A), Dark Storm (Carpathian Novel

Pre-ordered and looked forward to it as I've read all the dark series several times over. This one is sluggish and just not up to the standard of the others. I usually finish one of her books in a single sitting. Been working on this one for days and keep waiting for something to happen. I'll think twice before I pay full price for any new books of hers.

very nice love it amaizon is a god sent we buy stuff all the time and there pricedf great with everything in stock or we can pre order will continue to buy more and keep up the great prices and keep in stock thanks gene and mary hulsey

As expected from the author, this book grabbed me by the throat from the get-go and didn't let go. I didn't want it to end even though the characters weren't the usual ones. The story line still applies to the novels, for which I am glad.

I have just recently stumbled across the Carpathian series. I will say that Ms. Feehan has a very interesting and well thought out take on vampires, especially given alot of redundancy you see when it comes to a story with that central theme. I started out and was relatively "Meh" on the series.
However as the stories started to get tied together more and more, and a mythology of sorts began to emerge, they became infinitely more interesting. I've kind of skimmed through the reviews of this book, and I'll concede that some have valid points. However, I found myself liking this book.

~The Good~
I liked to see characters from previous novels, so that it's obvious that at the end of the book (unlike most that fall under the "romance" heading) the characters and the world they live in do still have problems moving forward.
Personally I'm a huge fan of Gary, and am waiting on a happy ending for him. It's good to see him get more face time in a novel.
I (unlike alot of reviewers it seems) liked the entrance of wizards, and dragons into the Carpathian mythology she's crafting. It has made the stories more diverse and creative.
I loved the villian in this one, a carpathian who had a lifemate. Which we had thought impossible. Not only one with a lifemate, but one from one of the "core" families, in this case the Daratrazanoff's. I liked when she delved into his twisted mentality and thoughts, and his aftermath was well thought out I think

~The Bad~
There were some areas that made me cringe.
I would have liked to see more reaction to this ancient carpathian in a volcano emerging. (But the families didn't even seem to bat an eye)
I would have liked the conclusion between Dax and Mitro to feel more epic, more titanic in struggle.
I would have liked Mitro to get more face time. We saw his twisted mind, but...why did he snap? What pushed him over the edge?

~Overall~
Beyond that, alot of people complained about the flower ceremony which was awkward I think, but would have been less awkward if it had been delved into more from a historical aspect.
Some of the secondary characters could have had their role expanded for the story. (The people who make asses of themselves in the beginning)

I like Ms. Feehan's work, this wasn't my favorite of hers, (I think that's a tie between Dark Legend and Dark Slayer) but I very much enjoyed the read, and it had some key differences in the story that kept it fresh and from becoming derivative.

This book was so good. I cannot wait until the next book comes out. I hope Christine continues with Dax's story with he and Riley traveling to the Carpathian mountains. And I love the twist with the fire dragon. Really great!

Christine Feehan does it again.......all of these books are so good. I love the way that she blends the intense action with the immense love between the characters. You can feel the emotions. Great reads!!!

Centuries ago, a Carpathian hunter named Dax started pursuing a vampire named Mitro. Performing a ritual approved by Dax, Mitro's lifemate, Arabejila, seals both men into the bowels of a volcano. The ritual must be performed every 5 years by a female in the bloodline of Arabejila. This ritual is handed down from mother to daughter and became a sacred duty for all of Arabejila's descendents. The story opens with Riley and her mother journeying through South America to get to the volcano to perform the ritual. The problem is they're late. Due to the illness/death of Riley's father, Riley and her mother set out very late to get to the volcano. As the hour approaches for the ritual magic to expire, Mitro grows increasingly powerful and does everything in his power to stop them from arriving. As you may guess, despite Riley and her mother's best efforts, Dax and Mitro both escape and the fight is on. However, Dax is bolstered and supported by Riley, who becomes his lifemate.

Positives:

Feehan takes a leisurely approach to the journey through the the store to get to the volcano. Despite the long set-up to get to the meat of the plot, the first 100 pages of this book is some of Feehan's best writing. As I was reading these pages, I could feel the humidity and darkness, smell the vegetation and loam, see the greenery, exotic birds and animals and almost touch the sides of the boat they traveled in.

I definitely enjoyed Jubal and Gary being along for the ride. They were traveling through South America to harvest a flower that might be used in the old days by the Carpathian people. The friendship between the two men, their actions and support made the story much deeper than it would have been. They played a big part in protecting Riley.

The relationship between Riley and Dax is very sweet. Dax and Riley immediately connect and their relationship is a lovely partnership. Both respect each other's abilities and cherish each other. I especially liked the character of Dax.

Feehan pulled back on the Carpathian language in this novel. It was used very briefly and only in places that were appropriate. I found this to be such a relief. I actually could read the book without stopping every few paragraphs to think about random phrases and words in a foreign language that was made up by the author.

The storyline ends up in the house of Riordan De La Cruz, and Riley and Dax meet up with Jasmine and Juliette Sangria. It was interesting to see where the story was going for the women since last we saw them in the series.

Negatives:

As mentioned above, the set up for the main plotline took quite a bit of reading. Dax and Riley finally meet each other on page 125. Looking back on the story, most of these pages were totally unnecessary to anything in the story or in the Carpathian world.

Feehan developed a fertility ritual using a flower. Supposedly this ritual was part of the Carpathian history and almost everyone thought the flower had cease to exist. It was enormously cheesy. I hope we never see it again, but feel we probably will in future books.

Dax's real name was Danutdaxton. Really? It made me think of Dunkin' Donuts. Where does CF get these names??

Dax merged his spirit, body and soul with a fire dragon that had been living in the volcano. Doing so made him one of the most powerful individuals the Carpathian world had ever seen, but it was a plot idea that worked in some instances, and not in others.

The end of the book is extremely abrupt, and when I turned the page expecting much more I got the usual "Carpathian for Dummies" appendix for the usual 32 pages. Sigh.

And lastly, CF came very close to destroying her own world building by giving Mitro, one of the worst vampires ever, a lifemate. Through almost 30 books, we have known that lifemates saved Carpathians and it was impossible for them to turn once they had one. Feehan explained this away by stating that Mitro was evil and disgusting before the lifemate and he willingly gave up his soul. I found this to be walking an edge, and while I will accept it because it is the story, I don't have to like it.

Overall, I would say that the positives outweighed the negatives and I would recommend the book to readers of the Dark Series.

This is my favorite of this series, the story was wonderful, your laughing and crying, then your praying. I love the way this story evolved, it was magnificent. Looking forward to more of this series. This is a definite read.

I was introduced to the supernatural genre by Dark Prince and haven't looked back since. This latest Dark book was Wonderful and kept my attention. The only thing I wish was that we could have had Arabejila fleshed out a bit more. It "appears" she is the "flower lady" but that is never verified. A lot of new questions have come up now that I look forward to having answered like, will Dax & Riley return to the Carpathian Mountains and help with the fertility problems? Will Jubal & Jasmine have a relationship and if they convert will they be lifemates? Was Dax aware of the properties of Jaguar blood because he had discovered it in his travels? I do wish there was more indepth sharing between Dax & Riley but I enjoyed the couple very much.
Good job Ms. Feehan, I anxiously await your next book.

This book was excellent, just like all the others, however it lacked something. The story within the story over powered Riley and Dax's story. It took soooo long (9 chapters in) for them to really meet! I read these novels for the invigorating and enthralling love stories so I wish their's was more in depth and took point in the book. Overall, another great success by Christine Feehan!

I have enjoyed this series over the years, the author has in that time been able to make the charactors come alive as with this book, she makes you laugh sometimes cry but I always seem to want to turn to the next page to see what is going to happen, I look forward always to the next book to see where the charactors are heading.

This series will always be my favorite. It is a really good book. I did not give it 5 stars because it dragged a little at times, but I love the fact that it had Gary and Jubal as supporting characters and they kicked some butt.

Christine Feehan knows how to draw you in and keep you in. I can not wait for the next one. The on le bad part is the book end and you have to wait for the next. I would recommend to my sister, daughter and niece . And a couple of friends who I know enjoy this type of books.

I was glad that this book was more focused on the couple, it reminded me of old Feehan books. With that said, this book was also extremely boring. I really wish the next book takes us out of the jungle. I am so done with it. This book ended abruptly as well and left me wanting more of a closure. My kindle read 87% 1 hour left of reading. What I failed to realize; the last 13% was all about facts and the Carpathian language.

I am not going to summarize the plot-others have already done that better than I could. Having said that I don't understand some of the harsh reviews for this book. It was different than some of the others however it wasn't the same old carpathian meets lifemate and forces his will on her to do as he tells her to do. The last book focused on Zacharias and his mate and a reviewer compared their relationship to spousal abuse - now we have a sweet love story where the heroine is someone to be reckoned with and a carpathian male who wants to earn her love and trust-which I found refreshing. They didn't fight about who would do what because Dax understood Riley's heritage and that her abilities were as unique as his own. He might not have liked it however he let her use her powers to do what she needed to do. They were partners in tracking and destroying the evil Mitro which was a nice change of pace.

There have been several books in the series that have left questions unanswered when they ended and the answers have been revealed in future story lines. Sure I'd like to know more about Dax-I have a sense already that he is very old since he remembers Mikhail's father as the prince and Mikhail is almost a thousand years old. However I want to know more about Gary and Jubal as well.
I enjoyed the book as it provided an afternoon of escape with a hot carpathian male.

And lastly since this is a book about Supernaturals and Magic you sometimes have to just go with the flow, accept what comes and enjoy the story. I know I did.

Loved this book, the latest in Feehan's Dark Series. Once again Feehan has incorporated familiar themes with old and new characters into a story which takes us into the world of the Carpathians and their lifemates. Great reading! Highly recommended.

A good book. I didn't like the scale armor though. And would like to see more interaction with the original characters from the first five books. Love that Julbal was and Gary were in it I really hope there stories are told someday.

Oh how I love the Carpathian series. Christine introduces another ancient Carpathian who it seems hold a key to helping the Carpathian race with a ritual and a flower, a flower that no longer grows in the Carpathian Mountains, Dax and Riley meet but unlike the others Dark Storm left to many holes.

Loved this book. Wish the next one was out and hopefully we get to see more caricature interaction in future books. A gathering would be great. Like I said love the books have never been let down besides having to wait for the next one to come out lol. Highly recommended!

Get addition to the Feehan's Vampier series. Amazing characters and great story line.
Looking forward to each new book and this does not disappoint.
Anyone who enjoys a great story with adventure, romance, bad guys, good guys will love this book.

As with the (psy-changeling series) i read the whole Dark Capathian series on hard copy, which prompted me to invest in a kindle, so i could read them all again.
Totally enjoyed the the different concepts, and looking forward to experiencing the imagination of many other authors. Donna.

