Rhage's story isn't doesn't stand out as much to me as some of the others in the series. I never really liked his character too much-- all that pretty boy charm he is supposed to have didn't win me over, it kind of grated instead.

Also, I think this is the point where I started to be a little embarrassed of my addiction to the BDB series. Sure, I can own up to enjoying the alpha male style of romance book, but the weak-ass women, the "hardcore" language, constant brand-name dropping, the friggin baby powder smelling villains? Just explaining the plot of this book makes me cringe a little. ( )

Lover Eternal
Black Dagger Brotherhood, Book 2

I Picked Up This Book Because: #BDBBuddyRead #BDBBookClub

Media Type:Audiobook
Source:Everand
Dates Read: 7/26/24 - 7/28/24
Stars: 4

The Characters:

Rhage:
Mary:
Butch, Wrath, Bella, Beth, John Matthew, Thor, Zadist, Phury, Vishous

The Story:

I am really loving re-exploring this series. I love John Matthew so much. I just want to hold his young pretrans self. I adore the family time he spends with Welsie and Tor. I like Rhage and Mary’s origin, but I couldn’t stop reflecting on the things I know are coming in their future. I did forget how nasty the Lessers could be. ( )

We all carry an inner beast within us. A beast, we have to fight to break through our skin every day. But for us, it's just the literally way. Rhage is actually turning into one, he shifts when anger, pain are to much to bear. Will he be able to to control his beast well enough to not to hurt his love, his life, his everything, his Mary?
Their story is a great installment to J.R. Ward's "Black Dagger Brotherhood". And you kinda get a hint of the upcoming story. Will that cruel, dangerous, and to-hiself-keeping Zsadist find a way out? How much could Bella already touch him, deep inside and close to his frozen heart? ( )

I gave this book 4 stars because I sincerely think the next book will be even better. I liked the first one, _Dark Lover_, and I agree with the other readers that this one is even more compelling. She really creates a world with this series, and as a reader who gave up on romance some years ago (in favor of fantasy), I have to say this series is bringing me back. This isn't your typical Nora Roberts cookie-cutter story. The author has a punchy urban style that has improved markedly between the two books. She creates her own idiom here, like some of the great pulp-fictionists of the past. There are some awkward moments--e.g. it's "wreaked havoc," not "reeked havoc,"--but overall it was good enough to read twice over two days. The women in this series are a little flaccid for my taste (pun intended, if you've read the books)--I'd like to see what a really powerful woman would do with these testosterone-flooded vampires--but the world of the Brotherhood is truly seductive. One does need to get over the names. They seem a little silly, and no one seems to notice that they are real words in English--I mean, Wrath, Rhage, Vishous, etc. don't seem to be overly allegorical to anyone in the stories. No one says "Wrath, huh? as in the seven deadly sins?" I pretend they're pronounced Euro-style, and that helps. But as a lit prof who reads a lot of pulp, I have to say this is some of the most promising stuff I've read in awhile. And I swore off vampires after Anne Rice got boring. I can't wait for the next one.. ( )

In the second Black Dagger Brotherhood book, Mary Luce is dealing with a lot of issues. Aside from her leukemia returning, she volunteers for a suicide help hotline and meets John, an abused young man who can only communicate through sign language. Even though she and her friend Bella want to help him, Bella knows what John truly is and she contacts the Brotherhood for help.
When Rhage first meets Mary, he knows she’s different from any female he’s ever met. She calms his inner beast—the dragon tattoo on his back literally comes to life, takes over his body, and kills everything in its path—and he’s desperate for the bliss she gives him. Fighting and having sex releases the beast, but he’d rather fight than sleep around. After a century of meaningless flings, he wants something permanent. Unfortunately, he can’t control the beast when in bed with Mary, so he can’t sleep with her.
Mary is stubborn, willful, and wants to protect those she cares about. Her pain over the cancer, her low self-esteem issues, and her lack of trust in Rhage is all understandable and very sad. Rhage’s self-hatred eats away at him, and he’s determined to do whatever he must to keep Mary safe, even betray her. They have a big communication problem. She doesn’t share her pain about her past and the cancer, and he doesn’t tell her about his curse and the problems going on in the vampire world. Though Rhage gets upset with her, as he should, Mary often just accepts his half-truths and refusal to talk. I liked both characters—don’t get me wrong—but I had a hard time respecting them.
Even though I understood Rhage’s reasons and sympathized with him, I don’t like cheating. I thought what he and Mary needed to do in order to solve their intimacy problem was obvious, but they didn’t figure it out until the end of the book, after he cheats on her.
As with the last book, I found it hard to relate to the brothers. Yeah, they’re gorgeous, arrogant badasses, but they take the thug mentality too far. Also, I don’t understand their obsession with name-brand clothes. In fact, the brand name of every single outfit, including jewelry and luggage, that every character wore was always mentioned.
There are some unanswered questions, but they seem to tie directly into the next story. Yay, Z!
I noticed a few typos but nothing major. The writing is good, but there are some awkward word choices. For example, I interpreted the sentence “What’s doing?” as “What’s going on?”
Overall, I enjoyed the book and look forward to the next one.
4.5 Stars
( )