Soldiers of the Sun

Soldiers of the Sun #3

by Jana Denardo

Soldiers of the Book Three

Caleb Davies and Agni Pradesh are worried about their teammate and lover, Temple Chevalier. Not only has he lost his long-time partner, Fu Li, but he nearly died fighting a demon himself. Also, Temple isn’t sure he’s ready for a new teammate after Li. Caleb and Agni are even more concerned that their three-way relationship with Temple exists less because he loves them and more because he’s hiding from the pain of Li’s loss.

1932 shapes up to be a terrible year for the Soldiers as they welcome the New Year fighting demons and then end up investigating a case that pairs them up with the Knights Templar. This would normally be a good thing, but it forces Temple to face his painful past. Worse yet, the case leads right to Astaroth, a Prince of Hell, who might prove to be an unbeatable foe.

310 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 21, 2015

About the author

Jana Denardo's career choices and wanderlust take her all over the United States and beyond. Much of her travels make their way into her stories. Fantasy, science fiction, and mystery have been her favorite genres since she started reading, and they often flavor her works. In her secret identity, she works with the science of life and gives college students nightmares. When she’s not chained to her computer writing, she functions as stray cat magnet. She’s also learning that the road to enlightenment is filled with boulders she keeps falling over and that the words gardening and Zen don’t go together no matter what anyone says.

Visit Jana's blog at http://jana-denardo.livejournal.com/.

Reviews

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t think it’s ever taken me so long to read a book as it did this one. I’m going to say right up front that I bought this because it had good Scavenger Hunt points. I noticed it had a 4.0 rating so I bought it. After I started reading it, I found both the writing and the storyline to be much less than I had anticipated, and that’s when I discovered that there were only two reviews, one who rated it 4 and one who didn’t rate it. My bad.

This is a fantasy set in a true period of history and mixed with a mystery. It’s about a group of demon fighters named Soldiers of the Sun. The main characters are Temple Chevalier, a young man who lost his lover Li in a previous battle, and his current lovers, Agni and Caleb, who were a couple who decided to include Temple in their sexual relationship after he lost Li. Some readers may realize that Chevalier means knight, so you could say he’s Temple Knight from a long line of Knight Templars.

There’s a formidable demon stalking the people of their city and they haven’t been able to find him, despite their resources. Enter the Knights Templar from Europe, a branch headed by Temple’s father and family members—a family from which he’d been estranged, so he wasn’t happy to see them show up. He now has a new female partner and she turns out to be a tomboy spitfire who takes no guff from Temple’s chauvinistic father and brother.

The story goes on to explore relationships, primarily those that revolve around Temple—his relationship with his father and family, with new work partner, Jo, and with Agni and Caleb. There’s also quite a bit about his past relationship with Li, so much so, that most of the time, while reading this story, the threesome didn’t click. Temple was always so flat emotionally, constantly wallowing in his past relationship with Li. I just couldn’t get fully immersed in the story or attached to any of the main characters. When the mystery of the demon and the resulting drama were finally resolved, I breathed a sigh of relief, and though the guys are apparently going to be happy together and Temple has shed his grief for Li, I was not even interested in them finding a HEA at that point.

[Shazza Maddog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Returning to the 1930s with her Soldiers of the Sun, a group dedicated to hunting demons, Jana Denardo reintroduces us to Temple, Agni, and Caleb, who not only are going to be dealing with the fall-out from the loss of Temple's lover, Li, but also the first appearance of Temple's huge family in the United States. They've come over from Europe hunting a demon who now seems to be concentrated in Pittsburgh. Unable at first to figure out who might've called this demon, and chasing their tails when it comes to the deaths of men standing in the bread lines, and with a new member in the form of a firebrand of a young woman named Jo, they're trying hard to figure out which way to jump next.

With Temple in a downward spiral over Li's loss and other things that happened in the past, Caleb and Agni are hard-pressed to keep him safe. When long-buried secrets come to light, will it be the end of their time together? Or will they be able to muster on?

An intriguing look at a trio of young men in dangerous circumstances and a fun story.

[Brandilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewed for Prism Book Alliance

I am at a bit of a loss as to what to say about this series. Honestly, if I hadn't needed to read book three, I don't think I would have progressed past book one. I certainly wouldn't have progressed past book two.

For full review see Prism Book Alliance http://www.prismbookalliance.com/?pos...

[Kira]

I LOVED it!! From the characters to the setting to the story line! It's one awesome read!! :D

[Kira]

I LOVED it! The characters are awesome, Temple is my fave. Ms. Denardo did a wonderful job of capturing the time period (1930's) with an engaging story-line. I highly recommend this one!! :D