Book Review: Lover Revealed by J.R Ward

Review: Lover Revealed
Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood – Book 4
Author: J.R Ward
No of Pages: 455
Release Date: 6 March 2007

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there’s a war raging between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other – six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. But now an ally of the Brotherhood is about to encounter his own dark desires...

Butch O’Neal is a fighter by nature. A hard-living ex-homicide cop, he’s the only human ever to be allowed in the inner circle of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. And he wants to go even deeper into the vampire world – to engage in the turf war with the lessers. He’s got nothing to lose. His heart belongs to a female vampire, an aristocratic beauty who’s way out of his league. If he can’t have Marissa, then at least he can fight side by side with the Brothers...

Fate curses him with the very thing he wants. When Butch sacrifices himself to save a civilian vampire from the slayers, he falls prey to the darkest force in the war. Left for dead, he’s found by a miracle, and the Brotherhood calls on Marissa to bring him back. But even her love may not be enough to save him...

My Thoughts:

Lover Revealed told the story of Butch, the only human fighter associated with the Black Dagger Brotherhood. While being slightly predictable it was still an excellent instalment in this fantastic series.

Butch is in love with Marissa one of the social elite in the vampire world, but it doesn’t seem that Marissa wants him back after shunning him repeatedly. When Butch gets into trouble though and looks close to dying Marissa is there by his side to help him through a sickness brought on by the Omega.

Butch was always one of those characters that kind of annoyed me. I felt like he was mooching off the brothers money and hospitality even though if he left they would have to kill him for what he knew. He was even punching above his weight when it came to Marissa, she is rich, one of the most beautiful vampires there is and she is heir to one of the most powerful families in the BDB world.

But as the spotlight was shone on Butch I couldn’t help but like him, all he wanted was what was best for his friends and Marissa. Sure he's not as strong as any of the other fighters because he is only human but he still contributes by using his experience as a cop.

I still don't particularly like Marissa though; she is too frail and helpless for my tastes. Marissa relies far too heavily on others to be much help to anyone, even when she had the opportunity to strike out on her own and leave all of her rules behind like she said she so desperately wanted she still went running to the nearest powerful vampire to her.

Thankfully she toughened up right towards the end but it wasn't enough to make up for the weak character she was portrayed as for the entire time she has been in the series.

Although Lover Revealed wasn't entirely focused on Vishous he made quite a strong appearance because he is Butch’s best friend. I loved Vishous’ story even more than I loved Butch’s and I can't wait to get into Lover Unbound so that all of the focus is on him.

Lover Revealed definitely isn't the strongest relationship wise, but it does further the story immensely. We are getting deeper into the back story behind Rehvenge and the fight between the vampires and the lessers is starting to get more intriguing.

Lover Revealed is a hot action filled story and although the main characters weren't as strong as previous novels in this series the plot progressed very interestingly and has left me eager for the next instalment in this fantastic series.

Also in this series:
Dark Lover
Lover Eternal
Lover Awakened
Lover Unbound
Lover Enshrined
Lover Avenged
Lover Mine
Lover Unleashed

Random Magic Halloween Tour (2010): A love spell!

In Random Magic, we meet a witch girl (Winnie), who uses both her wits and her magic to rescue herself and her friend Henry from all sorts of scary people, as they make their way through Edgeland to try to find Alice (Alice in Wonderland) -- yes, that Alice!) and return her to her book.

Winnie’s clever and resourceful, and tries first to outwit the baddies before she resorts to casting spells, which drain her of energy -- but all along the way, magic sure does come in handy for all kinds of things.

She uses everyday items that people barely notice -- a feather, a lock of hair, even a crumpled-up piece of paper -- to work quick spells for all kinds of useful things, and for more important things, like saving their lives.

In this excerpt from Random Magic, Henry watches Winnie pull together some curious essentials before they set out for the spooky Black Forest:

Excerpt: Random Magic

Winnie opened a black cupboard and carefully extracted a small red book, a big copper key, and a pair of knitting needles.

“Story-weaving needles,” she said briefly, “Might be--”

“I know -- might be useful.” His face read: …but I don’t think so.

Winnie rolled up a map and stuffed in into the knapsack. She added a battered red felt hat, a large ball of wool, and her new feather. She slung the knapsack across her back, and scanned the room.

“Aha. Nearly forgot.”

She yanked open her closet door. There, hanging from the rod, was a crinkly piece of blank paper. She sighed impatiently. “Oh, balls. Not again.”

She pulled the scrap down, laid it out on the floor, and carefully folded the paper over into a triangle. She tossed it in the air, and watched, frowning, as it flipped over, then hit the ground.

“That’s not right,” she said, smoothing the sheet out, and folding it back up the other way. She shook her head, mumbling as she worked.

Henry looked on politely, wondering what she was up to. Was it another newspaper? It was blank. Blank paper. Was she making a paper boat? What for?

“I say…What is it that-- ?”

“Shhh,” she mumbled, and ignored him. “Aha, this way.” She added another triangular fold, and stood up. “Done. There we are.”

