Wicked Abyss

By: Kresley Cole

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

This fairy tale doesn't end with a kiss....

A spellbinding Immortals After Dark tale from number-one New York Times best-selling author Kresley Cole!

The terrifying king of hell...

As a boy, Abyssian "Sian" Infernas had his heart shattered by a treacherous fey beauty who died before he could exact vengeance. Millennia later, a curse has transformed him into a demonic monster - just as she's been reincarnated. Sian captures the delicate but bold female, forcing her back to hell.

Meets his match.

Princess Calliope "Lila" Barbot's people have hated and feared Abyssian and his alliance of monsters for eons. When the beastly demon imprisons her in his mystical castle, vowing revenge for betrayals she can't remember, Lila makes her own vow: to bring down the wicked beast for good.

Can two adversaries share one happily ever after?

As Calliope turns hell inside out, the all-powerful Sian finds himself defenseless against his feelings for her. In turn Lila reluctantly responds to the beast's cleverness and gruff vulnerability. But when truths from a far distant past are revealed, can their tenuous bond withstand ages of deceit, a curse, and a looming supernatural war?

©2017 Kresley Cole (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Beauty and the Beast.

What a great story. I have always been a fan of the beauty and the beast story and this is a great twist added to one of my favorite series. I couldn't wait to listen to it and it paid off. I hope Kresley Cole never stops writing this series. I laughed so hard when Lila pulled here first trick on Sian. I loved this world before when Lanthe and Thronos were stuck in it and now I love it even more. There wasn't a lot of action in this book, but it has a lot of mischief and that really brought the story to life. And as usual Robert Petkoff is awesome.

THIS WAS STEEEEEEEEEAMING HOT!

I think this may have been Kresley Cole's hottest IAD book so far! WICKED ABYSS had all the usual suspects--humor, sex, and action--but the sexiness factor was through the roof. The narration was excellent as usual. Petkoff really gets into it, but can be a bit one-note on the female characterizations, but overall, he's a keeper. I found the storyline very interesting because I like the demon-lore more so than the vampires, and the fairies are always fun. The only negative I see with this series, is the span of time between each book. I could be wrong, but it felt like more than a year since the last IAD book. I had to try and recall characters, mates, bloodlines, and who had what objective in the series--it was a lot! Despite that, I will always be a devout Kresley Cole IAD follower. If you're looking for hot and hilarious paranormal romance, you've got to get this series today. This was well worth a credit and five steaming hot stars.

loved it!

Ms. Cole did it again. I loved both characters...matching both in witt and charm. A sexy demon indeed!

First time reading this author/series

I loved this book!!!! I purchased it on a sale for "thrillers" so I was not expecting what I got. A demon, a fey princess, seriously????? there was romance, comedy, heartbreak, this was freaking perfect. I will start the entire series soon.

Perfectly Kresley...

I really enjoy Kresley Cole's books... this one is fantastic. The story is fleshed out very well. will develop characters and a rich storyline... Another couldn't put it down book.

Epic

It was a slow starter, but it was worth it! Fantastic ending! Hang in there it’s the best of Kresley Cole! I can’t wait for her final book!

Made me fall in love - with audiobooks

I had done a few audiobooks, mostly from the library, when this one came up available. It and the others in this series were what made me become and Audible subscriber. It is such a fantastic story, but even more, it is the audiobook that I keep returning to again and again. The first time I checked it out of my state's digital library system and then I checked it out again because I wanted to listen over and over. Then I realized I was in love with this book (I was already in love with the author and this series), so I decided I wanted to own it, and the rest of the IAD series with Robert Petkoff's brilliant narration, not just in the paperback copies on my shelves.

I can't say enough about how fabulous this series is. Kresley Cole is an outstanding writer. But her writing is full of challenges for a narrator, so many accents, so many creatures, and yet Robert Petkoff handles it better than I could even imagine. Truly, I don't know of any other narrator in my favorites list who could do this series. They are a perfect pairing.

