SHADOW STORM (A Shadow Riders Novel Book 6) by Christine Feehan
Publication Date: May 25, 2021
Genre: Paranormal Romance/ Romantic Suspense
A long-simmering feud between two families comes to a head in this gripping novel in Christine Feehan’s New York Times bestselling Shadow Riders series.
As the youngest member of the Ferraro family, Emmanuelle has watched each of her brothers find happiness in love while her own heart was shattered by a lover’s betrayal. For two years she’s stayed as far away from Valentino Saldi as possible—until she learns that he’s been shot during a hostile takeover of his family’s territory.
Emme’s first instinct is to call her brother Stefano for help, and soon the entire Ferraro clan arrives to bring Val back from the brink of death and protect the Saldis from further attack. With one choice Emme has re-exposed herself to Val’s intoxicating pull and dragged her family into the Saldis’ private war.
A deadly storm is brewing, and only time will tell who survives…
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This is my favorite Shadow Rider story yet. Emmanuelle is such a deeply complex character from mother-induced abuse, that it would take a strong loving man to help her thrive. I say help her – not make her. Yes, Valentino is all alpha male, but he appreciates Emme’s strengths and intelligence. He’s perfect for her. I also liked how you didn’t quite know if his intentions were good or not at first. Their relationship was intriguing and adds a lovely new arc to the series. They are both well developed characters and I immediately became invested in their happily-ever-after….not just for the smoking hot sex.
The storyline itself was dark and yet exciting. (A warning to those who cannot handle child sex-trafficking stories.) Thankfully, it didn’t dwell on the actual abuse happening, but it was disturbing and deepened my anxiousness while reading. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to keep up with the mystery, violence, excitement, and love. Nor the interesting way the two rival families learned to work together and learn more about each other. I can honestly say that I did not see that ending coming! Hopefully, we hear more about Dario, Val’s right hand man. I love him!
*Review copy provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.
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The shadow took Emmannuelle to the lake. The moon was no more than a sliver, but it was bright enough to cast a ribbon of silver to stream a shadow trail for her. Dark purple clouds shimmered over the lake, an ominous portent of the storm advancing on them. She thought that very fitting. There was a storm brewing between Val and her. Between the two Saldifactions. Between the Saldis and the Ferraros. It was all coming together quite soon in a terrible clash of violence. She was used to violence. She had been raised on it.
She crouched low in the mouth of the shadow tube and stared out over the water, trying not to remember all the times she met Val at this very spot and watched the sun set over the lake, his arms around her. More than once, she had glanced over to see her shadow on the ground and those ropes swirling around it, tying it tight, only now they looked as if they were knots upon knots, impossible to pull loose.
Emmanuelle forced herself to remember looking up at Valentino’s face, catching him looking at their shadows with a look of intense satisfaction. Her heart had suddenly gone crazy with trepidation, an ominous warning rushing through her bloodstream. She’d wanted to pull back and reassess, think things through, but then his mouth was on hers and she wasn’t thinking anymore.
That was the way it always seemed to go. Once Valentino was kissing her or touching her, all her worries disappeared. The lessons she’d learned had been harsh. She couldn’t get near him, because the moment she did, something in his voice, in his eyes, always drew her back, always made her believe, no matter what the evidence showed.
She looked around before she stepped out of the mouth of the tube and then walked to the deck she was so familiar with. She’dspent time with Val here often—their secret hideaway. She’dfantasized more than once that this was her home with Valentino, and they were safe here. No one would ever get to them, tell them they couldn’t be together.
She curled up in one of the beach chairs, pulling her legs up and wrapping her arms around her knees, staring out over the choppy water. She just needed a few minutes to gather herself together, and then she’d be able to handle whatever Miceli Saldithrew at them. The moment she allowed herself to sink into sorrow for everything she lost, she felt it—that melody playing along her nerves, sending it throughout her body.
Emmanuelle gasped and sat up straight. Damn him. She’dmanaged to stop that sensation over the last year. Block it out completely. Somehow, those ties imprisoning her shadow so completely, had connected her nerve endings to his so that along with sexual awareness, a terrible, brutal, merciless need for him, there was this . . . beautiful music that soothed when she was upset. At night, when she was alone and unable to sleep, he would send this music to her. The melody sang along her nerve endings, overcoming her sorrow, and easily, because it moved along her nerves, comforted her body, she would fall asleep.
She didn’t want Valentino to touch her in any way. He didn’thave that right. She wanted to find a way to undo their connection. So far, that hadn’t happened. If shadow riders were divorced, their shadows untangled. There had to be a way for her shadow to be freed from the chains he’d bound hers with. It wasn’t just his melody, it was extremely sensual, bringing her body alive, making her aware of herself as utterly feminine, and his—and him as totally masculine, and hers. That they belonged together.
The ties wrapping her shadow so tightly had prevented any other eligible shadow rider from connecting with her. She had traveled extensively to other countries, and there were many riders looking for a female. Not a single male’s shadow had managed to form one knot with hers. She knew it was because Val had tied her shadow up so tight, she was his prisoner.
Emmanuelle rubbed her chin on the top of her knees. She should have told Stefano. Made him listen. She hadn’t because she was afraid Stefano might kill Val, and she was still protecting him. She told herself she didn’t love Valentino Saldi, she couldn’t love him after all the lies and betrayal, but she knew she did. That humiliated her.
She wasn’t a weak woman. She had self-esteem. Or she used to. Until Val. She had confidence in herself as a woman, until Val. Now she was a rider—a damn good one. One of the best. No one could take that from her, not even Val.
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Kindle | Paperback
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PAPERBACK COPY of SHADOW STORM by Christine Feehan
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Winner will be selected Monday (5/31) by 6PM EST. Reading in Pajamas is responsible for this giveaway. This paperback was provided to Reading in Pajamas by Penguin.
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#1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan has over 40 novels published, including four series. Each of her four series has hit #1 on the NY Times. Her debut novel Dark Prince received 3 of the 9 Paranormal Excellence Awards in Romantic Literature for 1999. Since then she has been published by Leisure Books, Pocket Books, and currently is writing for Berkley/Jove. She also has earned 7 more PEARL awards.
She is pleased to have made numerous bestseller lists including the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Bookscan, B. Daltons, Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Waldenbooks, Ingrams, Borders, Rhapsody Book Club, Washington Post, and Walmart. She has received numerous honors throughout her career including being a nominee for the RWA’s RITA. She has received a Career Achievement Award from Romantic Times and the Borders 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award.
She has been published in multiple languages and in many formats, including large print, palm pilot, e-book, and hardcover. In October of 2007 her first manga comic, Dark Hunger was released in stores. This was the first ever manga comic released by Berkley Publishing and it made #11 on Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller’s List. Her ground-breaking book trailer commercials have been shown on TV and in the movie theaters. She has been featured on local TV, appeared on the The Montel Williams Show, and her book Dark Legend was featured on the cover of Romantic Times Magazine.
Christine Feehan has also appeared at numerous writers’ conventions and book signings including: Romantic Times Convention, Get Caught Reading at Sea Cruise, Celebrate Romance Conference, Emerald City Conference, and numerous Romance Writers of America Conferences.
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