Devlin Sinclair, the New England Dark Ones’ Hunter, is on a mission to track down the elusive and mysterious Medusa, perhaps the ultimate nemesis the Pure and Dark Ones have been battling in recent years. But he can’t do it alone.Grace Darling has isolated herself from the world since a very young age, after her parents’ death and because of her own social disability. Awkward and brilliant, a … and brilliant, a born sensualist, Grace agrees to a blind date that changes the course of Destiny.
She has the skills he needs.
Their chemistry is off the charts, but will she, can she, give him the love he craves?
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Devlin Sinclair is known as the Dark Ones “Hunter”. His current job is to hack into Zenn and therefore track down Medusa who’s been trying to destroy the Pure/Dark Ones. Although his hacking skills are among the best, it’s still not enough, he’s going to need help from Grace Darling who’s not only the very best hacker but she’s also apparently working for Zenn the enemy. Chatting online and gaining her trust while pretending to be someone else, Devlin meets Grace for a blind date. Devlin sits down and turns on his charm but Grace just stares at him and says nothing. Unbeknownst to him before the date she’s already checked out everything about the man he’s pretending to be. Grace hacked into a live satellite and knows he should be bald and very plain, not a gorgeous blonde hunk that looks and smells wonderful and sounds even better! Grace stands up and tells him she’s going home then leaves the restaurant. Devlin’s just not used to this reaction from any woman and quickly pays for the uneaten food and rushes after Grace. He uses the excuse of seeing her home to try and change her mind. Grace however already has her own plans and it’s to use him for a two week sex toy! Devlin has no idea what he’s in for but ends up loving every minute of it!
Wow! This is a steaming sexy hot explosive story about two very different people that find in each other what they are both missing. I think anyone would absolutely love this book!
Aja James Pure/ Dark Ones series has the most amazing characters and you’ll just love each of them! I can hardly wait to find out what’s coming next with all the characters like Tal, and Moma Bear, Sophie, the creature, oh and Ramses the new one Max recruited! This series just keeps getting better and better! I absolutely loved it!
3.5
“Their bond seemed doomed before it truly began…”
While not my fav of the series thus far (could be because the previous books spoiled me), Dark Pleasures is still a smexxy vampire romance I’d recommend! Can’t wait to start the next installment, which I’ve already one clicked!!
I love the Pure/Dark Ones series by Aja James, and I was excited to read Devlin Sinclair’s book finally. He’s about to meet his match with Grace Darling. Devlin and Grace end up meeting on a blind date together, and their chemistry is going to be scorching.
Male Protagonist (Hero): Devlin Sinclair is the New England’s Dark-Hunter, and he’s one sexy hunter. I was fascinated with him the minute he was introduced.
Female Protagonist (Heroine): Grace Darling is a loner and has been isolated since her parents’ death, primarily due to her social disability. She’s a beautiful genius, though, and I adored her character. She may be my favorite heroine in the series (so far). Grace is one of my favorite heroines due to her personality and her intelligence. I loved how she was funny, too, even though she didn’t realize she was funny.
Mission/Storyline: Devlin is determined to track down Medusa, who happens to be the biggest nemesis of the Pure/Dark Ones. He needs the help of Grace to find Medusa. Grace’s job has her working with Medusa, and she has no idea until Devlin lets her into his world. The chemistry between these two characters and the storyline will have readers turning the pages. Be prepared for the twists and turns in the story too. I need to know more about the Creature, Medusa, and Ere. I also need to read Tal’s story next because of what happened in this book. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t read this book or started the series.
Cliffhanger? Yes, and it’s one that requires me to start Book 5 immediately. Dang it, Aja James! Now, I have to squeeze the next book this month. I’m slacking on reading lately due to having my kids home, but I’ll hide somewhere in my house if I have to, to read the next book in this series. My kids will have to deal without mama for a while. LOL
Do I recommend reading in order? Yes, most definitely. Otherwise, you will miss out on the previous books in the series.
Do I recommend this book? Yes, I highly recommend it. If you are a fan of J.R. Ward, Christine Feehan, and Gena Showalter, then I recommend this series. Be prepared for some fantastic world-building because Aja James does an excellent job. I love her writing style and can’t wait to dive into the next book.
