Archangel's Blade (Guild Hunter) [Mass Market Paperback]

Nalini Singh (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 6, 2011 | Series: Guild Hunter (Book 4)

Trying to discover the identity of a murder victim brings together the vampire Dmitri and a hunter for the Guild, Honor. And as the gruesome murders continue, a lethal sensuality explodes between them.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In the intensely dark, violent, and romantic fourth Guild Hunter novel...Singh focuses on the 1,000-year-old vampire Dmitri, lieutenant to the archangel Raphael, and Guild Hunter Honor, still recovering after a rogue vampire kidnapped and tortured her for two months...a heart-pounding and strongly emotional read." - Publishers Weekly

From the Back Cover

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh is back in the shadows of a deadly, beautiful world where angels rule, vampires serve, and one female hunter must crawl out of the darkness to survive...

The severed head marked by a distinctive tattoo on its cheek should have been a Guild case, but dark instincts honed over hundreds of years of life compel the vampire Dmitri to take control. There is something twisted about this death, something that whispers of centuries long past...but Dmitri's need to discover the truth is nothing to the vicious strength of his response to the hunter assigned to decipher the tattoo.

Savaged in a brutal attack that almost killed her, Honor is nowhere near ready to come face to face with the seductive vampire who is an archangel's right hand, and who wears his cruelty as boldly as his lethal sensuality...the same vampire who has been her secret obsession since the day she was old enough to understand the inexplicable, violent emotions he aroused in her.

As desire turns into a dangerous compulsion that might destroy them both, it becomes clear the past will not stay buried. Something is hunting...and it will not stop until it brings a blood-soaked nightmare to life once more...

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Berkley; Original edition (September 6, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425243915
• ISBN-13: 978-0425243916
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (180 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #49,551 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nalini Singh loves to write, loves to read, and thinks chocolate is a food group.

She enjoys hearing from readers, so drop her an email at nalinisinghwritesATgmailDOTcom if you ever have any questions!

Website: www.nalinisingh.com

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#19 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#51 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#19 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#51 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 67 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Archangel's Blade September 6, 2011

By Jess

Format:Mass Market Paperback

"Honor?"

"Yes."

"I'm going to do things to you now that a good girl definitely shouldn't let a man do to her."
**********

When I first heard that Dmitri would be getting his own book, all I thought initially was - ok. Of all the supporting characters in the Archangel world, I hadn't thought of him having his own story, at least not at this point in the series, but oh how wrong I was. From the start, we're drawn back into this world and into Dmitri's life. He's surrounded by darkness, he's ruthless, to the point, and he shows no softness. We learn why through flashbacks and pieces of memories that Dmitri has kept buried for years. His past is heart breaking and filled with cruelness and he's basically shut himself off to love and kindness keeping only one true friend, in Raphael, close to him.

Honor has survived a horrific ordeal. She's a Hunter and while all her past training helped her to survive, it was her will alone that made it possible for her to stay alive through everything that was done her. When she's brought in to help Dmitri on a case, she really begins to start living again, something she hasn't been able to do for the many months following her rescue. Honor and Dmitri both awaken feelings in the each other that neither can explain, and even when they try to fight everything emotional that's happening between them, the pull is too strong and they both begin a long journey of healing.

There were two separate cases our hero and heroine were working on. The first, and most important to Dmitri, was tracking down every vampire involved in Honor's capture and making them pay. While he and Honor were following leads, they were also trying to track down a killer, one that ends up hitting much closer to home for Dmitri then he ever thought possible.

Honor is a heroine that you will love instantly, care about and root for hard. I fell in love with her from the start, and while her capture takes place before this story happens, we get bits and pieces of what happened through her nightmares and flashbacks. Calling it horrific earlier is an understatement and I'm beyond glad that Nalini didn't include the actual capture in the book. We get enough detail about it to know exactly what happened and we're even left knowing that it was much, much worse than the parts we learn about. We know pretty early on that this story will follow Honor and her path to healing and moving past this event with the help of Dmitri, but I wasn't prepared to watch Dmitri need to do the exact same thing. He long ago buried the pain of a tragic event and Honor unlocks that part of him, the loving Dmitri that's been gone for centuries. Following these two strong people from a very hesitant meeting, (Honor still having a strong negative reaction to being around vampires, it took some time for her to warm up to Dmitri) to seeing them come to need each other and understanding why that was at the very end, it's a perfect kind of love story.