I have been reading this series since the beginning and in my the books just get better and better! Ms. Feehan's imagination never ceases to amaze me. This book especially is so different than the others and it is cool that she never forgets all her supporting characters. I loved that Gary and Jubal played an active role in this book! How she keeps up with everyone is beyond me but it definitely makes this whole world she created that much more real for me!

Not my cup of tea but it's not a bad book, Christine Freehan has a great imagination! I'm passing it on in hopes someone might like this type of story and wants to read more. That's all I have to say on this book.

Christine Feehan has done it again with a wonderful tale of fated love and good battling evil with good winning. Interesting scenes of dragons fighting. I loved the betrothal ceremony which indicated to me ancient carpathian rituals still to be discovered in future books.

I have read every book by Christine Feehan and I am always pleasantly surprised by every new book. She is an amazing writer and each book is hard to put down once you get started.They each always leave me wanting more. Her books would make an amazing movie series, one can only hope..

I have every book christine Feehan has written and never want to miss one. Even the books she has updated from a previous book are certainly worth reading and enjoy the updating. She is definitely one of the best there is!!!

I enjoyed this new installment in the Dark Series. It's a different kind of story and I found it very interesting. With so many books in the series it's easy to pick them apart but I read for the entertainment factor. Yes, editorial issues & redundancies trip me up but thankfully I didn't see many of them this time around. I have been satisfied with the last several Dark books. I eagerly await Feehan's releases each year.

I was a little hesitant about buying this book because the characters were unknown. However, after reading the preview chapter on Ms. Feehan's website, I couldn't wait to get the book. I loved the story. There were some questions I wished had been answered and I wish the book were a little longer but I really enjoyed the story. I loved the addition of the characters and how they tied into a brief statement from an earlier book. I really hope we see more of these characters in future stories.

II have yet to read a book by Christine Feehan that is not toatally awesome and worth the money and time to have/read. This one has a definite surprise twist. It shocked me. :-) Those that have followed the Dark series from the beginning will understand.

With a continuation to the Carpathian world this one doesn't disappoint. All new characters and a twist on the relationship of lifemates. Can't wait until these people meet the rest. Should be and interesting reunion or introduction with the Prince.

This was one of Christine Feehan's wonderful Dark Series. It was a brilliant story that kept me on the edge of my seat. There were a great many twists and turns. It brought tears to my eyes a couple of times and the love scenes were top notch as per usual. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes this genre.

One more book from Mrs. Feehan that does not disappoint! great series!! I would definitely recommend it! can not wait for the next installment!

The review is not incentivized, and all opinions expressed are my own.

I'm amazed by the diversity in Christine Feehan's Dark characters. The last was Dark Predator and it was hard for me because it was so very...dark. But then, I loved it; the characters interacted the only way they could and in the end they won me over.
Now, deep in the the store (a place I really want to see) we meet Riley. Her and Dax are refreshing and very different than other Carpathian couples. Dax is thoughtful and hot in many ways. Riley has skills that will be very meaningful in CF's Dark world. Along with the "Old One," they're a great couple and I want to be there when they return to the Carpathian mountains.
My only complaint is that I wanted more; but then, I always want more when I'm reading CF's Dark series.

I love all of Feehan's books, some more than others. I had read the reviews and wasn't too sure about this book which goes back in time, - but as I read I was transported to a different time and place. I loved it!!

I always look forward to the next installment of the Dark Series, and I enjoyed Dark Storm very much. The constant introduction of new characters and story lines is wonderful. I hope the stories continue for a long time to come.

Christine Feehan does it again!! I have read all of her series of books. All are wonderful stories. I started reading paranormal books
after reading Dark Prince several years ago. After reading one you are hooked. The books are just the right length the stories flow into each other so you do not lose the series feel. I hope she has many more to write.

I love the Carpathian series, and they have been a little repetitive latelyDark Storm. But Dark Storm is different. The heroine is not sad and full of drama. I really liked this one. And Dax is a really good character.

I really enjoyed this book, it had a different vibe from the others, all of which I have read several times, it was great fun to read. I think it will allow Christine to open up new directions for characters who have not had their story told yet and has increased my interest and anticipation regarding more Dark books. I can't wait to see what happens to the Aunts for instance and our favourite "human" scientist.

Anything written by Christine Feehan is great, I can't wait to devour reading it from start to finish. Her books are awesome, keep you wanting more with each word written. The stories keep you captured and wish you were there with them in that moment.

I loved the lifemates pair in this book. Dax might have been an ancient Carpathian male but he brought so much more depth to what that means. He was the perfect balance of dominance and sweet and you couldn't have found a better compliment for a mate than Riley. Everything about these characters were different, including the villain Mitro. It's one of the few Dark series books where the heroine had just as much power as her male counterpart, yet it was used offensively. Riley showed that being a female lifemate did not make her obsolete. She had her own strength and gifts that were truly "of the light". She was a wonderful balance of courage and softness. She had an inner strength that didn't translate into an outer hardness which I found refreshing. If the Carpathians ever needed couple counselling, these two would be the team leaders! Dax and Riley really complimented each other and felt as if they were truly destined to be lifemates (unlike Ms.Feheen's last 3 couples). Overall, I gave it 4 stars simply because a full 23% of the book was nothing but the language index and what I found to useless filler information. I felt those pages could have been spent connecting Dax with Gregori (to let him know about Mitro) and the other Carpathians back in the mountains. The price of the book is too high to have 23% of it filler information. I highly recommend buying this book ASAP and adding it to your collection, you won't regret it!

I loved the book, but I really would have liked a more dramatic capture and kill scene of the villian.
It just seemed a little too easy after a whole book leading up to this outcome. But I still can't wait
untill her next one! I have read the entire series.

I was very disappointed with the book. Ms. Feehan I love to read your books but I have to agree with the other reviews when they say that the last few book in the dark series do not reflect your talents.

I did not put it down. Christine Feehan's series is a Great Read. Her writing just brings everything to life. Her detail and descriptions are so clearly written you feel you are in the story rather than just reading about it. Looking forward to the next one.

I have not been happy with Christine Feehan's Carpathian stories in a long time. The last book I enjoyed was Slayers, that book was a couple of years ago. I hope she gets better again. This book was a flop with a couple of good moments. I will be renting her books from the library now instead of buying them.

so so good if u don't know about Carpathians it won't matter this book explains everything... I loved it so much I really wish that it was longer so I could see how they interact in the Carpathian mountains but that will happen next book.

First let me say I don't understand the 1 and 2 star ratings, this is a very good story an a bit different than the other Dark series books, which makes it totally interesting. Sometime I think other authors send their devout minions to do harm to other better selling authors. I have seen this pattern for a few years now and It's just not right!!

I loved Riley she is a descendant of Arabejila the "Flower Lady" as some refer to her from previous Dark series books. Christine Feehan has given us and intelligent young women, who has eminence powers of her own. She is not a warrior'hunter like Natalya Ivory and Destiny' but she could be with the power she wills. Riley is very feminine and makes a great Lifemate to Danutdaxton "Dax", the Carpathian hunter who has voluntarily imprisoned himself to trap Mitro the most vile powerful vampire so far in the Dark series. They have be imprisoned their for centuries inside a volcano.

The story is fast paced the battle scene between Dax and Mitro are amazing. I couldn't believe Mitro's family linage you will be shocked when you find out who's family he is from, but it does explain why he was the most powerful vampire so far. The love scenes are not as many, but are just as scorching HOT AND SEXY!! Dax is the oldest Carpathian alive and he can do amazing things, He is so deserving of Riley. They are my all time new perfect couple. We also, get to visit old friends the De La Cruz family.

The story has a bit of humor to it. Making it not so depressing as PR sometimes can be. I really liked that Gary Jensen and Jubal Sanders were main characters in the book. They lived up to what we have come to expect of them, as being human companions to the Carpathian people.

THIS BOOK IS A MUST READ!! and like I said I really don't get the 1 an 2 stars for this book and I always respect others opinion, but I had to speck out this time and say they must have had other motives. I will say one thing that I agree with it is time to bring the series to an honorable happy close!!! VERY WELL DONE CHRISTINE!!!

This book is a continuation in the carpathian story line that does not disappoint. I was afraid after the multiple carpathian novels and the ending of the last book, that this book would be very watered down without a very decent plot. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised and very happy to be wrong. I am going to be watching with interest to see where her storyline goes to next.

This series just keeps getting better as the author adds more dimenisions to her wonderful, complex and romantic world. Here she introduces new characters that are strong and well developed and new. I like this book in the series because it feels like the author is going in a new direction with the storyline/plot and retains the truely romantic feel she imparts so fluently. Dax is one interesting hero! Loved it!

i read all of Christian Freehan dark set of books. And eagerly waite for the new ones to come out. I enjoy them and read them till I finsih them. They keep your interest and you are looking forward till the next one. When I can I will order before the book comes out.

WHAT THE HECK is wrong with some people? Man alive alivin...Christine Feehan is back with a vengeance! I will admit I was not impressed with "Dark Predator". that said I loved this book "Dark Storm". The story had me riveted from the beginning. She certainly knows how to weave a spell over her readers. Lord have Mercy I can not imagine why she should have waited 6 more months to put this book out as others have suggested.
Starting with page one you are pulled into the story, as if you are there with the characters of the book. I found Riley and her mother to be so real in my imagination as I read along; Just as I have felt with other characters in her other books. I loved having Gary and Jubal in the book too. Loved the part they played. It made me feel just how important they are to the Carpathian world and their lives. Reading this book made me feel as though you live and breathe with most all of the characters in this book as I have with other books written by Christine Feehan. It was so difficult to put the book down to go to sleep.
I was so drawn into the book. I did not feel that in the previous book "Dark Predator" as I did in all the previous books. However; in this book Christine Feehan pulled me right in. I love the way she writes, with feeling and how she makes the reader feel what the characters feel. It is an amazing talent and I for one am grateful she has it.
I myself do not have that talent and would never presume to criticize her in the manner others have because she has not written a book about characters they want her to. I do not know what prompts a writer to write about certain characters but what ever it is for Christine Feehan it sure does work for her!
How anyone can tell an author she has to write a story about a particular character is beyond me...whether or not we have heard of the character she writes about in a current book or not also does not matter at this time... somehow, someway, someday, when the time is right we will know just why and how those characters fit in the overall scheme of things. Until then I don't know about you but I intend to continue to read and enjoy Christine Feehan's books and will pray she can continue in good health so she can continue to write that which I love to read!
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, CHRISTINE FEEHAN for this Amazing book that I so thoroughly enjoyed reading.
May Heavenly Father Bless you and yours with all that you stand in need of.

I have been reading since I was in grade school, and this authors stories are impressive. The way she draws you into the story and lets you see through the characters eyes is fantastic . The story comes alive and I love all pf her books. You can‘t miss these fantastic and incredible stories a must read.

