No Mercy

No Mercy
Sherrilyn Kenyon / Paranormal Romance

Live fast, fight hard and, if you have to die, then take as many of your enemies with you as you can. That is the Amazon credo and it was one Samia lived and died by. Now in contemporary New Orleans, the immortal Amazon warrior is about to learn that there’s a worse evil coming to slaughter mankind than she’s ever faced before. Shape shifter Dev Peltier has stood guard at the front of Sanctuary for almost two hundred years and in that time, he’s seen it all. Or so he thought. Now their enemies have discovered a new source of power--one that makes a mockery of anything faced to date. The war is on and Dev and Sam are guarding ground zero. But in order to win, they will have to break the most cardinal of all rules and pray it doesn’t unravel the universe as we know it    (click on title for how I felt about it)


I can't begin to tell you just how much I enjoyed this book. I know it's pretty much a given seeing how addicted to the Dark Hunters I am but I really do believe that no matter how many books there are to the series, each one holds my attention and gives me the ride of my life. No Mercy comes straight into the story at such an interesting and crucial stage where it seems like everything is just hanging in the balance. There's war coming and I love that although the battle is beginning to rage and all the pieces are falling into place, love can still be found between two people who really shouldn't be together but the attraction and pull just becomes too hard to resist. No Mercy is the story of Samia and Dev and the fight to not only stop the threat to mankind but also the threat that tries to keep them apart.

There's alot of things happening in the storyline of the series and the big bad is ready to finally make its big move. I guess I could try to help play catch up but really, where would I start? I think it's enough to say that the advantage the Dark Hunters had over the Daimons is about to be pulled out from under them and will now make the Hunters incredibly vulnerable *makes my heart skip a beat to think that my beloved Hunters could be in trouble* To help keep what control they can have over the situation, Acheron (oh good gosh I love that man ) sends in his Dogs of War and this is where the story begins and it seriously had me glued to the book to the very end. There were twists in it that I didn't see coming and moments where I sat back thinking "Ok what the heck just happened". I have to tell you that I LOVED the last part of the book where all the crap that had been building through the book explodes and what an impressive explode it was.

One thing that really stood out in this book and I think more so than the others, is the incredible humor the author included. I'm not kidding when I say I was laughing every other sentence. Granted some of the lines tossed back and forth between the characters were kinda cheesy but they still had me SOL (snorting out loud) I think that's part of why the story was so enjoyable for me because it almost felt like a brief respite. The storyline is such that things will be getting incredibly serious (well alot more serious than they are) and there's going to be alot of ass kicking to be done. It was nice to see a very playful attitude amongst the Dark Hunters / Were Hunters, which made them more well rounded and showed me there was more to them than bad boy sex appeal.

I really LOVED the characters in the book, both new and beloved favorites. Most books feature male Dark Hunters and this was one of the few that the lead Hunter was female. Samia was this real tough and feisty warrior who lived for the kill because at the very beginning she had lost everything. Centuries had passed that had forged her into a Dog of War (kind of like the elite of the elite)  so meeting Dev and falling for him really threw her for a loop. I loved their first meeting where she screeches to a halt in front of the Sanctuary, all decked out in leather and proceeds to have this cocky flirt back and forth with Dev. As the story goes on you get a deeper look into her past and how it has molded how she thinks and feels. I will tell you this,  Samia in full warrior mode is truly something to behold. I loved reading about her and am really grateful that the author maintained Samia's strength and power regardless of what vulnerability she was experiencing (sorry but it really irks me when an author takes a strong heroine and reduces her to a snivelling weak shell)

Dev. Where to begin with this incredibly sexy Were Hunter (they're like Dark Hunters but they are able to shift into different animals). Straight away I knew he was this cocky self assured man with his own battle scars to deal with. As a bear shifter, Dev has seen it all in the centuries he's lived and is trying to come to grips with the death of his parents in an early book. You can't help love the man and he was given some of the funniest lines in the book. As I sit here trying to describe him, two images come to mind that sealed the deal for me and left me sighing. It didn't take long for him to realize that there was something about Samia that called to him and almost immediately he felt this powerful need to protect her. Samia  had certain powers that made living almost impossible if not for Acheron and it was soon discovered that Dev was also able to provide her respite. In one scene, Samia thrown into painful overload, without even thinking Dev reaches out and scoops her into his arms and holds her. Can you see the image of this powerfully built man, seasoned by years of battle and experience, tenderly holding the woman he is growing to love *sigh* (if you can't, imagine harder :P) I love seeing even the hardest of men soften and be gentle. The second was that Dev was literally willing to go to Hell for Samia, to do whatever it took to keep her safe and bring her home to him. He didn't care what dangers he faced, how many times his life was threatened, all that matter to him was her. Doesn't that kind of devotion just make you melt? Dev really impressed me and even now makes my heart race a little.

I can't possibly write a review for this book without including a little homage for my beloved Dark Hunters that made cameo appearances. Although not a Dark Hunter, Fang was part of some important scenes and he was so entertaining I pulled out his book Bad Moon Rising to read again. I loved how he was willing to do anything for family (he married Dev's sister Aimee) Nick also appeared in the book and my gosh, I can't wait for the upcoming books where whatever the heck is going on with him is revealed more. He is just so angry and somethings lurking inside him that tells me that where ever he is, things are going to go crazy in a BIG WAY. My heart aches for him. Ethon is a newly introduced Dark Hunter who I've got EVERYTHING crossed that I'll see more of. There's a great story hidden there with him and the man has a serious funny sense of humor. Of course, being a Dark Hunter also makes him sexy as hell. Finally, my beloved Ash (Acheron) was seen throughout the book. My gosh, he'd make a 2000 page book worth it, even if he's only mentioned in one sentence. There's just something about him that just pulls me in and for me he's a highlight of the story. Sexy, sexy, SEXY man.

If you haven't guess already by the long rant I've just given that I love this book, I do need to add though that I feel a little disappointed and this REALLY bothers me. I remember when I read Fantasy Lover (the first in the series) and hit that first sex scene, if you looked closely you would have seen the scorch marks on my finger tips. Incredibly steamy and unbelievably sexy. Just know that you haven't experienced a truly HOT sex scene until you've read it with a Dark Hunter. I was still in my "uncomfortable stage" with reading adult romance and so I skimmed alot at the beginning. As I moved through the series, I began reading more and skimming less so when I started reading No Mercy, I expected to be dazzled and my clothing to melt off. Instead what I got was fizzle. I'm not sure what happened but the Dark Hunters I'm addicted to, the raw sexuality that oozes from the pages wasn't there and the VERY few scenes that were there were mere BLIPS.  I wanted that intensity and passion that ignites off the page and the book read more like a YA novel than an adult. I'm left now with the book finished, feeling unfulfilled and my passion needs unmet. Maybe it's a good thing because it gives me a great reason to begin the series from the beginning. (YAY)

You know how I feel and without a doubt I highly recommend everyone and anyone to read No Mercy. Read the entire series and join the Dark Hunter Lust Club. We meet every Thursday at 7.30pm and visitors are always welcome. Enjoy!


Rating  - 5 stars and  SIMMER


Favorite quotes

"Sam saw the police lights.
"Hunters, rise!" Dev ordered. (this line gave me GOOSEBUMPS)
Ethon and Scorpio rolled out from under the blanket at the same time the police shouted at them to freeze. Ignoring them , they ran forward"

"Devereaux Peltier." She savored the syllables of his name that flowed and rolled from her tongue. "It's very soft sounding."

He made a sound of disgust in the back of his throat. "Oh thank you so much. That's what every man wants to hear about his name. You might as well call me "Little Pecker" while you're at it and tell me you'd like to have me go shopping with you for feminine hygiene products. Oh and by all means, carry a big, sparkling pink bag with flowers on it and make me hold it."
She laughed at the images he described, then winced as it sent a wave of pain through her chest. "I didn't mean it that way. It's a beautiful name and I doubt even an over sized pink purse could erode your tough machismo."
"Mmm-hmm. Too late. You've emasculated me. There's no coming back from it now." - pg 103


His eyes shot up in surprise. "Now who's being the horn dog?"
She wrinkled her nose playfully as her hand ached to feel his hair in her palm. "Definitely me, and only because I know how torturous it is for you."
"Well, I could surf online and you could read a novel on the bed while we ignore each other, than we could pretend we're a happily married couple." - pg 237