Wild Darkness

Bound by Magick #4

by Lauren Dane

The bombing that almost killed Owen witch Molly Ryan has worsened the tensions between the humans and the Others. While the Others desperately campaign to prevent the passage of a law that would strip their people of all rights, the human separatists develop an agenda far worse than anyone imagined. With her position more precarious than ever, security head Helena Jaansen finds herself relying more and more heavily on
her personal guard, Faine Leviathan, and, despite her better instincts, falling more deeply into the intimate connection that they share.

As Helena and Faine’s explosive passion grows, a deadly separatist plot is discovered, one which could bring ultimate destruction for the Others, and war breaks out between the two opposing factions. With the Others forced into hiding, Helena must overcome her fear of repeating past failures to save her people—and her heart—before it’s too late...

Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Romance, Witches, Magic, Urban Fantasy, Shapeshifters

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Lauren Dane has been writing stories since she was able to use a pencil, and before that she used to tell them to people. Of course, she still talks nonstop, and through wonderful fate and good fortune, she’s now able to share what she writes with others. It’s a wonderful life!

The basics: Lauren is a mom, a partner, a best friend and a daughter. Living in the rainy but beautiful Pacific Northwest, she spends her late evenings writing like a fiend when she finally wrestles all of her kids to bed.

Reviews

[MostlyDelores · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tedious non-story that ended the series not with a bang, but with a PowerPoint presentation.

The beginning of this book's story is missing, the ending is just plopped on, there is head hopping galore, and inexplicable section breaks

...plus all the signs of having been edited by someone who was recently hit in the head by a coconut.

And! Waging a supernatural war via an ongoing series of meetings and press releases. We never see the vampires, and the witches and werewolves might as well be accountants for all the time they spend outside of the office.

[Mateja · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wild Darkness is over 300 pages of nothing but disappointment. To me it failed on both character building and plot development. And the writing was nothing to get excited about either. I'm glad this is the last one in the series, I honestly could not get through another book. There just wasn't anything in Wild Darkness for me to get excited about. The way she finished the storyline she started in the previous installment was the biggest disappointment. There was a lot of potential there that I feel the author didn't take advantage of.

This book was full of repetition. Not just scenes or conversations within this book, quite a few things I've already read in previous books in the series. People were constantly having the same conversations, same discussions, gave the same political speech, the only thing that changed was that on occasion the people involved were not the same. The author could've at least attempted to use different phrases, there were moments it felt like she either just used the copy paste option or she ran out of words. On the other hand things that were new to the series were quickly and not thoroughly explained. In addition to that, everyone was constantly praising Helena on her actions. I get that she's done a lot to protect her people, but come on, there were two occasions were people actually stood up and applauded her. For every action she took, there were at least two people there to praise her.

The romance between the main characters Faine and Helena was uninteresting, to say the least. Lauren Dane clearly has a recipe she follows when writing romance and I've finally gotten quite tired of it. I went into reading this book disliking Helena based on what I knew about her from other books and my opinion hasn't change at all, just the reasons for disliking her did. Her most annoying characteristic about her is her unbelievable stubbornness. She'd rather chop off her arm than admit someone was right and she wasn't, God forbid someone dared to tell her what to do. Half the time Faine was her babysitter instead of her husband. Faine himself was so cheesy and sappy when expressing his love for Helena (and that's all he did), there were paragraphs upon paragraphs of him complimenting on her beauty, intelligence and strength. Total overkill.

The thing that was my main motivation to keep on reading was the promise of romance between Toshio (human senator) and Delilah (werewolf senator). Unfortunately their story was lukewarm and unfinished with no sexy times, at least not the ones we got to read about, they were just hinted at.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just want to say that I loved this series, a lot. So when hearing that this was the last book in the series I was disappointed, but hoping for maybe a spin off of some sort; especially since Tosh and Delilah didn't get an ending to their story.

Now, getting to this, the final book, I have to say that it was a little hard to get through. Heavy emphasis on politics, although expected, took major time away from Faine and Helena's relationship (more so than the other three books). They were so busy working and dodging death that you don't get a lot of page time focusing on them. Which was a shame because one of the main things I loved about this series was watching the couples relationship build slowly. That kinda happened here as well but it just seemed like Lauren was pushing them through things to get back to what was going on with the human scum and the government.

