Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Night Watch #1

Eternal Hunter

Rate this book
Cynthia Eden delves into the dark realms of the Others, where desires and dangerous games await the unsuspecting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Assistant DA Erin Jerome has a secret. Make that two. One: She’s not entirely human–she’s Other, desperately trying to keep her supernatural strength under wraps. Two: she’s got a killer stalking her–an Other rogue set on “gifting” her bloody corpses, not to mention nights lying awake in terror. Small wonder she’s been having bad luck with men.

But the bounty hunter on her new case isn’t worried about any of that. Jude Donovan is a shapeshifter himself, and the new DA’s midnight hair and addictive scent tell him all he thinks he needs to know: She’s gorgeous, she’s definitely not human, and she’s bringing out the animal in him in a really good way. He might have to track a psychotic Other stalker through half of Louisiana. But he might also get the chance to watch Erin’s wild side come out and play.

338 pages, Paperback

First published December 18, 2009

391 people are currently reading
4984 people want to read

About the author

Cynthia Eden

309 books6,806 followers
Award-winning author Cynthia Eden writes sexy tales of contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and paranormal romance. She is a New York Times, USA Today, Digital Book World, and IndieReader best-seller. Since she began writing full-time in 2005, Cynthia has written over one hundred novels and novellas.


Cynthia lives along the Alabama Gulf Coast. She loves romance novels, horror movies, and chocolate. Her favorite hobbies including hiking in the mountains (searching for waterfalls) and spelunking.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
2,051 (34%)
4 stars
2,255 (38%)
3 stars
1,256 (21%)
2 stars
261 (4%)
1 star
103 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 346 reviews
Profile Image for Alp.
763 reviews469 followers
May 28, 2016
Welcome to the secret world of shifters, demons, vampires, witches, charmers, and djinns!

Cynthia Eden tells another enthralling paranormal romance story of a sexy bounty hunter, Jude Donovan, and an Assistant District Attorney, Erin Jerome. This is what I was looking for—an action-packed story with a strong heroine, and a possessive and protective alpha hero.

While reading this, I was terrified by what this psycho villain had done. He's totally a creepy stalker and the moment I knew who this bad guy was, I was like—it was impossible! How could it be him? Damn, I really had no idea it would be him! The author did a great job surprising me with the suspense part.

The chemistry between Jude and Erin was so intense. Their lovemaking was wild, raw, and filled with passion and exaltation. I couldn't even ask for more!


"You're mine, sweetheart. Have been from the beginning, just like I'm yours." His hands wrapped around her waist and he pulled her close.
Hers.



"What is for you?"
A man who wasn't afraid of the darkness inside her. A man who had a wild side to match her own.
A man who'd saved her from death.
A man who kissed her like she was his life.
"You are, Jude."



By the way, Eternal Hunter is a great start to Night Watch series. With these interesting characters, it’s undoubted that I will continue with the series. For PNR fans, this one is absolutely worth a try.
Profile Image for Laura.
Author 15 books613 followers
May 12, 2024
I love the idea of a Shifter bounty hunter and the company he works for, Night Watch. From the first page I had a hard time putting it down. I like Cynthia Eden's easy writing style, and the flow of her characters' thoughts and voices.

Erin Jerome is the new ADA in Baton Rouge, LA. She moved from her previous assignment in Lillian because (small spoilers here) she has a stalker and she thought she'd lost him. She is "Other" but she is very adept at hiding her Otherness from everybody, both human and Other alike.

Until Jude Donovan the bounty hunter apprehends one of her perps. He brings him in with claw marks because Jude is a shifter, and when he sees/smells Erin, he is a goner. He is the only one who has ever noticed her scent was Other. And he is sex on legs! woo boy do I want me a Jude Donovan of my very own.

Together the two of them try to figure out who is stalking Erin, and just how the guy is so good. He is right next to her a lot and she never notices him. In fact, once I found out who her stalker was (the wolf shifter who thought of Erin as his mate, he kills as gifts to her-psycho) I was fairly surprised.

The only thing that I didn't like about this book was that a few times either Erin or Jude wouldn't share their past with each other because they each thought it might turn the other off. It felt like a stalling tactic the author might use to keep us from knowing the secrets.