Phew, this series just gets better with each book! This series, in my humble opinion, is phenomenal. The characters and the world they live in are so real. Each book builds off the ones prior. You are getting a complex story in these books and it’s absolutely great. I don’t recommend trying to read any of these as a stand alone, you’ll be lost.
Devlin, the Dark One’s Hunter, the most carefree of the group. Grace, orphaned at a young age, social disability that keeps her isolated from others, genius. One would think that two people so far apart wouldn’t fit, right? You would be wrong! Grace is analytical, her mind applies logic and reason to every situation. Devlin is more of a “roll with it” kind of guy. But the two together? Superb.
If you’re looking for a new paranormal series to start reading, as far as I’m concerned, you’ve found it.
There is so much going on in this novel. First, there is Devlin Sinclair and Grace Darling. Devlin is a Chosen Dark One and known as the Hunter. He has spent months tracking Grace’s digital footprint. “He was certain she held critical information for getting to his ultimate target — the enigmatic Medusa, who had orchestrated all of the chaos and violence the Pure and Dark Ones had been combatting for the past two years.”
Grace is a single, 29 year old, who is “wanted by several government agencies for her cyber hacking skills since the age of twelve.” She works from home as a Enterprise Architect for the “hottest new tech startup Zenn.” She has a social disability — Asperger’s. She has three pets. A chinchilla named Miu-Miu and two goldfish named Antony and Cleopatra. Grace calls herself a sensualist.
Second, we have Inanna, Gabriel, Benji and Tal. Tal, full name Tal-Telal, is Inanna’s father. They all go to Dark Dreams, the establishment owned by Estelle Martin, affectionately called Mama Bear. Tal is blind and is touching the objects — trinkets and treasures — on the shelves when he hears a voice from his past. Mama Bear sees Tal and runs from the room. Tal hasn’t been the same since his run in with Estelle.
Third, we have Sophia St. James who is starting her internship at the MET. She is cataloguing the Persian exhibit owned by Enlil Naram-Anu. Enlil is the vampire and shadow ninja who works with Medusa building a shadow warrior force.
Though the book was Devlin and Grace’s story, we are visited by many characters from previous books. Each equally important to the advancement of the series. We learn piecemeal secrets to store away for future novels. The plot is intricate and the subplots are intertwined so smoothly a cord is not out of place. This novel is the turning key for future books in the series.
Dark Pleasure is the perfect continuation of this series written by Aja James. The author continues come up with unique and intricate plots to keep each book in the series different and captivating, yet has a continuous story that links them all together. As expected there were some serious twists hidden in this one and also some nice revelations that the readers deserved! But there are still a lot of big ones we have yet to discover, so I can only imagine what the author will come up with next! The plot is very well developed and has the perfect pace to it. There is always a lot happening, making this a very difficult book to put down, but I expect no less at this point from this series. As usual there are quite a few hot steamy scenes in this one as well.
I find it interesting that in this one again, the author picked a character that is not usually chosen as a main character in a paranormal book. In her last one it was basically a genius level female scientist, which is rather rare in a paranormal book, but in this one she took it a step further and picked an autistic female lead, along the lines of Asperger’s I would say. I found that very interesting and refreshing and somehow the author made it work. You can’t help but adore Grace and her transformation that you see her going through in this book. Yes I know in real life that would never happen that quickly but it was still very interesting to read.
And oh Devlin, that poor man. You can’t help but feel for him when you find out about his past and then you just know he had no chance against Grace. She was an all consuming avalanche and that was pretty much it! Those two together are just too much and again the author found a way to make them work.
I admit, I may be biased but I love this series. The steamy scenes sometimes can be maybe a bit much, but that is part of what this series is based on. The author spends a lot of time on character development and focuses each book on a specific pair usually but also provides more insight on some other characters you have already met or will meet in the near future! Her action parts pack a punch and her plots are very well developed. In my eyes that is great. She brings a new twist to your usual vampire story by introducing Dark Ones vs Pure Ones and your standard Vampire. So any author that can bring a new twist to your vampire story to me already is way ahead of the game, and no she did not make them sparkle!
Dark Pleasures is book 4 in the Dark/Pure Ones series. We start off with a bit more of Sophia’s story. It seems with each book in the series we get a little more of her story, though woven throughout the main storyline. In this case, the story of Devlin and Grace.
