Title: Burning Alive
Author: Shannon K. Butcher
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series; Sentinel Wars #1
Publisher: Onyx
Number of Pages: 358
Source: Library
Three races descended from ancient guardians of mankind, each possessing unique abilities in their battle to protect humanity against their eternal foes-the Synestryn. Now, one warrior must fight his own desire if he is to discover the power that lies within his one true love...Helen Day is haunted by visions of herself surrounded by flames, as a dark-haired man watches her burn. So when she sees the man of her nightmares staring at her from across a diner, she attempts to flee-but instead ends up in the man's arms. There, she awakens a force more powerful and enticing than she could ever imagine. For the man is actually Theronai warrior Drake, whose own pain is driven away by Helen's presence. Together, they may become more than lovers-they may become a weapon of light that could tip the balance of the war and save Drake's people.(goodreads)
The newest book in this series just came out and I was curious about it, so I decided to give book one, Burning Alive a try. This was another one of those books where I alternated from loving the story and being annoyed with it at the same time.
One of the things that pulled into the story and the series was that it was different from most paranormal romance series. It's a bit darker, and who doesn't love warriors with mysterious pasts? The world building was wonderful-I loved the society of the Theronai warriors, and by the end of the book felt like I knew the world really well..however there was a point in the book were information overload almost happened. I was a 100 pages in, and the action from the first half of the book was still going strong, when all of a sudden all of these races were being thrown at me. I'm not sure why, but it just throw me for a loop, and was one of the things that made me go back and forth on my views of the book.
Just when I thought the world building was getting to be too much the relationship between Helen and Drake took off. I just loved the hero, Drake. He's strong, nearly immortal and while he is a bit commanding like all alpha heroes are, he also has a tender side when it comes to Helen, the heroine of the story.The guys in the story are all strong, but tortured in their own way. They are what kept me reading, because the heroine, Helen left with a mixed bag of emotions. On the one hand she's supposed to be really afraid of Drake, but once he gets hurt from protecting her she's suddenly mostly over her fear and I felt like she was just too trusting and her actions were a bit dumb. in the beginning of the book..however in the last part of the book Helen becomes much more likable and won me over in the end-it just took me awhile to warm up to her.
I've been reading a lot of books lately where the point of view has been told in first person, so to read a book with multiple points of view was refreshing. Sometimes changing the point of view from chapter to chapter can be awkward, but such was not the case in this book. I felt more invested in all of the characters, and made me really look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Curran Crush Meter: Medium
Barrons Hero Hotness Meter: High
Martini Sigh Meter: Medium
Rhiannon Kick Ass Heroine Meter: Medium
Finn Sidekick Meter: High ( I loved Miss Mabel!)
Ethan/Merit Sizzle Meter: Medium