Erin's were definitely biggies, what with the psycho stalker mate and her hybrid half and her dad's being a shaman with psychic powers. But Jude's were definitely soul torturing nightmares that made me want to hug him tight, but they weren't anything that should have scared Erin off.

I guess it just came down to each felt he/she had a darkness in them the other couldn't/wouldn't understand. Instead they identified with each other. I will definitely read on, and I loved it to the point of reading most last night, and the rest early this morning. My only problem is that I didn't like Dee (a human hunter who works for Night Watch) and her story's up next. ::shrug:: I'll see what I think, I bet Cynthia Eden can make me eat my words :)

My Jude:

Johnny Whitworth Pictures, Images and Photos

My Erin:

monica bellucci photo: Monica Bellucci monica_bellucci_gf.jpg
Profile Image for Lover of Romance.
3,722 reviews1,127 followers
March 6, 2019
This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

This book I saw a raving review by a close blogging friend “Bookish Creation” and wanted to try this out after seeing how much she loved this book. I noticed that it was available through the Audible Romance Package so I did pick it up and was really excited for this. I would like to say that this book I had some high expectations for and even though I found this an enjoyable story I did have some issues with the heroine, I really struggled with her character and it took almost the whole book before I started to like her. So that is the largest reason this book has a lower rating than I ever expected to give this book.

Our heroine, is on the run, and hiding from a crazy stalker who believes that they are mates, and does horrific things like murder people to impress her. So she seeks help from a man that is a shifter, a white tiger shifter and powerful and strong enough to be the one to take down her stalker. But as they search for the stalker and bring him down, the chemistry between them is powerful and they find out the love they have been searching for.

I adored the hero in this book, he is everything you can admire in a alpha male without being over domineering or controlling. I did love how patient he is with the heroine and how strong he is and embraces who he is. He is a good man but has killer instincts from his animals, but I did enjoy how he isn’t ashamed of who he is and what he is capable of. Now the heroine I had issues with. She was very naive at times, and I didn’t like how she kept things from the hero constantly especially in things he needed to know to hunt down her stalker. Her character came off very frustrating to me and I did have the most difficult time relating to her. I almost put this book down because of her attitude and even though I understood what she had gone through it didn’t make up for how she acts. Overall I Found this book to be quite fun and kept me on my toes and looking forward to reading more from this author. Not my favorite shifter romance, but very entertaining

 



 photo Addicted To Romance Reviews 2_zpsplp8m0tb.png
Profile Image for Carvanz.
2,383 reviews898 followers
April 23, 2024
This book ensnared me from the first few pages and I was a goner throughout it all. I loved the twisty beginnings to the mystery in Erin’s background as well as the case she and Jude are working on together. The build up in their relationship was organic without being contrived or overblown. I loved watching them grow closer, their trust as much a part of it as their chemistry.


https://i.pinimg.com/originals/42/c4/93/42c4938f0799a959d7c38d31302e914a.gif


This was a pretty intense read. There’s a lot at work here and I never knew what was going to happen next or from what direction it was going to come from. I love when a story can keep me guessing and this one turned me in every direction. While this series is a re-release from the author, it’s new to me and I’m digging in as fast and as furious as I humanly can.

Multi POV
Safe
Triggers
Steam
Profile Image for MelissaB.
725 reviews347 followers
June 30, 2010
This is free on Kindle right now!

I enjoyed this story, I really like the author's writing style. The world she created is an interesting and fun take on the paranormal theme. Her Midnight series is still my fav, especially the 1st and 3rd books so I also recommend trying that series.
Profile Image for Glamdring.
508 reviews111 followers
September 14, 2015
*Buddy read with Blacky <333*


The suspense was ok, the heroes were good but forgettable, the world and relationship building were nonexistent.

I'm not sure I'll continue with this series but I'm sure going to try her Deadly series.



Profile Image for Beth (^v^)/.
116 reviews64 followers
June 14, 2013
♥♥♥♥ 4 Steamy Shifter Stars ♥♥♥♥

So, let me just say this first - I don't typically like shifter books. This one was awesome. And here's one reason why:


"You're in my head every minute. I close my eyes, and I see you and I want you so much I can hardly breathe."



Doesn't that just make you want to hug someone? No one here at the moment, so I'll hug myself.