There was a lot of repeating statements being made by government officials, which was really annoying to read (just skimmed through those parts), plus there was a side story between Senator Toshio and Senator Delilah that was interesting, but took time away from the main couple(and wasn't even finished), making me wish that the book was longer than 304 pages so things were settled more efficiently all around.

[Gail Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, awesome series!!!

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of the best blend of UF/PNR I've read. Really well done. Best book of a really good series. I'm sorry to see it end but you can be sure I'll read more of her stuff.

[Whitley Birks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came into this series at the end (by accident, oops!), but the book was good enough that it kept me hooked anyway. It had enough explanations for a newcomer to follow along without being so overbearing with them as to bog down the story, which is a pretty impressive balance to strike. Although it pretty much has to get introductions out of the way fast, there’s so much story to get through!

This plot was right up my alley: political machinations told by someone from the sidelines. We get enough of the politics to know what’s going on, but since Helena isn’t a politician herself, when those get too boggy we get to bounce off to something more interesting. Not that we need to do that often, because whole plot line of magical civil rights activism and backlash and riots and speech-i-fying is pretty exciting in its own right. Not to mention I found the antagonists in this novel toed the line of being heinous without being so cackling that they felt unreal. I hated those guys, but I always believed they were acting like real people might really act. Bravo!

The setting was interesting, if a bit bland. We could have been reading X-men fanfiction if you just changed the terms around, because there wasn’t much to set it apart from “real life” besides “there’s special people around.” Which isn’t really a bad thing, it kept everything pretty tight and focused on the action. Helena is my dear, dearest, darling little baby for very professional flavor of badass. As someone who has worked in security before, I always appreciate when safety measures aren’t thrown out the window with the excuse of “I can handle anything, I’m the heroine!” Helena can kick ass and do it within the rules and then explain to you why the rules are there for a good reason so quit you’re bellyaching.

But who cares about that, what about romance, right? And there’s where this book falters a little bit. Because as much as I did love the main characters (and do truly, madly, deeply love Helena), and even though they did have good chemistry together, I just didn’t buy their end-state romance. The A-plot was too big and too busy and on too short a timeline for them to do “fall in love and get married.” I could very easily see some explosive sex after and long and lusty bout of sexual tension all in the name of stress relief, sure. Maybe some feelings thrown in to make life more complicated, okay. But every time Helena said “I’m too busy with all these KKK wannabes trying to kill us to make a new relationship,” I was nodding along right with her. The book didn’t leave much room for more than stress-relief sex, either, so when more got shoved in it felt quite rushed. Which is a shame, because “riots + sex” would have been a perfectly fine outcome.

[Jessie Potts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wild Darkness released last week and is the fourth and final book in Lauren's Bound By Magick series. While I'm not happy that this is the end of the series, I really loved the action and suspense of Wild Darkness. I would definitely recommend reading the first three books in the series to fully understand, but you won't be sorry you did! In WD, there's a crazy conspiracy plot, war between the factions, and Helena having to make tough choices and stand up to save her people. Can we also talk about the cover? Yum! Which turns us to Faine. Ah, Faine. He's by far one of my favorite heroes in this series, and the fact that he respects the heck out of Helena as a fellow warrior is icing on his cake!

To see what Lauren has to say about Wild Darkness check out the HEA Blog!
http://www.usatoday.com/story/happyev...

[Lidia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm so sorry that Wild Darkness be last book of series at least for two motive,first because I would loved read about the story between Senator Toshio and Senator Delilah and also because the love story between Helena and Faine isn't been the more beautiful of series; in fact in the plot there is a lot of political intrigue,battles , hate and blood... but of magic of love, very little . Looks as their couple relationship is prepackaged, we don't see courtship , nor the birth of love, nor just a bit fight or misunderstandings ,cooked and eat, just one bit flat if you ask me, maybe one month was really short time. Interesting and right the fight for the liberty for everyone, but this part is become more important than the story by main characters.

[E_bookpushers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review originally posted on The Book Pushers here: http://thebookpushers.com/2013/11/08/...