Henry blinked. A sleepy grey bat had suddenly appeared, nestled in Winnie’s palm.

“Wakey, wakey, Cinders,” she said, chucking the bat under the furry little chin.

Random Magic by Sasha Soren (Kindle edition)

Conjuring a living animal requires a knack for magic, and there’s plenty of that about in Winnie’s world -- but here, on the other side of the mirror, there’s also magic in the everyday.

For example, sure, it might be difficult to create a living bat from a scrap of paper in this world -- but, then, an artist skilled in origami can create something that’s nearly as astonishing.

Some of the beautiful creatures artists can conjure from a single scrap of paper, with fluttering wings or moving mouths, are pretty extraordinary, even if they’re not strictly magical.

Or maybe they are…after all, what is magic? Is it a cascade of light and a magic wand, or is it creating something beautiful from something totally ordinary?

Is it something we do or something we feel? If you set out on a journey to look for magic -- where, precisely, would you try to find it?

Those are some of the themes explored in Random Magic, but we leave it to every individual reader to find his or her own answers.

If you’d like to know more about the use of particular tools in working spells, or you’re curious about the specific symbolism of various colors and how they can be used in magic rituals, feel free to read: ‘A Modern Witch’s Toolkit,’ from an earlier tour stop on the Random Magic Halloween Tour.

Otherwise, in honor of Halloween, here we have a sweet, witchy spell for lovers everywhere -- a bit of everyday magic for anyone and everyone, to make the world that much sweeter…

A love spell!

Petals Of Love

(Written by Scott Cunningham)*

Only two magical tools are required for this ritual: a small mirror and fresh flowers. They can be daisies, carnations, violets, lilacs or gardenias, but roses of any color are best. If you use roses, remove the thorns.

Buy or collect seven or eight stems of the chosen flower. If cutting them yourself, thank the plant for its sacrifice in any words or actions that you see fit. Remember that nature is a power source. Magicians respect it.

Perform this ritual when you won't be interrupted, give this time to yourself.

Place the flowers in a large vase or bowl. Nearby place a small mirror so that you can see your face within it. Sit or kneel comfortably before the flowers.

Remove one flower from the vase. Stroke it over your head, hair, and ears. Be open to the energies the flower radiates. Close your eyes and say these words:

I see love.

Smell the flower’s rich scent. Drink in its aroma. Let it fill your soul. Say...

I breathe love.

Lower the flower to your heart, letting its energies melt into yours. Say...

I hold love (in my heart). I feel love and I nourish it.

Still holding the flower in your hand, gaze at your reflection in the mirror. Say…

Love is before me. Love is behind me. Love is beside me. Love is above me. Love is below me. Love is within me. Love flows from me. Love returns to me. I am loved.

Place the flowers in a spot where you'll see them several times a day. If possible, wear or carry the flower you've used in your ritual. When it begins to wilt, bury it in the Earth thanking it for its energies.

And be prepared to receive as well as to give love.

This is only one love spell of the hundreds of thousands of love spells available, in the handwritten 'Book of Shadows’ owned by witches, in printed books, or sites online.

You can also make up your own, individualized love spells, including candles or incense, gemstones, sweets, music, favorite colors, flowers, personal mementos, or living plants -- anything that resonates with vibrant energy or brings tranquility, focus and contentment.

This particular love spell, *Petal Love Spell, is included here because it was written by a practicing witch, who included it in a book as a reference, not as a novelty item to be included with the purchase of a mystery potion.

The spell is slightly modified for length, but includes the major aspects included in the original. The title of the specific book including the spell is unknown, as the spell excerpt was sourced from Empathy UK.

You can read more about the late Scott Cunningham, and browse his titles available, here. You’re sure to find lots of other spells of all kinds, as he was a prolific and knowledgeable author and long-time practitioner of ‘the craft.’

There are more love spells for perusal here and here, and some books to browse, here.

If you’d like to meet with more witchery in the pages of Random Magic, you’re welcome to find your copy of the book on Amazon (print or Kindle edition) or at Barnes & Noble.

In the meantime, to round off this Halloween post about a little random magic, feel free to enjoy the trailer for this mysterious and magical tale:



Random Magic -- Sasha Soren

About the book: When absent-minded Professor Random misplaces the main character from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, young Henry Witherspoon must book-jump to fetch Alice before chaos theory kicks in and the world vanishes.

Along the way he meets Winnie Flapjack, a wit-cracking doodle witch with nothing to her name but a magic feather and a plan. Such as it is.

Henry and Winnie brave the Dark Queen, whatwolves, pirates, Strüths, and fluttersmoths, Priscilla and Charybdis, obnoxiously cheerful vampires, Baron Samedi, a nine-dimensional cat, and one perpetually inebriated Muse to rescue Alice and save the world by tea time.

You might also enjoy these other special features from the Random Magic Halloween Tour (2010):

· Crafty Dames: Famous Witches
· Haunting Places: Creepiest Irish Castles
· A Modern Witch’s Toolkit

· Casting Random Magic

Find your copy of Random Magic: Amazon -- Kindle -- B&N

Thanks for your visit -- and Happy Halloween!