Our main character is having a crappy year. She's an assistant with the DA's office, and suddenly those around her are being attacked. Then one day, she starts receiving 'love' notes written in blood.

So, she starts running. And finds Jude, a bounty hunter.

There's something interesting about Jude, he's a shifter. And he's interested in Erin. He recognizes something in Erin that is also not completely human. Only he can't figure out what it is.



This was such an engaging read. It's full of twists and turns. It has suspense, and best of all, a really sweet romance. I think Jude may be one of my favorite alphas I've read in a while. He's dangerous but intelligent and sexy. And he respects that Erin can kick some serious ass.

Read this book, it's awesome.

Profile Image for The BookChick .
1,454 reviews425 followers
September 20, 2014
Anyone who enjoys paranormal romance will most certainly enjoy this first book in the Night Watch series. It contained all the paranormal elements you love, in additional to a strong, doesn't need a man to save her, heroine and a alpha shifter who is determined to do just that. As with most Eden novels, this story contained a very unique plot that wasn't just full of passionate moments between the couple but contained an intriguing subplot that kept the reader guessing right up until the very end. And trust me, you definitely won't see THAT end coming. Eternal Hunter definitely whet my interest for the series and I'll definitely grab up the other books very soon.

P.S. I "read" this book in audio format and the narrator did an excellent job with the character voices which made the story even that much more enjoyable.
Profile Image for Kelly.
5,694 reviews228 followers
July 23, 2010
Wow, so much better than some of the other books I've been reading lately. It was actually well fleshed out and had characters that weren't two dimensional. Nice. I guessed who the bad guy was well before the reveal but then I kept second guessing myself and thinking, no, that can't be right. Therefore I'm giving the mystery a thumbs up.

The story: Erin has been hiding her true nature from the world for most of her life and for the last year she's been trying to hide herself away from a deranged stalker. Jude is a big, bad, bounty hunting shifter who is drawn to Erin from the first moment he lays eyes on her. Getting her to open up about the secrets she's carrying inside her is almost as hard as keeping her out of the grasp of her crazed admirer-er. There's good mythology in place and I'm interested in the next book.
Profile Image for Holly.
532 reviews539 followers
September 14, 2012
Oh Cynthia Eden, you do have a knack for creating some yummy heroes. They have just the right mix of Alpha Male & Protectiveness without coming off as either a bully or a stalker. The writing style can seem a bit...fluffy at times, but what the heck? I like that every once in a while.

This was a very quick read. As I have said in the past, the majority of Paranormal Romances are all about enjoyment...going on a fun, sexy ride (Unless of course your name happens to be J. R. Ward and then it's a COMPLETELY different emotional ballgame, but I digress...). And this book definitely fits that description to a tee.
Profile Image for Jo.
957 reviews242 followers
September 29, 2020
Cynthia Eden is a PNR master! I just loved this book. HOT romance, great suspense and a VERY sexy tiger!
A must read for all PNR lovers.
Profile Image for Lynsey A.
1,975 reviews
June 24, 2019
Another good pnr from Cynthia Eden. I'm always guaranteed an enjoyable read when I pick up one of Cynthia's books.

I've enjoyed other PNR's of hers more but still a good read.

Quotes & Faves:

He lunged across the room. Caught one of those deceptively delicate fists in his hands. Kissed it. The woman had just tossed his ass ten feet and he wanted her. She was sexy and strong and her eyes were so dark and gold. Perfect.

Wolves were strong, no doubt about it, but a tiger shifter was no one’s bitch. LOL

Jude pressed a kiss to her shoulder, then she felt the warm lap of his tongue as he licked lightly at her flesh. Shifters tended each other this way.

“I don’t care if you’re human or wolf. You’re mine, Erin. The woman I want. The only one I’ve ever loved.”

Profile Image for Tracy.
933 reviews72 followers
January 12, 2011
~* 4.5 Stars *~
It's stating the obvious, but I read and review a lot of books, commenting on strength of plot, technical aspects of writing, character development, world building, etc. I have to admit, I enjoy detailing why I like or dislike something. Occasionally, though, I come across a book that hits all or most of my happy spots, not because the plot is so spectacular, or the writing is so technically impressive, or the characters stand out that brightly, but for some nebulous, purely emotional reason that doesn't translate as well to an objective review. Eternal Hunter is one of those books.