Publisher: Berkley
Publish Date: Out now
How I got this book: ARC from the publisher

The bombing that almost killed Owen witch Molly Ryan has worsened the tensions between the humans and the Others. While the Others desperately campaign to prevent the passage of a law that would strip their people of all rights, the human separatists develop an agenda far worse than anyone imagined. With her position more precarious than ever, security head Helena Jaansen finds herself relying more and more heavily on her personal guard, Faine Leviathan, and, despite her better instincts, falling more deeply into the intimate connection that they share.

As Helena and Faine’s explosive passion grows, a deadly separatist plot is discovered, one which could bring ultimate destruction for the Others, and war breaks out between the two opposing factions. With the Others forced into hiding, Helena must overcome her fear of repeating past failures to save her people—and her heart—before it’s too late…
This blurb came from the author’s website.

I see Lauren Dane’s name on something and I buy it, no questions asked. As a result, I have been reading this series since it started. She is also one of the authors that makes me laugh with glee when I realize that separate series I have enjoyed are all taking place in the same world. This in the final book in the Bound by Magick series, but not the final book set in this particular world. Wild Darkness builds on the events of the previous installment Going Under reviewed here. As a result, I will be unable to avoid spoilers for the previous books.

Things were progressively getting worse for The Others. They were still reeling from their horrific losses due to The Magister’s brief visit when a group of humans decided the Others, who lived peacefully as friends, neighbors, and family, were suddenly a threat or less than human and should be treated as such. All throughout the last book, the Others were striving for a peaceful resolution, educating, informing and not harming humans but the anti-Other rhetoric kept growing along with violent attacks against the Others for daring to want to continue to live a normal life. Going Under ended with a firebomb attack at a community center full of noncombatants, families and children in full daylight followed by an armed assault. Wild Darkness starts as the fighting has ended, but before any of the emergency medical or law enforcement personnel have arrived which set the tone for the entire book. Time and again, the Others wee attacked and had a delayed or no response from law enforcement. If the law enforcement showed up, the Others were treated by some as if they were the cause not the victims. In the meantime through the political channels, anti-Other legislation aimed at reducing them to animal status was moving towards passage by the House and Senate.

Helena, raised from childhood on the more offensive warrior aspects of being a witch, was working as the security chief for the Owen clan. While she was able to set up a variety of procedures to help protect the Others her responsibilities grew after her abilities were recognized and she was asked to take on the responsibility of protecting their spokeswoman, Molly. As the stakes for those she protected and her stress continued to rise, she was forced to learn how to depend on other people and how to handle the fact that not everyone was going to live through every attack. I loved watching her grow as a person and start to emotionally trust another man again.

Faine was a bit more of an unknown. He and his brother Simon, introduced in Chaos Burning, were assisting Clan Owen and the Others as they attempted to recover from The Magister’s visit and deal with the negative human reaction. Simon was married to Helena’s sister Lark so he had even more of a stake in the safety of Clan Owen. With Lark and Simon working in a different part of the country, Faine was concerned about Helena’s emotional state as she dealt with everything. Each time he watched Helena rise to the occasion and give her all, the attraction he felt grew stronger. When he was officially asked to protect her as she protected other people, he was glad to seize the opportunity and help her with more than physical protection.

“I’m very scary. But not to you. I want you to lean on me because I want you. I want all of you, Helena Jaansen. Since the first time I met you I knew you were special. And everything I’ve seen since has only confirmed that. I thought it was a passing fancy at first. You’re beautiful and powerful. A male like me finds those qualities fairly irresistible.”

**Cue me melting**

I loved the romance between Faine and Helena. They didn’t have a lot of internal conflict other than the differences in cultures but it was lovely to see them develop more than professional trust without the conflict. I really liked that Faine’s age and life experiences were used to remove the communication games and beating around the bush because I was allowed to focus on their growing relationship amidst all of the outside ugliness. I also felt the outside stakes were so high, internal conflict would have negated Faine’s claims to care about Helena. In addition to the romance, developments in the Others’ attempt to keep their status they were born with as American citizens made me rather tense. So much was at stake, so much violence, and through it all it appeared as if the strident voices of hatred were going to win. Dane included an extremely touching scene in a local grocery store, which provided hope but also demonstrated eloquently how voices of reason are usually quieter and more subtle than those of extremism on either side. It made me think about society today and through the ages and wonder what it would take to stir the moderate masses into action.

Wild Darkness was a great way to close this particular chapter on Dane’s complex world. Evidence of this new “normal” will continue to show up as Dane provides more stories but I found myself completely satisfied by her ending. I am also looking forward to revisiting some other characters and seeing how their lives have changed. Not to mention the threat that has existed from the beginning is still around.

I give Wild Darkness an A-

[Angela Crockett · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Wild Darkness was necessary to complete the Bound by Magick series, I'm glad it's over. The struggle that the clan and all the others went through fighting for equality . . . . . It was hard to be a part of all that violence. And while the point of equality was made it was such a let down to get to the last few pages just to get the proclamation from the president that everyone who was a citizen is a citizen. Why did it take so much violence and struggle to get to that point? I think originally when I started this series early on as all of the other previous series combined, I was thrilled. .. . . But with war you lose family . . . and these people were part of my book family. If you are not into violence and pain and the true horror of war. . . ( I say this because the you cannot read Lauren Dane's books with out being IN the story. . that connection) This is not the series for you. I just wish there had been more attention to rebuilding and closure for me.

[sharon e hochstetler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good. Exciting.

Helena is extremely prepared. She has plans for plans. She is more powerful since the Magister. I loved the secondary story with Toshio and Delilah. I hope there is a short story for those two!! Fain is awesome. I let's Blend be no she need to be. He makes her laugh and makes her happy. I love that he takes care of her. Her parents are fierce. Park is funny. Loved it.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always enjoy this world and Dane's writing. This one was more of what I like, although the external plot resolution seemed somewhat sudden and like it wouldn't solve many of the problems in this world.

[John Colley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked it didn't love it

My main issue is that all the action takes place towards the end of the book and then just stops. The end of book 3 was also abrupt. So liked the book but didn't love the book.

[Kelly Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great series, wish it wasn't over...hint, hint, lots of stories that have not been told and are left available and wanting.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

kind of boring...I skipped 10+ chapters and didn't feel like I missed much...not the best series finale I've read

[Mnix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helena Jaasen is the head Hunter for the Gennessee Clan and a strong witch who isn’t happy that her people and all Others are now having to fight against humans to survive just because they are different. The battles are getting worse and lots of people on both sides are being hurt and killed. Helena’s primary job is to keep the Gennessee safe but as the Others join together to keep their people safe, Helena is selected as the security head for the new coalition. Like her life wasn’t intense enough, but Helena has never turned away from a battle that will keep those she protects safe and she won’t this time either.

Faine Leviathan is a Lycian prince from Lycia – a land on the other side of the Veil – and Helena’s brother-in-law. He crossed the Veil in order to help the Others fight a battle that is quickly becoming a war. He has been alive for a long time and experienced many wars so his knowledge and help are greatly needed. As the events are turning more deadly, Faine has traveled to California to help Helena and has been greatly impressed by both her abilities and her fighting style to keep those she protects safe. When Helena is elected as the head of the new security team put together by the Others’ coalition, Faine is given the job of being her personal guard.

In the mist of deadly battles, constant red alerts and threats to them personally, Faine and Helena also face the fact that what they feel is much more than respect – it’s a passion that could change their lives. It quickly becomes apparent that the hate mongers are willing to kill everyone including small children to keep America pure. Helena and Faine are on the front lines as the battles turn even more deadly and yet they find the time to explore the passion that is binding them. America is being torn apart with this battle between the hate filled humans and the Others and time is running out before all these battles erupt into a War that will make friends and family members choose sides. That is unless Helena and Faine find a way to show that Others might have powers but they don’t use them against humans unless forced to in time to stop the bloodshed.

Two warriors in a time of deadly battles discover that nothing will stop a love that fate desires in Wild Darkness. I swear I held my breath from the front cover to the back cover afraid that I might miss something. Helena lives and breathes her position as the head Hunter for the Gennessee Clan and deeply feels every loss in this time of madness. Faine originally came across the Veil to help in the emerging war only to find the one woman who made his soul sing. I loved how Helena and Faine found a way to stay optimistic when all the battles and deaths should have made them exactly the opposite.

