The story continues as Anne Lawrence starts her search for necromancer Gabriel D'Ange, leader of The Order of the Rose. He intends to seek out Jorin Bekker and kill him. Meanwhile Balthazar in on the same quest.
A enjoyable paranormal romance and thriller story. ( )

The Necromancer's Bride is fourth in Ross' Gaslamp Gothic series. Anne Lawrence has gone in search of Gabriel D'Ange to set things right between them. With her, she brings the cross her brother Alec stole from Gabriel countless moons ago. Anne finds him in Bermuda, and just in time. Gabriel and the Order are about to leave for Brussels, to track and dispose of the dangerous Jorin Bekker.

Unbeknownst to the Order, necromancer Balthazar, and his ward Lucas infiltrate Bekker's group with the same intention to end him. Though their reasons are different, the goal remains the same. Too bad each group is bound to muck up the others' plans. When things go sideways, can they trust one another long enough to get the job done?

I loved continuing Anne's adventures! More than that, I really enjoyed Balthazar's storyline. It is mainly through him that the reader gets to see how full out creepy and malicious Bekker really is. He and Lucas have the more pressing claim to take Bekker out. Also, you get to see how morally grey Balthazar truly is. The ends really do justify the means for him. This operation turns out to give Gabriel a chance for vengeance though, against Constantin, the Order member who betrayed him.

I really liked Jean-Michel and Miguel, the two newest recruits to the Order. Their banter is priceless. They already act like brothers, which is good since they'll be together for quite a long while now. I appreciate that they, and Jacob, take to Anne, giving her a chance once Gabriel accepts her presence. Julian takes a little longer to trust her, but comes round in the end. One thing I'd hoped to see this go 'round was Gabriel teaching Anne how to shift. Shifting doesn't even come to play until the very end. Hopefully soon! Highly recommended read!!

*****Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing a copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. Reviewed for XPresso Tours. ( )

Anne Lawrence is a daeva, a magical being, who has upset and almost killed the man she loves, the necromancer Gabriel D'Ange. Anne is now on a mission to find him and repair the rift that she created. When Anne does track Gabriel down, he finds him regrouping the Order of the Rose and planning an elaborate scheme to take down, Jorin Bekker, a particularly evil necromancer. After finding one another Anne and Gabriel don't want to separate, so Anne finds herself aboard a ship to Brussels where she learns that Bekker is not an easy target to take down. Bekker can sense magic, so he will know that Anne is close by. Gabriel plans to separate Bekker at a gala with King Leopold; however, another necromancer, Balthazar has a similar plan to take out Bekker. When the two plans collide, Gabriel and Balthazar find themselves in a precarious situation that only a daeva can help them with.

The Necromancer's Bride picks up soon after A Bad Breed which should definitely be read first in order to understand just what Anne and Gabriel are as well as their complicated relationship. I was glad that Anne was able to fully use her powers in this book, from the beginning Anne worked her magic with the weather, showed her skills running, found other creatures and used her elemental power in combat. From the previous book, it was clear that Gabriel and Anne were meant to be together, but would have a difficult time admitting it to one another. I think their romance and marriage was handled perfectly, quickly, quietly and sweetly, but without any grand romantic gestures. I enjoyed watching both Gabriel and Balthazar engage in their quest to rid the world of Jorin Bekker. The point of view moved back and forth between Gabriel and Balthazar making for a quickly-paced story. Bekker's character also looped into some real atrocities Belgium's King II was committing in the 1800's, taking over the Congo and enslaving the people there. The end wrapped up in an amazing battle with Anne center stage. I love that Anne was able to use her powers to the fullest and that Gabriel kept teasing his tormentors that his wife would not be happy when she arrived. With some evil's extinguished and new alliances in the works, I'd love to see where Anne and Gabriel land next.

This book was received for free in return for and honest review. ( )