I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
“Dearest Ivie”
by
J.R. Ward
paranormal romance, urban fantasy in a Kindle edition that was published by Ballantine Books on March 13, 2018 and has 145 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Dark Lover, Lover Eternal, Lover Awakened, Covet, Crave, Lover Revealed, Lover Unbound, Lover Enshrined, Lover Avenged, Lover Mine, Lover Unleashed, Envy, An Irresistible Bachelor, Leaping Hearts, His Comfort and Joy, Lover Reborn, Rapture, Lover at Last, Possession, The King, The Shadows, The Bourbon Kings, Blood Kiss, The Beast, Blood Vow, The Chosen, Blood Fury, The Thief, "The Reception", "The Rehearsal Dinner", Consumed, The Savior, Blood Truth, Where Winter Finds You, The Sinner, A Warm Heart in Winter, Claimed, The Wolf
A short story that falls in at 15.75 (after Blood Fury, 3 (BDB, 15.5)) in The Black Dagger Brotherhood romantic urban fantasy series set in Caldwell, New York, but revolving around a new couple within the BDB world: Ivie and Silas, son of Mordachy the Younger.
NOTE: I see this as 15.75, if we take into account the Black Dagger Legacy follow-on series that spun off from BDB.
My Take
You ain’t right if you don’t cry when you read this. Oh, lordy. Yes, it starts out rather slow, although Ward quickly adds tension through Ivie’s smart mouth and her worries as to what Silas really wants as well as his statement about his travel plans. That patient boy is some prevaricator! And I do love how he reacts to Ivie’s bluntness, lol. Ward must’ve had some fun with this.
She doth protest too much, and I don’t blame Silas for his reaction at all. Jeez, talk about hammering it home! And I think it is that party at home that warms my heart and pulls me in.
Well, that does make sense, since this is a story about love (a bit too insta-lovey, but…), about caring, about standing with your man, and all from Ivie’s perspective using simple third person subjective point-of-view with us hearing Ivie’s thoughts, feeling what she feels. She can be a bit tedious, but her fears are understandable.
It’s those later fears that cause Ivie to understand how very much she did not understand about the families of the patients for whom she cares and is but one of this protagonist’s growth moments.
The idea of seeing the world via ethnic restaurants was a crack-up, and a great idea. I loved that family scene — with that naughty auntie — and Silas’ comments afterwards. It’s all part of Silas, who he is.
My biggest niggle in this was those rough edges, as if Ward were trying to cram all of this into a few pages…and that deadline was looming!
And yeah, more crying with Silas’ wish for how he wants her to remember him. It was so sweet. Gawd, I’m crying again.
The Story
Another crap day with that failed interview, and now this male, this gorgeous “aristocrat”, is coming on to Ivie. Crap. Crap. Crap. Whatever is his angle?
The only bother Silas feels is the need to not crowd Ivie, for those too honest comments and questions are a breath of fresh air.
It can’t last however, for Silas has his own deadline, one he has no choice but to keep. It’s a family thing.
The Characters…
…are primarily vampires.
Ivie Hannaford works as a nurse with end-of-life patients at Havers’ clinic. Rubia, a.k.a., Rubes, is her dreamy cousin who also works there as a nurse. Hirah is Ivie’s rough biker dad.
Montasilas, son of Mordachy the Younger, a.k.a., Silas, is gorgeous and wealthy. Pritchard is his snotty majordomo who started serving the family as his nanny four hundred years ago. Johe is his chauffeur.
Havers runs a clinic that cares for all vampires, no matter their income. Wrath, son of Wrath, is the Blind King. Doc Jane and Dr. Manello step in to assist. Ruhn, Bitty’s uncle, also offers his help.
The Cover and Title
The cover uses the black background and Silas’ deep blue suit to focus our attention on his gorgeous face, his dark hair swinging to the side as if he turned his head that fast, set above an open white dress shirt. A trim beard and flashing eyes make a memorable face…sigh… The author’s name is in white and outlined in red while the title below it is in red and outlined in white. The info blurb and series information is in white.
The title is all about the focus character, “Dearest Ivie”.
