{Blog Tour} Destined to Die (Inherited Damnation #3) by Claire Ashgrove

INHERITED DAMNATION INHERITED DAMNATION is an 8 book paranormal romance series being released as one book every three weeks between January 27th and June 23rd, 2015. Damned at birth, eight immortal children of a high priestess are compelled to kill the one that holds their heart. They can never fall in love. Driven by the need to finally destroy their evil sire and break the curse, each struggles to balance their desire for innocence against the dark needs of their conflicted souls. The series contains mythos shared between the volumes, but each book stands on its own with a newly featured couple. 

Posted by Melanie 
Release Date: March 11th, 2015
Finished Date: March 6th, 2015

Publishers: Untamed Spirit
Genre: Paranormal, Romance, Adult
Source: For Review
Format: eBook

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US 

Haunted by his mother’s betrayal, Belen McLaine surrendered to his demonic half long ago. For centuries, he’s roamed, doing all he can to corrupt those he encounters. But Belen’s life changes when a little Yuletide fun goes wrong, and the one woman he can’t stay away from is suddenly in need of his protection. Unable to cast her aside, he finds himself on a deadly path to love.

Faith Winters shared one glorious date with Belen complete with fireworks, but he stayed away until the night of her brutal attack. As danger escalates, he becomes her only safety net. Shared passion gives way to something deeper, hotter, than she’s ever known before. Yet Faith has no idea her greatest threat is the very man who holds her heart.

For Belen, even if it means hurting Faith, he must not succumb to love. If he fails, his father’s curse promises he’ll take Faith’s life.

The Review:  Destined to Die is the third book in the Inherited Damnation series which tells the story of eight siblings born to a Celtic Priestess and a very powerful Incubus. Through the books you will find out more of the circumstances surrounding the union of their parents and what that means for all eight siblings lives, for their Father cursed and damned them but their Mother gives them all a chance at redemption.
This time around we have Belen, now Belen McLaine has been embracing his demonic side, he can manipulate people and their emotions, get them riled up and committing acts they wouldn’t normally do and he’s been having fun for centuries….. but this Yule will be different because the influence he has put on people ends up putting the one woman he ‘could’ feel for in a horrifying situation. Knowing he can’t walk away from Faith Winters in danger, he becomes her knight in shining armour and rescues her. Faith couldn’t be more pleased to know that it was Belen who had saved her, maybe now he will realise the connection they shared on their one date years ago….but sadly no, he pushes her away again…. that is until she decides to make it up to him but in the process ends up needing rescuing again. Faith pushes her luck with Belen and they share something incredible. Belen is aware that Faith could be the one to break his curse but he doesn’t want mortality, he won’t be worthy when he is judged so it’s a no win situation but he will protect Faith with everything he has…. Except his love…..but he doesn’t bank on Faith wiggling her way beneath his surface and definitely not the feelings she brings out in him.
I think this was my favourite book so far in this series, I love an anti hero and Belen is that in spades. He is a contradiction even though he classes himself as evil because yes, he influences people into doing bad things BUT those bad things are done to people who deserve them. That’s not always the case but you can see that he isn’t as black and white as you would think and he rarely does any of the bad deeds himself. I suppose when you have an immortal life, you get bored and people become toys. Belen does not want to become mortal, he has no interest in slaying his father because in his eyes – their mother is just as bad – so when he comes across Faith, he isn’t bothered that she could break the curse the way the other two had been. He needed someone like Faith though because she believed in him without fault, it was like she knew his thoughts and feelings when he didn’t and that was a lovely connection.
I easily became invested in these two as a couple, I think that because of the situation right at the beginning, you see Faith as a damsel in distress and who doesn’t love those when you get a dark, brooding man like Belen to come to the rescue. That shared experience really bonded them together and no matter how many times he tries to deny it or ignore it, they had good chemistry which lead to some great sexytimes.
The storyline was different from the other two books and the threat didn’t come from where you might think but it was constant throughout the book and you could really feel its presence. I liked this because it sent Faith into Belen’s arms and by putting her in constant risk, it also showed Belen what he had and that he could quite easily lose it. Obviously if Belen chooses to break the curse he will have to be judged by his ancestors and that is another snag because he hasn’t really been a good man so there is more at stake here than in any of the previous books. I loved that we got to have a story where the character is on the darker side, it changed things up and also gave us some hope for the other siblings who have embraced the darkness too. I’m a sucker for these type of stories when men find their soul mates and redemption through the love of a woman – I suppose I’m just a romantic but Claire Ashgrove does these so well and I’ll always be back for more.

4.5 flowers!

Character Profiles:

Name:  Belen McLaine
Birthdate:  Yule, 198BC
Hair: Dark with a streak of silver
Eyes: storm-grey
Alignment: Allied with Drandar, his father, incubus demon
Magical Strength: Can read and track auras across any distance
Profession: Mechanic
Greatest Hope: A family of his own
Greatest Regret: His actions led to Faith’s attempted rape
Secret Fear: That if he stands before the ancestors he will never return

In one heavy hammer of his heart, his breath caught against the fierce yearning to go to her side, take her into his arms, and become lost once more in her poisonous kiss.

She would yield, he had no doubt. She’d melted into him the first time, all too willing to follow wherever he led. It had taken everything he was to chain the beast inside him into submission and force himself to leave. Not because he didn’t want her. But because she possessed what he had cast aside and could never reclaim—goodness. And he ached for it. For her. For everything she was.

Name: Faith Winters
Age: Twenty-nine
Hair: Long ebony
Eyes: Turquoise
Alignment: Mortal
Profession: Social Worker
Personal Hope: To save every needy soul
Greatest Regret: That kissing Belen two years ago drove him away
Secret Fear: She can’t save Belen from himself

“You’d run for the hills if you saw who I really am.”

“Give me a little more credit, please.” She twisted her shoulders in attempts to break free of his punishing hold. “Have some faith—for once. When you’re ready to trust me with your secrets, just let me know.”

The room rushed sideways as Belen whirled her around and pushed her back flat to the wall. His body followed hers, imprisoning her between the hard drywall and the equally hard barrier of his chest. Stormy grey eyes flashed with anger that she welcomed. At least it was a reaction, not more of the clamming up and burying it away. She struggled to keep her breathing under control.

About the Author: Building on a background of fantasy game design, a fascination with history, and a lifetime love of books, Award-Winning Author Claire Ashgrove brings to life action-filled, passionate journeys of the heart. Her paranormal series, The Curse of the Templars, marries the history of the Knights Templar with the chilling aspirations of the most unholy--a must-read for speculative fiction fans. For romance fans, she also writes as the National Bestselling Author Tori St. Claire and historical romance as Sophia Garrett.
 In her non-writing time, she owns and operates Finish The Story, a full-scale editing house co-founded with Bryan Thomas Schmidt. She lives in Missouri and enjoys cooking, studying ancient civilizations, and spending downtime with her two sons and too-many horses, cats, and dogs. To learn more, visit her at: claireashgrove.com or toristclaire.com. For all the latest updates look for the Untamed Spirit blog, via any of her websites.

a Rafflecopter giveaway a Rafflecopter giveaway