Book Review: Eternal Beast by Laura Wright

Title: Eternal Beast
Series: Mark of the Vampire, Book 4
Author: Laura Wright
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Sensuality Rating: Steamy
Source: review copy from publisher
Published: August 2012 by Signet Eclipse

Ever since his abduction by the Eternal Order of Vampires, Gray Donohue has finally found his true calling: vengeance. He will stop at nothing to bring his fellow Impure vampires the freedom they deserve. Now if he could just release his primal need for the beautiful vampire who saved his life—and rules his thoughts and desires…

After nearly killing the senator she was assigned to protect, Dillon is now in mortal danger. The jaguar within her has been unleashed, and she can no longer control it. Sex is the only thing that can tame her shift. And Gray is the only man who can make her surrender to a passion strong enough to overpower her inner beast. But she doesn’t want to surrender—she wants her life back. Because she is determined never to belong to anyone, especially not Gray—the male whom destiny claims is her mate…

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Wasn’t a fan of the heroine or the mostly-sexual romance but the series’ plot was progressed beautifully and will keep me reading the series.

The Set Up: Since his rescue, Gray is leader of the resistance to bring freedom to the Impure, vampire-human hybrids. Gray can’t forget Dillon, the purebred female vampire who was part of his rescue. Dillon doesn’t want to belong to anyone but her animal side is taking her over and only Gray can keep the beast at bay.

Why I Read this Book: I’m a series fan and somehow missed this book when it was first released so am reading it now in preparation for book five’s release.

What I Liked: I adore this world. The Roman brothers and their quirky personalities are here, along with their battle against the Order, the corrupt vampire rulers. I love the glimpses into the Roman brothers’ lives with their mates and children. I also loved the mutore, Dillon’s adopted brothers who are shifter vampires. They steal every scene they’re in for me and I’m so looking forward to each of their stories.

I like the plot involving Gray’s mother and her history and connection to both the Order and the villain Cruen. It’s fast paced and kept my attention to the very end.

What I Also Liked: I also liked Gray a lot. He’s a man of deep principles but he’s compassionate and understanding. Gray has a goal in life but he’s not selfish. I especially appreciated that he never pushed Dillon sexually. He put his sexual needs second to Dillon’s and in romance that’s refreshing. The sex here is much more erotic than I remember from the previous three books and I know readers will love that.

What I Didn’t Like: I’m not a Dillon fan. She obviously has a history that makes her who she is but she’s not a likable person. To me she’s selfish and only concerned with her wants, desires and self-protection. She pushes Gray away so often and in such harsh ways that I’m not sure why he stuck with her. I think the author had a real challenge remaking the Dillon character from the previous books and novella into heroine material and in my opinion she wasn’t successful. I never felt the emotional draw with Dillon unlike Gray who made a perfect hero. Even Dillon’s previous sexual attraction to Gray’s sister, Sara, was explained away in a short paragraph.

Plus, I can’t stand when women call themselves names like pussy and bitch. In my opinion, it’s not reclaiming the name-calling, it just gives tacit approval for their usage.

Finally, I’m officially tired of Cruen, the villain. It seems the Romans and their allies take a step forward in each book but never come close to getting Cruen. Cruen is always at least a step ahead of them and seems to just be getting stronger instead of nearing his end. I think there is a danger in making a villain too powerful for the heroes to vanquish and I think Cruen is quickly approaching that point for me.

IMO: I still love this series and will absolutely read the mutore’s stories but this one didn’t do it for me because of Dillon.

J9’s Rating: