The Darkest Secret (Lords of the Underworld)

Ultimately, I really liked The Darkest Secret. I have been on the LOTU bandwagon since the beginning. The books have evolved, as a series does, I guess. They were pretty dark in the beginning, although there has always been some humor.

What worked for me - Amun. LOVED Amun. The strong and silent type has never been so well represented. He has such a good grip on who he is, who is friends are and what they are all about. He probably understands his friends better than they understand themselves. He is just perfect in his dealings with Haidee. And the fight scene with Strider...wow. Such a pivotal moment.

Haidee - Gena Showalter totally managed to save what many longtime readers feared would be a unsalvageable character. I felt such sorrow for all of Haidee's trials. And when she refused to back away from a fight and ends up saving herself and Amun, I was cheering for her.

Strider - I love Strider. We got a lot of Strider time in TDS, and all of it was good.

Kaia - I love the Harpys, what can I say? I can't wait for Kaia and Strider's story.

William - He cracks me up. "Take me out of your address book"

The interactions between Amun and the other Lords. Amun really is the most well adjusted of them all, and I think they look to him as proof that they are all okay, despite being demon ridden.

What didn't work so well for me - The cutesyness of some of the writing. Strideypoo? Darling man? (That is a phrase that turns up at least once in every GS book I have read and it never fails to squick me out)

Amun saying "Come here. Hold me" I had a hard time believing any guy, even one as well adjusted as Amun, would say such a girly thing.

The too neat ending. It seemed too quick, too easy. I get that this is a PNR, so unbelievable things are going to happen, but there was no bargaining, no angst, just poof! All better.

It's not uncommon as a series grows for it to almost become a parody of itself, where cutesyness and in jokes abound. I just would hate to see it happen with the LOTU series, because I love the series, and I usually really enjoy Ms. Showalter's writing. With The Darkest Secret, the strength of Amun's character and the compelling story mitigated the actual storytelling, which did not seem as compelling to me as with her previous efforts. That said, I will be first in line for Strider and Kaia's book.

9/28/12 - ETA - I just did a binge reading of the whole LOTU series, and I have to say I liked Darkest Secret a lot better this time around. It didn't seem as fluffy as when I first read it.

I wanted to try and summarize the plot for THE DARKEST SECRET like I usually do with reviews and my mind went utterly blank. Why? Because there's pretty much nothing happening in this book. Amun, Keeper of Secrets, visited hell and is now tormented by new demons. Strider brings Haidee (of the ever changing name of annoyance) to the Lords' compound as a prisoner. Apparently she was Strider's ex at some point? Now he kinda wants her again? Yeah, the whole thing baffled me. But instead of them shacking up she and Amun have some kind of telepathic connection so she finds a way (convenient) to get to him, where he's being kept prisoner to protect himself and the other Lords. She thinks he's her current boyfriend and fellow Hunter. Drama ensues.

The pair get sent off to Hell on a quest to rid Amun of his new demons. Haidee starts having flashbacky memories of her past lives. She has weird abilities but is human. The trip through Hell is hellish and they live happily ever after. Yeah... about a hundred pages in I was so bored I started to skim a lot.

The first problem I had with this one is that Amun and Haidee were the two flattest, most uninteresting characters of Showalter's that I've come across. Going into the book I had no interest in them so the actual storyline needed to be strong, fresh and fast-paced. It was like slogging through a swamp of redundant musings of the same stuff over and over and over. It was like watching a dead horse getting beaten every time either of their thoughts were being shown. They want to get it on. They are supposed to be enemies. Blah, blah, blah. If you like these characters maybe it will work for you, it bored me to tears with the exception of their meeting the Four Horsemen.

As a fan of the series, and a reader who thinks Gena is a cool gal even if I don't always like her books, I can say there was a redeeming factor here. We're getting closer to Paris and Sienna's book. We see a little more of his torment and go on a road trip with he, William, and Strider. Strider's kind of unlikable in this round though he's never been my favorite anyway but the introduction of a pairing in Kaia is welcome. This series is quite hit-and-miss but in a way that's the joy of it. I never know if I am going to love or hate each new book.

If you're a LOTU series fan this one is honestly pretty skippable. If I'd known better I would have. I'd suggest it for Amun fans and encourage others to save themselves the lengthy read and skim it. This just isn't the best in the series.

Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld series has a fascinating cast of characters. And although you don't need to have read all the books it sure helps having read one or two.

In this book Amun is the Keeper of Secrets. As the Keeper of Secrets Amun has a heavy burden. He will not speak for fear that the secrets he knows will harm others. He and his fellow warrior were arrogant and as punishment were each given a demon who possessed them. All of them suffer however, Amun's life has turned for the worse. He rescued a friend from hell and while there he was taken over by multiple demons and their secrets -who are literally driving him crazy. He is now a danger to himself and those around him. His fellow warriors are faced with the difficult decision to end his life. However, the unexpected occurs when an evil Hunter named Haidee is imprisoned at their lair. As a Hunter she has dedicated her life to killing all the Lords of the Underworld. But her presence calms Amun and she can speak to him though a mental link. However, Haidee was also responsible for the death of one of their beloved brothers. Can they let this treacherous woman near Amun? Will this evil Hunter be his only salvation?

Exciting and action packed. Gena Showalter brings us a very tense romance. As two enemies find a haven in each other and they both must question their motives/actions- Haidee more so than Amun. I liked the believable and instant connection between the two main characters. Amun was particularly noble. It took me a while to warm up to Haidee but I respected that she did not question that Amun was a part of her life and she didn't try to fight their connection. And in fact immediately aided him even when she discovered he was her enemy. (Sometimes it gets a bit tiring reading books where the main characters vacillate back and forth in their `relationship.' Going from extremes -I want him/her and then I don't want him/her....over and over again.) The author also shows hints of the upcoming books with scenes that include Strider and Paris. However, for some reason I really hope she writes Torin's book soon. Since as Keeper of Disease he cannot touch anyone without causing them harm. He seems such a tragic fellow that I really would like him to find happiness.

The Darkest Secret is a strong installment in the Lords of the Underworld series laced with humor and likeable characters. It will definitely have you looking forward to reading more.

This was installment #7- Amun, Keeper of Secrets, and Haidee, the hunter's story.

I was a little unsure of what to expect after Gideon and Scarlett's tale was so broken up with the other story threads and how it left me feeling a little flat because of it. But my faith that it would all be good after all those transitional stories had to happen, was proved to be triumphant.
I loved this story and truly got into the characters and their story. There were still a few other threads, but they were small.

Amun, a man who is forced to live almost a solitary life because he can read minds and knows everyone's secrets. He cannot even speak or he will tell everything he knows both the good and the ugly. He sacrifices constantly for the love of his friends which was why suddenly his situation was worse because now he is not only the Keeper of Secrets, he also has a horde of lesser evil demons to contain. They drive him out of his mind and the warrior angels promise the Lords that there will only be a week of leniency to find a way to get rid of these demons or the angels must destroy Amun.
Haidee is an enigma during most of the story both to Amun (he cannot read her mind) and to the reader which makes her a perfect match for one who knows everyone's secrets. Strider originally captured her with her fellow hunters who were trying to kill Strider. Yes, she's a hunter, but Haidee is not just any hunter. The first mystery about her is the fact that she should not be alive. She was the hunter bait that trapped and killed the Lords' friend Baden Keeper of Doubt hundreds of years ago. Strider killed her himself, but here she is again truthfully admitting that it was her.

The story takes off when it is discovered that the treacherous Haidee is the key to saving Amun. The demons inside him quiet when she is near him and she can hear his voiced thoughts in her head. It is now up to Haidee. Can she get past her instinct to destroy the demons who she blames for her family's deaths to care for Amun? Can he get past the fact that she killed his friend and will probably kill his other friends?

Loved unraveling Haidee's secrets and enjoyed the relationship between her and Amun. The story gives up a little more about William, hints at what is to come for Paris, and more than hints at what Strider can expect- this side story was one joy ride of a vacay for the three warriors. It was lacking the Titan god and Galen interaction, but I loved meeting the angel warriors.

Looking forward to the next book featuring Strider's story.

The Darkest Secret started out promising with Amun completely plaugued with evil and no hope in sight- love it. In comes a woman who quiets the demons. Not only is she an enemy who's already done some damage in the past, but another Lord is crushing on her- and she only hops on because she mistakes Amun for her boyfriend- love it. Struggle here, struggle there, then the middle of the book just.. fizzled out. I really didn't care to read this all the way through, but I did so I could give an honest rating.

The endearments and love scenes left me annoyed, they were uncreative and redundant. The repeated baby baby baby was even sounding better than some of the crap that came later. Bleh. I read quite a bit of romance so I can handle the cheese but this was nauseating.

The story line was okay, their journey into Hell was another could've been (it was even built up real nice) that failed. The ending was more dull and patched up than the usual happy ending romance. I have to say this is one of the worst I've read in this series so far, it just went wrong in so many places. I haven't read all of them, I skip the lower ratings and this one is definitely a pass.

Oh, even though it was the third romance the book focused on it did get me more interested in William's story. I hope that one goes better.

I have been reading LOTU ever since they first came out, and I started out LOVING them. Over time, I have become a bit disgruntled. I won't rehash the plot, becasue others have done a great job of it. Instead, I will tell you what I look forward to and what I didn't like about this book.

Dislikes....
I don't know if I was the only one, but I didn't like Strider lusting after the heroine to the point where I read the back to make sure it really wasn't his story this time. I kept thinking, this isn't right, it's Amun's story...confusing.

The hero has literally been silent the entire series, so I didn't really care about him before this book. The author does a good job with the mental communication between the hero and heroine, but the lack of interaction in the pervious novels really cut down my enjoyment. I just didn't really care about his story.

The possible setting up of the next installment for Strider didn't go over well with me. While others said that they were excited about the possible couple, I didn't like it. I agree with Strider, she slept with his friend, yuck. That makes me not want to read the next one.

Like others said, the ending was too wrapped up. Like two books ago, the ending was a conviluted tie up that just seems too far fetched.

Likes...
I am excited about William's story and how it all will play out, and I am also looking forward to Paris and Torin's. It is sad that the side stories were my favorite parts, but there it is.

Amun is ultra possessive/obsessive, so I enjoyed that. Even though he was upset with himself for fighting his friend, he was still willing to do it if he put the moves on or endangered his woman.

Overall, this book was just ok. The focus was on the relationships, which I like, and not so much on finding the aritfacts. The rating really is just a reflection on me and not the author. I just didn't care about Amun's story very much. Add a not very likable heroine at first and you have a recipe for a mediocre read. Gena Showalter is a good author, and I plan on reading the other books. They are just becoming one time readers instead of one of my favorite series of rereads.

The story opens up with Strider, who had not caught my attention in previous books, but that has sure changed! We get a healthy dose of Strider in this book, probably because his book is next. (I am way excited for that HEA! What a serious courting process that will be.) If you recall from The Darkest Lie, Strider caught a Hunter known as Haidee who has caused much strife for the warriors in the past. Strider brings Haidee to the fortress so that she can be questioned.

