Book Review: Heart of Atlantis by Alyssa Day

Title: Heart of Atlantis
Series: Warriors of Poseidon, Book 8
Author: Alyssa Day
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Sensuality Rating: Steamy
Source: review copy from publisher
Published: December 4, 2012 by Berkley

As a war wages between the immortals of Atlantis and those of the vampire realm, a Poseidon warrior fights to save his world—and the woman he loves. And no risk is too great.

The desires of a high priest.

Alaric, Poseidon’s High Priest, has made a vow to Quinn, the woman he loves and the leader of the Resistance: to save her friend Jack before his last bit of humanity has been drained. Should Alaric succeed, there’s one intimate danger: he may lose Quinn to the love of the man whose life he saved. But damn Atlantis to the nine hells, he’s willing to put Quinn’s wishes first, regardless of the consequences.

The warning of a threat reborn.

The final jewel of Poseidon’s trident has turned up in the hands of mysterious Ptolemy Reborn, who claims to be descended from Atlantean royalty. He’s about to reveal to the world that Atlantis is real, positioning himself as king. But this magical terrorist is bent on chaos. The only warrior who can stop him is following his own path, driven by the even more powerful force of love. Atlantean powers over the sea could prove just as cataclysmic—for Quinn’s love, Alaric might drown the entire world.

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Relieved to say the romance lived up to the expectation set in the previous seven books in the series.

The Set Up: Alaric is the celibate warrior high priest of Atlantis hopelessly in love with Quinn, the human rebel leader. Quinn knows Alaric may lose his powers if they’re together so she’s got to be strong enough for both of them. But the enemies of Atlantis are closing in on the couple and the city they’ve both vowed to protect.

Why I Read this Book: I’ve loved this series and was anxiously awaiting Alaric and Quinn’s romance since it’s been an integral part of the series for the past seven books.

What I Liked: I think after so much build up it could have been difficult to finally maneuver Alaric and Quinn into a relationship but this was accomplished beautifully. The couple had many star-crossed lover moments in the previous books so the tension was already set from page one and this is where they stop fighting their attraction and emotional need for each other. I liked how organically they moved into their relationship and know that other readers will breathe a sigh of relief, as I did, that Quinn and Alaric finally get their HEA and it was with a bang, not the fizzle I was worried about.

I also love that the humor from their relationship survives. Alaric was the outwardly stoic duty-driven warrior and Quinn’s gentle mocking and irreverence was exactly what he needed. I love Quinn’s sassiness in part because it never steps over the line to nasty or self-indulgent; it’s just the perfect amount of levity in an otherwise dark world.

What I Also Liked: Again, after seven previous stories in the series it couldn’t have been hard to adequately resolve the quest for Poseidon’s treasures but again, this book managed it. Each of the stories builds on the Warriors of Poseidon and their quests to keep Atlantis safe against their arch enemies and it’s all perfectly culminated here. I won’t spoil how it’s done but I was satisfied with how the Warriors prevailed, how the baddy got her just rewards and how Atlantis takes its place in the world. The plot and romance blend well and neither is sacrificed to advance the other.

What I Didn’t Like: I don’t mind it since I’ve been a series fan since book one but there is no way a new reader could jump into this book. The world built here is just too expansive and there are too many characters for someone to try to pick up the series on this book.

My only quibble about the book is Quinn is a tomboy who Alaric often says looks like a homeless teenager. She’s got short hair and is unconcerned with her appearance. Great, I love a natural heroine but of-frickin’-course under it all she wears Victoria Secrets lingerie. I detest this and it’s not original. Any time a heroine in a romance novel is outwardly average or plain underneath it she wears sexy underwear. I’m tired of it and just once I want the heroine to wear white granny panties to fit her personality!

IMO: This is a great conclusion to the series that I highly enjoyed and think other readers will too.

J9’s Rating: