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The Book of the Watchers #1
Cover Him with Darkness
In a remote and mountainous part of Europe, a priest keeps a dark secret beneath his chapel—a prisoner. Even the holy man does not know how long he has been there—hundreds of years, perhaps, or even longer. The priest's fear is that anyone in his parish would ever come in contact with his mysterious and unholy charge.
But what happens is even worse than he could have ever imagined. His lovely young daughter Milja, whose innocence and devotion to God he prizes over all else, trails her father into the cavern and catches a glimpse of the prisoner, a beautiful being like the most handsome of men, and yet not. She looks into his eyes and sees pain and wisdom and eternity. Unable to keep away from this silent creature chained to an altar stone, she is torn between family loyalty and her growing connection to their prisoner. One day her father discovers their forbidden intimacy and sends Milja off to America to be raised by her aunt in Boston.
Cover Him with Darkness is a dark and thrilling story of an archangel banished from heaven and the human woman with whom he falls in love.
But what happens is even worse than he could have ever imagined. His lovely young daughter Milja, whose innocence and devotion to God he prizes over all else, trails her father into the cavern and catches a glimpse of the prisoner, a beautiful being like the most handsome of men, and yet not. She looks into his eyes and sees pain and wisdom and eternity. Unable to keep away from this silent creature chained to an altar stone, she is torn between family loyalty and her growing connection to their prisoner. One day her father discovers their forbidden intimacy and sends Milja off to America to be raised by her aunt in Boston.
Cover Him with Darkness is a dark and thrilling story of an archangel banished from heaven and the human woman with whom he falls in love.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2014
46 people are currently reading
890 people want to read
About the author
Janine Ashbless
67 books134 followersJanine Ashbless is a British author of erotica and hot romantic adventure. Janine likes best to write paranormal- and dark-fantasy-themed fiction and has a lifelong interest in mythology, folklore and history.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
May 27, 2014
Holy bajesus! A million stars! I LOVE LOVE LOVE books that surprise the hell out of me!
Milja grew up in a small village in Italy with her father, a priest that watches over an ancient prisoner . Their family has been doing it for hundreds of years and when Milja is seven she follows her father through the tunnels under the chapel that holds the prisoner. Her father hopes one day she will marry and carry on the legacy as watchers. Milja is infatuated by the handsome man tied to a stone alter and quickly starts slipping food and water to him.
Her father catches her and sends her off to America until she returns at twenty three after learning of her fathers sudden illness. Where , at the airport, she meets a very sweet and sexy Egan. The Irish that seems to always show up to help her when she needs it most.
Compelled to finally save this beautiful creature once and for all, she sets him free. Only unleashing him can she witness his raw power and primal urges. Then she learns that she not only released the Archangel Azazel but she has also fallen in love with him.
Several priest hunt her down and try to reslave Azazel. With help from Egan she tries desperately to save him.
TOTAL PAGE TURNER! I can’t wait to get my hands on the next (crossing fingers that there will be one…please please please!)
Milja grew up in a small village in Italy with her father, a priest that watches over an ancient prisoner . Their family has been doing it for hundreds of years and when Milja is seven she follows her father through the tunnels under the chapel that holds the prisoner. Her father hopes one day she will marry and carry on the legacy as watchers. Milja is infatuated by the handsome man tied to a stone alter and quickly starts slipping food and water to him.
Her father catches her and sends her off to America until she returns at twenty three after learning of her fathers sudden illness. Where , at the airport, she meets a very sweet and sexy Egan. The Irish that seems to always show up to help her when she needs it most.
Compelled to finally save this beautiful creature once and for all, she sets him free. Only unleashing him can she witness his raw power and primal urges. Then she learns that she not only released the Archangel Azazel but she has also fallen in love with him.
Several priest hunt her down and try to reslave Azazel. With help from Egan she tries desperately to save him.
TOTAL PAGE TURNER! I can’t wait to get my hands on the next (crossing fingers that there will be one…please please please!)
October 27, 2014
Cover him with Darkness is so, so good. I’m still getting over the fact that this book is over. The book blurb is so different from the actual book. I wasn’t too invested in the book when I read the blurb but holy shit I’m so glad I read the book.
Cover Him with Darkness starts out dark and REMAINS dark throughout the book. I love the way the author has taken these concepts of the Bible that we know and learn about and turned them into this completely amazing book.
Milja is from a small town in Montenegro. The entire country is half the size of Connecticut so there’s not much that can happen here, right? Wrong.
About five thousand years ago, the Fallen Angel Azazel was captured and kept prisoner in a small church basement in Montenegro. Now, almost five thousand years later, he’s still here. Weak and in complete agony. And now his care is the responsibility of Milja’s father.
There’s something about this book that will keep you hooked. Maybe it’s pity for Azazel. Maybe it’s the games he plays with Milja. Or maybe it’s Egan, the mysterious guy who’s so, so easy to love.
I couldn’t decide until the very end of the book whether or not I liked Azazel. There’s this very true line in the book. It goes something like “who wouldn’t come out of 5000 years of captivity unchanged.” So true. It seems like his years of being a prisoner have only made him resentful, angry and damaged. Not to forget, horny.
Oh yeah, he’s horny alright.
*fans self*
God bless Milja’s restless self, but I do think the lady makes BAD choices. Although again, I completely sympathize with her. She’s seen Azazel at his weakest, she’s fed him, cleaned his wounds, and she’s been in love with him all her life. (She’s also given him a hand job, but she obviously didn’t mean to. Obviously.)
Azazel is a Fallen Angel. He is evil. But you can’t help but feel bad for him. I think his only fault was falling in love with a human woman and he’s more than paid for it. But maybe that’s just me. He’s also kind of an asshole.
There’s just one phrase that comes to mind when I think about Egan—Victim of Circumstance. I won’t tell you the whole deal about him because that would ruin the surprise but he’s a sweet, simple guy who’s maybe in love with Milja. But he’s competing against an Angel so we know he’s doomed.
There’s brief appearances by Archangel Uriel too—another asshole—but he’s funny. Selfish and “there’s only yap yap yap with him” but he’s kind of the person to side with whoever would favor him. He believes that Azazel needs to be captured and made prisoner again but he himself is kind of a jerk so I, for one, ignored his opinion all throughout.
There’s good things in the book and there’s better things in the book. I for one couldn’t find one thing I didn’t like. I have, although, seen reviews of people leaving the book halfway because it was religious, so if you’re not into that kind of a thing, this book isn’t for you.
In my opinion, this book isn’t the stereotypical Christian Fiction. So if you’re open to reading more about Fallen Angels and forbidden love or just some amazingly shmexy times, go for it!
The book is a standalone right now, but the fact that the author has left the ending open gives me hope for a sequel.
And makes me very, very happy.
Final verdict: Sweet Bejeezus, this book has everything! It has hot sex and drama and romance and suspense. And Action. I couldn’t ask for more. 5 stars!
Find this review and more at Rhea's Neon Journal
Cover Him with Darkness starts out dark and REMAINS dark throughout the book. I love the way the author has taken these concepts of the Bible that we know and learn about and turned them into this completely amazing book.
Milja is from a small town in Montenegro. The entire country is half the size of Connecticut so there’s not much that can happen here, right? Wrong.
About five thousand years ago, the Fallen Angel Azazel was captured and kept prisoner in a small church basement in Montenegro. Now, almost five thousand years later, he’s still here. Weak and in complete agony. And now his care is the responsibility of Milja’s father.
There’s something about this book that will keep you hooked. Maybe it’s pity for Azazel. Maybe it’s the games he plays with Milja. Or maybe it’s Egan, the mysterious guy who’s so, so easy to love.
I couldn’t decide until the very end of the book whether or not I liked Azazel. There’s this very true line in the book. It goes something like “who wouldn’t come out of 5000 years of captivity unchanged.” So true. It seems like his years of being a prisoner have only made him resentful, angry and damaged. Not to forget, horny.
Oh yeah, he’s horny alright.
*fans self*
God bless Milja’s restless self, but I do think the lady makes BAD choices. Although again, I completely sympathize with her. She’s seen Azazel at his weakest, she’s fed him, cleaned his wounds, and she’s been in love with him all her life. (She’s also given him a hand job, but she obviously didn’t mean to. Obviously.)
Azazel is a Fallen Angel. He is evil. But you can’t help but feel bad for him. I think his only fault was falling in love with a human woman and he’s more than paid for it. But maybe that’s just me. He’s also kind of an asshole.
There’s just one phrase that comes to mind when I think about Egan—Victim of Circumstance. I won’t tell you the whole deal about him because that would ruin the surprise but he’s a sweet, simple guy who’s maybe in love with Milja. But he’s competing against an Angel so we know he’s doomed.
