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Dark #6.5
After Twilight
Three of romance's hottest bestselling authors -- Amanda Ashley, Christine Feehan, and Ronda Thompson -- invite you to explore the dark side, to taste the forbidden, to dive into danger with heroes who fire the blood and lay claim to the soul in these striking tales of sensual passion.
A man hunts for a woman. Yet what if he is no ordinary male, but a predator in search of prey? A dark soul looking for the light?
A vampire, a werewolf, a mythic being who strikes fear into the hearts of mortals? When day fades into night, when fear becomes fascination, when the swirling seduction of everlasting love overcomes the senses, it must be after twilight.
This anthology contains the following short stories:
1. Masquerade by Amanda Ashley
2. Dark Dream by Christine Feehan
(Carpathians, #6.5) and is also in the book "Dark Dreamers"
3. Midnight Serenade (Donavons #1) by Ronda Thompson
A man hunts for a woman. Yet what if he is no ordinary male, but a predator in search of prey? A dark soul looking for the light?
A vampire, a werewolf, a mythic being who strikes fear into the hearts of mortals? When day fades into night, when fear becomes fascination, when the swirling seduction of everlasting love overcomes the senses, it must be after twilight.
This anthology contains the following short stories:
1. Masquerade by Amanda Ashley
2. Dark Dream by Christine Feehan
(Carpathians, #6.5) and is also in the book "Dark Dreamers"
3. Midnight Serenade (Donavons #1) by Ronda Thompson
400 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 31, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
November 19, 2015
#1 Masquerade - Amanda Ashley.
Masquerade didn't capture me fully. Don't get me wrong, it was a lovely story of a difficult love trying to be made real, but something was missing for me. Jason ws the typical tortured soul, making decisions for his innocent lover instead of with her, leaving her 'for her own good'. I did like the twist in the end It was a new angle in the vampire genre (at least as far as the books I've read thus far). It actually reminded me of
#2 Dark Dream - Christine Feehan
The healing scene which took place in Dark Dream actually brought tears in my eyes. I felt the wealth of emotion that was poured into the words. Christine Feehan has made me a believer.
#3 Midnight Serenade - Ronda Thompson
At first I wasn't sure if I liked this story or not. Until I found myself so invested in their love. In fact, the most beautiful part of this story was reading the emotions that played through Rick's mind as he decided that he would sacrifice his soul in order to save Stephanie's. I'm now curious to read Call of the Moon to see Jason's own struggle with the curse.
Masquerade didn't capture me fully. Don't get me wrong, it was a lovely story of a difficult love trying to be made real, but something was missing for me. Jason ws the typical tortured soul, making decisions for his innocent lover instead of with her, leaving her 'for her own good'. I did like the twist in the end It was a new angle in the vampire genre (at least as far as the books I've read thus far). It actually reminded me of
#2 Dark Dream - Christine Feehan
The healing scene which took place in Dark Dream actually brought tears in my eyes. I felt the wealth of emotion that was poured into the words. Christine Feehan has made me a believer.
#3 Midnight Serenade - Ronda Thompson
At first I wasn't sure if I liked this story or not. Until I found myself so invested in their love. In fact, the most beautiful part of this story was reading the emotions that played through Rick's mind as he decided that he would sacrifice his soul in order to save Stephanie's. I'm now curious to read Call of the Moon to see Jason's own struggle with the curse.
May 30, 2011
not the best but good.
November 19, 2015
My favorite in this Anthology was certainly Dark Dream, closely followed by Midnight Serenade.
July 17, 2024
Surprise, surprise! I liked the werewolf story best 🐺. Note: all these stories are paranormal romances with gothic writing, not historical paranormal romances. The castle cover had me not mad, but certainly fooled.
-"Masquerade"
-The title alone is a POTO ref. within itself. And it's not hard for a vampire to relate to the phantom. Amanda Ashley's writing is so flowery and broody that it's impossible to want either setting or dialogue; you must have both.
*Be warned: I fought the urge to skim after one too many copy/paste of Jason's brooding sessions.
-I liked the gothic aesthetic that's given off by Jason's loneliness, rather than location. With all the dark house, hidden cellar, mourning while mooning over Leanne's resemblance to Jolene.
