Hungers of the Heart (The Guardians of the Night, Book 4) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jenna Black (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2008

Drake is a Killer  vampire.

Unlike the Guardians of the Night, Drake feeds on human blood, choosing victims who deserve to die.  But still he works with the Guardians to protect those humans who yet have some good in them. 

When Gabriel, the leader of the Baltimore Guardians, mysteriously disappears, Drake finds himself in charge of a small band of inexperienced fledgling vampires.  When a delegation of European Killers arrives in Baltimore  looking for Gabriel, Drake must call on all the savagery of his sordid past to keep the Guardians in line—and to protect them from the ruthless Killers.

Forced to confront a past he has tried so hard to outrun, Drake risks losing his humanity. His only hope is Faith, the French Seigneur’s concubine, who desperately needs his help to rescue her human sister from the Seigneur’s clutches.  Then someone begins killing the members of the European vampire delegation, and Drake is the only suspect. Will Drake be saved by love, or will he become a Killer without a conscience?

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Jenna Black has crafted a fine story with Watchers in the Night. She supplies deft handling of plot, characters, and genre, and I enjoyed the novel tremendously. I see many more fascinating novels coming from this author in the future!"--New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Heather Graham
 
"You'll want to bare your throat to Jenna Black's enthralling heroes. This cleverly plotted romantic tale will leave you hungry for more!"--Sabrina Jeffries, New York Times bestselling author of One Night With a Prince on Watchers in the Night

About the Author

Author Jenna Black writes paranormal romance books and young adult novels, including Shadowspell and Watchers in the Night, which was nominated for the 2006 Paranormal Excellence in Romantic Literature (PEARL) award. She's your typical writer: an experience junkie. Once upon a time, she dreamed she would be the next Jane Goodall, camping in the bush and making fabulous discoveries about primate behavior. She went to Duke University to study physical anthropology. Then, during her senior year, she made a shocking discovery: primates spend something like 80% of their time doing such exciting things as sleeping and eating. Narrowly escaping the boring life of a primatologist, she moved on to such varied pastimes as grooming dogs and writing technical documentation. Among her other experiences: ballroom dancing, traveling to all seven continents--yes, even Antarctica--becoming a Life Master in Bridge, and singing in a barbershop chorus.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Tor Paranormal Romance; 1 edition (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765357186
• ISBN-13: 978-0765357182
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 3.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #998,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jenna Black is your typical writer. Which means she's an "experience junkie." She got her BA in physical anthropology and French from Duke University.

Once upon a time, she dreamed she would be the next Jane Goodall, camping in the bush making fabulous discoveries about primate behavior. Then, during her senior year at Duke, she did some actual research in the field and made this shocking discovery: primates spend something like 80% of their time doing such exciting things as sleeping and eating.

Concluding that this discovery was her life's work in the field of primatology, she then moved on to such varied pastimes as grooming dogs and writing technical documentation. She is now a full-time writer and lives in North Carolina with her husband and two dogs.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One thing vampire children are taught is, never run with a wooden stake. -Jack Handy, May 8, 2008

By 

Cherise Everhard (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hungers of the Heart (The Guardians of the Night, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

In the Vampire world that Jenna Black created, there are two kinds of vampires; those that kill to survive, known as Killers, and those that feed off of animal blood. Drake is a Killer. He tries to make up for it now by killing only those victims who are less than stellar human beings.

The Guardians are an organization of non Killer Vampires that spend their time ridding their city and protecting the people from the Killers. Drake is one of the Guardians, though his status as a Killer leaves him on the outside of the circle of trust with a lot of the vamps. He heads to Baltimore to be part of a fledgling group of Guardians headed by another Killer, Gabriel.

When Gabriel goes missing, Drake is forced to take over leadership and try to keep his Vamps alive as they are in the middle of a power struggle involving a mother against her daughter. The mother vs. daughter battle brings in high-powered vamps from many different territories, choosing sides, and it's every vamp for himself.

Faith comes to Baltimore with her protector, as he is on a mission to kill Gabriel for the mother. When forced to stay under the same roof with Drake, Faith finds herself unexpectedly attracted to him and for the first time she sees some hope in bettering her situation.

In this fourth tale in the Guardians of the Night series, the power struggles are at the heart of this story and we get a deeper glimpse into both the good and evil sides of the vamp world and all the grey areas in between. Drake has been one of my favorite characters from the start and I was really pleased with the way his story turned out. We definitely figure out what makes Drake tick and what kind of life he came from. The romance between Drake and Faith is sexy and I liked her for a partner for him, they balance each other beautifully.

