Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Mira

Pages: 448pgs

The Story

If you live in the dark long enough,

you begin to forget the light . . .

Kori Daniels is a shadow-walker, able to travel instantly from one shadow to another. After weeks of confinement for betraying her boss, she's ready to break free of the Tower syndicate for good. But Jake Tower has one final job for Kori, one chance to secure freedom for herself and for her sister, Kenley, even if that means taking it from someone else . . .

The job? Recruit Ian Holt - or kill him.

Ian's ability to manipulate the dark has drawn interest from every syndicate in the world, most notably an invitation from Jake Tower. Though he has no interest in organized crime, Ian accepts the invite, because he's on a mission of his own. Ian has come to kill Tower's top Binder: Kori's little sister.

Amid the tangle of lies, an unexpected thread of truth connecting Ian and Kori comes to light. But with opposing goals, they'll have to choose between love and liberty . . .

The Review

Over the years Rachel Vincent has become an auto-buying author for me (seriously, I own all of her books and I'll continue to buy them) because I love every single book she brings out - whether it'll be her adult or her young adult series. After loving her first installment of her new adult Unbound series, Blood Bound, and after knowing she was about to write another sequel that follows closely after the first book's events, I just couldn't resist in ordering her new book and boy it was sure worth the wait!

SHADOW BOUND was so edgy, gritty, intense and completely raw to the bone just like the main characters who were being stripped psychologically and emotionally as we'd divulged into this powerful fantasy-like storyline. To be honest with everyone, this new Rachel Vincent creation is one of the best adult series I've ever read in a long time and there's just something so addictive about the world-building which I find myself constantly drawn to. I don't know how this author does it. Seriously . . . I'm envious of her writing talents and the perfection in her writing alone because this book right here blew my mind - literally - and it was just so damn perfect. I was a little wary of the sequel changing POVs, as the previous book was told by different character perspectives, but all of those worries flew away when I began reading this delicious tale!

So, what was the best part of the book? Hellllllloooooo, it was the main characters of course! The first being the main character Kori, whom has endured so, so much in her short life-span. At times it was so heartbreaking reading about how she lived her life - still lives if barely - and even though her thoughts are mostly consumed by the darkness and true human pain . . . she's still an amazing woman able to push through the boundaries of imprisonment and a world full of bloody crimes and deceit. Some would say Kori was a pretty badass chick with some badass attitude, but she was more than that to me. With her life filled with nothing but misery, Kori has managed to keep her sister out of danger for all of this time and she's someone who will always come on top. I just adored her and hated those who wanted to break her into pieces. Hands off my Kori, bad dudes!

The second main lead is our hottie Ian, who was just as imperfect as Kori was (don't worry imperfections have their high perks when it comes to this leading man) and at the same time he was equally adored by me too. For the beginning of the novel, Ian was dead set in wanting to kill Kori's younger sister but instead he ended up falling in love with Kori. How can you not love a man for doing so? When it came to Ian, everything about him from his killer instincts to his serious attitude made me fall harder and harder for him because honestly . . . he was the sweetest thing on earth, especially when it came to Kori. Plus they were a match made in heaven. Perfect for one another. I just loved the way he wanted to protect our Kori, how he understood her right from the very beginning, and how his personality was changing to a more softer side . . . really you can't blame a girl like me for loving someone like him, right? He was an absolute gem through my eyes!

Overall and without giving away major plot points, SHADOW BOUND took everything I know about Rachel Vincent's Unbound world to a whole new level and blew everything out of the water! Literally! Full of bloody, badassery, danger, romance, some cussing (Kori you are the Queen of it), drinking, fighting and some really, really heated sexual tensions, there's no doubt in my mind when I say that a lot of readers will want a taste of SHADOW BOUND because it's a lustful treat if I do say so myself! Best book . . . EVER!

The Rating

5/5 stars