Many times I just shook my head at the realistic way that Ms. Dane explored just how far some people will go to destroy what they are afraid of. All the hate, bigotry and self justified actions which become so apparent in this fast paced and action packed journey which finally climaxes a story arc I have loved across several series. I loved watching as Helena and Faine not only obtained a love others dream of but were also the keys that proved being different didn’t mean bad in Wild Darkness. If you haven’t guessed yet, I believe that Helena and Faine’s story is a must read and a true keeper.

Yes, that means I also Joyfully Recommend Wild Darkness as a book you won’t want to put down. I would also highly suggest reading the entire story arc in order which goes across the Bound in Magick, de La Vega Cats and Cascadia Wolves series.

This book was reviewed by Jo for Joyfully Reviewed (JR), and was provided by the publisher/author at no cost to JR for the purpose of being reviewed.

[Deb Lester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wild Darkness is the final book in Lauren Dane's Bound by Magick series. It the conclusion of the escalating war between the Human extremist groups and the Others. Fans of the series will be thrilled with this action packed novel. Dane focuses on character development and world building, like no other author in the genre. With political intrigue, personal betrayals and a whole lot of sensuality, this novel is one paranormal romance fans won't want to miss!

Lauren Dane is probably one of my favorite adult romance writers. She knows how important it is for the erotic aspects of the book to be in balance with the rest of the story. If one side or the other is out of sync, that element overshadows the whole book. Dane has a knack for getting it just right. She has great character development, great world building skills and some mind boggling sexual moments in each book. The Bound by Magick series is one of my favorites by Dane for a lot of reasons.

In the second book in the Bound by Magick series, Chaos Burning, the Others, the supernaturals among us, were outed to the public and now the fall out has brought the society to an all out war. In Wild Darkness, the conclusion to the series readers are treated to some climatic battles and more political intrigue and machinations than you might find in the Obama camp. It's fast paced and has that 'hanging on by the seat of your pants' atmosphere that makes your heart speed up a little bit as you read. I thought Dane did a spectacular job of bringing it all together and making it make sense to the reader.

The world building in this series has been top notch from the first book, but I think Dane's ability to tie up all of the loose ends in this one was very well done. Wild Darkness has characters from some of Dane's previous series', Cascadia Wolves and the De La Vega Cat's, as well as, previous books in the Bound by Magick series. Dane ability to bring each set of circumstances to a satisfying conclusion was wonderful and she was able to make the interactions of each of the characters understandable and believable. As a final book in a the series, I thought it held up to all my expectations and exceeded them in some ways. There was a lot going on in this series and Dane wraps it up nicely.

Cental to every one of Dane's book is a romantic couple. In Wild Darkness the head of witch security, Helena Jaansen has more on her plate than the average heroine, as the fate of Others is clearly resting on her. Her bodyguard, and Lycan, Faine Leviathan tries to take care of her in every way. The sparks that fly between these two characters are only fanning the flames of their desire for each other. Dane shows readers, two alpha characters who both have a need for dominance. However, the twist to that is the fact that Faine has so much respect and admiration for Helena, he is willing to let her lead instead of the other way around. That makes for some very sexy scenes in and out of the bedroom. This is definitely an adult novel and not recommended for young readers, because the action is hot, and the sex is hotter. So be advised.

Overall this was a very satisfying end to a great series. There were a few moments where I thought Dane rushed a bit, because this series has such a huge theme and I wanted a little more depth. But that's just a personal thing and did not take away anything from the overall impact of the book. This is a great adult paranormal series that I would recommend to anyone who likes the genre. I'm sad to see it end but I can't wait to see where Dane will take us next.

[Under the Covers Book Blog · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been looking forward to this book for a while now and probably jumped like a lunatic when I got my copy.  Then for the first 15% I was all over the story.  Helena is a strong chick with a lot of heart.  Determined to see that things for her people are done in justice.  She's one tough cookie!

Then there's Faine, who is Simon's brother from book two.  The mystery around what he is and about his world and where he comes from was fascinating.  I loved the fact that he's obviously hundreds, if not more, of years older than her.  Helena is really a lot like a human in his eyes, but with her witchy powers.  Their relationship was so refreshing in the sense that here's a very dominant male, one who has this ingrained need to protect his mate, understanding that his chosen one would not stand for that.  Helena needs to be in the thick of the action, just as much as he does.

