The Darkest Touch Review

The Darkest Touch is the third novel in Jaci Burton's Demon Hunter series. Do you like your men who can kick some demon ass like nobody's business, and their women who are smart and intelligent? The Darkest Touch will definitely appeal to readers who like paranormals that have action packed scenes and a great deal of adventure within the pages. And of course I cannot fail to mention that there are some nice sex scenes also. Even though I haven't had the chance to read the first two in this series, I didn't find myself lost and things picked up rather quickly. The action starts on page one and does not let up. The two main characters here are archeologist, Angelique Deveraux and demon hunter Ryder, who has no last name.

I can only assume both Angelique and Ryder were first introduced in Hunting the Demon (Book 2)? Angelique is not your normal run of the mill archeologist, for she and her twin sister, Isabelle, may have special powers that the demons known as the Sons of Darkness need for their own means. One of the sisters is a catalyst who can bring the coveted black diamond to life. If the diamond gets into the hands of the demons, and one of the Deveraux sisters are able to tap into the power of the diamond, the whole world could be in danger. From the beginning, we find out that Angelique is not the sister who can do this, but it is her twin, Isabelle, who has darkness living inside of her.

Ryder is part of the Realm of Light, the group that keeps the Sons of Darkness in line. He had helped Angelique escape from the demons that had first captured her, but she didn't wait around for him and now he has to find her before she is found by those nasty demons again. Plus, she has the black diamond, and Ryder is not certain if Angelique is so innocent in all of this. He assumes that Angelique may use the diamond to save herself, or sell it to the highest bidder. Ryder is able to find Angelique and they go on the run. He won't let her go till he finds out where she had hidden the diamond. Angelique won't give up the diamond unless Ryder can help her find Isabelle. When Angelique knows that Isabelle is safe, then she will give Ryder what he wants.

Angelique does give Ryder one of the things he wants from her, and that means sex. But since Ryder can't love Angelique, and only can give her sex, he keeps her at arms length when it comes to his heart. They barely have time to work out their feelings because they are constantly on the run from demons and searching for Isabelle who is close to being found by the Sons of Darkness. Again Isabelle's dark nature comes into play and is a very important part of the story.

The Darkest Touch has some dark moments with nasty demons and of action and fighting. Ryder is your typical brooding, I can't love you hero, because he feels he is not worthy of Angelique's love. Angelique is a man's dream come true because she is so caring. I found these two a bit annoying because of the constant pushing and pulling going on in their relationship. But to counteract them, there was a secondary story dealing with Isabelle and another demon hunter, Dalton. I really did enjoy Isabelle and Dalton better than Angelique and Ryder. Isabelle is very different from her perfect twin. She is greedy, pushy and the question of whether she is truly evil is left open for the reader todecide. There is a major secret about these twin sisters and Isabelle tends to embrace the one side her sister Angelique ignores. The way The Darkest Touch ends, leads me to believe that the next book will be about Isabelle and Dalton. As for Dalton, he is another brooding male, but very sexy, and gives it to Isabelle good against the wall of her cabin on a yacht as they look for underwater treasure.

Overall, I found The Darkest Touch a pleasing read. Jaci's writing, as always, is great, and she has a way of building up the action along with some surprises you won't see coming.

3 stars out of 5 stars

Katiebabs (KB)