Stygian Attis was raised by a cruel grandfather who hated him for the circumstances of his birth. From a young age, Stygian was taught to suppress his feelings and desires, but when a beautiful thief sneaks into his room, something stirs inside him.He wants her. His shards—the magical fragments of ancient souls he carries—want her, too. They whisper that she has the power to change his life … life forever, if only he can keep her from slipping out of his grasp.
Echo Charmaine is on the run from the man who murdered her entire family. If he catches her, he’ll kill her for the power she now carries. But before she can move on to the next town, the voices in her head demand that she drop off a tattered, magical bit of paper. When she gets caught delivering the mystical mail, she inadvertently stumbles into something far bigger than she ever could have imagined, tying her destiny to that of a big, intoxicating man who has the power to make her yearn for things she knows are impossible for a woman on the run.
Now, drawn together by passion and the shards they share, their fates are inextricably entwined. If they can’t find a way to rid themselves of the evil that haunts them before the next new moon, neither of them will make it out alive…
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He was raised to suppress his feeling and desires by a cruel grandfather, but something stirs inside Stygian Attis when a beautiful thief sneaks into his room. On the run from the man who killed her entire family, but the voices in Echo Charmaine’s head demand that she drop off a tattered, magical bit of paper before she can move on to the next town. Drawn together by passion and the shards they share, Stygian and Echo’s fates are inextricably entwined but if they can’t find a way to rid themselves of the evil haunting them before the next new moon, neither will make it out alive.
‘Sing Me To Sleep’ is one emotional roller coaster of gripping emotions, electrical chemistry and pulse pounding suspense. The hero and heroine are strong, captivating characters that are a perfect fit and while their attraction burns hot and fast, Stygian and Echo’s relationship is one hellish ride of twisted, confused feelings because of the shards inside them. Lots of angst and other feelings flow the pages and readers experience right alongside the characters including tears and sparks.
The journey to find what the couple needs to fight for their happily ever after is one fast paced plot full of superior suspense that keeps readers turning the pages as fast as they can read them. Not only is the quest full of suspense and excitement but the evil is stalking their every step adding danger and stunning twists that amps the excitement up even more. While this story can be read as a standalone, in order to achieve maximum enjoyment, it should be read in sequence as the overall battle with evil is a thrilling ongoing one that readers can really sink their teeth into.
4.25 stars–SING ME TO SLEEP is the third instalment in Anna Argent’s contemporary, adult THE LOST SHARDS paranormal romance series focusing on a group of people imbued with magic powers. This is twenty-nine year old Stygian Attis, and Echo Charmaine’s story line. SING ME TO SLEEP can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information fro he previous story lines is revealed where necessary but I recommend reading the series in order for back story and history.
SOME BACKGROUND: The world as we know it is filled with magic, and throughout history people have been blessed or cursed with magical abilities. The ongoing war between good and evil pits the Riven against the Vires in their search for anyone with magical shards-slivers of magic passed down from parent to child, or in many cases, upon the death of someone with magic. By killing someone with magic, the perpetrator ‘inherits’ the shards of his/her victims; upon the death of a loved one, the shard is passed to the nearest kin.
Told from several third person perspectives including Stygian and Echo SING ME TO SLEEP follows Echo Charmaine as the ‘voice’ in her head sends her to the Riven compound, a compound where she must deliver the ‘prophecy’ to Stygian Attis. Trying to stay one step ahead of the creature she calls ‘rat-man’ Echo finds herself a virtual prisoner of the Riven and the man with whom she will fall in love. As Stygian wages war with the voices in his own head, the ‘slivers’ of evil begin to take control, control that places Echo and Stygian in a precarious position as they begin their journey to see the prophecy fulfilled. What ensues is the building relationship between Stygian and Echo, and the fall-out as the past threatens to destroy Stygian’s tenuous hold on his life and that of the woman he loves including the voices that are aware of how close our hero is to losing it all.
Echo Charmaine has the ability to control people with song but our heroine has lost everyone she loves when the ‘rat-man’ took everything and more. Now eight years later, trying to stay one step ahead of the evil that continues to threaten her life, Echo finds temporary solace with a man whose past is tied directly with her own.
Meanwhile Riven leader Garrick Andor, and Holt Bardrick find themselves on the hunt for their former Riven leader Starry Mandrake, a woman who has taken too many souls, and is no longer the woman they once trusted and loved.
Once again, there is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including the Riven leader Garrick Andor, IT expert Marvel Manning, empath and healer Eliana, historian and librarian Harold Lionel, fifteen year old Eden, a young woman with the ability to ‘read’ the shards, and her protector, fifty something Argo. The requisite evil has many faces as the Riven continue to battle the Vires, as the Vires hunt for those with the dangerous shards.
SING ME TO SLEEP is a captivating and unique look at the paranormal. The premise is engaging and fascinating; the characters are colorful but struggling; the romance is intoxicating but suffers with issues of trust and possible manipulation.