But then I hit a wall.  And it had nothing to do with the couple in and of themselves.  It was all the political stuff going on in this book when they were around.  I felt that it dragged down their romance a bit with all the details of meetings and step by step plans, etc.  However, the funny thing was I didn't feel the same with Toshio and Delilah.  I was glued to every scrap of time the author gave us for this couple.  Maybe it's just that I was anticipating reading about Toshio more, not sure, because there was more political stuff where they were concerned as well.

In the end, yes there is some action, and there's definitely chemistry and a beautiful love story.  But I was expecting this "end of the world" plot for this last book.  I still enjoyed the story a lot and this is a series that I recommend all the time.  Readers just can't go wrong by picking up ANY Lauren Dane book.  The way she writes is flawless and detailed.  It sucks you in from the very first page and makes you care about these characters as if they were real.  That is something I always love about Ms. Dane and this book had that in spades!

Favorite Quotes:
"You are singular.  You are the female I was meant to find and love."

"You can lean on me.  You can cry and know I respect you.  You can cry and know I've fallen apart a little after a battle like the one you've been waging for months."

"Heaven help me, when you heat up my beast wants to drop to his knees and worship you."

*ARC provided by publisher

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[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 out of 5 stars

Description ~

The bombing that almost killed Owen witch Molly Ryan has worsened the tensions between the humans and the Others. While the Others desperately campaign to prevent the passage of a law that would strip their people of all rights, the human separatists develop an agenda far worse than anyone imagined. With her position more precarious than ever, security head Helena Jaansen finds herself relying more and more heavily on her personal guard, Faine Leviathan, and, despite her better instincts, falling more deeply into the intimate connection that they share.

As Helena and Faine’s explosive passion grows, a deadly separatist plot is discovered, one which could bring ultimate destruction for the Others, and war breaks out between the two opposing factions. With the Others forced into hiding, Helena must overcome her fear of repeating past failures to save her people—and her heart—before it’s too late…

My Review ~

This is the final book in the Bound by Magick series and it kicks all sorts of butt! Fair warning as this is the last book of the series, I'd highly suggest reading the previous books to familiarize yourself with all the couples and storylines. Each book does stand alone as far as the couples storyline but the events surrounding them are interlinked.

The couple in this book is Faine Leviathan and Helena Jaansen, who we've met in previously and have established there is a connection between them. Well at least on Faine's side, as this seriously gorgeous Lycian has fallen for our kick-butt heroine, Helena. She has been one of my favorite characters since her introduction, so I was completely thrilled with this being her story. I thought Helena and Faine were perfect for each other.

The story arc in this series has been sufficiently concluded as of Wild Darkness. However, the series contains both Cascadia Pack and the de la Vega Jamboree, I expect to see glimpses of these characters in the future. My only real issue with the story was that the ending felt a tiny bit rushed. There were a lot of developments and things to work through in the book, almost enough for another full story.

The Bound by Magick series had excellent characters, great storylines, and well crafted world-building. I will fully admit I'm a huge fan of Lauren Dane's books, she is one of the few authors that I still continue to pre-order and auto-buy every book. I highly suggest this book and this entire series to anyone that loves a good, steamy paranormal romance that has feisty female leads, and sexy, strong, Alpha males. ~ Reviewed by Chris

This review is the property of Chris and not to be shared or copied unless by the Publisher or Author or unless credit is given.

[Francesca the Fierce (Under the Covers Book Blog) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been looking forward to this book for a while now and probably jumped like a lunatic when I got my copy. Then for the first 15% I was all over the story. Helena is a strong chick with a lot of heart. Determined to see that things for her people are done in justice. She’s one tough cookie!

Then there’s Faine, who is Simon’s brother from book two. The mystery around what he is and about his world and where he comes from was fascinating. I loved the fact that he’s obviously hundreds, if not more, of years older than her. Helena is really a lot like a human in his eyes, but with her witchy powers. Their relationship was so refreshing in the sense that here’s a very dominant male, one who has this ingrained need to protect his mate, understanding that his chosen one would not stand for that. Helena needs to be in the thick of the action, just as much as he does.