Amun, keeper of the demon Secrets, is still struggling from his trip to Hell. In fact, Hell is still with him because he absorbed a few hundred demon minions during his trip and they are causing him constant agony and torment. While Amun lay in misery, he calls out for help. If you recall, Amun cannot speak, lest he release all the horrible secrets he has heard. So, he reaches out with his mind. And Haidee hears him. And so starts the treacherous journey that the two must make in order to learn that they are destined for one another. There is serious bad blood between their kind, but in the process of working together to bring respite to Amun, memories reveal that all is not what it seems. We see some very tender moments between the two as they come to this realization. And quiet, mysterious Amun shows a very different side of himself when the Lords share their true opinion of Haidee.

William gets screen time in this book, which made me extremely happy. He is another favorite of mine, and has been since he was introduced. I love a snarky, sarcastic hot piece o' man, and he fits the bill beautifully. We get a small scene between he and Gilly, and learn a bit about his curse, which gives us great insight into his outlook on life and behavior. While William is not a Lord, I assume Gena will write his HEA because he is a very well-loved character. I will be very upset otherwise. :) Some of the best scenes in the book included Strider, Paris and William. I was roaring with laughter. Those scenes were gold. GOLD, I tell you. Between the text messages, the strippers and the ambrosia, it was pure magic. Fried Twinkies, FTW!

The ending of this book was a bit odd and partly the reason I did not give it a five. The final showdown nor the situation that brought the characters together in the end felt unnatural, to me. It didn't flow well. I also thought Haidee's ability to come back from the darkness, so to speak, was far to easy. I wanted more struggle. However, as with any of the LOTU series, I expect smex (Gena teases us with sexual play throughout the entire book, but we don't get the full shebang until much later. ), laughter and action, emotional struggles and vulnerability in otherwise threatening, aggressive warriors, and strong yet gentle heroines! The Darkest Secret delivered.

I am a big fan of the Lords of the Underworld but the series is not as good as it was at the beginning. Too descriptively wordy and repetitive throughout the book. Many new characters but some you do not want to root for and so have no vested interest in their books or happily ever after. The stories have devolved into more hellish experiences for everyone involved, more horror story than love story. The Demon Heroes and their leading ladies are all so damaged they may not be saveable.

I liked Amun. A silent hero but hero none the less. Keeper of the demon of secrets, the more he talks the more secrets he spills, so he just remains quiet. The telepathy between Amun and Haidee was a nice way to work that out. This book had so much of the demon Styder it in, the reader had to wonder whose book it actually was. Maybe the hero/heroine would be better served having the book focus on them instead of being a high level setup for the next book and introducing so many other chracters.

Entire pages were dedicated to talking about Haidee who was once Hadiee before she was killed by a Lord. ((Trying not to divulge too many spoilers!) Haidee was wronged by the Lords and tried to get vengeance just as they would have. But she gave it all to save her man from any more torment...

My favorite scene in the book is a fight scene between Amun and Styder and all I thought was "about time." Many Lords have fought each other to "take the edge off" their violent tempers. But this was a personal and well deserved but whooping.....The end of the book was anticlimatic and kind of boring. It was completed in a conversational flashback not the actual scenes. I felt like I slept for a year and was trying to figure out what happened. If the book had not been so wordy about unimportant things those important scenes could have been fit in.

Demon possessed Lord of the Underworld, Amun, has borne the burden of living with the Demon of Secrets, never speaking, so as to protect those around him from truths that should never see the light of day. But after a trip to Hell to help a fellow Lord, Amun is now host to a whole slew of additional demons and racked with unbearable suffering brought on by the knowledge of the unspeakably evil secrets of those beings. It is ironic that the one person who helps to push the demons to the background and bring Amun some measure of peace is the one woman who helped to murder his comrade Baden, there is just something about Haidee which makes Amun's vile inner demons go hide.

For the most part I liked Showalter's enemies to lovers story, but I did have a few nits. 1) considering the final truth about Haidee, she never really comes across as a powerful hunter in her own right, and instead pretty much remains 'bait', 2) Hell, was for the most part a walk in the park, 3) the thing that makes the HEA possible for Amun and Haidee doesn't really hold up to close scrutiny (I wish I hadn't thought about it too hard) 4) what happened to the main story arc?

The things I did like: 1) I liked the set up for Strider's story - which is surprising, because I didn't think that there was much hope for making him a leading man, but it looks like his heroine will more than make up for that. 2) I liked that Showalter did manage to actually develop Haidee's background enough to make her sympathetic, 3) I just really liked Amun, and I liked the mental connection with Haidee that allows him to communicate with her without letting his demon out of the bag.

The bottom line is that , while Darkest Secret wasn't my favorite of the Lords of the Underworld's stories, overall I still thought that it was pretty good.

4.5 Stars

Amun, Amun, Amun!! You sweet sexy demon, you.

I don't think there has been a hero in this series that I wouldn't offer to have babies with, Amun being among them. He was the typical sexy, masculine, sex god (even though he's a demon) that I have come to expect from Gena Showalter.

I wasn't originally a fan of Haidee, I don't think may people were for the obvious fact that she had killed one of the previous demons - but I never doubted Gena's ability to make the story as outstanding as the rest. The love between Amun and Haidee was tooth ache sweet and the sex was smoken.

There were a few teeny, enny, little things that didn't make this a 5 star for me.
1. I didn't like the part at the circus scene when there was a girl that was half bull. The description annoyed me a bit, because a bull is a male cow. So did this young girl have a big bull c*&k?? Or was it a girl with the bottom half as a cow, not a bull???? Yes petty, completely unneessary to bring up - I know, but just one point that stuck with me.
2. I found the ending a slight bit abrupt (like i stated teeny, enny, little things). I felt like their relationship was a huge struggle throughout the book and then POOF a happily ever after appears out of nowhere.

But apart from those TEENY, ENNY, LITTLE THINGS I LOVED IT!!!!
And don't get me started on Strider.....okay, i'm going to get started anyway. HE ROCKS. No doubt in my mind I would be more then happy for him to scream his own name if he was inbetween my legs!!!! I sure as hell can tell you i'll enjoy it a lot more then my husband will enjoy me calling out "STRIDER" the next time I climax.

CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT BOOK!!!
Love you Gena, you are such a brilliant, tremendously funny lady.

[...]

During his trip to Hell with Aeron and William to save Legion (The Darkest Lie) Amun obliviously assimilated hundreds of demons minions into himself and now they are slowly tormenting him and consuming him. He doesn't have a second of peace; he wants to kill himself to end the agony, but all his attempts to take his life had been fruitless.
Strider arrives back to the fortress bringing along the hunter Haidee as his prisoner. She is the one that help killed their friend Badem back in the days, when they were living in ancient Greece.
Haidee is unconscious thanks to all the drugs Strider has been pumping into her. She is placed in the room adjacent Amun's. She starts regaining consciousness when she hears a voice in her head calling her for help. She thinks is another hunter who is asking for her help. She discovers a forgotten connective door and immediately goes to Amun, when she sees him, he is bruised and swollen, the resemblance with her boyfriend Micah is unparalleled and she thinks is him. As soon as Haidee is close to Amun his demons get quiet. Finally he has a tranquil moment after so many days of suffering. And when he looks at her for the first time he recognizes her as the girl he has been dreaming about for many years. Same with Haidee, she is even dating Micah because she has dreamed of him before meeting him. Soon after meeting Micah she started a relationship with him, because he is the man in her dreams or at least she thought he was.
But now after spending some hours taking care of Amun she realizes he is not Micah but one of her most hated enemies. He is one of the Lords! Same happened with Amun. After his demon took a pick inside Haidee's mind he realizes she is the one that helped kill Badem.
They know there is connection between them. Nobody is able to hear Amun's mental communication, just her. Also she is the only one that can stop the torture he has been submitted by the demons possessing him; just being close to Haidee is comforting for Amun.
Haidee is feeling a strong attraction towards Amun. Something she had never experience before. She now realizes he is the one she has been dreaming about, not Micah. But he is part of the group she hates the most. The ones she is sworn to kill.
Now they need to decide what to do, to obey their hearts or the preconditions in their heads.

The Darkest Secret is book seven in Lords of the Underworld Series. It's Amun the keeper of the Demon of Secrets' book. Amun is one of the Lords we know the least. He never talks because he is afraid the moment he opens his mouth all the secrets he has been keeping inside will come rushing out, hurting feelings and friendships in the way.
Amun is the most contain of the Lords, he is also the less alpha of them. This doesn't mean he is not strong, because he is. He possesses great fortitude; he is able to contain inside himself the secrets of the world, making him maybe one of the strongest of them all.
He is caring and protective of his brothers in arms. In The Darkest Secret we see a new side of him, a side not explored before that make him even see as a "sweet" man. I really felt for him while he struggled with his feeling for Haidee and the love for his friends.

I was afraid of Mrs. Showalter election of heroine; I didn't know how she was going to pull it off. How she will make us love or at least like the woman who helped kill Badem. But here again Mrs. Showalter proves her talents with words making us not just accept but understand Haidee's actions.
Haidee was not what I was expecting, she was better. She has had a very tough life, full of pain, losses and disappointments. She is a strong woman, who values honesty and loyalty. I really liked her.

I liked that the romance between Amun and Haidee progressed slowly. Things couldn't be rushed between them. First they needed to forgive each other and forgive themselves to be able to have an honest relationship. The sexual tension between them was unbearable at times, making the "culmination" even sweeter.
I liked them as a couple. I think Haidee was a perfect choice. And I loved Amun in the scene almost at the end, when he is having dinner with the other Lords. He was great!

Strider plays an important part in The Darkest Secret. He and his ego bring us couple of laughs. But at times I felt as if Strider's story was stealing Amun and Haidee's leading place in the book.

We also see William and Paris. I really, really, really like William. I loved his interaction with Gilly. Poor William he doesn't know what it's coming his way. I can't wait to read his book.
Paris, Oh! Poor Paris. I felt for him. I suffered for him. If I could, I would get his Sienna back to him before he completely destroys himself. That's another book I really want to get my greedy hands on it.

In general I liked The Darkest Secret. The only complaint I have is the one I mention before; I think Strider had too much focus in this book. I know Mrs. Showalter was preparing us for her next book, Strider's book, The Darkest Surrender, but, anyway this was supposed to be Amun's book and he stole lots of attention from the main character.
The Darkest Secret is a very sexy paranormal romance. I recommend this book and Lords of the Underworld series in general to all paranormal lovers.
I'm looking forward to the release of The Darkest Surrender, September 27th, 2011.

Received for Review

I am going to admit this upfront, I read this book out of order and will be reading it again when I get to it in series rotation. I only say this because most of the time I love seeing characters from other books in the series and this time I didn't feel that connection (though I do feel like I WILL feel that connection later).