Devlin, a Dark Ones vampire, is very computer savvy but he needs the help of someone even more skilled at hacking than himself. That’s where Grace comes into play. Devlin needs Grace’s help to hack into Zenn, a tech company that Grace works for and helped build the computer systems for. While Grace eventually agrees to help him, there is something she needs from him as well.
I really liked Devlin and Grace’s story. Grace was a rather interesting character. She has a unique form of Autism Spectrum Disorder. In her case, she doesn’t really show or express feelings. She doesn’t know how to. And that makes her blunt, direct and honest to a fault. I found it rather refreshing.
Then we have Devlin! He has a past that haunts him and perhaps even hinders him at times with regards to his feeling for Grace. But I loved his character. 🙂
As with most of the books in this series, you not only get a main story (in this case that would be Devlin and Grace’s story) but you also get more information about characters that you’ve been introduced to in previous books. As I mentioned already, we learn a bit more about Sophia but also there is some interesting revelations made regarding Tal, Inanna’s father and Inanna’s adopted son, Benji. Of course, I can’t tell you what that is. 😉 Just trust when I say it’s some intriguing information that I’m sure will be further delved into in a subsequent book.
Overall I really enjoyed this book and the series as a whole.
*Digital copy of book given to me by author in exchange for an honest review.*
This is paranormal romance at it’s best, Grace is a unique woman that lives in her own head, she has problems expressing her feelings and is really brilliant, as a computer genius, she’s the only chance for Devlin to keep track on Medusa (an elusive enemy of the pure and dark ones).
Devlin is a young dark one with a tragic past and a beautiful heart, he is definitely a dream come true, but his love for Grace seems doom from the beginning, he is an immortal and she is human that doesn’t know how to love…. Could they have a happy ending???
This is a must read for lovers of this genre.
Grace Darling likes to keep to herself ever since the death of her parents. Her aunt stops by every day to bring her food as Grace does not cook. Grace is a very smart and brilliant hacker who works for a company called Zenn from home. Grace is probably one of the best hackers ever.
This is the reason that Devlin Sinclair a hunter for the Dark Ones. He is on a mission to hunt down the famous Medusa and this is where Grace fits into his plans. He needs her hacking skills and besides she works for the company that he wants to hack into for the information he wants.
Devlin meets Grace online and after chatting with her for a while and getting to know her a little more he asks her out to her favorite restaurant hoping to eventually talk her into helping him out gather the information he needs to find Medusa.
But Grace has other plans for Devlin once meeting him. After meeting up in the restaurant Devlin starts up a conversation trying to get more acquainted with Grace but he soon realize that she is doing nothing but sitting there staring at him. He wonders what is on her mind, what she is thinking. What she has on her mind is nothing close to what he thought. She finally tells him she wants to go home and when he asks her if everything is ok all she will say is I want to go home. So of course Delvin says he will escort her which is exactly what Grace wants because her body is in overdrive. Grace’s unit needs to be serviced and serviced now.
I love how straight forward Grace is I mean she doesn’t beat around the bush no she comes right out says exactly what is on her mind. Grace has always been a loner but after meeting Devlin I don’t think she wants to be a lone so much anymore. But old habits are hard to break besides Grace doesn’t really trust anybody. Will Grace open up her heart and let her feelings roam free or will she continue pushing all her feelings deep down in her heart until it hardens more and more?
I love the Pure Ones/Dark Ones series and the world that they live in. I love all the difference between the Pure Ones and the Dark Ones. Like how each become vampires and how they live and feed. How one has blooded mates and one have bonded mates. I also like how Aja gives you just enough info to keep you interested and glued to your seat not wanting to miss anything with all the intriguing and mysterious characters. I am glad to have gotten to know more of Sophia’s story and who is this mysterious new person that has walked into her life?
I can’t wait to read more of all the characters from this series in future books and to learn more about their lives and who they are. Grace, Devlin, Sophia, Inanna, Tal, Gabriel, Ryu, Mamma Bear, Benji all have a lot more packed away in their hearts that I would like to see explored more and can’t wait to see how all of their lives intertwine if and when they do.
