Erica Chilson's Reviews > Lover Arisen

I received a free copy of this title to read and review for Wicked Reads

LOVER ARISEN is the 20th installment in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. You absolutely must be current with the series and read in series order, as there was a shift in the series, the world building changing from the first half of the installments, which would lead to confusion for the reader.

To be honest, I'm a fan of Ward's but no longer a die-hard fan of the series itself. I will continue to reread the first 10 books or so, knowing them like the back of my hand. The latter books in the series are a one and done, and sometimes a struggle to wade through at that. Read purely out of nostalgia, and in LOVER ARISEN's case, it was just that. Nostalgic.

Now onto the review.

Full Stop. There were just too many threads being woven together, too many plots, to the point they all got lost in the wash, so to speak. None of them were fully explored, the knots not necessarily tying together without holes. It was a struggle for me to get through, because with the more going on, the less time I have to connect with the characters and the story.

I liked the homicide detective just fine but that was about it, as I truly didn't know much about Erika. Just surface level emotions, shallow. The same for Balthazar, liked him just fine, what I read about him. There wasn't much there, either in their backstories or their present, with the thinnest of ties in their romance. As what they receive as "their book" was more like a quarter of the pages, if that.

See, this is why I enjoyed the first half of the series more. The MCs were the focus, the continuing threads were secondary. Unless they're a main character across an arc of novels (like Lassiter's love triangle), characters like Erika and Balthazar, their romances are insta-love, forced proximity with no true connection, where a couple is tossed together, a couple that wouldn't be together, never having anything in common, and never balancing each other out. But they're never given the page-time to make that connection, shortchanging both characters and the readers' experience. Erika and Balthazar were no different, they're together because WARD told us so. They're just there, being driven over by the rest of the story for the added romance.

Overshadowing the connection between the main characters- to the point where they aren't truly the MCs, were they? -are two predominant plots. Sure, it all connects, but the MCs are only the passengers. Main characters are supposed to drive, right?

Lassiter is our new Scribe Virgin, which is awesome. Who doesn't love Lassiter? I've enjoyed him since he first stepped onto the pages many, many books ago. I enjoyed his plot. See, that's the thing. Lassiter outshined the meh MCs. Not hard to do when you quite literally shine. So why not just focus on Lassiter, right?

Well, because Lassiter's book is next. Okay. Great. But instead of feeding the next novel, how about we concentrate on Erika and Balthazar then? Sure, we want more Lassiter, but don't outshine. Just makes it feel like filler, padding the excitement for the next novel, totally shortchanging the current couple. Just saying...

Many scene-stealing characters, none of them the supposed MCs. Rahvyn, a power unto herself. Nate. The demon, Devina, is a force to be reckoned with, an enjoyable villainess- a unique and interesting character that spawned the reemergence of a character who I wished was long gone, to the point I doubt I will continue reading the series onward, sticking to my tried and true favorites.

We got rid of this heinous character. There are villains, entertaining villains and bad villains and redeemable villains, and then there is this character of pure evil. I'm not interested to discover if he is reformed or made even more evil, because in my opinion, I was just thankful to never see him name on the pages. Nothing is as creepy as a demon who wants to "love" this creep. Frankly, it triggers me on an emotional level, even seeing his name. This is a line-crosser for me, so I'm outie!

No doubt readers are wishing to know if any of the main brothers are on-scene. Several cameos offering classic BDB banter. V. My man, V gets some page-time. To be honest, we needed more of this humor-laden entertainment, because the mood of the novel was dark. The romance was not strong enough to lighten it. The novel was sorely lacking the usual levity. The WARDen's voice is so distinct, a voice I miss and long to hear more. The spin of the words, making me chuckle unexpectedly, thoroughly entertained, but I felt this novel was missing that spark.

Bottom line: the world building is addictive and original. Many characters are intriguing, but those characters just so happen to NOT be Erika or Balthazar. The romance is ho-hum, the smexy meh, because the romance is just there to cushion what could have turned the novel into more horror than paranormal romance.