What I Loved: I really loved the connection between Haidee and Amun! It was immediate, over-powering, and just something that did not feel forced. The lie/secret between them actually plays out very well over the course of the story and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Most of the time I only feel sorry for one of the people in a couple but this time both were equally wronged/secretive/harmed/hurt. My heart broke for each of them and rejoiced for them when called for. This was just one of the stronger couples I have read and loved each and every minute of it!

What I Liked: Normally I would love this but I liked seeing the "Lords. I am a little behind in this series and reading one a month so I have been introduced to them. That being said it was kind of fun to piece together who has fallen in love, who is still waiting, and what they have conquered to this point. I think it will be a different kind of appreciation the 2nd time I read this book but I thought how everyone weaved into the story was very well done!

Complaints: None

Why I gave it a 4 (and may bump it up after the 2nd reading down the road): This was a fantastic book with a strong love story. The book did a great job of moving the series story along without losing any pacing. Great job overall!

Who I would recommend it too: PNR fans. This is a fantastic book and series. I still recommend reading them in order but each of them does have a contained story.

I took a break from reading romance books this summer, but when I decided to read romance again, I picked up this one. I loved the LOTU and was sad when I finished the Darkest Lie before this one came out. In the previous book, Amun, who has the demon of Secrets inside of him, went with his friend Gideon to the Underworld to save someone. While in the Underworld, Amun absorbed within him a bunch of small demons, incapacitating him. He cannot function with all the demons screaming inside his head and is a danger to everyone around him, due to the fact the demons's evil basically seeps out of him and affects everyone near him.

This book started with Strider returning to the Budapest fortress after capturing Haidee, a Hunter, and evading a group of Hunters chasing after them. (At first I thought I was reading the wrong book for I was sure that this book should be about Amun. What a confusing way to start). Haidee was the Bait who killed Baden thousands of years ago, but for some reason she has returned, though she was definitely killed before.

When Haidee was imprisoned, she could somehow hear Amun's call for help and mistook Amun for someone she knew, thus she decided to help him and protect him. It also turns out that Haidee's presence next to Amun beat back the demons that's been slowly stripping away Amun's sanity.

Amun was definitely one of the more overlooked Lords. With the demon of Secrets, he cannot talk unless he want to spill everyone's secrets and ruin lives, thus he seems to have a limited role to play in a series filled with smartass comments. But this book really made one empathize with him. We get to know Amun and the strength of will he has to protect those around him, yet his attraction to Haidee would force him to abandon everything that he loves.

Haidee, on the other hand, I felt like could be more fleshed out. Half of the book basically focused on the face she was the one who led to Baden's death. Other than that, there's really nothing special about her. Also, I feel like the two characters really didn't fight against their attraction very much. It's like they meet, almost have sex, and then both decided that they would lay down their lives for each other despite everything that's happened. There could've definitely been a lot more involved in developing their relationship. Instead of just bam! They're together. They just have to find a way to rid of the demons.

It's sad to say, but my favorite part of this book is definitely the parts involving Strider. I can't wait for his book, my only fear is that this is going to become a habit. Where while the book is about one Lord, the good parts are the parts with the lord whose book is coming out next. Hopefully Strider's book will be good because of Strider, not because of another Lord.

Not the best LOTU, but an entertaining read if only to find out more about Amun, who's been overshadowed by the others.

This is one of the most entertaining series I have ever had the pleasure of reading and The Darkest Secrets lived up to the expectations set by previous installments. Amun, keeper of the demon of secrets, was a warrior that I really didn't know much about coming into the story but always intrigued me. How much can you really know about a person who cannot open his mouth? Since his demon absorbs all of the secrets of those around him to speak would mean for him to reveal all of the absorbed secrets including those of his closest friends. This left his character a bit reclusive throughout the series until now.

Even better, the identity of his mate made the story that much more enticing since Haidee was the woman who had murdered his best friends hundreds of years ago. When Amun should have been trying to kill her, he found himself instead protecting the fierce woman. While the relationship seems as if it would be doomed from the beginning, these two characters actually worked well together and complemented one another. Of all the women, Haidee may have been the one with the odds against her most. Even though Amun accepts her, his friends are sure to want blood for her previous actions.

I was captivated by this book to the point where I could not put it down. I am not sure which was the more gripping, the main plot of Amun and Haidee, or all of the other sub plots in this story.

While this may be the seventh full-length book in this series, there are also quite a few anthologies where the characters in this series have appeared. Additionally, while I think anyone can enjoy this story alone, I would recommend to readers that they read the previous books. They are all extremely entertaining and will leave any reader wanting more the same way The Darkest Secrets left me anticipating the next story.

Originally posted at the Long and Short of It Romance Reviews

The Darkest Secret is Gena Showalter's latest edition in the on-going Lords of the Underworld series. I love this series, have read most of it at least twice and until now there has not been a single book in this series that I haven't liked. Until now, I said. To be fair, I didn't totally dislike The Darkest Secret but it left me feeling a little meh at the end. Let me tell you why this feeling sucks so hard: because this is the story of the dark and beautiful keeper of Secrets, Amun. I so wanted to feel warm and fuzzy at the end of this book and for Amun, the most caring of all the Lords to find peace. What I got was just meh.

Amun's story begins with him having just returned from a trip to Hell, his body is overrun by a bajillion demons, he has not spoken to anyone in a few millennia, and he finds himself inexplicably drawn to Haidee, the woman who took the head of his brother-in-arms, Baden. This butt-load of baggage should have exploded all over the pages and instead it just sort of trickled out and oozed all over the pages. Don't get me wrong the trickling and oozing was interesting but not what I have come to expect from this author and from this series.
Amun and Haidee's story plays out as I expected it too with no real surprises along the way. The two are transported to Hell in order to find a way to remove the bajillion demons from Amun before they claim his sanity and his life. The tension between Amun and Haidee is palpable; they hate one another yet at the same time both desperately want to shag one another. The most interesting part of this journey is how Showalter brings these two sworn enemies together. Of course this struggle leads to some fabulous and frequent naughty bits ' Remember, this love-to-last-the ages is developing in and around these two finding clever and creative ways to overcome the incredibly creepy, sinister, evil, and sometimes slithery obstacles before them in Hell. Hell, we've been there and done that!
OK, OK! I'll stop with the ranting and the negativity but only because I feel absolutely compelled to tell you about The Darkest Secret's sub-plot. Now this little bit of drama has me fired up and ready to send Showalter a nice long email that ends with "TYPE FASTER!!" In general, the full cast and crew of the Lords of the Underworld series appear in each and every edition of this series but in this instance Showalter broke with tradition and focused most of our attention (easily ¼ of the novel) on Strider, the keeper of Defeat. Grrrrr, hello, Strider! Don't misunderstand: Showalter did not write two totally separate stories in one novel. In fact, she made Strider an important part of Amun's story while at the same time laid the ground work for Strider's story. Based on the information that is tantalizingly (and tauntingly) dangled in front of us in The Darkest Secret, Strider's story has the potential to be one of the best books in this entire series!!
The bottom line: yeah, I was a bit disappointed in Amun's story. Since his introduction, Amun has always been one of the most fascinating characters for me and I somehow wanted more for him than what he got. On the flip side, there was the Strider part of the story that has left me a bit desperate for the release of the next book. The combination of disappointment and shear excitement sort of cancelled out each other and left me feeling well, a little ambivalent. Write faster, Gena Showalter, I need some more Strider in my life.
The Darkest Surrender (Strider's story) is scheduled for release September 27, 2011. I have already marked my calendar.

Amun, the Keeper of Secrets, is still recovering from his recent visit to Hell. Unfortunately, while he was there (rescuing friends and battling evil), he consumed (maybe that is not the best word to describe it...but it's probably accurate) additional demons that are causing him to literally rip himself apart. Sworn to never speak (because he would unleash secrets that will destroy others), he now spends his time hidden away in his room, away from others, mutilating himself and silently suffering from being tormented by the voices in his head. Meanwhile, Strider (Keeper of Defeat...AKA "Win") has returned to the house with a beautiful, sedated Hunter (Haidee) who was responsible for their friend's (Baden, The Keeper of Distrust) beheading . Ironically , Haidee's mere presence soothes Amun and heals him as no other remedy has. While the two know that they should not be attracted to each other, after all they are mortal enemies, they find themselves drawn to each other through a powerful connection that neither would have believed. As the two embark on a mission to "Hell" (apparently, the angels want Amun to rid himself of the new demons there), they also find love.

While this was not my favorite book in the "Lords of the Underworld" Series, I did enjoy catching up on some of the characters that I have grown to love. William, who is still fighting his attraction to a girl Gillian, he saved a few books ago. Strider who thinks he is attracted to Haidee but who is really in trouble because he's attracted to a Harpy, Kaia who likes to win as much as he does. Torin, the Keeper of Disease who I hope finds (love) someone to break his affliction because he is by far my favorite Lord and by far the most tortured. After all, he is allowed to see all of his friends find happiness and knows that one touch from him will bring death. And then there is Paris, the Keeper of Promiscuity, who has to have sex with a different person every day, and not the same person twice. Both Torin and Paris are due some happiness and I hope their stories are coming soon. Overall, I give this story a "3", and wait anxiously for the next in the series to see whose story is revealed. Because when it's all said and done, I'm a sucker for redemption/love stories.

Gena Showalter delivers a deep depth into emotions with The Darkest Secret; LOTU fans will not be disappointed. You may even find yourself hanging onto your book so tight that you'll leave prints. I fell hard for both Amun and Haidee. Both enemy's and yet they need each other in a way that is so deep that will leave your mouth hanging open saying I can't believe Gena pulled this off and yet she didn't drag the story out or leave you feeling that they were trusted together to fast and hard. Totally brilliant! You get tons of action and secrets galore to unravel.

I enjoyed the way Gena wrote the romance between these two enemies. When Hadiee is brought in by Strider she never dream she would find an attraction among the enemy, nor did Amun. These two need each other in a way that they cant deny. In order to save each other both must pay a price, one pays a higher price by giving their life.

I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to find out who or what Haidee really was and when I found out, I was left with my mouth hung open saying WOW! Leave it to Gena to think about writing it this way.

As always you get to know the other Lords more. One of the Lords gets his butt kicked by Amun, that right someone should have kept his thoughts or secret to himself LOL.

The only downside I found and it may leave some of you ticked is the sexual tension is very high between these two, but you won't get to the actual sex for a long, long while, so just hang on. Oh ya, you may get mad almost the end.... Yep, it left me gasping and saying NO! Please don't leave it this way.. Oh ya, you have to read it to find out what all happeneds.

First, there are a few things readers unfamiliar with Showalter should know: her books are violent and sexually graphic, and her series is complex to the point that it *may* be difficult to jump into the middle. The phenomenon of interconnected serial romances is not new--in fact, it's common in more classical historical romances these days to launch a series about a set of sisters or childhood friends finding love and adventure, each in his or her own book. Ordinarily, these characters are background for each other's stories--a nice nostalgic & binding touch for established readers, but no distraction for those who are not familiar.

Showalter's vision is admirably ambitious. While each character gets primary focus in his story, the other characters remain crucial to the story. It's kind of like real life in that, so good on her. You may be able to catch up from here, but if the series intrigues you and you don't want to hit the ground running, you might want to go back to _The Darkest Night_. (sorry; for some reason, the store won't let me link it!)

