MIDNIGHT SOUL
Series: Fantasyland #5
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Author: Kristen Ashley
Release Date: August 15, 2016
Against his will, Noctorno Hawthorne, an undercover vice cop, finds himself embroiled in magic, mayhem and parallel universes. Too late, he meets an amazing woman only to find she’s destined for his identical twin in another world.
And things aren’t going real great there.
Noc is recruited to help save that world.
What he doesn’t know is his destined love resides there.
Franka Drakkar wears a mask. A mask she never takes off to protect herself in a world of malice, intrigue and danger.
When Franka meets Noc and he discovers her secrets, convinced she carries a midnight soul, having shielded herself from forming bonds with anyone, she struggles with accepting his tenderness and care.
When Noc meets Franka, over wine and whiskey, her mask slips and Noc knows it’s her—only her—and he has to find a way to get her to come home with him.
And then make her want to stay.
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~Franka~
That day had been one I wished to quickly forget.
Indeed, the months since those witches took my Antoine had been time I wished I had the power to erase from my memory.
I had power.
I did not have that kind of power.
These thoughts on my mind, I moved down the hallway of the Winter Palace, seeking my room where I planned to pull the cord, ring a servant and request several bottles of Fleuridian wine.
Wine might not make me forget, but I’d found of late that it served well to dull the pain.
I turned the corner, my eyes to my slippers, but my senses made me lift my gaze to the passageway.
At what I saw, I halted and grew still, then slowly and quietly retraced my steps and ducked behind the corner, peering back around.
Oh my.
The Prince Noctorno of the other world was in the doorway to a bedchamber.
Although, he was not actually a prince. Not in this universe. Apparently they had very few princes in that other world. A world that existed on a parallel plane where all beings had twins to my own world.
This I thought was rather mad (everything about it, obviously), but with few princes, that meant there were few kings, so who ruled?
He reported that he was instead a member of the city guard, an occupation he referred to as being “a cop.” A rather surprising statement considering all that was him.
He was no member of a guard.
He was a prince.
And he called himself Noc, for some unknown reason, as Noctorno was a fine name, a strong name, a regal name (this last was true as his counterpart in this world was a prince).
And right now he had has back to me.
He was wearing a pair of trousers the like that couldn’t be found in my world. They were made of a rough, sturdy, faded-blue material. He also had a shirt that was not the fashion in this world. It was attractive and made of an equally attractive plaid. And it was a shirt that fit his broad shoulders magnificently.
His thick, black hair was untidy (this also attractive).
And I could see his light-blue eyes but only in my imagination as he had his back to me.
They were not eyes you were likely to forget. With his dark hair and skin browned in the sun, those eyes were deliciously striking.
There was a day, though now that day seemed lifetimes ago, when a sight such as Noctorno Hawthorne of another world (or indeed this one) would have caused me to have a much different reaction, not only to him, but to my plans for the imminent future.
That was before Antoine.
That was before I met the man who introduced me to, well…me.
But there was a reason I carried a midnight soul, for the evil contained in both my parents set their souls to cinders years ago. It was not a wonder I’d inherited the blackness.
What a bittersweet book this was for me to read. Midnight Soul marks the conclusion of one of my favorite Kristen Ashley series. After all, it’s the series that brought me The Golden Dynasty, only my top favorite KA book of ALL time.
This is not a series I recommend reading out of order. You need the entire backstory and it’s one that develops with each story arc and later carries over into the next. Yes, there’s a new couple in each book, but it just wouldn’t be the same experience to read them as standalones.
I have to admit I was nervous reading a book with Franka as the heroine. Considering the woman has sharpened her claws on plenty of previous heroines, I had to wonder how KA could redeem someone like her. While she wasn’t quite a villain, she wasn’t exactly a nice person and she certainly wasn’t someone you’d root for in the previous books either. After the culmination of events at the end of Broken Dove, I also wondered where the story had left to go. The ultimate baddies had been beat. Everything was right in the world and most questions answered.
If you’re expecting a book much like the rest of the Fantasyland series, don’t. This was as different as it gets and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I certainly enjoyed the flip side of the switch here. I don’t want to give you too many details and ruin it for you, but let’s just say I appreciated the slight reversal Kristen took with the last book in the series. It was most fitting.
I loved the mix of the heroine being the one from the ‘other’ world and the hero being the modern one as well. It was different and refreshing. Plus, let’s be real, I loved me some Noc. There’s also a secondary romance that happens on a mix of in and off the pages here that I would have absolutely loved more page time for. I was hoping to get more of them towards the end, but alas they were mostly just loosely mentioned.