**********
"Put down the belt, Honor." A sexy smile. "Unless you plan to use it."

Stomach clenching, she dropped the belt and stepped back between his spread legs. "I had a feeling you'd be into belts and ropes."

When she reached forward and pushed up his tee, he remained in his sprawled position, a pasha waiting to be served. His skin was the same dark tan shade on his abdomen as it was on his face. "Is your skin this tone all over?"

"Only one way you're going to discover the answer to that."
**********

One pleasant surprise was all the supporting characters we get to catch up with. Raphael and Elena have a little page time, Illium is in and out through most of the story, and we get even more hints about his fascination with mortals and another painful past for our Bluebell. I was most taken with Holly, a young woman we first met when she was captured by Uram and rescued with Dmitri taking responsibility for her. She's terrified of being what Uram was, and with the help of Honor and even Venom, she's starting to move forward. Hers will be a story that continues to evolve throughout the series and I have such a soft spot for her and hope we get her story someday.

Dmitri is not an easy man, and even when Honor becomes a more important part of his life, his outward personality does not change. We still have a vampire who will make the hard decisions, do the jobs that need to be done, but seeing him with Honor as they become closer, they save each other. It's a wonderful story that I'll be rereading, probably many times, and it's one that as I finished the last page, I couldn't help but hope that Dmitri and Honor will have another book sometime in the future.

Blog Rating: 5/5 stars

55 of 65 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 Stars: A Different Opinion September 8, 2011

By Deinara

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

First of all, let me say that I have loved every book in the "Psy-Changeling" series and the "Angel/Archangel" series by Nalini. She is a very gifted writer who makes you care about her characters, fall in love with their stories, revel in their triumphs, and grieve with them in their tragedy......and you get hot sex!

I was so looking forward to this book...I figured the story would be about one of the seven, and Dimitri was at at the top of that list because he has been such an intriguing and mysterious presence in the other three books that readers could not help but be curious about him. His story in Archangel's Blade is certainly a good read, and the sex is hot, but I was a bit disappointed....well, a lot disappointed that we did not learn more about him.
I also wish that Nalini had chosen someone with a bit more depth and dimension to her character as his soul mate. This story did not satisfy me the way the others in this series have.

Let me tell you why I feel this way:

1) With all of the build up from the previous stories about how sexy Dimitri must be, I expected the sex scenes between he and Honor to be sexy in more ways than just aerobics, and toys. I expected all of that but...I guess I expected more intimacy, more caring, the feeling of mating, instead of mechanically melding. It seemed to be from what we have come to know of him, what he did with Honor was no different than what he might have done with any other female. For even though the words he spoke and the thoughts he had were what was supposed to make that so...for me it seemed that they were just "words in the script" rather than truth.

2) I found the relationship they "flashbacked" with his wife, so much more interesting than the relationship with Honor. Even though you did not get nearly as much "blow by blow" detail about their intimate sex life, the way Nalini described his thoughts and feelings you just knew it was wonderful, and that he truly loved her. You got to know some of the simple, everyday, loving ways they related to each other. Not enough of that kind of activity and soulful feeling was revealed between he and Honor. Dimitri would flashback about all of the goodness and rightness in his life with his wife....and then the dialogue would have Dimitri think something like ..."Honor makes me feel that way"; But, there would be none of those kind of loving, intimate, moments or actions between them that lead to loving couples developing such a connection. For me it was "all in his head" and not acted out. This made it difficult for me to believe in their relationship.

I think this book could have been completely the back story of how Dimitri lived, loved, met Raphael, and came to be what he is today. I found it far more interesting than the tale of Dimitri and Honor.

3) I could not relate to Honor at all. At the end of the book I found her to be an incomplete character, who was just as mysterious to me as she was in the beginning. She did not feel as multidimensional as Elena or Sara (other female characters in the series). She was not as interesting as his wife from the back story....Her...I wanted so much to know more about. If Honor was to be the "reincarnation" if you will of his wife, I think the author could have given her more dimensions that would have endeared her to the reader...thus one would truly believe that she was indeed that reincarnation. I was left still wondering "why her?"...other than the fact that words in the story said so rather than deeds...or enough deeds anyway.

Apparently, most of the reviewers do not seem to feel the way I do, but I did not get as lost in this story as I did in the previous books. I did not look forward to the relationship development scenes between Dimitri and Honor the way I did between Raphael and Elena. The relationship in this book was more "by the book mechanical", less nuanced, and did not feel "real" to me.

