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bibliofiendlm's review against another edition
5.0
This was a long anticipated story that lived up to my expectations and then some. great new direction for the series and a new spin off! Yay!
jbquinn's review against another edition
3.0
I love the LoTU series! With that said I didn't really care for this book! I couldn't seem to get into it like the others and I felt like it was dragged out. Which is to bad because I was really looking forward to Paris' story. I really hope she isn't done with the series though because I'd love to read more about Torin, Kane, William, and even Cameo! I am looming forward to the reading about the angels! So I look forward to that!
booklovinmamas's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Darkest Seduction is the ninth book in Gena Showalter’s Lords of the Underworld series. I first read this when it was released back in 2012 and loved it, and I loved it even more when I decided to reread it this year (2023). Paris and Sienna’s story will always be a favorite of mine, and the book cover will always be one of my favorites in the series, too.
Paris is possessed by the Demon of Promiscuity, which means he has to sleep with a new woman whenever his demon requires it, and he can’t sleep with the same woman again; otherwise, he’ll get sick from it. The only woman he suspects he can be with more than once is Sienna, and he suspects it’s due to her being his mate. The issue is she was a hunter when she was alive, and she’s been dead for a while, at least that is what he thought, until he found out Cronus, the King of the Titans, has kept her captive and given her the demon of Wrath that his friend, Aeron used to have. Paris will do anything to save Sienna, even sleeping with a Goddess or two to find out what he has to do to retrieve her from Cronus’s grasp. Paris doesn’t like what he has to do and is ashamed of it, but he’ll do anything to be with Sienna and prove he can be with her more than once.
Poor Sienna has to live life with a demon inside her now due to Cronus, who she can’t stand, and she wants to leave but can’t. The worst part of it all is no one can see her except Cronus, Paris, and a few others, such as an angel named Zacharel, who has his own agenda when it comes to Paris and Sienna’s story. I love when Gena throws in twists and turns in her stories and I knew right away that she was probably setting up new characters and possibly a new series because the angels were showing up a lot in the Lords of the Underworld books.
Here are my thoughts on the book and why I gave it five stars the first time and now the second time after reading it.
- Paris and his determination to save Sienna from Cronus and his plans, even though he should be hesitant since she used to be a hunter, but he didn’t care. He put his buddies in their place whenever they talked bad about her. I know he did some things in order to retrieve her that he was even ashamed of, but just remember, his demon makes him do it. He changes once he’s with Sienna, completely.
- Sienna was an FMC I didn’t expect to like due to what she did to Paris before, but she was possessed with Wrath. She found out the truth and didn’t align with the Hunters. She played a major part in the story that wasn’t expecting and redeemed herself in my opinion. She was a kick-butt heroine and may have taken the top spot from Anya, which is hard to do since I love Anya, but Sienna can wield a sword like no other.
- I loved getting to know the Angel, Zacharel, and knew he was up to something when it came to Paris and Sienna.
- I loved that I got more of William’s POV and that he has another big secret that is revealed in this book. He also helps when it comes to Ashlyn and that’s all I’m going to say on that because I don’t want to give anything away.
- The steamy moments between Paris and Sienna were off the charts, which I already knew would be the case. It did take some time for Paris and Sienna to give in to each other, but that’s due to their pasts and Paris’s demon.
The first time I read this book, I was sleep-deprived because I had a hard time putting it down. I didn’t sleep-deprived myself when I read it a second time, but that’s because I have the audiobook version of it this time. When I wasn’t reading it, I was listening to it, and I love that Max Bellmore is the narrator for this series. He brings the story to life in my ears, and I highly recommend the audiobooks to this series.
I could go on and on about this book and how much I enjoyed it, but I don’t want to give anything away. I’m so glad I reread this book because it made me realize how much I will always love Paris and Sienna.
Story Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Steam/Spice: 🌶️🌶️.5
Standalone or Part of Series: It’s part of the Lords of the Underworld series, and I recommend reading in order.
Would I recommend this book/series? Yes. I recommend this book/series to Paranormal Romance readers.
Genre/SubGenre(s): Romance | Paranormal Romance
Trope(s)/Element(s): Fated Mates | Forbidden Romance | Enemies to Lovers | Kickbutt Heroine | Alpha Hero | Jealous/Possessive Hero | Lords Possessed with Demons | Angels | Demons
kittykolektor's review against another edition
5.0
Paris and Siena
A love for all ages. A battle between good and evil. A glimpse into William and The Four horseman. This book had it all.
A love for all ages. A battle between good and evil. A glimpse into William and The Four horseman. This book had it all.
nrmaharaj's review against another edition
No kidding. Read it for an author event.
Bonus: the Kobo edition has Gena's notes strewn throughout. It's a pretty cool feature.
Bonus: the Kobo edition has Gena's notes strewn throughout. It's a pretty cool feature.
amyiw's review against another edition
4.0
Great ending, great chemistry and romance. I really liked this one and all the add in except for Kane's. His parts were just distracting and didn't add to what was going on. I think I may be a little different as I liked Sienna better than Paris but could relate to both. I liked that she didn't shy away from talking about Paris' encounters with men. She even touches on a situation I thought would have to have come up in thousands of years. I thought Paris getting a hold of and diverting his demon was a well done. I wasn't sure how Showalter was going to do it but it seems good. The demon goes from being called promiscuity to sex. He was always called sex but in the end that is all you hear... makes sense too. Sienna is a ghost and to most people, invisible. I didn't like this thought but that works out too.
