TEST
The third book of the Cassandra Palmer series, Embrace the Night, takes you on a wild ride through time and space as Cassie attempts to break a spell that will destroy both her and Mircea, the vampire in her life, if it’s not undone. If you like non-stop action and an intensely supernatural world, you need to check out this series.
Right off the bat, we’re thrown into action. The mages of the Silver Circle are attacking Cassie and her partner, Pritkin, who is a war mage in exile. Cassie is trying to get her hands on the Codex Merlini, which is supposed to contain the most powerful spells of the ages, including one that will remove the geis from her and Mircea. Mircea, a powerful master vampire, placed the spell on her to protect her during her childhood, but the failsafe that was to remove the spell at the appropriate time failed. In the last book, Cassie went back in time and accidentally doubled the spell on Mircea, which means that in the present time he’s quickly going mad. So, she is indeed desperate to find the counterspell.
The geis creates a bond between the participants, one that kept Cassie safe throughout her life, because no one was foolish enough to mess with Mircea’s girl. But the bond, the yearning for the other person, can become so great that they literally won’t be able to live without the other. Now, they can complete the bond by having sex, but that would mean that they would be bound forever after and the person with the greater power would be able to command the other. Cassie cares deeply for Mircea, but she is not willing to become his slave, so she must find a way to break the spell.
That’s one of the many problems that Cassie must deal with during this book. She is now the reigning Pythia, the chief clairvoyant and guardian of the timeline. The calling is still new, so she doesn’t yet know how to control all her powers, but she is much better at shifting through time and space. Actually, that’s all she does during this book; her clairvoyant abilities were not needed. The Silver Circle, the magical group on the side of good, have always defended and protected the Pythia, but since they had no hand in Cassie’s upbringing and dislike vampires, such as those who raised Cassie, they are bent on killing her so that the power can move on to someone they deem worthy. One of their most powerful war mages, Pritkin, who initially was out to get Cassie, has recognized her as Pythia and therefore sworn his services to her, which makes him a target right along with her. He’s supposedly helping her find the Codex, but then some events occur that make Cassie question his motives and loyalties.
This is a very basic summary of the book – it is so complex that it would take me far too long to describe all the different happenings. Thankfully, it is not as complex as its predecessors. I had a very difficult time keeping everything straight in the second book, but things were more straightforward here, for which I am very grateful.
I absolutely loved the opening pages. It’s been a while since a book pulled me in so completely and had me chuckling at its wit within the first couple pages. That wit and intelligence extend throughout the novel and I found myself truly enjoying the ride. The first two installments had some issues with overextending, with too many subplots and too many supernatural things that needed explaining. There were a couple times when the explanations went on too long or when I thought a subplot wasn’t necessary, but overall the author seems to come into her own in this book. The plot moved at a brisk pace and there were some shocking twists and enjoyable surprises.
However, all the different men in Cassie’s life still bother me. I realize that this is an urban fantasy and not a romance, but I’m a romantic through and through and I found Cassie’s interaction with different guys somewhat annoying. She makes out with lots of different people and since she jumps time, she sometimes makes out with younger or older versions of the same guy. Then, when sex is involved, there’s a need for it, rather than just a want, and spells and incubi seduction powers are also used. This left me frustrated. I would love for her to pick a guy (I’m rooting for Pritkin), but that’s clearly not in the cards now.
Despite my romantic frustrations, I’m really hooked on this series. The god Apollo makes some appearances and is set up as the next threat to Cassie’s existence, so I’ll expect to see many more battles in the next book, Curse the Dawn, which is already out. As for Embrace the Night, it was my favorite installment thus far.
Grade: B+
Book Type: Urban Fantasy
Sensuality: Hot
Review Date: 22/05/09
Publication Date: 2008
Related Reviews
Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.