*Pour one out for Jolene. Instead of leaving Jason after discovering not only had he cheated via vamp hypnotism, but was now a vampire himself, she keeps not only his secret, but her vow to love him/be his loyal wife until her death. And while the trope of "oh, she's my lost love reincarnated!" has been done to death (no pun intended), the unconditional love is what makes this really stick.
-Also, love the meta references of the many vampire movies they watch during date night (there's even a spoof I wanna see! And the Frank Langella's Dracula (1979)?! My all time favorite adaptation... be still my heart ❤️😍).
"Dark Dream"
-This might've been my least favorite and that's my bad. Christine Feehan has this whole complex world of shifters/creatures, and this features Falcon, who's an undead creature hunter... who's also himself undead, sleeps during the day, feeds off blood...
-A lot of info dumping because it is a short story (and there is a lot to set up: infertility/low female birth/survival rate among this Carpathian race for one) many passages of our girl, Sara, running from this unnamed vampire. I know this sets up a book I'm actually planning on reading, so grain of salt?
-But this did have a slow down/self-care moment that weirdly inspired me: if Sara can take time to sit down/slow down and fix herself a cuppa while dealing with the trauma of being hunted down by a vampire, falling for a Carpathian, and also recall her family being slaughtered beyond the bedroom door, then so can I!
"Midnight Serenade"
-This! This is my MVP!!!
-We've got a change of scene and creature (Stephanie is a veterinarian/wildlife conservation worker who's on course to study/bring awareness to the dwindling wolf population in their natural habitat... And our hero, Rick is a rugged werewolf/pseudo vet himself).
-I love how the story opens with Stephanie saving Rick from poachers while he's in wolf form, making her be the dominant one.
*Also, can we appreciate the authentic outdoorsy feel? Our girl is barges into Rick's cabin, thinking she's seen the wolf enter (she's not wrong), and misses the convivence so much, she begins brewing a cup of coffee. Not only that, but her sleeping in a tent for so long/missing the feel of a bed, luxuriating in a hot shower, using Rick's washer/dryer so she doesn't have to get back into dirty hiking clothes? I felt it all.
-The romance felt strongest in this one, as did the isolation: Rick lived for so long caught between man and beast, watching both parties branch off/have their own families (that bit where he watches the wolf pups climb all over Stephanie... she's giggling while it's breaking his heart just got me). And knowing he's been cured due to true love (that's where the 3 star comes in; they all end that way), he, Stephanie, and the seer lady are off to find his brother (who's were wolfing in Canada) and cure him too, is just *chef's kiss*.
Is it perfect? No, but there is potential. And it was gothic good time nonetheless.
-"Masquerade"
-The title alone is a POTO ref. within itself. And it's not hard for a vampire to relate to the phantom. Amanda Ashley's writing is so flowery and broody that it's impossible to want either setting or dialogue; you must have both.
*Be warned: I fought the urge to skim after one too many copy/paste of Jason's brooding sessions.
-I liked the gothic aesthetic that's given off by Jason's loneliness, rather than location. With all the dark house, hidden cellar, mourning while mooning over Leanne's resemblance to Jolene.
*Pour one out for Jolene. Instead of leaving Jason after discovering not only had he cheated via vamp hypnotism, but was now a vampire himself, she keeps not only his secret, but her vow to love him/be his loyal wife until her death. And while the trope of "oh, she's my lost love reincarnated!" has been done to death (no pun intended), the unconditional love is what makes this really stick.
-Also, love the meta references of the many vampire movies they watch during date night (there's even a spoof I wanna see! And the Frank Langella's Dracula (1979)?! My all time favorite adaptation... be still my heart ❤️😍).
"Dark Dream"
-This might've been my least favorite and that's my bad. Christine Feehan has this whole complex world of shifters/creatures, and this features Falcon, who's an undead creature hunter... who's also himself undead, sleeps during the day, feeds off blood...
-A lot of info dumping because it is a short story (and there is a lot to set up: infertility/low female birth/survival rate among this Carpathian race for one) many passages of our girl, Sara, running from this unnamed vampire. I know this sets up a book I'm actually planning on reading, so grain of salt?
