Review: Out of Smoke and Ashes

Out of Smoke and Ashes by Tymber Dalton

My rating: 3 of 5 stars




When will the cockatrice die? These nasty inbred shifters are the bane of all the other shifters' existence. How much longer will this series continue? Isn't it done already? Ms. Dalton surprises us with yet another twist in this story. It's sort of out of the blue, but it's perversely kinky.

Elaine Pardie just wants to have her blissful wedding day with friends and family. She's marrying Ain but really she's mating the triplets and it's all understood. Her wedding day is interrupted when her best friend goes into labor and one of the shifters is nearly kidnapped.

It seems this series is becoming increasingly convoluted. There is never just one focal point. Instead, there are several threads hopping back and forth. For those who are not familiar with this series, it may give a reader whiplash. It is crucial to read these books in order. Each book builds upon the previous one.

In addition, the number of characters in this book will make it hard for people to keep them straight. It may be easier to create a tree chart and how each person relates to another. The number of allies between the different shifter races is increasing. On top of this, a prophecy needs to be fulfilled. Another pantheon of gods is introduced in this story, too. It's a rather odd interpretation of the Devil and hell. I'm hoping this will lead to a spin-off in another series. It's intriguing.

Lastly, Elain's ruthless enemy, Abernathy, is back and he isn't going to stop until he gets his dick into Elain. With all these different storylines going at the same time in a fast pace, it can be easy to get lost. For those who enjoy crossovers and tie-ins, this story will be fun to read.

The characters in this story are now starting to meld with each other. Elain, Lina and Cally are all the same. They have the same attitude. They have similar magnitude of power. Honestly, they can be interchangeable. Sure, they have different men they mate with, but that is about it. From a character perspective, there isn't any one who is endearing or admirable. The "good" guys all come across as self-righteous know-it-alls. The bad guys are just batshit crazy. The latest evil villain is quite the screwed up female with daddy issues. When her agenda is revealed, it takes a weird but amusing turn, even if it is depraved.

The sex in this story is classic Ms. Dalton kinky hot. There are multiple partners combinations as well as degrading kinky sex. The only thing there isn't is vanilla sex. Well, the vanilla sex is hidden behind closed doors. The kinkiest sex which I enjoyed is the shifter sex. It's not between human and shifted wolf. It is still with shifters all in the same shifted state--their wolf self. It is taboo to have human to shifter sex, but it would be so very good. Yes, it dances the fine line of bestiality, but who cares? It's fiction. Alas, we are only inundated with males and females getting it on. Maybe one day, Ms. Dalton will cross over and give us some smoking hawt f/f.

This kinky paranormal romance is recommended for those who like several plots all converging at once.


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