I highly recommend Dark Pleasures to anyone who loves a great paranormal romance story that has vampires and other creatures.
In a word: YES
This book seriously blew me away… and that is saying something because it does not happen often. I’m very stingy with my straight up 5 stars, but this one earned every single point.
I will be completely honest and say that I was a little worried when I started this book because the h (Grace) was less than warm and relate-able (at least for me). I was not sure how Ms. James was going to make me like her, but apparently she enjoys a challenge – and she absolutely rose to it!
Our H in this story is Devlin, a Dark One who was heir to a Dukedom in his human life which began approximately 230 years ago (as he says, he’s still a newbie in Vampire years). As is the case with most of our nearly immortals, he has his fair share of baggage. His main role is as the Dark Ones’ tech support and cyber-info gathering extraordinaire, and while he might be considered one of the most outwardly friendly of the group, he keeps his personal life close to the vest. When he meets Grace, he is on a mission to use his well-touted flirtation skills to get information from her about Medusa, an entity whose true identity is being sought by the Pure & Dark Ones as they seek to eliminate threats to their existence. Grace (unknowingly) has been the brains behind Medusa’s electronic footprint, which is suspiciously clean. Devlin adopts the user name of a person Grace has been chatting with in her online world and has played the role for a couple of months by the time they meet for the first time face-to-face. The date feels more than a little awkward and somewhat abrupt, so Devlin is pretty sure he’s going to need to up his game in the charm department before he gets any information out of the unreadable Grace Darling. Little does he know, she already has him in her sights as her next “orgasms buddy” to satisfy her physical needs as no one would be able to break through to get to her heart.
What I liked about this book:
– EVERYTHING!
– The main characters were unique and fun to get to know – the depth that the author was able to achieve was amazing
– As always, the action was thrilling
– Steamy goodness! (view spoiler)
– More details on characters we have been exposed to in the previous books – I got to do the “I knew it!” dance a little bit in this one 🙂
What I didn’t like as much about this book:
– NOTHING. I have never said that, so I will say it again in case you thought someone else was writing this: nothing. Not. A. Thing.
Overall, a superb addition to this ever-evolving and exciting series. So much fun to be on this ride with the Pure/Dark Ones – eagerly anticipating the next installment!
Plot — 5/5
Main Characters — 5/5
Steam Level — 3.5/5
Violence — fight scenes and flashbacks (nothing “triggering”)
Language — not egregious
POV — 3rd person throughout
I was kindly given an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Dark Pleasures tells Devlin Sinclair’s story. Devlin is the sexy, somewhat smart-alecky Dark One we’ve gotten glimpses of in the past 2 books. Half the fun of the Pure/Dark Ones series is that (unless you ruin it by reading the blurb) you don’t know whose story is going to be coming up next. The other half of the fun is reading the books, which continue to pique my interest and keep me ravenous for more information.
The female star of this book is Grace Darling, who’s an unlikely heroine as someone with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum. She lives alone and abides by a strict schedule, with only her aunt to check in on her. She likes it that way, too, until she meets Devlin. Grace’s interaction with Devlin confuses her, because emotions aren’t second nature to Grace. She’s a hacker, and her mind works in scientific and mathematical ways. I won’t ruin it here but the way that Grace and Devlin first begin their “relationship” is hilarious. If only it could be so cut and dry for all of us as it is for Grace!
The story differs here from previous books because Ms. Aja James usually makes us wait for the male/female main characters to end up in bed together – this book starts out with a bang (badum-dum!) but that’s certainly not the end of it. And in addition to Grace & Devlin’s storyline we get a peek at some of our other favorite characters. In true Aja fashion we only get to see a little of this here, and little of that there-just enough to whet our appetite for more. It’s hard to say too much without giving spoilers, but know that some of your favorite side characters from recent books pop up just enough to drop a few more revelations. You think you have some things figured out but then a two minute conversation between certain characters can turn that completely upside down!
This has to truly be one of the most well thought-out and planned series as I’m just amazed how everything ties in together, even things that previously seemed disconnected or standalone. And the characters that Aja James creates are either loveable or you love-to-hate-them, there’s not too much in between. As usual, the ending leaves me only wanting more!!
Firstly you really do need to read the first three i this series to get the best out of this book . Loved the introduction by Sophia , the Pure Ones Queen , full of detail & few smiles . This book brings starts to weave all the characters we’ve met in previous books into one large, amazing story . We have a romance , we have a breaking of ties but not sure what that breaking means yet & we have true love rejected & looks like its going to end in tragedy , reading between the lines im guessing theres a huge misundertsanding somewhere . This book has so many small stories running through the whole that you daren’t put it down & the need to know keeps you turning pages even when you should be sleeping , really can’t wait for book five
4.5 stars
“Dark Pleasures” by Aja James follows expert computer hacker Grace Darling who is being pursued by Devlin Sinclair as he searches for a way to take down the enemy Medusa and her minions. He’s astounded by the way this very different human reacts to him, seemingly unfazed by his revelations of a world she’d never dreamed of but he doesn’t expect the way she’s able to turn his world upside down.
This dark adult paranormal romance is part of the ‘Pure/Dark Ones’ series. It features an almost overwhelming number of characters for someone who is new to the series the way I am, but they are so well-written, one is drawn into this complex world. There is a fair amount of violence so those who are squeamish should be forewarned.
I adore this heroine, with her straightforward approach to coping with her handicap, and her unconventional methods. The fact that she can seduce and wear out an ancient being and continually surprise him provides both humor and heat to the story and it was very entertaining to watch him cope with this enterprising and brilliant human he has spent so much time stalking.
Their intense sexual connection complicates his investigation into the inimical Medusa and Grace’s direct approach to every problem that she faces provides a unique twist on some of the standard tropes of vampire stories. I love her reaction to the discovery of new erogenous zones as well as her courage with Devlin’s colleagues.
There are multiple threads traveling through this story that are part of the series arc as well as secondary characters with their own vivid conflicts and issues and I think it would be much better to start from the beginning to understand the major conflict but this story can be read as a stand alone without too much difficulty if one just focuses on the main couple.
This is a new-to-me author but I certainly will be looking for other stories by her.
A copy of this title was provided to me for review
Did I ask to have my mind blown when I went into this book?
Oh… I did?
Well, consider me SHOOK!!
This author is holding me captive with this series. I have other books I’m supposed to be reading. ARCs are piling up and yet… I can’t stop myself!
The heroes are divine. The heroines are perfect for their mates. The plots are dynamic, complicated and intriguing. I’ve been hooked, I am hooked, and I will continue to be hooked until the end!
Devlin was an absolute sweetheart. Until now, I took him as the easygoing, flirty, more approachable member of the Chosen. Now I know better because he is all of those things and more. A perfect gentleman, Devlin was kind and caring, smart and astute, and he was fiercely loyal. He was left a broken man before becoming a Dark One and the lingering pain of his past fed into his present. And then he met Grace.
Grace was not normal, but she was uniquely perfect. With limited social skills and an analytical mind, she approached life like an equation — resolutely, determindly, logically. However, Devlin was an anomaly for her. He didn’t fit into a box. He was unlike anyone she had ever met. He couldn’t be forgotten. She wanted to have him, be one with him, to claim him, no matter how illogical it seemed.
I loved the way their relationship developed. From their two-week sex arrangement to her wooing of him, these two made magic happen. His open heart and her stunted one were made for each other!
I’m really impressed with the world building in the books of this series. Each book features a different couple but it’s the underlying story, the fight between good and evil (and everything in between) that really captures the reader’s interest. I’m fascinated by this series because I just have to know what the motivation is of the bad guy- why does she, currently named Medusa, want to destroy the Pure and Dark Ones the way she does? Seriously, the story has me totally enthralled and I’m just glad that this series is completed because I wouldn’t want to have to wait for the next installment.
Let’s focus on this book. This book is Devlin’s story- Devlin is the Hunter of the Chosen, the elite group of the Dark Ones aka Vampires. He is also the resident hacker but he needs help and that comes in the form of Grace, an amazing hacker who has Asperger’s and therefore, is socially awkward. I don’t know how accurate the depiction is of Asperger’s but I do know that she was an interesting, well thought out character that was a good foil for Devlin, the resident play boy who is actually so much more. The initial meet with him totally unsure about how to get Grace to relate to him was pretty hilarious. But overall, I did like how they worked together and I do think that Aja James is building really memorable characters who stand out because of their differences. Every character has a role to play across story lines and I have a feeling that each story in this series was written with clear awareness as to the ramifications of each particular event, whether in the past or present. It’s delightful to always be on the edge of my seat because I’m so invested in this story.