-But this did have a slow down/self-care moment that weirdly inspired me: if Sara can take time to sit down/slow down and fix herself a cuppa while dealing with the trauma of being hunted down by a vampire, falling for a Carpathian, and also recall her family being slaughtered beyond the bedroom door, then so can I!
"Midnight Serenade"
-This! This is my MVP!!!
-We've got a change of scene and creature (Stephanie is a veterinarian/wildlife conservation worker who's on course to study/bring awareness to the dwindling wolf population in their natural habitat... And our hero, Rick is a rugged werewolf/pseudo vet himself).
-I love how the story opens with Stephanie saving Rick from poachers while he's in wolf form, making her be the dominant one.
*Also, can we appreciate the authentic outdoorsy feel? Our girl is barges into Rick's cabin, thinking she's seen the wolf enter (she's not wrong), and misses the convivence so much, she begins brewing a cup of coffee. Not only that, but her sleeping in a tent for so long/missing the feel of a bed, luxuriating in a hot shower, using Rick's washer/dryer so she doesn't have to get back into dirty hiking clothes? I felt it all.
-The romance felt strongest in this one, as did the isolation: Rick lived for so long caught between man and beast, watching both parties branch off/have their own families (that bit where he watches the wolf pups climb all over Stephanie... she's giggling while it's breaking his heart just got me). And knowing he's been cured due to true love (that's where the 3 star comes in; they all end that way), he, Stephanie, and the seer lady are off to find his brother (who's were wolfing in Canada) and cure him too, is just *chef's kiss*.
Is it perfect? No, but there is potential. And it was gothic good time nonetheless.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 4, 2018
Note: This is review is for Midnight Serenade novella in this anthology. For the remaining two, they are in the individual books.
Stars: 3 / 5
Recommendation: For those quick reads you are looking for in paranormal romance genre without any sequels or series to go through, this is a perfect book.
Midnight Serenade is a 2001 novella by Ronda Thompson published as part of the anthology After Twilight along with novellas from two other authors - Christine Feehan and Amanda Ashley. The plot revolves around Dr. Rick Donavon - a werewolf and a veterinarian doctor - and Stephanie Shane - researcher on endangered species.
Rick Donavon, a local veterinarian in the secluded town in the rugged mountains of Montana, is in fact a werewolf - one who is hiding from the world. Stephanie Shane comes to his neck of the woods to study the recent onset of wolves supposed to be a new species. He smells in her his mate even though he doesn’t want to put her into the same situation as he was put when a werewolf had bitten him and converting him to this creature. Yet his animal side bites Stephanie out of defense. Will Stephanie become a werewolf too? How will Rick overcome this curse? What is their fate? That is what follows the rest of the plot of this 114 page short novella.
Ronda Thompson has a set of perhaps 21 books to her name before she had passed away in 2007. I don’t remember reading a lot of Ronda Thompson books. And she had done a decent job of putting together a detailed plot for mere 114 pages. However this plot reminded me of another plot by Nora Roberts, her 2004 novella Wolf Moon as part of the anthology Moon Shadows. And, as you guessed, my readers, review of that anthology will follow soon.
Another short and sweet paranormal romance story filled with love, sacrifice and the werewolves. A fast read for anyone who want to delve into the paranormal world but don’t want to spend a whole of time there either.
Stars: 3 / 5
Recommendation: For those quick reads you are looking for in paranormal romance genre without any sequels or series to go through, this is a perfect book.
Midnight Serenade is a 2001 novella by Ronda Thompson published as part of the anthology After Twilight along with novellas from two other authors - Christine Feehan and Amanda Ashley. The plot revolves around Dr. Rick Donavon - a werewolf and a veterinarian doctor - and Stephanie Shane - researcher on endangered species.
Rick Donavon, a local veterinarian in the secluded town in the rugged mountains of Montana, is in fact a werewolf - one who is hiding from the world. Stephanie Shane comes to his neck of the woods to study the recent onset of wolves supposed to be a new species. He smells in her his mate even though he doesn’t want to put her into the same situation as he was put when a werewolf had bitten him and converting him to this creature. Yet his animal side bites Stephanie out of defense. Will Stephanie become a werewolf too? How will Rick overcome this curse? What is their fate? That is what follows the rest of the plot of this 114 page short novella.
