Blood Hunt

Table of Contents

 

 

 

“Super-romantic urban fantasy. Shannon K. Butcher provides a terrific suspense-filled thriller.”

—
Midwest Book Review

 

“Butcher is fast becoming known for her gutsy and complicated heroines. Butcher’s books are dense and action-packed. Make sure there is room on your keeper shelf for all of Butcher’s books!”

—
Romantic Times

 

“This was such a dynamic book. I certainly found it hard to put down once I started reading it. Anyone looking for a knockdown, action-filled adventure should put this book on their to-be-read list.”

—Once Upon a Romance Reviews

 

“The third installment of the Sentinel Wars and a really great one at that! [It] kept me reading and I cannot wait for the next book in this really fun series.”

—Night Owl Romance

 

“Fast-paced, action-packed . . . the world that [Shannon K. Butcher] has created is refreshing, creative, and completely captivated me with its originality. Her imagery is fantastic, and her characters are rich, dynamic, and deliciously flawed.”

—The Romance Dish

 

“I, for one, am hooked . . . a great book.”

—DemonLover’s Books & More!

 

“
Running Scared
offers titillating mind games.”

—Romance Novel News

 

“Exerts much the same appeal as Christine Feehan’s Carpathian series, what with tortured heroes, the necessity of finding love or facing a fate worse than death, hot lovemaking, and danger-filled adventure.”
—Booklist

 

“A terrific grim thriller with the romantic subplot playing a strong supporting role. The cast is powerful, as the audience will feel every emotion that Andra feels, from fear for her sister to fear for her falling in love.
Finding the Lost
is a dark tale, as Shannon K. Butcher paints a forbidding, gloomy landscape in which an ancient war between humanity’s guardians and their nasty adversaries heats up in Nebraska.”—Alternative Worlds

 

“A very entertaining read . . . the ending was a great cliff-hanger and I can’t wait to read the next book in this series. . . . A fast-paced story with great action scenes and lots of hot romance.”—The Book Lush

 

“Butcher’s paranormal reality is dark and gritty in this second Sentinel Wars installment. What makes this story so gripping [are] the seamlessly delivered hard-hitting action and wrenching emotions. Butcher is a major talent in the making.”
—Romantic Times

 

“Terrific . . . powerful.”—
Midwest Book Review

 

 

“Starts off with nonstop action. Readers will race through the pages . . . a promising start for a new voice in urban fantasy/paranormal romance. I look forward to the next installment.”
—
A Romance Review (5 Roses)

“This first book of the Sentinel Wars whets your appetite for the rest of the books in the series. Ms. Butcher is carving her way onto the bestseller lists with this phenomenal, nonstop ride that will have you preordering the second book the minute you put this one down.”

—Affaire de Coeur
(5 stars)

 

“Absorbing . . . erotic . . . unusual. . . . Fans of Butcher’s romantic suspense novels will enjoy her turn toward the paranormal.”

 

“Ms. Butcher offers fresh and delightfully creative elements in this paranormal romance, keeping readers engaged as the story unfolds . . . a well-crafted beginning to this exciting new series, and will have fans of the genre coming back for the next adventure in the Sentinel Wars.”

—Darque Reviews

 

“An exciting romantic urban fantasy. . . . Shannon K. Butcher adds her trademark suspense with plenty of tension and danger to the mix of a terrific paranormal thriller.”

 

“Butcher’s first foray into paranormal romance, and what a doozy it is! Filled with sizzling love scenes, great storytelling, and action galore, fans of paranormal romance will rejoice to have Ms. Butcher finally join the genre!”

—ParaNormal Romance

 

“A different twist on the paranormal genre. . . . I will definitely be reading the next in the series.”

—Fallen Angel Reviews

NOVELS OF THE SENTINEL WARS

SIGNET

Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
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Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
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New Delhi – 110 017, India
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New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
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Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

 

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

 

First published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 

First Printing, August 2011

Copyright © Shannon K. Butcher, 2011

All rights reserved

REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

 

 

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

 

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

 

 

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

ISBN : 978-1-101-51719-2

Character List

Drake Asher:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Helen Day

Briant Athar:
Sanguinar

Connal Athar:
Sanguinar

Logan Athar:
Sanguinar, blood hunter

Aurora:
Athanasian servant

Cain Aylward:
Theronai warrior, Sibyl’s protector

Angus Brinn:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Gilda

Gilda Brinn:
the Gray Lady, Theronai, bonded to Angus

Maura Brinn:
Theronai, Sibyl’s twin sister

Sibyl Brinn:
Theronai, Maura’s twin sister

Canaranth:
Synestryn, Zillah’s second-in-command

Meghan Clark:
blooded human

Helen Day:
the Scarlet Lady, Theronai, bonded to Drake Asher

Eron:
Athanasian prince

Neal Etan:
Theronai warrior

Madoc Gage:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Nika Madison

John Hawthorne:
blooded human

Mabel Hennesy:
blooded human

Lexi Johns:
the Jade Lady, Theronai, bonded to Zach Talon

Nicholas Laith:
Theronai warrior

Liam Lann:
Theronai warrior

Samuel Larsten:
Theronai warrior

Thea Lewis:
human woman living at Dabyr

Tynan Leygh:
Sanguinar

Lucien:
Athanasian prince

Andra Madison:
the Sapphire Lady, Theronai, bonded to Paul Sloane, sister to Nika and Tori

Nika Madison:
the White Lady, Theronai, bonded to Madoc Gage, sister to Andra and Tori

Victoria (Tori) Madison:
Theronai, sister to Andra and Nika

Torr Maston:
Theronai warrior

Jake Morrow:
human, member of the Defenders of Humanity

Blake Norman:
human, Grace Norman’s stepbrother

Grace Norman:
blooded human, Gerai

Jackie Patton:
Theronai, daughter of Lucien

Andreas Phelan:
Slayer, leader of the Slayers