The book is not awful, it is a good read. I just think it could have been better :)

27 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Nalini's Best Work to Date. (A Grade) September 6, 2011

By Katie Babs VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Let me start by saying that Archangel's Blade may be Nalini Singh's best work to date and quite possibly her best hero she's created with the vampire Dmitri. Yes, ladies and gentleman, while I read Archangel's Blade I forgot about my favorite Singh character, Kaleb, from Nalini's Psy/Changeling series. Now that's something astonishing because out of all Nalini's male characters, Kaleb is the end all and be all for me (Lucas Hunter from Slave to Sensation comes in a close second). Dmitri is unlike any hero I've read this year. He's been an important character in the Guild Hunter series since the beginning as the archangel, Raphael's second in command. Dmitri is a dark, almost villainous creature who uses sex and violence to get what he wants. Some may say he doesn't have a soul from what we've seen of him so far. When I heard Nalini was going to give Dmitri his own book, I really thought it wouldn't work. How could she make Dmitri stand on equal footing all her other wonderful heroes? Dmitri is one slick, and at times, slimy mo fo. Well, Dmitri is a cut above all her heroes and more so. Dmitri will slip deep into your heart and not leave. What you think you know about him is so very wrong, and when you figure out who he really is and why he acts the way he does, you may end up in tears because it's so heartbreaking.

Archangel's Blade is not an easy book to read. Nalini throws everything and the kitchen sink in here in regards to Dmitri and the heroine, Honor. These two have gone through hell and back and have barely survived. Their pasts are full of torture, violence, death and disturbing acts placed on their person and their psyche. Only when they both come together and find love and understanding with one another is where they're able to fully heal. This is a powerful story that shows how love can heal all wounds.

Honor is a member of the Guild Hunter just like Elena, the vampire hunter turned angel who is mated to Raphael, the powerful archangel of Manhattan. Honor is recovering from a horrific vampire attack, where she was held captive for months and was drained of her blood, raped and tortured for no reason. She lives in fear and can barely function, going as far as blaming herself for her attack because she was forced to feel pleasure from some of the tortures she went through. Her boss, as way to push Honor to stop hiding, orders her to investigate a possible serial killer targeting vampires. Honor will have to work alongside Dmitri, who frightens her to her very core not only because he's a vampire, but one who's seductive and close to amoral as you can get.

Dmitri is not impressed with Honor at first because he can sense her fear and loathing. He really doesn't have a high opinion of woman because they fawn all over him and allow him to use their bodies for sex and other degrading acts, or so we're led to believe. His heart belonged to only one woman back when he was mortal and he will never love another with such devotion again. But as he gets to know Honor, the walls around his heart break down. He wants to avenge Honor for what she went through while he comes to terms with his own guilt over the senseless murders of people he loved before he was changed into a vampire. Honor begins to see the true Dmitri and how he's scarred like she is. Honor wants to take what Dmitri is offering. She begins to heal also and comes to the conclusion that Dmitri is her salvation, and so much more.

Archangel's Blade is a book where revenge and forgiveness go hand in hand. This is also a very dark and angst ridden read. What Dmitri and Honor have gone through will numb your heart because it's so disturbing. I raged alongside both of them when they tell one another about their suffering. Dmitri makes no excuses for what he does. But the one thing that makes him redeemable is his undying devotion not only to Raphael, but the memory of a woman who was once his entire life. To explain why this is so important would be a big spoiler and is better left unsaid. I will tell you this, when Dmitri loves, it's unlike anything you will have read before. Watching him and Honor first as adversaries who eventually become each other's yin to their yang is a thing of beauty. Their love and passion is an accumulation of two souls who have been searching for one another for far too long.

There's a big twist regarding Honor that may seem ridiculous and too convenient, but it works when all is said and done. When it's revealed, you may break down in happy tears because it's the ultimate happily ever after.

Awe. I am simply in awe of this book, with Nalini's imagination, characterizations and over storyline and plot. Kudos, big big Kudos to Nalini for Archangel's Blade. I announce my favorite phrase with this one- I want to have babies with this book it's so damn good.

I bow down to Nalini for writing Archangel's Blade. I had tears in my eyes, which doesn't happen very often. Archangel's Blade will stick with me for years to come.

Katiebabs