I am pleased that other readers feel as I do about "Dark Storm". I'll rate it one star because of the author. Christine Feehan has so disappointed me. I have all her books, my library of over 5000 books being replaced on my Kindle fast. Up to 1000 but this...not sure I'll buy another Feehan book, it is that bad, certainly not at the "advance" price. What a mess! Leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Are we sure that Ms. Feehan wrote this book? Can I send it back?

I loved this book because it had several new spins on the Carpathian race.
I liked the heroin and the return of Jubal and Gary, whose characters have
both grown. Also the hint of a relationship for Jubal.

This book was awesome, I couldn,'t put it down from the beginning it grabs you and doesn't let go till the end.   I hope there will be many more exciting and romantic stories in this wonderful series .  please keep up the great work Miss Feehan!!!!

I am and always have been a huge fan of ms. Feehan's books, so much so that I waited up until 3:00am for the book to appear in my kindle. It was like watching paint dry and the fact that the characters were under developed the ongoing insufferable descriptions of the rainforest and all of it's inhabitants made my blood boil as if I had been wrapped with chains dipped in vampire blood. Whatever the problem may have been this book shouldn't have been published and it definently wasn't worth 13.00.

4 stars

This was a very good story. I liked both Dax and Riley and enjoyed their story.

Riley is a language expert that has a natural skill at languages. Riley father died right before the book began and her and her mother were left on their own. Every 5 years, Riley and her mother go to Peru to perform a ceremony on a volcano. It's something that the women in their family have been doing for centuries but Riley never realized that there was a very immportant reason for doing it.

Dax is an ancient Carpathian male; Carpathians are born vampires with abilities like shape shifting (to any form, even mist), magic spells and psychic powers. The males of the Carpathians have a darkness in them and if they don't find their lifemates, they can lose their souls and become evil. Dax is more ancient than most and was focused on trying to kill a clever vampire named Mitro. He was unable to kill him so Dax was imprisoned in a volcano with Mitro to keep him trapped and hopefully kill him.

Because of Riley's father dying, her and her mother's 5 year trip to Peru is delayed. When they do get to Peru, it seems like everything that can go wrong, does go wrong in order to delay them further. Riley and her mother run into some major issues as they make their way to the volcano and might not have made it at all if it wasn't for some unexpected help from Gary and Jubal. Gary and Jubal happen to be in the area looking for a flower that could help the Carpathian people. They don't know Riley and her mother but have the feeling that they should help them so they do. Despite Riley and her mother's efforts, they don't make it in time and the volcano erupts and Mitro escapes with Dax hot on his heels.

Once out, Mitro is able to escape Dax but Dax runs into Riley, Gary and Jubal. He realizes right away that Riley is his lifemate and he also figures out that Gary and Jubal are friends to the Carpathians...which is lucky because Dax could use the help, not only with the hunt but also with learning all that he's missed by being trapped underground for centuries. Gary and Jubal also help Riley to understand that Dax is good and trustworthy which helps her to accept him and not fight the strong attraction between them. The romance actually goes pretty well but there's some major issues as they try finding Mitro. Mitro is a big bad that is a bit unusual from the normal vampires in this series and it had me somewhat flummoxed...thankfully, Dax and company were able to figure out how to take Mitro out, leaving Dax and Riley free to start on their HEA together.

This was a very enjoyable story. Riley was a really good heroine and I liked her (maybe almost too perfect but not in an annoying way, LOL). Dax was a pretty good hero...I especially liked the "something special" he left the cave with. Overall, this was a very good story with likable characters so I'd recommend it. :)

* note - I listened to the audio version of this. There were 2 narrators, a female for the parts from Riley's PoV and a male for the part from Dax and Mitro's PoVs. Both narrators did very good jobs.

I did something rather unusual with this book, I waited over a week to read it AND I read other reviews on it first. Now that may not seem like a big deal to you but it is highly irregular for me. That being said, this review will reflect those concepts and will have include some questions that come to mind.. some might consider those questions spoilers.. *grins* ok, disclaimer done.

Dark Storm is the 23rd in Christine Feehan's Dark Series.. or as I like to call it her Carpathian Series. In many ways it reads as a stand alone and can easily be read without ever having read another book in the series and without ever reading one again. That being said it also touches on aspects of the series that have been on the fringes.. bringing them more into the forefront. A necessary evil if Christine is to take this series further. Sure we could spend all of our time with Mikhail and his buds.. but that is not how this particular series has been engineered. I know many people find the lack of continuity for better word, disconcerting but I find they are missing the point. I will come back to this, later in the review.

Riley Parker and her mother are on their regular visit to the rain forest. Every five years they have made this trek to return to the place of their births. But this year, things are off. First off they are a bit later than normal and everything seems to be collapsing around them. Annabel, Riley's mother is suffering from the loss of her spouse. In Riley's family, they marry for life.. when the spouse dies it seems like the light completely leaves the remaining spouse and they follow soon after. Annabel has chosen to hang on as best she can so she can make it to the rain forest. She is gifted woman with an affinity to plants.. It seems they all but grow where she walks, and create trails for her in even the most dense of underbrush. This year though, it seems like nature is trailing her, her gift seems to be departing from her and evil stalks her. Riley is desperate to protect her mother and doesn't understand why she is such a hurry to reach their destination. Added to that, this time it seems their regular tour guide was unavailable and they end up traveling with three other groups. One of which consists of some pretty horrid men.. just skeevy. Honestly, I am not sure why they were included in this book.. other than to point out that both Annabel and Riley are beautiful and desirable women but they wasted space in this book as far as I am concerned. Annabel knows that Riley must learn the secrets of their people and tries to warn her of what is happening..

Danutdaxton (and I thought Shaughnessey Steenburgen was cruel), Dax is an ancient. Trapped in the bowels of the volcano with an unimaginable evil. A Carpathian who not only denied his mate, his chance at redemption but attempted to destroy her, Mitro Daratrazanoff. Centuries have passed since they have been trapped and still neither can kill the other. Over time each has evolved into something "more" than Carpathian/Vampire. They have acquired new talents, skills, gifts and in a rather symbiotic way have evolved together. The earth has chosen Dax and offers him a chance to absorb more power if he chooses, something we discover later that he really must do, all he has to do is absorb the soul of an ancient dragon.

As Riley travels towards the ruins of the Cloud People, the place of her birth.. Dax fights with Mitro trying to kill him before he escapes the prison that has been created for him. The barriers grow ever weaker. Conveniently enough two of the men that Riley and Annabela have been forced to travel with are Jubal Saunders and Gary Jansen.. they are on a hunt for a flower that the Carpathians have long thought extinct, something that might be beneficial to their people. It was good to see Gary and Jubal without all the drama surrounding them, aka Gabby. We see in Gary the man Savannah and Gregori, befriended. The man who would willingly fight for what is right even at his own expense but years have passed since that fateful meeting and Gary has grown. This was a wonderful portrayal of Gary and those of you who wish to off Gary, this might just change your mind. Jubal, also comes off extremely well. Seriously, I would so jump this man's bones if I had the chance. He is strong, commanding, a presence.. his Jaguar lineage shines through over and over again.

When Riley and Dax finally meet, each has suffered serious feelings of failure.. each feels that they could have done more and each has a strong need to defend and protect those around them. A strong connection is formed instantly on both sides. None of this wishy washy crap we have seen from some of Christine's other heroines.. nope, these two get it. Even if Riley is human.. she recognizes the bond and the attraction and she accepts it!!

As they progress together to fight Mitro, we see insecurities arise.. which I would think would be normal. But together they battle, the insecurities, the traps set before them, the gruesome murders and yes Dax's complete and utter incomprehension of modern society. It was a good story and I completely enjoyed it!

Now back to the beginning.. throughout the Dark Series, Christine has brought in totally unrelated characters that become integral to the over all story arc. Usually out of the blue and we have no idea who these people are. For example:

Gabriel.. when he showed up in Paris, we had no idea who he was. Oh Julian mentioned two great Carpathians/Vampires in a story he told but we didn't see them as integral characters (and no names were mentioned).. and yet over time their importance has shown.

Falcon.. I know he showed up in a novella but still he really was a no one and yet as time and the storyline have continued his importance shows through. If for no other reason, he brought those children in.

Traian.. yes Joie had been mentioned in Dark Symphony but as a body guard and we still had no clue who these people were and yet.. the Saunders family is an integral part of the storyline.

Nicholae.. seriously? Who was this guy came out of nowhere.. and yet without Nicholae.. there would be no Vikernoff *sigh*

Riordan.. I tend to say Rafael I forget that Riordan actually came first but either way had anyone heard of the De La Cruz family until now? Nope, they were brought in to intertwine with the arc. A story arc within the main arc.

I don't Mention Dominic because we did meet him in Dark Symphony and by they time he shows up we have met Dragonseekers and are pretty much expecting him..

And the troubadours.. well, we meet them through Julian, whom we do have a passing acquaintance with.

Christine has a history of bringing in seemingly unrelated characters and showing us how they fit in the big picture later on. Sometimes WAY later.

While we didn't see the characters we love the most. We do get to spend some time with Riordan and Juliette, see a tease of maybe a future book in a maybe romance between a couple of secondary characters that are not named Gabby and Gary AND find out some more secrets about that dwindling baby pool.

Now for my questions.. and yes I consider these spoilers so don't read further if you don't want to know

If the De La Cruzes are so spectacular and powerful, how is it they were not on top of this? How did they not know that a great evil was resting right there in their back yard?

How can Riley be a descendant of Arabejeli? I thought Carpathians could only have children with their mates?

How is Mitro related to the other Dara's is he a brother, uncle, second cousin twice removed..?

What happens if the wife dies first? (in Riley's family) does the male spouse also die immediately? Or is the lineage sorta kinda immortal, being that they remain young until their spouse dies then sorta whither and die? Does that mean if they didn't marry they wouldn't die? and does the lineage always have daughters?

As usual, Christine made me think, seriously think.. no matter if I like one of her books or not (and yes there are at least two of the Dark books that I really didn't like) they have information in them that gets my attention and makes me think about the overall arc. Well done.

I was convinced, after reading the reviews that I was going to not like this book.. I have been disappointed in the last two. Maybe because I wasn't expecting anything all that spectacular, I find I really enjoyed it. It is a wonderful transition book and I can't wait to see where they are going next.

Shauni

So I've been following Ms. Feehan for several years now, strictly the Dark series (I can't get into the leopard books or the witch ones). And the past few books, including Dark Storm, have been anticlimactic.

I enjoyed Ivory and Razvan's story just because we got to see Mikhail and Gregori again! And it wasn't set in the darn rain forest AGAIN. But I swear, if I have to hear about the rain forest descriptions, the freaking De La Cruz brothers, or jaguars again, I will flip out.