Ronda Thompson has a set of perhaps 21 books to her name before she had passed away in 2007. I don’t remember reading a lot of Ronda Thompson books. And she had done a decent job of putting together a detailed plot for mere 114 pages. However this plot reminded me of another plot by Nora Roberts, her 2004 novella Wolf Moon as part of the anthology Moon Shadows. And, as you guessed, my readers, review of that anthology will follow soon.
Another short and sweet paranormal romance story filled with love, sacrifice and the werewolves. A fast read for anyone who want to delve into the paranormal world but don’t want to spend a whole of time there either.
December 28, 2017
Read this in the anthology, After Twilight. Stephanie is a wolf researcher who saves a wolf from being shot and gets bit in the process. She doesn't realize that the animal is actually a werewolf. But when she tracks the blood trail of the wolf, she finds Veterinarian Rick Donavon, the werewolf in human form, who swings between wanting to take Stephanie to bed and wanting to get her out of his life. When he realizes he's bitten her he is determined to make sure she'll be alright, but falls in love with her in the process. This was just okay. The romance between these two was a bit off - not much chemistry to start and it doesn't really feel like they fall in love so much as they succumb to lust.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 30, 2016
Once upon a time, I liked the works of Amanda Ashley and Christine Feehan. I read everything they wrote. Then I think I burnt out on them. Now they bore me.
I kept hoping the stories would improve. They really didn't.
This one is leaving my home library.
I kept hoping the stories would improve. They really didn't.
This one is leaving my home library.
August 31, 2018
FANTASTIC !!! YOU WOULD BE FOOLISH NOT TO READ THIS BOOK !!!! THE STORIES BY ALL THESE AUTHORS ARE AMAZING AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT I HAVE READ THEM OVER AND OVER AGAIN SEVERAL TIMES !!!
I NEVER GET BORED WITH THEM EVEN IF I CAN RECITE THEM, I CAN IMAGINE MYSELF AS THE HEROINE IN THE STORIES WITH THE BEST HEROES IN THEM ALSO AND JUST PICTURE MYSELF AS I WANT TO BE !!
SO GRAB THE BOOK AND LIVE THE FANTASY LIKE I DO !!!
I NEVER GET BORED WITH THEM EVEN IF I CAN RECITE THEM, I CAN IMAGINE MYSELF AS THE HEROINE IN THE STORIES WITH THE BEST HEROES IN THEM ALSO AND JUST PICTURE MYSELF AS I WANT TO BE !!
SO GRAB THE BOOK AND LIVE THE FANTASY LIKE I DO !!!
March 28, 2019
the protagonist is totally bad ass
March 24, 2020
Loved it
June 17, 2021
3 stars for the first one, and 5 stars for the third.
February 24, 2017
I initially only bought this for the Christine Feehan novella in the middle, but I enjoyed the entire book.
January 26, 2016
“Midnight Serenade” is one of the stories that can be found in the anthology After Twilight. The author of this story is Ronda Thompson. This story focuses on Rick Donavon and Stephanie Shane. We find Rick in a forest caught at the time during the full moon when he is in his werewolf form but still has his human thoughts. We learn that he no longer wants to be caught in both werewolf and human worlds. He was intending to let the hunters who had cornered him kill him and he is shot once. Before any of the hunters can take the killing shot Stephanie steps in to save him, though she believes him to be a regular wolf. I think my favorite character in this story is Rick. Through the whole story he tries to do the right thing. While I did like the ending, it was something I had never heard of happening before and I found it to be a little strange. I would suggest this story to anyone who likes romance or paranormal romance.
“Masquerade” by author Amanda Ashley is one of the stories found in the anthology After Twilight. The story focuses on Jason Blackthorne and Leanne. The first chapter or two explains who and what Jason is—a vampire that has been alive for over 300 years. In all his time alive, he had only loved one woman until he met Leanne. As it was not a very long story, I feel that I cannot say too much about it without giving too much of it away. To be quite honest, I did enjoy the plot and I liked the ending but it was a little bit too whimsical for my tastes and the story felt as if it was rushed. I would suggest this story to anyone that likes romance or paranormal romance with a touch of whimsy.
