|
Back Cover Blurb:
Can True Love Triumph over
Evil?
Demon hunter, vampire and
member of the Cadre, Damien Hancock has come to Wolvesrain to help Emma
McGovern defend herself against a powerful demon. For if Emma fins
love--and consummates that love--the demon Asmos will fulfill a
generations- old curse and claim her soul. Damien knows just how
powerful the ancient demon is, but he never anticipated the
all-consuming effect courageous Emma would have on him.
Having led a sheltered
life within the walls of her ancestral estate, Emma senses that Damien,
like her, carries too much pain and loneliness in his heart. But as
their attraction proves impossible to resist, Emma fears it is the curse
that is drawing them together. Can the love she has found in Damien's
strong arms now help her fight the rising darkness?
|
|
Excerpt from RISING DARKNESS:
Damien's breath caught. His chest constricted and
his palms dampened.
Look at the fire burning in her eyes, the soft ruby dewiness of her
lips--a peach ripe for the picking. Take a bite, Damien.
He licked his lips and felt his fangs descend.
"Mr. Hancock? Are you all right?" A soft voice broke through the cloud
in his mind, interrupting his delicious thoughts.
"Emma McGovern?" he choked. He had to get ahold of himself. He took
another deep breath. Nonsense. He was Damien Hancock. Adept. Master of
the Occult. He'd trained for many years, honing his focus, his control.
He would not fall victim to a foolish gypsy girl's curse.
|
|
Rising Darkness Vampires
- Have souls.
- Sense each other. – gets stronger as they
age
- Sense human emotions as they age
- Can mask themselves from each other – gets
stronger as they age
- Very fast
- Very strong
- Heightened vision and hearing
- Sensitivity to sunlight weakens as they age
- Sensitive to Wolfsbane, makes them itchy
- Not affected by garlic other than not liking
the smell
- Not affected by holy water or crucifixes
- Silver dagger – wounds effectively, could
kill fledglings
- iron-core ash-wood stakes – kill
effectively, especially the old ones
- oakwood stakes and hawthorn stakes also very
effective
- beheading – best/quickest way to kill a
vampire
- Vamps carry their human emotional baggage
with them
- Very sexual
- Hunger for blood and sex constantly
- Can survive off any type of blood
|
Reviews
. . .
RISING DARKNESS is an incredible paranormal romantic suspense that will
keep the readers on the edges of their seats, rooting for the courageous
pair of star-crossed lovers until the very last page. I highly recommend
this read which is the second title in the Dark Enchantments miniseries.
Reviewed by
Leslie Tramposch for PNR Reviews
Cadre vampire Damien Hancock
is a demon hunter. He is sent to Wolvesrain to protect cloistered innocent
Emma McGovern from Asmos, a powerful demon, who will own her soul if she
ever makes love with her soulmate.
Damien knows that Asmos is as
dangerous of a demon as there is. He knows he must be at his best, but is
distracted by the courage Emma displays as she struggles to prevent the
family curse from being activated. However, she is attracted to Damien and
him to her; neither can prevent what she assumes is the inevitability of the
curse while Asmos salivates in anticipation of owning another soul; one that
Damien believes belongs to him out of his love for her.
Using a wonderful twist in
which the heroine knows that love is futile and short term as the
connotation is eternity with a demon not her beloved. Thus Damien the
vampiric demon hunter has his work cut out to keep Emma safe, but wonders
who will keep her safe from him because if he acts on his needs, only Asmos
wins. Paranormal romance fans will enjoy this fine Hobson’s choice as
abstinence seems to be the only way to insure the demon fails to get his
Emma.
—Harriet
Klausner:
Emma
McGovern is under a curse. The old family curse states that if Emma
finds and consummates love, that a demon by the name Asmos will fulfill
the curse and claim her soul.
Damien is a
demon hunter and a vampire, and member of the Cadre. He arrives at
Wolvesrain to help Emma defend herself. However, neither pictured that
the true challenge would come between Emma and Damien, which is even
more dangerous because evil would triumph while love would lose with a
woman's soul as the cost.
RISING
DARKNESS was interesting. It was very quick
read for me, fast paced, and easy to follow along with. No long plots to
follow or pages to make connotations of characters. It was simple,
straight forward, and I like it.
This is my
first Cynthia Cooke novel, but I will add her to my author's-to-watch
list.
