Review: Midnight Rising - Lara Adrian

In a world of shadows and dark, consuming hungers, desire is the deadliest weapon....

Fueled by pain and rage over a shattering betrayal, the warrior Rio has pledged his life to the war against the Rogues.  He will let nothing stand in his way - least of all a mortal woman with the power to expose the entire vampire race.  But now an ancient evil has been awakened, and a stunning darkness is on the rise.

For journalist Dylan Alexander, it began with the discovery of a hidden tomb.  Suddenly she is at the center of a gathering storm of violence and secrets.  But nothing is as dangerous as the scarred, lethally seductive man who rises from the shadows to plunge her into his world of dark desire and endless night.  Here she is powerless to resist Rio's touch, even as she uncovers a shocking link to her own past.  Now Dylan must choose: Leave Rio's midnight realm, or risk it all for the man who has shown her true passion and the infinite pleasures of the heart....

The Midnight Breed Series:
A Touch of Midnight (Novella included in The Midnight Breed Series Companion, now also available separately)
Kiss of Midnight
Kiss of Crimson
Midnight Awakening
Midnight Rising
Veil of Midnight
Ashes of Midnight
Shades of Midnight
Taken by Midnight
Deeper than Midnight
A Taste of Midnight (Novella)
Darker After Midnight
The Midnight Breed Series Companion
Edge of Dawn
Marked by Midnight (Novella)
Crave the Night
Tempted by Midnight (Novella)
Bound to Darkness
Stroke of Midnight (Novella)
Defy the Dawn
Midnight Untamed (Novella)
Midnight Unbound (Novella)
Midnight Unleashed (Novella)
Claimed in Shadows
Break the Day

Hunter Legacy Series:
(A series of standalone romances set in the Midnight Breed world)
Born of Darkness
Hour of Darkness
Edge of Darkness

Visit Lara Adrian's website  for more information about the Midnight Breed series you will find excerpts from each of the books.  Lara can also be found on Facebook & Twitter where she posts regular updates or you can join other fans to chat about the books over at the LAMB (Lara Adrian Midnight Breed) Forum

Review:
I know I've said it before in other reviews but I really do recommend that if you are new to the series that you start with the first book Kiss of Midnight.  Although each of the books can be read seperately if you just concentrate on the relationship that develops between the main 2 characters you will miss out on information in the ongoing war between the Order & the Rogues if you read the books out of order.  Whether you are new to the series or part way through it I'd recommend you only read reviews of the next book (all of the reviews I have written so far are linked in the series list above).

Rio makes a fantastic tortured bad boy & I really love how his character develops in this book.  When we first met him in Kiss of Midnight he seemed like a happy go lucky guy who would take everything in his stride, of course - not surprisingly - that all changed after he was almost killed in an explosion after the betrayal of his Breedmate Eva.  Since then he has suffered enormous physical and emotional pain.  He is filled with rage against Eva and suffers with blackouts and half of his face and body are covered with horrific scars.

Rio was given the task of destroying the hibernation chamber of one of the Ancients that was discovered by the Order in the Czech Republic but he has failed to carry out his mission.  He has been living in the cave for several months, slowly going mad from his physical and mental anguish that has been increased by his hunger. He is desperate to end his suffering and is planning on destroying the cave with himself inside it.  Before he can carry out his plan he is discovered by Dylan who finds the cave when hiking in the mountains while on holiday with friends.  Before he realises what is happening she has managed to take photos of both the cave & Rio.

The very existance of the photos threatens the Breed with discovery by humans so Rio has to make sure Dylan doesn't make them public.  Things get even more complicated when he discovers that Dylan is a Breedmate and he has no choice but to ask for assistance from the Order to help him fix his mistake.

I really like the way the relationship develops between Rio and Dylan.  They both have issues from their past that they need to deal with but the way they are drawn to each other is very believable.  If you've already started reading this series you'll find this book is still fast paced with plenty of action as I'm sure you'll have come to expect.  I found that this book spent more time concentrating on the main characters than some of the other books have which I really enjoyed.  I also like the way the background story of the ongoing war is developing.  Rather than having just one single enemy throughout the series the Order defeat one threat only to discover an even more evil plot.  I can't wait to read Niko's story in Veil of Midnight!

Source: Purchased

Other Reviews:
Pearl's World of Romance
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.