As to the violence and the graphic sex, both of these elements are pervasive not only to the book, but to the series. If you're not comfortable with that kind of thing, these books are probably not for you.

That said, I myself found this one of the more satisfying books in the series. I found the adventure and the romance more intertwined than in some of the other books in the series...the circumstances that put the characters together and kept them there were a bit more compelling to me. I had a pretty high investment in seeing where their story would go, and I found some of the twists surprising and engaging. (Sorry for lack of detail; I hate book spoilers myself, and I don't want to give any.) Haidee had more depth than I would have expected, and while there is a certain degree of sameness in the pairings in this series (lots of deeply damaged, misunderstood people) Showalter invests her characters with enough individuality to keep it fresh.

This book is the 7th in this series, so we have seen many lives unfold in this world and the more time I spend with the lords, the more I fall in love with them. I was hesitant about this book because I did not see how this was going to end well. The girl who killed Baden is supposed to end up with one of the lords herself, really? I did not see that happening, but I was eager to see how Gena wove this tale and have these two characters overcome their pasts.

We have gotten glimpses of Amun before and I did not really find myself intrigued by him, but in this book he demanded my attention. I loved that he was not full on alpha male, but his presence still dominated anyone around him. He loves all his fellow lords and does his best to protect them, but once pushed he is a force to be reckoned with. Haidee on the other hand really remains a puzzle for much of the book. You are given clues about her past, but not enough to riddle out the answer until you get much closer to the end. Which was frustrating and awesome all at the same time. When the two are forced into a journey through hell, both of their beliefs are put to the test and watching them trying to decode the other was fascinating.

While I loved Amun and Haidee's story, Paris, William and Strider stole the show for me. There is one scene about halfway through the book where they are partying at Paris' house and decide to drunk dial Maddox. I was crying at one point I was laughing so hard. I am not going to write out what happens because I think you will enjoy it more if you discover it on your own. Just be on the lookout for this scene in the book, I am sure anyone who is a fan of these books will enjoy it as well. The point to me sharing this scene with you is to point out how much I love the chemistry between the warriors. Their sarcastic remarks and witty commentary always puts a smile on my face and I love that Gena lets us get to see that side of them.

Overall, this is another fantastic addition to this series. With each book that passes I get drawn deeper into the lives of the lords and can't wait to spend more times with them. Now I just have to wait it out for Strider's book, which I know will be fantastic as well!

Over a year ago, I read the first 3 books in the Lords of the Underworld Series. They were good but I decided to look for a more realistic series. Now I regret giving up on Showalter. I picked this book on a whim and was surprised at how great it was.

Amun is the keeper of secrets (a demon). Not only does he have to deal with every dark urge his demon feels but he can hear every thought of those around him. Every petty, jealous, murderous thought! Haidee is a Hunter (Hunters blame the Lords of the Underworld for all of humanity's woes and seek to destroy keepers such as Amun). Although Haidee was born human, she has been reincarnated many times. During her first reincarnation, she managed to kill a Lord. Something that no human had ever done before or after that day. Therefore, Haidee is #1 on the Lords' kill list. I can't tell you how these two meet or fall in love without giving away too many spoilers but I can tell you that they make an excellent couple. Amun gives Haidee compassion and Haidee takes away Amun's everlasting loneliness.

I wish there was a saying opposite "Every cloud has a silver lining". This book was amazing but it wasn't perfect. The first few chapters indicated there was going to be a Love Triangle. Shudder. I especially hate love triangles that pit two really good, really close people against each other. Fortunately, this love triangle did NOT take over the plot. My only other issue was the ending. It was Shakespeare-like in that "In the end, gods come in and fix everything". Amun and Haidee deserved a happy ending but I'm not sure the one they received was justified.

What I want to leave you with dear reader is: this was a good book definitely worth buying.

This book is the 7th in this series, so we have seen many lives unfold in this world and the more time I spend with the lords, the more I fall in love with them. I was hesitant about this book because I did not see how this was going to end well. The girl who killed Baden is supposed to end up with one of the lords herself, really? I did not see that happening, but I was eager to see how Gena wove this tale and have these two characters overcome their pasts.

We have gotten glimpses of Amun before and I did not really find myself intrigued by him, but in this book he demanded my attention. I loved that he was not full on alpha male, but his presence still dominated anyone around him. He loves all his fellow lords and does his best to protect them, but once pushed he is a force to be reckoned with. Haidee on the other hand really remains a puzzle for much of the book. You are given clues about her past, but not enough to riddle out the answer until you get much closer to the end. Which was frustrating and awesome all at the same time. When the two are forced into a journey through hell, both of their beliefs are put to the test and watching them trying to decode the other was fascinating.

While I loved Amun and Haidee's story, Paris, William and Strider stole the show for me. There is one scene about halfway through the book where they are partying at Paris' house and decide to drunk dial Maddox. I was crying at one point I was laughing so hard. I am not going to write out what happens because I think you will enjoy it more if you discover it on your own. Just be on the lookout for this scene in the book, I am sure anyone who is a fan of these books will enjoy it as well. The point to me sharing this scene with you is to point out how much I love the chemistry between the warriors. Their sarcastic remarks and witty commentary always puts a smile on my face and I love that Gena lets us get to see that side of them.

Overall, this is another fantastic addition to this series. With each book that passes I get drawn deeper into the lives of the lords and can't wait to spend more times with them. Now I just have to wait it out for Strider's book, which I know will be fantastic as well!

Over a year ago, I read the first 3 books in the Lords of the Underworld Series. They were good but I decided to look for a more realistic series. Now I regret giving up on Showalter. I picked this book on a whim and was surprised at how great it was.

Amun is the keeper of secrets (a demon). Not only does he have to deal with every dark urge his demon feels but he can hear every thought of those around him. Every petty, jealous, murderous thought! Haidee is a Hunter (Hunters blame the Lords of the Underworld for all of humanity's woes and seek to destroy keepers such as Amun). Although Haidee was born human, she has been reincarnated many times. During her first reincarnation, she managed to kill a Lord. Something that no human had ever done before or after that day. Therefore, Haidee is #1 on the Lords' kill list. I can't tell you how these two meet or fall in love without giving away too many spoilers but I can tell you that they make an excellent couple. Amun gives Haidee compassion and Haidee takes away Amun's everlasting loneliness.

I wish there was a saying opposite "Every cloud has a silver lining". This book was amazing but it wasn't perfect. The first few chapters indicated there was going to be a Love Triangle. Shudder. I especially hate love triangles that pit two really good, really close people against each other. Fortunately, this love triangle did NOT take over the plot. My only other issue was the ending. It was Shakespeare-like in that "In the end, gods come in and fix everything". Amun and Haidee deserved a happy ending but I'm not sure the one they received was justified.

What I want to leave you with dear reader is: this was a good book definitely worth buying.

Amun was one of the twelve immortal warriors who opened Pandora's Box eons ago. Like his peers he was punished by absorbing one of the demons Secret as a Lord of the Underworld.

Meanwhile Strider and his demon Defeat capture Haidee, a demon Hunter whose ancestors were massacred by the Lords of the Underworld in ancient Greece. He takes her to the ancient warriors' fortress. There she meets in a cell Amun locked by his peers to keep his demon from manipulating the darkest emotions of his peers while the Warrior still recuperates from travel to Hell and back. Her touch calms the demon inside of Amun, but though attracted to one another, a hunter and a lord are as star-crossed as lovers can be.

This is an intriguing entry with a strong late twist as readers will wonder whether love conquers all includes demons and their hunters. The romantic urban fantasy story line continues to be extremely complex and convoluted so don't dive in here as it behooves readers to peruse the previous tales. Not for everyone as Gena Showalter does not run away from the transgressions the Warriors have committed with rape and violence. Still fans will enjoy the tale of the hunter trained to kill the demon and his host.

Harriet Klausner

Finally a book that wants you to keep turning the page just to see what will happen next, Amun and Haidee have a good story and it is completely worth reading. But (isnt there always a but?) it seems almost stunted in a way the it feels kinda rushed and towards the end it kinda makes you hope the Showalter will write something to expand on the two.

Description:
Haidee isnt a normal human, she knows that but she isnt quite sure what makes her so different, that is until she is caught by the Lords and finds herself with Amun, who she confuses for her mortal boyfriend. But even when she thinks he is someone else she feels drawn to Amun like no one before her.

Amun is a Lord, one that has sucked up thousands of demons from his recent trip to hell and gone mad with keeping them from hurting anyone, but when someone comes into his room he has a rare moment of clarity. But as soon as she leaves hes back to a raving mad man. Why he feels connected to the woman like no other he and his Lord demon have yet to find out. But they will, one way or another.

Amun and Haidee are from opposing sides, Him a demon and her a Hunter, they could never be together. Or so it seems. Especially since in one of Haidee's lives she hurt Amun and his Brothers to the very core, but what did Amun ever do to her...read to find out...

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Those of us following the Lord's of the Underworld series should remember that Amun, Keeper of the demon of Secrets, had to be put into isolation because of his traumatic experiences from the last book. Amun cannot speak, because of the danger of what he could say as the Keeper of the demon of Secrets. Haidee is an enemy assassin who is captured trying to destroy the Lords. In trying to escape, Haidee makes contact with her "fellow prisoner" and a romance is born. She is somehow able to communicate with Amun telepathically, and understand him at a time his trauma has rendered him incapable of communicating coherently with others. To complicate matters further, Haidee is not just an assassin. She actually has history with the Lords, dating back to when they first became the keepers of various demons.
The romance between these two is interesting, because they are interesting themselves. The story is similar to all the other "Lords of the Underworld" romances so there are few surprises, but there is still fun getting to the end. A big part of the enjoyment is in the further detailing of the history and backgrounds of the Lords, as well as exploration of secondary characters. I would say this is a "must read" for anyone following the series, but will confuse a first time reader.

The Darkest Secret is the first Lords of the Underworld novel I have read. It is part of series, but can be read as a stand alone. It was utterly fantastic. I stayed up late to finish this fabulous novel and can't wait to dive into the rest of this series. My only regret is not discovering this series sooner.

That said, this is the story of Amun and Haidee. Amun is possessed by the Demon Secrets and has been invaded by a host of other evil dark demons and is in constant endless pain. He has been locked away by his brethren and will die soon if he is not helped. Haidee is a demon hunter who hates the Lords and wants them all dead. Strider has kidnapped her and brought her to the Lords' fortress. There she meets Amun and at first, thinks he is someone else. Although they are enemies, they are drawn to each other and neither of them want to hurt the other. Somehow her presence heals him and keeps the evil at bay and soon they embark on a mission to hell to expell the evil that is tormenting him. There they find through their love for one another, they can face the danger and the demon who is hell bent on taking back from Haidee what belongs to him.

I loved this book and highly recommend this fantastic story to all fans of paranormal romance.

