Kiss of a Demon King

Kiss of the Demon King by Kresley Cole Paranormal Romance- January 20, 2009 5 stars Kresley Cole has written another WINNER! After I finished it I re-read it to enjoy the experience again. And it was better the second time! For those not familiar with Kresley Cole's Immortals Series, this book might be a little difficult to follow since many of the characters have been introduced in previous books. Also, if you don't like starting right into the middle of a series, I suggest you start with her earlier books. The Immortals Series has it all: Valkyrie, Vampires, Ghosts, Demons, Sorcerers, Shifters, and Sirens. All interact with each other and have their own style and distinctive personality. What I find irresistible about her series is that she really makes you believe in her characters and doesn't insult your intelligence with easy, cut and dried situations. All her books get me teary-eyed and make me fall in love with her main characters. Sabine is the Queen of Illusion. She captures the Demon King, Rydstom with the intention of seducing him. Sabine knows she is Rydstom's true mate, the only female Rydston can reach sexual satisfaction with and produce an heir. However, Sabine has kept herself from Rydstom because she cherishes her independence. She is no man's plaything. Sabine is cunning as well as head-strong and feisty. When she realizes that having a child with Rydstom is a rare bargaining chip to achieve freedom from her ruthless brother Omort, she decides to tempt Rydstom and torture him into submission. King Rydstom is a Demon King without a kingdom. Ever since the evil sorcerer Omort took over his kingdom, and corrupted it, Rydstom has tirelessly attempted to retake his lost kingdom without success. When he finds himself in the dungeon of his old castle, being tempted by the intoxicating allure of Sabine, the sister of his immortal enemy, he is outraged. Rydstom can't believe how Sabine sets him afire; for countless years he has searched for his chosen mate and never felt this hunger. Distressed and angered by his lust for the amoral sister of his nemesis, Rydstom battles his desire for revenge against the desires of his body and heart. Both characters are strong willed opposites. Together they are like oil and fire. He's stoic, she's sassy, add their snappy dialogue and you have book that keeps the pages turning. There were many times the characters had me laughing. I love how Sabine chipped away at Rydstom's serious demeanor. I found it touching when Rydstom actions make Sabine feel cherished and protected. This is a book to be savored. If only for the characters' wild courtship. Kresley Cole has woven a spellbinding tale of romance and adventure that captured my imagination and kept me wanting MORE. Reviewed by Steph from Bookaholics Romance Book Club

When I first picked up this book, I didn't really know if it was for me. It was hard to get into it because I could not relate to Sabine or fall in love with Rydstrom for the same reason Sabine couldn't. After the tables turned, I could not put the book down. I fell in love with both characters and the twists of the plot. I found myself cringing at the characters pain, yelling at them for their actions and laughing out loud at their dry sarcasm.

Since a few have written summaries, I'll be skipping that part... Kiss of a Demon King in the Immortals After Dark series is, once again, an awsome novel not to be missed by anyone who likes to read paranormal romance with an alpha male and a strong and intellegent lead female. You will definately fall in love with both the characters as they fell in love with each other. Rystrom's character was much developed in previous books in the series, and much more character development is done in this book. He is a fallen king, trying to reclaim his kingdom. As much as his character couldn't be classified as "fun," he definately has a very wild side, and Kresley had portrayed that side of him extremely well in this novel. Sabine, the Queen of Illusions, being the classfied as everything "evil" has much redeeming qualities. True, she is selfish sometimes (or half of the times), but the selfishness in her was very logically explained by her past experiences. She is also strong and intellegent, like all heroines in Kresley's books. One flaw (and I don't even think it's a flaw) that I would point out in this book is the first third of the portion being slightly repetitive. It consisted mainly of Sabine trying to seduce Rystrom, him trying not to be seduced, her trying to seduce him again, and him trying to resist again. However, I am still giving this book a solid 5 star because I felt all of that, although a little repetitive, was necessary for the two characters to fall as deeply in love with each other as they did in the end. I believe that I would not have felt the same if any of that part was left out, or the seduction process was reduced. Plus, during that section of the book, there were also a lot of character development going on, no just plain lemon. Although this book can be read as a stand-alone, begining with the first book of the serious would let you understand much more of the world Kresley have created. Or at least read Dark Needs at Night's Edge (Rystrom's brother, Cadeon's story) first, imo. So, again, if you love alpha male and a lead female who can rival him, Kiss of a Demon King, or any of the Immortals After Dark series for that matter of fact, don't miss this book.