There’s brief appearances by Archangel Uriel too—another asshole—but he’s funny. Selfish and “there’s only yap yap yap with him” but he’s kind of the person to side with whoever would favor him. He believes that Azazel needs to be captured and made prisoner again but he himself is kind of a jerk so I, for one, ignored his opinion all throughout.
There’s good things in the book and there’s better things in the book. I for one couldn’t find one thing I didn’t like. I have, although, seen reviews of people leaving the book halfway because it was religious, so if you’re not into that kind of a thing, this book isn’t for you.
In my opinion, this book isn’t the stereotypical Christian Fiction. So if you’re open to reading more about Fallen Angels and forbidden love or just some amazingly shmexy times, go for it!
The book is a standalone right now, but the fact that the author has left the ending open gives me hope for a sequel.
And makes me very, very happy.
Final verdict: Sweet Bejeezus, this book has everything! It has hot sex and drama and romance and suspense. And Action. I couldn’t ask for more. 5 stars!
Find this review and more at Rhea's Neon Journal
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 29, 2014
I wasn't entirely sure what to expect with this book when I first agreed to read it. I admittedly haven't read too many books that deal with angels, fallen or otherwise. All that being said, Ashbless has set the bar for my expectations of angelic paranormal romance. I positively loved Cover Him with Darkness.
A large part of why I liked this book lies in the settings. It's set in a modern world, with the lead character Milja going to school in Boston. However, her home is a remote village in Montenegro that seems like it's set centuries ago. There's no running water or electricity, everyone knows everyone (and everyone's business), religion is still very close to the heart of the village, which is in the mountains. It's charming in a rustic kind of way, and if we're being completely honest, put me a little in mind of Belle's village in "Beauty and the Beast". I really liked this old-fashioned setting mixed with the modern world of cell phones, airplanes, and the internet.
The other main reason why I liked this book is simply Azazel, the fallen angel. He is deceptive and possessive and absolutely dreamy. What does that say about my own character? Eh. That's a discussion for a different day, I think. He's seduction and evil manifested into one body and much like Milja, I didn't want to be attracted to him but I found it to be impossible. Mmm.
If you are really devout or easily offended by blasphemy, let me tell you something, this is not the book for you. Fortunately, I am neither of those things and am a bit of a closeted heirophiliac myself. (If you don't know what that means.... Don't Google Image search it. I warned you.) This in short means adding an erotic, lusty love to a church setting is just my type of reading fun. But don't let that fool you. It's clear that there's a lot of study and familiarity with religious texts present in this book. I appreciated that I wasn't just expected to know passages or scripture quotes- I'm a little rusty these days.
There's a lot of lust in this book, yes, but there's also quite a bit of action and suspense that left me wanting to read more. I finished this book in a manner of hours simply because I didn't want to put it down. The pacing is excellent, and there's hardly a dull moment when it comes to fallen angels who have escaped from their prison.
Overall, this book is just really well written. I liked the characters. I liked the settings. I enjoyed the steamier romance scenes and all of the Biblical/holy knowledge that was sprinkled in throughout the text. It's good story telling, plain and simple. This isn't my first time reading a story by Janine Ashbless (I actually highlighted her short stories in my review of The Sexy Librarian's Big Book of Erotica & Anything for You), but I sincerely hope to read more full length books like this one from her. I will also, after I finish this review, go back and read the original short story of Cover Him with Darkness.
This is a good book for anyone who likes the combination of sin, angels, sex, romance, domination, religious ideals, and steam. Thanks so much to Tempted Romance/Cleis Press for my copy in exchange for my honest review. This review can also be found on my blog, Bitches n Prose.
A large part of why I liked this book lies in the settings. It's set in a modern world, with the lead character Milja going to school in Boston. However, her home is a remote village in Montenegro that seems like it's set centuries ago. There's no running water or electricity, everyone knows everyone (and everyone's business), religion is still very close to the heart of the village, which is in the mountains. It's charming in a rustic kind of way, and if we're being completely honest, put me a little in mind of Belle's village in "Beauty and the Beast". I really liked this old-fashioned setting mixed with the modern world of cell phones, airplanes, and the internet.
The other main reason why I liked this book is simply Azazel, the fallen angel. He is deceptive and possessive and absolutely dreamy. What does that say about my own character? Eh. That's a discussion for a different day, I think. He's seduction and evil manifested into one body and much like Milja, I didn't want to be attracted to him but I found it to be impossible. Mmm.
If you are really devout or easily offended by blasphemy, let me tell you something, this is not the book for you. Fortunately, I am neither of those things and am a bit of a closeted heirophiliac myself. (If you don't know what that means.... Don't Google Image search it. I warned you.) This in short means adding an erotic, lusty love to a church setting is just my type of reading fun. But don't let that fool you. It's clear that there's a lot of study and familiarity with religious texts present in this book. I appreciated that I wasn't just expected to know passages or scripture quotes- I'm a little rusty these days.
There's a lot of lust in this book, yes, but there's also quite a bit of action and suspense that left me wanting to read more. I finished this book in a manner of hours simply because I didn't want to put it down. The pacing is excellent, and there's hardly a dull moment when it comes to fallen angels who have escaped from their prison.
Overall, this book is just really well written. I liked the characters. I liked the settings. I enjoyed the steamier romance scenes and all of the Biblical/holy knowledge that was sprinkled in throughout the text. It's good story telling, plain and simple. This isn't my first time reading a story by Janine Ashbless (I actually highlighted her short stories in my review of The Sexy Librarian's Big Book of Erotica & Anything for You), but I sincerely hope to read more full length books like this one from her. I will also, after I finish this review, go back and read the original short story of Cover Him with Darkness.
This is a good book for anyone who likes the combination of sin, angels, sex, romance, domination, religious ideals, and steam. Thanks so much to Tempted Romance/Cleis Press for my copy in exchange for my honest review. This review can also be found on my blog, Bitches n Prose.
June 12, 2014
DNF (I read about 90 pages). I received this as an ARC.
I thought the premise sounded amazing (falling in love with a fallen angel), but I was very confused with the part of the book that I did read.
The issues I had: the book's setting is a tiny little village in a tiny little country, which made it feel like it took place in the 1800's, but then, Milja, is sent away to college in the United States on an airplane. She flies back when her father is ill and then she releases the angel and everyone turns on her. Just a lot of conflicting aspects.
Try Darynda Jones' "First Grave on the Right" for laugh out loud read about the son of satan.
I thought the premise sounded amazing (falling in love with a fallen angel), but I was very confused with the part of the book that I did read.
The issues I had: the book's setting is a tiny little village in a tiny little country, which made it feel like it took place in the 1800's, but then, Milja, is sent away to college in the United States on an airplane. She flies back when her father is ill and then she releases the angel and everyone turns on her. Just a lot of conflicting aspects.
Try Darynda Jones' "First Grave on the Right" for laugh out loud read about the son of satan.
December 16, 2017
I really enjoyed this book, it's one of the best books I've read in a while. And will buy the rest of the set.
June 30, 2014
3 ½ stars. Above average for creativity. But parts were too dark for me.
The dark parts: bad guys torture and imprison good guys. More than once bad guys threaten saying “do what we want or we will kill your loved one.” I’m ok with some of that, but this was too much for me. I don’t like a lot of time being helpless and hopeless. Some readers want dark, so this could be good for them.
I loved the creativity with godlike fallen angels among us. There are several biblical quotes that related to angels’ actions and motivations. There was good mystery. At the end I had unanswered questions but I didn’t mind not knowing.
Biblical quotes and priests being bad guys might be unsettling for some readers.
The sex is dark. It’s uncomfortable. The guy causes pain like hair pulling. He forces her to have sex in front of others and shows her body to others. She is humiliated but also turned on by this. In one scene he forces her to pleasure another man.
It’s told in first person by Milja. She is 23. There is a lot of internal angst. So it felt like New Adult.
DISCLOSURE:
I received a complimentary copy from Elelweiss for review.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 1st person Milja. Kindle count length: 3,084 (256 pages). Swearing language: strong including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 7. Setting: current day Europe and Boston, Mass. Copyright: 2014. Genre: erotic paranormal new adult.
The dark parts: bad guys torture and imprison good guys. More than once bad guys threaten saying “do what we want or we will kill your loved one.” I’m ok with some of that, but this was too much for me. I don’t like a lot of time being helpless and hopeless. Some readers want dark, so this could be good for them.
I loved the creativity with godlike fallen angels among us. There are several biblical quotes that related to angels’ actions and motivations. There was good mystery. At the end I had unanswered questions but I didn’t mind not knowing.
Biblical quotes and priests being bad guys might be unsettling for some readers.
The sex is dark. It’s uncomfortable. The guy causes pain like hair pulling. He forces her to have sex in front of others and shows her body to others. She is humiliated but also turned on by this. In one scene he forces her to pleasure another man.
It’s told in first person by Milja. She is 23. There is a lot of internal angst. So it felt like New Adult.
DISCLOSURE:
I received a complimentary copy from Elelweiss for review.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 1st person Milja. Kindle count length: 3,084 (256 pages). Swearing language: strong including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 7. Setting: current day Europe and Boston, Mass. Copyright: 2014. Genre: erotic paranormal new adult.
September 3, 2014
*I received an ARC via the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!!*
Cover Him With Darkness told a much different darker, suspenseful, and well crafted tale that I had anticipated.
I'll admit that initially I had no expectations going into this, as I was unfamiliar with this author, but let me tell you that it won't be my last!
Author Janine Ashbless throws in her A-game as readers are greeted with a great storyline and cast of characters that pact that will reel you in from the beginning!
There were shocks, there were interesting surprised, but most of all it gave off a mysterious feel for me.
I REALLY enjoyed the female heroine Milja, as she was different. And even more so, I loved Azazel! He was so multifaceted with a multitude of dimension that you had no idea what to expect next from him! He could be cold, he could be provocative and canny, and interestingly, he could be sensitive as well! I just didn't know what was going to was going to come out of this banished archangel!
I definitley will be on the lookout for more as I'm curious as to what will be in the cards! Great start Ms. Ashbless!
Cover Him With Darkness told a much different darker, suspenseful, and well crafted tale that I had anticipated.
I'll admit that initially I had no expectations going into this, as I was unfamiliar with this author, but let me tell you that it won't be my last!
Author Janine Ashbless throws in her A-game as readers are greeted with a great storyline and cast of characters that pact that will reel you in from the beginning!
There were shocks, there were interesting surprised, but most of all it gave off a mysterious feel for me.
I REALLY enjoyed the female heroine Milja, as she was different. And even more so, I loved Azazel! He was so multifaceted with a multitude of dimension that you had no idea what to expect next from him! He could be cold, he could be provocative and canny, and interestingly, he could be sensitive as well! I just didn't know what was going to was going to come out of this banished archangel!
I definitley will be on the lookout for more as I'm curious as to what will be in the cards! Great start Ms. Ashbless!
![Profile Image for ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1572968006i%2F3840999._UX200_CR0%2C33%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
April 7, 2015
My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book... for more, visit Punya Reviews...
I’ve been dying to write a review for Cover Him With Darkness by Janine Ashbless, The Book of the Watchers #1. The 2 reasons why I wanted to read this was, that it apparently had a fallen angel in it, a theme I really love and the title caught my eyes.
Now, prior to reading this, I had no idea Cover Him With Darkness is a line from the Book of Enoch, that connects to the fallen angel, Azazel and how he was banished for eternity for corrupting the human race. My idea about these references is vague at best, which is why I’ll stick to the story itself. I did some internet search while reading this book, to learn more about Azazel. His is even more vague. In some places he’s called a fallen angel, in some a demon, in others he’s even referred to as Satan. The only thing I got from it all that you’re not supposed to consort with the likes of him, especially if you’re not equipped to play with his fire. LOL Fortunately, the book itself did a good job of giving me an idea of him, albeit fiction-wise. He was a tough to like character, let alone love. I have read some fallen angel stories before, but the fallen angel in question had won my heart nonetheless. I wasn’t even sure how Azazel can be a ‘hero’ when he’s such a brilliant douchebag! But WOW, the flow of the story was so good that I had to keep reading to know what’s coming next.
Cover Him With Darkness is a fast-paced story that tells you about a girl named Milja of Montenegro, and how her life changes dramatically when she releases ‘The Prisoner’ of her childhood memories and broken adult dreams.
The prologue was incredible. I had shivers as I was reading it, just as I had pretty much throughout. It gives us an idea (I was thinking of Blizarrd’s Diablo II animations, old but still gold!) of how this Prisoner was imprisoned in the first place.
A winged bull and a lion, an eagle and a man, or so they seemed like, carry this beaten up thing that vaguely looked like a human form, to a mountain top. He was, in fact, so badly beaten up and so small comparing to his captors that you couldn’t tell. Then, they proceed to bind him with these bloody rope-like things, do some unbelievable things that can only be termed as more torture. But the man still seemed alive, though in severe pain, through it all. They just leave him there, bound, buried, hopeless.... in the soft rain.
... or that’s the dream Milja had woken up to for many years, with her pillows wet from tears. Just imagine if it was your dream...
Milja remembers the prisoner, and somehow knows this is all connected to him. The story then moves forward with her narratives, telling us how her gentle, priest of a father used to take a young Milja to this mountain prison held directly under their own small, lonesome dwelling on a mountaintop, close to a small village. How Milja grew up seeing the prisoner, seemingly alive, hurt, naked, tightly tied to the rocks of his prison. The open sky overhead would give a magnificent view, but that’s all he has gotten for eternity. Or so her father told her. He told her that it was their heritage, a deeply guarded secret not even the church knew of. That they have to guard this ‘bad thing’ with their life if necessary, so that it never escapes and wrecks havoc on the world. Little Milja didn’t know how can a man who looked just like a man, so broken and helpless, can harm anyone? She didn’t know for a while who this being actually was but her soft heart would cry out for him because she knew he watched her when she was there with her father when he would sometimes feed him a little or wash his face.
As she grew older, Milja’s perspective, however, changes. Because she was sort of forced to grow up so secluded and lonely, her only escape was to go down to the prison and pay a visit to the prisoner. And he knew whenever she was there, softly, hesitatingly calling out her name in a rough, barely used voice. Milja somehow knew her destiny was stitched with him, that somehow they’d be together... someday. As an adult, even knowing Azazel’s ‘sins’ (thanks to her father’s teachings she’s good at those references), Milja still couldn’t help but feel for his plight. She couldn’t imagine the eternities he’d spend here, all alone, in this way. It simply broke her heart. No amount of her father’s caution, that he’d play a fool out of her for his own selfish gains, changed Milja’s feelings.
Then one day, at 18, she was caught. It was also Milja’s first education in erotic sensations because she had always imagined him naked, even when she didn’t know what she was looking for. She only wanted to clean him a little and feed him, which turned into a kiss, and a little more....... but when he father finds out, he’s furious, scared even. The result? Milja is finds herself plane bound to Boston to live with a distant cousin.
You can’t imagine how excited I was when I was reading these parts. He was like a calling for Milja, who definitely wanted to do something about Azazel. But soon I discovered that the story wasn’t going exactly how I envisioned it’d go. That Azazel is no Knight in Shining Armor, at least for a long while in the story...
When the words reach a couple of years later that her father is gravely ill, Mijla returns to her small village. By then, she has finished her studies in the U.S. and has a job. She was even briefly engaged to this American guy. But the demise of this relationship, very unsurprisingly, was another erotic dream of Milja about the Prisoner. I won’t tell you how but she just knew that she can’t be with anyone else. It was, as if, he was always connected to her in some otherworldly way. Why her exactly, that though, Milja didn’t know.
From the moment she sets foot at her village, Milja’s life turns upside down, quite literally. First, she finds her father gravely ill. After the very emotional reunion, she’s left to take care of her father’s business, which leads her to their home. Milja feels nostalgic, a bit lost too but also a secretive exhilaration because her father told her he’s still there. She can’t wait to visit him once again!
Milja’s reunion with her Prisoner was another scene to behold. She was so overwhelmed seeing him again, and the longing in his eyes, that she doesn’t think twice before cutting off his bonds. It was impulsive, yet a simple urge. She just couldn’t take the impact of that connection between them and everything starts unraveling even before she could process what was happening. Azazel not only gains his old self back in matter of minutes, if not seconds, he also seems preoccupied. Though he kisses Milja again and again, as if he has stalked some kinda claim on her, Azazel’s true intention is never really known... until, well, I really can’t tell you how odd the next scenes were that they took me by complete surprise. However foolish or illogical that was, Milja wanted him in a way that she can’t even explain. If anyone knows Azazel (as it’s referred in the book more than once) that he’s also the instigator of carnal sins. They do have sex in a heartbeat, on an open place where anyone can see, thanks to his transportation. It was rough and so unexpected that Milja was left breathless in disbelief. But nothing flabbergasted her (or me) more than this; Azazel then just vanishes into thin air, leaving Milja just like that. No sweet words or cuddling, no goodbyes... Just nada. He’s gone.
