For trained assassin Dylan Romero, business is good.
As the agency’s top warriors, he and partner Jake Walker are the last two people evil wants to see on the other side of a gun. When a mission takes them to the college town of Bozeman, Montana, they discover that there is more than just another mark in another town to keep them there. With a heavy concentration of vessels doing their demon masters’ dirty work and flesh-craving monsters lurking around every corner, the secluded Midwest town is set to become the first battleground of the apocalypse.
The last thing Dylan needs is a distraction. With the fate of the world at stake, the life of one girl shouldn’t matter – until the day she changes everything.
For mature audiences 18 and over due to violence, language, and graphic sexual situations.
I write relationships. Whether contemporary or fantasy, they are always real and never easy.
When I'm not writing, you can usually find me with my nose in my Kindle - reading romance of course - or running around after my three little boys, or catching up on an episode of Supernatural or This Is Us.
I also have a young adult series, known as The Ignited Series, which was written under the name Desni Dantone. You can find those books listed here: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
I received an advanced reader's copy of the first book Marked from the Apocalypse Assassins Trilogy, Desni Dantone's latest series.
Marked is a concoction of science fiction, supernatural/paranormal, mystery-thriller, and adult romance.
The narrative has good pace and clarity. Those who have read Desni Dantone's Ignited series are already aware of her superpower in writing good paranormal romance. This book is a grade higher regarding language, sexual encounters, and violence.
The story holds the reader's interest and entertains throughout the book.
Storywise, action takes up most of the spotlight. Lucifer's army comes out of Hell to wreak havoc on Earth, the dreaded apocalypse. Vessels are sent by demons to create tags, some equally terrible and repulsive creatures. The concept is similar to vampirism, but the similarity ends there. Gore is a notch higher than a vampire romance of recent trend.
A few of the scientific facts like a geophysical attack as a plan to initiate Apocalypse by Lucifer's army are kind of interesting. The natural disasters are revealed to be caused by the supernatural beings through earthly means. It's not that great a spoiler, I hope. The author explains the phenomenon well enough to understand. This book ends with a clear cut path for a sequel, but no hair pulling, screaming, and banging-your-head-against-the-wall cliffhanger.
The assassin Dylan is a character young in age and tries very hard to behave like adults but often sounds like a Bondesque hormone raged teenager. He is described as very attractive, sexually active, efficient assassin with a secret past. His best friend is the quintessential supporting character who has secrets, and geeky superpowers (think surveillance, backup shooter, best friend, in one body) of his own.
Don't look for an epic here. You will have more fun.
3.5 Bohostars.
Overall, Marked is a fast paced entertaining book of monster killing goodness. Buy it, read it, wait for the rest of the series. Enjoy.
I decided to read this book based on all the rave reviews. Typically I select my books based on the cover, and I am very much over the 'slouched man in hoodie' look. Add a miniature female walking in the V between his legs, and I was ready to pass this book up. But something told me that this one was gold.
I'm very, very, truly happy to have found a new series and a new author. For a paranormal romance, the setting is different, as it combines assassins who have been tasked with stopping the apocalypse. The Satanic apocalypse, that is, full of vessels (humans waiting to be possessed by high ranking demons) and tags (former humans who act as supercharged cannibal protectors of the vessels) waiting to trigger the apocalyptic event that will trigger the end of days.
Apparently the supervolcano, also known as the Yellowstone Caldera, will do nicely.
Just didn't do much for me. Not enough "zombie" action for me. Got bored with the erotic action. Never really cared about any of the characters. Although I did like the last third of the book better than the rest of it.
Assassins, zombies, and the apocalypse...what more do you need? Ok, so tags aren't QUITE zombies, but close enough. Dylan and Jake are assassins assigned to take out vessels who will one day be inhabited by Lucifer's minions. Do I have your attention yet? This is NOT your typical zombie book, secret assassin book, or apocalypse book. It's not typical at all, because it's amazing. Plus, there's some hottttt romance, too. Read it! I can't tell you any more without giving away more than I already have. If you like secret agents, zombies, doomsday conspiracies, new adult romance, or books, you'll probably love it.
so needed & welcomed the homage to Supernatural tv show vibes through out, Paranormal action adventure romance - found family driven brotherhood/sisterhood vibes. Demons, a secret assassin organisation, Alpha Cocky MMCs, underestimated FMC coming into her power and complicated family histories& secret identities.
Listening now to Audiobook's 🌶spicy ch17. This book is much better than its cheesy looking cover,Ill admit the cover made me avoid starting this until now, petty I know but this is solid listen with everything in it - with me judging a book by its cover I almost missed it.
Only this woman could have me start a new series after i have sworn off them until all books are out. God I love this woman and her books and this one is no different. We meet Dylan and Jake who are assassins but with a twist. We also meet Thea who is a college student or so she thinks. I am not going to give away anymore details because I don't think I need to.
