Three and half stars.

Full review to be posted soon:
I really enjoy this series. Anne Marsh combines smexy erotic love scenes with PNR really well and the world-building is very solid which has a gritty and dark edged tone. With this entry to the series, I did enjoy Nessa and Zer's story, although not as much compared to the first book, Bond with me.

However, I loved how science was used and how realistically to the series and how that related to Nessa's characterisation. The romance was hawt between Nessa and Zer, although I did think there was something missing while they were bonding over their relationship and I wished there was more time spent on Nessa and Zer's reluctance over their mating. Nonetheless, this was a steamy, action packed and I am definitely looking forward to the next book! ( )

Zer is the leader, the sire, of the Dominions. Now that they are Fallen Angels he is still their leader and for over 3,000 years he’s led them on Earth. 3,000 years is a long time to hope that they will find their soul mates and be admitted back into the Heavens. Many of his brothers have turned rogue and he’s had to imprison or kill them. Zer discovers that Cuthah, the lieutenant of Michael the Archangel, has been tracking and killing the soul mates through the years because he has an agenda all his own and it does not include allowing the Fallen back to guard the celestial throne. It’s a race for Zer and his brothers to find the rest of the soul mates before Cuthah does.

Nessa St. James is an Assistant Professor at one of M City’s universities, holds degrees in genetics and biblical studies, developed a pee-on-the-stick DNA test and has the extra chromosome in her DNA that marks her as a potential soul mate. Little does she realize her life is about to be turned upside down.

This second book in The Fallen series is another winner. I’m still hooked and waiting for the next one. The plot is gut clenching, the story flows smoothly and the characters are interesting and well-developed. I am a little concerned that there is not more mention of Pell and Dathan. They seem to be forgotten most of the time. Is this deliberate or an oversight? I’d like to see a bit more of them in future books.

While I really enjoyed Zer and Nessa’s story I have to admit to some serious intrigue about a rogue that was briefly introduced in the scene where Cuthah was recruiting in the Preserve. Who is he? And, most importantly, will we see him again? I certainly hope so!

*The publisher provided a copy of this book to me for review. Please see disclaimer page on my blog. ( )

In the first novel, Bond with Me, we had Mischka and Brends as our main story, but there was another couple Pell and Dathan that held a secondary plot line. In His Dark Bond the whole book focuses on just Zer and Nessa. I liked having two couples in the first book, but I appreciated Anne keeping Zer and Nessa at the forefront of this one. They had quite a few more issues to work through and I think another couple would have deluded the intensity of their story. While we don’t get to see a second couple, we still get to see inside the head of the enemy, Cuthah quite a few times. He is as determined as ever to take down the Fallen and he is using all his power to manipulate everyone around him to get what he wants. His arrogance does eventually catch up with him though, and his fate in this book was an unexpected turn that I did not see coming until the very end.

As for the couple themselves, Zer wants Nessa from the second he sees her, but is determined to have her bond with one of his brothers instead. Zer is as alpha male as they come and has completely ruled out any chance at having a soul mate. He thinks he is beyond help, so when Nessa comes and rocks his world he is completely caught off guard. She is a scientist and does not put much stock in the whole “happily ever after” notion so they are both trying to fight what they feel for one another. Zer is trying to keep his hands to himself, thinking that Nessa will eventually bond with another, but there is no denying the spark they feel for one another. Anne sure knows how to steam up the pages even when the characters are just doing ordinary things like riding in an elevator. Being the leader of the Fallen I did not think we would get to see Zer’s book this soon, but I am happy that Anne let us see what happens when someone who thinks he is beyond redemption, get a chance at happiness.

The plot of this book was still just as thrilling as the first novel, but it was more an emotional struggle than physical one. Cuthah is still following them and gathering more to his side every day, but the real crux of this book is Zer letting Nessa in. They have a few run-ins with rouges of course, but that threat remained in the background of this book as Nessa and Zer tried to decipher their relationship. Nessa is also important because she has research that may help the Fallen find their soul mates. This makes her a huge asset to both Zer and Cuthah. Nessa struggles to decide where her loyalties truly lie and how her research should be used. Nessa’s research allowed Anne to further explore the origins of the soul mates and I relished learning more about where they came from and why they have not been found before now. We also learned more about the original rebellion through Zer’s eyes and his perspective put a few more pieces of the overall puzzle into place.

The climax of the story was my favorite part of the entire novel. Anne manages to give you great action sequences, hot steamy romance and heartbreak all in the last fifty pages, making it impossible to put down. There were a couple of characters that showed up that I did not expected at all and loved how Anne kept some of the best twists for the end.

There was only one real negative I had while reading. It does not have to do with the plot, but the language used. Some of the words used to describe feelings were used repeatedly and it took me out of the moment at times. For example “lost for her” was used a couple of times close together and I wanted Zer to express his feelings using another saying. It is sweet the first time, but after a couple of times it gets redundant. I am also reading this book in ARC form though, so maybe by the final copy of the book these changes will be made. This is not a big negative, just a small aspect of the book that I bothered me a little while reading.

