Zoe is unaware that her shadow became a separate entity during her bout of amnesia. Through a spiritual revelation with the ghost of her mates, the phenomenon behind her fire is unveiled to her. She is awestruck by the nature of her gift.

While Booker is away on business, she and Rider bond on an intense level and exchange extremely intimate bites. When Rider travels south to help his twin open the new club, Zoe is left alone overnight. She ventures into the darkness and begins utilizing her fire to avenge the death of lost souls.

Zoe doesn’t like how she feels when her shadow runs amok and pleasures her mates. Even worse, she must find her alter ego before Shadow drains her soul.

Even though the 7th book left me a little bit Meh I decided to give book 8 a try when I got the chance to read it. Sadly for me I still feel a bit meh about it. There are some very hot scenes in it so there is that the rest is just a little bit flat for me. Maybe it is because I did not start with the rest I just I don’t know this one did not click very well for me. Maybe it is because it was only about 82 pages long so short you can’t feel like your digging in. That said it is not a terrible book and there is a lot of heat.

My Gemstone Rating:

Following a momentous journey across space, two groups of Helvenans are locked in a struggle for survival on the strange, virgin planet they have named Kelanni.

Their long journey over, the exiles from the planet Helvena must now carve out a new existence. But the stain of war still blights the two factions – the hubbers with their strict caste system, now enforced by the new, fearsome keltar in their flying cloaks, and the free community of rimmers. On an alien world beset by unknown dangers and complex life forms they must find a way to come together…or be destroyed.

“This is the fifth book in Mark Whiteway’s beautifully crafted Lodestone series”

In the fifth instalment of the Lodestone series the long journey from the exiles of planet Helvena is over. What happened during war however leaves a mark that still haunts everyone. The Hubbers still must follow their strict caste system that is now enforced by the keltar.

Just when you think a series can’t get any better it comes out of left field with the next instalment and shows you that it can indeed still get better. This book is full of the excellent writing I have come to expect in this series along with the plot lines and twists that keep your brain on high alert. I simply love that in the course of reading this book you can’t take time to get passive about the story. If you get passive you may miss something and in all the action and complex plot you don’t want to miss something. Not a single moment. This is science fiction at its best

My Gemstone Rating:

Zoe—torn between worlds. Is Booker the man she loves or the enemy she fears? While suffering from Acute Stress Syndrome, she forgets everyone connected to her pain and returns to the dark world of stripping again.

Flashbacks confuse her and anxiety sets in as she struggles to discover who or what she is. Brief visions of men from her past spark her desire for revenge. Her potent craving for blood is strong, but the need for justice is stronger. She doesn’t understand why she feels the way she does, but has no desire to stop it. She likes wielding power over men—teasing them—killing them.

Will Zoe’s quest for vengeance lead her to the right man before she makes a fatal mistake

Lesson one learned from this book, not always good to start on book 7 of a series. Lesson two wow that is a short book, something like 77 pages?

Other then being fairly lost on how a Vampire can forget what they are (sounds bad) the book was okay. Zoe is an interesting character and one that I feel could be developed further. I know I am sure I missed some of her development because I came in so late in the series but I do think she has a ways to go. The premise though is solid, she is a strong and curiously interesting character. The writing is solid and flows well enough to keep me interested. While it is not my favorite Vampire book of all time, it was worth while to read it and for pure hot appeal it gets good marks. I always love a little bit of hot Vampire story to pass the time.

My Gemstone Rating: