Product Description

For centuries, Lucinda has endured her agonizing reality. As daughter of the High Lord of Hell,she rules over nothing, retrieving the occasional wayward demon and feeding off of the savage Monre-of whom she was a member before she died.

Then she encounters the Monre warrior Stefan, who offers himself to her. She is moved beyond measure by her desire for him-and soon finds herself drawn back into the heady eroticism of the Monre. There, she must carve out a home between the jealousy of the dead and the violence of the living, if she is to keep her newfound love-and life...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #623267 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-07
• Format: Bargain Price
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Full of paranormal passion, Sunny's fast-paced first in a new erotic fantasy series, the Demon Princess Chronicles, introduces Lucinda, a 600-year-old demon princess who's getting bored with her long unlife. At least she has an official duty to pass the time: seeking out wayward demons and returning them to Hell. Lucinda finds herself attracted to Stefan, a renegade warrior of the alien Monère, but before they can get too cozy, duty calls and she must track down another rogue, Nico. She brings Nico to his cruel queen, but then claims him for her own along with Talon, a maltreated Floradëur, a flower of darkness, whose blood gives demons more power. The whole crew goes to Hell to recharge Lucinda's supernatural batteries and return Talon to his own kind, with Derek, a dangerous demon who wants Talon back, in pursuit. Sunny (Mona Lisa Awakening) has created a Hell reminiscent of Anne Bishop's Black Jewels trilogy and the fiction of Laurell K. Hamilton. (Aug.)
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About the Author
Sunny is a former physician and the wife of novelist Da Chen, author of Brothers. She lives in New York with her family.

Customer Reviews

4.5 Klovers - Courtesy of CK2S Kwips & Kritiques
A princess of Hell, the only thing the demon Lucinda rules over is the territory she is charged to protect in her role as guardian. Demon she may be, but she is honorable as well. When she is tasked with the capture of a rogue Monére warrior, she soon finds herself in the role of protector rather than hunter, adding her prisoner to her troupe of companions: a rare Floradëur, Monére warrior Stefan, and the Mixed Breed Jonnie.

Although determined to not become attached to those under her protection, she finds Stefan irresistible, and is pulled into a web of erotic desire with him unlike any she has felt before. Knowing he needs more than she can ever give him, she intends to find him a place with a Monére Queen, leaving him and the others behind.

But an unforeseen danger binds her to her men in a way she could never have anticipated, making the very idea of separation impossible...

Lucinda, Darkly is the first book in Sunny's The Demon Princess Chronicles which is connected to her Monére, Children of the Moon series, but works very well as a standalone series for those who have not read the other books - like me. This was the first book by Sunny I have had the pleasure of reading, and it will not be my last. Not only am I eagerly anticipating the sequel to Lucinda, Darkly, but I have already added the Monére, Children of the Moon series to my book shopping list. Although I was able to follow this story without issue, the references to characters in the other series made me intensely curious!

This book has been compared to Laurell K. Hamilton's writing, and I can definitely see why. While classified as a romance and it has some romantic elements, the story is more an adventure following the main character, Lucinda, and her companions. Yes, there is love, and oh my gosh are there some sexy scenes - but this book doesn't fit the `mold' of a classic romance in that her story does not end in this book. While this particular part of her story has completed, her exploits will be continued in the following stories, if the series title is any indication. Most noticeably, there isn't a traditional happy ending in this book. Yes, the story ends well for our main characters, but since this isn't really the end of Lucinda's tale, it is largely up in the air still as to who she will end up with in the long run. Fans of sagas that star the same hero and/or heroine in each of the books will appreciate this immensely, as did I.

Lucinda is an extremely likable heroine. She might be a demon, but she is nowhere near evil, as she proves by her actions over and over again. It is easy to fall for her, just like the men who accompany her do.

I see the next book in this exciting new series is due out in *sigh* 2009!!! I suppose I am going to try to have some patience, but it will be extremely hard when I am so anxious to see what happens next with this intriguing group of people! I will be using that time to catch up on Sunny's other stories in the meantime... J

superb fast-paced urban fantasy
Lucinda was a Monere queen before she died, strong enough to make the transition to become a demon dead, who travels between hell and earth looking to return wayward demons to hell. Her mission is interrupted when she saves Stefan, a rogue Monere warrior who ran away from his queen. They share violence and pleasure while she drinks his blood.

Lucinda returns to Hell; where the de facto ruler her brother Halcyon tells her to find Nico the rogue Monere warrior and return him to his queen. When she catches up with Nico he puts up a good fight refusing to be killed by her or returned to his queen who kills her warriors when they become too strong, but he loses to her. She returns him to Mona Si Guiri who annoys Lucinda with her attitude. Nico is placed in silver chains making his powers useless and Lucinda is held in black chains. However the demon side of Lucinda rises and she defeats the queens and her warriors. She must return to Hell or fade into nothingness. Derek a former guardian tries to prevent her return to Hell even as she begins to build a male warrior following in Arizona.

This superb fast-paced urban fantasy in the tradition of Laurel K. Hamilton contains strong characterization that makes the Monere universe seems genuine. There is also plenty of sex and violence, at times together, but it is necessary elements interwoven into the story line. Although this is a stand alone side thriller, reading the previous Mona Lisa tales (see MONA LISA BLOSSOMING and MONA LISA AWAKENING) will make it easier to understand Sunny's complex realm.

Harriet Klausner

Author's writing is still in transition...
Sunny's Children of the Moon Monere series (Mona Lisa Awakening (Book 1), Mona Lisa Blossoming (Book 2), Over the Moon ("Mona Lisa Three"), On the Prowl ("Mona Lisa Betwining")) is heavily derivative of Laurell K Hamilton's work, as well as Anne Bishop's The Black Jewels Trilogy (Daughter of the Blood / Heir to the Shadows / Queen of the Darkness), but she does manage to put some of her own spin on it. The plots aren't particularly complex, but they do serve to pull the story forward without getting too bogged down in the details.

Lucinda, Darkly: The Demon Princess Chronicles is an offshoot of the Children of the Moon series wherein some characters of the other books appear peripherally. I won't go into the plot or reveal spoilers, but essentially Lucinda has become somewhat jaded over centuries of existence and drifts about, not belonging completely to the world from which she originated (the Monere world) nor the world she now belongs (the demon world). After encounters with 2 rogue Monere warriors (those no longer serving Monere queens, exiled, and on the run), Lucinda begins to "wake up" to the possibilities of "living" again.

The author's writing is still uneven across the stories she's penned thus far. In general, the tales are simplistic and too reminiscent of LKH and AB. In particular, the author appears to be trying too hard to mix in sensuality, erotica, lyricism in her descriptions. In the beginning chapter of Lucinda, Darkly, there are literally pages of overly poetic writing that became tiresome to read, especially when 1 or 2 sentences with a few descriptors would have created a much larger impact.