Blood Passage by Heather Demetrios

Series: Dark Caravan Cycle #2
496 p.
Publisher: Blazer + Bray
Published: 3/1/16
Source: Publisher and Edelweiss for review

A jinni who's lost everything. 

A master with nothing to lose. 

A revolutionary with everything to gain. 

When Nalia arrives in Morocco to fulfil Malek's third and final wish she's not expecting it to be easy. Though Nalia is free from the shackles that once bound her to Malek as his slave, she's in more danger than ever before. 

Meanwhile, Malek's past returns with a vengeance as he confronts the darkness within himself, and Raif must decide what's more important: his love for Nalia, or his devotion to the cause of Arjinnan freedom. 

Set upon by powerful forces that threaten to break her, Nalia encounters unexpected allies and discovers that her survival depends on the very things she thought made her weak. From the souks of Marrakech to the dunes of the Sahara, The Arabian Nights come to life in this dazzling second installment of the Dark Passage Cycle.

My thoughts:

I loved the first book so I couldn't wait to get into this one. This world quickly came back to me as I read the story and I became fully immersed into what happened to these characters. I was curious as to how Malek fared in this book and if he will become a good guy or maintain his bad guy status. I will not say what happened. It is too good for you to miss. :)

I'm curious as to what will happen next. I cannot say what I want to here either because it would spoil an important plot point and I just won't do that to you. I will say that this edition to the series actually felt complete with only a few open areas, but because we know there are more books to come, we know that unmentioned things will rear it's ugly head in the coming books. Oh that delicious ugly head! LOL

So what can I say? The book does not skimp on characters or the worldbuilding. The romance was sweet and there is no love triangle. I know people worried about that aspect, but I think it is evident in the first book that there would really be no triangle. Zanari got on my nerves for a bit, but redeemed herself and to be honest, her behavior was understandable. I also say to have a tissue for part of the book since it did make me tear.

I give this book 4 1/2 stars. I really enjoyed my time here. There were parts to the book that were a bit formulaic but it still worked well to entertain. I highly recommend it to those that enjoy PNR with the Jinn! :)

Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios

Series: Dark Caravan Cycle #1
480 p.
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Published: Oct. 7, 14
Source: From Edelweiss and publisher for review

Forced to obey her master.Compelled to help her enemy.Determined to free herself.

Nalia is a jinni of tremendous ancient power, the only survivor of a coup that killed nearly everyone she loved. Stuffed into a bottle and sold by a slave trader, she’s now in hiding on the dark caravan, the lucrative jinni slave trade between Arjinna and Earth, where jinn are forced to grant wishes and obey their human masters’ every command. She’d give almost anything to be free of the golden shackles that bind her to Malek, her handsome, cruel master, and his lavish Hollywood lifestyle. 

Enter Raif, the enigmatic leader of Arjinna’s revolution and Nalia’s sworn enemy. He promises to free Nalia from her master so that she can return to her ravaged homeland and free her imprisoned brother—all for an unbearably high price. Nalia’s not sure she can trust him, but Raif’s her only hope of escape. With her enemies on the hunt, Earth has become more perilous than ever for Nalia. There’s just one catch: for Raif’s unbinding magic to work, Nalia must gain possession of her bottle…and convince the dangerously persuasive Malek that she truly loves him. Battling a dark past and harboring a terrible secret, Nalia soon realizes her freedom may come at a price too terrible to pay: but how far is she willing to go for it? 

Inspired by Arabian Nights, EXQUISITE CAPTIVE brings to life a deliciously seductive world where a wish can be a curse and shadows are sometimes safer than the light.

My thoughts:
I've always liked jinn stories but there are so few out there. In this story the characters aren't just one dimensional which can happen to a slave character but rich in descriptive magic. She also brings us back in Nalia's memory to a magical world lush in description. A world we know we will never experience except through Nalia's memory. We also are quite aware of the current war in that world and how it changed not just the people but the landscape as well.

As I said I did like the characters here. Nalia is a slave but finds ways to survive horrendous torture and revel in small rebellious victories. She was captured young and didn't have a sense of who she was or could become. In one way she changed the bindings of royalty for the bindings of slavery. Both denying who she is and what she could become. Then along comes Raif. His role is not to save her (although he plays a huge part) but to awaken Nalia into the person she wants to become. Now that doesn't mean it was all roses when he first comes on the scene, but you are aware he will become the romantic interest once he gets over being a total arse (even if he has good reason) and shows his true heart. :)

I don't want to give too much away, but the evil presence is quite evil and almost impossible to defeat. While this part of the story is complete there is still so much left open. So much more you want to explore and not just in the parts you know are to come. I'm curious where the author will take these characters and I'm most curious about Malek. He may have the most interesting journey ahead. He still has to choose who he wants to become.

I give this book 4 1/2 stars. I really enjoyed my time here and I want to see if they accomplish all their goals. The book is listed as YA since Nalia is 18 but the other characters are older. It may cross a bit over to the NA genre as well as adult. I recommend it to those that enjoy a good jinn adventure.