J.R. Ward

Contemporary/Paranormal

Overall:
Sensuality:
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He strides onto the battlefield, the medieval fantasy come to life of every Nerd Girl who ever fought for a front row seat in English class.

Forsooth, "he" is Kenneth Branagh playing Hank the Fifth as a brave, honorable, and sweaty royal hottie spurring-on thusly his beleaguered English warriors:

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother."

The intrigue of what guys do when they hang with other guys, what goes on in their heads and hearts, has led to the great popularity in romance of the band of brothers, or, BOB series.

BOB series not only sate our collective jones for book after book from a beloved author, they seem to offer us entre into exclusive, all-male bastions.

But if we're really honest with ourselves, we might find that BOB series don't appeal because of their authentic representation of the nature of the male animal and his elusive guy motivations.

What I think we really go for is reading about a bunch of over-the-top virile and brainy men thinking the way we think they should. That is to say, just like us.

Still, there some great BOB series in which the guys think like chicks about important stuff -- commitment, awesome sex, great clothes -- but sound and act like real guys.

Of those, one of my hands-down favorites is J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I'm especially jazzed about the newest addition, the wicked cool and mercilessly sensuous "Lover Eternal."

So gorgeous his brethren call him "Hollywood," warrior vampire Rhage is bone-weary of bowing to the veritable beast within. He's living out a curse kept at bay only by his slaking considerable appetites for bedding females and annihilating creepy lessers out to destroy every vampire on earth.

Nurturing, yet indomitable, Mary Luce has had her fill of slaying dragons. Her life edges out of control and into the surreal when good intentions gone awry land her in the realm of noble vampires, and the questionable safety of Rhage's embrace.

My guess is that J.R. Ward sat at the front of her share of English classes. One reads her intelligence not only in the structure of her writing, but also in the well-designed psychodynamics of her characters.

Yet it's hard to think about prose and pathos when one's sensibilities are being cold-cocked by a story and dialogue as funky and crazy erotic as "Lover Eternal."

I suspect I'll be spending the next few years gladly dazed and excited by Black Dagger Brotherhood novels. I can barely breathe awaiting "Lover Awakened," my boy Zsadist's story coming this fall.

Join the happy many, the band of sisters who worship the Brotherhood and are savvy enough to know when to --

Buy the book.

Blog Alert: J.R. Ward guestblogs live on Romance: By the Blog, Monday, March 7 at 4 p.m.

www.JRWard.com

Next Week's Review and AuthorView: "Lord Perfect," by Loretta Chase