I received this book for free from Entangled in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Coldest Fire by Juliette Cross Series: Dominion #3
on November 18 2019
Genres: Urban Fantasy Romance, Mythological Fantasy Romance
Pages: 280
Format: eARC
Source: Entangled
Archangel Uriel is hell bent on revenge on the demon prince Vladek. To get into the prince's impenetrable fortress, he'll have to fight in the pits of the underworld. And he'll need the help of the last person he can trust -- the demon witch Nadya.
There is no way Nadya, who spends her days taking care of others, expected to find Uriel on her doorstep. He seems no happier about being there than she does. But helping him means evening the scales against her backstabbing sister, and she'll do whatever it takes to make that bitch pay.
Using the fight pit circuits in the demon underworld, Nadya helps Uriel combat his way to the arena at the castle in Russia. Only she isn't what she seems. As a matter of fact, she may hold the key to his redemption...and to his heart.
Coldest Fire is the third and most recent installment of the “Dominion” series from this beloved author Juliette Cross. I meant to have this review out way earlier but it took me longer to read this book than I had planned ( last half of 2019 I had a pretty bad book slump) So I finally got this read and man why on earth did I WAIT so long for this book because it kicked my booty y’all!! I had such a fun time with this beloved story. Now I first want to point out that unless you are like me and can catch on pretty quickly, read the previous books. It has this world-building that is pretty extensive and other character lines that will probably make more sense if you read the connecting books to make sense of everything. I was a bit confused in parts and yeah that is my fault. But this story is still one of the BEST mythological fantasies I have ever read and I need more
I saw myself in you. I saw the scars behind your eyes, and I knew…I knew that I wasn’t alone
Our story begins with our heroine who is Nadya, who is a demon witch and is in hiding from her enemies. She lives on the outskirts in a cottage and gives to others whenever she can with her healing abilities. But then she gets some unexpected visitors that need her help and Nadya knows she owes it to Archangel Uriel. Uriel is out for revenge, he is finally freed from captivity and wants to destroy his enemy but he needs the help of the witch to get into a series of mythological fight pit circuits and so he and Nadya join forces.
“I’d always been Uriel, the merciful one. The benevolent. The healer. But no longer. Those parts of me had been cut out.”
“Ending Vladek would be the catalyst to bury my hatred. Once and for all.”
But Nadya has her own personal reasons for helping Uriel, she feels shame in not helping him more and also she wants to get even with her evil sister but by joining with Uriel she not only will have to face her greatest fear but also discover a transcendent love with Uriel ….but she will need to learn to fight for the man she loves
Do what you must to survive, to protect what belongs to you, and what you love
Coldest Fire ….WHEW…..this book blew my mind away and I totally didn’t mind it hehe honestly though why have I taken so long to read this lady’s work before? Because I am going to buy the previous books and read them as soon as I possibly can because this book was spectacular in every way. I would describe this as a mix over between Mythological Fantasy and Urban Fantasy with plenty of delicious romantic entanglements in between. Now I want to say that if you are the type of reader that needs to read a series in order so you don’t get confused or lost by certain events or character connections—do NOT start with this book like I have done. It does have other connections and storylines that I was missing out on. Now I am the type of reader where I can catch on to it but many readers aren’t like that. So just beware of the world-building elements beforehand. Despite some moments of confusion I simply adored this story in every way.
“I want the impossible dream,” I slid my fingers into her hairline, stroking my thumb along her lovely cheekbone “I want you. I’m willing to burn my wings and fall to my death to have you”
The romance that builds between Uriel and Nadya was breathtakingly beautiful and precious. I felt so touched by their connection. Now at the first its a bit of an unrequited love especially from Uriel. He is pretty focused on his revenge and does view Nadya as an enemy at first but he warms up to her when he sees her true character and that she is vastly different from others he has known. Both Uriel and Nadya have both been traumatized and abused by their previous captors and so they actually have quite a bit in common. As they start to work together to take down their enemies, a burning desire builds between them and quickly turns into a deeper sense of love and devotion to each other.
I’d die in the flames and fall from the sky—happily, joyfully–if it gave me one more second in your arms. For there’s no question now, Nadya. My heart. My love. You are my greatest dream, and I’d burn my wings to ash if only to have you as mine
Overall I found this story to be so exhilarating and this story so well written this author is up there with all those other dynamite authors like Illona Andrews, JR Ward, and Nalini Singh. I honestly can’t recommend this book enough especially if you love UF, Fantasy and PNR…..its a book that will blow your expectations out the window and captivate the hearts and minds of its readers….A TRUE JEWEL!!
About Juliette Cross
JULIETTE is a multi-published author of paranormal and fantasy romance & the co-host of the podcast, Smart Women Read Romance. She is represented by Rachel Brooks at BookEnds Literary Agency. She is a native of Louisiana, living in the heart of Cajun land with her husband, four kids, black lab named Kona, and kitty, Betty. When she isn’t working on her next project, she enjoys binge-watching her favorite shows with her husband and a glass (or two) of red wine.
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