Author: Sylvain Reynard

Book: The Shadow (The Florentine #2)

tl;dr recommendation: heartpounding and heartwarming at the same time. 4.5 stars!

Book Summary:

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Gabriel trilogy comes the hotly anticipated follow-up to The Raven, a sensual novel set in Florence featuring the dangerously intoxicating coupling of Raven and William…

Raven Wood’s vampyre prince has returned, pledging his love and promising justice for every wrong done to her. In the wake of their reunion, Raven is faced with a terrible decision—allow the Prince to wreak vengeance against the demons of her past, or persuade him to stay his hand. But there is far more at stake than Raven’s heart…

A shadow has fallen over the city of Florence. Ispettor Batelli will not rest until he uncovers Raven’s connection to the theft of the priceless art from the Uffizi Gallery. And while the Prince hunts a traitor who sabotages him at every turn, he finds himself the target of the vampyres’ mortal enemy.

As he wages a war on two fronts, he will need to keep his love for Raven secret, or risk exposing his greatest weakness…

Longer Review:

This is a series my friends – a gorgeously written and breathtaking look at the love of William, a vampyre, and Raven, a human – but it is a series. Fair warning.

The Shadow directs your focus to the almost lost love that Raven and William share. While the first book challenged whether William could actually feel things, the second book deals with outside pressures that happen when…well, you are the head of a Vampyre City and you’re hiding the fact that you’re in love with a human.

It’s dangerous for them to keep their relationship, but they continue because they have to be together. They’re compelled to be one. Even though they are infinitely different, they are intrinsically the same. We learn so much more about where William came from; how he became a vampyre; and how he became who he is. Similarly, we learn that Raven isn’t as stubborn as I once thought – that she has a reasoning for her thought process – and that she’s loyal to a fault.

I could write a really long review about how fucking great the writing is, but if you’ve read Sylvain then you already know how great the writing is. It’s not your typical romance novel and I would place it in the Diana Gabaldon category of ‘Good Shit.’ It’s certainly more well suited for a literary reader, but it also crosses across the board for someone who is just looking for a great love story.

This story has that ‘epic’ feeling that makes you want to scream when it’s over. Because sorry – but the story isn’t ACTUALLY over when it’s over. There’s not a huge cliffhanger, so calm yourself. But there’s definitely more to come – which had me dying inside.

The Shadow is oh so worth it. It’s heartpounding and heartwarming at the same time. William and Raven fly to the top of my favorite paranormal couples list! BOOK3 PLEASE! 4.5 stars.

[I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review]