Lover Reborn by J.R. Ward

JRWard-Lover Reborn

JRWard-Lover RebornKnowing that Lover Reborn was about Tohr moving on from the loss of Welsie, made this one of the hardest novels to begin reading. I love the boys in the Brotherhood and I don’t want to see them suffer any more than they already have. Ward’s writing is amazing at making you feel what’s going on, so I knew it would be heartbreaking.  I knew I’d cry, be angry and stubborn for/with him to not let go and move on.  All that happened, and even something I didn’t expect, I like the one he moved on with. I may not like Ward’s decision to kill off Welsie (while saving the other females, wtf?!) and send Tohr into a dark depression, but damn if her idea didn’t make for one hell of a follow up novel.

Ever since the death of his shellan, Tohrment has been a heartbroken shadow of the vampire leader he once was. Brought back to the Brotherhood by a self-serving fallen angel, he fights again with ruthless vengeance, unprepared for a new tragedy. Seeing his beloved in dreams—trapped in a cold, isolated netherworld—Tohr turns to the angel Lassiter to save his former mate. The only way to rescue her is for Tohr to love another. As war with the lessers rages, and a new clan of vampires vie for the Blind King’s throne, Tohr struggles between an unforgettable past and a hot, passion-filled future. But can his heart let go and set all of them free?

First of all, why didn’t anyone tell me I was three books behind in the BDB series? Seriously, don’t let me do this again.

Anyway. After reading Casey’s review for Lover Reborn, I was kind of set on not liking No’One either. She sounded pretty pathetic. But it turns out, I do like her, and I totally understand her. I haven’t always been a fan of Ward’s heroines; they’ve always seemed a bit flat compared to the males, at least to me. That’s not to say they are boring or horrible, just not as scene stealing as the boys. So, I expected No’One to have the same MO. She did, I guess to an extent because I was far more interested in what Tohr was going through than what she was. But her character is one of those true tortured souls and I felt for her far more than I thought I would. She feels that her fall from grace, though not by her hand, is a rightful punishment. Everything that has happened to her, she accepts and holds it tightly to her like a morbid security blanket. Now this may seem pathetic, and yes it is in a way, but it shows the level of humility she has. She would rather punish herself than others, and actually goes out of her way to make sure that happens. She fell for Tohr, for instance, and knew that he hadn’t moved on, knew that there wasn’t that kind of connection for him, and so kept her mouth shut about her feelings. She did it because she saw how much she had helped him, but because he was still grieving, she couldn’t ruin it by telling him. She didn’t walk away either because she knew it would destroy him, so she stayed even though it hurt her. Anyone who can endure that kind of self inflicted pain, to protect others unselfishly, is a lot stronger than given credit. She may not be strong enough to know she doesn’t deserve it, but she’s strong enough to think of others, and take on the pain for them. I can admire that, and at the same time feel for her and wish she hadn’t thought so little of herself for so long.

As for Tohr and what he goes through to move on from losing Welsie, that sucked. Tohr just couldn’t wrap his brain around her loss. Honestly, I loved these scenes the most and hated them the most. I hated to read them, it hurt to watch Tohr struggle so. There were a few times I actually got mad at him, for holding himself back from moving on. I wanted him to stop suffering!  But then I got pissy when the spotlight moved on to another story line. All I wanted to see was him and No’One and watch as they both healed each other. Then I’d get emotional and want it all to end, it was an ugly cycle. Just shows how well Ward does her job. The end, the healing, when it finally came, was bittersweet. He’s no longer suffering, but he’s let Welsie go for good. Ugh, talk about tugging at the heart strings.

In the midst of all that turmoil, we also get to see the Band of Bastards, which are a scary ass group. I’m morbidly curious as to how things will play out with these guys. I don’t like it though; the Brotherhood rocks man and they don’t deserve such evil. Then we saw that John Mathew and Xhex are at odds with each other, with nothing really getting resolved at the end. Blay and Quinn had a moment, but it was left wide open, too. Ward left all these clues dangling in front of me, and it’s just not fair. Yeah so I was upset they took away the focus of Tohr and No’One but now that it’s all over with, I don’t appreciate to be teased quite so much. I just read an emotional book; I think I deserve a break, not more cliff hangers, LOL.

It’s apparent, I loved the book. And hated it. The emotional roller coaster that is Lover Reborn, is hauntingly amazing. Of all the novels in the series so far, this one hurt the most. Yet, it renewed my love for Ward’s work and now I’m all pumped to start the next novel and get caught up.

Read Order:
Dark Lover
Lover Eternal
Lover Awakened
Lover Revealed
Lover Unbound
Lover Enshrined
Lover Avenged
Lover Mine
Lover Unleashed
Lover Reborn
Lover At Last
The King
Father Mine: Zsadist and Bella’s Story

About Nikki R 120 Articles
SAHM of 2, happily married bookworm, blogger and aspiring author. If I could read/write all day, every day, I would. Luckily I have a very understanding, and patient, husband who lets me get away with it as much as possible. Now if only the kids would understand my obsession, and the house would clean itself, then I'd be all set.