Tristan’s life continues to get more challenging as the past clashes with his destiny.

Tristan and Ushna continue to develop their relationship. Although they have been friends since they were children, it seems that only now are they finally able to express their deep love for each other. Their protective instincts for each other and the way they treated each other with respect was beautiful. They also had to work through some minor, realistic issues in order to move forward. A portion of the story is devoted to the strange dreams Tristan is having involving two other men. Tristan is troubled by the dreams and concerned about their meanings. It will be interesting to see where this leads.

Tristan and Ushna continue to build their community, and it thrives under their leadership. I enjoyed the sense of a strong family the story created. Tristan’s best friends come to visit, and we begin to learn how deep the mystery and betrayal extends. Dark magic continues to wreak havoc on their lives. However, Tristan continues to strengthen his connection to the Earth which helps tremendously. Tristan is getting closer to giving birth, and I still found many of his comments pretty humorous. I must admit that I could listen to Tristan describe paint drying for 50 pages and find it fascinating.

There are also two free shorts on the author’s website which I highly recommend. They revolve around their friend, Gregori, and his love interest, Juan. Gregori is an extremely strong Magi, and it was interesting to get his perspective on some of the activities taking place. There was also a sweet romance taking place.

I always find it hard to start a series with a continuing arc not knowing if the strength of the writing and characters will hold up. Three books in and I’m still completely enamored with the characters, the plot, and the writing.

Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.

BLURB

For Tristan and Ushna, nothing comes easy and with each passing day the challenges grow and the dangers multiply. The safe home they are building for their family and tribe is threatened from all sides, and the peace they seek is being torn apart by enemies and internal strife. Tristan dares not reveal his condition to any but those closest to him, all the while he’s plagued by dreams he cannot remember upon waking…

And over all of it hangs the knowledge that his time with Ushna is running out. Because Ushna already has a Flame awaiting rebirth, and though Tristan would die to protect that bond, he constantly struggles against his beast who demands they bind Ushna to their side.