Wilted Wings

Broken Butterflies #2

by Shadow Stephens

Power, greed, and envy fill Damon and Ilisha’s world. Their hope of settling into a life of peace and family remains out of grasp. Damon is kidnapped and forced to stand trial for the death of his father while a breed of hybrids designed to destroy all angels is set loose. With no choice but to leave her earthly mother and baby behind, Ilisha struggles in a world of high politics and family feuds. She must become an ultimate warrior to save her husband and both the worlds she loves.

248 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 9, 2013

About the author

Story telling seems to be a part of my DNA. Since childhood, I made up fantastical characters and brought them to life. Part of it was to escape the turmoils of childhood and some were just for fun. Sitting beside my couch is a constant stack of history, biographies, and compelling fiction, which means I have many overloaded bookshelves. Wouldn't that be great to have a room just full of shelves? I would love to see a wave of outstanding, self-published authors take over the market. I think it's important to own your work and take pride in it. Writing several novels and short stories, I know the trials of writing and rejection. Constructive criticism can only make you better. Never doubt yourself.

Other fun and fascinating facts about me are the fact that every year I look forward to Fall, which means football and Halloween. Pathetically, when June hits I start planning for Halloween. My dogs and bird are even forced to wear costumes. Football means don't call or Facebook me because the Browns are playing.

I love to go on adventures. Finding new images to photograph is a joy of mine. Photography is a passion coming only second to writing. I believe you can capture every moment of laughter, tears, and horror with a single click of the shutter.

I’m a huge animal lover. Having land would be a danger for me, because I would have all kinds of critters. One day I will own a pot-belly pig.

Favorite writers I can't list because the list is long, but here are a few: I love Shakespeare, Stephen King, Stephanie Meyer, Richelle Mead, Lauren Kate, JK Rowling, Dan Brown and Bram Stoker. I watch way to much of the History Channel and love Ghost Hunters and Being Human.

I have worked in health care, specifically at a children's hospital and EMT. Anything bloody and gory I'm there, but it’s all about helping people. That is a great feeling. I also have a degree in accounting, which I can't stand because you sit all day, but it made my mom happy. Love you mom.

Reviews

[Phaedra Seabolt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wilted Wings is the second book in Shadow Stephens's Broken Butterflies series. I read the first, Broken Butterflies, not that long ago in preparation for this tour. I love the butterfly theme running through these stories. If you haven't read them, it might be a bit of a spoiler for me to tell you that butterflies are related to angels. These stories are about angels and their fight against demonkind. Ilisha learned in the first book that even though she was human, she was really angel in human form. Angels can be born into the human race which causes them to lose all of their memories of being an angel until their human death. At that time they return to being an angel. Ilisha became an angel without a human death. I don't know for certain, but I think this makes her more vulnerable than a normal angel. She also has become a target. Demons are out to destroy her family in an attempt to take over her husband's realm. Damon, her husband, is technically the king of his kingdom, but since his mother is still alive, she is the real ruler. His realm is in turmoil, which you learn all about in this story. You learn how vulnerable it is and find out about some of the issues of other realms. There is no one place that angels come from, but rather many. Each one is a paradise in itself. However all of them are under attack. Will Ilisha and Damon survive the onslaught of demons reeking havoc in both the heavenly realms and on Earth? Will Ilisha's family be torn apart by a battle they previously knew nothing about? That is what you will have to read to find out.

For an Angel/Demon series, it's has a pretty good plot. There were times that I felt like I was getting more information than I needed, but more is better than not enough. The characters are good. You'll be surprised with what happens with Bram, from the first book. There's perhaps more intimate scenes than I really wanted, but that varies with my mood. Overall it's a good series. I liked the end. I think that this is probably only going to be a two part series, because it was summed up pretty completely in my opinion.

Read more reviews at Identity Discovery.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO I am going to be completely honest that I had never heard of Shadow Stephens until I was given Wilted Wings as a complimentary book to review. I was blown away! The book is full of everything that I would want: action, romance, thrills and so much more! Damon and Ilisha are living their lives as normal until all of a sudden demons begin to come out of nowhere and make their lives a living...well let's just say hell, to put it politely. Damon is then kidnapped, and not just once. Every time this happens my mind and heart are racing. Yours will be too, I am sure. Ilisha really puts her all into trying to bring him home and her love for him is so strong that you can feel it as you read and it really makes your heart go out to her. You want him to be with her. You want to read about them together.
I love that there were angels in this book because although I may not fully believe in a lot in my life, I believe that there are always angels watching over us. This aspect just brought more to the story than there already was and I have to just say that I will be looking into more Shadow Stephens. This book is the second in the series and it had me wanting more and more. I had not even read the first one, which is called Broken Butterflies. I wanted to get this review up for you all, and I am glad that I took the time to read this. Now I have to backtrack and see where Shadow Stephens started with this series. I will be putting a review up of Broken Butterflies on my own unattached to this tour. Be sure to pick this book up for yourself, and I might advise starting with Broken Butterflies first ;) Unlike me.

[Rae Ryans · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Wilted Wings is the second book in the Broken Butterflies series. Please keep in mind that there will be some minor spoilers if you haven't read the first book. While you wouldn't be completely lost if you read Wilted Wings first, you're missing out on some major back story in addition to some major shmexiness.

Damon and Ilisha are attempting to live a normal life among the humans and raise their daughter, when all hell breaks loose. In an attempt to protect his family, Damon leave Ilisha behind to go after Lucifer even though she has a terrible, foreboding feeling. When he's captured and imprisoned, it's a race against the clock and some terrifying, invisible hybrids.

Can they stop the war on Earth and among the Kingdoms, find out who's responsible, and clear Damon's name before they all loose their heads?

Wow. There was plenty of head turning, butt kicking action in addition to the mystery revolving around who's behind it all. On one hand we've got demon possessing and wrecking havoc on Earth, but then up in the Kingdoms, there's even more deceit.

In between all of this we see love blossom, die, rebound, and strengthen between our returning characters. Sadly, I can't share what I loved the most without dropping a major spoiler. Le sigh, The redeeming qualities of a certain someone really brought the story together and made it a true HEA.

While I don't know if Shadow Stephens plans to continue this series, I did feel the second book really wrapped up the whole story, which began in the first book. If she writes more, I'll of course read it.

Recommended to anyone (18+) who enjoys Angelic PNR. Love really does ... whoops, no spoilers :)

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow Wow Wow! Shadow Stephens did not disappoint with Wilted Wings. This book is full of action , romance and so much more. Damon and Ilisha are living that storybook live raising sweet baby Brooklyn . When demons begin appearing out of the woodwork and seriously all hell begins to break loose. A war is breaking out . Damon is kidnapped and taken from Ilisha more than one time in this book . Her struggles to be sure and bring him home are and the obvious love they share is quite the romance.

The wickedness they face is action packed and their support team of angels are quite awesome. An amazing cast of characters all adding a bit of depth and something more to the story. Thank you Shadow Stephens. If you love angels, paranormal or action packed stories this will be a read for you.

I received a complimentary copy of Wilted Wings for reviewing purposes. All opinions shared are my own.

Thanks

[Andrea Kruse · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the Broken Butterflies series, this is the first one I have had the pleasure of reading. Despite not having the back-story I was able to follow along just fine... though I look forward to filling in some gaps by going back and reading the first one.

I have to say the premise was great. Angels, demons, Earth and the Kingdoms all lead to some great plot opportunities, plus plenty of twists. There is plenty of corruption and betrayal to keep things interesting. The characters are interesting and the female characters especially are strong and tough. With plenty of passion thrown into the mix, it is a great read.

Fast paced, this book takes little to no time to devour in one day. Lots of action kept me glued to the pages. Definitely for a mature audience, but if you enjoy romance and paranormal fiction, this is one you need to add, along with Broken Butterflies, to your Summer reading list.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an incredible sequel to Broken Butterflies!

With everything that has happened between Bram, Ilisha and Damon, Wilted Wings definitely did not disappoint!

Damon is arrested for the death of his father and hybrids are invading the kingdoms. Not to mention humans are being possessed by demons. So it is up to Ilisha to rescue her husband and she must once again put her trust in Bram. But will he lead her into a trap or will he restore her faith in him?

Shadow once again has sucked me into this fantastical world she has created and left me wanting more. With the addition of characters both good and bad, the story has a life of it's own and all seems okay for now.

The Broken Butterflies Series is one I truly enjoy reading and am hoping for at least one more book or even a novella in the works =)

[Niki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Broke Butterflies series, I loved the first, and this was a good follow up!! When Damon is kidnapped to stand trail, Ilisha fights against so many things politics hybrids, demons. She leaves her child with her earthly mother and does everything in her power to make thing right, She tries to protect Earth that is swapped with Hybrids half angel/half demon, and finds out what is at stake and who are behind this all.
Will she be on time and safe heaven and Earth and will she have her husband again?? Sorry you have to read that outcome yourself. I highly recommend it and hope Shadow will write more!

I received a copy of this book for a honest review.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadow pens "Wilted Wings" the steamy hot sequel to "Broken Butterflies" filled with angels, demons, plenty of romance and a touch of sexual innuendos, along with enough twists and turns that your not really sure who to trust. I do suggest reading the first book "Broken Butterflies" first so your not missing any important parts. I can't wait for the next installment....this is one series you really don't want to miss and I highly recommend it to all supernatural fans.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the author which was provided for an honest review.

[Liberum Latine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up as a freebie. I like the writing and the style, but can't get into it. I'm pretty sure it would make a lot more sense if I'd read the first book. The premise seems original enough but the book needs a bit more back-story at the begining to bring the uninitiated up to speed.