While I enjoyed the romance between the main characters, I am extremely excited about many of the other characters as well. One of the best things about this series is how each book builds the relationship between the reader and the many characters of this world. While fictional, they are now my friends and I wait anxiously to have them win this way against evil. On to the next book!
I must say that i am amazed by how thrilling,emotional and sensational “Dark Pleasures” is,which is the 5:th instalment in Aja James Paranormal “Pure/Dark Ones”-series that i find so awesome that my mind has become somewhat dizzy right now after finishing it.I must have stated in my other reviews by how captivating i find Aja James writing.She develops and explores in such a vivid way that it gives me goosebumbs because of the way i feel alive when i read this series.In this book the Dark One Hunter Devlin Sinclair have a mission to track down Medusa who is the cause of all chaos and destruction that has happened lately between the immortals and to find her he needs the help of the tech genius Grace Darling who literally flips his life upside down with her extraordinary nature!
Grace Elizabeth Darling is a quiet fire-cracker i actually found myself having a crush on,LOL.She is such a cyber genius that can hack into anything that is digital.As a person she is totally isolated except for her aunt who visits sometimes and the two weeks mating period she have after every couple of months and finds her current prey in the very delicious Devlin.AHH she was such a stranger to emotions that she couldn`t see that the connection she felt for Devlin was blossoming into love and i found it so bittersweet the way she calmly took on his nature and life and the way she woos him in the end.I mean…even i was crushing on her!!!
***
“I think…” Her brows scrunched slightly as she concentrated on finding the right words. “I think I’ve missed you, Devlin Sinclair.”
“Have you?” He meant to say it with smooth nonchalance in his usual devil-may-care tone, but it came out instead like a breathless, needy query filled with uncertainty. -Grace & Devlin
***
Devlin Sinclair made my heart melt puddles.He is one of the Chosen guards of the Dark One Queen and despite being a awesome genius and badass himself he can even cook food,behaves like a old-school gentleman and has wavy dark blonde hair.CAN HE BE MORE DELICIOUS THAN THAT!It makes it even better that he is head over heels in love with Grace and painfully hopes for that love in return thorughout this story.Despite his devilish charm there was so much pain and vulnerability in his soul and when we saw flashbacks into his human past in the Napoleon war my heart broke for his lonely soul who only ever wanted to be loved.Not only did i found Devlin and Grace utterly sexy together..but ahh how cute they also are!They made me melt like butter in every emotional scenes with them together especially near the end after her so romantic proposal!Just come one!!!That couldn`t have gotten any better!Loved everything about it!
I also must mention how much i am dying of tension and curiosity in every scene with the ancient and heavily tortured Tal Tel…and his heroine.His torment and longing shed tears to my eyes and i have not even read his own book yet but damn how invested i am!Then we have the Creature who i only get more intrigued by.By now i have some guesses to who he might be and his connection to Inanna and Benji.I also think Sophia is as lovely as always and how relieved i am that she doesn`t think more about the crush she had on Ere-they are friends.Huh!But i didn`t get to see Dalair in this book so i hope we get more of him in the next one!And another character i have been excited over since “Dark Desires” and that`s Ryu`s father..the ancient Master who also have his own book,YESSS how happy i am over that!Aja James has me completely under her spell again through her very dark and sexy fantasy world of Pure/Dark Ones and i only crave for more!
(My review can also be found in Goodreads)
Book 4 really was a Dark Pleasure! All those layers,the mystery,and all those leads to follow! And in the middle of everything thrown at the Dark and Pure Ones,the story of Devlin and Grace unfolds.
She’s a girl you need to know to understand. One that thinks she can’t love because she doesn’t feel emotions. A hacker in a league of her own. One that Devlin wants to get close to,because she can help him get into Zenn. But all to soon,he wants her for who she is. Can he convince her to stay? I loved their story,it was so sweet to see Grace grow,to accept she might after all have feelings…..
Now i really need to know what happens to Tal,because the condition he’s in at the end of this story? It hurts!