This book kept me enthralled the whole way through and I could not put it down. I look forward to seeing more of these characters. Definitely needs to be put on your TBR list. NOW
I was given a copy of Marked (Apocalypse Assassin) by D. Laine for an honest review. This is the first book in the series and I can definitely say I will be reading the rest. The book is written from the perspective of Dylan and Thea. Dylan belongs to the Agency, an organisation of trained assassins whose purpose is to try and stop the apocalypse. They work in pairs, usually their twin, to assassinate Vessels, which are hosts for when demons come after the apocalypse. However Dylan's partner is Jake and they are the only non twin pair due to having had their twins kidnapped from their family when they were young. While on assignment tracking down Vessels at a university Dylan meets Thea. Thea is studying photography at university and her and Dylan end up getting together. It's quite an action packed story with Dylan and Jake, tracking down and killing Vessels and also the Tag's, which are zombie like humans that the Vessels are creating. Unbeknown to Thea her ex became a vessel over the summer holidays and so she is in danger from him trying to Tag her. Dylan and Jake are trying to find out why there are so many Vessels in one area and finally realise that there is a massive volcano under the national park that the Vessels are trying to activate to initiate the apocalypse. Unfortunately the Vessels initiate the apocalypse before Dylan and Jake manage to kill them all. Dylan, Jake, Thea and David, Thea' s friend, manage to escape to safety only to emerge days later after the volcano has erupted and Tag's are feasting on human flesh. It is definitely a great story and one that I am excited to continue to find out how the team make it back to the Agency and deal with everything that's happened. There were twists and cover ups along the way, which I haven't mentioned as I don't want to spoil the story. But which I really want to know how the characters deal with and also how Dylan and Thea' s relationship hopefully develops. It's great to have a more adult apocalyptic book as most are YA and don't have the more adult themes in them. I am looking forward to the next book!
Marked. Apocalypse Assassins trilogy #1 By D Laine.
OMG... This is one awesome start to a trilogy! I loved it. This isn't my first Apocalypse based story but I must admit I haven't read many of them. Marked is absolutely brilliant. Fast paced full of action that will leave your heart rate erratic. D. Laine doesn't give you an ordinary take on this genre like zombies and so on... Nooo, she provides something completely out of the ordinary. I also like how so many other genres are wrapt up in the book as well. there is a touch of paranormal, with a good dose of adult romance & science fiction.
D laine writes in such a way that you get completely emersed into the story and you find your heart pounding with every action scene, and romance scene I might add. You can read with clarity throughout this book.
Apocalypse Assassins Dylan and Jake are the two main characters of this book. Dylan is to die for, I loved him through this story. He is the next Big Book Boyfriend! I love how he tries so very hard to act like an adult but fails miserably as his hormones take over any sense he has... He is such a hot, fun, badass character. He is completely loveable. Jake the very down to earth character with all the sense and genius behind the mission is also very likable. Jake is the one who works with brains and not hormones. I enjoyed Jake & Dylan's continuous male banter and also like the twins when they were introduced into the story.
The relationship side was excellent. Hot & steamy with something running much deeper. I love where this part of they story is going as well. Especially towards the end. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book "Tagged." Which i have already pre-ordered.
Very cleverly put together story, using many genres this is truly a masterpiece. I can not recommend this story enough. A MUST READ.
***I received a BETA copy of this book for review by the author or publisher. All opinions are my own.***
ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!! This was my first Apocalypse novel, so I didn't really know what to expect. Well, actually, I expected zombies, you know like Night of the Living Dead? Well, I got SO.MUCH.NOT.THAT lol.
The story is about a group of twenty-somethings who are a part of a special team; Apocalypse Assassins who's main goal is to prevent the Apocalypse and stop the creatures. I don't want to spoil the story because there is so much there that it would be smart for me to stick with writing style and the swoony assassins #TeamDylan.
The story is written from Dylan's POV, so it's fun seeing how Laine captures the thoughts of a cocky, 22 year old male, who loves his job, his friends and of course the ladies. He's super hot, but full of heart. He is sure to be your next book boyfriend. Not only does Laine provide a swoony MC, but the secondaries are equally lovable, especially Maria, who is another assassin.
Thea is a strong character on her own, and is the challenge Dylan has set his mind on winning. And yeah, he plays to win!
D.Laine is an exceptional author. Many people know her under her previous works The Ignited Series and What Comes Next. Because she is versatile, you'd never know it was the same author. She takes the concept of dystopian and urban fantasy to a brand new level, full of twists and turns and sexual tension and I won't lie, I got a little creeped out on some of the parts. Yes, I read with my lights on (I'm a punk).
If you are looking for something brand new and out of the box, then you'll want to add this to your list of #MUSTREAD.
I will start off by saying I on a normal basis would not have picked up this book, the whole apocalypse world ending and zombies thing is always a hit or miss with me so I tend to stay away. This book however was amazing! I can honestly say that from the prologue I was hooked, I wasn't able to put this book down and I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. I love the take the author had on zombies and demons. I will admit I was a bit confused at times but once everything came together it made more sense to me. I love the dual perspective, and the fact that we get to see Thea and Dylan’s POV I quickly fell in love with the characters and couldn’t wait to see what would happen with them. Desni thrust you into this world and made you fall in love, made you scared and worried, and then shocked you at certain times. There are quite a few questions left unanswered at the end of this book and I can’t wait to get started on the next one to see what happens with the world!! I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to be pulled in from the get go and interested in something different!