Huh????
I was plain horrified by his behavior. I was like WTF is this?
To pay for her father’s medical bills, Milja goes to sell some valuable artifacts from the temple; a step instigated by her father himself to pay for the expenses of her studies. This was supposed to be a somewhat fuzzily guided secret transaction with a local black-market guy that her father used to know. Sadly, the transaction goes awry and Milja finds herself as the target of the church, not only for selling church properties illegally but also, for unleashing an evil creature upon the world that just might lead to its ruin!
On the run, Milja suddenly finds a friend. Egan, the guy she met on the plane journey back here. I always thought he seeing Milja at the same time she was escaping those church people, was rather very convenient... and it proved to be true later in the story. But at this moment, she had not one friendly face around her. When somehow, after a chaotic day, she returns to the hospital where her father was at that moment, Azazel decides to drop by, as if to claim his territory. Milja’s heart still beats faster seeing his tanned skin and ethereal gray eyes, the leanly handsome face that doesn’t show many emotions. But the eyes tell her that he wants her and Milja can’t help but burn. But after all that’s happened to her and since his abandonment, the logical part of Milja is mad. What occurs after that, is everyone else knowing what she had done. Azazel on the other hand, seems completely confused by this hatred of him... Well, he did seem like a zombie to me, as if his brain couldn’t process why she was not ecstatic to have been becoming his ‘wife’ or fiancée, something like that. He claims her as such in front of a crowd, which is how Milja is forced to face the ages old superstitions and gut-wrenching hatred of her own people, earning her the title the ‘Demon’s Whore’. But Milja doesn’t care about anyone except for her father, his disappointed face while he watched helpless as an angry Azazel calls him ‘father-in-law’ sarcastically before he abandons her once again, telling her to make up her mind.
I was having another of my WTF moments there, as in, am I supposed to call this thing a ‘hero’? And what part is Egan going to play in this mess?
The answers begin to unravel in the next few chapters, fast and furious. First of all, Milja’s father dies that night, which she knew was a murder by the church people. She had a vague recollection of watching them going into his room before falling asleep exhausted. Then she’s wakes to a rude awakening when her own family turns on her. She’s forced to flee once again to Egan. He willingly helps her, giving her a home to stay. After that, their journey to flee from those fanatics takes them all over Montenegro and beyond.
Egan seemed like any girl’s dream come true; young and handsome, blue-eyed blonde with an Irish heritage. He also seemed to be reluctant to touch Milja unless necessary. I mean, there was this hesitant attraction between her and Egan, I even cheered for that for a while, seeing how our other ‘hero’ was not in sight unless in Milja’s dirty, pervy erotic dreams, where they’d have sex in public. I was pretty sure it was all Azazel’s doing. So, yah, I was not as excited about him as I thought I would be.
Milja and Egan’s frenzied journey comes to a stop just before them leaving for Italy, as planned by Egan, who seemed to have ‘contacts’ to seek help from and an unending supply of money. Milja at that point had nothing to do but trust him with her life. I was really feeling for her, yet I was also completely confused as to where this is going. Where was that big piece of fallen-angel jerk when she needed his help? I mean how could anyone hurt her when he seemed to be so possessive her? WTF?????
When they’re attacked, Milja on a desperate attempt to save Egan from these men, calls out to Azazel strongly... And THAT is when he comes to her in flight, as if realizing for the first time that she’s in danger, unleashing his wrath on the whole party. He saves Milja but as the douche he is, leaves Egan behind (or should I call it jealousy?). Milja is supremely unhappy and I couldn’t blame her. She at first demands answers from him, and Azazel simply tells her he had NO IDEA that she was in danger. That he doesn’t have those powers to track, unless she calls out to him. That is only when he can know. Also, that the erotic dreams weren’t instigated by him, but by Milja’s own dirty desires, though Azazel definitely enjoyed playing along. Then, Milja demands that he save Egan if he loves her a bit. The style of that demand sets something completely off and Azazel is angry at her, once again. This time he was surely surprised and deeply hurt and leaves her once again. Milja later finds out she’s in Boston, standing atop her own apartment building, out of the harm’s way at least for now.
Milja couldn’t get out of there without a passport or money, but she had nothing on her when her ‘boyfriend’ dumped her here. But in her dreams, she keeps seeing Azazel, who keeps unraveling once each time and a story bit by bit of a fallen angel who fell in love with a human woman, had children with her millions of years ago, comes into view. Milja becomes jealous knowing he had loved someone so much before her, drenched in confusion, not knowing his real feelings for her. She wanted his love, but would that wish ever come true? What Milja didn’t know was the next part of the story that was full of tragedies, and lead to Azazel’s eternal imprisonment.
This time Milja seeks help from Uriel. Though she’d met him a few times before, and he’s an opponent of Azazel, she had no other option. Uriel obviously didn’t want to but she convinces him. Uriel finds Egan’s whereabouts and transports Milja there. But before that, the next part of Azazel’s story seem to open up before her, I’m not sure with what Divine Intervention. It was full of such compelling scenes, only Milja was there seeing it as if for real; a silent spectator that no one saw or heard. It was about how Azazel’s family was killed, and how he was bound in that mountaintop. A bloody, explosive war between him and Archangel Raphael; the ‘bad’ and the ‘good’. If only one peeked behind the scenes, one would know what was really happening; a grieving father burning down the world around him, fighting the murderer of his family.
After that, I knew Milja had a positively deep understanding of Azazel’s mood swings, also why he got mad at her on that rooftop. Why he seems so dejected every time they met in one dream or the other, thinking he would never have her love. Milja wasn’t nice to him on occasions because he didn’t help Egan. That was going to change now, but first, Milja needs to save Egan, her only friend in this whole mess. She hands herself over to those fanatics in hopes of saving Egan, not knowing anything about their plan. Turns out, they wanted to bind Azazel again, this time in a way that he’d die for sure. No better way to acquire it than to bring in his whore, right?
The last chapters are superbly action-filled, with loads of twists and turns that surprised me over and over again. All hell breaks loose when Azazel FINALLY gets involved for the ultimate showdown to save his girl. There were bitterness and betrayal, not to mention Egan’s disappointing revelation. Cover Him With Darkness has a slight erotic undertone, yet Milja and Azazel have sex only twice for real in the whole story. Still it was hot, I loved it. But what I loved most was the ending where Milja had to choose just how far she’s willing to fall with her angel. After all was said and done, there was this hauntingly heartbreaking scene here that I have to mention when Milja ‘sees’ her father again, which I felt was Azazel’s gift to her so that she can make peace with herself. It brought tears to my eyes.
So, did Azazel prove he would do anything for Milja when it comes down to that? I believe he did. Though they were kept separated throughout most of the story, and there were instances where I thought this one’s going down, I’d like to congratulate the author for slapping it back on my face twice over. The ending is pretty much open, so I’m hoping the next book comes out soon. It was hinted at the end that Azazel is thinking of doing something for his brothers. I can’t wait to find out more! 4.5 stars and recommended.
I’ve been dying to write a review for Cover Him With Darkness by Janine Ashbless, The Book of the Watchers #1. The 2 reasons why I wanted to read this was, that it apparently had a fallen angel in it, a theme I really love and the title caught my eyes.
Now, prior to reading this, I had no idea Cover Him With Darkness is a line from the Book of Enoch, that connects to the fallen angel, Azazel and how he was banished for eternity for corrupting the human race. My idea about these references is vague at best, which is why I’ll stick to the story itself. I did some internet search while reading this book, to learn more about Azazel. His is even more vague. In some places he’s called a fallen angel, in some a demon, in others he’s even referred to as Satan. The only thing I got from it all that you’re not supposed to consort with the likes of him, especially if you’re not equipped to play with his fire. LOL Fortunately, the book itself did a good job of giving me an idea of him, albeit fiction-wise. He was a tough to like character, let alone love. I have read some fallen angel stories before, but the fallen angel in question had won my heart nonetheless. I wasn’t even sure how Azazel can be a ‘hero’ when he’s such a brilliant douchebag! But WOW, the flow of the story was so good that I had to keep reading to know what’s coming next.
Cover Him With Darkness is a fast-paced story that tells you about a girl named Milja of Montenegro, and how her life changes dramatically when she releases ‘The Prisoner’ of her childhood memories and broken adult dreams.
The prologue was incredible. I had shivers as I was reading it, just as I had pretty much throughout. It gives us an idea (I was thinking of Blizarrd’s Diablo II animations, old but still gold!) of how this Prisoner was imprisoned in the first place.
