cover image Lucinda, Darkly

Lucinda, Darkly

Sunny, . . Berkley Sensation, $14 (277pp) ISBN 978-0-425-21464-0

Full of paranormal passion, Sunny’s fast-paced first in a new erotic fantasy series, the Demon Princess Chronicles, introduces Lucinda, a 600-year-old demon princess who’s getting bored with her long unlife. At least she has an official duty to pass the time: seeking out wayward demons and returning them to Hell. Lucinda finds herself attracted to Stefan, a renegade warrior of the alien Monère, but before they can get too cozy, duty calls and she must track down another rogue, Nico. She brings Nico to his cruel queen, but then claims him for her own along with Talon, a maltreated Floradëur, “a flower of darkness,” whose blood gives demons more power. The whole crew goes to Hell to recharge Lucinda’s supernatural batteries and return Talon to his own kind, with Derek, a dangerous demon who wants Talon back, in pursuit. Sunny (Mona Lisa Awakening ) has created a Hell reminiscent of Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels trilogy and the fiction of Laurell K. Hamilton. (Aug.)