But then I hit a wall. And it had nothing to do with the couple in and of themselves. It was all the political stuff going on in this book when they were around. I felt that it dragged down their romance a bit with all the details of meetings and step by step plans, etc. However, the funny thing was I didn’t feel the same with Toshio and Delilah. I was glued to every scrap of time the author gave us for this couple. Maybe it’s just that I was anticipating reading about Toshio more, not sure, because there was more political stuff where they were concerned as well.

In the end, yes there is some action, and there’s definitely chemistry and a beautiful love story. But I was expecting this “end of the world” plot for this last book. I still enjoyed the story a lot and this is a series that I recommend all the time. Readers just can’t go wrong by picking up ANY Lauren Dane book. The way she writes is flawless and detailed. It sucks you in from the very first page and makes you care about these characters as if they were real. That is something I always love about Ms. Dane and this book had that in spades!

Favorite Quotes:

“You are singular. You are the female I was meant to find and love.”

“You can lean on me. You can cry and know I respect you. You can cry and know I’ve fallen apart a little after a battle like the one you’ve been waging for months.”

“Heaven help me, when you heat up my beast wants to drop to his knees and worship you.”

*ARC provided by publisher

[Donna Zink · Rating 4 out of 5]

Political intrigue, suspense, brutal battles, betrayal, soul searing love and sensual chemistry are all here and more. In this the last book in the Bound by Magick series Mrs. Dane provides an amazing amount of information on the supernaturals that populate her books. While I would definitely recommend you read the previous 3 books in the series you could read this as a stand alone and not be disappointed. It does that good a job with background information. That being said, the characters are all so interesting it makes you want to have a more intimate knowledge of their own personal stories. Although this novel focuses on Helena Jaansen and Faine Leviathan it's also like reading a political blueprint for the fracturing of a country, the United States.


The book starts with a community center being firebombed by Human separatists groups. Whether it's PURITY or the other bigoted racial group Humans First the humans involved against the Others wants nothing less than to completely eradicate them. Working with everything from terrorist attacks and members of the Senate the extremist use some dirty tricks that provide an interesting twist. Faine finds Helena "magnificent" from the beginning of the book. He can't resist the warrior she is. His main problem is trying to get Helena to take care of herself or at least let him take care of her. Helena is dedicated to protecting the Others at the expense of her own safety and health.


While we are being treated to Helena and Faine's story many of the characters from previous books make appearances. I'm glad Mrs. Dane worked something out for Senator Sato. Hated to see him miss out completely on love. Loved the interaction between Helena and her sister Lark. It was so true to sisters and how they talk about their "men" that just happen to be brothers. Faine and his brother Simon do their own fair share of guy talk about how to handle the sisters. Really hope Mrs. Dane will do future books on the sisters and brothers because those are two couple I can't get enough of.


Have to admit while I completely enjoyed the book was a tiny bit disappointed with the ending. But not every book ends the way we personally want it to.


Can definitely recommend this book to adult readers 17 and older. Treat yourself to the three previous books in the series also.

[Darcy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I liked about this one was that the romance seemed to be a done deal. Neither Helena or Faine fought their feelings, instead they went with them, even their binding. The bigger issue seemed to be all the drama with the Others coming out, with PURITY and Humans First and their reaction. I hated that some small minded people wanted to harken back to the days of how the Nazi's treated Jewish people, how the US treated people of Asian descent during WWII era. Rounding people up, GPS chipping people, and exterminating people is wrong no matter who they are or what they can do. I actually thought that the Others were taking the correct next step, to fight back. I liked that when attacked they used everything in their power to protect themselves, shocking people with the amount of power they hide. I think that allowed people to realize that they Others could have done worse, they could have started and finished things, instead they only protected themselves.

I loved that 2 Senators were firmly in the camp of the Others, one by default, one because it was the right thing to do. I also loved it when one of those Senators ripped the President a new one, something that should have been done a long time ago. While I did like what the President had to say, I felt like it should have been done long before it was.