Ms. Feehan has created this big beautiful Carpathian world, and it seems like the last three books have just been "filler". What is Raven up to? How is Skyler doing? How's Traian? I want to see more Carpathian Mountains too please, that is their home. I dislike these random new people just showing up in a volcano; I want to see the continued story lines of the favorites.

But onto Dark Storm. I didn't feel there was a lot of character evolution or building. Riley and Dax kind of fell flat in my opinion. And the others involved felt cluttered to the story line, I wish they weren't even there so I could get more on Dax. The whole time I was reading, I kept wondering "What is he thinking? How can he act that way? What is his thought process?" I like the whole subplot about what he meets in the volcano and how it works with him, but that's the only praise I can muster.

And then of course, when I'm nearing the end, I'm actually AT the end because of the big appendix at the back. Yes, I know it's at the end of every book, but when you're concentrating on the story, nothing lets the air out of your sails faster than seeing that all the extra pages are ones you've already read.

Overall? I miss the old writing and storylines and spark. I think I'm going to go reread Dark Desire now. By the way, how are Shea and Jacques?

UPDATED EDIT: Is it just me or are there a TON of five star reviews that only have two or three sentences written? Seems like someone is lining the coffers so to speak . . .

This is a Dark Carpathain series, as with all these books, they can be read alone books. I am a big fan of this series and loved this one also. I have read all the others before in order. I would recommend reading them all because it is a great family of warriors and I feel like I am reading another chapter of their lives.
Riley was going with her mother to the mountains in the the store as they have done before. But this time is different there are things that are happening that haven't happened in other trips..
Dax has been fighting Mitro an evil being for centuries, things aren't the same as it has been.
You won't be disappointed in this book. It is well written as always by Christine Feehan. I like the connection of the Dax and Riley and how things work out. I already have the next book and can't wait to read it.

Wow ! Book 23 in the Carpathians series, and we get a walloping great story !! Mystical Carpathian/Dragon, DAX meets his mate, RILEY, who's lovely, strong and determined. Riley travels with her Mom and a wily group of adventure seekering men down the river in South America. Problems, mysteries, tension and suspense haunt the trip. Then hiking through the dense jungle to the volcano, more plight. Once arriving at the destination, there numbers are down now. Dax rises from the volcano as an ancient dragon seeking the "evil one," Mitro. We get Dax and Riley meeting, discovering, and sealing the Carpathian mating ceremony. Super hot, erotic and sexy heat rise from these two.
Lots of action, battles, magic, and the strong survive. Christine Feehan is the queen of the dark happenings. I love her tales, her dynamic, deep characters, and the flowing plots. It is a magnificent book !!
ENJOY !!!

I’ve been a fan of Christine Feehan’s Carpathians for years now, but the last few books haven’t WOW’d me like the earlier books did… until now. Dark Storm is, start to finish, an action packed and passionate story!

The Carpathian world is so intense, so detailed, and so exciting. It’s a complex world filled with compelling people and beings. It’s a world of hunters vs. vampires, good vs. evil, and in Dark Storm the very best of this world comes into play. Dax and Riley are perfect for each other. They are both are solid, mature people who trust their instincts and each other, so there isn't a lot of relationship drama and back and forth bickering, which helped make this one of my favorites of the series.

The bottom line...

I was captivated from the start, unable to put it down, and I'm excited to have the next book in my hot little hands!

Riley Parker is travelling with her mother to a specific mountain in South America. They have done so every few years, to perform a ritual, thought from mother to daughter for hundreds of years. But this year it is different. For one, Riley’s father just died, and her mother is grieving hard. Riley can feel her draw back. And she knows that the couples in her family are tighter than others, when one dies, the other quickly follows. But Riley is not ready to loose her mother just yet, and she hopes that giving her a new purpose to live for, will prevent loosing her mother as well.
Everything seems to go wrong though, their usual guides are all sick, and they had no other choice but to travel with some strangers. A archaeology professor and his two students, looking for ruins from the Cloud people, a couple of well armed men looking for some plants that should not be in South America at all, and three mining engineers, of which one is a very obnoxious man who does nothing but make sexist remarks about Riley and her mother. And if that was not enough, nature itself seems to be attacking them, and especially her mother. Which is strange, as plants and animals usually respond to her mother in a very good way, plants seem to grow where she walks by and try to touch them. Something is very wrong, and it is affecting the natives as well, especially the porters.

They are later than usual, and their time is running out. When her mother is killed by one of the porters under influence of the strange spell, Riley has no choice but to struggle on, before the mountain, the volcano, erupts. Her mother’s powers have gone to her, and suddenly she knows what it is al about, the earth itself seems to welcome her. If only her mother had told her more about their legacy, and why the ritual is so important!
Gary and Jubal and even Ben stay with her, while the rest is heading back to the river, and Riley is very grateful for them to help her. But she is too late after all, and cannot keep the evil contained inside the mountain, and calm down the volcano again.

But the evil one was not the only one sealed in the mountain, there was also one of the Carpathians most feared hunters after him. They were always too well matched for one to be able to kill the other, and so Riley’s ancestress sealed them both in the mountain, with the hunter’s approval. Mitro doesn’t know his enemy has died centuries ago, and that he is faced by her descendant, but Dax does. He felt Arabejila die hundreds of years ago, and he has been fighting Mitro ever since. But living inside a volcano has changed both of them. Dax has bonded with the soul of a Fire Dragon, while Mitros has become even more evil and deadly. Dax will have to keep the humans safe, especially Riley who is his unexpected lifemate, while Mitros has no other desire than the kill as many humans as horribly as he can, and feed on their blood and fear.

Seeing two dragons fighting in the sky, after the evil has escaped the mountain, and Riley has successfully diverted the majority of the blast to the other side of the mountain, is something wonderful and dreadful. Gary and Jubal are friends with the Carpathians though, and they can explain some of their history to Riley, especially when the red dragon transforms in a gorgeous man in front of their eyes. Dax certainly doesn’t like seeing strange men with his lifemate, but they will keep her safe while he is resting during the day. He will have to continue hunting Mitro until one of them is dead, there is no one else capable of killing what Mitro has become.

It has been over 2 years since I read the last Carpathian book, and I was getting tired of the series. So much repetition in the books, it was not readable any more. So I am very happy to say, that this new one is a huge improvement. There was a tiny bit of repetitive thoughts by Dax mostly, but not enough to annoy me.
I liked Riley, and the new angle this story has, her powers of working with the earth. I do have my question marks by how easily Riley accepts it all, that Dax is not a vampire but a Carpathian and a good guy, and how she embraces his lifestyle and wants to become one as well. I know she is still grieving from losing both her parents, and that she has nothing left, but still. A bit of resistance, hesitance, would have been more believable.

Dax is of course an ancient Carpathian Hunter, and he now shares his body with the soul of a real dragon who was around when the earth formed in the sky. Talking about ancient. But I liked the combination, and how they learned to work together, and especially how they both felt for Riley.

So yes, I will read the next book in the series instead of giving up altogether. But I do look more forward to the new Sisters of the Heart book next year.

7 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian </p>

Dark Storm is the 23rd book in the Dark or Carpathian series by Christine Feehan. It seems hard to believe that I have read all 23 books, and more will be released in the foreseeable future. I remember discovering this series back when there had only been about 4 books released. It was such a fresh take on the vampire sub-culture. Plus all those really hot men who once they found their lifemate could never stray and treated them as though they were spun glass, every want and need catered to. It was pretty heady stuff. But 23 books later and I was starting to get tired of the same ole, same ole.

Happily, this book did manage to change things up a bit. First off, the female lead, Riley, was more accepting of both Dax and his claim. She didn't spend the entire book fighting him or freaking out over the whole vampire versus Carpathian thing. This was a refreshing change. Also, Dax introduced us to some new rituals of the Ancient Carpathians. Additionally, the amount of follow up we got on previous characters was tremendous. I am getting to the point though, that I really want Gary's story. He has played a secondary role in so many books in the series, that I really think he deserves his own book. So I was glad that he played a large part in this book.

Overall it was a solid book in the series. The only thing that I could really complain about was the ending. Yes, the bad guy is vanquished and they saved the day, but I wanted a little more. It just kind of.... stopped. I kept looking for another chapter or at least a few more pages to wrap things up a little neater, but nuthin. I was disappointed in the ending. I am giving the book 3 stars on Goodreads. Mostly for the ending, but also because I am getting to the point that I am about done with the series, even if the author isn't.

Dark Storm by Christine Feehan surprises me greatly.

On the one hand, I was expecting the regular story of a Carpathian. To some extent that is what I got. But on the other hand, this was a true love story, in the heart of the jungle, in the depths of a volcano, and I could feel every squeeze of the hero's heart as he looked at the heroine. Christine Feehan has the striking ability to place you just so in the setting of a novel. She also has the ability to place you in the minds of her characters.

I recommend this book to others who may have grown tired of the regular Carpathians and want something that isn't so formulaic. A very enjoyable read.

I am so disappointed in this book that I just am at a loss for words. I love this series, it was my entry into the PNR arena but with this latest story, I'm losing interest. The characters are flat, the storyline contrived, and there is no real connection between the lead characters or to the twenty-two stories that precede Dark Storm.

The hero, Dax, is supposed to be a 4,000 year old Carpathian but he comes across so modern in his speech and mannerisms that he is not credible as a true Carpathian alpha warrior and defender. He exudes no intensity or old-world charisma of the other Carpathian males.

The heroine, Riley, is a wonder woman, cardboard cut out who possesses all these awesome new powers that even eclipse the greatest Carpathian healer, Gregori. What drew me to this series was that the Carpathians were a small, fratured community slowly coming together and working as a group to rebuild their species. I am not interested in this evolving into the Dax and Riley show.

This story would have been a great addition to the main story arc had the author paired Dax with Arabejila, two ancients Carpathians. I don't understand locking Dax away then have Arabejila choose random human male to sire her descendants. Also, I thought that lifemates were destined for each other only, how could this Mitro reject his lifemate and then for her take another lover other than her lifemate? This more than anything called into question of what was a firm belief in lifemates being a precious, one-time only gift.

I have to wonder if the author gave this plotline over to others to finish in order to meet a deadline. Hopefully, the series gets back on tract and to the Carpathian mountains with the next book.

Well, I am going to do what I have never done before,and that is give a Christine Feehan book a four star rating. I hate to do it but I felt that I had to. I was disappointed in the first half of this book. The fact that the hero and heroine did not even meet until close to 40% into the book was a huge let down for me. I can understand maybe the first few chapters, but not almost half of the book! In saying that, once Dax and Riley do finally meet then the book picks up for me.
The villan in this book is one of the evilest to date in the Carpathian novels. I have to say, that Christine kicked it up a notch with Mitro, he was just an evil guy and the things that he did were beyond frightening. I did enjoy seeing a few old faces and it was nice to see Gary Jansen and Jubal in more of a front line role in the book. I would love to see what happens as far as the connection between Jubal and Jasmine go. I think a novella between the two of them would be something I would like to read!
All in all, I will always love my Carpathians, but I do feel that an ending to the series might be time. I still am eager to read the story of Skyler and Dmitri, but other than that the freshness of the series is no longer there and some conclusions have been a long time coming. Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy the second half of the book and the fight scenes between Mitro and Dax were awesome! It is just time to bring this series to an end. It would be awful to drag it on to the point where it isn't enjoyable at all. It is always hard to say goodbye to something that you love but all good things come to an end and the end is definatly near for this beloved series. (in my opinion!)

