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Demon From The Dark

Kresley Cole

Published 2010          430 pages

Summary (from the book cover)

A dangerous demon she can’t resist…
Malkom Slaine: tormented by his sordid past and racked by vampiric hungers, he’s pushed to the brink by the green-eyed beauty under his guard.

A maddening witch he aches to claim…
Carrow Graie: hiding her own sorrows, she lives only for the next party or prank. Until she meets a tortured warrior worth saving.

Trapped together in a savage prison…
In order for Malkom and Carrow to survive, he must unleash both the demon and vampire inside him. When Malkom becomes the nightmare his own people feared, will he lose the woman he craves body and soul?

The Review

Demon From The Dark is the tenth book in Kresley Cole’s bestselling Immortals After Dark (IAD) paranormal romance series. While there is an overarching story arc that ties the series together all the IAD books are stand alone romances, each one focusing on the romance between a new hero and heroine, so they don’t necessarily need to be read in strict series order. However, the IAD books are some of the best, most consistently written, paranormal romance novels available to buy today – so I’d highly recommend romance fans to start at the beginning and read the entire series.

Since the first IAD story hit the book shelves in 2006 the series has steadily been gaining #1 bestseller seller status. At the time of writing this review Kiss of The Demon King (IAD book 8) has just won the 2010 RWA RITA award for Best Paranormal Romance, with Kresley Cole beating paranormal romance’s other heavy weight J.R. Ward to snatch the prize. This is the second RITA for the series. Back in 2007, A Hunger Like No Other also won the Best Paranormal Romance category award. The point I’m trying to make here is that while I’m occasionally given to hyperbole I’m really not just making up how good Kresley Cole’s books are!

Now, assuming that new readers have just run to the book store to pick up the back catalogue let’s talk about what established series fans can expect from Demon From The Dark. Like all of the IAD books it follows the traditional formula of two immortals getting thrown together and then falling in love against a backdrop of life-or-death supernatural adventure, witty banter and ever increasing sexual tension.

Specifically, Demon From The Dark introduces Malkom a violent and brutish demon/vampire hybrid who has been holed up in his hell dimension for the last 400 years plotting his vengeance on those responsible for infecting him with vampirism. As a demon/vampire hybrid or “vemon” he has the immortals’ equivalent of superpowers with greater strength and ferocity than either a vampire or demon alone.

Captured by the Order (a mysterious group of humans whose mission appears to be to capture, study and then eradicate immortals from the Earth) New Orleans witch Carrow is given little choice but to follow the Order’s commands while she plots her escape from their hidden island compound. The order wish to study a venom and Carrow is forced to venture into Malkom’s subterranean lair to lure him out for capture.

Carrow doesn’t speak Demonish and Malkom doesn’t speak English. While they might be unable to communicate, Malkom can still recognise Carrow as his Bride (the one fated mate of a vampire who can make their heart beat again.) Stripped of her witch’s power Carrow is in a vulnerable position. Malkom is powerfully strong yet uneducated, unkempt and unwashed so it’s a true case of Beauty and the (vampire) Beast.

With a hero and a heroine who can’t readily communicate, one might expect the relationship development to falter but changing dubious hero material into a dream lover and turning unlikely pairings into heart-stopping – yet utterly believable – romance is the author’s speciality. Demon From The Dark is no exception and in no time even the hardest hearted reader is guaranteed to be hooked into Malkom and Carrow’s burgeoning relationship. 

Demon From The Dark is yet another top quality paranormal romance from Kresley Cole and a great addition to the IAD series. Intense danger mixes with insatiable desire to create a scorching hot romance that plays out against a fast-paced backdrop of thrilling supernatural adventure. Who wouldn’t want to read this?

Addictively good reading, I’d recommend that any self-respecting paranormal or vampire romance fan buy, beg or borrow a copy of this fabulous book.

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