Let me start by saying that no one can make you fall in love with a twisted, tortured soul like the author of this book, Felicity Heaton, can!
Our main hero is Vail, an Elf prince that was tricked into 42 centuries of abuse and made to do things that haunt him by a dark witch named Kordula, she used a prophecy that Vail's Ki'ara (Fated Female/Eternal Mate) would be witch and tricks Vail into believing that it is her, from there she uses her power against him, following her death (shame, NOT) he has found himself roaming the black lands of hell whilst fighting the darkness within him that threatens to overtake the last sliver of goodness that remains in his heart. He has lost his homeland, his people hate him because whilst under her spell he killed thousands of them and most of all he fears that he will never be able to call Prince Loren (his story is book one of the series) his brother again. His only aim in life now is to kill any witch that he comes across as punishment for Kordula's actions, when he meets one the darkness rises up and takes over him and often wakes to find himself covered in blood with no recollection of what he has done but he knows that whatever or whoever he has killed, he enjoyed doing it.
The beginning of this book really lets you into Vail's mind, you get a real sense of the desperation and how deeply his centuries of abuse have affected him, Felicity writes this well and your heart aches for this unfortunate soul. Whilst on the verge of loosing himself completely he is taken prisoner by the new King of the Fifth Realm, King Bruan who has a score to settle with Vail's brother, Prince Loren, as he and his Elf army assisted King Thorn of the Third Realm in a war against the Fifth Realm ultimately ending in the death of the original King who was also Braun's brother.
Vail is badly injured during his capture and is shut away in a cell, a young witch named Rosalind is brought to his cell to heal him. We have met Rosalind before, in the last book, she was instrumental in the outcome of the war and assisted the good guys (aka Prince Loren and King Thorn) in their victory over the Fifth Realm, but the end of battle saw Rosalind being taken prisoner by the Fifth Realm demons. She is a good witch who uses light magic powered by nature not dark magic powered by the grave. She was also given a prophecy that one day she would meet and Elf Prince and shortly after would die, she narrowly avoided meeting Prince Loren in the last book but still managed to assist him in the war.
She has no idea who he is or that he is an Elf Prince, and despite the pleas of another cell mate, and incubus named Fenix, who begs her not to heal the male or they will all regret it. Rosalind cannot let another being suffer when she has the ability to heal them. She heals Loren and he really has to fight the darkness within him which senses she is a witch and immediately calls for her blood.
Rosalind herself suffers terrible nightmares, she has always used her powers for good and for healing, but during the war was forced to take lives to save her friends and the soul of every life that she took haunts her and she fears that the darkness will consume her and make her use dark magic like the rest of her family.
This is an interesting time in the book, because both Vail and Rosalind are conflicted (as they are during most of the book), he has a bone deep hatred of her kind that the darkness within him wants to kill, but he also has instant instincts to protect this little female for reasons he cannot fathom, again Felicity writes the turmoil in his head as he struggles to process his feelings brilliantly.
Rosalind too has a natural aversion to him as her prophecy says that she will die shortly after meeting an elf prince, but again is drawn to him by something inexplicable.
Vail, Rosalind and Fenix escape and the journey they take is not only one of survival as the demons of the Fifth Realm are in pursuit, but one of discovery, not only of who they truly are but also a discovery of love, and how they can heal each others darkest issues and balance each other out. Throw in some awesome battle scenes and some rather steamy episodes (both of which Felicity writes particularly well) and you have everything a girl could want in a book.
I loved this book, this author is one of my favourites, her world building is genuinely amazing and you feel as though you know her characters as you read through the pages. This was welcome addition to Eternal Mates series and has left me hungry for more. I just have this feeling that Bleu (Prince Loren's right hand man) is going to end up being the Hyperion or Snow of this series, if you have read Felicity's Vampires Realm or VET series of books then you will know what I am talking about it :) if you haven't read them, then what the hell are you waiting for, go get started now and add the Eternal Mates series to your reading list, you will not be disappointed, I promise!
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1228468.Felicity_Heaton
Book Description:
An elf prince on the verge of losing himself to the darkness, Vail is maddened by the forty-two centuries he was under the control of a witch and forced to war with his brother. Now, he roams Hell seeking an escape from his terrible past and the heads of all who bear magic. When demons of the Fifth Realm capture him, he sees a chance to end his existence, but when he wakes in a cell to a beautiful female, he finds not death but his only shot at salvation—his true fated mate.
Captured by the enemy of the Third Realm when the war ended, Rosalind has spent months in the cells of the Fifth Realm with her magic bound, forced to heal the new king’s demon warriors, and haunted by the lives she has taken. When she’s brought to heal an unconscious man, she discovers her only hope of escape has come in the form of her worst nightmare and the first part of a prediction that might spell her doom—a devastatingly handsome and dangerous dark elf prince.
Unwilling to fall under the control of anyone ever again, Vail must escape before the Fifth King can use him as a pawn in a deadly game of revenge, but he cannot leave without Rosalind, the woman who looks at him with dark desire in her stunning eyes and awakens a fierce hunger in his heart. A witch who drives him mad with need even as the darkness within whispers she will enslave him too.
Can Rosalind escape her fate as they embark on a journey fraught with danger and resist the temptation of her rogue elf prince? And can Vail overcome the memories that madden him in order to seize his chance for salvation and the heart of his fated female forever?
Note: I was lucky enough to receive and ARC of this book for my review.
This book is widely available, some of the retailers are below:
Amazon UK:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00MHLQOW8
iBooks UK:
http://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/isbn9781909306622?at=1l3voM2
Kobo UK:
http://store.kobobooks.com/en-GB/ebook/tempted-by-a-rogue-prince-eternal-mates-romance-series-book-3
Google Play:
