Demon from the Dark (Immortals After Dark Series, Book 8)

Demon from the Dark (Immortals After Dark Series, Book 8) - Kresley Cole Originally posted at WickedLilPixie Reviews

“Those who betray me do it only once.” – Malkolm

I have done something different with this review and have used plentiful quotes throughout to highlight my favorite parts. If you consider quotes too much of a spoiler, please use caution browsing this review. The review overall is spoiler-free.

Demon from the Dark is the 9th full-length novel in the Immortals After Dark series and as I’ve mentioned previously in my review of Pleasure of a Dark Prince, this is one of my most cherished Paranormal Romance series. We are quickly approaching The Accession, described as “a kind of mystical checks-and-balances system for an ever-growing population of immortals. Occurs every five hundred years. Or right now…” I heard from a few fellow readers that they felt the beginning was a bit too slow. For me, that was not the case. I felt the beginning was necessary to remind us that certain events have happened in previous books and they needed to be tied together. Think: characters have gone missing in just about each book leading up to this one. I strongly recommend re-reading the Epilogue of Pleasure of a Dark Prince, because it is filled with events that set up the events of this book. I did not remember a lot of references made in the beginning and someone pointed me to the Epilogue of PoaDP leading me to several “A-Ha!” moments.

Demon from the Dark picks up right where Pleasure of a Dark Prince left off. We first meet Malkolm Slaine, and learn of his background and just how he has been so betrayed and tortured on the most fundamental of levels. We also pick up with Carrow Graie right after she has been captured and held prisoner by The Order. I just knew Carrow would be kick-ass and she totally was. We previously knew her as being Mari’s best friend, who threw the pool party for her fellow witches in Rydstrom’s pool while he was away – without his knowledge. Known as Carrow the Incarcerated, we expected a crazy party girl, but she was so much more than that. There was absolute method to her madness. Her inner dialog throughout the book was one of my favorites of the heroines in the series so far. Some of my most favorite quotes of her inner dialog:
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Those bastards had posted bail for Carrow’s latest disorderly conduct charge—proudly earned!—and then lain in wait outside the Orleans Parish Correctional.
“We’ll get a pad near Andoain so you can still go to spell school there. I’ll pack lunch”—bag leftover pizza—“for you every morning.”
He had nice even teeth, surprisingly white. In a way, even his fangs were sexy. Because his second bite aroused you. Shut up, inner Carrow!
Ruby crossed her little arms over her chest, jutting her chin. “You’re not leaving me behind. Or I’ll do a spell to make you smell like ass. Forever.” Carrow raised her brows. “Harsh, Ruby, harsh.” I think I’m the one who taught her to say “smell like ass.”
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In addition, one of my favorite things about reading each book in this series is Kresley Cole’s obscure 80s & 90s pop culture references and this book did not let me down! Here are some of my most favorite laugh out loud parts:
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What would Ripley do? When in a jam, Carrow often thought of how Ellen Ripley, the legendary badasstress of the Alien quadrilogy, would figure her way out.

Added to this, Ruby was now singing They Might Be Giants’ “Particle Man.” Over and over. Carrow had taught her to sing it on repeat to annoy others—not herself. She muttered to the ceiling, “Amanda, I never knew.”

Carrow leapt to her feet. “Ruby, damn it! I said no.” Lanthe yanked her to the other side of the cell, muttering, “Gods, Carrow, why didn’t you just snap, ‘Mummy has a headache! Go fetch Mummy’s scotch!’? Ember cried, “Hide the wire hangers!” Ruby asked, “Why hide the wire hangers?” Portia patted her head. “May you never find out.”
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Mostly, in case you can’t tell from my previous gushing, I just dig the way Kresley Cole writes. Once again, the dialog of the female characters new and old are rich with snark, humor, and awesomesauceness. Have I mentioned how much I love Kresley Cole’s female characters?

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“Miss Lanthe?” the sorceress repeated, her blue eyes gleaming dangerously. “Why don’t you just buy me a minivan, zip me into mom jeans, and shoot me in the face?”
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In this story, she brings two desperately lonely people together: Carrow, who surrounds herself with people but still is the lonely child inside whose parents never wanted. Malkolm, who seemingly never stood a chance against the solitude of the life into which he was born. I can’t even summarize his loneliness, it is tremendous. Carrow and Malkolm both battle their personal demons to keep one another, and at times it is very raw. Malkolm is quite possibly Ms. Cole’s most tortured hero yet in the series. The anxiety level in the middle of the book was astronomical. You just aren’t sure what pivotol decision Carrow is going to make, and it takes on the feel of watching a train wreck; waiting to see where all the pieces will land, then how the people will move on from it. In addition to some seriously hot smexy scenes that Ms. Cole does so well, there are also many tender moments between the two of them. The sweet things Malkolm would do for Carrow in the only ways he knew how were so swoon-worthy. Here is just one example of one of my favorite scenes between the two of them:
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"When she beckoned to him with a grin, he glanced over both shoulders. Then he hiked a thumb at himself with his cleft chin proudly raised. And Carrow thought, I think I just fell into like with him."
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The Lore and all the creatures within it are just plain cool, and at times, scary! One thing is clear from this book – the big WAR is coming between the many different species of immortals, and I have a feeling that will tie in to hopefully (!!!) and eventually a Nix the Ever-Knowing story. Next up… Regin the Radiant! I’ve said it before and I will say it again. If you are a fan of Paranormal Romance and you have not started this series, you are seriously missing out.