Angelica and Jameson’s daughter, (the only half vampire/half human), the Child of Promise, Amber Lily is now 23 years old. Willem (human ex-soldier, married to vampire/gypsy Sarafina, saved Amber Lily) is dying of a brain tumor – with less than 6 months to live – Sarafina is devastated – as are all the rest… and Amber Lily has been having dreams of a gorgeous man, who gives her a gift in carved box , and she is horrified when she looks inside. And then she sees that it is an infant that is dead in the box…Amber thinks she can save Willem if she can locate Stiles (the DPI man who had kidnapped and tested on her 6 years earlier – whom they believe found some sort of super strength from her blood as he survived a fall)… so that they can get his formula and give it to Willem to heal him…And then they introduce Edge (aka Edgar Poe) a 50 year old, rogue, stand alone vampire, a street thug who showed honor in his battles, who due to circumstances, was abandoned by his sire when he was created – so he had to figure his way on his own… He had gathered together a small family of ‘street’ vampires, including a teen, and they worked together to survive… the teen overstep her boundaries and when taking blood, she meanly frightened the man… and when Edge was out looking for one of the gang, the man (Stiles) located the rest of his family with the DPI, and they executed them… Eric finds them just before daylight, and can tell that it was Stiles who did it, and he vows vengeance…Forty years later he has killed Stiles twice, but he has healed both times… now Edge believes he must connect with the Child of Promise to draw Stiles out and find out what it is about her that Stiles needs that keeps him alive, so that he can kill him…So on the night that Amber is heading to Salem, to Willem & Sarafina, Edge orchestrates it so that she hits him with her car… And here begins a strange courtship, where both must finally face that they have fallen in love – something both had sworn never to do… he is cynical, deceitful, wants nothing to do with her ‘family, and warns her away…. She knows he is hiding/shielding information from her, she keeps trying to puzzle him out… and they are attracted to one another… and after a couple of nights, they have powerful sex… Edge gets it her whereabouts out on the internet with the intention of getting Stiles to Salem – though he plans to intercept him first… Amber is mad at him, and just as he is about to snag Stiles, she shows up – using her powers they capture Stiles, though Edge is hurt… she takes them an hour out of Salem, drugs & ties up Stiles, and then offers her blood to Edge.. he takes it reluctantly – and their connection becomes incredibly stronger – and they are overcome and must have sex, and he feels the presence of a growing life in her – and is angry that she lied about being a virgin (vampire men are sterile)… And she buries him under hay to keep him out of the sun, and she enacts her own plan to try and gain the information Stiles has – changing the sedatives in his doctor bag to water… and allowing Stiles to capture her… He takes her to Boston, takes her blood – he has plans to harvest her eggs and creatre clones so that he has an unlimited supply of her blood – he only has one vial left of his formula…She is very weak – she is alternatively nauseous and then ravenous… and Stiles tells her that she is pregnant – she doesn’t believe him…And Edge wakes up after her capture, and there is a voice in his head that is telling him where to find her… they go and rescue her, and she finally believes she is pregnant when her mother senses the life in her…And the bottom line is she is pregnant with twins… her blood has healing agents, and apparently interacted with Edge’s sperm to get pregnant… the boy twin is telepathically communicating with Edge – the father, and is controlling/making changes in Amber’s blood chemistry… Stiles determines that her blood is very unpredictable – advancing cell growth, retarding growth, etc… and he gives himself an injection, and he is aging fast – beyond his chronological years…Amber also finds that her blood will heal – she accidently drips some on an injured Edge, and it heals his burns – and then she uses it on a human, and a cut is healed…And the babies (though they only know of the one) are growing fast – she goes into labor within 2 weeks of conception… the last vial of Stiles blood helps Willem… she delivers the baby boy – he is healthy… and then she unexpectedly delivers a baby girl – who isn’t breathing… they put her in a dresser drawer/makeshift crib… and their son telepathically tells his dad to bring his sister to him… and Edge lies him next to his sister, and he reflexively grabs onto the babies’ finger, and she is brought to life… so her dream was true, and yet a moment later is