SEEKER OF SHADOWS – Nancy Gideon
Shadow Series , Book 2
A Perfect 10
Pocket Books
ISBN: 978-1-4391-9551-0
June 2012
Paranormal Romance

New Orleans, Louisiana & Chicago, Illinois – Present Day

In the fantastical world created by author Nancy Gideon there are three species who inhabit the earth.  The Humans, the Shifters, and the Chosen.  Very few humans are aware of the others who share the planet, but the Shifters and Chosen are very aware of each other … and they are mortal enemies.

Susanna Duchamps is a brilliant research scientist; she is also of the Chosen.  The Chosen are born with the ability to manipulate the minds and wills of others, and are brilliant in a way mankind can only aspire to.  However, Susanna doesn't quite fit the Chosen mold, that of cold intellect and no emotion.  Susanna travels from the cold, sterile world of the Chosen in Chicago to New Orleans at the behest of an acquaintance. Susanna gets to in New Orleans and arrives at The Cheveux du Chien, a shifter club, to meet her friend Nica Fraser.  Nica discloses why she needs Susanna's help and that it has to be a secret.  Susanna's specialty is genetics, and she has a vested interest in learning all she can about the genetics of Chosen and Shifter.  However, before Susanna can agree or disagree to the dangerous task that Nica has asked of her, Jacques LaRoche enters the room, and all of Susanna's senses are scrambled.

Jacques LaRoche, owner of The Cheveux du Chien and right hand to the King of the shifters, Max Savoie, has no memory of his life before New Orleans.  The one thing he does know is he loathes the Chosen.  When he walks into his office and finds Nica talking with a woman he doesn't recognize, he is immediately on the alert.  This woman is one of the Chosen, but she affects him as no woman has in his memory.  Hostile and angry at the feelings Susanna draws forth, he is never-the-less forced to be in close company with her when her life is endangered.  How can a Shifter, who hates the Chosen, have any tender feelings for this woman?

As Susanna embarks on the task Nica has set before her, enemies from all sides surround her.  Her attraction to Jacques could be deadly, and while her mind tells her to fight it, her heart and soul cry out for the only man she has ever loved.  Dare she give in to the desire and need she has for Jacques, or should she ignore the potent bond between then, complete her task, and flee back to the cold sterile world in which she lives?  She has no choice really; her daughter is waiting for her return, and Susanna must protect her at all costs, even if it means breaking her own heart all over again.

Jacques fights his attraction and desire, and almost obsession with Susanna, but it is too strong and begins to bring back flashbacks from his past, and the mate he lost long ago.  When Susanna's life is threatened, nothing will stop Jacques from protecting her even if it means going back to the land of the Chosen and the nightmare buried in his mind.

SEEKER OF SHADOWS is the second book in the “Shadow” series; however, it is the fifth book in Ms. Gideon's Shifter series that began with MASKED BY MOONLIGHT.  Characters from the previous novels are cleverly integrated into this story, and readers of the previous book will be pleased to read more about them and the evolutions in their lives and loves.  Action packed, suspenseful and engrossing, SEEKER OF SHADOWS has everything necessary for a top notch paranormal romance.  Danger surrounds the protagonist from many sides, and the reader is not always sure that there is a way out of the dilemma of lies, betrayal, and heartache for Susanna and Jacques, which will keep the reader glued to the pages to see just how these two star-crossed lovers can beat unbeatable odds.

Excellent dialogue, fully developed characters, and an engrossing plot make SEEKER OF SHADOWS a must read for fans of paranormal romance, and shifter romance in particular.   I must admit that SEEKER OF SHADOWS was my first glimpse into this compelling series, and while it's not necessary to have read the previous books to fully appreciate the superb talent Ms. Gideon has for creating such a complex and fascinating world, why the heck wouldn't you? I must admit, after finishing SEEKER OF SHADOWS I dug through my “to be read” pile and immersed myself completely in all of the previous books.  They are as follows, MASKED BY MOONLIGHT, CAPTURED BY MOONLIGHT, BOUND BY MOONLIGHT and HUNTER OF SHADOWS.

SEEKER OF SHADOWS is what readers wish all paranormal romances could be.  Filled with fantastical beings, heartfelt romance, danger, suspense, and the prerequisite happily ever after, this is a novel that no paranormal romance reader should miss.  I totally loved this book. (Obviously since it sent me digging to read all the previous books <g>) I highly recommend SEEKER OF SHADOWS and all of the prior books in the series and happily award it an elusive Perfect 10.

Terrie Figueroa