There are a few twists and turns as some vamps I hated and some I liked, ended up surprising me in the end. This books has a little bit of everything; some vamp battles, some hot love scenes and a whole lot of insight into the vamp world. This is another entertaining installment in this series and it has me eager to read the next one.

Cherise Everhard, May 2008

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fourth in series, June 6, 2008

By 

Helen Hancox "Auntie Helen" (Essex, England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hungers of the Heart (The Guardians of the Night, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is the fourth book in Jenna Black's "Guardians Of The Night" series and it certainly helps to have read the previous books to follow the events and characters in this one. The focus of this story is Drake, a Killer (vampire who kills humans for food) but who is allowed to live by the Guardians because of his moral stance about those he kills for food. However, as the book opens, Drake is accused by one of the Guardians in Philadelphia of killing an undercover cop and he's forced to go to Baltimore and join the small group of Guardians there led by Gabriel.

Unfortunately once Drake arrives he discovers that Gabriel has been kidnapped by Brigitte and within a very short time a delegation arrives from Paris led by Armand Durant who has been tasked by his superior, La Vielle, to dispose of Gabriel. As Gabriel has been kidnapped Drake has to try to take his place in holding together the small band of vampires against those much stronger than them. When Drake also meets with Faith, Armand's concubine, and Faith's sixteen year old mortal sister, he finds himself having to take their needs into account rather than just working to dispose of Armand and all his followers.

Faith's life, since she mistakenly trusted a man who turned out to be a vampire six years before, has been a long mission to keep her sister safe. She hates Armand but knows that she has little chance of surviving leaving him and so she bides her time. When she finds a sympathetic ear in Drake there's a chance but can the machinations of Brigitte and Henri, as well as Drake's Maker Padraig, prevent a reasonable future for them?

Jenna Black's writing style is very good with excellent pacing, a varied list of characters and some interesting moral dilemmas for her characters. This book was much heavier on the vampire politics than the romance, in fact the romance felt rather like a sideline to the plot and didn't have that much time spent on it, but it was interesting to see events from Drake's, Faith's, Armand's and Charles's minds, especially as none of the characters are either completely good or completely bad. However this reader found that, overall, the book wasn't entirely satisfying as it felt more like a transitional story than a complete story in its own right and the lack of focus on Drake and Faith was perhaps a slight disappointment.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2008

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hungers of the Heart- A Joyfully Recommended Title, August 7, 2008

By 

M. Nix - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hungers of the Heart (The Guardians of the Night, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

Drake, a Guardian who still uses actual humans for nourishment, has been asked to leave the city of brotherly love where he has helped to keep the streets safe from both vampire and human predators. The accusation is he¢s finally stepped over the line and killed an innocent, not the human criminals he normally uses to assuage his thirst. Joining Gabriel in Baltimore is his only option now. Arriving to the news that Gabriel has gone missing and his small band of fledgling vamps are in need of leadership until he¢s found. Add in the mix of a European contingent on its way to kill Gabriel and take back the daughter of Europe¢s most feared vampress and Drake¢s new home isn¢t so welcoming. All that he is and has been will be needed if he is to maintain what¢s left of his humanity while trying to keep Faith, the European Seigneur¢s concubine and her mortal sister alive.

My first suggestion for anyone considering picking up Hungers of the Heart is read the previous installments. This is Book 4 of the Guardians of the Night series and they all connect in a way, which makes for seamless enjoyment. In Jenna Black¢s latest book, we get a closer look at Drake, a Killer who is the stepchild of the Guardians because of his continued use of humans for meals. Drake is thrown into a situation that he is barely able to contain and one he¢s outmanned for. His relationship with Faith, a turned vampire who is trying everything in her limited powers to keep her mortal sister safe isn¢t an all-consuming passion. The build-up is slower than previous connections in this series and there is so much going on with the fight to keep everyone alive, with the mystery of the missing Gabriel, the mayhem perpetrated by two local vamps and just the chaos within the European contingent the love affair is more an afterthought than the focus.

I still think readers and fans of this series will love it just as much because the excitement, extensive storyline and the action makes up for any lack of heat. For this reason I Joyfully Recommend Hungers of the Heart as a Recommend Read for the month of August.

Indy
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed