Sara's Review: The Beast (Black Dagger Brotherhood #14) by J.R. Ward
Reviewer Purchase
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Released: April 5, 2016
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Dark Fantasy
Length: 18 hours and 4 minutes
Narrator: Jim Frangione
Format: ebook, hardcover, paperback, audiobook
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Blurb:
Nothing is as it used to be for the Black Dagger Brotherhood.
After avoiding war with the Shadows, alliances have shifted, and lines have been drawn. The slayers of the Lessening Society are stronger than ever, preying on human weakness to acquire more money, more weapons, more power. But as the Brotherhood readies for an all-out attack on them, one of their own fights a battle within himself....
For Rhage, the Brother with the biggest appetites but also the biggest heart, life was supposed to be perfect - or at the very least perfectly enjoyable. Mary, his beloved shellan, is by his side, and his king and his brothers are thriving. But Rhage can't understand - or control - the panic and insecurity that plague him...and that terrifies him as well as distances him from his mate.
After suffering a mortal injury in battle, Rhage must reassess his priorities - and the answer, when it comes to him, rocks his world...and Mary's. But Mary is on a journey of her own, one that will either bring them closer together or cause a split that neither will recover from....
Three Boundless Stars
Bit of a spoiler ahead: Be warned.
I was expecting so much more of Rhage and Mary’s continuing story. I mean there life is for the most part perfect except they don’t have children. I guess because I don’t have children and have never felt this all-encompassing need to propagate that I was kind of like yawn. I couldn’t relate to their feelings on the subject. All of their issues revolve around them each wanting children and not being able to have them. Or can they? It was so obvious where the story was heading as soon as Bitty was introduced, which was annoying.
One thing Ward does well is have a multi POV story that she moves the overall plot along of both the lessening society and BDB in every novel. It’s one thing I look forward to and why I continue to read this series. In The Beast, I enjoyed the secondary characters story more than I did the primary.
I like where she left things because it is enough that we are hungry for the next novel and there are several plot threads left dangling. Overall The Beast was just OK for me, I think I would have liked it better if this was a secondary story going on and someone else got the lead. Much like Butch and Marissa in Blood Kiss.