Damien

Nightwalkers Series, Book 4

By: Jacquelyn Frank

Narrated by: Xe Sands

Length: 11 hrs

Publisher's summary

He'd never loved. But she was irresistible.

As reigning Vampire Prince, Damien has tasted every pleasure the world has to offer - consorting with kings and queens and delighting in sensual adventure. Now, tired of such pursuits, he devotes his energies to protecting his people. The war between human necromancers and Nightwalkers has escalated, and when the enemy makes a daring move, kidnapping Syreena, a Lycanthrope Princess, Damien boldly follows. He succeeds in rescuing her, but is unprepared for the erotic longing her lush sensuality awakens in him.

Gifted with rare abilities, Syreena grew up in a cloistered setting and was forbidden to form attachments to others, yet the connection Damien feels with her is immediate, intoxicating, and impossible for either to resist. But claiming Syreena as his mate could have shattering repercussions for every Nightwalker - and leave their enemies more dangerous than ever before.

Spend some more time with the Nightwalkers - if you dare.

©2008 Jacquelyn Frank (P)2011 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Frank's latest Nightwalker entry is fast-paced and steamy, nicely developing the world of her generally upstanding, gorgeous and charismatic supernatural creatures." (Publishers Weekly)

Mixing Vampire and Lycanthrope Blood ... oh no!!

What did you like best about this story?

This story follows Damien, the Vampire Prince and Syreena, the Lycanthrope Princess as they develop a never-before-known relationship. Syreena is brutally attacked by Ruth the Demon and Damien tries to save her. Because she is bleeding and they are alone, the only way Damien knows to stop her bleeding is to drink from her and inject her with his coagulation serum. But drinking from other Nightwalkers is strictly forbidden in the vampire world. It will have consequences. Are the consequences worth it to save the beautiful lycanthrope princess? Will taking her blood kill him?

Once again, Jacqueline Frank has surpassed normal Vampire and Shapeshifter norms. She does tie in with old myths and legends, but still it is not common place for two different species to mix. This is the third time she has mixed species with very interesting results. I can’t wait to find out the results of all this mixing of genes and abilities. Very interesting ….

What about Xe Sands’s performance did you like?

Xe Sands has narrated all the books in this series so far. I must admit, I have become quite the fan of Xe Sands and her enthralling story telling voice. I love the way she reads the romantic (and sometimes erotic) passages. When you think about someone telling a love story, this is the voice you imagine doing it! Sultry, passionate, and hot!

Pure sweet treat for my ears

This series just gets better. If you like this genre then I'm sure you'll love this series. It's just so good. Just make sure you start with the first book to get the maximum enjoyment.

My Favorite Nightwalker

Xe Sands excels with narrating this series. Each character, and there are many, has a unique voice which is the accent from the country of their origin. Can I guarantee accent authenticity? No, but I???d listen to this series just to hear Sands voicing them. Plus she brings the couple, their feelings and the circumstances, to life in a way that is beyond my abilities. And that???s hard to do, I read in Technicolor.

When it comes to audiobooks narration is what is most important to me but if your in need of an overview of the story here's mine.

Damien, Prince of the Vampires, enters the interspecies marrying loop in Jacquelyn Frank???s fourth Nightwalker entry. Damien is my favorite in this series for two reasons. First, it keeps moving, whether by dialogue or action and without the verboseness that irked me previously. Second, it could slide onto a bookshelf at Goodreads entitled ???avid seduction of a hesitant heroine???. Damien truly is a prince when it comes to his pursuit of Syreena. That he made her pay some dues was excellent ??? I loved him.

Damien is the acknowledged leader of the Vampires, but it???s a role that keeps him looking over his shoulder. Syreena, the Lycanthrope princess, has always longed for a husband and family, but Fate???s choice throws her. Damien readily accepts the bond between them and Syreena is captivated but she wants definitive proof that the bond is possible between their races. That proof may be found in the recently discovered Nightwalker library but working to unite the Nightwalker???s against their expanding enemy comes first.

Damien - YES!

Damien is just as good as the other 3 preceding it. I have been drawn so thoroughly into this Nightwalker series I've practically listened to each book in one sitting. Each story has its own unique twist, but essentially it is about different 'races' and 'cultures' finding love and overcoming longstanding prejudices and intolerances they've had for the other, all while fighting a common enemy. The love story is beautifully narrated by Xe Sands--her voice is absolutely addicting--I get lost in it. The entire series is credit worthy without question--GET IT!

Great Book.. but...