This was a different type of book for me and I wasn't sure if I was going to like it but I really did enjoy it a lot. It was very action packed and still had a romance going on too. The world the author created was realistic and really easy to follow. There wasn't a need for a lot of world building which was a big plus for me. I really like all the characters and loved how things came about in the end. Dylan was a badass and showed his softer side too. Thea is going to be a baddass too I just know it. I'm excited to start book 2 because I need to know where this story is going next.
Aaron Shedlock was a great casting choice in this book. He portrays Dylan & Jake perfectly with this deep gravely voice. He is a favorite of mine and the reason I tried this book to begin with. Amy Landon is a great narrator but I will say I'm not sure she was the best choice for this one, she just sounds more mature than I felt Thea was. That isn't to say she didn't do a great job because she absolutely did!
Dylan Romero and his partner Jake Walker are the best agents of an organization that’s preparing for the end of the world. Demons are real and their top in command is constantly trying to bring Hell on Earth. Dylan and Jake are determined to keep this from happening. In order to do this, they travel the globe and dispatch any demons or tagged humans lurking. They’re also both searching for their missing sisters. Their current mission brings them to Bozeman, Montana.
While the supernatural aspect of this was interesting, it was poorly developed and executed. Dylan and Jake are a part of a pretty serious organization of demon hunters; yet it doesn’t have the appropriate measures to take care of any casualties. This was definitely a darker take on demons, since after demonic possession, the humans are already dead. When confronted with one, Dylan and Jake are forced to kill the human body. However, all the then do is literally leave the body. In the age of modern science, this is the dumbest thing I have ever read. How Dylan and Jake haven’t been arrested and convicted multiple times I have no bloody idea. I couldn’t understand how their agency wouldn’t give them a method to get rid of the bodies, especially since it’s supposed to be top secret and shit.
Dylan was also an asshole. Let’s talk toxic masculinity and why I hate it. Dylan is the reason. He always must be in power and I didn’t like how it affected his relationships. Jake is also guilty. This Is why I’m always hesitant to read from a guy’s perspective, especially if they sound like the alpha male type. It bothers me to no end. I know it will only get worse too now that a girl is in the picture. I totally guessed who she was to both of these guys from the first chapter. It was very predictive.
Overall, this story was not for me. I didn’t like the characters much and the world building was under developed. The only interesting aspect was demons bringing about the apocalypse.
This wasn't quite what I was expecting but it was so good! Once I started it, the story just pulled me in and left me wanting more. Laine did an exceptional job mixing reality with apocalyptic fantasy in a way that was both believable and kinda haunting. I loved meeting the characters and watching as Dylan and Thea's relationship strengthened. There were several twists and the action was balanced well with the romance. I think this could be a surprising treat for fans of many tastes and I look forward to the next book!
If you want a fast paced story line this book is that. Apart from the storyline being very predictable (I guessed what would happen within the first few chapters) it's a good book. I liked the two main characters but what did annoy me was they were meant to be trained assassins the main dude kept making mistakes which for me spoilt it a bit as he was meant to be professional. I'll definitely be pre-ordering the second book.
I don’t know if I would call this story horror but I will say that it is an interesting interpretation of zombies. It is definitely apocalyptic which is awesome because that is not typical of new adult books. There are demons, a secret assassin organization and complicated family histories. I believe this is a great start to a series. I was left wanting to know what is next and more about why things turned out as they did for Dylan and Jake.
I think this was a situation of “wrong book, wrong time”. There were elements of this book that were really well written and well executed, but it just is not able to hold my attention. I think the voice of the H and H’s partner/BFF just weren’t strong enough. I ended up flipping to the end to see if my predictions were right. They were. I could see myself picking up more from this author, or even this book again... it just wasn’t scratching my itch right now.
An author new to me, I had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to find I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I eagerly flipped each page, hooked from start to finish. Never read the apocalypse, zombies, or demons told with quite this angle before. I LIKE it and look forward to where the author takes it from here!
I love bad boys especially when they fall for the good girl. Throw in an impending apocalypse with human eating zombie like creatures..... winner winner chicken dinner! Going to start book 2 now!!
This book has a wonderful cast of characters, including teams of assassins and a new type of zombie. It's a fast-paced adventure, from the first page to the last. For some reason, I was pleasantly reminded of Supernatural.
This was so different than any other book in this genre. I was really enticed by the creativity of the characters and the world they live in. Dylan was such a jerk but I thought he was considerate with Thea. Overall a good start
Good first book that I have come across by author D. Laine. Listened to audiobook. I give this a solid three stars because I liked it. The characters were a little one dimensional and the big twist was so obvious. I will continue the series.
Just mind blowing awesomeness 😁 read it!!! What a fantastic story thats fast paced, full of action and instantly loveable characters 😁 I love that it's written in dual POV. Cannot wait for book 2!!