“Masquerade” by author Amanda Ashley is one of the stories found in the anthology After Twilight. The story focuses on Jason Blackthorne and Leanne. The first chapter or two explains who and what Jason is—a vampire that has been alive for over 300 years. In all his time alive, he had only loved one woman until he met Leanne. As it was not a very long story, I feel that I cannot say too much about it without giving too much of it away. To be quite honest, I did enjoy the plot and I liked the ending but it was a little bit too whimsical for my tastes and the story felt as if it was rushed. I would suggest this story to anyone that likes romance or paranormal romance with a touch of whimsy.
February 12, 2017
I'm a huge fan of Christine Feehan and I'm glad that I finally read Dark Dream. Falcon is such an amazing Carpathian warrior! I liked the concept of a journal that he wrote for his lifemate. It was so sweet!
I enjoyed the Midnight Serenade story, though I was confused with the title.
Good job to the three authors!
I enjoyed the Midnight Serenade story, though I was confused with the title.
Good job to the three authors!
October 2, 2010
So far I've only read the first story in this anthology, Masquerade by Amanda Ashley. It is, perhaps, one of the sweetest vampire romances I've ever read, the undead hero yearning for the life and light of his mortal love interest with a tenderness that is often not present in other such stories. I stopped reading when I got to the Feehan story, as I have not read the first 6 Carpathian stories, and so didn't want to start on the 7th one just yet. So...more later.
10/02/10 - Read the last two stories and now I need to up the rating from 3 to 5 stars. Definitely A+ storytelling, and the Feehan Carpathians story strengthens my resolve to begin this rather long series of books. The closing werewolf story was also rather well done - it's nice to have the little beastie portrayed as a curse once in a while. Good reads.
10/02/10 - Read the last two stories and now I need to up the rating from 3 to 5 stars. Definitely A+ storytelling, and the Feehan Carpathians story strengthens my resolve to begin this rather long series of books. The closing werewolf story was also rather well done - it's nice to have the little beastie portrayed as a curse once in a while. Good reads.
May 27, 2010
This was the first romance novel I ever read and at the time of my reading I was *gasp* ten years old, and was very much into fantasy, science fiction and horror - in short, everything else BESIDES romance. If it hadn’t of been for my unequivocal love for vampires and everything paranormal, my twenty-something year old brother would NOT have bought this for me, and in short, I would have never discovered the pure awesomeness of this book. (And also I would not have developed a taste for romance novels.)
January 3, 2008
#7 in Carpathian Series
If you already own "Dark Dreamers" you already have a copy of "Dark Dream" Book #7 in Carpathian Series.
3 Short Stories
1. "Masquerade" by Amanda Ashley
2. "Dark Dream" by Feehan and #7 in the Carpathian Series
- Falcon and Sara's story
3. "Midnight Serenade" by Ronda Thompson
- She has a great "Wild Wulf's of London" Trilogy that I enjoyed, too." This is not related to the series, though.
If you already own "Dark Dreamers" you already have a copy of "Dark Dream" Book #7 in Carpathian Series.
3 Short Stories
1. "Masquerade" by Amanda Ashley
2. "Dark Dream" by Feehan and #7 in the Carpathian Series
- Falcon and Sara's story
3. "Midnight Serenade" by Ronda Thompson
- She has a great "Wild Wulf's of London" Trilogy that I enjoyed, too." This is not related to the series, though.
December 22, 2015
I'm not a big fan of Amanda Ashley and the short story she contributed was true to form, so, I'd give that one 3.5 stars.
I skipped the Christine Feehan one because I really can't stand the universe she plays in.
The 5/5 is for the Ronda Thompson short. Why? It was fun and meaty and the main characters name is Stephanie (my name), and she falls in love with/boinks a werewolf!! Wish fulfilment through a book, isn't that want it's all about?
I skipped the Christine Feehan one because I really can't stand the universe she plays in.