Rating C+

The first half of this book was like reading the series for the first time. I experienced that same sense of excitement and enthrallment that I had when I picked up Dark Prince for the first time. I enjoyed seeing each character's actions/reaction before they met the other. And once they met each other, I very much enjoyed how they connected and bonded.

But around the middle, the story started getting stretched out and slow. There were definitely scenes I skimmed because they were boring or to detailed. The last half of the book fell flat for me. I also didn't like how certain coincidences emerged to resolve the ending and provide a link to the ongoing reason while Carpathian women can't/don't have children.

I'm beginning to feel about this series like I do about Lora Leigh's Breeds...Just go ahead and solve it already and move onto another issue. Overall, this book wasn't bad, but it was okay. I think I would have rather had the whole book just be "okay" rather than experience a great beginning only to see it fizzle in the end.
I also wanted to start reviewing the covers of books. Covers can make or break a sale and are often times overlooked in reviews. The cover for this title is quite reflective of some of the themes covered in the book. There is a red dragon, a beautiful flower held by a downward facing man. All things significant to the storyline. However, the scroll work on the edges escapes me. Either it's above my head or someone thought it would just look pretty. I have no clue. It doesn't detract from the appeal of the book, but it does take some of the focus off the other images.

*review copy borrowed from library

**Spoilers**

This was a very disappointing book. I didn't feel the romance at all, which is pretty much the kiss of death in a romance novel. Dax & Riley don't even meet until page 129, more than a third of the way through the book. The entire book is pretty much about killing Mitro instead of the story about the couple, & I found that boring. There are random sex scenes, but I never get the feeling that these two people are destined for each other, we don't get any of the amazement other Carpathians displayed when they could suddenly see colors & feel emotions again, we never even hear much about how Dax feels after living for so long without his lifemate. Towards the end of the book, Riordan De La Cruz & his family make an appearance. Normally I'm happy to see more of the Carpathians in each book, but the De La Cruz family has been featured in so many of the books, that I am tired of hearing about them. It's even more disappointing when I think about the fact that the last book, Dark Predator, was also a disappointment, two uninteresting books in a row may mean that this series is finished.

one of the worse Carpathian story lines yet. Ms Feehan introduces 2 new character, Riley and Dax, Lifemates, The villain vampire is basically non-exsistent. The story drags, introduces other characters like Ben who just fizzles out. Riley goes along with everything Dax says. True Dark series fans are still in the "dark" on whats gonna happen between Skylar and Dimitri and the 2 Aunts of Lara who were saved in Dark Curse. I would recommend for anyone to wait till this book goes on sale if you are a die hard fan. You've waited this long for it.

This was an amazing story to read. It flowed fast, was action packed & very romantic.

The female lead was well written & although she had her moments of stubbornness & being obtuse she was also pretty realistic (for a paranormal book of course). More modern than the other books & it was so awesome because the others were there as well as the Carpathian. Gary was also in this one again & it was good to "see" him. I loved reading about Jody's brother. I just knew it would be awesome when I saw that they were in the party going on the expedition, because with Gary there it had to be goo.

The male lead was also well written and even though he wasn't a 'modern' guy he definitely put many of the other Carpathians to shame, especially in the very beginning fight scenes between the dragons. I loved the dragons being in this one & that the villain was cunning & he made the hunter work to kill him. I loved the ritual that was inside, unlike the other Carpathian rituals this was new & it was well-written and I enjoyed reading this .

I'm glad the Carpathians are finally being dragged into the modern world, I still have a few books left to read I can't wait to get to them now. I'm almost done with the series, then I will be doing a series review as well so be on the look out for that.

I am SO GLAD i did NOT buy this and instead waited for the library edition!! Ms Feehan should be ashamed of herself; she didn't really develop her main characters and the side characters were basically non-entities. This author has definitely gone downhill, mainly it began when she branched out into other series, like the Leopard series and those witchy women. In both of those series the writing and plot lines have gone downhill - even faster than in the Dark series. Some time editing and examining for plot lines would be appreciated. Why does a hero get caught inside a volcano, along with his enemy? How did this happen?

Is this what the Dark Series has become?
If so, what a disappointment.

Now, I did not read the last Dark novel, so maybe I missed a lot of details.
But there were still enough questions that could have been answered quickly and filled out this story.

How were Jubal and Gary (esp Gary) able to leave the Carpathians for so long? Who took care of the children and infants left behind?

Why are we still in South America???? Seems like the last 5 books have been there. It's getting old. Change of scenery, stat.

Who is Dax? And as he hasn't been mentioned before (I didn't read the last book) why the heck should I care about him? And Dax? He based himeself in SA and this is his name? Seriously?

Riley? Too bland, accomidating, up-to-the-situation. Meh.

Seems like the beginnings of this series had the women simple and naive, relying on their men to guide and save them. Then all of a sudden, they ALL have magical powers, are strong as Hercules, and scarcely need the men except for sex. This is as boring as the bland beginning.

You can almost map out a CF Dark book these days. Woman strong and powerful, man conflicted and tormented. As I said in another review, get over it.

Don't think I'll bother with another CF book. This finished it for me.

Like some of the other reviewers, I enjoyed the first half of the book, even though it got a little redundant at times. I waited with baited breath for H/h to meet. And then...nothing. Snooze fest! No tension or chemistry at all. It was way too easy. She accepted everything about him and he accepted everything about her. Done. Love story over. Feehan is one extreme or the other these days. Her heroes are either over-the-top A-holes, or boring and WAY to modern for 2000 year old men. Her books have become totally self-indulgent and she doesn't seem to care one iota what the people who shell out the money for them thinks either. The made up language? Ridiculous! We are not Trekkies, for goodness sake! Enough already. And the rhyming spells? Eye-rollingly silly! And the last 15% of the book is nothing but long-winded explanations on these things. Does anyone read that stuff? I disagree with other reviewers who think this is a ghost-writer. This one is exactly the same as all of her latest ones. Go read the last four of her Carpathian series, her last couple Ghostwalkers, and her last couple of Leopard books. They are ALL the same. Cartoonish characters, tons of boring description, complete lack of chemistry between H/h, etc. I've just had to resign myself to the fact that this is what CF has become. She used to be one of my favs. In fact, I credit her with turning me on to the genre. But, oh how I long for the days of Gregori, Darius, Lucien, Jacques, and the like. I'm tired of all the Mother Earth chants and weird flower rituals. (That was just...kind-of embarrassing.) I'm waiting anxiously for Dimitri and Skyler. They're the only ones out there I care about at all anymore. She says they haven't spoken to her? Well they spoke to all of us in Dark Celebration! Oodles of chemistry! Bring 'em on MS. Feehan! We're waiting...

I won't go into too much detail, there have been enough reviews filled with it. It was refreshing, it had great drama, and of course sex. Christine Feehan can and does write entertaining engaging stories. Unfortunately, some of her stories are too short and quite frankly lackluster; to be fair, that is not usually the case. Dark Storm was almost her best dark book to date. The beginning drama was intense and the involvement of Gary and Jubal was brilliant. It started out fabulously, but the end was abrupt, and disappointing. Not only did Mitro, the villain of all villains die too quickly and with little ceremony, but there was absolutely not enough development between the De La Cruz's and Dax and Riley. It may have been true that Dax was not used to being around others, but then it was true of many of her warriors. It was awkward to read; his being standoffish and uncomfortable one moment, then as they went after the vampire, almost having a camaraderie with Riordan. It felt inconsistent and unnatural, though the chemistry between Jasmine and Jubal was wonderful. So I'd say worth reading to continue the series, but it doesn't live up to what was anticipated.

Wow, I got this book from the library due to the review's and I'm so glad I didn't waste money on it. Love the series but this was hard to finish. To much repetition, no real direction, not much background on the characters ect. It's not her
normal writing. I hope it was because someone else helped her finish and not that she is spreading herself to thin with all the other books. I would rather wait awhile and get the
consistency she normally delivers than a
crappy hurry up and get a book out.

This had the potential to be a really great book in the Dark series. Sadly, Ms. Feehan became seriously ill in the course of writing this book. The whole story did a big 360 about the time our lifemates FINALLY met face to face. Frankly, after the meet and greet between Dax and Riley I felt it became a race to the contractual word count finish line! There were innumerable WTH moments- can we say Ben? Don Weston? Editing issues- Gary Sanders anyone?
I still have a gazillion questions concerning Dax, Riley, Mitro and Arabejila. And not one character questioned Dax's appearance. Are the Carpathians getting spray tans or is everybody sampling a little too much of Solange"s blood so they can catch some extra tan time in the A.M.? Also, how about the question of who, exactly, IS Dax? I also thought that the reemergence of the most vile,evil vampire ever, aka MITRO DARATRAZANOFF, would have been a REALLY BIG DEAL in the Carpathian world. Were they waiting for FOX News to break the story? Instead, we get Baby De La Cruz as Dax's side kick. Riordan is okay, but Zacarias would have been ALOT more helpful as he's a BIG BAD,too.
I am a major fan of most of Ms. Feehan's work. If this book had about 10 more chapters and some judicious rewriting and editing I would be a fan of this one. I hope you're feeling better Ms. Feehan. I wish you could have gotten the time you needed to make this an awesome read instead of a contract obligation.

Yes I am happy to say that this is Ms Feehan at her best. For too long her carpathian books have featured mountains and parasites and it was just getting to be well to be honest rather boring, sorry!
Loved the characters , Riley is one courageous woman and Dax the hero is definitely hot (in more ways then one!).very brave move of the author not to allow hero and heroine to meet until page 124! But it worked out fabulously as we the reader have time to see them as more then two dimensional characters.
If you have read and loved such as Dark Fire or Dark Magic then like me you will be very satisfied with this book.
Happy to recommend and would give this 5 stars

I love Christine Feehan's Dark Series but this book was a huge disappointment.

There were so many WTH moments - like how no one is really surprised when Dax shows up or finding out that super bad Mitro Daratrazanoff is back in town or why after the death of Riley's mother no one - not even she is surprised at the things she can suddenly do. And healing him - hey no big deal - like she does it everyday.

There was really no build up of characters or plot. We spent 90% of the book in a volcano, a jungle, hunting for Mitro, or having sex. Flower ritual - it's a custom with Carpathians? Since when? I haven't read about it before and I hope I don't ever read about it again.