This is the story of Amun the Keeper of Secrets and Haidee. Haidee is mentioned in other LotU books as the Hunter who killed Balen. However after you hear her story and why she did what she did and how this story ends you will be thrilled. We also get a great glimose into Stider the Keeper of Defeats story.

This story starts with Strider who caught Haidee back to the fortress where Amun is in agony because he is filled with Demons who he absorbed while in hell with Aeron. They cant find anyway to save him. There are Angels gaurding him who also happen to want to kill him. Amun senses Haidee and calls to her. Haidee, having dreamed of Amun and dating Amuns look alike Michah (becasue she thinks the one she has been dreaming about is Michah even theough there isnt a connection) she goes to Amun. The soon discover that she is the only cure for Amuns condition and she has to stay with him to keep the demons at bay.

The Angel Zachriel tells Amun that going back to hell with Haidee is the only way he can ever be free f the demons he absorbed and so the set off on their mission to save Amun. To tell you anymore would be giving the book away but this is a must read and you will not be let down!

I've read each of the Lords of the Underworld book by Gena Showalter as they've come out and that is definitely the best way to read this series. Hopping into the 3rd or 4th book without at least reading the first book first would be a mistake. Characters from earlier books show up repeatedly throughout the series and there is one big continuing plotline. Each book focuses on a set of characters with the other characters zooming in and out and doing things to further the big plot as the book goes along.

This book focused on Amun, keeper of the demon Secrets, and Haidee (or Hadiee), a hunter who's skin and demeanor can be icy. Occasionally with the character pairings, Showalter can get a little confusing. I'm sometimes left thinking, "Why would that specific character trait calm that specific demon?" And it doesn't always make perfect sense but you go with it because they're interesting stories anyway. In the book prior to this one Amun made a journey into Hell and didn't exactly come out of it with fun stories to tell. He absorbed hundreds of demons into his body and since then had been tormented with their fire and brimstone. Haidee with her icy touch actually makes those demons cower and hide, so it is one of the few scenarios I didn't scratch my head at reading.

Overall the books are easy and interesting reading and I'm sure Ms. Showalter has a few more gems up her sleeve for the final remaining characters that haven't already had their books.

This was a great addition to Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld series. I haven't liked a few of the most recent books, but The Darkest Secret is really Showalter doing what she does best. Hailee and Amun are a couple who are natural enemies, but are drawn to trust each other by forces beyond their knowledge. Hailee is a tough Hunter, no pushover, and Amun is one of the most elusive members of the Lords, so this was a really interesting matchup. There's a little play with mistaken identity at the beginning, but only enough to nudge them in the right direction. This pair has incredible chemistry, and what I loved was that they both turn out to have very sweet sides, and were sharing pasts, experiences, memories, and some really lovely scenes that weren't just about getting in each other's pants. (though that happened too, and was fun)

There was also a lot of setup for the next couple ready to go, but that setup involved one of my favorite Lords, Strider, so I was never sorry when Showalter switched from Plot A (Hailee/Amun) to Plot B (Strider's incredible roadtrip). And by the end I was not only very satisfied with the primary couple (and Amun was a lot more fun as a main character than I ever would've expected), but eager for the next book. Admittedly the ending was extremely heavy on deux ex machina -- but when has Showalter ever written an ending that wasn't? But a very fun book and a great setup, so definitely buy this one!

I really enjoy Gena's writing and I love the Lords. This series has had it's ups and downs for me, but I've got to say this one is definitely an up. Amun isn't necessarily my favorite lord- and in all honesty- his story was good, but not what made the book great. One of the things I've noticed in reading the paranormal series is that a lot of them follow the same pattern. Which is fine with me to a point. I like the bad boy gets the girl, but I prefer that the girl be as much (or more) a badass as the guy. Haidee was that way in the previous book, but we didn't get to see a lot of that in this book. Which is okay with me. She and Amun still had some good moments, and I liked the slight twist at the end.
Another commonality in series like The Lords of the Underworld is the set up for future books. Sometimes I find that these set ups can be overwhelming and take away from the book. Gena did a great job in this book NOT doing that. Strider's side story fits in well with Amun's, as does William and Paris's. Strider's part in this book made me laugh out loud-which I loved! I can't wait to read his book. The girl he's going to get is definitely going to give him a run for his money.
Overall this was a great book for the series and I can't wait for October to read the next one. If you've already read the first 6 you must check this one out. If you haven't started this series...GET ON IT!!

After I finished Lies' book, I was a little hesitant to read Secret's. I mean, you don't really get to know too much about Amun until the end of Gideon's book. But Gena Showalter never disappoints, and Amun's book was FANTASTIC!! And I was hooked from page 1.

Amun is definitely one of the most caring and sweetest guys in the series. He's not afraid to say he's been whipped, and is constantly fighting with himself if he should be with Haidee, or if he's even good enough. I mean, he's totally B.A. AND a total sweetheart - it's a wonderful combination!

And Haidee herself is a total mystery. I went from totally despising her in the last book to joining GO TEAM HAIDEE in no time flat. And just...

There are no words, they're perfect for each other. READ THIS BOOK. You won't regret it!

(Review also posted on Goodreads)

Demon of Secrets, Amun, has come back from Hell in this latest Lords installment. He didn't only return with his demon, though, he came back with hundreds. The angels want to kill him, as he's a danger to humankind. At the very least, he'll go insane. But then one of the other Lords catches a Hunter, and Haidee seems to be the only one who can calm the beasts in his head. The two share some kind of strange connection from the past. Now they must travel back to Hell together to return the demons, or these enemies will be stuck together forever.

This book didn't lack conflict. Who's more at odds than the Hunters and Lords? But if you find yourself thinking the same thing I did--that the conflict had way too easy a resolution-- then keep reading. There's more. I have been addicted to these books from day one. Gena creates an imaginary world that feels steeped in reality. There's a lot of Strider in this installment, to set up for his story next. Cannot wait!

I LOVE Gena Shoewalter and have read every book I can get my hands on. But I have also need the quality of her books going down. Maybe it's because she is writing so fast and just popping them out, but for a while, all of her characters are beginning to blend into one another. Ashlyn from the first series was different from the rest. Dani with how she started to how she ended up was different. But since then, every character from then on including her Alien Huntress has begun to act and think the same. It's hard to tell one character apart from another. The sex scenes are also the same to the point where I am actually skipping them. This is sad and disappointing, espiecally with how much I KNOW Gena is such a great writer.

I know this isn't particually a review for this book, The Darkest Secret, but that isn because there isn't much else to say that hasn't already been said by others about Amuns loyalty...but just how characters are no longer standing out. I hope things change soon. Maybe it's that Gena is just taking on so much, I don't know. I just hope quality over quantity goes up.

I'm a big fan of this series by Gena Showalter. The heroes are great alpha men but the women hold their own in every way. In this case I was eager to see how Amun could become a leading character without being able to talk. Showalter did a neat job of isolating Amun and Haidee for much of the book thus enabling communication to only need to happen between them. I enjoyed watching their relationship develop and found her story fascinating. Great to finally see Amun's thoughts too instead of just the silent warrior. My only gripe is the ending. I felt it was too neatly wrapped in a bow. I know it's a paranormal book so things can be made right with a wave of a wand but it was simply too neat and it didn't give me the feeling of satisfaction that I expected. Despite my gripe I definitely recommend the book as another solid and entertaining addition to the series.

Now Strider and Kaia are going to be a fabulous adventure! They're going to drive each other crazy before they figure out they're perfect for each other. I can't wait to see them fight it out!

After visiting Hell, Amun is in no mood to help the cause... Even worse, Angels are threatening to kill him, because he's "eaten" too many deamons in addition to his own Lord and he became a menace not only to himself but to others as well.

And at this moment Strider (ultimately hate the guy, BTW!!!!!!) came to Budapest with Baden's killer - Haidee. And he has some perverted feelings for her (strangle the duy, please!!!) but she discovers that her future is with someone else.

So very unlikely coulpe - a Deamon and a Deamon slayer are united in their quest to save each other from madness and guilt and hatred. Interesting read! More Hell ;) And even cute Horsemen! If someone please cut all the page time for Strider it would be the perfect book! And he definitely deserved being bested by Amun for insulting his woman!!!!!

Amun comes back from hell housing multiple demons. He's in pain, he can't talk, and he's trying to commit sucide. Haidee is the demon-hunter who manipulated and killed the Demon Lord's best friend centuries ago. So what do they do to their most hated enemy? He sex her. First Strider want's her and has plans for her, then Amun has her on her back the moment he wakes from death's bed. Lame, very lame. I'm not adverse to sensual reading, but I just don't feel like Showalter pulled this off for me. It doesn't matter that Hailee kept Amun's demons at bay, there should have been more conflict of him turning his back on the men he saw and loved as brothers for centuries. Also, the inter-groaning and over thinking going on was Booorrring. Pages and pages of it. Taking up more room than the action or dialog. I'll still read this series, because I have enjoyed them in the past, but I hope Showalter leans more toward her witty characters and action than what she has done in this book.

Since this is the 7th book in a series, I would say new comers aren't really recommended. It wouldn't be IMPOSSIBLE to start on "The Darkest Secret" but it would be extremely confusing... Showalter doesn't spend a lot of time recapping events!

This is probably my favorite book since Wrath's book, "The Darkest Passion", which was fantastic. I must admit Secrets was never one of my favorite characters, being a bit boring for obvious reasons, but he finally got to shine! The scenes between him and Haidee were sizzling!! They are probably the hottest couple, in my opinion, since Lysander and Bianca (for those of you who read the short story in the series "The Darkest Angel")!

We also get to see a lot more of Strider in this series, for those of you who are fans (Defeat's book is next!). Without giving anything away, I'll say that Gena has kept us on our toes & unsure of the plot twists. I personally found this romance to be one of the hottest in the series, maybe because I wasn't expecting to. Definite read for Showalter fans.

Amun , Keeper of the High Lord Demon Secrets . In the previous book The Darkest Lie he went down to Hell to help his friend, Aeron rescue his demon "daughter" . While there he's assaulted by hundreds of lower level demons which take up residence in his head driving him to madness . Haidee , a Hunter is captured by another Lord, Stryder , keeper of Defeat and is brought to the High Lord's strong hold where Amun is being cared for and guarded by his friends and Angels who are there to see if Amun regains his sanity and if not then put an end to him.

With the burden he carries, his dedication to his friends , Amun is a character I really like. I tend to like the heroes who are the most damaged. The author did a great job in this book to develop both Haidee and Amun characters. The building of their relationship , with the trails and ordeals they must overcome had a great balance.

The only thing I wish is that the author invested more time into the ending of the story

Gena.... you once again nailed another great story!!

POSSIBLE ~ S-P-O-I-L-E-R ~ A-L-E-R-T ~ SPOILER ~ ALERT ~

Amun ( keeper of secrets) and Haidee balanced one another's soul's. The demons Amun beheld from hell tortured him on a daily basis and his brethren feared for his life if he couldn't be cured of them from Lysander's army of Angels.
Haidee unconciously was Amun's salvation which was a challenge because of her being hunter and also playin a huge part in Baden's death!!

