Review: No Mercy by Sherrilyn Kenyon

No Mercy
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon
Publication: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (September 7, 2010)


Description: Live fast, fight hard and if you have to die then take as many of your enemies with you as you can. That is the Amazon credo and it was one Samia lived and died by. Now in contemporary New Orleans, the immortal Amazon warrior is about to learn that there’s a worse evil coming to slaughter mankind than she’s ever faced before.

Shapeshifter Dev Peltier has stood guard at the front of Sanctuary for almost two hundred years and in that time, he’s seen it all. Or so he thought. Now their enemies have discovered a new source of power- one that makes a mockery of anything faced to date.

The war is on and Dev and Sam are guarding ground zero. But in order to win, they will have to break the most cardinal of all rules and pray it doesn’t unravel the universe as we know it.

My Thoughts: This is the latest entry in the Dark Hunters series and is very much a "middle" book. The war between the Dark Hunters and Stryker's forces is heating up as Stryker has found a new weapon that lets him attack during the day when the Dark Hunters are helpless. If you are behind on reading this series or new to it, you are saying to yourself "Stryker?" or "war?"


The romance is between Samia who was an Amazon queen and who became a Dark Hunter for revenge after her sister had her and her family killed over a dispute over the throne and Dev who is a were hunter and one of the family that runs Sanctuary. Dark Hunters and were hunters are not supposed to have relationships with anyone let alone each other. Dark Hunter especially are pledged to Artemis and she is a jealous goddess. Both are very lonely and are keeping secrets about troubled pasts.


One of Samia's gifts from her goddess is the ability to touch any object or person and read their whole past which include all the emotions they have felt. This means that she doesn't touch anything or anyone. This means that she is destined for an eternity of loneliness. But, somehow, when she touches Dev she feels nothing which is a stunning relief for her.


Dev is a bear. He is still grieving for his parents who died in an earlier book and is busy protecting sanctuary from various evil supernatural forces. He has a wonderful, sarcastic sense of humor. I loved his voice and his personality. He appears to be untroubled but hides depths of sadness. Dev's snarky, sarcastic comments and view of things was the highlight of the book for me.


This story was filled with action as they fight to keep Samia safe from Stryker and rescue her from other protectors but it felt rushed and crowded with characters who were busy advancing their own plot lines. The parts with Nick were especially confusing. 


I recommend it for those who have been reading the Dark Hunter series and want to stay caught up. I think the title means that the author would have no mercy for those new to the series. This book was written for the in-crowd - those who have been obsessively following the series. New comers beware!


Favorite Quote:

Gah, what was wrong with him that the mere scent of her skin could raise his blood pressure? Probably the fact that she was off limits to him. The lure of forbidden fruit. It'd ruined many a man and even more bears.

Find out about the rest of the series and other books by Sherrilyn Kenyon here.