Rabid Reads

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads

The Black Dagger Brotherhood universe undergoes a change of pace with this 6th installment. A lot happens in Lover Enshrined which makes it one of the more important books of this series in my eyes. The lack of sex was surprising at first but then when you consider that this is Phury's tale it kind of makes sense. He did take a vow of celibacy after all so had he given it up too early and/or easily I would have been disappointed. This novel is full of truths and raw emotions; both of which are not always easy to deal with but in the end, prove essential in order for the Brotherhood to heal and move on.

This is Phury's story and yet not. He's not as much in the spotlight as his other brothers have been in their respective books. Then again, that's to be expected from this character. He's always putting everyone else before himself; the good of the group is more important than his own needs. Phury is the white knight of the Brotherhood, the savior. Try as he may, he never seems to live up to his impossibly high expectations of himself. In his mind, he failed his parents, he failed his twin and now he's going to fail the Chosen. Phury has a serious case of survivor's guilt and turns to drugs as a coping mechanism. I felt so sad for him; I just wanted to give him a great big hug, tell him that he's tried his best and that's really all that anyone can do.

Cormia is an interesting character and I enjoyed getting to know her. Life as a Chosen isn't easy; she's suffocated by rules and traditions. She had no say in being selected as the Primale's First Mate and like Phury, is expected to place the good of the race ahead of her personal wants. Living among the Brotherhood must have come as quite a shock to her; stepping out of an all white, sterile environment into a world of emotions, colour and freedom. I enjoyed watching Cormia experience her first of many firsts. It gave her an almost childlike innocence. She finds pleasure in the simplest things like running through the grass, picking flowers and watching movies. Everything is new and exciting for her and yet scary at the same time. She can't help but question everything. Does she really want to be a Chosen? Can she share Phury? Are prayers and traditions enough to make her happy?

I liked the private moments between Qhuinn and Blaylock and was happy to learn that Lover At Last is going to tell their story. They're so conflicted and confused that my heart went out to them. I was happy that John Matthew was finally able to get his huge burden off his chest and get the support that he so rightly deserves. No one should suffer alone and I was relieved with how his friends reacted to his secret. I feel in love with Rhev in this installment and can't wait to read Lover Avenged. He's the mirror image of Phury, the dark knight to the Brother's white. The more I learn about the characters in this series, the more I want to read their individual stories.

Lover Enshrined is laden with emotion instead of sex; an interesting change of pace for the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. This installment sheds some light on one of the most misunderstood Brothers, catapults their race into the 21st century and the ending opens up one hell of a can of worms. I can't wait to see what comes next. Lover Enshrined proves that J.R. Ward can write Urban Fantasy just as well as she writes Paranormal Romance.