Unlike earlier books, there is no build up with various fights between the two (Mitro & Dax), no xplanation on why these two are such enemies, or what the relationship was with Dax and Arabelija. And until the end of the book no interaction with any other Carpathians and then we get Riordan - really, what a let down. And Dax's attitude (so modern thinking) toward Riley is totally opposite from how Carpathians deal with lifemates in earlier books.

These are just a few of the problems with this book and it doesn't even begin to cover all the other things missing from this book. A previous reviewer said that Ms. Feehan became ill while writing this book. Hopefully she is better now and the next book will return to the things that made this a great series.

I`ve read all of the previous books in this Dark series, most I would say, I liked. I, however, don't know what happened with this book. I hated it. Your mother is hacked to death, you cry for a few minutes and then, la de da life goes on. The book was also gruesomely graphic to the point of me wondering what genre I was reading. Plus, no one wondered about the strange occurences while travelling to the mountains. Humans, a group of them are all there and they did not notice a thing. Right, realistic.In addition, boy did it take a long time for the H and h to meet and then the h just accepts this man as her life mate without much questions. A strange man appears out of nowhere, you see him as a dragon and hello love, welcome to my life. For all the build up to killing Mitro, he died within a couple paragraphs. Also what was really the relevance of Jasmine and her baby to the plot? So the master vampire on a rampage of killing and then all of a sudden he is now focused on killing babies and jaguar mothers? huh? I wish Christine Feehan could make this totally irrelevant book disappear. I wasted hours of my time on this, please don't waste yours.

The Dark series has been my guilty pleasure for a long time, I have read all the books in the series and I secretly love them except for these last two. The last book I loathed, this one was better but still nowhere near as good as the previous books in the series. Honestly I miss Xavier as the big bad guy it at least he gave the books some back story. So this book features a new Carpathian Dax, he is older than dirt even by Carpathian standards and a new vampire Mitro and it's a bit of a shock the family that he comes from. It also makes a bit more of a badass than the usual.

Dax and Mitro had been locked by Arabejila in a volcano for thousands of years, Arabejila was the lifemate of Mitro. This was the first fail for me because in all the previous books finding a lifemate was supposed to stop a Carpathian from turning into a vampire...yeah yeah CF explained that he was always bad and was the exception, still didn't work for me. Every four years the descendants of Arabejila came to the volcano to reinforce the wards sealing them in and that's what brought Riley in contact with Dax, she was a descendant...second fail. Arabejila's lifemate was a vampire locked in a volcano...where did the descendants come from?

Half the reasons I read this series is the backstory that goes on from book to book. At least this one had some, unlike the last one and we got some more information on why the Carpathians aren't having children. Some characters from previous books were present and I liked seeing Gary and Jubal figuring prominently in this book along with Riordan and Juliette. A future book on Jubal and Juliette's sister may be in the works, which would be kinda cool since neither is Carpathian and how that would work should be interesting.

The bonding of lifemates which is kinda the focal point of this series was really disappointing too. There was not much in the way of conflict, no indecision really just Riley worrying if she was attractive enough for Dax. Also I don't even think the ritual was the same words, no healing chants none of the usual stuff I have come to expect in the Carpathian series. While it was a hell of a lot better than book 22 it still was nowhere near as good as most of the others. I haven't completely given up on the series, I'm 23 books in why quit now. I am hoping the next one is much better though.

Firstly, I should mention that I picked this book up with cynicism. I have read all of the previous novels and started with a great love for them. It began going downhill about the time of Dark Celebration. In fact after the last installment I swore to myself I would never read another, but something in me couldn't let go of the hope that perhaps Ms. Feehan would start listening to her readers and undo some of the mistakes she incorporated into her later novels. To her credit some of the mistakes were bettered, or at least not worsened. A recurring theme in the last handful or so of these books is that we are inundated with cheesy, annoying, instances of Carpathian language being shoved down our throats. This has been largely rectified. Kudos! There is still some, and another ridiculously long appendix no one needs (or reads), but what is incorporated merely consists of a couple phrases, or a word now and then. Nothing too grating. Next there was more of a plot in this story. Not just a few words strung in between what seem to be progressively more graphic sex scenes. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a love scene, sometimes a graphic one, but they were getting a little too explicit and commonplace for my liking. She wrote them in this, but the book didn't seem as centered around them. Those are some of the changes that I was grateful for.
Now I understand that the elements I appreciated from the first novels were repetitive. Domineering males, strong willed but ultimately helpless women, the excitement of turning the page to see how she'd react when finally privy to the truth. And would she be accepting or turned against her will? I was a sucker for it. I also realize that any good author needs to stay fresh and can't spit out the same formula every time. Well, this book did stray somewhat from that formula. For starters I felt that this was the goriest book to date. It had scenes of violence unparalleled in the others. At times it actually made me uncomfortable. But I do acknowledge that is a personal preference, and not indicative of the writing. Next, there was no real tension between our hero and heroine. No battle, no struggle, it was actually a very easy union. It was slow in coming, but made sense within the context of the story. Dax was a completely new take on the Carpathian male. Not domineering at all. It did strike me as odd that a male that old, with instincts bred into him could be so modern. Well, I applaud our author, it wasn't groundbreaking, but it was interesting. Although a little boring...
This brings me to the final part of my review consisting of what was awful. This isn't an opinion, it's fact. 2 words, Flower Ceremony. I won't get into it, but anyone who read it knows how cringe-worthy it is. Secondly, the part that I hate the most is all the crap about dragons. I can sort of accept the Jaguars, at least they're sort of sexy because they're all manly and possessive, but really, pages and pages, AND PAGES, about dragons and magic and wizards, etc? I hate it. What started as humans, Carpathians, and vampires, has shifted to dragons, mages, and earth healers. (When fairies join the mix, I'm officially done.) There is also very little continuity between this novel and the others, even considering many of the characters are repeats. Also, maybe it's just me being picky here, but why is every Carpathian described as the strongest and most feared Carpathian in the history of Carpathians. Talk about formula. Because inevitably the next hero will be some mythical, long thought dead character that somehow makes himself known and will be even more intense than the last. The only change in this novel is that Dax isn't as outwardly possessive as some of the others. I've been looking forward to the Dimitri/Skylar novel for years. I say write that one and put a fork in this series. And if Ms. Feehan is thinking of making Skylar some half dragon, part witch, part fairy, jaguar ancestor from some other realm, then I've waited years for nothing.

I have been reading Ms. Feehan from the beginning. All of us hardcore fans know there was a 2 book lull after Gabriel & Lucan that didn't pick back up until she brought out the wizard and Razvan's characters. Then, whoah! Awesome. I feel the same here. She had a couple of books recently that didn't "feel" the same as her older ones. But with this book, she's back. I loved it. Dax is cool. A lot of the questions asked by the "most helpful" reviews were actually answered in the book. You just needed to pay close attention. I hadn't heard that Ms. Feehan was ill, but that makes me incredibly sad. I love this series, and will continue to read it. Dax was sexy. Mitro was scary. And Riley wasn't a shrinking, screaming, idiot heroine. I liked that. This felt like more of her older style straight romances. Bring it on Ms. Feehan! One fan here who is ready for more.

I honestly wasn't sure how I'd like this book. I absolutely love Christine Feehan but I'm not a huge fan of her Dark series although I continue to read it, don't ask. Curiously I found myself actually liking this one a lot more then I thought I would. Right from the start, you have tons of action going on. I'm not sure if I'd recommend the audio book though, that's what I did and the readers are not that enthusiastic and having two people read from different chapters is a bit confusing. I think having a male and female reading a book works best if it's done like an old radio play verses just having each read a few chapters. It kinda takes you out of the moment when you switch between readers. Anywho, back to the book, I found Dax, our hero, very romantic and not at all like some of her earlier book heroes. He's definitely more what we think of as the Alpha male with a heart of gold. Definitely a guy I can read more about. As for Riley, I didn't really connect much with her character as much and found her a bit wishy-washy. One minute she's the total heroine that we love, plowing into a sea of monkeys or offering to sacrifice herself to save everyone from a volcano and then next she's too scared to go into a cabin full of possibly dead peeps. I definitely think the book had some consistency problems or maybe it was editing? I'm not sure but it just didn't seem to flow very well but all in all I think fans of the series will be happy with the addition to the Dark series.

I never write reviews, but I couldn't let this pass. I have read all of Ms. Feehan's books, and I, like most of you really love the Dark series. This book was a complete let down, it did not even have the same dynamics as the rest. The book was so simplistic, and that is one thing the Carpathians are not. I will not give away the story, but I am truly sorry I purchased this book. I wish she would not introduce new characters, when there are already so many open story lines that need to be completed.

I love all of Christine Feehan's books and this one was just as good. Our hero was trapped and had been for such a long time with the bad guy. His heroine came along completely clueless and well I'll let you you read the book to see what happens from there. These books aren't for everyone though and can be read as standalone stories but if you want to get the most out of them then start at the beginning and read them all. If you like paranormal romance you will love this series.

I usually fly through a Christine Feehan novel in a day. Her stories usually grab you and hold on until they're done. Not this one. It took me almost a week to make myself finish this story. It read like a literary case of the hiccups - stop and start. There were so many holes in the plot - and don't get me wrong there was GREAT potential in the plot of this story. But none of it was realized. For example, the simple fact that the bad guy was a DARATRAZANOFF who was supposedly responsible for the massive incidents of human sacrifice throughout South American civilizations should have given this story a WOW factor. But it didn't. I kept waiting for Gregori, or one of his older brothers to realize that their (uncle? older brother?) had reawakened and was wreaking havoc. At the very least the most evil vampire to have ever lived should have rated Zakarias' presence. But it didn't.

The supporting/secondary characters' stories were left so unexplained that I had a perpetual Scooby Doo "huh?" on my face.

The romance between Riley and Dax had the potential to be one of the most tender in the entire series as Dax had disappeared before all the Carpathian mating and fertility problems began so he was the most open and accepting of his new-found emotions. Dax's courtship and winning of Riley's heart had the potential to show us the old-world mating dance as it should be played out. Instead it just fell flat and felt rushed.

And let's not mention the 30 some pages of appendices on Carpathian healing chants, etc. that had no bearing whatsoever on this story! There are so many more things I could trash about this story.

I was so disappointed in this book but I understand from other commentors that Ms Feehan became quite ill during the writing of this book - which would explain a lot. I hope she recovers fully and that the next installment is a much better offering.

No Spoilers: after reading several negative reviews I felt it necessary to write a POSITIVE review. Having read all of Ms Feehans books I did find some similarities to past books, but that is to be expected in a series. It did take the Lifemates longer to meet in this book than any other, but I was patient and was rewarded! Several side stories of important characters and very important Carpathian history. Things that had never been revealed before! No this book is not perfect, but it is definitely worth reading. I enjoyed it.