Sabine, Queen of Illusions, has one main goal in life - to survive. After dying over a dozen times before being brought back to life by her sister Lanthe, who can blame a girl? Sabine and Lanthe are Sorceri who have mystickal powers but share the unfortunate distinction of being half-sisters to Omort the Deathless, the evil king of Rothkalina. Centuries ago, an oracle foretold to Omort that Sabine was the mate of Rydstrom, the demon king Omort stole Rothkalina from, and the child they would bear would unlock the untold power of the mysterious Well in Omort's court. Sabine and Lanthe are trapped in Omort's service because he gave them a poison that causes a painful death unless they continue to take it regularly and since he is the only one who possesses it, they must keep in his good graces to live. Omort sends Sabine to capture and seduce Rydstrom when he finds out that the demon king is trying to obtain a sword that is said to be able to kill him. Sabine has her own plans for the future - she will use this demon king to get pregnant then take over the throne from Omort when her son can use the power of the Well. She is confident that Rydstrom will be seduced quickly, after all who could resist her beauty and illusions? Rydstrom, the deposed demon king, is finally within reach of the goal he has worked toward for centuries - killing Omort and recapturing his throne. On the way to meet an accomplice in his quest, he is fooled by Sabine's illusions into stepping through a portal to a cell in the dungeon of his old castle in Rothkalina. Once there, Sabine begins her seduction of Rydstrom by getting him very excited then refusing to finish things until he promises to make her his queen. Rydstrom is very confused because this sorceress feels like his mate but there is no way fate would stick him with an evil, selfish woman - right? Sabine continues her seduction of Rydstrom by showing him his secret fantasies with her illusions but he refuses to break because he will not have her use his child for evil. She is impressed by his strength in spite of herself but refuses to give up her plan because there is no beating Omort any other way. She eventually gets her way but Rydstrom manages to trick her into thinking he made her queen when he really vowed revenge in the demon language. Turn about is fair play, so when Rydstrom is given a chance to escape unexpectedly from an old enemy, he kidnaps Sabine and has a chance to enact the revenge he contemplated while under her mercy in the dungeon. She is helpless without her hands, so he ties her up and shows her exactly how it feels to be brought to the brink of satisfaction again and again without relief. The longer they stay together, the more certain Rydstrom is that Sabine is his real mate. He no longer knows whether he wants revenge or to seduce Sabine to stay by his side forever. Sabine is impressed by Rydstrom's fighting skills as he wards off attacks as they make their way to a portal out of Rot

Rydstrom Woede has been fighting and searching for a way to kill Omort, the sorcerer that invaded and desecrated his castle, Castle Tornin, in the Kingdom of Rothkalina hundreds of years ago. The rightful king of demons, Rydstrom is in search of a special sword in which to behead Omort and resume his rightful place on the throne. Despite dead end after dead end Rydstrom refuses to give up his plan. He is the heir to the kingdom and he will find a way to restore honor and loyalty to his subjects. With this in mind, he continues on his wild goose chase to find the one thing guaranteed to kill Omort. Getting a tip from his brother, Rydstrom begins his journey to their meeting place only to come face to face with a coquettish vixen. When she implores his help Rydstrom doesn't hesitate but it is only when he is fully under her spell does he realize who she is - Sabine - the Queen of Illusions and his enemy's sister. Then to add to his animosity, she captures him and places him in her dungeon, or rather, his dungeon. Rydstrom is not a happy demon and when he gets free, Sabine is going to pay. But first, he has to resist her charms and attempts at seduction. And that is something that he definitely does not want to do. The minute I finished reading Dark Desires After Dusk, I envisioned Rydstrom's story, KISS OF A DEMON KING, as being pivotal to this series and I knew without a doubt that it would be a story worthy of this illustrious and very noble demon king. I love when I am correct because KISS OF A DEMON KING was extraordinary. Having lost his home hundreds of years ago to the foulness of Omort, Rydstrom spent the next years of his long life trying to find the one thing that was deadly to this wicked sorcerer. But through it all, he also had visions of finding the one woman he could make his queen. A woman his people would cherish and honor as their king's consort -- a woman he would love and in turn would love him as well and raise a family with him. Fate had a funny way of rearing its head when the powers that be chose Sabine as Ryd's mate. Not known for her niceness, Sabine has magic so potent that it can be deadly to anyone that crosses her path. Kept in line by her brother, Sabine is reliant upon Omort's good will because without it, her life would be in more danger than it already is. Capturing Rydstrom is one thing, falling in love with him is another and Sabine fights with her almost non-existent conscience every step of the way. KISS OF A DEMON KING is full of magic, mayhem, sorcery and sensuality. Readers will not want to miss one word of this memorable and enchanting tale. The closer to the end I got the slower I read because I knew once the story ended I would be left craving more of this brilliant and emotionally gripping saga. KISS OF A DEMON KING releases from Pocket on January 20, 2009. Since it is book 6 of Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark series, I recommend reading the books in order but it is not