I was glad to see how this one ended, I think it is the best that can be hoped for with all the actions so far.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, book four. The opening is rather... abrupt. We open with Faine working in California with Helena, but no real explanation for his departure from Seattle. (Not that I'm complaining about the venue change. No one needs to be tempted into having a paycheck's worth of chocolate shipped to them overnight. It's all action, adventure and sexing from there. I have my issues with how the PURITY movement and lack of action on the part of government or "normal" citizens is portrayed, but that's me. As a romance, it's a fine little read, and surprisingly, no immaturity on anyone's part. There's a secondary romance between Senator Sato and Senator Sperry, the werewolf senator from Illinois (yeah us! fictionally, anyway), also surprising, and deserving of it's own space.

As series go, keeping up with this one won't be a priority. I've got a lot of PNR on my to do list, and this doesn't doesn't make the compulsory reading grade. I much prefer her contemporaries.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sadly we’re at the last in the Bound by Magick series from Lauren Dane. This is not a book you can pick up on its own, not because of the repeating characters but because there’s an overarching storyline that will get confusing if you haven’t read the earlier books. Helena is leading security for the witches and after the recent bombings targeting the Others she’s been a busy woman. Faine has been working on Helena’s security team for a few months now and has come to respect her strength and her smarts. They can’t deny that there’s a physical attraction but when Faine’s feelings grow to something more serious Helena has to decide if she’s ready for the something more that he wants. Really great novel that combines two sexy, independent people who are fighting against injustice and prejudice. I’m really going to miss this series but overall it was a really fun read.

[Candace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another incredible book by Lauren Dane. She is a must read author for me and I am never disappointed. This book would have been good alone but how she weaves in not only characters from this series but her other series as well leaves me in awe.

Characters from other series are seamlessly woven into the story in a completely natural way. Even though this was an Others book I honestly wouldn't have been surprised if the Brown siblings had made an appearance. I kept waiting to hear that an attack had been made during an Adrian Brown concert!

Awesome job Lauren. My only complaint is that this is stated to be the last book in this particular series. I hope future books in other series give us an update on these great characters.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth book in the Bound by Magick series. I like the series but thought this book had a bit of an abrupt ending. However it did wrap up the series nicely if this is the last one.

I actually found this author while looking for Read A Likes for 50 Shades (this author crosses some genres). I do like her writing style and I love her characters, especially the way they interact. So I've tried most of her different series. I'm not fond of her Werecat stuff but her fiction/erotica/scifi-fantasy stuff is pretty consistently done. I'd recommend her to customers in any of those genres.

[Dawn Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable story and a continuation of the story of the witches, wolves, and vampires. The Others are again faced with a group of racist bigots who want nothing more then to be rid of all of them by any means. This book refers to pre-natzi Germany and it's a good comparison. Helena, Larks's sister is the hunter and heroine and her hero came as a surprise to me and I will let you be surprised also. We are also introduced to the love interest of Senator Sperry, a shifter and a human Senator. If you've been reading this series you will know who the human Senator is. I enjoy how fast paced these stories have been and look forward to the next.

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I expected more from the finale of the series. We had so many parallels between Faine and Helena, and Simon and Lark's stories; though we have better chemistry here. We had a good setup for the boiling point here, though I expected the Others to blow up way before then. The ending was pretty rushed. One second real war was ignited, the next the useless president has a speech and we're done, even though we all know fanatics wouldn't ever comply with any order given when they have their hate. It's like Dane got tired of writing this series and just wanted to be done with it. So yes, I didn't like the ending much, it was pretty disappointing.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magical. Highly Anticipated. Steamy. Amazing. Satisfying. Those are just my words that show how I felt reading this last book. I have read all of the books in this series and this one by far is my favorite. I love how Lauren makes the main characters almost equal and not so much of the dominating alpha man. What woman wouldn't want to have that much power to kick ass. Once I started reading this book I couldn't put it down. It is sad to see the series end but it was everything I expected and more. Thank you for an amazing finale.

[iculookingatme · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to read an indepth review, stop reading now. I have read Lauren Dane's entire collection of works for a reason, awesome alpha males and their even awesomer alpha females (and yes I know awesomer is not a word). The story line gives me some closure on how it will all turn out for the Others now that they have been "outed" to the rest of the world. Loved the book, hope to see more out of this series, simply said it was wickedly hot and a fascinatingly look into a world of witches and the rest of the supernatural community. A++++