Alas, I may be coming to the end of my time with the Carpathian series. For so long, it has been my guilty pleasure. After all, you can't get all that white lightning, feminine sheaths or velvet over steel just anywhere. In these books, you are guaranteed to find the most alpha of the alpha-males and the most flowery euphemisms for sex, along with a familiar and predictable tone that's like slipping on an old pair of shoes that you've had forever.

Unfortunately, I think these shoes are getting too old to remain comfortable. The last book in the series was a tough read, because the hero was an enormous jerk to his heroine. He was downright mean to her at times --and who wants to read that? Here, Feehan takes us in the complete opposite direction, with a hero who is simply too good to be true. But I'll get to that in a minute.

Let me set up the story. Riley is a descendant of a Carpathian woman named Arabejila. Every five years, Riley and her mother venture to a volcano in the Andes to perform a ritual began by Arabejila centuries ago. Riley has grown up hearing stories about her ancestor locking a great evil inside. Of course, she thinks it's all an old legend. But the stories are true. Arabejila trapped her lifemate Mitro because he has become vampire and she thought nothing else would hold him.

Mitro isn't inside the volcano alone. An ancient hunter named Dax is in there with him. The two are so evenly matched that neither has managed to kill the other in all this time. But Arabejila's bloodline has started growing weak and Mitro is about to break out. Using his powerful influence, he lays trap after trap for Riley's mother before she can strengthen his bindings and eventually, both he and Dax are freed.

Riley gets a crash course on Carpathians and vampires as she learns her own power of an affinity with the earth. She and Dax are lifemates, so they must work together to vanquish Mitro before his great, evil plans are realized.

There's a dragon involved. A fertility flower. Gary Jansen. Jubal (remember Joie's brother from Dark Descent?) A De La Cruz and his lifemate... but no big ties to our core Carpathian families. Unless you count Mitro. He is a Daratrazanoff, but for the life of me, I can't figure out how he is related to Gregori, Lucan or Gabriel. Which bothered me greatly.

Also bothering me greatly... it takes forever for the hero and the heroine to so much as lay eyes on each other. The first half of the book was painfully slow. Frankly, the book was boring. As angry as the last book made me at times, with this one, it was an effort to just keep turning the page. The relationship had no conflict. Dax is too perfect. Patient. Strong. Caring. Sensual. Blah, blah, blah. And Riley loves him right away. No fear. No lies. No hesitation. No fire.

I kept waiting to care, but I never did. The relationship was too easy. The external conflict was exactly the same as in every other Carpathian book. The only emotion I was left with was annoyance that I squandered $12.99 for the ebook. If you're on the fence about this one, I advise you to pass... or if you absolutely must read it, rent it from the library.

What the heck happened to one of my favorite writers?? This book was a boring disaster. It was as if someone else wrote this instead of Christine. I have never had a moment when I was completely bored or skipping ahead, wondering when it would all be over. It broke my heart that this was not a book that I could just escape into.

There were parts of this story that dragged on and on...and on....and when you thought it was over...it dragged on and on some more. I was totally shocked. Goofy spells, goofy languages, and goofy repeats of the character's thoughts became so annoying, I was literally laughing. I expect something like this from amateur authors, not a writer of this novelist's caliber. The whole book was riddled with 'mistakes to avoid when writing a book'.

I hope this author gets better soon but please don't just throw junk at the audience and hope we don't notice. That is an insult to us all.

I didn't buy this book sooner because of the negative reviews but the price went down so decided to give it a try and I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed this book and thought the storyline was great. Loved the fact there were familiar characters from other Carpathian novels and now know how the "fertility flower" mentioned in Ms. Feehan's new book ,Dark Lycan, found its way back to the Carpathian Mountains. While this isn't the best book in the Carpathian series, it's still a very entertaining read.

I just read that the author was seriously ill during the writing of this novel. I hope she feels better. However, knowing this, I can understand the difference between this story and the others. I wonder if someone else wrote the rest of the story?? It was nothing but violence, cruelty and erotic sex. No plot. I finally put it down because I couldn't read anymore. But in the back of my mind, I kept thinking, this is not like Ms. Feehan's work. I hope she is feeling better or better yet all better. However, I cannot recommend this book unless erotic sex, violence and inhuman activity really turns you on.

I like the dark storm because it was an extremely intelligent and well written book it was very romantic and sexy I appreciate it tremendously. it was hard to keep with the characters in the beginning but over time I got use to it and I followed perfuse . overall I think you need rheumatic of the telling of the story this was well appreciated well realize by audible.com I see the reading and that the store is made it available for all of us aloha.

I love the Carpathians but this book wasnt the usual Alpha male. I was glad to see I wasn't the only one that thought his book was missing something. I had so many unanswered questions at the end. The final showdown wasn't very climatic. It had everything it needed to e a great book a little editing and a few more chapters nd it would have been great.

Overall I was disappointed with Dark Storm. The story line and writing was not what I have come to expect from Christine Feehan. I have read ALL of the Carpathian books and pending on which book, I would give all the others either 4 or 5 stars (for I do have my ultimate favorite one). After reading Dark Storm (which I actually got board reading and had to put the book down many times) all that I thought was, I can't believe I spent the money to buy this hardcover book and wished I had waited to buy it in paperback for it was a book that was not a must read for me. (I bought the book when it first came out and just got around to writing the review now) If and when there is another Carpathian book that comes out, I will only buy it in paperback form or skip it all together. Most of all what I do not get is all the 4 and 5 stars reviewers gave Dark Storm. Did those readers actually read her earlier work? I am missing something here for this book was far from her best work. On 5/28/2013 when Leopard's Prey comes out (from her Leopard series), I wonder if that will also be a miss for me (I hope not).

I couldn't put it down in the beginning. Loved that Dax is an ancient one. Loved the relationship between Riley and Annabel. All the emotion was there for that and Mitros evilness. What was missing for me was the fact that this is Gregori's older brother, right, so why wasn't it mentioned at all. Why wasnt there some type of communication is this regards. Plus the Prince was not notified of what evil was released from the mountain!! And then the Jaguar bit was thrown in there. I really did like the book as I do them all, but agree the last half could have been a little better since the first half was. I'm sorry I didn't know Mrs. Feehan was ill during the writing of this book. Hope you feel better.

Unlike others, I simply appreciate the imagination it took to create this book - I found it an interesting and satisfying read. It is an exploration of the fates of some of the
lost Carpathians as well as links to some characters from previous books (Gary, Jubal). There is a reason given for Gary and Jubal searching the rain forest; there is the creation of a female Carpathian who had the gift of calling on mother earth and who passed it on to her daughters (one of the interesting themes from other books) and these direct descendants use their gift to fight and contain great evil, and there is a little fun and humour in a Carpathian linking to a magical creature who is drawn into the battle. There is the usual glimpse of human corruption and the dark underworld of human cities... Since most of us couldn't create the world that Christine Feehan has conjured, I think maybe we should just let the author develop and create it as she wills. It's her world. I think she will return to some of the ideas and characters intoduced
in previous books when she is ready.

Okay I have finally finished this book. It took me quite sometime to get through it (almost 4 weeks now). It took my finishing the book and starting another author's book to realize where CF went wrong here.

1) The main characters took far too long to actually meet. I understand the necessity to lay down a foundation to give the book substance... but waiting for 30% of the book for them to actually encounter is a bit much.

2) We hear of Riley's devotion to her mother from the beginning... and then when her mother died its like there's no real grief. Sporadically, there's some mention of Riley grieving for her mother most of the time it's others assumptions/thoughts of Riley not Riley herself expressing her grief... Where did the obvious devotion she had while her mother was alive disappear to? It's like Riley was mentally like *drily* "Oh. No... my mother is dead." Literally there was no emotional strain for her as a result of her mother's death... and then along come Dax.

3) She's just swept up in Dax. I didn't get a real feel that there was a connection between them. Now with this book, I noticed that Dax was far more willing to be there for Riley than Zacarius was with his lifemate from the previous book... but the romance of the couple itself was lacking.

4) Most of these Carpathians are OLD... yet we're just now hearing about this special fertility plant that no longer grows in the Carpathian Mountains? You're not serious right? My take is CF backed herself into a corner with the children/fertility of the Carpathians situation and she's trying to climb her way out.

5) I'm not really sure how I felt about Dax and the Dragon "merging" so I'll just say I've got no feeling at all about it...
There were no sparks flying in the sex of the couple but then after reading 22 books I'd expect that to happen... lol.

Also, CF had brought in these two characters when she's still got characters from other books that she's left the door open for. I'm interested in Jubal's, Gary's, Skyler's, and Gabrielle's storyline and I find it odd that she hasn't written at least one their stories yet.

So I guess I'll say for me this book was a TWO star because I know where this series came from and in my opinion it isn't living up to itself in the more recent releases. I guess just... wake me up when Skyler's story gets here. I'm tired of reading about these people I don't know or care about. :)

Wasn't sure if I was liking this one as much as the others, but it got really good chapters in. I liked Riley and her gifts. Would like to see what happens when they go to the Carpathian mountains. I also hoped Jasmine would be with Luis. Not sure I want her with Jubal. Oh well, I guess that is what may happen. I wonder who Luis lifemate will be.

I LOVE OF OF CHRISTINE'S BOOK AND THIS ONE IS NO EXCEPTION.I THOUGHT THIS BOOK WAS GOING 2 CENTER ON DAX AND MITRO BATTLE,BUT IT DOESNT ,IT SWITCHES COURSES,WHEN HE FIND HIS LIFEMATE, THEN IT ALL ABOUT THE LOVE CONNECTION AND A LITTLE THE EVIL.THE ENDING OF MITRO HAPPENED 2 FAST.TO ME THE ENDING FELT LIKE IT LEFT YOU HANGING,(CLIFF HANGER) THAT I DIDN'T LIKE

This was a lovely addition to the Dark Series. I always like when new additions are added to the narrative. It will be good to see in the future how these new discoveries will play out. I love discovering new histories and seeing the possibilities for future drama with well loved characters . Looking forward to the next in line.

I had a lot of problems reading this book. (SPOILERS)

1. For one thing, Dax and Mitro "evolved" while in the volcano. Both their food requirements and appearance evolved. Evolution doesn't occur in one person in one lifetime. It occurs over several generations, at least.
2. Then there were the supernatural skills of the heroine, Riley. She is a child of the Cloud People and yet she's also Arabejila's (spiritual?) descendent. When Riley's mother dies, those supernatural powers are transferred to her. Why this family lineage and not another one? What's special about them?
3. Riley is supposed to possesses Arabeijila's blood links to both Dax and Mitro. Huh? How is that possible when she isn't blood related?
3. Why was Dax trapped in the volcano with Mitro? The spell was only supposed to trap evil. And if Mitro was trapped, why did Dax stay in there with him? Why not live outside the volcano? It's not like Mitro was going anywhere.
4. Then there was the (lackluster) romance between Riley and Dax. I felt nothing. There was no chemistry between them at all. He was so "modern" in his viewpoints about letting her choose every step of the way that he didn't feel like any Carpathenian that ever existed. Certainly not one from ancient times. This was totally blah.
5. Gary and Jubal felt like cardboard cutouts. As did Riordan and his mate. I felt no sense of excitement in meeting up with these characters again. Instead, they felt uninteresting.
6. The "flower" ritual was simply too stupid for words. Enough said on that.
7. It may have been a happy ending but I didn't feel it. I felt nothing. And that's the whole point.

So there you have it. Several times, I lost interest in the book and almost put it down. I felt no investment in any of the characters. I really didn't care if Dax won his battle with Mitro or not. I didn't care about Dax and Riley, and I didn't care about the horrors Mitro inflicted on the towns and city. And for an author like Christiane Feehan who likes to wring out every emotion she can, that's just sad.

I think Mrs.Feehan is a wonderful writer, I didn't like Dark Possession I thought Maryannes story could have been better, but I figure that when you have so many things going at one time something was going to fall short,and boy did Dark Storm not only fell short it jumped off a cliff.
I will continue to read Mrs. Feehan books because she normally has wonderful books. This book should have been released as a novella instead of a full novel. This book was all over the place and didn't answer any questions like......
1. how old id Dax?
2. Arabella got together with a human at one point in order to have a child, whats up with that when life mate cant live without their lifemate.
3.is Mitro older then the twins of myth ( Gregori brothers)?
there are way too many questions for for this book.
I hope the next one will be better.

Having read the whole 'Dark' series by Christine Feedhan I was about to give up buying this series as the last few books had been tediously boring, but thought I'd give this series one last try.

On the plus side the story and main characters, Riley and Dax were a bit more refreshing than the previous few books in the series. Riley wasn't a whiney female lead and Dax wasn't the usual overbearing alpha Carpathian male.

On the negative side there was a lot of drawn out and repetitive descriptions about their location and situation - I get it and dont need pages and pages of unnecessary and often repetitive context. Many other characters were introduced but not fully developed. I also dont believe having the Carpathian language and chants appendices adds any value to the reader - seems to be an unnecessary way to increase the page count.

In my opinion this story had so much more potential than it delivered and hopefully the next book will deliver to expectation.

This really didn't fit with Feehan's style of writing in all of her other books. It was almost juvenile. And the bizarre flower they lick to taste each other's sexual fluids? Then hold up to each other's genitals and say a prayer over? What? Again, I ask, what??? I stopped at the sex scene-this can't possibly be written by Feehan, I smell ghost writer all over this. So glad I only rented this from the library....

I almost didn't buy this by reading the previous reviews. But I decided that since I liked others in her "Dark" series, I would like this one as well after reading a sample. I enjoyed the book it was a different tempo than the previous books with a different start but very good nevertheless.

This book was a huge disappointment. I agree it felt like there was a ghost writer here. I miss Ms. Feehans old style from the previous novels. Lucian, Mikhail, Julian. All of these males were the ones who made you stay up all night cause you just couldn't put it down. I feel like her books have lost their focus and for years we have been asking for Skyler and Dimitri's story and just keep getting the same thing " waiting on them to talk to her" Bring the story back to the Carpathian Mountains. Let the readers reconnect with the characters they love. Let the characters regain their sense of community and family by being together.Also the whole waiting a year or more between books doesnt keep your interest in the series. Focus on what works. Readers love the Carpathians. Let the whole Leopard, Sisters of the Heart etc go and wrap up their story lines. Trying to focus on all these series is making most of the books seem cut and paste and you see the same thing in book after book. Frankly it is getting harder to read any of her books. If her next book is any like this one Im done with the series :(

I don't see what others have read but I thoroughly enjoyed reading Dark Storm and thought it was good. It did not feel sluggish or boring to me. I got into it and kept reading. I love all Feehan's books. I loved the story between Dax and Riley and hated with a passion that Mitro...glad he ended the way he did. I am glad that she incorporated the characters of the two humans into the story and Rhidorn(sp) and the others. I can't wait for the next book in the series. Actually can't wait for whatever series she has coming out next.

I love this series but this book fell flat. There was no back story to explain anything that was going on. The relationship between Dax & Riley felt like lust not love. The whole thing left me confused. However I did like the possible romance between Jubal & Jasmine.

The kindle book has too many typos. The Carpathian life tree chart in the front doesn't work - it switches horizontally or vertically in the opposite direction it is supposed to go. Very irritating, especially since the price of the book was so high. If I had paid less for the book, I would have kept it though as the story isn't too bad. As it is, I felt I needed to send a message to the publisher to make sure they are at least delivering a adequate product. So, this is my message. Buyer beware.

I've been a huge fan of the Dark Series from her very first book, Dark Prince. I was hooked! This book... Well it was dreadful. I've never had to skim through all the chapters like I had because it was so slow and so uninteresting. There was so many open questions about the characters that could be asked but in all honesty, wouldn't be asked because the book was so well... Again slow and uninteresting. Lots of holes in the plot lines. Lots of snore, snore times. I've loved all of the dark series until this one. I'm very disappointed but I can't wait for her next book in the Dark series!

After reading some of the other reviews, I was hesitant to buy this one. It was slow in places but overall a good addition to the series. Ending was a bit abrupt and felt rushed though. Expected an extra chapter, or epilogue about how she did with her transition and if those flowers worked, maybe even them meeting the prince after all those years of Dax buried in a mountain. Overall still a fan of this series!

4 stars
Dark Storm is a little bit different than the usuall. A hunter and vampire have spent hundreds of years trapped inside a volcanoe. They had been changed into something stronger.
Thier is a lot of love scenes and talk. I was a little disapointed in the story I wanted more inteeraction with the people.
Lots of violience and grewsome monsters It made a good scary halloween story.
I would like to see more about Jasmine and Jubal plus gary story.

I enjoyed reading this book even though the DARK series books have become somewhat sluggish and boring at times. I keep buying them hoping that the next book will be better than the last...Dark Storm shows some improvement.

So disappointed by this book, I didn't want to give it even one star. Maybe this should be the start of another series instead of being tacked on to the Carpathians. It was a complete disconnection from the Carpathians for me. I struggled to finish it and two/thirds of the way through just gave up. Poor character development, hard to follow storyline. Pretend this book doesn't exist.

What a lost of time and in this case money. Have read many of Ms. Feehans books. This one really made me question spending my next book allowance on her writings. I admit the subjects of her writings are imaginative but Playing tag inside an active volcano, that's really stretching the imagination. Perhaps Ms. Feehan should go back and read her first writings to get back on the right track.

Very sorry to hear Ms. Feehan was ill. Her not being up to par might explain why this is such a departure from the norm and such a disappointment. I have read every one in this series and this is the first on that I did not like. I could not get my head around the whole dragon sharing souls thing, and the usual tension between the main characters was non-existent. Glad I got it from the library.

Great storyline, no retelling of other storylines, just classic girl-extraordinaire meets her mate. Would have loved some more from the main characters on their lives before we are introduced to them, what they felt their challenges and weaknesses were, and if or how they overcame them. Would have liked to see some more reservations about adopting their new roles in life. More misgivings about each other that took time to overcome, through either new insight or appreciation of the changes in human/carpathian nature. Otherwise great!

Okay i love this author but wasnt able to figure out where this carpathian came from. I want another character we know and have read about and are looking for their lifemate. Sigh isnt the best but with Christine Feehan you cant go wrong give this book a try but try to buy it used. Not worth hardback price.

I liked the setting, the rainforest, the mountain. For some reason Riley's story, her psychic connection seemed stronger than most of Christine Feehan's heroines. I love dragons so the dragon connection put it over the top.

I love Feehan's books. I could hardly wait for this one to come out. I read a few chapters then had to stop! It was strange and it bored me. I have never been bored by her books. Dax was confusing and so was Riley. I did not know who Jubal was and it was frustrating me. I did not want to wait and keep reading to find out what happened to these characters. I was very dissapointed and shocked that I did not want to finish this book.

Each of the books in this series stands alone or as a series. The writing is so great, from the first line, you can't put it down. I have every book Christine has written and no complaints on any, except "hurry up with the next one"! lol

I love her work...normally...this one was painful to get through. I think my hangup was the crystal heart of the dragon that Mitro possessed and the soul that Dax possessed. The romance scenes were short and routine. The action left our hero depending upon others who knew so much more. The story was weak. If I could...I would get my money back. Sorry.

I just finishing reading Dark Storm and I loved it. All the reviews stated that they were disappointed, but I thought it was very good. I thought that Riley was very human she admitted that she was scared but did what she had to do. I liked that Dax was slightly different than the other carpathian and that he courted Riley, by giving her choices. The only reason I did not give it 5* was because of the ending, it felt unfinished to me. But all in all I enjoyed this book.

Normally, I love Ms Feehan but this book was trite and uninteresting. I too wanted to read about the other characters she has not completed. So much of this book was thrown together with teasers that promised excitement but flopped.

Dark storm started off strong but fizzed out towards the middle. The ending was abrupt, the story just ends. It is a a must read if you are a follower of the series and was a lot better then Dark Predator.

Loved the differnet story line was interesting to find something a bit different. If you have read all of the back stories from her other books in the series more makes sense.The only disappointment for me was the ending being but short otherwise throughly enjoyed the nook and meeting up with Gary and Jubal again.

I will admit that I really had to make a hard decision about buying this book in Hardcover or waiting for the paperback.

The last few hardcovers, really weren't worth the bucks, but this one is great.

I read a few other reviews and they say it is different from her other Dark books, but that is what kept it interesting. Yes, I would have liked that the Carpathain language, and spells section was out of it, (enough already) with a bit more story, but the story was a fast, good read. You do meet some characters from the previous books, but you do not have to read them, to enjoy this one.

I couldn't put the book down, and highly recomment it.

Geat Job Christine!

I love the dark series and i have been disappointed in only a few of the books this book for me was very good but i do see where there were alot of unanswered questions. heck mitro was related to quite a few of our heroes i did like that jubal and gary were in the book but they could have been more and riordan was not right in his reactions no curiosity but i still loved the book i hated dark predator and it was a major disappointment theother two i did not like were dark gold and dark secret

I definitely loved this book, it was different. I just finished it minutes ago, it was worth my money. Dax is old school and unlike any carpathian male ever scene. The book at times is like a roller coaster ride, really sad one minute and then it had me laughing the next. I hope to see these characters in future books. This book was better than Dark predator, the characters are more likable, and i will certainly be rereading it again. Althought i am a huge Christine Feehan book i have not reread Dark Predator even once. Any serious CF know that is definitely part of our ritual just before another book comes out, to go back and reread the series. Dark Storm is going on my keeper shelf. I will update my review once i reread it again.