"Dark Demon" sheds some light on Carpathian troubles

Natalya Shonski is helpless to resist the compulsion that draws her to Carpathian Mountains in Christine Feehan's latest Carpathian novel, "Dark Demon" ($9.99, Jove Books).

However, Natalya isn't helpless about much else. With certain powers of her own, Natalya is a formidable foe of the vampires who have been stalking her. She also has a hate-on for Carpathians, those charged with stopping the vampires from preying on the innocent, believing that a Carpathian murdered her twin brother, Razvan.

Unfortunately for Natalya, Carpathian Vikirnoff Von Shrieder is on her trail, following her all the way from the states. Vikirnoff believes Natalya may be his lifemate and he's desperate to find her because he is too close to turning -- something all Carpathian males must fear unless they find their lifemate or seek the dawn in order to avoid turning into vampire.

Of course, Vikirnoff finds Natalya just as she's facing off with a duo of vampires who have set a trap for her. In the course of the fight, Vikirnoff is grieviously injured while trying to protect Natalya. Once the fight is over, Natalya feels duty-bound to help Vikirnoff, even though she thinks Carpathians are just as evil as vampires.

And that's before she finds out she is Vikirnoff's lifemate.

In "Dark Demon," fans will discover some of the answers to the mysterious uniting of the vampires against Carpathians not to mention another pair of lifemates who have to work through some, er, issues. Lots of gore and guts, betrayal and honor, and humor and pathos make "Dark Demon" another stunning chapter in the tale of the Carpathian race's struggle for survival.