The demon possessed beast wants his beauty back, and he’ll do anything to win her. Even war with a god king.
From New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Gena Showalter, comes THE DARKEST CAPTIVE, a new novella in her addictive bestselling Lords of the Underworld Series, brought to you by 1,001 Dark Nights!
THE DARKEST CAPTIVE
Series: Lords of the Underworld #14.5
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Author: Gena Showalter
Release Date: December 4, 2018
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Gena Showalter comes a new story in her Lords of the Underworld series…
For centuries, Galen the Treacherous has been the most hated immortal in the Underworld. With good reason! This bad boy of bad boys has lied, stolen, cheated and killed with abandon. Possessed by the demons of Jealousy and False Hope, he has always lived for a single purpose: destroy everything.
Then he met her.
Former demon turned human femme fatale — Legion Honey — sought to kill Galen, but ended up parting with her virginity instead. Afraid of their sizzling connection, she ran away…and ended up trapped in hell, tortured and abused in the worst of ways. Now she’s free, and a shell of herself, afraid of her own shadow.
Galen’s hunger for Legion has only grown. Now the warrior with nothing to lose must help her rekindle the fire that once burned inside her. But as desires blaze white-hot, will Legion run again? Or will the unlikely pair succumb to love at long last?
The scent of corn dogs, chili cheese fries, and cotton candy saturated the air, and her mouth watered.
As Galen stepped past a sheer purple curtain, electric pulses awakened every nerve in her body.
He looked her over. “You are stunning, Leila.”
His husky timbre sent shivers rushing down her spine. And when he looked her over a second time, taking in the frilly dress with a cinched-in waist and mid-thigh tulle skirt paired with ballet flats, his irises heated—and so did her blood.
Galen wore a dark, perfectly tailored suit, the polished veneer only enhancing the savagery of his soul. Awareness of him eclipsed her fears, and it was nice. Better than nice. Wonderful! For a moment, she felt like the old Legion again.
“I’m guessing I am stunning, too?” he prompted.
Did she detect a thrum of uncertainty? How adorable. The saucy, ultra-confident Galen cared about her opinion. Meaning she had power over him. How delicious.
“You are,” she admitted. “I think you’ve hijacked my thoughts.” And she was glad for it. Once, she’d made a deal with the devil because she’d dreamed of falling in love, being loved in return, and discovering why humans were so obsessed with getting naked and rolling around in bed. Here, now, she realized a part of her still yearned for those things, despite everything that had happened.
Fear had put her life on pause long enough. She deserved pleasure.
If she wanted better, she had to fight for it. Had she picked the right man for the job, though? Someone who would be patient with her, who would ease her back to life, and give as much as he took?
Time would reveal the truth, one way or another, but her hopes were high. Galen was strong. He would cross any line to get what he wanted, and for some reason, what he wanted most was a chance to keep her safe.
Unless he decided to bed her, even if she said no.
Galen might have been created for war, but he lived for Leila.
Years. YEARS I’ve been waiting for Galen and Legion’s story. It’s been the most torturously painful foreplay right after William (and now Hades). What I’m trying to tell you here, is that I NEEDED their book. And while I was definitely disappointed we wouldn’t be getting a full novel for them, the novella was still satisfying enough to appease this reader.
The nice thing about this novella, is that readers that are new to the series can enjoy it as well. But if you’re like me and have read the entire series, than you’ll certainly have a different sort of appreciation to Legion and Galen’s journey.
Admittedly, I struggled with Legion as a character after Aeron’s book. I mean, an almost childlike demon turned beautiful seductress? I wasn’t sure if I bought into it. But she’s won me over with her strength and perseverance throughout the series. Her do anything for those she love attitude is what got her on Galen’s radar and I couldn’t wait to see how it all concludes.
Galen has been THE baddie for the first half of this series. And if there’s anything I love, it’s a good redemption story. After a sizzling encounter that was only supposed to be a means to an end, it ended up changing the course of things for both Galen and Legion. Legion has been trying to heal her mind after the torture she endured in hell. And Galen has been obsessed with finding and finally wooing her back into his bed once and for all.
I really loved Legion and Galen together. I did find myself wishing that it was more fleshed out into a full story, as it did feel a bit rushed at points. But at the same time, I still highly enjoyed it despite that quibble, so I can’t complain much. Now if you’ll excused me, I’m off to go rock myself in a corner until William’s book finally comes out.
Gena Showalter is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the spellbinding Lords of the Underworld and Angels of the Dark series, two young adult series–Everlife and the White Rabbit Chronicles–and the highly addictive Original Heartbreakers series. In addition to being a National Reader’s Choice and two time RITA nominee, her romance novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan (Red Hot Read) and Seventeen magazine, she’s appeared on Nightline and been mentioned in Orange is the New Black–if you ask her about it, she’ll talk for hours…hours! Her books have been translated in multiple languages.
She’s hard at work on her next novel, a tale featuring an alpha male with a dark side and the strong woman who brings him to his knees. You can learn more about Gena, her menagerie of rescue dogs, and all her upcoming books at genashowalter.com or Facebook.com/genashowalterfans