Overall this is another amazing addition to this series. I love Anne’s version of the Fallen and hope that she will continue to give us more of them. There is a novella coming out in May called Savage Bond that features Vkhin, he is in His Dark Bond, so we get a little peak into what he is like, but not enough. I look forward to reading more in this series and keep fingers crossed that we will get to see a book featuring Nael because out of all the secondary characters in this book he is the one that stood out for me. I think it probably has something to do with the scene of him in the club helping Zer and then later when he dances with Nessa. That guy just oozes masculinity and I want to see the girl that will be able to rein him in. If you love paranormal romance then I highly suggest you check out this series! ( )

Zer is one of the Fallen. Thrown out of heaven by Michael. Cursed to live the life of a goblin. Unless he can find a women who can love and redeem his soul. His Soul Mate.

Dr. Nessa St. James is on list of potential females that are compatible for the Fallen. She wants nothing more to continue her research and make tenure. But in walks a raging storm by the name of Zer, with his man handling ways and her world is forever changed.

I loved this story. Zer is a force. Intense, dominate and simply yummy. Nessa is his opposite in many ways - but they seem to fit very well together. His Dark Bond is a delectable, engaging read. Fast paced action and enough sexy to keep your wanting more. Ms. Marsh's world-building is excellent. The Fallen has become a fast favorite. If you love fallen angel stories you won't want to miss this one. ( )

Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: This incredibly hot romance has fabulous world building, bad boy angels, and is packed with paranormal action scenes.

Opening Sentence: Three thousand years ago, rebellion ripped apart the Heavens.

The Review:

Once again we’re back in 2090, following the Fallen into dystopian Moscow–now called M City. The Fallen used to be angels, the Dominions of Heaven charged with defending the Celestial Throne, until they were betrayed and rebelled against the Archangel Michael. Michael cast them out of the Heavens, stripped of their wings and softer emotions. But Michael left the Fallen a loophole. If they can find their soul mates, the equivalent of finding a needle in a haystack, they can regain their wings. So for three thousand years they’ve been searching, bonding with every woman they can in the hopes of finding their soul mate. But Cuthah, Michael’s lieutenant, knows about the soul mates too. And his place in the Heavens is reliant on the Fallen staying Fallen. The potential soul mates that Cuthah’s rogues find first end up dead. Until finally Zer finds Nessa St. James, a professor at M City’s leading university, before Cuthah’s rogues can kill her.

I really enjoyed reading Zer’s story. He’s the alpha male, the sire, the leader of the Fallen. Zer is also the one responsible for getting the Dominions thrown out of Heaven. He’s wracked with guilt. Not only for his brothers, but for the women that are dying at Cuthah’s hands. All Zer wants is for Nessa to bond with one of his brothers, to save one of them and give them back their wings. But of course Nessa has plans of her own. She’s a geneticist, and her work has upended her entire life. Not only because it’s exposed her as a paranormal, but because she’s a descendant of the thirteenth tribe of Isreal. A tribe history has long forgotten about. According to her research, this thirteenth tribe is the key to finding the Fallen’s soul mates. She’s a strong heroine, and more than a match for Zer’s alphaness.

This book is filled with action scenes. I’m always confused with the guns and gernades, but Marsh did a great job of laying out the action for the reader without being confusing. I love the Fallen and their unbending loyalty, which is what made them such great soldiers in Heaven. The plot from Bond With Me finally reaches its conclusion in this installment, but not perhaps in the way the reader might expect. Marsh’s attention to detail also crosses over into her love scenes, making them hot, steamy, and close to explicit. Zer has three thousand years of sinful experience to share with Nessa, an uptight professor if you ever met one, and Nessa’s repressed fantasies begin to come to fruition. Zer and his brothers are highly sensual characters, use to sin as well as getting everything they want. In G2, Brend’s elite club, they can find sex whenever they need it. This lends a voyeuristic layer to the book. Zer feeding on human emotions has an almost threesome feel to it because he can’t feed without being under the watchful eye of one of his brothers. If he feeds too much he could drain the soul completely and that would result in going rogue.

I read this book in a night. I fell completely in love with the world Marsh created, particularly Zer and Nael, the two Fallen this installment really focuses on. There were a few instances where the word choice bothered me, or I thought a conversation seemed a bit repetitive, but nothing that pulled me out of the story. Her characters had depth, especially as the story evolved, and the plot while not exactly new–what war story is?– was different enough that I didn’t know what to expect next. I can’t wait to read the next installment! I hope we get to see more of Nael in the next one.

Notable Scene:

He needed her to listen to him. Needed her to obey.

Fortunately for them both, he was very, very good at making humans do what he needed them t do.

Deliberately, he crowded her with his large body, trapping her against the expensive leather seats. Immediately, she tried to slide away from him, but he wasn’t having that. Inexplicably, he wanted her–he needed her–just as close as he could get her. This close, he could taste the delicious heat and scent of her skin. He didn’t want her to be afraid of him. No, what he wanted was to stroke his thumbs along the sweat-slicked line of her collarbone. Follow that feminine shadow with his tongue. His teeth.

The Fallen Series:

1. Bond With Me

2. His Dark Bond

FTC Advisory: Kensington Publishing provided me with a copy of His Dark Bond. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )