Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night (Immortals After Dark, Book 3) Mass Market Paperback – October 1, 2007

The Immortals After Dark Series:A Hunger Like No OtherNo Rest for the WickedWicked Deeds on a Winter's Night"A Hunger Like No Other" is one of my personal top 5 favorite books, which makes it a tough act to follow. (I've read hundreds.) "No Rest" was really good, but I liked "Wicked Deeds" almost as much as "A Hunger". This book, like the first two, sweeps you up into a world of magic and super sexy paranormal species. The entire story is an adventure. No slow points, no annoying dialogue, and no weak characters.Bowen is a member of the Lycae werewolf clan. For 180 years, he has been in mourning for his dead mate. Worse than the loneliness is the guilt he carries over how she died. When she watched him change in the moonlight, Mariah of the fae was terrified. Running away in her fear, she fell over a ledge and was impaled. Bowen has lived as an empty shell ever since. A Lycae can have only one mate in his lifetime, and a male can only make children with his mate. Any dreams of having a family died with Mariah.Every 250 years, members of every species are invited to participate in the "Talisman's Hie", a scavenger hunt that only the most powerful and ruthless beings can play to the finish. The prize for this hunt is a magic key that grants it's holder the ability to time travel twice. If Bowen can win the key, he can go back and save his mate. However, he has several competitors who want the key for themselves. One is a young witch named Mariketa.Mariketa is prophesied to be one of the "Queens" of witchcraft. At only 23 years of age, she has not yet mastered her powers. While her species waits to see how her powers unfold, Mari wants to prove that she is worth their wait. Winning the Hie is the perfect opportunity. She is holding her own in the hunt until Bowen traps her in a cave. Believing her to be a powerful witch, Bowen is sure Mari will soon free herself. Trapping her will only give him a head-start to the next round. As he drops a boulder over the cave's only exit, Mari throws one of her few successful spells at him. Bowen doesn't realize that he has trapped her for weeks with 6 undead incubi.At the end of the Hie, Bowen is one of the last two competitors. He is devastated when he loses at the last second. For the past weeks, his body has been unable to heal itself. He is sure the witch put a spell on him. His body has literally fallen apart. Being immortal, his injuries can't kill him. But they have weakened him to the point that he cannot win the final round. When he gets his hands on the witch, he'll destroy her for stealing his chance to save his mate. But first he must force her to remove the spell.Bowen is shocked to learn that Mari never escaped the cave. Something is making him desperate to save her. His need to rescue her is as keen as that of a mate. He is certain the witch enchanted him. Having already lost his mate, he knows Mari can't be the one and only chosen for him. When he finds himself desperate to free her, Bowen begins to believe she must be his mate reincarnated. After she has suffered torture at the hands of the incubi, he faces his greatest challenge in convincing her to forgive him and give him a chance to win her. While escorting her back to civilization, Bowen will hunt for her, care for her, and keep her safe from the elements. He'll do whatever it takes to impress her and make her happy. Believing he has his mate back, Bowen could not bare to lose her again. When they discover that an evil sorceress is attempting to kill Mari and steal her powers, Bowen feels utterly useless. Such evil magic is the one thing his strength cannot defeat.

I'm finding it incredibly hard to review these books, because I keep wanting to repeat the same praises that I've previously voiced. Kresley Cole just keeps upping her game in this series, each one better than the last!The world and the characters are as enthralling and immersive as anything I've read. As I've talked extensively about the world in previous reviews, I think I'll just focus on the characters here - and they're worth focusing on. Though Wicked Deeds is just the fourth book in a series now fifteen books long, it's still my second favorite one. All because of Mariketa and Bowen.Mari is a young witch, not even frozen into her immortality yet, when she decides to enter the Hie - an incredibly dangerous competition. And she holds her own, right up until she meets Bowen. And even though he traps her I'd say she definitely did the worse damage by cursing him with the inability to heal. Despite what that may make you think, Mari's powers are ... volatile. She doesn't have a good control over them, and is still figuring out how to make them work. Despite, or because, of all of this Mari's a complicated girl. She's at once utterly charming and smart, funny and brave, and also utterly sick of being second best. She has a bit of a (understandable) inferiority complex that pops up occasionally - when actions of others and events lead to it. But she's not afraid to fight for what she believes she deserves, and what she wants. Plus she kicks Bowen's ass, repeatedly.Bowen's been living as a half-dead Lykae for almost two centuries; ever since his mate died - fleeing from him. Having entered the Hie to retrieve his mate, he's destroyed when he loses to Sebastian. And even he begins to question why he doesn't take those final steps to oblivion. When he's retrieved and finds out that Mari's been trapped for several weeks now, and that she's not even immortal yet, Bowen sets out to get her. Despite what he says it's not just the fact that there's an imminent threat if she doesn't call in by a certain time. Bowen feels compelled to get her out. So with grievous injuries, that won't heal, he rushes to her. Ever since I first met Bowen I knew that he was loyal, strong, brave and committed. But I loved seeing this other side of him; here he was funny and charming, joking with Mari at every turn, and loving when she teased him in return.Though Bowen is obviously conflicted, having lost his mate nearly 200 years ago he's not sure how he can feel that Mari is his mate now, he consistently (minus a few screw ups) treats Mari fabulously. He's learning throughout this, and overcoming more than a few prejudices, but watching him fall in love with Mari - not just because of the Instinct, but because of who she is - is beautiful and sweet. Their interactions made me laugh and grin, and occasionally tear up.I remember loving this book so much on my first read, and this re-read made me love it even more. It's definitely a favorite of mine.