As for this story, I love the fairy tale elements as they are turned on their head in this story. I love that Lila is working in the Magic Kingdom when he has her captured and dragged down to hell for him. I love that she stands up to him at every turn and never gives up her royal fey princess attitude in the face of his demonic rages. I love that he is so twisted up by his obsession with her. This type of story is why I love the romance genre. I used to say paranormal was not my thing, but in the hands of Kresley Cole, the master, it has become my thing. Still, she may have ruined me for other paranormal writers because no one else can compare to her mastery.

Another great one!

Kresley Cole never disappoints with the strong males, stronger females, and sexy storylines. Sabine it's one of my favorites, I love that she made an appearance here with her wicked sass.

Great story and addition to the series :D

4.5-5 stars

This was a great story and addition to the series. Originally, I was very frustrated about the story being about characters I hadn't heard of before when there were characters I am familiar with that still hadn't gotten their own stories! However, I really liked both Lina and Sian and enjoyed their story greatly so that frustration faded almost immediately once I started reading. :D

Lila is a Elvin princess that is second in line for the ruling line of the Sylvan kingdom. Lila was engaged to the King of the realm but was exiled as a teen when her parents hatched an unadvised coup and got executed for it. Lila lived in the mortal realm for 10 years, waiting to find a way to get back to her home while avoiding the archer that's hunting her bloodline.

Sian is a primordial demon and the ruler of Pandemonium, the hell dimension. Sian's brother was the ruler but he died in the death-match that took place in [book:Shadow's Claim|12988016] and Sian took the throne. Unfortunately, the primordial demon tends to degrade to a more and more demonish appearance the longer he has the title and with the ascension starting, Sian is already experiencing the change. He isn't looking forward to seeing what he's going to turn into and has been trying to find the cure.

Sian found a mate thousands of years ago (around 10k I think?) who was a fairy princess. Unfortunately, she was prejudiced against demons and never took his courtship seriously, only using his feelings to find out secrets about his land so her people could attack. She married another and died in childbirth and Sian was left hating her and feeling empty for many millennia. Sian found out that his mate had been reincarnated in current time but he was too caught up in old hatreds to see this as an opportunity for anything other than revenge for what the first incarnation of his mate did to him. He put a bounty out on her head so he could have her in his power to take out his revenge.

Lila was visited right before she was captured by mercenaries (hired by Sian) and was offered a deal that could get her exile ended and restore her position. Unfortunately, the situation Lila expected wasn't what she ended up in and things changed almost immediately leaving Lila adrift and only able to trust herself. Once Lila is in his grasp, Sian takes the opportunity to start taking his revenge but it seems a bit hollow when Lila has no memory of her past life. Also, Lila doesn't have any problem with striking back at Sian with her formidable anger and wit...something Sian isn't used to at all and something that he finds he likes. There's some back and forth as Sian and Lila bash heads, test each other out and find common ground. There's a definite attraction between them but Sian being caught up in the past and things Lila's past-self did makes their growing relationship hard at times...especially when Sian has a big bout of relationship dumbassedness at a very sensitive time (I really loved Lila's revenge...hilarious!). Thankfully, Sian and Lila do make up and things work out nicely so they end the story with a very satisfying HEA together.

I enjoyed this story greatly. I loved Lila as the heroine. She was smart and gutsy, choosing intelligence and wit as her weapons and wielding them well. Sian was a good hero. He was a bit too caught up in the past but once he was willing to let that go, I really started to like him. The story was pretty much what I expected but it was really well written, the characters were great and it kept me totally engaged until the end so I'd definitely recommend it. :D

Another "New" Favorite in the series

I swear every new book is my new favorite in this series. FITFO will live forever in my mind for sure! That is so funny! I loved this book. I laughed out loud MANY times. I loved the fire that Lila had. THAT is how a gal should be! I love her so much. Damsel in distress my hiney. Sian was a perfect character too. OH I JUST LOVED THEM BOTH! This was a great story. I cannot wait to see what comes next in this amazing series. Kresley Cole is one hell of a writer..pun intended! Read the book. You will get it.