Another great book that just keeps the Nightwalker series going. However, I am totally on the fence here. I loved Damien, but Syreena... really. I mean I just don't like her. I didn't like her in the last book. She is a Freakin Monk!! She is supposed to be this bad ass fighting Lyknthrop...but she seems all... I just don't know. I can't even think of a word for her. Maybe... dumb blonde at times and faking the funk at others... I understand why she is all hesitant with Damien, but still, she should have gone Monk on him or something. I don't know... I am just on the fence about Syreena.

That said, I think Damien reaction to Syreena was absolutely perfect. He was pissed, and he let her know it. That was awesome. He is a vamp, and a pissed vamp goes crazy. Loved that. I have to admit, Frank wrote one of her best smex scenes ever with these two. I was on pins and needles!

Do you really need anyone to tell you about Xe Sands. She is the best narrator for this series. You can really tell the characters apart. Men sound like men and women sound like women even with all the accents. Loved it.

This book is definitely worth the credit or to buy. Don't let me not liking Syreena discourage you. I just didn't like her, but that didn't take away from the story. Syreena's character was actually really good with the rest of the story. I just personally didn't like the way she reacted to certain events. If your a bad ass Monk, then she should have kick some serious butt at times... Just my opinion...

Great Story!

The only reason the performance received three stars was that allof the male characters sound just alike, but good job anyway. The book had a good story line and it was different then a lot of the books I've read. It was refreshing to read a different story line that's not just like all the others. Thank you Jacquelyn Frank. You can't go wrong reading this book.

I tried to like this series, but it is not for me.

So far Jacob and Elijah are the best books in this series. This one just didn't capture my attention much. I didn't understand the reasoning behind how Damien and Serena dealt with their emotions plus there is very little action. There is only an endless rambling about how they feel and it gets old after a while. I keep listening to read the smexy scene but it just doesn't make up for the story so I gave up the story about half way through. I really tried to like this series but alas it is not for me. I also can't stand the narrator she is so boring and slow that I lose interest in the story. While she is clear and you can tell who characters are (if I'm awake) I still put my player on double speed just to get the story on with. This will be the end for me with this series. I don't understand why so many people love this narrator, I want to give her coffee or speed just to get things going.

The narration is a bore...YAWN

What did you love best about Damien?

I did like the story. However, ended up purchasing this on Kindle to read. Just can't stand the "Lithium +Xanax" narration. I mean, really?! The narrator is have or full-pon baked, and asleep. AWFUL!!!

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

The story is fine. I preferred to actually "read" it than listen to the audio.

How could the performance have been better?

As mentioned above, HORRID! Ms. Xe Sands sounds like she's overdosed on every kind of "down" med there is?!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Book - OK. Narration - SUCKS

Enjoyable continuation series - but ... not great.

If you could sum up Damien in three words, what would they be?

Interesting, complex, enjoyable

What other book might you compare Damien to and why?

Very similar to Elijas' story (same author, same world). The cross-spieceis story repeated the theme of reluctance to commit to the relationship and the introduction of new societal values due to the crosing of taboos. Of course Damiens' experience is more intense considering the consequences of the "exchange" upon the Nightwalker community.

What about Xe Sands’s performance did you like?

Ms. Sands performance is so comfortable and enjoyable. She allows the book to unfold in your mind with no distracting drawbacks of voicing or pacing. Her characterizations are very nice and really help you to keep track of who is speaking without having to wait for the authors' words to introduct each speaker.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

After the famed Prince of the Vampires is caught in the grips of passion and love, the Nightwalker community will never be the same.

Any additional comments?

As I said, very enjoyable; however this book is not the strongest of the series. Considering my love of Damien I was slightly dissapointment. Still absolutely worth the credit!

I was doubtful about this one...

I wasn't sure, from reading the synopsis that I would like this book as much as I liked the previous ones in the series. I was also concerned about some of the reviews of this book, which weren't as positive as those of previous books. But I really like Jacquelyn Frank's writing and think that Xe Sands is a great narrator, so I went for it.

I definitely don't regret it. I loved this book just as much as I've loved every previous one. I'm still amazed that I'm 4 books into this series and it's still keeping me hooked. The writing is still good, the story is still great, the world is still interesting and the pairings off the main characters are passionate and believable.

2 things: First, my biggest complaint about Ms Frank's writing is the over-use of the word 'However'. I've mentioned this before in previous reviews and this book is better about it in most places, than other books in the series. Second, the 'best friend' of Damien is a pain in the rear. I definitely hated this character by the end of the story and a previous review says she has her own book later in the series which I'm having difficulty looking forward to. It's going to be interesting to see if she can be redeemed.