Henry was lounging on the bed. Rumpled blue velvet pushed against the contours of his long, lean body. James had never seen him naked before. He had barely even dared to picture it. His light brown skin was impeccable. Smooth, with sparsely freckled shoulders and moles placed strategically against every kissable crease. There was blonde hair on his arm and around his one visible dark nipple. … There was blonde hair between his legs also, spirals of gold that vanished into the dark crease where the blankets obscured everything else. James was not even aware that he had been breathing until it stopped. ?Henry.?
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** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Reviewed for Divine Magazine
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Purify Your Soul (Gentleman Demons #3) by Jasper Black
228 Pages
POV: 3rd person, multi-POV, with omnipresence
Content Warning: mild violence, horror
Well…that’s that. I don’t know or care whether Henry and James will appear in future books, because whether they do or don’t, this was PERFECT. A perfect ending, if that’s the end of their story. A perfect break point, if it’s not. Either way, I can’t wait for the next edition. I believe there will be seven books in total, which means I have a whole LOT more to look forward to. Which I will. I’m eager to see how Charlie, Claire and Edward, and Drucilla’s stories continue or evolve. I’ll read anything that follows, because the writing – and the characters – are just THAT good.
I very rarely give EVERY book in a series 5* ratings. I often find myself disillusioned after a while, the story drags, or the characters change to accommodate some illogical plot twist. That doesn’t happen here. Jasper Black is an author who knows how to write a long-game plot and keep it interesting with every new scene, new chapter and new book. I will never not love a Jasper Black story. Every time I finish a book, I find myself feeling that it just wasn’t long enough. I want more. Every. Single. Time. And, I’m not a horror girl. Never. I am so stupidly squeamish. But these books are just so brilliantly written that I don’t even notice the gore factor. It’s not done to be gory and gross. It’s clever and necessary and fitted to the characters and completely in line with the mood of a gothic, victoriana story, involving demons.
I loved the balance of old and new characters, again. That we still got to see plenty of my favourites: Lady, Francis, Henry, James, Virgil, Satan, Claire and Edward; as well as getting a few new faces, in the intriguing additions of Julian, Sheridan, Emilie, Caroline, Archie, and a glimpse of an old familiar face that I won’t mention because it would be a huge spoiler.
I love that there are so many characters, but it never feels overwhelming. Each story intermingles and flows from one to the next, with a connecting link that makes your fingers twitch at the near misses, makes you want to shout at them to just go this way to end up meeting someone, and gives enough suspense to keep you reading. It’s delightfully infuriating to know that Henry is trapped in Hell, but to not get to see anything of him until much later in the book. It’s tantalizing to see something interesting happen and then not return to that character again for a few scenes of chapters.
The added growth of characters, and their relationships and reactions to each other, over time gives it a little extra something that makes it special. The growing companionship between James and Virgil; the spike of long-hidden feelings that grow between James and Henry, during their time apart; the spark of jealousy in Lady, that is so unexpected, when Francis and Archie are reunited. Each piece adds another layer to an already well crafted world.
Purify Your Soul is a comfortable blend of horror, romance, the paranormal, and a quest that takes you on emotional highs and lows that keep you perpetually invested in the story. The characters are at times violent and vicious, while charming, cheeky and completely relatable. They’re human in a way that some non-demon characters fail to be, when written by other authors. That’s the skill of Black’s writing – everyone has a story, everyone is important, and no matter their nature, everyone can feel and will make you feel, right alongside them.
Unique. Original. Hypnotising. Clever. Brutal…and beautiful. The Gentleman Demons series is in a class all of its own.
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Favourite Quotes
“Lady scowled and considered swatting him, but he didn’t. “Francis Hislop.” He sucked in a deep breath. “You should know by now that I will never leave you behind.””