“She is too sinful to be Divineand too righteous to be Damned.”Nocturna; a hybrid, an all around smart ass, and the owner of The Apothecary, a night club for all the denizens that walk the earth to play amongst humans, is about to have her life altered by the Creator of all. The last Arbiter has fallen and a new one must be chosen, one of both Divine and Damned blood. She will be both judge and … Damned blood. She will be both judge and executioner for the supernatural races, choosing how to punish or bless the souls brought before her.
Within her first week with her new status, Damned from all over are disappearing and disturbing videos of Damned being tortured and killed are surfacing. When Lord Monroe, one of The Infernal leaders of the Damned, becomes one of those who are missing, the Damned begin to point their fingers at The Rites; the Divine soldiers who are part of The Order of Abel. The clock is ticking, and it is her responsibility to find who is responsible and pass judgement. With the help of Enoch, an Infernal of the Damned, and Larkan, a Rite of the Order, Nocturna travels to Lord Monroe’s estate, hoping to find clues as to what happened to him and all the others.
Her integrity and her heart will be pushed and pulled in all directions as she faces the biggest dilemma of her existence; can she make the decision that is right for the lives of all, not the decision that is easiest for her. Will she stay true and lead the world into peace? Or will she choose sides like all the Arbiters before her and lead them all to destruction?
**This is a Reverse Harem Dark Romance that is recommended for ages 18+. There are elements of violence, such as torture and a body count, and steamy scenes that are sure to light you on fire. If you’re into that sort of thing, then boy do we have the book for you!
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Loved it!
This is the first collaboration between these writers and boy is it a doozy! A gritty paranormal fantasy romance between the damned and the divine, and the arbiter who mediates
Nocturna is fiesty and spunky, she runs a club for all to visit safely and manages to keep the peace there, after being attacked she changes and her life will never be the same again. There are several men who take a shine to our beautiful heroine and a mystery that needs to be solved! A fantastically written story with a great plot line I could not put it down
First, the cover of this book is amazing! Second, the premise of the story is incredible! Third, I can’t wait for the sequel!
“There’s always a fine line between everything. Love and hate. Cruelty and compassion. Pure and tainted. Light and dark. Most fail on either side of the spectrum within black or white, but none fall on that line that flows through the grey areas. No one is a perfect balance of all those things.”
This is what the Arbiter is supposed to be. Nocturna is a half breed. Half Divine and half Damned. There are very few halfies in the world and the Creator chooses one to be the Arbiter. The Arbiter is judge and jury over the Damned and Divine. Nocturna believes in a place that both beings can be themselves as long as nobody breaks the rules. She has created a sort of sanctuary for both within her club, The Apothecary. One eventful night and her world is rocked when she becomes the Arbiter. She finds that a past love and heartbreak, Enoch, is part of the Infernal who are the leaders of the Damned. She falls for Monroe, another leader of the Infernal. And has an incredible bond with Larkan, a Rite with the Divine. As they find out that Damned have been abducted and tortured they all find that they are part of the bigger picture and need to save these souls and stop the torturing. At the same time we are finding that not everyone on their team are loyal and their are traitors in the midst. Monroe ends up being captured, one of her dearest friends are abducted and her friend’s husband has been killed. Nocturna has to turn herself over to the bad guys in order to try and save the ones she love. And all the men in her life are going to be needed to keep her balanced between the Divine and the Damned.
This is a dark paranormal reverse harem story that is very intriguing. There is a lot going on within the big picture. It is dark and mysterious and is intense on the emotions evoked. It seemed to me like there was a lot of world building going on but some things were missed or rushed. Some of the characters were a little underdeveloped in my opinion. There was always just something out of reach. Overall though, I really enjoyed the story. There is a cliffhanger and I am anxiously awaiting the sequel to see how the story develops. It’s a wicked start to what I am sure will be an intense series!