Blog Tour: Day 6 of 6 D.N. Simmons The Knights of the Darkness Chronicles: UNHOLY ALLIANCE

Congratulations! And thank you for following me along on this journey of reading the entire series in one week! If you couldn't tell already, I TOTALLY enjoyed this paranormal series. It was sexy, it was gritty, it was horrifying, it was gory, it was heart-warming, and I think that Simmons did a fabulous job of capturing different aspects of "humanity." 

The giveaway will be listed at the bottom of course, per usual, and before I get into the book's synopsis and my review, I've neglected to tell you in all of these posts about D.N. Simmons. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

I was born in the little, but big bustling city of Chicago, Illinois. I still live there today and I’m loving every second of it ... Except for those harsh cold winters. I started writing short horror stories when I was eleven years old. It wasn't until 2004 that I decided to take the plunge into the professional literary world when I wrote Desires Unleashed.

I love the supernatural world; I've always found it fascinating, especially vampires and shape-shifters. It was my love of the genre that motivated me to create the story I had always wanted to read. I published it, hoping there were other people out there who would be entertained by that same story. I love to entertain people, to offer them that fantasy world they can escape into filled with wonders and good times. I know I appreciate the escapism I've delved into when reading a good book.

Some of the accolades I've won for my writing are: "New Voice of Today" by A Romance Review, "Rising Star" by Love Romance and "Author of the Month" by Warrior of Words. I've been nominated two years in a row in several categories, including "best vampire novel" and "best urban-fantasy" at Love Romance and More. My third novel; The Royal Flush did win honorable mention in 2006.

Some of the accolades I've won for my writing are: "New Voice of Today" by A Romance Review, "Rising Star" by Love Romance and "Author of the Month" by Warrior of Words. I've been nominated two years in a row in several categories, including "best vampire novel" and "best urban-fantasy" at Love Romance and More. My third novel; The Royal Flush did win honorable mention in 2006.

To find out even more about me, please click on the links below.

D.N.’s Website | D.N.'s Blog | D.N. on Facebook

 D.N. on Twitter | D.N. on Goodreads

Also, here is the list of the other AMAZING bloggers on this tour! Stop by, say hello, see what they have to say about this incredibly sexy, visceral series:

5/31 - Cocktails and Books

http://www.cocktailsandbooks.com/blog-tour-series-spotlight-giveaway-knights-of-the-darkness-d-n-simmons/

6/02- Mad Hatter Reads (interview & review book 1)

http://madhatterreads.blogspot.com/

 6/05- Bookin' It Reviews (guest post & series spotlight)

http://www.bookinitreviews.com/

6/05- Lily Pond Reads

http://lilypondreads.blogspot.com/

6/07- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 1)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

6/14- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 2)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

6/20- Larissa's Bookish Life (guest post & review of series)

http://www.larissaslife.com/

6/21- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 3)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

6/22- GraveTells (guest post)

http://gravetells.com/

6/28- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 4)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

7/01- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 1)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/02- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 2)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/03- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 3)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/04- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 4)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/05- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 5)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

7/05- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 5)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/06- Tiffy-Fit  (spotlight & review - book 6)

http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/

7/07- I Smell Sheep (Series spotlight & review - book 1)

http://www.ismellsheep.com/

7/08- Wicked Readings by Tawania (series spotlight & review - all 6 books)

http://www.wickedreadingsbytawania.blogspot.com/

7/09- Froggarita's Bookcase (interview & review - book 1)

http://www.froggaritasbookcase.com/

7/10- Crystals Random Thoughts 

http://www.crystalsrandomthoughts.com/

7/11- Book Monster Reviews

http://www.bookmonsterreviews.com/

7/12- My Reading Obsession (spotlight & review - book 6)

http://4myreadingobsession.blogspot.com/

7/15- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book 1)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

7/16- Book Lovin' Mamas (interview, series spotlight and reviews - all 6 books)

http://booklovinmamas.blogspot.com/

7/16- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book 2)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

7/17- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book 3)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

7/18- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book 4)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

7/19- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book 5)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

7/20- Close Encounters (spotlight & review - book6)

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/

And now, book six UNHOLY ALLIANCE and what I thought of it! :) 

The Final Chapter of the Knights of the Darkness Chronicles will leave you breathless!

Picking up the chaos from where The Lion's Den left off, Unholy Alliance unleashes a whole new threat to everyone’s existence. It’s the calm before the storm and once the storm hits, you’ll have to pray and hope you survive. New alliances will be formed that will reshape the world with the blood of the innocent. There will be nowhere to hide, there will be no sanctuary. Who will stop them? Can they be stop? Hold on to your seats and prepare for one hell of a ride!

Original, sexy and gritty, the Knights of the Darkness

Chronicles will suck you in and take you for a ride you won't forget!

Purchase now:  Amazon | B&N

A_TiffyFit's Review: Picking up right where we left off in THE LION'S DEN, I think that this was the most emotionally charged book of the series. It's the final chapter, it's a culmination of all of our favorite characters. It's about protecting those you love. We meet the most powerful vampires in existence, the Founts, the original seven and hear their origination story as they are gathering to fight against one another to save the human race. Natasha is kidnapped again, infected with the virus killing off the human race, molested, and then returned ill. Xavier will do anything to save Darian. Darian will do anything to save Xavier, his Chosen One. Kysen will do anything to protect the heart of his Chosen One, Darian, and so forth as we meet stronger and stronger vampires. 

The Founts, with the exception of one, are annoying, arrogant, and everything you expect from a being as old as they each are. I suppose after so many millenia of watching petty human jealousies work their way out, you, too, would be selfish, jaded, and cynical. And then to be the ONLY female Fount? Yeah, Irikara is a bitch alright! I like the wake up call for humans, especially as their general attitudes are ones that we would encounter on a day to day basis in our own lives: arrogant, asinine, petty, and disingenuous. That is our reality, unfortunately, and only a handful are like Natasha: genuine, cares for fellow man, demonstrates integrity, etc. 

There are only a few glitches throughout the series that readers may "trip" over: a handful of spelling/grammar errors (wretched vs retched, son vs sun, etc). and then colloquallisms and speech patterns that are regional based. Natasha and Devin's "voices" and slang made me stumble a few times. These errors over the course of six books can be counted on your hands without using all of your fingers, so they are easily overlooked. 

This was a very satisfying series, focusing on different players while keeping a central theme. I really loved it and totally loved having all the books at once to read consecutively. Fight sequences as well as every conversation are written so vividly without bogging you down with minutia that it was like watching a movie play in my head. In fact, this would make a brilliant television drama series, appealing to vampire junkies and shifter junkies alike.  

If this isn't on your TBR yet, it should be! 

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BLOG TOUR: Day 5 of 6, D.N. Simmons Knights of the Darkness Chronicles: THE LION'S DEN

The Lion's Den (Knights of the Darkness Chronicles #5)

Darian, Elise and Xander have been through very rough times in the past, but nothing has prepared them for the menace that is causing all kinds of havoc in their territory this time around. Chicago is at the mercy, or lack thereof, of a ruthless gang of supernaturals who seem to take extreme pleasure in other people's pain. In this game of cat and mouse, there's no way to tell who's the predator and who's the prey.

Purchase now:  Amazon | B&N

A_TiffyFit's Review:

I think this is the most action packed of the 5 I have read so far! This one has a vicious, ancient vampire named Marcus and his coven, including a shifter lover. As we know now from the previous novels, drinking a master’s blood imbues some of his strength into you, enhancing whatever powers you may already have, whether shifter, vampire, or human. It worked to strengthen Natasha’s visions, it worked to strengthen Darian’s will so he could now see sunrise and sunset despite his “younger” age (compared to the ancients, younger).

Warning: There are horrific crimes in this novel. If you can’t stand watching Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, you will have a hard time with some scenes in this book. It is, unfortunately, true to life with the horrors that monsters force upon others, and some of it was really hard to read. Mutilation, rape, & murder of both adults and children.

The book starts off with Natasha’s pregnancy cravings and her asking Xavier and Darian to get her a juicy burger. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this is baby numero dos! I love how we get to see the every day lives of these characters: from Natasha’s nesting and cravings to how the two vamps spoil her to Christopher, the newest vamp, working in the club and learning about being a vampire, to Warren & Matthew’s daily job. Warren’s shock as Marshall asks if he was the one to turn Matthew was adorable! “No! Wait…you knew about me?!”

This one starts off with the crime and it is horrific. A shifter is murdered, flayed, and dumped on the door step of Desires Unleashed. From there, more and more crimes pop up faster and faster, forcing the captain of the S.U.I.T. unit to bring in reinforcements much to the dismay, and then later relief, of Warren.

The new coven on the scene is terrifying and terrorizing the citizens of Darian’s territory. Wickedly strong, horrific, evil, and smart, Marcus’s coven and Marcus himself are wreaking havoc. Lives are lost, not just the victims of the murders, but also during the fights: coven, pride, and pack lose members. We have a new shifter pack alliance, and really they are the reason why the coven is here, not that it makes it solely their fight alone.

It’s intense! D.N. Simmons kept me up late at night, turning my pages, wanting resolution, cheering them on during the fight, and finally…when it’s finished, there is another problem. And how does the book end? With this:

To Be Continued.
Oh yeah! … I ended this on a cliffhanger, baby!
Love ya!
D.N.

*jaw drops* GEEEEZ. Okay! I get it! Onto the final book in the series! UNHOLY ALLIANCE

Tune in tomorrow to see how this story ends...well as much as I'm willing to give away anyway ;) 

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BLOG TOUR! Day 4 of 6: D.N. Simmons Knights of the Darkness Chronicles HOSTILE TERRITORY

Hostile Territory (Knights of the Darkness Chronicles #4)

Hostile Territory is the fourth novel in the edgy, action-packed, sexually charged Knights of the Darkness Chronicles. In this installment, be prepared for the ultimate supernatural adventure! It's no holds barred in this tale and there's going to be hell to pay! A single orchestrated attack initiates a hunt unlike Darian and his friends have ever encountered. You really don't want to miss out. The ante has been upped and they are out for blood!

Purchase now:  Amazon | B&N

A_TiffyFit's Review:

Happy Independence Day, everyone! It's kinda fitting that I am writing this review today on a book in the series whose plot centers around defending their ways of life and keeping from being under the rule of a vicious tyrant. 

This time a pack member, a pride member, and a coven member have been kidnapped to try and force a takeover of the territory. Not just any members were kidnapped either: We got Natasha (Xavier & Darian's lover) missing, Sebastian (Sergio's son), & Matthew (Warren's lover) all missing! Darian can't use his bond with Natasha to find out where she's being held or who took them, either, as the kidnappers are keeping them all drugged up. For poor Natasha, who is a psychic, this means an endless loop of jumbled visions as she sleeps under the influence of the sedative. 

This book has a TON of action with vicious fight sequences that play like a movie in your head. Very well described and easy to visualize. There are also some super sexy instances, demonstrations of love and devotion, and some VERY interesting revelations and developments. ;) 

I wonder if Natasha will ever become a vampire? I truly hope so. I want her to live forever with her chosen loves. 

The next book is called THE LION'S DEN and I am thinking this means we will be meeting some lion shifters...oooh weeee! 


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