A winged bull and a lion, an eagle and a man, or so they seemed like, carry this beaten up thing that vaguely looked like a human form, to a mountain top. He was, in fact, so badly beaten up and so small comparing to his captors that you couldn’t tell. Then, they proceed to bind him with these bloody rope-like things, do some unbelievable things that can only be termed as more torture. But the man still seemed alive, though in severe pain, through it all. They just leave him there, bound, buried, hopeless.... in the soft rain.
... or that’s the dream Milja had woken up to for many years, with her pillows wet from tears. Just imagine if it was your dream...
Milja remembers the prisoner, and somehow knows this is all connected to him. The story then moves forward with her narratives, telling us how her gentle, priest of a father used to take a young Milja to this mountain prison held directly under their own small, lonesome dwelling on a mountaintop, close to a small village. How Milja grew up seeing the prisoner, seemingly alive, hurt, naked, tightly tied to the rocks of his prison. The open sky overhead would give a magnificent view, but that’s all he has gotten for eternity. Or so her father told her. He told her that it was their heritage, a deeply guarded secret not even the church knew of. That they have to guard this ‘bad thing’ with their life if necessary, so that it never escapes and wrecks havoc on the world. Little Milja didn’t know how can a man who looked just like a man, so broken and helpless, can harm anyone? She didn’t know for a while who this being actually was but her soft heart would cry out for him because she knew he watched her when she was there with her father when he would sometimes feed him a little or wash his face.
As she grew older, Milja’s perspective, however, changes. Because she was sort of forced to grow up so secluded and lonely, her only escape was to go down to the prison and pay a visit to the prisoner. And he knew whenever she was there, softly, hesitatingly calling out her name in a rough, barely used voice. Milja somehow knew her destiny was stitched with him, that somehow they’d be together... someday. As an adult, even knowing Azazel’s ‘sins’ (thanks to her father’s teachings she’s good at those references), Milja still couldn’t help but feel for his plight. She couldn’t imagine the eternities he’d spend here, all alone, in this way. It simply broke her heart. No amount of her father’s caution, that he’d play a fool out of her for his own selfish gains, changed Milja’s feelings.
Then one day, at 18, she was caught. It was also Milja’s first education in erotic sensations because she had always imagined him naked, even when she didn’t know what she was looking for. She only wanted to clean him a little and feed him, which turned into a kiss, and a little more....... but when he father finds out, he’s furious, scared even. The result? Milja is finds herself plane bound to Boston to live with a distant cousin.
You can’t imagine how excited I was when I was reading these parts. He was like a calling for Milja, who definitely wanted to do something about Azazel. But soon I discovered that the story wasn’t going exactly how I envisioned it’d go. That Azazel is no Knight in Shining Armor, at least for a long while in the story...
When the words reach a couple of years later that her father is gravely ill, Mijla returns to her small village. By then, she has finished her studies in the U.S. and has a job. She was even briefly engaged to this American guy. But the demise of this relationship, very unsurprisingly, was another erotic dream of Milja about the Prisoner. I won’t tell you how but she just knew that she can’t be with anyone else. It was, as if, he was always connected to her in some otherworldly way. Why her exactly, that though, Milja didn’t know.
From the moment she sets foot at her village, Milja’s life turns upside down, quite literally. First, she finds her father gravely ill. After the very emotional reunion, she’s left to take care of her father’s business, which leads her to their home. Milja feels nostalgic, a bit lost too but also a secretive exhilaration because her father told her he’s still there. She can’t wait to visit him once again!
Milja’s reunion with her Prisoner was another scene to behold. She was so overwhelmed seeing him again, and the longing in his eyes, that she doesn’t think twice before cutting off his bonds. It was impulsive, yet a simple urge. She just couldn’t take the impact of that connection between them and everything starts unraveling even before she could process what was happening. Azazel not only gains his old self back in matter of minutes, if not seconds, he also seems preoccupied. Though he kisses Milja again and again, as if he has stalked some kinda claim on her, Azazel’s true intention is never really known... until, well, I really can’t tell you how odd the next scenes were that they took me by complete surprise. However foolish or illogical that was, Milja wanted him in a way that she can’t even explain. If anyone knows Azazel (as it’s referred in the book more than once) that he’s also the instigator of carnal sins. They do have sex in a heartbeat, on an open place where anyone can see, thanks to his transportation. It was rough and so unexpected that Milja was left breathless in disbelief. But nothing flabbergasted her (or me) more than this; Azazel then just vanishes into thin air, leaving Milja just like that. No sweet words or cuddling, no goodbyes... Just nada. He’s gone.
Huh????
I was plain horrified by his behavior. I was like WTF is this?
To pay for her father’s medical bills, Milja goes to sell some valuable artifacts from the temple; a step instigated by her father himself to pay for the expenses of her studies. This was supposed to be a somewhat fuzzily guided secret transaction with a local black-market guy that her father used to know. Sadly, the transaction goes awry and Milja finds herself as the target of the church, not only for selling church properties illegally but also, for unleashing an evil creature upon the world that just might lead to its ruin!
On the run, Milja suddenly finds a friend. Egan, the guy she met on the plane journey back here. I always thought he seeing Milja at the same time she was escaping those church people, was rather very convenient... and it proved to be true later in the story. But at this moment, she had not one friendly face around her. When somehow, after a chaotic day, she returns to the hospital where her father was at that moment, Azazel decides to drop by, as if to claim his territory. Milja’s heart still beats faster seeing his tanned skin and ethereal gray eyes, the leanly handsome face that doesn’t show many emotions. But the eyes tell her that he wants her and Milja can’t help but burn. But after all that’s happened to her and since his abandonment, the logical part of Milja is mad. What occurs after that, is everyone else knowing what she had done. Azazel on the other hand, seems completely confused by this hatred of him... Well, he did seem like a zombie to me, as if his brain couldn’t process why she was not ecstatic to have been becoming his ‘wife’ or fiancée, something like that. He claims her as such in front of a crowd, which is how Milja is forced to face the ages old superstitions and gut-wrenching hatred of her own people, earning her the title the ‘Demon’s Whore’. But Milja doesn’t care about anyone except for her father, his disappointed face while he watched helpless as an angry Azazel calls him ‘father-in-law’ sarcastically before he abandons her once again, telling her to make up her mind.
I was having another of my WTF moments there, as in, am I supposed to call this thing a ‘hero’? And what part is Egan going to play in this mess?
The answers begin to unravel in the next few chapters, fast and furious. First of all, Milja’s father dies that night, which she knew was a murder by the church people. She had a vague recollection of watching them going into his room before falling asleep exhausted. Then she’s wakes to a rude awakening when her own family turns on her. She’s forced to flee once again to Egan. He willingly helps her, giving her a home to stay. After that, their journey to flee from those fanatics takes them all over Montenegro and beyond.
Egan seemed like any girl’s dream come true; young and handsome, blue-eyed blonde with an Irish heritage. He also seemed to be reluctant to touch Milja unless necessary. I mean, there was this hesitant attraction between her and Egan, I even cheered for that for a while, seeing how our other ‘hero’ was not in sight unless in Milja’s dirty, pervy erotic dreams, where they’d have sex in public. I was pretty sure it was all Azazel’s doing. So, yah, I was not as excited about him as I thought I would be.
Milja and Egan’s frenzied journey comes to a stop just before them leaving for Italy, as planned by Egan, who seemed to have ‘contacts’ to seek help from and an unending supply of money. Milja at that point had nothing to do but trust him with her life. I was really feeling for her, yet I was also completely confused as to where this is going. Where was that big piece of fallen-angel jerk when she needed his help? I mean how could anyone hurt her when he seemed to be so possessive her? WTF?????
When they’re attacked, Milja on a desperate attempt to save Egan from these men, calls out to Azazel strongly... And THAT is when he comes to her in flight, as if realizing for the first time that she’s in danger, unleashing his wrath on the whole party. He saves Milja but as the douche he is, leaves Egan behind (or should I call it jealousy?). Milja is supremely unhappy and I couldn’t blame her. She at first demands answers from him, and Azazel simply tells her he had NO IDEA that she was in danger. That he doesn’t have those powers to track, unless she calls out to him. That is only when he can know. Also, that the erotic dreams weren’t instigated by him, but by Milja’s own dirty desires, though Azazel definitely enjoyed playing along. Then, Milja demands that he save Egan if he loves her a bit. The style of that demand sets something completely off and Azazel is angry at her, once again. This time he was surely surprised and deeply hurt and leaves her once again. Milja later finds out she’s in Boston, standing atop her own apartment building, out of the harm’s way at least for now.
Milja couldn’t get out of there without a passport or money, but she had nothing on her when her ‘boyfriend’ dumped her here. But in her dreams, she keeps seeing Azazel, who keeps unraveling once each time and a story bit by bit of a fallen angel who fell in love with a human woman, had children with her millions of years ago, comes into view. Milja becomes jealous knowing he had loved someone so much before her, drenched in confusion, not knowing his real feelings for her. She wanted his love, but would that wish ever come true? What Milja didn’t know was the next part of the story that was full of tragedies, and lead to Azazel’s eternal imprisonment.
This time Milja seeks help from Uriel. Though she’d met him a few times before, and he’s an opponent of Azazel, she had no other option. Uriel obviously didn’t want to but she convinces him. Uriel finds Egan’s whereabouts and transports Milja there. But before that, the next part of Azazel’s story seem to open up before her, I’m not sure with what Divine Intervention. It was full of such compelling scenes, only Milja was there seeing it as if for real; a silent spectator that no one saw or heard. It was about how Azazel’s family was killed, and how he was bound in that mountaintop. A bloody, explosive war between him and Archangel Raphael; the ‘bad’ and the ‘good’. If only one peeked behind the scenes, one would know what was really happening; a grieving father burning down the world around him, fighting the murderer of his family.
After that, I knew Milja had a positively deep understanding of Azazel’s mood swings, also why he got mad at her on that rooftop. Why he seems so dejected every time they met in one dream or the other, thinking he would never have her love. Milja wasn’t nice to him on occasions because he didn’t help Egan. That was going to change now, but first, Milja needs to save Egan, her only friend in this whole mess. She hands herself over to those fanatics in hopes of saving Egan, not knowing anything about their plan. Turns out, they wanted to bind Azazel again, this time in a way that he’d die for sure. No better way to acquire it than to bring in his whore, right?
The last chapters are superbly action-filled, with loads of twists and turns that surprised me over and over again. All hell breaks loose when Azazel FINALLY gets involved for the ultimate showdown to save his girl. There were bitterness and betrayal, not to mention Egan’s disappointing revelation. Cover Him With Darkness has a slight erotic undertone, yet Milja and Azazel have sex only twice for real in the whole story. Still it was hot, I loved it. But what I loved most was the ending where Milja had to choose just how far she’s willing to fall with her angel. After all was said and done, there was this hauntingly heartbreaking scene here that I have to mention when Milja ‘sees’ her father again, which I felt was Azazel’s gift to her so that she can make peace with herself. It brought tears to my eyes.
So, did Azazel prove he would do anything for Milja when it comes down to that? I believe he did. Though they were kept separated throughout most of the story, and there were instances where I thought this one’s going down, I’d like to congratulate the author for slapping it back on my face twice over. The ending is pretty much open, so I’m hoping the next book comes out soon. It was hinted at the end that Azazel is thinking of doing something for his brothers. I can’t wait to find out more! 4.5 stars and recommended.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 9, 2021
This certainly has a lot more going on than the average smut novel.
There's angels and priests and mafia and a very authentic Eastern European look/feel. Also, the end of the world.
Despite being repulsed by some of the sex here-- I probably would have kept up with the series if it were available from the library. But it isn't.
There's angels and priests and mafia and a very authentic Eastern European look/feel. Also, the end of the world.
Despite being repulsed by some of the sex here-- I probably would have kept up with the series if it were available from the library. But it isn't.
February 8, 2015
"The first time I saw him fettered there in the dark, I wept." Janine Ashbless
Above is the opening line of Janine Ashbless's theological erotic romance, Cover Him With Darkness. Is "theological erotic romance" a category? Well, it should be. Until then, let's go with paranormal erotic romance and hope Ashbless and others create a new genre.
Cover Him With Darkness concerns Milja who's in love/hate/love with a fallen angel, Azazel, whose misfortune parallels both Prometheus and Loki, depending on your preferred mythology. By the time Milja's father reveals the family secret to his seven-year-old daughter, that their family has guarded this prisoner for centuries, Azazel has remained bound naked to a rock underground for five thousand years. He is likely still alive because Milja's family have tended to him. Also, Azazel is an angel, which means he's not only more robust than humans but better looking, too. He's off the Richter Scale gorgeous.
So we now have a super-gorgeous naked angel bound by his wrists and ankles to a stone slab. I don't know about you, but that image works for me. It will last me for days, weeks even.
Likewise, I found something sweet, tender, and erotically charged about a girl, now aware of the family secret, who braves the caverns beneath her father's church, and behind her father's back nonetheless, to look upon and tend the prisoner. Things get touchy, of course. Moreover, Milja's father has made it clear they are never, under any circumstance, to free the prisoner. Divine Rule.
I enjoyed Cover Him With Darkness for many reasons. First, the author offers us a suspenseful and sexy page turner. The premise is genius. The opening pages cast a spell on me same way Azazel cast a spell on Milja from his compromised position on that rock. I also enjoyed a particular dream beginning on page 125, which we may as well call "Holy Smokes Hot." This one is burned in my brain for future reference.
Thank you, Janine Ashbless.
What is most brilliant, however, about Cover Him With Darkness, is the story's moral ambiguity. I was never sure who was good and who was evil, and even Milja declares as much near the end of the book when faced with a decision. Azazel or no Azazel? She says, "I don't know if he's on the right side, and I don't know if he's a good guy," but she chooses her fallen angel, which feels like the right choice given what we-know-don't-know: at the same time, her choice feels precarious. Love. It. Moral ambiguity to this degree makes the story and the characters involved complex and interesting.
One more thing. "Then his weight came down over me like the slow press of a mountain on the spaces beneath the earth." I dig this line so much as a parallel image, as extended metaphor, as lyric.
XO.
Above is the opening line of Janine Ashbless's theological erotic romance, Cover Him With Darkness. Is "theological erotic romance" a category? Well, it should be. Until then, let's go with paranormal erotic romance and hope Ashbless and others create a new genre.
Cover Him With Darkness concerns Milja who's in love/hate/love with a fallen angel, Azazel, whose misfortune parallels both Prometheus and Loki, depending on your preferred mythology. By the time Milja's father reveals the family secret to his seven-year-old daughter, that their family has guarded this prisoner for centuries, Azazel has remained bound naked to a rock underground for five thousand years. He is likely still alive because Milja's family have tended to him. Also, Azazel is an angel, which means he's not only more robust than humans but better looking, too. He's off the Richter Scale gorgeous.
So we now have a super-gorgeous naked angel bound by his wrists and ankles to a stone slab. I don't know about you, but that image works for me. It will last me for days, weeks even.
Likewise, I found something sweet, tender, and erotically charged about a girl, now aware of the family secret, who braves the caverns beneath her father's church, and behind her father's back nonetheless, to look upon and tend the prisoner. Things get touchy, of course. Moreover, Milja's father has made it clear they are never, under any circumstance, to free the prisoner. Divine Rule.
I enjoyed Cover Him With Darkness for many reasons. First, the author offers us a suspenseful and sexy page turner. The premise is genius. The opening pages cast a spell on me same way Azazel cast a spell on Milja from his compromised position on that rock. I also enjoyed a particular dream beginning on page 125, which we may as well call "Holy Smokes Hot." This one is burned in my brain for future reference.
Thank you, Janine Ashbless.
What is most brilliant, however, about Cover Him With Darkness, is the story's moral ambiguity. I was never sure who was good and who was evil, and even Milja declares as much near the end of the book when faced with a decision. Azazel or no Azazel? She says, "I don't know if he's on the right side, and I don't know if he's a good guy," but she chooses her fallen angel, which feels like the right choice given what we-know-don't-know: at the same time, her choice feels precarious. Love. It. Moral ambiguity to this degree makes the story and the characters involved complex and interesting.
One more thing. "Then his weight came down over me like the slow press of a mountain on the spaces beneath the earth." I dig this line so much as a parallel image, as extended metaphor, as lyric.
XO.
September 4, 2014
* Review based on ARC provided by author/publisher via Edelweiss.
Absorbing & sexy PNR. Thought-provoking re: religious premises/themes underpinning the world-building. And definitely w/ a darker edge.
Somewhat familiar w/ Janine Ashbless (last book read was The King's Viper), so glad that I was approved for this ARC!
Review closer to release date.
NB: POV-single (1st person/past tense); some kink (esp via dreams); trilogy-like format (on-going series arc)
Absorbing & sexy PNR. Thought-provoking re: religious premises/themes underpinning the world-building. And definitely w/ a darker edge.