Strider (keeper of defeat) is the one who caught Haidee and somehow developed an attraction to Haidee although hated the very air she breathed! (weird..i know)
but in the everything worked out..

readers....if you've read gena showalters "Lords of the Underworld Series" your gonna love this story as i did!!
For the new readers just coming on board you must start from the beginning and then work your way to this book!......
You Won't Be Disappointed!!
~Happy Reading~

I won't re-hash the plot, since folks have already done so here quite well. It took me weeks to finish this book (and I actually went to the bookstore the day it came out because I marked the release date on my calendar). This is the most boring book by GS I've ever read. Anum/Haidee's love story was not a story about love. It was about two people who feel an instant connection to each other, along with a healthy dose of lust, and their story progresses from there. The book essentially starts out with Haidee as Anum's captive and we never get to see the two in a situation where she's not 100% reliant on him to survive. That left a pretty bad taste in my mouth, because part of the reason I read fantasy romances is to see really strong heroines who are the equal to the alpha heroes. I just didn't get that from Haidee's story. (Ironic, given that she's supposed to be some bada$$ hunter who makes people shiver in their boots.) The ending was a let-down. I won't go into details why (to avoid spoilers), but I'll just say that the action remains with Anum, where it should have switched to Haidee at some point. I really didn't 100% get the resolution.

Also - this is a side quibble - I'm starting to get very annoyed by the way she's writing to the Lords' dialogue. Men (especially men who house demons and can kill with their bare hands) should NOT be saying things like "Stridey-poo". I get that GS is trying to inject some humor into the series (and that's OK) but that's not humorous. It's very hard for me to find the hero attractive when he sounds like he's a text-addict teenage girl.

The Darkest Secret, by author Gena Showalter, is the seventh novel in her Lords of the Underworld series. While I am a HUGE fan of this series I was a little disappointed with the latest story. It's not awful but it wasn't anything close to how previous books moved me....

Haidee is well known for her past actions against the Lords, I really didn't know how Gena was going to be able to work that one out. While she did an okay job giving her a very sympathetic past I felt it was a bit over the top. Haidee became a bit to needy for my tastes, what happened to the sassy chick we previously read about? Where did she go? Cause she sure checked out for this book. The new, and not improved, Haidee seemed weak and unable to take care of herself. I was bored with her mid-way thru the book.

Amun has been one of my favs for a while now, even though he has only emerged a few times until now. I do have a soft spot for him. Sexy and confident, the man is power and grace all wrapped up on one. Yum! I did wonder how Amun would be able to communicate since he can't talk but Gena did a good job working out a system that only he and Haidee could share. Also I did find it hard to buy that Amun would just turn his back on his fellow brothers, who he has known for a Millennium. I mean Haidee did some really awful things, things that still hurt these guys to this day. I just don't know if I could be so brave, so it was a hard pill to swallow.

On the positive side, Gena does a great job with character building. You are sucked into her world with each new story and I love that. She does a great job painting a vivid picture in the worlds she creates. I only feel this way because I love these guys and I want them to each have their moment. When one gets ripped off I feel sad, so that being said Amun and Haidee have not been my favorite so far. Things just fell too easily into place for me. :(

I did really enjoy the side stories with the Angels, Strider, William and Paris. William is such a riot and I could not stop laughing during the bits detailing his escapades. Without these to hold me over I may have just started skim reading, and I really hate doing that. I wont give up on this series in the least and I am soooo looking forward to the next story coming out this Oct.

Getting 3 and 1/2 Sheep
[...]

Amun and Haidee are wonderful characters. Amun is the strong, alpha male character with a touch of gentleness and caring that is ever so sexy. Haidee has been dealt a rough hand, but is strong, loyal and also caring for all she has suffered. Together these two just instantaneously click as a couple. But of course there are past grievances that have to be resolved and an evil presence to banish.

My favorite part of the story though is the adventures of Paris, William and Strider's on their "vacation from hell." William is getting ready to pack for the trip and here is what he plans to pack.
"William untucked the covers and stood, making a mental list of everything he'd need for the coming trip. A few blades, serrated and nonserrated. A vial of acid. A bone saw. A spiked paddle. A cat-o-nine-tails. And a bag of Gummy Bears."

The secondary characters were just way too much fun. Can't wait for their books.

I am a huge LOTU fan and have been from the first book. Amun was not my favorite character but I have enjoyed other books when the main character wasn't my favorite. This one just fell short for me. It seemed like more of a filler book than anything else, I guess. I didn't hate it at all but it was just OK. I didn't love Amun's personality, and didn't find him to be as personable as the other characters. I felt the same way about the heroine. I enjoyed the side story for Strider and am looking forward to reading him and Kaia's story. I am also looking forward to Paris and Sienna's story. I have been waiting for this one since maybe book 2 or 3. I love Gena Showalter and recommend her highly to anyone who likes paranormal romance. She is one of my favorites along with Larissa Ione and Karen Chance. Although I didnt' prefer this book I would also highly recommend the series.

Showalter really does give another great performance with The Darkest Secret. This book takes place right after the gang has returned from Hell. Amun the keeper of secrets is going mad with all of the demons and voices stuck in his head from the little trip to the Underworld.

Enter Haidee formerly Hadiee, who killed Baden during a skirmish with the Lords. Haidee has lived through several reincarnations of herself but her purpose to exterminate the Lords has not changed. Haidee has been captured by Stryker the keeper of Defeat. After being kept in the room next to Amun she is compelled to go to him and answer his cries and pleas for help. Ok thats the background and dont want to give more than that basic plot. This book was just a good read all around. We get more information on the Lords that were not front and center. Enough that you are gradually growing interested in their HEA. Readers also get to see more friendship between all of them even the ones who have since found their partners and wives. I LOVED Amun and came in this with no real feeling toward him. Showalter really did a great job leading you in and there was no way I wasnt routing for Haidee to be with him. There are also enough tidbits to make me salivate for Paris's story obviuosly and now a growing interest to watch Stryker hook up with his heroine which is revealed in this book as well

Others have set the stage for the book, I'm going to give my thoughts only.
I am amazed at the review standing. I'm a Showalter & LOTU junkie and I have to be honest, I was really disappointed. When I came to the store and found a rating of 4-1/2 stars -- all I could think was WTH?? I made it through the tale (anyone that loves the Lords must) but it was tough going.

Amun doesn't speak and I've got to give GS credit for how she staged Amun and Haidee talking to one another. I am amazed that the psychic vs oral words didn't lose themselves (and the reader) throughout the pages. With that said, however, there is alot of boring internal talk. One evening I read 4 pages involving an internal "thinking" debate in Haidee's head. She went on and on --- what if, when, how, what if, on and on and on. This was a recurence througout and frankly, it's what I liked least.

Now the 'Strider' line - oh yeah, that was golden. As Amun is making his way through his book, GS is setting us up by allowing a glimpse into Strider. Loved It. Any LOTU lover will get a jolt from that. It's a must read for the junkies (even though it's slow going) and for first timers, don't judge all of Showalter's LOTU books by The Darkest Secret, please. There are great Lords out there waiting to tingle your toes.

Amun, the silent and extremely sexy warrior who I really didn't know much about until now because he has mostly been in the background in the other books. But, finally in "The Darkest Secret" he gets his own story with Haidee, a hunter of all people. Actually the same hunter, who killed Baden years ago in Ancient Greece and who Strider has the hots for. Unfortunately, she is the only one who can save Amun. Even though I usually hate the hunters I really like Haidee for Amun. Despite all the obstacles they face those two are great for each other and they make wonderful fireworks together!!!!

Before I started this book, I had some serious concerns about how Gena Showalter would pull this one off. I mean, the hero of the story essentially can't speak. And the leading lady is an old-arch enemy who killed a man that he loved like a brother. But there's a reason Gena Showalter is the best-selling author and I am the fan-girl. Not only did she pull it off, but she actually managed to give us great insight into our hero and made our heroine extremely sympathetic.

Amun shares his body with the demon Secrets. He can read minds and in extreme cases, steal memories. At the end of The Darkest Lie, his gift (curse?) opened the doorway for hundreds of crazed lower-demons to also take up residence in his head... and he has been driven to madness. Meanwhile, Strider (a fellow Lord, possessed by Defeat) has captured Haidee. She is a Hunter, who has dedicated her life to slaying Lords. In fact, centuries ago, she managed to kill one. But once she is in the fortress, Amun reaches out to her telepathically. It is quickly revealed that the two share some kind of bond that makes them warm and fuzzy, despite the fact that they should be enemies. In her presence, the torment from the demons quiets inside Amun. But the Angels who have allowed him to live while he regained his sanity, demand he return to Hell (with Haidee) to be rid of them for good.

I really enjoyed getting to know Amun. He's been around since the beginning, but like Kane, he was kind of like a piece of furniture. He was there in the background, utilized or referred to from time to time, but never given much of a personality. And Haidee is fleshed out wonderfully. I couldn't imagine how her character could be redeemed, but she was... with a fantastic backstory. Of course, we had our sexy-Showalter love scenes. They were good; though not quite as red-hot for me as in some of the previous installments.

This book also gives us some more inside into Strider. (Win!) I find I like him more and more with each passing book. At the end of The Darkest Lie, I really thought he would be paired with Haidee, but it was interesting to see how his lust for her is dealt with. It was resolved a little too neatly in the end. But I can get over it, now seeing who his love interest will be in The Darkest Surrender. I can't wait to see how it plays out. 4 1/2 stars.

*ARC Provided by Harlequin Books

I'm a relative newcomer to LOTU series. Actually, to paranormal romance in general. A friend of mine recommended Jr Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood to me in Christmas of 2009, and I have scoured stacks of series looking for something equal since. None of been equal to me, but LOTU is one of the closest.

I adore the fact that these books really build upon each other and The Darkest Secret was no exception.

Showalter never takes time and space rehashing past books. She simply jumps in where the story left off. If you were not aware how Amun was originally overtaken by demons, you may have been lost reading this book... but rarely does someone choose to begin reading a series with Book 7.

No need to retread plot. I will simply say that this book was well worth the read even if just for the literal circus from hell! I love that Showalter's Lords series is always infused with just enough camp and humor together with tenderness.

Kressley Cole (Immortals after Dark) and Showalter have made their mutual affection for each other well known, and it does seem that Showalter's latest books have taken on more of that "tongue and cheek" humor which has long been the trademark of Cole. The "vacation" scenes involving Stridey-Man, William, and Paris are fantastic. She also continued dropping hints about what would occur in the next two books (Strider and Paris, respectively.)

However, the heart of this novel is at it's center. For those who "know" Amun, the gentleness with which he treats Haidee comes as no surprise at all. And, as usual, Showalter creates a VERY strong female character who also is warm (well not really, but you have to read the book to see what I mean) and tender with her man.

It seems to me that each of Showalter's books (in THIS series...) gets better. She really knows these characters, and she allows her readers to love and care for them as well.