So why not a higher rating? Well, I just didn’t get the oomph here that I’ve come to rely on this series. There’s not much in the way of things happenings. After the resolution in the first 20%, the rest reads like the typical second half of a KA book. The relationship development, the hero and heroine getting to know each other. It was a lot of pages of their day to day lives, and while it wasn’t quite boring, it wasn’t exciting either. I kept waiting for the typical conflict at the end, but there wasn’t much in that respect either. To me, it read like one long epilogue. There wasn’t much conflict past the revelation in the first 20% and that may work for some or not.
I loved the way the author redeemed Franka and made her into a heroine to root for pretty much right away. You get the true heart of her and you understand they why’s of what she did in the past. No, this wasn’t the action packed thrill ride that some of the other books in the series were, but it was by no means a bad thing…just different. The epilogue at the end is nothing short of what I’ve come to expect from Kristen and definitely managed to bring a tear to my eye. So while this may not have been my favorite book in the series, it was still a fitting ending to what had come to be one of my favorite series and one I strongly recommend to any lovers of fantasy romance.
And Don’t Miss the First Books in the Fantasyland Series!
WILDEST DREAMS | THE GOLDEN DYNASTY | FANTASTICAL | BROKEN DOVE
Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorise and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.
Nothing’s changed.
Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).
Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.
And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better.
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I have a problem, and his name is Walker. It’s a problem because HE’S NOT IN MY PANTS RIGHT NOW! I’ve been indifferent of the long hair/man bun. I can usually take it or leave it, but in this case, I’ll take it!
Trinity is adorable and spunky. She is an artist, but she isn’t up in the clouds. She knows who she is, and she knows what she wants. She is a little flighty but in a charming way. She tries to warn Walker that she is a lot of work, but he is the perfect man up for the challenge of all that is Trinity, and he takes pleasure in every single moment.
DARE TO STAY
When I saw that Chris would be the hero in the second installment of The Sons Of Steel Row series, I’ll admit to having doubts. After all the events at the end of 
RUTHLESS
I don’t know how this woman does it, but she manages to write books that do it for me. Every. Single. Time. Being a huge fan of her Masters & Mercenaries series, I’ve been salivating for more of the mysterious Lawless siblings ever since we first met Mia and Drew in 
Wicked Mafia Prince
STORMSWEPT
Rhys and Juliana fall in love, but they cannot be together, so they run away to marry in secret. Juliana’s brother (I want to slaughter him!) lies to both Juliana and Rhys to pull them apart and sends Rhys away to the military. He is forever changed.
BOUND TO THE BOUNTY HUNTER
Well hot damn! Looks like I got myself a brand new series to stalk! Bound To The Bounty Hunter had a little bit of everything; broody and tortured hero, kick-ass sassy heroine, a little suspense and a whole lot of sexy!
RETRIBUTION
Retribution marks my second book by this author and it definitely confirmed what I knew after the first; I’ll definitely be reading all her future books. The woman can write one hell of a tortured, brooding, anti-hero alpha. This was a dark and twisty tale of revenge and pain and second chances. It was gritty, violent, and erotic as hell!
The writing was engaging and the story was fast paced, yet somewhere around the 25% mark, it began to lose some of the intensity for me. Adam starts off so strong, but soon enough becomes almost wishy washy in his drive for vengeance. He wants to make her pay, yet his conscience gets the best of him. I suppose I just didn’t feel as much connection to his character to truly understand the why’s of it.
WORKED UP
Sweet.
See what I mean? Rarrrr!
Forbidden Fling
As a long time fan of all things Skye Jordan, I was thrilled to see she has a brand new series in the works. Not only does she write some seriously swoony heroes, but she always matches them up with fantastic heroines. Delaney Hart may easily be my favorite heroine by this author to date. Here was a woman that while she may be damaged in her own way, still had a backbone of steel and never backed down from a challenge. She wasn’t brash, she wasn’t OTT, she wasn’t obnoxious about it. But there was just this understated strength to her to go along with the playful bad girl that added an irresistible vibe to her character that I absolutely adored.
Skye Jordan is a pseudonym for New York Times bestselling romantic suspense author Joan Swan. Skye’s novels are about enjoying that little wild streak we don’t let out often enough. About those fantasies we rarely get the opportunity to indulge. About stretching limits, checking out the dark side, and maybe even acting a little naughty. They’re about escape and fun and pleasure and romance. And, yes, even love, because while wicked-great sex is good, happily ever after with wicked-great sex is even better.