Kym Oetting
Romance Readers at Heart
RISING DARKNESS
starts you out on the edge of your seat and doesn’t let up until the
end. Author Cynthia Cooke has created an intriguing world of good and
evil that begs to be expanded upon. I loved Emma and Damien. They are
wonderful together right from the beginning, and I enjoyed seeing their
bond build throughout the novel. Emma especially was a great character;
she starts out so afraid of her own shadow, but really comes into her
own by the end of the story. Damien was likewise interesting – I loved
how the author shows all sides to this complex hero. Paranormal fans
will definitely want to check this one out, and likely be left demanding
more!
Romance
Junkies Reviewer
Cataromance.com
5 stars
RISING DARKNESS has
unforgettable characters and a storyline as enchanting as the forest
surrounding the mystical Cadre Castle.
With her love of
unnerving surroundings and chilling characters evident throughout the
book, Cynthia Cooke crafts a tale where the impossible occurs with
convincing realism. The plot is packed with countless mysteries, and
the disclosure of each of them only adds more fuel to the escalating
suspense. With the surprising revelations of this series making it
innovative in many ways, readers will be captivated with every page
turned. There are some engaging characters introduced during the
story, and each one is mesmerizing in their own right. Damien and Emma
are two dynamically spirited characters, and Ms. Cooke certainly
portrays them in a realistic fashion. Watching this couple come to
terms with their true inner feelings is so touchingly depicted in each
scene, as their genuine emotions cannot always be controlled during
every situation. When faced with life-altering decisions, their
distress or elation is made apparent by their sincere reactions.
Seemingly fated to be together, Damien and Emma express some of the
most heartfelt and often sensual thoughts I have read lately. They
also have some delightful snappy responses to give when replying to
questions. With unexpected twists and riveting moments, RISING
DARKNESS is an exceedingly compelling story from start to finish.
Written by Amelia
Richard -
Visit Website
ROMANTIC TIMES
MAGAZINE
4 STARS
Driven to desperation
by a family curse that will take effect when she falls in love and
consummates that love, Emma McGovern is sure she's destined to spend her
life alone. But when Cadre member and vampire Damian Hancock shows up to
help her fight the curse, she begins to believe there might be hope after
all. Cynthia Cooke's Rising Darkness (4) is original and exciting.
Cooke keeps readers on the edge of their seats with the constant danger
Damian and Emma face.
—Alexandra
Kay
Borders.com
Magnificent romance in an excellent paranormal romance series!
Merrimon Crawford, A reviewer, 11/05/2007
Cynthia
Cooke's RISING DARKNESS, the second book of the Dark Enchantments paranormal
romance series, is a splendid addition in an exceptional multi-author
series. Suspenseful, touched with ancient history and secret organizations,
and a moving romance, Cythnia Cooke's writing is magnificent! Emma McGovern
lives a lonely life, walling herself up in her ancestral home, the crumbling
castle at Wolvesrain. Her face is scarred. Emma fears love, knowing no one
will care for her because they will only see her face. If that was not
enough, if she ever discovers her heart's true love, an ancient gypsy curse
will destroy them both as it has done for generations. Damien, a vampire at
the Cadre, an organization that studies demons and imprisons the evil ones,
plans to protect Emma from the demon Asmos. Damien prides himself that he is
different (and pure) than all the other vampires--he is a guardian and
protector and never drinks human blood. The curse unites Emma and Damien in
their efforts to fight it but as their hearts open, the risk magnifies. Can
each of them face their past? Is the growing attraction between them enough
to conquer the curse and all those who threaten them? Can Emma remember the
past in enough time to protect the two? This second book of the Dark
Enchantments series takes the world created in the first book, Michele
Hauf's FAMILIAR STRANGER and adds the dimension of a fairy tale, or what
Emma calls a Grimm Brothers fairy tale with an underbelly of malice, and a
delightful touch of history. The hero and heroine must learn to face the
dark side within and without. Cynthia Cooke had a tough job ahead of her
coming after Michele Hauf's exceptional first book in the series but this
author took the heart of the Dark Enchantments series, ran with it and
created her own story. Not only is this romance wonderful in and of itself
but it also magnifies the scope of the entire series. RISING DARKNESS
reaches to the very depths of the heart. The Cadre, the society that studies
demons without killing them is explored to the reader's delight as the noble
rules, the moral codes and above reproach tone also reveal an underside.
Cynthia Cooke's RISING DARKNESS is magnificent!
|
