Review: Eternal Prey (Gods of the Night #3) by Nina Bangs

Synopsis (via Goodreads):

A magnificent creature, Utah wants vengeance against the bloodsuckers who murdered his brother. Once the beast within him is unleashed, he won’t rest until every vampire is destroyed. But he never expected to encounter a leader of his immortal enemies who was so beautiful, bewitching . . . and mortal.

It is Lia’s destiny and her duty to stop the renegade vampires who are intent on annihilating the human and non-human races alike. But she never dreamed that Utah, once a deadly foe, would now become her ally and protector, or that loving him would be more dangerous than anything she’s ever faced before. For when Utah frees his predator soul, there will be no end to the carnage.

My Thoughts:  I mentioned in my review of Eternal Craving that I thought the cover didn't capture the vibe of the story.  Well, they got it right this time.  In fact, I think I kinda love this cover.  It feels a lot edgier and more primal, which is definitely what I imagine when I think of dinosaur shifters.  The blurring along the edges brings to mind someone who's so intent upon someone or something that everything else falls away.  Like I said, this one captures the feel of the book far better than the first two covers did.  Which is a good thing.  The only thing I'm wondering is why Utah and Lia are being attacked by another dino.  I don't remember that happening.  I mean, they were attacked by plenty of other things but I don't recall one of the Eleven turning on them at any point.  Hmm.  I'll chalk it up to a wealth of enthusiasm by the cover artist to get some sort of dinosaur element in there while still conveying the fact that the Eleven are human.  Ish.  Human-ish.  You know, being shapeshifters and all.

Heck, I'm trying to say that I like the cover.  It's pretty and it tickles my fancy.

And the story?  We get more answers about what the Eleven were before they were dinosaurs.  We get to take a peek into the sticky world of vampire politics.  Fin is still a raging mystery, although he's starting to show pieces of himself.  The Eleven are drawing other powerful beings into their orbit, like Seir, Kione and Jude.  Will all those guys play a part in the coming battles?  I don't know.  But they're here now and they're helping Fin.  I'll admit that some of their help is grudgingly given, but it is given.

Utah's grief after losing Rap in book 2 to the rogue vamps has to work itself out and Lia's insistence that she's going to become a vampire in the near future makes for some interesting interactions between the two.  When they finally do toss aside their reservations and make sweet, sweet love it's just as hot as I thought it would be.

All in all, this is a great addition to the series.  It gives a few answers while laying out the groundwork for the next book.  Although it's probable that you could jump into this series with this book, I would highly recommend reading the first two in the series just so you can see the journey of the Eleven unfold a piece at a time and get all the backstory.  It just makes everything so much sweeter that way.

Other reviews in this series:
Book 1: Eternal Pleasure
Book 2: Eternal Craving

More books by Nina Bangs

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