Strider who is keeper of the demon Defeat has captured and brought back to their Budapest fortress one of the despised hunters, Amun. Amun is a beautiful woman but cold. Amun who is keeper of the demon Secrets is currently isolated in a room in the fortress as he was in hell to rescue a friend of one of the Lords and now has not only Secrets but multiple other demons vying for his attention. The Angels are guarding Amun as they and the Lords fear he might need to be killed. As it is, Amun is in terrible pain. When Strider puts the Hunter Haidee in a room next to Amun and she sees him, Haidee believes he is her friend and fiance from the Hunters.

How Haidee brings Amun comfort and they begin and arduous journey of discovery and love and conquest is quite a tale!

Enjoy.

After reading The Darkest Secret, I was once again reminded why Gena is master at what she does. For the past couple of years, I've watched authors start new series, with each book of the series getting progressively worse than the last. The Lords of the Underworld series is the perfect example of what a series SHOULD be like- Each book just keeps getting better! The Darkest Secret is, in my opinion, the best so far.

I have to say that originally, I had my doubts about this book. Although Amun has held a special place in my heart from the beginning of the series, I feared how Showalter would redeem the character of Haidee. Like most other fans of the LU series, I held an extreme dislike for her because of her past relationship with the Lords. However, Showalter does the impossible: She makes us fall for the despicable Haidee. It was easy to love her once we got inside her mind and saw the pain that she went through. Instead of being the hateful, vengeful heroine that we all thought her to be, we got to see her for who she was: A strong, loving person who made her own share of mistakes. I loved the fact that she knew what she wanted, and wasn't afraid love Amun. I was also quite pleasantly surprised with the way that Showalter tackled the issue of Amun not being able to communicate verbally with Haidee because of his demon. Communication between the two was solved early on, and was never once an issue in the book.

This book was one HECK of a good time. The twists and turns keep you constantly on-the-edge-of-your-seat intrigued without getting tiring. The twist involving the truth about Haidee had my mouth open wide enough to catch flies. I don't know how Showalter did it, but she managed to make the audience feel guilty for hating Haidee this entire time. To continue to dislike her would have been almost hypocritical. This book was all I expected it to be and more: I laughed (the scene with William, Paris, and Strider calling Maddox was hilarious), I cried, I cheered, and I gasped in shock.

Although this book did have a more prominent side story than the previous ones, I still enjoyed it. It was nice to get to catch up on some of the other Lords that we have read about and loved. Strider was a particularly strong supporting character, and it was fantastic to get a taste of his HEA, which will be The Darkest Surrender (coming out in October of this year). Although cocky, egocentric, selfish, and competitive to a fault, Showalter makes us love the extremely flawed Strider, tantalizing us with just enough scenes to make us drool over what's to come in The Darkest Surrender (and with a heroine that I NEVER expected at that!)

Bottom Line: Read this book. Don't let any reserves of Haidee, or anyone else in the book stop you from giving it a try. You'll love it!

I really enjoyed this book in the series. I really liked how she developed Haidee into a likeable if not loveable character in the end. The way she made the reader understand the reason for assisting in killing Baden was good and believable too. I enjoyed the interaction with the other characters and even liked how Strider didnt' end up all friendly straight away with her. This felt more believable to me.

I know these are considered "light reading" buy a lot other people and I love that. It doesn't take me long to read and when I do, I get imersed in the story and wish I was part of the characters. This is one of my top series and I find it even better than the Black Dagger books at the moment.

Can't wait for the next book but if you want a really good rainy day or holiday read, try this series.

I really loved this one! Probably my favorite but I won't say for sure yet until I read Torin's story. I'm eagerly awaiting that one in particular.

Amun is just an excellent hero. He's stoic and strong and willing to sacrifice so much for others. When he meets his other half, Haidee, the bond the two have is really beautiful. This despite their pasts that are so at odds with one another.

I loved their trek through Hell and the time they had to get to know one another. Excellent!

Amazing story with an unexpected twist that will keep you thinking. Things aren't always what they seem and you can judge a whole group by the actions of an individual. Can't wait to start the next story I believe its Defeats turn for happiness? I hope ?

If you like the series, you are going to like this book. That simple. This book made me notice Amun and more! Very juicy intimate scenes. My main issue with it is that Amun and Haidee did not remain in the spotlight. Strider, who annoys me, took up a lot of the book. There are interesting tid-bits about William that got me excited to learn more. I hope Strider's book removes some of my Hate (he he) but I love Kaia!

Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler: I wish Haidee could have dealt with the demon Hate instead of being a partial love keeper? whatever. It is kind of like Gena saying that the warriors can deal with their Demons, but Hate is too much. Obviously Amun and her had no problem so what is the deal?

Well, what can I say... Gena Showalter has never disapointed me with this series. It's been a while since I cried but this one pulled at my heart strings and I found myself wiping tears away for SEVERAL pages toward the end. She has me anxiously awaiting the next in the series(as usual). I was also surprised that I actually might enjoy reading Strider's story. i've never liked him as his demon is so arrogant but I actually enjoyed the parts that involed him in this book. Amun, I didn't think I'd enjoy reading about either but Gena presented him in a way that had you loving him from the start. 5 stars all the way!

A must read...

I've read all of the Lord of the Underworld books and although this is not my favorite and it took me weeks to find real interest and read it, it does come together nicely.

Other reviews have put the story into perspective, Amun is a demon who refuses to speak to protect others and Haidee is a demon-assasin/hunter/not so human. Gena Showalter does well with adding mystery and makes Haidee's story so in depth and tragic that we can't help but feel sorry for her and understand why she did what she did (ie. being hunter and coming after the lords). However, Haidee's internal struggle of does he like me, what is he thinking, can we be together went on and on and on a little further, and that is what did me in with this book. I can bear a little internal turmoil but man this chick was supposed to be bad ass, why was she so....girly. Things I did like was the lust/love (I guess hell just wasn't a big deal for them because they made a lot of pit stops to hook up), the intricate plot (a lot more supernatural abilities coming about and a tricky backstory for Haidee), and Strider is becoming possibly my favorite character behind Anya and Lucien. Gena Showalter has the innate ability of boring you one minute, pissing you off the next,and then have you looking forward to the next book at the end.

Note: Is anyone looking for Pandora's box anymore! I mean the last two books have just like stopped looking and Strider even gave up one artifact. Do we not care anymore? Is this not the entire premise and drive of the series?

Note: A chick's breast bumping into a dude's back does not cause an instant erection... I understand lusting a person and being turned on, but really, it's just a breast. Also, must everyone have a taste of fruit or a smell of wood?

Note: What's up with these "virgins" being able to take this "huge" guys inside them without pain and experience immense pleasure and then do it again within a few minutes?

I'm a big fan of Gena Showalter, and this series in particular. Amun's story is a great addition. I wasn't sure if I'd like it based on the fact that the author did a very good job up to this point of portraying Haidee as an extremely non-sympathetic character. But of course, the talented Ms. Showalter managed to make me fall in love with the characters (both of them).
Amun and Haidee spend the majority of the story on a quest in hell, so this is definitely not a lighthearted tale. We meet some new and very disturbing characters along the way, but also get a glimpse into the lives of some of the other main characters from the series - and it's always nice to catch up with old friends ;0)
For serious fans of the LOTU series, don't miss this one. There are a lot of important developments to the overall story arc, but keep in mind that this is the 7th book in the series so not all of this book is focused on the two main characters. If you haven't read any of the LOTU books yet, don't start with this one. You'll be completely confused.

Ms. Showalter keeps the LU coming....each book just gets better and this one was no exception. I loved Amun from the other books and was very anxious to read his story. Being paired with Haidee was the just right thing for me and their love really came through. I thought the backyard swim with the strippers was hilarious and I just love William. Cant wait for his book!!! Strider was really good but sometime confusing... I love his HEA though. That should be a real fun book to read.....You cant go wrong with any of the LU books....they get better each time.....

Back to hell for Amun to release his unintentional baggage of demons. This time he is taking the key to help him in more ways then one. Haidee has been alive since the Lords were possessed and was at their mercy long ago but he also harbors a part of the demon Hate. She has secrets that will show what she is and how she can help Amun with his demons.

The first half of this book was interesting, but then it slowed down and I really didn't care by the time Amun and Haidee finally hooked up. The ending was great though and overall I was happy to have read it. I always have liked Amun. We also got quite the glimpse of Strider, whom I've never really liked, but now he is starting to grow on me a little. I did find it weird that he was attracted to so many different 'people' in this book, but still I liked seeing this new side to him and look forward to his book.

I am a GS and LoTU junkie. These books are chicken soup for my soul and I read through them like wildfire. In the previous book, The Darkest Lie, I had assumed that GS was setting up for a Strider/Haidee love story and I was NOT feeling it. When I realized it was going to be Amun and Haidee, I got a lot more excited. I have always been intrigued by Amun because not much is known about him since he literally doesn't speak. GS did a great job with this character, especially when adding the telepathic conversations between Amun and Haidee. I do feel that some of the book was slow going and I had to sludge through a lot of Haidee's internal debates. There was so much that I wanted to find out about Amun's previous relationship with Haidee in Greece, and ultimately what Haidee IS, but it seemed all rushed when we finally did find out. I also wish that there was more explanation about how Haidee came back to life -- it seemed that GS wanted a "Haidee came back!" revelation, but I had to re-read that section a couple times to figure out how she did come back.

With that being said, the teases for Strider's book kept me going. I believe that Strider will be my favorite Lord, and am I stoked to find out that his mate is going to be Kaia -- everyone loves a good Harpy!

Overall I enjoyed the book. It wasn't one of my favorites, but I think GS did a great job with Amun and Haidee's story.

I love Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld series. The H's are all possessed by a different demon and Amun's is the keeper of secrets. I've wanted to read his story because he's very quiet and doesn't talk much, and I wanted to see how his demon would affect him.
When Strider captures Haidee and brings her to the Lords' home, she calms Amun. I'm not going to spoil the story, but it fits in very well with the rest of the series, which is terrific.

Throughout The Lords of the Underworlds series Amun, keeper of the demon secrets, has been my favorite character. I couldn't wait for his book to be published and when I saw he was next after Gideon I was so excited I almost peed in my pants (figuratively). I waited for what felt like an eternity for The Darkest Secret to reach the shelves and in summary this book is just AWFUL!!!

My "beef" is not in the love story between Amun and Haidee (though I'm pretty sure she was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome) but in the way he showed absolutely ZERO loyalty to the men he has loved, lived and fought beside for centuries. What happened to Bros be for Hoes!!! Especially if you and that bro have been through Hell and back (literally).

Ok I can by the whole I can't live without you, I need you to survive, I am a possessive male who beats everyone up except for you, mumbo jumbo. BUT beating your best friend and brother within an inch of his life because he doesn't trust your girlfriend (who is a Hunter and has been trying to KILL you and yours for centuries, might I add) is just a big a** pill for me to swallow. Amun is known to be extremely loyal and it was hard for me to believe he would turn on his love ones so quickly. Listen, I know this is a work of fiction but I'm already using up all my imagination on demon possessed beings with sexy bodies, cut me some slack!!!

