[Book Review] Howler's Night By Marie Hall & Kicking Horse Coffee Cliff Hanger Espresso

Title: Howler’s Night
Series: Night Series: Book Three
Author: Marie Hall
Publisher: Marie Hall Publishing
Publication date: August 22nd 2014
Page Count: 235 pages
Age Rating: Adult (semi-explicit sexual scenes, blood, gore, brief body horror, violence)
How I got my hot little hands on it: Received a copy to review
Publisher’s page: Howler’s Night

The Priest was back. Her home was safe. And Pandora had even managed to secure a powerful ally in the Zombie Queen. But in one fell swoop none of it mattered. She’s been abducted by a secret organization known only as the Triad, and they’re conducting experiments, treating her like a lab rat: cutting her open, dissecting her, and keeping her hostage. And she’s slowly going mad. Her demons are asleep, and no one knows where to find her. She’s completely isolated, and the Triad mean to break her. But for what purpose? And to what end?

Desperate to get back to her life and the people she loves Pandora manages a miraculous escape… Or has she? All she knows is she’s woken up in the woods, alone and terrified and with no memories of who she really is.

Only one thought keeps hammering away at her. The prophecy. A legend, that states Pandora is the key to unlocking Armageddon. The truth of who she is, of what the Triad has made her become, has been sealed in her memory banks. And if she can just remember, she knows she can stop whatever they’ve got planned.

“And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him…”

From NY Times & USA Today bestselling author Marie Hall comes the third installment in the dark and riveting Night Series.

My Review

Just like the book before it, Howler’s Night, the third book in the Night Series, takes up right where the last book left off. At the end of All Hallows Night, Pandora has her Priest right where she wants him and the two are finally about to get it on – seconds later all hell breaks loose (this is where Howler’s Night begins) as agents of the Triad attack and capture Pandora. She’s taken to a secret facility where she’s imprisoned for months as they brainwash and perform horrifying experiments on her.

Most of this book is about Pandora recovering with the help of friends and family, trying to fix all the ways the Triad has damaged her, getting to the bottom of the prophecy that states Pandora is the catalyst for Armageddon, and taking preventive actions to stop said Armageddon from happening – the actual torture scenes take up a fairly small portion of the book, and yet those are the scenes that really stuck with me. Body horror makes me squeamish, so if you’re the same way be warned that it gets a bit graphic, but thankfully it’s pretty brief.

Up to this point, the series has been told through Pandora’s view. In Howler’s Night, we get some of Asher’s point of view as well and the added insight really brought up my opinion of him. He really loves Pandora, unconditionally, and the depth of his feeling and the lengths he’s willing to go to in order help her makes their love story just heartbreaking and touching. We get more insight into some other familiar characters as well – namely Luc, Bubba, and Vyxyn (who has always been a secret favorite of mine). While we don’t get their points of view (although I would LOVE that), Pandora explores the motivations of the other half-demons in the Carnivale Diabolique and we get an up close view of just how their different abilities work (to me, this was the most interesting part of the book)

If you love paranormal drama and an intricate, complex storyline, I recommend the Night Series. I also recommend you read them in order and not skip any, as they don’t read as standalones and you’ll be very very lost. This series just continues to grow on me (see my reviews of Crimson Night (Night Series: Book One) and All Hallows Night (Night Series: Book Two)). The final book in the series, Red Rain, is expected to come out in December 2014 and I’m super excited to read how everything comes together.

Howler’s Night ends in a shocking cliffhanger that put me on the edge of my seat and has me chomping at the bit for the next book (all the things a good cliffhanger should do). I recommend Kicking Horse Coffee Cliff Hanger Espresso, a sweet, smooth medium blend with notes of comforting chocolate, to take the sting out of the wait.