LOVER UNBOUND

Author: J.R. Ward ISBN: 0451222350 10/2007 PARANORMAL Publisher: NAL/Signet

Ruthless and brilliant, Vishous son of the Bloodletter possesses a destructive curse and a frightening ability to see the future. As a pretrans growing up in his father's war camp, he was tormented and abused. As a member of the Brotherhood, he has no interest in love or emotion, only the battle with the Lessening Society. But when a mortal injury puts him in the care of a human surgeon, Dr. Jane Whitcomb compels him to reveal his inner pain and taste true pleasure for the first time—until a destiny he didn't choose takes him into a future that cannot include her.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Ok, so I will admit that when I started reading LOVER UNBOUND, I was a little put off by the tone of the beginning chapters. V wasn't the man that I pictured throughout the rest of the series. He is a very complex man, so complex, in fact, that I was a little thrown by it at first. V seemed like the least complex of all the guys when I had read the other books, so this was different and a little bit... startling, to say the least.

But, here's the thing. I REALLY, REALLY, TRULY, UTTERLY fell in love with this book! I fell in love with V and all of his conflicted emotions. I felt his pain and his confusion, and I was in awe of the greatness of character that J.R. gave him. I love how strong Jane is, how perfect she is for our tortured hero—she is literally the yin to his yang, the completion of his character. I absolutely knew at the end of this book that everything had worked out just the way it should be. I got that feeling of satisfaction that only comes when reading an exceptional book—when something works out just right, even though I know the ending will throw some for a loop.

So, here's the thing. I soldiered on because I LOVE J.R. Ward and feel like her writing is absolutely some of the best stuff that I have read in ages. And I am BEYOND happy that I did. Everything came together, the series is set up beautifully for another book (another dozen, in my opinion), and Jane and V have their happily-ever-after. These guys, this entire series, has gotten inside of my head and I am to the point where I HAVE to read them. I look for them incessantly. I am online ridiculously reading the interviews on J.R.'s website, looking for the next offering. Because if the ending of LOVER UNBOUND is any indication, the next one is going to be a whopper!

Kristal Gorman