Once a wife to a powerful vampire knight, Maud and her daughter, Helen, had been exiled for the sins of her husband to the desolate planet of Karhari. Karhari killed her husband, and Maud had spent a year and a half avenging his debts. But now all the debts are paid. Rescued by her sister Dina, Maud had swore off all things vampire. Except she met Arland, the Marshal of House Krahr. One thing led to another and he asked for her hand in marriage. She declined.
Try as she might, she can't just walk away from Arland. It doesn't help that being human is a lot harder for Maud than being a vampire.
To sort it all out, she accepts his invitation to visit his home planet. House Krahr is a powerful vampire House, and Maud knows that a woman who turned down the proposal from its most beloved son wouldn't get a warm reception. But Maud Demille never shied from a fight and House Krahr may soon discover that there is more to this human woman than they ever thought possible.
Comment: This is the 4th installment in the Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews and it is focused on Maud, Dina's sister, as she travels with her daughter Helen to Arland's planet, to see if she can have a new life there with him.
Maud has had the experience of following her heart and becoming the wife of a vampire. Not everything was bad and she got her daughter, but the truth is that her life with her previous husband wasn't the partnership she imagined and things went on to become very bad. She is aware that Arland isn't the same type of person, but will she and her daughter be well received in his planet, by his family? She is willing to try, but she knows that if nothing goes according to plan, she has her sister to help, especially since it does seem as if the welcome she imagined to be polite if not warm, is actually stressful and complicated due to the fact Arland's family is hosting a wedding... but something isn't quite right...
As always, it was a great fun to read this story. These authors are consistent in their style and talent and whether one likes one book more than another, there is no doubt that the ability is there and easy to notice. I should say that this can be read as a standalone, but it is incredibly rewarding to read the whole series, and some references do make more sense that way.
This story also departs from the previous three one for it doesn't take place at Dina's Inn. This time, Maud travels to Arland's planet to see if she can adapt to his family and vampire life, as well as her daughter. In the previous book, Maud and Arland started noticing one another and circumstances brought them closer, but Maud had a previous marriage to a vampire and it didn't end well, even before her husband was killed. She is wary and this is to be expected, after all. Nevertheless, it is obvious these two would be a couple that would match, and the fun was in anticipating how well Maud would actually adapt.
As soon as they arrive, Maud has to face adversity, but nothing she can't handle. It turns out that all the experience she gained before, all the things she studied and improved on for her first vampire marriage, would end up being useful here too. I did like the fact Maud was a great heroine, vulnerable but also fearless and her behavior was conscious and considerate in her new environment. As an adventure, this story worked out pretty well, even if one thinks about how Helen had do adapt too.
I liked the cultural aspects too, because Maud was also afraid other vampires would not welcome Helen or that Maud would be seen as inferior somehow, but all the situations that led to her feeling worthy were not only due to others's words/actions, but through her own personal awareness. I suppose that being with the right people certainly helps, and it was certainly hopeful and exciting to see Maud gaining the trust and the gratitude of other members of Arland's family.
The romance is very subtle, it's all in actions, little things, small key scenes/moments. I think a bit more demonstration would be better, but the way things are developed, it is clear they have feelings for each other, and we can even say they aren't demonstrative people anyway, in terms of personality. It was also fun to know more about the vampires in this series, but in this regard, i do think the authors could have gone further in establishing or describing more by having interactions being more central.
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