I know it's weird that I continued to read The Darkest Secret in its entirety (especially since all I wanted to do was stick a sharp pencil in my eye), but about mid book I decided I wanted to write a review and needed more ammo. It was NOT because I thought the story would redeem itself, that ship sailed around page 80 (Kindle). The only reason why The Darkest Secret gets two stars is because I love the Strider, Kaia, William, and Paris storyline.

With that said, Gena Showalter is still AMAZING!!! She is seriously one of my favorite paranormal romance writers and I will continue to read every single book in the Lords of the Underworlds series even if I have to keep sharpening my pencils.

After reading "The Darkest Angel", which I found surprisingly steamy (not knowing what to expect at first), I have gone on to read all of the Lords books to date. Should have stopped at "The Darkest Angel." The only thing going for this book is the unique setting compared to the rest. Otherwise, it's just as poorly written, formulaic, and flat as the others. First of all, the dialogue is so cheesy, it becomes very difficult to feel any genuine connection with the main characters. By the last 20 pages or so, I truly felt embarrassed for Showalter. Second, the characters are flat and completely indistinguishable from the other Lords/mates. Third, the story follows the same EXACT pattern as the others. Here's how it goes: The Lord in question [insert name] is suffering from some ridiculous, poorly explained curse that apparently only one person in the universe can help with. This person ends up being some bimbo with [fill in the blank] supernatural power, but no other discernible personality or redeeming qualities. This bimbo first hates/immediately wants to sleep with the Lord. At some point, we find out that either the Lord or the Mate is (a) a virgin or (b) has last had sexual partner 100 years ago (c) has found all prior partners inadequate and forgettable. The Lord is clearly attracted to said bimbo, but goes through a tedious period of denial, which is interrupted by increasingly intimate scenes that are completely out of keeping with the pace of the book and come out of nowhere/occur at the strangest times. These scenes ALWAYS progress as follows: 1. heavy kissing, other touching, no sex; 2. Some more touching, still no sex; 3. Either the Lord or the Mate [insert names] suffers a severe injury, which triggers the main sex scene of the book during which both parties realize that, for some reason, they are now in love and that all of the very good reasons as to why they can't be together are no longer valid; 4. A smaller sex scene (or two) follows shortly. Whatever problem the main characters were facing is resolved in the most unbelievable, contrived manner. The book ends with several pages of cheesy and cliche love confessions that make you want to gag (even if you ARE a romance fan).

If you have never realized this, revisit the prior books and see for yourselves. It's quite amazing.

The main message of all the books seems to be: sex=love, and it's only for super hot people (preferably if they don't know they are hot, despite having lived for thousands of years). Also, by extension, the books imply that people who are in love continue to have hot passionate sex forever, and that this appears to be the main (or only) activity that the couples engage in while in each other's presence. On the other hand, these books are FANTASY after all (frankly, after this, the whole concept of demons and Gods is much more realistic and believable).

***spoiler alert***

This particular book was no different. Aside from following the same format, which, by this point, is just insulting to the reader's intelligence, it also offends in the following ways. First of all, the development of Amun and Haidee's relationship is more nonsensical than most: he stands for everything she has hated for a few thousand years, but after finding out his true identity, is not even a little tempted to have her revenge. Instead, she decides to help him by following him to hell to get rid of his various new demons. What follows is a series of disjointed scenes that describe the gory details of hell and by the end Haidee and Amun are completely inexplicably in love. She dies, and the story falls apart completely. I am still not sure how she came back and what becoming a "keeper of Love" has to do with it. Earlier in the book, she sys that Hate (a demon that she apparently carries) was not what was keeping her from dying, it was the fact that she was "chosen" by some goddess or other. Yet at the end, the angel that's helping the two "heroes" of this "novel" says that she cannot be resurrected because Hate has left her. Yet she still returns (to the angel's surprise and general befuddlement) and that's when we get a short, half-baked explanation about her now being a keeper of Love, which angel gave her from a jar on his nightstand (I SO wish I was joking). Finally, the rest of the Lords accept her, the woman they've been hunting for millennia, with absolutely no qualms.

I hate starting and not finishing books, so I got through it. However, after the first chapter, it became a tedious effort... I was actually trying to find things to do around the house to avoid reading! The love scenes, which tend to be the main selling feature of a romance book, were actually irritating. I refuse to do this to myself anymore. Showalter and I are DONE.

This is actually my first Gena Showalter. I know. I know. How can a person that loves supernatural erotic romance taken this long to actually read something by Gena?

Gena does a great job at developing the world around her characters. The imagery that she invokes in her writing is superb. The character Amun you automatically love. He's powerful and highly likeable. She writes the character Haidee to be strong and determined. Haidee is a hunter and it seems many writers tend to write their female hunters to be too hard and cold. Gena does a great job to make Haidee strong, but soft enough that the reader falls in love with her.

I'm looking forward to my next Gena Showalter book.

I love this series with all my heart and I really didn't know what to expect from Amun. He is one of the lords that we really don't know too much about so when you read this you not only get the story but also meet Amun in the process and learn about who he is and his personality which doesn't disappoint. I was shocked to find out his woman was Hadiee because from the moment she came in we all thought she was Striders, then to find out who Striders woman will be was also shocking. To be honest i thought this would be the classic girl comes to fortress, lord falls in love wont let her leave like all the rest of them excluding darkest kiss and darkest lie but the setting of this story is in hell and hell is nothing like you would expect. Circuses, poker games, shadow rooms. This book is a great page turner that will keep you wanting more.

The Darkest Secret by Gena Showalter

Loved it. Another Lord tamed by a woman with more going on than first appearances might show. Humor, emotional connections and fighting for each other with nothing held back.
While I've gots hundreds of other books to read, the next I pick up will probably be the next in this series.

This book took me a long time to get into. I only actually got invested in the story when the two main characters finally met up and were aware of each other. I'd recommend reading it if you have nothing else pressing or want to see what happens with the character Amun (keeper of Secrets). Strider's love story (and William's) also begins in this book, so if you want a background on him, this is a good place to look.

I never really cared about Amun till this book, he was just a background character to me. Now I think he's totally badass. I loved getting the background info on Hadiee, though I wish she had been a little tougher in the book.

This isn't my favorite book of the series (Aeron and Olivia are still numero uno) but it did not disappoint. I can't wait for Strider and Kaia!

I have enjoyed other books in this series. I am so glad I have followed the series in the correct order, cause if I had read this particular book first I doubt I would have been inclined to purchase another Lords of the Underworld book. I had to put the book down for a few days when I first started reading it after it arrived as I could not deal with the whole contrived connection between Amun and Hadiee.

I am trying to finish the book, but I've been so annoyed with the book I had to write some feedback. All the ones I see here so far praise the book as some great romantic amazing read. What I read was basically lust, the guy who is too willing to hurt and turn his back on his "family" for a woman who killed a friend who was like a brother to him and a woman who irritated the life out of me, who spent her time stumbling into him and quivering; a woman whom we were led to believe was so tough and scary. Also, for someone who is claiming the moral high ground and wanted to wait, break up with her boyfriend first before having sex with Amun, she was way too willing to perform an intimate sexual act on Amun. You are either having sex or you are not. Then statements like "the congo" = "Guys had been as big as apes, with a mind-set to match, so the name fit. Eh??????

I hope the next book is better and that I do not grow to despise the main characters.

LOTU is one of my absolute favorite series. Amun and Haidee's story is a roller coaster right that makes you just melt in the end. Both characters are very well developed, as well as the conflicts and romance. Hot hot hot...literally since most of this book is in the Underworld. You cannot miss this book as part of the series. One of the strongest ones.

I have anxiously awaited this book for sooo long now. And Gena didn't let me down at all. I wasn't thrilled when I had heard who Amun was to be paired with based on her previous introductions in the previous books. However; the heroine does grow on you after awhile especially after you experience her past. And throughout the series I've always considered Amun kind-of the "Gentle Giant" type. Yes he is at times, but wait till you read about his other side!!! And of course as with all her novels there is humour, excitement, romance, suspense, and a huge twist at the end that you'll never see coming. A Gena Showalter novel has yet to not meet my expectations or in most cases they succeed them. I am greatly anticipating the next in the series and cannot wait for October to get here already!!!!

This was a wonderful addition to the series. The world, action, and the characters were amazingly detailed in this book. In addition, the romance between both the main characters were well protrayed with a very appealing storyline. A great novel, and I look forward to reading more.

I have enjoyed the evolution of the series however, the stories have become redundant when it comes to the couples. I have read this love story already in the prior books. The situations have changed but not the mannerisms and interaction of the couple.
I am hoping that the story keeps going because I really like this series.
I'm looking forward to Paris and William's stories.

I was looking forward to learn more about Amun. I think this book did its job. I liked him in the book and the connections made to the other Lords. I think that him being able to communicate telepathically was an okay way to deal with him being unable to speak, but I expected more. I just really liked the previous book and this was a little slower. I look forward to the next book in the series.

This book held me in its grasp and didn't let me go until the end. It it's such a great boom filed with heart and treat kicking moments along with a comedic banter that Errol keep you on the edge of your set and laughing with every turn off the page.

I have enjoyed each book in this series, but this is my favorite. I loved the tenderhearted each other and the close connection between the two. It was a welcome change from so many romance novels where there is constant animosity between the hero & heroine for the majority of the book (it gets very old, fast).

Amazing characters, fabulous adventures, awesome villains, wonderful play between characters, great love story. Gena Showalter is a very talented writer. I am definitely a fan of the overlords series absorbed them all like a delicious treat.

I thought that this would be an exciting paranormal novel; however, as it turns out, it is a poor nasty excuse for a Harlequin romance....only much more graphic. Frankly, it is one step from being porn. In addition, it is poorly written...at least the first four chapters...I couldn't tolerate any more of the graphic sex and poor syntax. This book might make nice starter material for a BBQ...that is at least one practical use for it.

Others have set the stage for the book, I'm going to give my thoughts only.
I am amazed at the review standing. I'm a Showalter & LOTU junkie and I have to be honest, I was really disappointed. When I came to the store and found a rating of 4-1/2 stars -- all I could think was WTH?? I made it through the tale (anyone that loves the Lords must) but it was tough going.

Amun doesn't speak and I've got to give GS credit for how she staged Amun and Haidee talking to one another. I am amazed that the psychic vs oral words didn't lose themselves (and the reader) throughout the pages. With that said, however, there is alot of boring internal talk. One evening I read 4 pages involving an internal "thinking" debate in Haidee's head. She went on and on --- what if, when, how, what if, on and on and on. This was a recurence througout and frankly, it's what I liked least.

Now the 'Strider' line - oh yeah, that was golden. As Amun is making his way through his book, GS is setting us up by allowing a glimpse into Strider. Loved It. Any LOTU lover will get a jolt from that. It's a must read for the junkies (even though it's slow going) and for first timers, don't judge all of Showalter's LOTU books by The Darkest Secret, please. There are great Lords out there waiting to tingle your toes.