Dark Prince

Christine's Dark Series is captivating! First read this series when I was in my 20s. Now in my 60s, a stroke has diminished my memory. So I can enjoy reading them all again!

Dark Prince is the first in the fascinating and highly sensual Dark series created by the very talented Christine Feehan. It is a world of mystery, danger, intense emotions, extraordinary psychic and physical power. The Carpathians are a wise and ancient species, appearing just like humans except that they can live for millennia and have amazing psychic and physical powers. Only sunlight and violent wounding can destroy them. They sleep during the day, deep in the healing earth, and are awake at night, thriving in the darkness. They are in perfect harmony with the earth and all its plants and animals. They can shape shift into any animal and even become as fog. They move, travel and heal themselves with phenomenal speed. And they survive on human blood-yet they never kill the donor and gently wipe out his/her memory of their "feeding." The male is a predator, dark and dangerous, and this darkness grows until he finds his life mate-the feminine light that perfectly balances and illuminates his darkness. If he does not find his life mate soon enough, the male gradually loses his emotions and his ability to see in color. He is condemned to a lonely, dark and despairing world devoid of all happiness. When he does find her, he regains his emotions and his world becomes brightly colored, full of joy and hope. But for many hundreds of years no female Carpathians have been born, and few males have survived infancy. To make matters worse, many males who have not found their life mates have become so filled with dark despair that they have "turned," becoming vampires who can then feel exhilaration by murdering humans and Carpathians. Carpathian males have had to focus much of their energy on tracking down and destroying this threat to all life while themselves resisting the overwhelming temptation to turn. Some have tried to take human women as their life mates, but the women have gone violently insane when their bodies were converted to Carpathian and had to be destroyed. When Dark Prince begins, Mikhail Dubrinsky, the very wealthy and handsome prince of the Carpathians, has decided to walk into the sunlight and thus end his life. He wields enormous power over himself, others and all the elements, but his extreme loneliness and despair at ever finding a life mate have become overwhelming. He can no longer bear to go on, even though he feels a strong duty to lead his people and to wipe out vampires from the earth. He is afraid that he will turn himself if he waits any longer. And then he hears a sweet female voice in his head-one of compassion and comfort. Raven Whitney has journeyed all the way from America to the remote and beautiful Carpathian mountains for a much-deserved rest. She is a supremely gifted psychic who has assisted the police in tracking down mass murderers-a nauseating task that damages her body and spirit but which she undertakes because of her compassion for the victims. She is all that is light and goodness, and she reaches

Not yet a vampire but not a human, Carpathians are of the earth and have the ability to control nature. Shapeshifting, mind control and their own brand of justice - these beings are unique, enthralling and terribly exciting! If you enjoy the darker side of romance, love with a slight chill running down your spine read The Dark Series!Mikhail Dubrinsky is the oldest existing Carpathian, he is considered one of the Ancients - although he looks like a fallen angel. His power is incredible, his responsibilities are enormous and his law is absolute. Yet his destiny lies in the soul of one petite woman who is both exquisite and intelligent, not to mention human. Of course, what else would his lifemate be?Raven Whitney never thought her psychic abilities would bring her the love of her life, nor did she realize he would change her life forever! The only thing she knew for sure was that she loved this arrogant, totally male being with all of her heart and there was nothing she wouldn't do to make him smile, unless he became too sure of himself... then she'd have to put him in his place :)Come and join the family! Meet Mikhail and Raven, Jacques, Gregori, Byron, Celeste, Aidan and Julian... just to name a few! But beware: once you start there is no looking back! This is a series full of promise and love, and of course a Dark side!

"Dark Prince" offers paranormal fans a break from the stagnation in recent vampire romances. As a powerful Carpathian male (as opposed to a "vampire," who is a Carpathian-turned-evil) and the prince of his people, Mikhail dutifully carries out Carpathian justice. The weight of delivering death to former Carpathians and centuries of sensory deprivation (the combined result of age and failure to find a lifemate,) torment Mikhail with the fear of "turning." A human woman, Raven, responds telepathically to Mikhail's unspoken plea for redemption.Raven, in the Carpathian Mountains on a respite from psychically tracking serial killers, finds a kindred spirit in Mikhail. Even so, she resists his instinctively possessive, dominating and feral behavior. Her transformation from human woman to Carpathian princess (as Mikhail's lifemate) is fraught with difficulty. "Dark Prince" offers more than a new twist on "Dracula." Author Christine Feehan envelops the reader with her Carpathian males, their struggle against their inner beasts and the women who redeem them. Readers looking for more than the typical pain-in-the-neck vampire story will highly appreciate this book.

I have been reading 'vampire romances' for years now and Christine Feehan has become my favorite author of this genre. Her portrayal of the Carpathian race is fresh and new. Carpathians are a race all their own: they give birth to other Carpathians, they are not 'made' as other vampires are. They are a loving, loyal lot who will go to the ends of the earth to protect their kin and their life-mates. Mikhail recognizes human Raven as his life-mate and 'speaks' to her telepathically. Raven is a renowned psychic who is on a well-deserved vacation from her job tracking serial killers. Mikhail and Raven are an incredible couple with incredible powers. They must love and trust each other to stay one step in front of the 'others' that are trying to destroy the Carpathian race. Very sensual and an incredible novel. I have also read "Dark Desire" and "Dark Gold" and look forward to "Dark Magic" with all of the giddiness of a three year-old waiting for the ice cream truck. Fantastic!