DARK ALPHA’S NEED (Reaper 12) by Donna Grant-a review

DARK ALPHA’S NEED
Reaper #12
by Donna Grant
Release Date : October 11, 2021
Genre: adult, contemporary, paranormal, romance

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 11, 2021.

There is no escaping a Reaper. I am an elite assassin, part of a brotherhood that only answers to Death. And when Death says your time is up, I’m coming for you…

The latest threat uncovered, it is my honor and duty to oust those responsible for the slaughter of so many and make the Fae Others pay for their crimes. However, nothing could have prepared me for the stunning and curious female that crosses my path. She’s an enigma: equal parts strength and vulnerability. She quiets the rage I’ve carried within me for so long and makes me question Death’s directives for the first time ever. Her tragic, emotional story touches something deep within me, and her bravery is awe-inspiring—which makes it doubly hard to let her return to the enemy and the dangers that await. I never expected her, but I need her. She is everything to me, and I will do whatever it takes to make sure she’s safe and by my side. Forever.

••••••

REVIEW: DARK ALPHA’S NEED is the eleventh instalment in Donna Grant’s contemporary, adult REAPERS paranormal, romance series focusing on Death’s Reapers. This is Reaper assassin Torin, and Breda’s story line. The REAPERS is a spin off from Donna’s DARK KINGS series which is a spinoff from Donna’s DARK WARRIOR series which in turn is a spin off from Donna’s DARK SWORD series- all set in the Highlands of Scotland. You do not have to have read any of the previous series to understand the premise but many of the events of the Reapers series, overlap with the events of the Dark Kings series. DARK ALPHA’S NEED can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty but I recommend reading the series in order for back story and cohesion.

SOME BACKGROUND: The Reapers (believed to be a folk lore amongst the Fae) are a group of Dark and Light Fae, selected by Death (aka Erith), on their own deathbed, to do her bidding-Death is the judge and jury; the Reapers are the executioners. The Reapers are not harbingers of death, but are tasked with destroying the Light and Dark Fae who have crossed a line from which there is no return. All Reapers must follow two rules: never to fall in love; and never to reveal their existence to anyone but a group known as the Others, have declared themselves the rulers of the Fae, and their next ‘mission’ is to take down the Reapers, having failed to destroy the Dark Kings.

Told from third person perspectives, following several pathways, DARK ALPHA’S NEED focuses on the hunt for the Others. Ainsley and Torin have located Breda, a young woman, a Fae who has recently escaped the group known as the Others. Hoping to ferret out information from Breda, Torin and Ainsley begin to question our heroine, only to realize she, and thusly the Others, are aware of more than they could have imagined but the appearance of the Other soldiers finds Ainsley and Torin watching from afar when a Fae they long thought dead and missing takes down the soldiers like a trained assassin. While Ainsley goes in search of the long lost Fae, Torin and Breda must face the Reapers, and the woman they have come to call Death, and friend. What ensues is the building relationship between Torin and Breda, as the Reapers devise a plan to take down the Others but in doing so use our story line heroine as a target and as bait.

Breda knows betrayal first hand, and in this, she is reluctant to reveal the truth about her past but Torin suspects Breda is keeping secrets, and in this, he must convince our heroine to trust in an effort to uncover the whereabouts of the Others.

Meanwhile, Ainsley goes on the hunt for Xaneth, the missing and broken Fae who mind and spirit have been tortured and abused. Xaneth is no longer the Fae male he once was, and in this, I suspect the betrayal will make him a candidate for the next chosen Reaper.

The relationship between Torin and Breda is one of immediate attraction but Breda is on the run, and her inability to trust threatens her relationship and friendship with our story line hero. When Torin reveals the truth about his past, Breda must come clean about the abusive childhood she had to endure, a childhood in which her powers would be used for evil rather than for good. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate without the use of over the top sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including Xaneth, and several members of the Reapers, and Death.

DARK ALPHA’S NEED is a story of betrayal and vengeance; power and control; retaliation and humiliation; acceptance, relationships, family and love. The premise is intriguing and captivating; the romance is seductive; the characters are animated and energetic.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Dark Alpha’s Claim
Dark Alpha’s Embrace
Dark Alpha’s Demand
Dark Alpha’s Lover
Dark Alpha’s Night
Dark Alpha’s Hunger
Dark Alpha’s Redemption
Dark Alpha’s Temptation
Dark Alpha’s Caress
Dark Alpha’s Obsession

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Donna Grant is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the sizzling Dark King series featuring dragons, immortal Highlanders, and the Fae.

She was born and raised in Texas but loves to travel. Her adventures have taken her throughout the United States as well as to Jamaica, Mexico, and Scotland. Growing up on the Texas/Louisiana border, Donna’s Cajun side of the family taught her the “spicy” side of life while her Texas roots gave her two-steppin’ and bareback riding.

Despite deadlines and voracious reading, Donna still manages to keep up with her two children, four cats, and one long haired Chihuahua.

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