Lover Revealed by J.R. Ward

Lover Revealed

#4, Black Dagger Brotherhood
J.R. Ward
Paranormal Romance

Butch O'Neal is a fighter by nature. A hard-living ex-homicide cop, he's the only human ever to be allowed in the inner circle of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. And he wants to go even deeper into the vampire world-to engage in the turf war with the lessers. His heart belongs to a female vampire, Marissa, an aristocratic beauty who's way out of his league. And if he can't have her, then at least he can fight side by side with the Brothers.

But fate curses him with the very thing he wants. When Butch sacrifices himself to save a civilian vampire from the slayers, he falls prey to the darkest force in the war. Left for dead, he's found by a miracle, and the Brotherhood calls on Marissa to bring him back, though even her love may not be enough to save him.



I so wasn't sure about reading this. I absolutely adored the first three books in this series and when I saw this was Butch's story, I was hesitant. I found myself wondering - how could a "human" possibly beat anything the Brotherhood could deliver? Let me just say ... I'm not afraid to smack my head against the wall moaning, "Why were you so scared? WHY did it take you so long to read this amazing story?" Where I thought the series should end with Zsadist because he satisfied all my cravings, Butch delivered such an emotional read and yes, he may just be my favorite.

I don't know what it is about these books that just suck me in. Maybe its the uber Alpha males who are equally tortured in their own ways or the women that drive them to their knees. Maybe its the way the fight evil with a single mindedness, never worried about themselves as they throw themselves into danger. Maybe its the evil that is so profoundly evil and disturbing, that you can't put the book down until it's vanquished. Maybe it's the emotion that I feed on, like a junkie, because there is ALOT of it. With the different story lines weaving in and out, there's quite a bit happening but the author does a remarkable job and making sure it all ties in, leaving you wanting more.

I don't know where to begin... this book truly took me by surprise. There was the relationship between Butch and Marissa - the longing they had for one another and they way they worked around their differences. They were definitely opposites but they fit together beautifully, as if they were made for each other. Here is the rough man, who's coarse and constantly surrounded by danger but he's so incredibly gentle with Marissa, the aristocrat who steals his heart. The things he whispers to her melted me, the amazing love he felt had me swooning. Who would've thought this man had it in him? NEVER underestimate a human in a paranormal romance because when you do, you miss out on men like Butch. My heart broke for him when he felt he needed to keep away, how tortured he must have felt thinking he wasn't enough and I cried when he risked it all. Even though I understood Marissa's fears, I wanted to shake her at walking away from his sacrifice, at her not seeing into his heart and realizing - what other choice did Butch have? Love him, hold on to, cherish him all the days you have together. Yep, Butch really won me over and even though he was full of flaws, he was perfect and I would've been his shellan in a heartbeat!

There was sooo much going on in this book. My heart bled for John as he continues to struggle with the death of Wellsie and disappearance of Tohr. So much pain and anguish in such a small person. All that rage and fury with nowhere to go but out. I LOVED the way the Brotherhood was there for him and how Wrath especially, reached out and made a difference. Even Zsadist was amazing and it made me love them all more. Vishous .... my gosh .... this was the other part of the storyline that just ripped my heart out and stomped all over it. That poor man and what can I do to ease him! I loved that the author didn't drown me in his story but gave me enough to know his turn will be spectacular. There's so much going on there and I can't wait to see how it unfolds.

I'm so glad I started reading the series again. If you'd all have seen me, I was sighing and pausing through the whole book, up to all hours of the night reading because I couldn't put it down. It was like an addiction and I couldn't get enough. Even when my Kindle started acting up, a sign to go to bed, I pulled it up on my phone and kept reading. Amazing book.... amazing characters. If you haven't read this series, I highly recommend it. It's full of the good stuff -  swoon, action, humor and sexy males just dying to melt your hearts! Happy reading!

Rating: