Damned (Crusade)

There is a fine line between love and sacrifice….

Antonio would do anything for his beloved fighting partner Jenn. He protects her, even suppresses his vampire cravings to be with her. Together, they defend humanity against the Cursed Ones. But tensions threaten to fracture their hunting team and his loyalty—his love—is called into question.

Jenn, the newly appointed Hunter, aches for revenge against the Cursed One who converted her sister. And with an even more sinister power on the rise, she must overcome her personal vendettas to lead her team into battle.

Antonio and Jenn need each other to survive, but evil lurks at every turn. With humanity’s fate hanging in the balance, they must face down the darkness…or die trying.

Editorial Reviews

The second book in Holder and Viguie's Crusade series continues the story of Jenn Leitner and her team of Salamancan vampire hunters. The action begins shortly after that of Crusade (Simon Pulse, 2010/VOYA December 2010) with Jenn and her team continuing their fight against the Cursed Ones, vampires who have gone public and are waging war against humans while, in public, successfully gaining allies in both world governments and religions. The Salamancans and other resistance groups are the only ones who see the vampires as monsters. Jenn's life has become more complicated since her sister was turned, and she is conflicted about her attraction to teammate and vampire Antonio. She is not the only one on her team having problems; the white witch, Skye, is having a crisis of conscience and flashbacks of a former lover, and Eriko, the chemically enhanced Hunter, is being betrayed by the physical breakdown of her body. All of this complicates what could have been a straightforward action novel, and though it gives these teens some backstory, many of the flashbacks become repetitious and often confuse rather than enlighten. Damned suffers from being the middle novel in a trilogy; very few loose ends are tied, and the deaths of some characters are expected rather than something to be grieved. This novel will be confusing to someone who has not read the first in the series and will likely appeal only to teens who are not bothered by predatory rather than romantic vampires and want books with some heft. Reviewer: Sue Roush

About The Author:

Nancy Holder has published sixty books and more than two hundred short stories. She has received four Bram Stoker awards for fiction from the Horror Writers Association, and her books have been translated into more than two dozen languages. She has written or cowritten twenty Buffy and Angel projects. Her books from Simon Pulse include the New York Times bestselling series Wicked and the novel The Rose Bride. A graduate of the University of California at San Diego, Nancy is currently a writing teacher at the school. She lives in San Diego with her daughter, Belle, and their growing assortment of pets. Visit her at nancyholder.com.

Debbie Viguié holds a degree in creative writing from UC Davis. Her Simon Pulse books include the New York Times bestselling Wicked series and the Once upon a Time novels VIOLET EYES, SCARLET MOON and MIDNIGHT PEARLS. She lives in Florida with her husband Scott. Visit her at debbieviguie.com.