Somewhat familiar w/ Janine Ashbless (last book read was The King's Viper), so glad that I was approved for this ARC!
Review closer to release date.
NB: POV-single (1st person/past tense); some kink (esp via dreams); trilogy-like format (on-going series arc)
June 9, 2014
Book provided by the publisher.
4.5 stars
Wow I wasn't expecting that at all. This was a well written story with an interesting and different plot that kept me hooked until the end. I found the beginning a bit slow but it didn't take long to pull me in. I loved the characters, Azazel was cold and calculating at times, vulnerable in others.
There were a lot of shocks, twists and turns and I'm eager to find out what happens next
4.5 stars
Wow I wasn't expecting that at all. This was a well written story with an interesting and different plot that kept me hooked until the end. I found the beginning a bit slow but it didn't take long to pull me in. I loved the characters, Azazel was cold and calculating at times, vulnerable in others.
There were a lot of shocks, twists and turns and I'm eager to find out what happens next
October 12, 2016
well i just didn't think it was that great of a story. It was an awesome idea for a story that could have been developed into so much more awesomeness, but as is, it was just ok. I didn't hate it, but found myself daydreaming in the middle of parts of it so it didn't keep my attention, i would imagine what could have happened in that part of the story and then would go back to reading what was actually written and being disappointed.
February 25, 2018
Reviewed by Lori
Book provided by Tempted Romance
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
I need to start this review with a short fan girl squeal and an OMG. This book is just so amazingly good!! I think I might even put in a: “you need to read this book!!” Ok, now that I’ve got that out of my system, I can get down to business and really review this book.
When I saw that this book was up for review the title grabbed me and made me intrigued so I clicked the title to see what it was about. When I read the sample I was completely hooked and I wanted to know more. Janine Ashbless…..wow, words like amazing, talented, so freakin’ good are just too tame for her work. I never read her work before and I now that I have I WILL be getting the next installment of this series.
I’m going to start out with what this story is not. It is not blapsphamous, it’s not about God, it is not about heaven or hell. It is about love, about accepting someone for who they are and loving them because of their flaws. There are touches of the subjects of God and heaven interspersed within the story. If this kind of subject matter leaves the reader questioning whether to read the book or not, they probably shouldn’t.
Milja is the female protagonist in this book. She is young, both in age and in spirit. She has a soft heart, and she has conflicting feelings over the creature being chained beneath the church. She follows her heart even when it gets her into a whole heap of trouble, which it so does, and I really like that about her. She’s afraid of what might happen, but she does it anyway because she listens to what her heart says and does the right thing.
The prisioner under the church, the reader eventually finds out who he is and why he was imprisoned. He is a smokin’ hawt creature that has been let loose. He isn’t scary or bad or evil. He’s misunderstood. People need a scape goat for their mistakes and I think he’s it and he knows it. He won’t be a scape goat again I can tell you that.
I love that he communicates with Milja through her dreams and lets her know how he feels about her through his actions. I love that Ms. Ashbless doesn’t shy away from religion and how men who are supposed to love God and honor and respect him do atrocious deeds in his name. She created a story that is entertaining, romantic, funny moments and sad ones as well. It hit all the flavor notes for me and left me panting for more.
Book provided by Tempted Romance
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
I need to start this review with a short fan girl squeal and an OMG. This book is just so amazingly good!! I think I might even put in a: “you need to read this book!!” Ok, now that I’ve got that out of my system, I can get down to business and really review this book.
When I saw that this book was up for review the title grabbed me and made me intrigued so I clicked the title to see what it was about. When I read the sample I was completely hooked and I wanted to know more. Janine Ashbless…..wow, words like amazing, talented, so freakin’ good are just too tame for her work. I never read her work before and I now that I have I WILL be getting the next installment of this series.
I’m going to start out with what this story is not. It is not blapsphamous, it’s not about God, it is not about heaven or hell. It is about love, about accepting someone for who they are and loving them because of their flaws. There are touches of the subjects of God and heaven interspersed within the story. If this kind of subject matter leaves the reader questioning whether to read the book or not, they probably shouldn’t.
Milja is the female protagonist in this book. She is young, both in age and in spirit. She has a soft heart, and she has conflicting feelings over the creature being chained beneath the church. She follows her heart even when it gets her into a whole heap of trouble, which it so does, and I really like that about her. She’s afraid of what might happen, but she does it anyway because she listens to what her heart says and does the right thing.
The prisioner under the church, the reader eventually finds out who he is and why he was imprisoned. He is a smokin’ hawt creature that has been let loose. He isn’t scary or bad or evil. He’s misunderstood. People need a scape goat for their mistakes and I think he’s it and he knows it. He won’t be a scape goat again I can tell you that.
I love that he communicates with Milja through her dreams and lets her know how he feels about her through his actions. I love that Ms. Ashbless doesn’t shy away from religion and how men who are supposed to love God and honor and respect him do atrocious deeds in his name. She created a story that is entertaining, romantic, funny moments and sad ones as well. It hit all the flavor notes for me and left me panting for more.
July 17, 2019
What a book.... indeed this held my interest for a long time. The only reason I'm giving it a 3 is because our beloved antihero is in fact a scoundrel and master manipulator in the worst sense... (apparently there's a good sense according to me?) See, it all starts nice and lovely until we learn that her family has a secret: they have an angel in their hold and have had him there for centuries. The h, being the curious creature she is, and being quite young at the time will obviously want to ask questions, questions her own father replies but brings about even more rather than giving her the answers she wanted. If her father would've been a bit more honest with her I'm sure this book wouldn't have gone the way it did, it wouldn't have gone anywhere to be frank. So, we have this curious h that is sent away to the US for her own good (from an obscure European country I can't quite recall), but is forced to return because her own father is very sick. However, she does exactly the opposite of what she was warned not to do; she releases the angel, in the midst of the crisis her family is facing. Having freed this angel, she becomes his plaything.... I honestly didn't even like the angel H, I felt that the priest in disguise was a better H but I have a feeling that no one will end up with whom they actually like, and seeing the spoilers of the other books in the series, I found out that this Angel is actually a bit of a wh0re... can't really call him a man because that's definitely not what he is. Anyway, I'd read this again if I had nothing else to do and just want to pass the time. Don't take this book too seriously, but please enjoy the lovely flow of words.
March 19, 2020
It’s definitely worth noting that I finished this book in a day. I can’t remember the last time this happened it’s been so long. I am EXTREMELY hard to hook. To hook me the writing has to be excellent, and by that I mean it must flow into my brain effortlessly. It must contain few, if any, cliches. I don’t give a story many chances to pull me out of it before calling it quits.
I’m not sure if I’d go so far as to call this a romance, but a contemporary/dark paranormal with romantic elements. There was even a bit of a love triangle which surprisingly didn’t bother me because the way it was dealt with was unique. The heroine was stupid to be sure, but for some reason I liked her. The hero was anything but sigh-worthy, but it was refreshing reading about a bad ass who’s SUPPOSED to be a bad ass and who doesn’t turn into a sap for a woman, even if she freed him from endless torture. If you don’t like a hero who uses the heroine before seemingly throwing her away, this book isn’t for you. If you’re willing to let characters grow from their unpleasant selves, you’re apt to give this hero a chance.
Even though it ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, I was content with the ending and therefore don’t know if I’ll read the next book, which is a continuation of the h and H’s story. If you’re looking for something different in paranormal romance, I suggest giving this a shot. It’s a refreshing change from recent content flooding the market.
I’m not sure if I’d go so far as to call this a romance, but a contemporary/dark paranormal with romantic elements. There was even a bit of a love triangle which surprisingly didn’t bother me because the way it was dealt with was unique. The heroine was stupid to be sure, but for some reason I liked her. The hero was anything but sigh-worthy, but it was refreshing reading about a bad ass who’s SUPPOSED to be a bad ass and who doesn’t turn into a sap for a woman, even if she freed him from endless torture. If you don’t like a hero who uses the heroine before seemingly throwing her away, this book isn’t for you. If you’re willing to let characters grow from their unpleasant selves, you’re apt to give this hero a chance.
Even though it ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, I was content with the ending and therefore don’t know if I’ll read the next book, which is a continuation of the h and H’s story. If you’re looking for something different in paranormal romance, I suggest giving this a shot. It’s a refreshing change from recent content flooding the market.
February 22, 2021
This was different than I thought it would be. I thought it would be more of a romance and less suspense and being on the run.
Milja frees the angel that's been in her families charge for 5000 years. She fell in love/lust with him as a teen. We don't know much about what he did to have tortured him for eons. But there are other angels that have suffered the same fate.
It makes me wonder, why didn't God send them to hell or kill them? I think he wants them to find love to save them maybe.
Also, I want to know more about Egan. What's his ultimate role?
Milja frees the angel that's been in her families charge for 5000 years. She fell in love/lust with him as a teen. We don't know much about what he did to have tortured him for eons. But there are other angels that have suffered the same fate.
It makes me wonder, why didn't God send them to hell or kill them? I think he wants them to find love to save them maybe.
Also, I want to know more about Egan. What's his ultimate role?
November 9, 2019
This book was a fantastic book. It’s about a girl who grows up in a small village her father is the priest and when she is seven she discovers that her family has a secret and they have kept the secret for as long as they can remember. They have a prisoner hidden under the church and it is up to the family to keep him there and keep him a secret. As Milja get older she spends time with him and starts to feel bad for him and she gives him extra food and water. When her dad catches her down there he sends her to Boston with her cousin. This shows there journey about how a fallen angel and girl can find love.
November 26, 2017
On to the next one
This is thought provoking in mixing truth and fiction. I absolutely loved the characters. Milja is a contradiction of determination and uncertainty. I believe her issue is that she looks at Azazel as a human guy that is easy to decipher. However he is a complex being with so many facets that it is hard to figure out. I hope she can have a HEA.
This is thought provoking in mixing truth and fiction. I absolutely loved the characters. Milja is a contradiction of determination and uncertainty. I believe her issue is that she looks at Azazel as a human guy that is easy to decipher. However he is a complex being with so many facets that it is hard to figure out. I hope she can have a HEA.
October 28, 2019
Hot hot hot with a plot! Why are there not more reviews for the series? Have Americans not caught on yet? Well wake up! The writing style is brilliant and vividly descriptive. This isn't run of the mill everyday erotic romance. It's extraordinary storytelling and world building with some of the most well done erotic scenery I have read. And I read a lot. I can't say how happy I was to have found this author. It has been a long time since I have been so impressed with an erotic romance. Please pick this up! This author needs more recognition and to keep writing!
July 26, 2017
My only criticism of this book is that it should have been longer.
January 19, 2019
This was a weird one.
January 8, 2020
Loved Azazel, he had a darkness I like in heroes . I Just didn’t care for any of the other characters.
May 9, 2020
Written well but...
I wish the angels were the good guys in the story. She writes well and it had a great plot.
I wish the angels were the good guys in the story. She writes well and it had a great plot.
July 18, 2022
Love this series! Brilliantly conceived with stakes both cosmic and deeply intimate. Ashbless is a true mistress of erotic romance on a grand scale.
December 8, 2023
The detail in this book is amazing, I never usually read these kind of books but this was amazing all I wanted to was read it and not stop
September 7, 2025
Despite the religious overtones I enjoyed! There's a man trapped that her family tends to for centuries. Until she sets him free and he's not a man at all
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 5, 2016
it wasn't exactly what I was expecting
March 10, 2017
Re-read this in anticipation of reading the sequel that just came out. Not really paranormal romance but still an interesting read about a fallen, imprisoned-for-millennia angel and the woman who (foolishly?) frees him. The heroine gets less annoying as the book progresses. In the beginning, I was wondering how I'd managed to like this book.
October 9, 2014
I absolutely love it when a book surprises me. I picked this after just reading the blurb and despite its lack lustre blurb I decided to give this a try. I am so glad I did. I was hooked from the first page.
Milja is the daughter of a Priest living high in the mountains and hiding a family secret. Her family is in charge of keeping a prisoner under the thousands of tons of rock. A man bound and captured in a cave deep within the mountain, naked and bound it her family's responsibility to fed it and ensure that it is keep here. Watching him since she was a little girl until one day she realises she is in love with him. When her father finds out he send her to the United States. Few years later, she comes back to tend to her ill father and all hell breaks loose. Will she uphold the request her father made or will she be compelled by her love to go release the man in pain.
It is due to books like these that I am willing to pick up new authors and new books. I want to be surprised, the rug snatched under my feet. Janine Ashbless was an unknown author to be but I am willing to pick up her works now that I have read Cover Him With Darkness.
Milda may be described as one of those heroines which may annoy some reader and she makes some very bad decisions. But under it all, she is a kind, and passionate person. She hides behind her meek façade but she has been so passionately in love with a man trapped under her house that she cannot stop thinking about them. He has taken over her mind. Usually I would cringe in a situation where the heroine claims she is in love with a guy she barely knows and the same happens in this story but somehow I believe her. He is fascinated and equally terrified of this beautiful man about which she knows nothing about. Sexual, lush and seemingly inviting she knows she is smitten for life. Azazel is another ball game all together. Dark beautiful, passionate, and insane he seems obsessed with Milja. I found him so hard to understand and I wish he had more page time. In my opinion he is the one who moves the story forward. He is so hard to decipher and from millennia's worth of captivity he has gone slightly insane. He is volatile, powerful and compelling. He is the epitome of a tortured hero but I loved how he becomes so vulnerable where Milja is concerned. I'm still not sure how and what he feels but I desperately want to know more.
Then there is Egan is the beta to Azazel's alpha and while I do find him sweet and somewhat endearing I feel that he lacks Azazel's magnetism.
The sex scenes are beautifully written which are sexy. Provocative and sinfully delicious without being raunchy or cheap. With Azazel's enemies hunting Milja, only the next book will tell us what Milja has unleashed by releasing him.
The story was written with such flare and this deep sense of respect about all this angelic and religious that I could feel the author's research and reverie on the book. Milja is deeply religious due to her upbringing and so many quotes from the Bible and religious texts are used and so beautifully woven into the story line that adds that extra bit of authenticity to this dark romance.
Cover Him in Darkness is one of those books which will take you by surprise you and makes you sit up and take notice. It seems low key but it's dark, beautiful, and intense. I do hope the Janine picks this up for a sequel as that will make me very. Very happy. Highly recommended for paranormal romance, and dark romance readers.
ARC received from Tempted Romance via Edelweiss
Escapism From Reality
Milja is the daughter of a Priest living high in the mountains and hiding a family secret. Her family is in charge of keeping a prisoner under the thousands of tons of rock. A man bound and captured in a cave deep within the mountain, naked and bound it her family's responsibility to fed it and ensure that it is keep here. Watching him since she was a little girl until one day she realises she is in love with him. When her father finds out he send her to the United States. Few years later, she comes back to tend to her ill father and all hell breaks loose. Will she uphold the request her father made or will she be compelled by her love to go release the man in pain.
It is due to books like these that I am willing to pick up new authors and new books. I want to be surprised, the rug snatched under my feet. Janine Ashbless was an unknown author to be but I am willing to pick up her works now that I have read Cover Him With Darkness.
Milda may be described as one of those heroines which may annoy some reader and she makes some very bad decisions. But under it all, she is a kind, and passionate person. She hides behind her meek façade but she has been so passionately in love with a man trapped under her house that she cannot stop thinking about them. He has taken over her mind. Usually I would cringe in a situation where the heroine claims she is in love with a guy she barely knows and the same happens in this story but somehow I believe her. He is fascinated and equally terrified of this beautiful man about which she knows nothing about. Sexual, lush and seemingly inviting she knows she is smitten for life. Azazel is another ball game all together. Dark beautiful, passionate, and insane he seems obsessed with Milja. I found him so hard to understand and I wish he had more page time. In my opinion he is the one who moves the story forward. He is so hard to decipher and from millennia's worth of captivity he has gone slightly insane. He is volatile, powerful and compelling. He is the epitome of a tortured hero but I loved how he becomes so vulnerable where Milja is concerned. I'm still not sure how and what he feels but I desperately want to know more.
Then there is Egan is the beta to Azazel's alpha and while I do find him sweet and somewhat endearing I feel that he lacks Azazel's magnetism.
The sex scenes are beautifully written which are sexy. Provocative and sinfully delicious without being raunchy or cheap. With Azazel's enemies hunting Milja, only the next book will tell us what Milja has unleashed by releasing him.
The story was written with such flare and this deep sense of respect about all this angelic and religious that I could feel the author's research and reverie on the book. Milja is deeply religious due to her upbringing and so many quotes from the Bible and religious texts are used and so beautifully woven into the story line that adds that extra bit of authenticity to this dark romance.
Cover Him in Darkness is one of those books which will take you by surprise you and makes you sit up and take notice. It seems low key but it's dark, beautiful, and intense. I do hope the Janine picks this up for a sequel as that will make me very. Very happy. Highly recommended for paranormal romance, and dark romance readers.
ARC received from Tempted Romance via Edelweiss
Escapism From Reality
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