Through the whole story, Sienna is pulled and manipulated by all sides and it is not just two sides either. Everyone has their own agenda and everyone wants to use Sienna, Chronos, the Angels, Rhea, even the hunters would, if they only knew... I think she handles it well though you have to wonder what her vows will do in the end.
So glad that this book seemed to wrap up all the parts that were interesting, important to me. Around 3/4 of the way through I was a little worried that it wouldn't and would leave a bunch of cliffhangers at the end. It did leave Kane (Disaster) in a cliffhanger but he never was a favorite or interesting one and I have no interest in reading his story. All the other parts seemed to add to it. I really like the character of Zacharel and am so glad his book is coming later this month. She didn't have to entice me by a cliffhanger either. His character is so well drawn that you want to know more.
My major complaint though... Started this right after The Darkest Secret and The Darkest Surrender and I cannot remember the scenes of Paris and Sienna from the other books because they were in the books before those! In the beginning Paris and Sienna think of each other in every scene. I vaguely remember the capture of Paris and the death of Sienna during the escape but that is it. At 1/4 through this book, I need to get copies of the previous books to re-read that scene, along with whatever else. I cannot remember why Chronos has her. I cannot remember the scene where she discovers the hunters are evil. I feel like this is a book I put down after reading 1/3 of it and then picked back up after 2 years. I believe the main scenes between them happened in book 4, though it could have been book 3. Book 4 was written over 2 1/2 years ago. Luckily the scenes are definitely secondary, unlike The Black Dagger Brotherhood, so I could read the rest without picking up the previous books (unlike BDB) and still get an understanding, especially since Showalter is retelling the scenes to an extent. Still I would rather all the pertinent scene to be in the same book. Cliffhangers don't entice me to continue with a series, the story does. Still if she just put the scenes of Paris in the beginning of this book, I could do with the cliffhanger; it's not remembering what happened that is the worst.
Very good ending to the series. Yes, I know she'll write more Lords, but not interested. I do want to start her Falling angles series and see where that goes with Zacherel.
Through the whole story, Sienna is pulled and manipulated by all sides and it is not just two sides either. Everyone has their own agenda and everyone wants to use Sienna, Chronos, the Angels, Rhea, even the hunters would, if they only knew... I think she handles it well though you have to wonder what her vows will do in the end.
So glad that this book seemed to wrap up all the parts that were interesting, important to me. Around 3/4 of the way through I was a little worried that it wouldn't and would leave a bunch of cliffhangers at the end. It did leave Kane (Disaster) in a cliffhanger but he never was a favorite or interesting one and I have no interest in reading his story. All the other parts seemed to add to it. I really like the character of Zacharel and am so glad his book is coming later this month. She didn't have to entice me by a cliffhanger either. His character is so well drawn that you want to know more.
My major complaint though... Started this right after The Darkest Secret and The Darkest Surrender and I cannot remember the scenes of Paris and Sienna from the other books because they were in the books before those! In the beginning Paris and Sienna think of each other in every scene. I vaguely remember the capture of Paris and the death of Sienna during the escape but that is it. At 1/4 through this book, I need to get copies of the previous books to re-read that scene, along with whatever else. I cannot remember why Chronos has her. I cannot remember the scene where she discovers the hunters are evil. I feel like this is a book I put down after reading 1/3 of it and then picked back up after 2 years. I believe the main scenes between them happened in book 4, though it could have been book 3. Book 4 was written over 2 1/2 years ago. Luckily the scenes are definitely secondary, unlike The Black Dagger Brotherhood, so I could read the rest without picking up the previous books (unlike BDB) and still get an understanding, especially since Showalter is retelling the scenes to an extent. Still I would rather all the pertinent scene to be in the same book. Cliffhangers don't entice me to continue with a series, the story does. Still if she just put the scenes of Paris in the beginning of this book, I could do with the cliffhanger; it's not remembering what happened that is the worst.
Very good ending to the series. Yes, I know she'll write more Lords, but not interested. I do want to start her Falling angles series and see where that goes with Zacherel.
audiobookmel's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
This book was a slow start, but does pick up about 100 pages in. I was hoping for a better story. It was so anticipated, I think I might have had my hopes up too much.
This book was a slow start, but does pick up about 100 pages in. I was hoping for a better story. It was so anticipated, I think I might have had my hopes up too much.
necessitteem's review against another edition
5.0
I very much enjoyed Paris and Sienna’s story. There was some very unexpected turns in this book. I look forward to the next book.
ccoleman813's review against another edition
4.0
In this edition of Lords of the Underworld series, I think that Gena Showalter has done her best writing.
Though I wish there were more details about once Paris and Sienna were together and the other Lords apparently had issues with his invisible girlfriend/Hunter when there was no 'intervention' with Amun's female being an ex-hunter (in fact, still being a hunter when Amun met her).
Overall, I did really enjoy the book. I would have enjoyed much more details. Plus, I was kinda upset that we were to presume Kade was being rescued until the mention that it failed...again, would have liked more details.
Though I wish there were more details about once Paris and Sienna were together and the other Lords apparently had issues with his invisible girlfriend/Hunter when there was no 'intervention' with Amun's female being an ex-hunter (in fact, still being a hunter when Amun met her).
Overall, I did really enjoy the book. I would have enjoyed much more details. Plus, I was kinda upset that we were to presume Kade was being rescued until the mention that it failed...again, would have liked more details.