Erin is new to Baton Rouge, working as a tenacious Assistant District Attorney and working at hiding herself - both her location from a violent, murderous stalker intent on Erin as his mate and her Other nature from...well...everyone else. Jude Donovan, bounty hunter and supreme alpha male shapeshifter has a much different agenda on those points. From the moment he senses and scents Erin, he refuses to allow her to hide anything from him, and he sure as hell refuses to let any sick psycho shifter come anywhere near her. Both have secrets they guard, both have wounds that still haunt them. Both will learn that only together can they stop a creature bent on death and destruction.

Eternal Hunter is a quickly paced, sensual, and dangerous romp and I really, really enjoyed it. There's something about Cynthia Eden's style that appeals to me. I enjoy the world she's created, one that exists in the same universe as that of her Midnight Trilogy, and I thought the chemistry between Erin and Jude was top notch. I really appreciated Erin's strength, as that's a personal preference of mine, and I loved Jude's uber-alpha personality tempered with some emotional insecurity that made him even more appealing as that vulnerability humanized him. Their characters and relationship really worked for me.

I'm not going to be overly critical of the story elements, I'm simply going to say that the plot was perhaps not the most original I've ever read, the sexual and burgeoning emotional relationship between Erin and Jude was given much more room than the threat of the stalker, and the climax had some cliched elements. There were also a couple of plot threads that struck me as odd. None of that severely impacted my pleasure in the read, though, because I found it to be very satisfying on an emotional level overall. Sometimes, for whatever reason, a book just hits the right buttons for a person. Eternal Hunter hit the right buttons for me.
4 reviews
July 10, 2024
Yuck! Do yourself a favor and DNF it!! It was too long for the ending to be so ridiculous! The steamy romance was just icky!
Profile Image for Cozen.
634 reviews32 followers
March 18, 2020
DNF. I'm seriously putting this one on a back burner. There are too many things that annoy me about this book and the author’s style of writing. Content to is starting to rub me the wrong way. This surprises me greatly because this author has been around the block and has created quite a following. I may or may not return to this book, so for now I’ll see if I can’t catch something else to read.
Profile Image for willaful.
1,155 reviews363 followers
April 24, 2012
Heavy on action and steam, this was a fun read, but got kind of samey after awhile; every single character's thought patterns are identical, that ubiquitous ironic, slangy, terse paranormal speak ala J.R. Ward. The tiger shifter hero is very sexy, and I enjoyed the supernaturally strong heroine.
Profile Image for Valerie ~ Val Hall ~.
124 reviews43 followers
July 31, 2012
I did not read the prequel to this book and maybe it's why it seemed right into the action without introduction. Cynthia Eden's writing style is pretty easy and her characters's voice clear. I liked the idea of an organization working alongside the police (even covertly) to maintaining order. Night Watch, a bounty hunter company also working toward containing the most violent Other community members.

Some humans know that Others exist but generally the public is ignorant of that fact. This Other community is not only comprised of vampires or werewolves but also Demons, Djinn and maybe more. The male lead Jude, a tiger shifter, has found an outlet for his violent tendencies in Night Watch. I found funny that while stating that he is at ease with his nature...why is he so insecure? It was hard to sympathize with him on that point. My main problem was the female lead characters: how can a strong characters like her be so messed up? She’s got a killer stalking her which should be enough on it's own.

This book was entertaining and the world shaping up is something that I want to know more about. I'll continue reading.
Profile Image for Jill.
826 reviews137 followers
July 23, 2013
4.5 Stars Outstanding, good old fashioned, exciting, steamy paranormal fun!!
These are all the things I have been thinking lately on my Cynthia Eden reading kick. This lady knows how to write a good story, and I enjoyed Eternal Hunter more than any of her others.

Full length book, Eternal Hunter, did a good job of keeping my interest with all the different twists and turns. Also the story building and character introductions have me panting for more from this new series. Love the bounty hunter team and I am really looking forward to more of Dee and Zane.
A Big plus, we have a shifter that is a Tiger!!!!! Woohoo, I have been in love with the rare tiger shifter since Quinn was introduced in the Sookie Stackhouse series.( Quinn forever!!!) Anyway I digress, this was a huge plus for me because they are just a little different and seem so deadly. Personal thing I know, but hey, I likes what I likes ;)
I don't want to give away anymore bits and pieces, just know I seriously enjoyed this book with all its suspense and steam, mystery and maulings, heehee. I will be reading the next one.
Profile Image for Teri.
1,801 reviews
December 14, 2014
3.5
Overall I did really like it
There were just a few things that took away from my enjoyment
1. Erin was killing me in the beginning. It took me a while to not want to slap the shit out her, I don't understand why people can't just be honest. Just fucking tell the guy what he needs to know, especially since he is putting his life at risk...all this hiding and keeping secrets crap is annoying.
2. Sometimes there was repetition to the point where I was like, I know, I just read that two paragraphs ago!

I liked our side characters, Dee, Zane, even Ben, Antonio, the kind of characters that don't necessarily have a heavy presence, but I was interested enough to want to know more.
Cynthia Eden never fails to scare me. Honestly, she writes psycho serial killers very well.
This one was a lot more sex-heavy than previous books of hers that I've read. Which is fine :)
I will continue to read from this author, I would recommend for fans of the erotic shifter M/F genre, but would seriously recommend Scream For Me because I thought it was 5 star awesomeness.
Profile Image for Katyana.
1,812 reviews288 followers
September 7, 2017
***3.5***

It wasn't bad, but it felt really long. Not as in slow, but the plot felt long, drawn out. I remember feeling like we were building to the end, and glancing at the bottom of my kindle only to see we were at 38%. That happened several more times- we'd build to that fever pitch, fizzle out, build again, fizzle out. At 78% I thought "whew! this time it probably really IS the climax!" I definitely didn't dislike it, I was just a little baffled by the momentum of the plot.

Re-read Sept 2017
Okay, on re-read, I didn't have the same impression as above. So I don't know if ... I was just distracted, or what. But I enjoyed it - it was a good, suspenseful PNR, with smart characters (TSTL crap is such a pet peeve of mine, and thankfully it was entirely absent here).
Profile Image for Carolyn F..
3,491 reviews51 followers
November 19, 2010
This book was about ADA Erin Jerome. On her way inside the police dept she almost trips over Jude Donovan, a tiger shifter. He smells that she's a shifter too but can't figure it out. Smelling here, smelling there, nostrils flaring. These books crack me up. But it wasn't as disturbing as some authors describe it.

Erin's running from a killer who has been leaving her presents (dead bodies and blood) since her last job. She hires Jude's employer to help her and they fall in love. Some surprises, but I pretty much guessed who the bad guy was in the beginning. Still very enjoyable book. I'm planning on reading more of her stuff.
Profile Image for Zeek.
923 reviews149 followers
June 20, 2011
3.5 out of 5

Mixbreed, District Attorney Erin Jerome was on the fast track- despite the fact she’d gone to great pains to hide her true nature. With one fell swoop, her career and secret shifter status is threatened and one rock hard, sexy were-tiger was the biggest threat to both- as well as her heart.

But something in her past- something she sacrificed everything to keep in her past- was once again rearing its ugly head. Now her life is on the line as well.

Fairly predictable- ok very predictable- but not bad pnr fill-in till the next IAD comes out… :P
Profile Image for The Book Junkie Reads . . ..
5,017 reviews154 followers
January 9, 2017
There was so much more to Assistant DA Erin Jerome. Her secrets may very well get a lot of people killed and open her world up to new possibilities. Jude Donovan knows one of Erin's secrets but he does not know the full extent of that secret. But he was certainly about to find out. The Louisiana bayou was in for a certain amount of change. I enjoyed this read and look forward to experiencing more from the Night Watch team. I found a few doors I want to open and peek in side.
Profile Image for Nafiza.
Author 8 books1,280 followers
June 10, 2010
The writing was interesting - the carnal scenes made me laugh - not the reaction the author was looking for probably but still, it was amusing. The 'revelation' at the end seemed like a cop-out. It wasn't that it was unexpected, it was that it seemed too neat. I don't think it worked. The characters were fine, just...not really memorable.
Profile Image for Samantha.
986 reviews2 followers
May 6, 2010
More of a 3.5 star read. I really enjoyed this book. Cynthia is a good writer and I like the suspense mixed in with paranormal. There is just enough of both to keep me entertained.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 346 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.