Review: Lover at Last – JR Ward

Qhuinn, son of no one, is used to being on his own. Disavowed from his bloodline, shunned by the aristocracy, he has finally found an identity as one of the most brutal fighters in the war against the Lessening Society. But his life is not complete. Even as the prospect of having a family of his own seems to be within reach, he is empty on the inside, his heart given to another….

Blay, after years of unrequited love, has moved on from his feelings for Qhuinn. And it’s about time: The male has found his perfect match in a Chosen female, and they are going to have a young—just as Qhuinn has always wanted for himself. It’s hard to see the new couple together, but building your life around a pipe dream is just a heartbreak waiting to happen. As he’s learned firsthand.

Fate seems to have taken these vampire soldiers in different directions… but as the battle over the race’s throne intensifies, and new players on the scene in Caldwell create mortal danger for the Brotherhood, Qhuinn finally learns the true definition of courage, and two hearts who are meant to be together… finally become one.

Series:  Black Dagger Brotherhood #11
Release Date:  March 26, 2013
Publisher:  NAL
Source:  Amazon, via my own wallet
Buy the book at:

Reviewer’s Thoughts:

To say I’ve been waiting for Blay and Qhuinn’s story is an understatement.  There was such “meat” to their story that they deserved to have their own full length novel and finally get their happily ever after.  JR Ward created the perfect story for the two of them.  It wasn’t an easy road, because honestly nothing has ever been easy for Qhuinn.

Lots of things happen in the BDB world.  The Band of Bastards, lead by Xcor, are still on their mission to dethrone Wrath with some shady faction of the glymera.  Assail continues to build the empire that Rhevenge let go of months (or at least I think it’s months) before.  Trez and iAm, the Shadow bodyguards from Rhevenge’s days as the Reverand, get a bit more of a storyline as Trez tries to avoid a commitment he’s had since the day he was born.  And then there was the weird storyline with Assail and Sola, a cat burglar who Assail becomes “involved” with.  This was a lot of action and there were times when I was completely about who and what was going on.  For the first time ever, I had a sticky note attached to my Fire to help me keep everything straight.  Did things really need to be that complicated??  And to be honest, I could have cared less about all of that….I just wanted Blay and Qhuinn.

And we did get Blay and Qhuinn.  From the opening prologue, all I wanted to do was find Qhuinn and give him a big hug.  He tore my heart open and I wanted him to find someway to find where he belonged.  Of course, I knew that was with Blay, but Qhuinn really needed to work through issues with his past and his own sexuality before he could really ever be happy.  Of course, being Qhuinn and having that sometimes thick head of his, it takes him practically until the last page to finally have the light bulb come on, but when it did it was like a tremendous weight was lifted off his shoulders.

On the flip side of that relationship we have Blay.  Blay who’s still in love with Qhuinn but still dating Saxon.  Blay who can cut Qhuinn to the core with a look or a few words, but can’t help but still be drawn to him.  My problem with Blay was how he treated Qhuinn for most of the book.  He was unbelievable harsh.  So harsh I spent most of the time I was reading wanting to cause bodily harm to him myself.  Blay put up an emotional wall to try and protect himself from being sucked into Qhuinn’s world again, but as he did that he cut Qhuinn down…a lot.  Nothing was more harsh than when Blay and Qhuinn were in the hallway down in the clinic and Blay fileted Qhuinn.  Sure I can understand why he wanted to protect himself from someone he didn’t think could love him forever, but given the emotional state Qhuinn was in for most of the 591 pages, I would have thought Blay would have truly recognized that acting like he was wasn’t the best way to get things across to Qhuinn.

That leaves Layla.  I’m on the fence about her.  Given what happened between Layla and Qhuinn in the last book, I would have thought she’d have a bigger role in this book.  She was there, but she had as much “page time” as all the other side storylines.  I question her judgement because of her fascination with a certain vampire and wonder that will mean down the road with her, Qhuinn and… (trying to avoid spoilers).  To be honest, I could do without her.  She’s never been the “sharpest pencil in the box” and I atrributed that to being sequestered all those years with the Scribe Virgin.  But now I just don’t think she’ll be good for anyone and cause much bigger issues.

I really, really enjoyed this one.  The emotionally charged story between Blay and Qhuinn reminded of Zsadist’s story and it had me hooked from the very beginning.  I could have done with less of the other storylines (see my comments about the sticky note above) because really all I wanted was for Blay and Qhuinn to finally get together and to see what those Bands of Bastards were up to.  However, the continuation of the BDB world has been set up perfectly and I will now need to sit back and wait for next March to see what JR Ward has in store for us next.

Cocktail Recipe

Vampire Kiss Martini

Take a French Martini, cross it with a Vampire, ditch the juice and add a splash of bubbly and you have given birth to a Vampire Kiss Martini. The taste of the drink itself is anything but scary, it’s actually very elegant and something that would work not only for Halloween, but for Valentine’s Day or any Champagne-worthy occasion. For it’s intended holiday, it is perfect because the Chambord gives it a dark, almost black color.

The rim on this cocktail is a little devious because the courtesy image suggests a syrup that drips along the edge while the written recipe indicates the standard sugar rim, which would be crystalline. If you want the syrupy look: drizzle a thin stream of grenadine (or a similar red syrup) on the inside of the rim of the glass. Practice and use frozen glasses for the best visual results.

Prep Time: 3 minutes

Total Time: 3 minutes

Yield: 1 Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz Finlandia Vodka
• 1 1/2 oz Korbel Champagne
• 3/4 oz Chambord black raspberry liqueur
• Red sugar for rimming

Preparation:

1. Rim the glass with red sugar (use food coloring) or drop in a set of wax vampire teeth for a real surprise.
2. Pour vodka and half of the Chambord in a martini glass.
3. Top with Champagne.
4. Pour the remaining Chambord over the back of a spoon to make it float.