment is physically emaciated and heartbroken beyond despair. When he begins to see his beloved in his dreams - trapped in a cold, isolating netherworld - Tohr turns to a self-serving fallen angel in hopes of saving the one he has lost. When he's told he must learn to love another to free his former mate, Tohr knows they are all doomed . . .

Except then a female with a shadowed history begins to get through to him. Against the backdrop of the raging war with the lessers, and with a new clan of vampires vying for the Blind King's throne, Tohr struggles between the buried past, and a very hot, passion-filled future . . . but can his heart let go and set all of them free?

Lover Reborn: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood By J.R. Ward

New American Library; March 27, 2012