The 5/5 is for the Ronda Thompson short. Why? It was fun and meaty and the main characters name is Stephanie (my name), and she falls in love with/boinks a werewolf!! Wish fulfilment through a book, isn't that want it's all about?
December 6, 2014
There are three novellas in this book. So far I've just read the one by Christine Feehan - 'Dark Dream', as I'm reading my way through her 'Dark' series. I think this is one of my favorites. Most of the other stories have so much angst with the heroine trying to deny and/or escape her lifemate. In this story, she dreamed of hers for a long time, so when they finally met she wasn't entirely sure he was real. She was mentally prepared to meet him.
Very good story.
Very good story.
Read
March 20, 2016I love every tale in this book. Each one is different. This was also my introduction to the Dark Carpathians. After reading this one tale of Falcon, I had to read as many of Christine Feehan's Dark Carpathian books I could find. Still, after coming to know so many of the other males in her world, Falcon is my favorite of all and I wish there was much more of him in the other stories. Of all her warriors, he has the most beautiful and gentle soul.
December 4, 2007
Very good, at least "Masquerade" by Amanda Ashley was! To tell you the truth, I didn’t even bother reading the other two stories! If you only read Amanda Ashley’s story, it is still worth buying! The story was very good! My only complaint is that I felt it could have been made into a full length novel- I wanted more!
October 3, 2015
Reading this book only for the Carpathian story, this story actually has potential to be better after 4 chapters than the other books so far. But I'm not about to put all my eggs in one basket, so we'll see how this spins out.
Well, this was a sweet and short story. The pace was good, and the storyline was tight. I wish all her books were as good as this shortstory.
Well, this was a sweet and short story. The pace was good, and the storyline was tight. I wish all her books were as good as this shortstory.
August 24, 2008
Masquerade - Amanda Ashley - Mix of Dark Shadows show and Beauty & the Beast - not in a good way. Don't bother with anything else she writes
Midnight Serenade - Ronda Thompson - no surprises, not that good (wolf)
Dark Dream - Christine Feehan - shorter than the novels (duh), okay, but they are starting to seem so similar...
Midnight Serenade - Ronda Thompson - no surprises, not that good (wolf)
Dark Dream - Christine Feehan - shorter than the novels (duh), okay, but they are starting to seem so similar...
February 1, 2010
The five star rating is for Dark Dream by Christine Feehan. I really enjoyed this short story and it has me wanting to get back to this series as I've only read a couple of the others.
The other two stories were totally blah for me, being into PNR it didn't set right with me to have the were's and vamps being the bad guys that you needed to be "cured" from.
The other two stories were totally blah for me, being into PNR it didn't set right with me to have the were's and vamps being the bad guys that you needed to be "cured" from.
December 16, 2010
Overall this was a decent read. It has all the romance and mythical creatures I need. I gave it a slightly low rating as I didn't love all the short stories. The first short was ok. The second was great. I loved the third one. I will be checking out more stories from the last 2 authors. Check it out....
July 5, 2011
The first story was just awful. There really are no other words to describe it. I did really enjoy Christine Feehan's story about Sara and Falcon which is why I even bought this book in the first place. I understand why she did their story as a short one as opposed to its own novel, but I would have preferred it to be on its own and longer. The last story was okay, the ending felt very rushed.
October 18, 2013
Three short stories by three authors. Amanda Ashley's "Masquerade" was a tad disappointing whereas Christine Feehan's "Dark Dream" reinforced the popularity of her Carpathian series. Rhonda Thompson's "Midnight Serenade" provided perhaps the most polished & engaging of the three. Certainly a nice collection of stories for a quick escape into some paranormal romance.
June 1, 2015
Awesome collection of short stories by three of my favorite bestselling authors (Amanda Ashley, Christine Feehan, Ronda Thompson) that gave me a taste of paranormal romance in between novels. This was just enough to hold me over until I pick up my next paranormal novel and also was a great mix of vampire, werewolf, passion, adventure and danger.
April 7, 2009
the 5* review is only for Dark Dream, the Carpathian story in this anthology. I loved both Falcon and Sara, and liked that Jacques & Shea played a big part in Sara's rescue. But I do not remember any of the other stories in this anthology.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews