Dark Melody - Christine Feehan

...race.

In Dark Melody Dayan is the dark male interest. He is lead guitarist with the Dark Troubadours and tours the globe playing to packed houses. He is not human. “I am Carpathian. We are as old as time, doomed to wander the earth until we make the choice to give up our lives. Our males are dark, deadly predators; the beast lies strong within us, ever growing until such time as we find our lifemates to anchor us in the world of light.” ...
...all emotions and colours. “I knew utter bleakness, a black, empty void.” Only a true lifemate will bring these senses back. If a Carpathian fails to find a lifemate the beast within grows stronger until the Carpathian becomes what is termed a vampire. A creature that actively seeks out those who have what it craves and destroys them: a creature that will deliberately drink the last blood drop.

Corinne is human. Fanatics have killed ... more

I am a great fan of the works of Christine Feehan. She has written a number of romantic fantasy books about the Carpathian people, a race of human like beings from Romania and Transylvania. They are creatures of the night, but not vampires. Each of the books has the word ‘dark’ in the title and the story is usually based on one of the yummy males of the race.

In Dark Melody Dayan is the dark male interest. He is lead guitarist with the Dark Troubadours and tours the globe playing to packed houses. He is not human. “I am Carpathian. We are as old as time, doomed to wander the earth until we make the choice to give up our lives. Our males are dark, deadly predators; the beast lies strong within us, ever growing until such time as we find our lifemates to anchor us in the world of light.”

As a Carpathian ages he loses all emotions and colours. “I knew utter bleakness, a black, empty void.” Only a true lifemate will bring these senses back. If a Carpathian fails to find a lifemate the beast within grows stronger until the Carpathian becomes what is termed a vampire. A creature that actively seeks out those who have what it craves and destroys them: a creature that will deliberately drink the last blood drop.

Corinne is human. Fanatics have killed her husband and are now after her and her unborn child. She is also dying of a degenerative disease that is quickly destroying her heart. Unless she is kept stress free it is doubtful she will survive the full nine months until the birth of her daughter.

Corinne and Dayan meet in a little place where he is jamming during a vacation. Suddenly his world is full of swirling colours and he realises the fragile little human who just walked through the door is his lifemate. Corinne also feels an instant attraction, as she is drawn to him almost instinctively. She is at the club with her sister-in-law Lisa, who knows about the heart problem but not that Corinne is pregnant.

Dayan and his human friend Cullen escort Corinne and Lisa back to their house only to find intruders waiting. Cullen takes Corinne and Lisa back to Dayan’s house whilst Dayan takes care of the intruders and discovers they were there to kidnap Corinne and Lisa.

Lisa does not believe that she is in any threat by the fanatics who killed her brother and goes to her modelling job as normal the next day. Dayan is unable to move during the daylight and is helpless as Cullen and Corinne take off after Lisa. Both Cullen and Corinne are injured in the attempted murder of Lisa and the doctors do not expect them to survive.

Enter the Carpathian people who race across the globe to attempt to save Corinne and her baby and also Cullen. If they can save Corinne, she and Dayan will become lifemates and Dayan will not be lost to the darkness. If they are unable to save her Dayan will become vampire and terrorise both humans and Carpathians alike. “This was the one woman whose loss would destroy him, even as her love promised to heal his soul.”

Will the Carpathian be able to get there in time? Whos life will they choose to save? Cullen? Corinne? Or the baby girl? What happens to Lisa? Will Dayan's fate be to become vampire? Who are the mysterious Carpathians racing across the globe?

By now you are wondering what the point is of reading the book when it has been so beautifully regurgitated for your delight. Ha! I have only given you a taste of the overplot, there is much, much more to the book than that.

Christine Feehan’s books are like poetry in motion. She is able to build three dimensional pictures with her words that draw you into her characters world and carries you along the story. These are books to get your teeth into. Passionate Romance they may be, but they are also full of mystery, intrigue, suspense, humour, hope, doubt, thrilling and warmth. They are also highly addictive and I find it difficult to wait for the next overbearing unattached male of the Carpathian race to fall victim to a mere woman. It is good to find a male who literally depend on a woman for their survival.

This paperback book was hot of the presses in November 2003 at £5.99.
http://www.dorchesterpub.com/features/08439-5049-8_ltr.htm
ISBN 0-8439-5049-8

The front cover has the authors name in large gold letters at the top and the books name in gold at the bottom. Each split onto two lines. The remainder of the cover is predominately blue and depicts a foggy moonlit night with a statue of a woman dozing and holding a lute. It is only when you look closer that you realise the half hidden objects in the picture are not chimney pots but grave markers.

Christine Feehan can be contacted at www.christinefeehan.com.
She dedicated this book to her daughter Denise Feehan and Cody Tucker, “Two people who share a great love of music amongst many other things”.

Would I recommend it? Well put it this way…the book arrived Saturday morning and it is now 1am Sunday morning. I could not put it down.
 

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