I began reading Dark Legend, the seventh book of Christine Feehan's Dark series, immediately after finishing Dark Fire which, if you have read my review of that book you will know I was disappointed in.

The reason I began this next book in the series immediately is firstly, because I wanted my faith restored in this series and secondly, I knew that if I left the series to continue with later I would always recall what I had thought of Dark Fire and put off reading this book because of that.

I am very glad that I chose to read Dark Legend immediately for it truly is classic Christine Feehan and has supplanted Dark Magic as my favourite book in the series.

Gabriel is one of the legendary twins.  He and his brother Lucian fought the vampires and protected their people for hundreds of years.  Thought dead for several centuries both Gabriel and Lucian had lain buried in the earth in a Parisian cemetery.  But the modern world is about to meet the most powerful and ancient of the Carpathians.  The moving of the graves to a new cemetery disturbs the twins sleep and they rise again to continue the deadly game of cat and mouse they have been playing for the last few hundred years.

Rising with a great hunger upon him Gabriel knows that he must once again hunt his beloved brother who had long been one of the undead.  After following in his brother's footsteps all his long life Gabriel swore he would keep the vow they had made, the vow that if either of them turned vampire the other would be the one to destroy him.  Having watched his brother turn into one of the killers they hunted Gabriel had tried to destroy him but the best he had managed to accomplish had been to trap him with him in the ground.  Now the game is on again.

Weak and hungry Gabriel is shocked to find that after two thousand years his lifemate is one of the first people he comes across when he awakens in modern Paris.  Taking her blood to restore his life he gives her his in return, little knowing that he is destroying all that she has worked for when he does so.

Francesca Del Ponce is a true Carpathian woman and a modern woman.  She has survived centuries on her own, forever hiding from both vampires and the whole of the Carpathian race.  Fleeing from her people during the wars she has never been back although she keeps up with what is happening through modern technology and a hidden (male) identity.  A gifted healer she is also a scientist who has been conducting experiments on herself.  Experiments that mean that she can do what no other Carpathian has ever done...she can walk in the sunlight. 

Unfortunately when Gabriel gives her his blood he undoes all of her work and she becomes a true Carpathian again.

Thankfully Francesca is wise enough to know that what is done is done and it is no use holding it against him, particularly when it was inadvertent. 

Francesca also knows that Gabriel is her lifemate.  She had in fact known this for many centuries having seen him travelling through her village long ago.  She had seen the two brothers pass into her life and pass out again without looking back.  She believes that Gabriel had rejected her when he did this, choosing his destiny as a hunter over his lifemate.  Telling no one of what had happened Francesca knows that no other male will be for her and rather than be a constant reminder to the males in her society of an unattached female, she decides to leave and live her own life, and in her own way help to save others through her healing gifts.

Becoming close to human Francesca had decided that her long life was nearing an end and that she would soon seek to end her existence.  She had had no idea that Gabriel was still alive and did not at first recognise him.  When she does she offers him her assistance but tells him that this does not change her plans.  Gabriel ensures that it does when he sets out to bind her to him in all ways in an effort to ensure that she stays with him and saves him from turning vampire for he knows that he cannot survive without her.

Meantime Lucian is also making his way in the modern world and we discover what he is doing in brief snapshots through his link with Gabriel, a link that Gabriel cannot entirely sever.  They share information in this way through a lifetime of habit and Gabriel knows that Lucian has retained a lot of what made him his beloved brother, he is nothing like the vampires they have fought all their lives.  Lucian is by far the more powerful of the brothers and he will use everything he can to ensure that the game plays out to his advantage, communicating through his mind to both Gabriel, Francesca and also Skyler, a young psychic girl in their protection. 

Lucian is an enigma who Gabriel can never be sure will fight with him or against him.  Lucian does help him against other vampires but he knows that it is because Lucian sees their fight as a game and wants no other entering the arena.

Gabriel knows that he must destroy his brother, for now there is far more at stake now that he has found his lifemate and he is finally building a home and family.

This is Christine Feehan at her very best.  Riveting and engrossing, this novel is fast-paced and entertaining and by far the best in the series (at least to date).  It also helps to shed more light on the problem of the Carpathian race dying out and a wealth of possibilities for the Carpathians once they discover the research done by Francesca. 
 

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Also by Christine Feehan - The Dark Series and Wild Rain

For listings of Christine's other series (of which their are several) please visit Christine Feehan's Website.

http://louisabrown.net