No Rest for the Wicked (Immortals After Dark #3) by Kresley Cole

Note: This is a review of an adult book. Please, do not read either the review or the book reviewed unless you are an adult.

SUMMARY: After the vampire whose life Kaderin had spared killed her sisters, she pleaded for a remedy to her excruciating sorrow. A mysterious force granted her wish, making her unable to feel anything. Thus, she became Kaderin the Cold Hearted, a ruthless Valkyrie slayer of vampires.

Sebastian Wroth was turned into a vampire against his will. For three centuries he has been living in solitude wishing to die. Summoned by the inhabitants of a nearby village, Kaderin arrives to end his life - and is unable to complete a kill for the second time in her life.

Instead, she finds herself to be Sebastian’s Bride, unwillingly giving him the only reason to live. To conquer her, Sebastian enters the Talisman’s Hie, a contest in which immortals compete every quarter of a millennia for an exquisite prize and in which Kaderin, who has won it the last five times, is indisputable favourite. This time around the prize can change history and Kaderin is soon faced with the choice between the vampire who has newly awakened her deadened emotions and reuniting her family.

MY OPINION:

This series gets better and better with every book. No Rest for the Wicked has a dynamic plot full of adventure, unforeseeable twists and intense conflicts, but most of all I loved the stunning characters. From the superficial take-two-mortal-enemies-and-make-them-fall-in-love formula Cole masterfully creates outstanding personages.

Sebastian Wroth has completely isolated himself from the world, hating his very existence. But as his never-to-be killer inadvertently gives him a reason to live, his complexity begins to unveil. Upon his revival, he has to deal with what he is, try to find his place in the world and re-establish his ties to his past and his family. His human life has a great impact on him as a vampire, both bringing forward his strength and his vulnerability.

Sebastian and Kaderin have many differences and at the same time many things in common. Both of their lives are marked by loneliness and, surprisingly so, selflessness. Kaderin would do anything for her sisters and Sebastian would do anything for her. Their willing to self-sacrifice themselves for the people they love is what brings them together.

Kaderin blames herself for her sisters’ death and would do anything to correct her mistake. Bereft of her feelings she is in a way isolated from everybody even though she lives and interacts with other Valkyrie, but she cannot share their lives completely because she cannot comprehend their feelings. It is a shock for Kaderin when her emotions start coming back. Her first reaction is to smother them, because she is so unused to feeling that it scares her. Witnessing Kaderin slowly rediscovering particular emotions and relearning how to deal with them was fascinating.

Another thing I liked very much was that regardless of the ever-building tension between Kaderin and Sebastian, Kaderin was really hard to get, so Sebastian had to put in all his effort to win her love, which was his goal from the beginning and that I also found great.

No Rest for the Wicked has much wider focus than romance. It is enjoyable meeting the already familiar characters from the first two parts of the series again. Additionally, Cole provides a plethora of details from the world of the Lore, which adds flavour to Sebastian’s and Kaderin’s story, giving a lot of information about the immortals, their powers and their world.

RECOMMENDATION: This is above all a book about love, selflessness and self-sacrifice for the people one loves and I would totally recommend it to everyone who can enjoy some spicing alongside.