untrue as there is a miracle… and they finally confess their love for one another…Babies’ 2nd birthday – they are all gathered… Amber’s blood is back to normal and they are able to give Willem what he needs to defeat the cancer – and even heal his limp… and Willem and twin boy (JW – James William) are at the beach, where the boy is picking up starfish, healing them, and throwing them back into the water… and the twin girl (Bridget after one of Edge’s gang) is dancing gypsy style with Sarafina around a fire… and Amber & Edge sneak off to the stretch of beach where they first made love…Amber’s human sister – Alicia – may be in a future story – I don’t think she has the bella antigen, but she is practicing her witch crafts, drawing on her own natural power…
We continue the story of Amber Lily in book 10 of Wings in the Night. After the evens in book 8, her life has changed drastically. She has learned to be more independent and more dependent at the same time. She understands that she is something new and different. And while some will view that as something to be cherished and protected, others (like DPI) view it as a new subject to tear apart and figure out. We also get to meet Edge - a young vampire (all things considered) that is set to find the last remaining DPI agent and make sure he dies a horrible death. That's all well and good, but Amber Lily has her own reasons for hunting the man down, and she needs him alive. They have quite an interesting romance, but I didn't feel as if that was the highlight of the book. More and more new and different things are discovered (I really wish I could say more - but I would give way too much away). The main focus of the story didn't seem to be so much about the romance at times, but about continuing the storyline of the vampires I've come to love reading about. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of very romantic scenes and it definitely should be considered a paranormal romance, but there was just too much else going on at the same time. Some of the more hardcore romance readers may not get into this as much as I did. There seems to be some very fun and exciting things to come for our little group. There's a short story at the end of this one to set the hooks for book #11 - and it sounds very exciting. We got to meet a "young" Rhiannon in it and it solidified her as one of my favorites - the pet panther helps a bit too. - See more at: http://www.bittenbyromance.com/2014/0...
What do You think about Edge Of Twilight (2005)?
I had a good time reading this story. My first experience with Maggie Shayne's work was Born in Twilight, and I have to admit that I wasn't sure how I'd handle seeing Amber in a romantic role because of that. But this book actually does feel like a good follow up to the earlier story, while also blending in the characters and themes used in the books that took place during Amber's childhood. And Edge was an entertaining character throughout.That said, I also couldn't keep myself from composing this haiku during some of the middle chapters:"The 'peroxide' blondBrings to mind Joss Whedon's SpikeDon't be distracted."
—Keelynn Hardy
I loved this book. It is now my favorite of M. Shayne's Wings of Night series. Previously, Prince of Twilight was my favorite, but this one is just a little better. It is the story of 23 Amber Lynn and bad boy vamp, Edge. I was so sleepy I could hardly see the words, but I couldn't put this book down until I finished it. I started out only liking the series, but by the end I'm loving it. I would love for M.S. to continue the series. I'd love to find out what happens to Will. Hopefully, he doesn't leave Sarafina too soon. I'd also like to find out more about Amber's twins. What powers will they possess (although we already know J.M. has great healing power)? Who will they fall in love with, etc.?
—Gaynell
Actual Rating 3.5These book are very similar in style to the Black Dagger Brotherhood (but without the same punch). Each book surrounds a vampire couple (in this one it was Amber and Edge). The cast from the previous books all make appearances so you also continue with past storylines. It is a formula that is done so well (and so frequently) now, but this books gets brownie points from me as it was one of the pioneers of the genre (this was book 10 and it was written in 2004....well before the twilight and paranormal romance explosion).It was a fun, light read with a lot of escapism (which was what I was looking for). Easy to read. In places it was really silly and corny, but that comes with the territory. This book is probably up there as one of the better books in the series and I will definitely keep reading to see where Shayne takes the storyline now that the author has exhausted all the vampires in her initial family tree.
—TheMadHatter
