A so-so story. Overall the writing was good but the plot seemed to drag along in spots. Be sure to read the other books in the series prior to reading this one.

Well, this was fun.

Here we meet Anya and Dommiel, she’s an angel who needs help finding another angel, and he’s a demon who can get you anything you need/want.

As the story goes we get to see a softer side to Dommiel, and I loved that, he wasn’t that bad after all, even other angels noticed that. I did feel bad for him, as he wasn’t wanted by angels and demos alike, so he was sort of in between in this new world.

I loved Anya, she was trying to stay true to herself, but the world was going down the drain at every turn. How could she stay so good? She did, even though that meant seeking a demon’s help.

I enjoyed reading this, they went through a lot to get to where they wanted and those ‘adventures’ were quite action-packed.

This was a very entertaining read and looking forward to reading more. I’m really curious about Uriel after this book.

*Thank you to Entangled Publishing for providing a copy for which I’m giving my honest opinion*

3.5* Rounded UP
Anya, former guardian of children turned angelic warrior is bitten by a demon prince. The bite will eventually allow him to control her. Only one individual can help, Uriel. Problem is, he is missing. Enter Dommiel. Dommiel is a fall angel, now a high demon. However, he is outcast amongst the demons. Together, these two must find Uriel.
Overall, I enjoyed this. I thought the world was dark and ugly, but interesting. Angels and demons are at war. Interestingly, neither side cares about the humans who are caught in the middle. Demons use humanity as slaves. Neither side cares if they get in the way- it's a consequence of war. There is violence and torture, talk of rape.
Both Anya and Dommiel are likable. I could get on board with their love story even though 2 tired old tropes are evident. This one: Dommiel has so much experience (because of course he does!) and Anya didn't (yes, she's been in existence for hundreds of years but has remained a VIRGIN. Because that's was GOOD women do). And this one: "Catching a glimpse of his growing arousal-to a size I'd not known was possible-I gasped and ran out of the bathroom...." *Sigh*
I thought the character Bone was intriguing and I would like to learn more about her.
I did like that in this one, just because a character was an angel didn't automatically equal good. And vice versa, being a demon didn't automatically equal bad. Many shades of gray. This is a spin off of the Vessel trilogy (first book Forged in Fire) and I think if I had read that first, I would have enjoyed this more.

I seriously love a good PNR read and it has been a while since I’ve considered an angels and demon one. I can say that Darkest Heart definitely took the cake as my favorite angel/demon book. And this was a first time read for Juliette Cross, and I’m a fan. I know that this is part of a series (or something, not exactly sure) and as usual, I haven’t read the first one yet nor do I know how many books we can expect in this series. But I’m also curious to know if the next book will be about Anya and Dommiel, I’m kind of hoping so. I haven’t read a PNR series where it was all standalones, so I’ll definitely be begging for more Dommiel and Anya.

One thing is for certain, Dommiel has easily become one of my favorite heroes or maybe anti-heroes? The demon that you’ll absolutely fall in love with. Plus, his darker side is downright alluring and sexy!

Besides the amazing job that Juliette did with the world-building, Anya and Dommiel had such great character development. And you’ll be completely captivated by their story the entire time. I loved that they both weren’t a tell-all from the beginning, as the story unfolds, their layers peel away and they’re both opening up more to each other. With Dommiel being a high demon, he definitely surprised me the most with his caring and softer side towards Anya and the few that he’s loyal to. I loved his fierce protectiveness towards her.

And Anya, not only being an angel but a warrior as well. Teaming up with a demon on a mission of sort to find Uriel, an archangel, was the last thing she wanted, but something she needed. She despises demons and there’s nothing about Dommiel that appeals to her until she finally meets him face to face. I loved how snarky and confident he got with her. You can tell that pleasing the ladies isn’t an issue for him. It’s exciting and intriguing to see these two dance around their feelings, the chemistry is so strong and you’ll be wanting them to give in from the very beginning. They’re just absolutely hot together, steaminess for days, people. Don’t you even worry about THAT.

Darkest Heart has definitely been added to my #RSFave list and I’ll be looking out for the next book in this series! Plus, there are quite a few side characters that I’m dying to know the story of. Juliette, you’ve gained a new fan, please don’t make us wait forever!

Oops, I joined this series after it had already started without realizing it. That being said, I feel like I caught up quickly and didn’t miss too much in this dystopian angel/demon action romp.

This story takes place in a world where angels and demons are out in the open and warring with one another. Humans are largely cannon fodder and get caught in the middle of these large scale battles. Anya is a battle angel with a much softer heart than her fellow soldiers. Somewhere along the way, she found herself infected by a small amount evil demon mojo. If she doesn’t find and rescue Uriel, a kidnapped big wig in the angel brigade, she’ll eventually become enslaved to a demon.

Funny thing, to avoid getting enslaved by a demon, she finds herself making a deal with a very shady demon. Dom is a demon who has been essentially shunned by both sides. He’s been living his life with his own moral compass, which just so happens to put him at odds with almost everyone. These two have a sizzling attraction, but there are mountains of baggage holding them away from one another. Watching them get drawn closer and closer what great to watch while they battle their way through the bad guys. As an intro to the world (for me) this was engaging but darker than I typically read.

Darkest heart is the first book of this series also my first book read by this author. I enjoyed this book it was interesting and kept my attention until the very end. Can't wait to read more books by Juliette Cross.

❤️❤️❤️❤️ out of 5
I’m a bit of a sucker when it comes to PNR and angels and demons, and this book not only delivered that but also my other secret love- post apocalyptic romance! This book is full of adventure, suspense, anarchy, action and best of all romance!
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The story revolves around our demon hero and angel heroine- the epitome of star crossed lovers. The heroine is on a mission to save her soul and needs the help of an archangel. For the right price our hero will do anything as a demon mercenary for hire. However when on their mission together sparks fly and the demon is brought to his knees by an innocent angel.
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The world building was so spot on 👌🏻 and the romance was 🔥🔥🔥. I loved reading how our angel heroine became a little more “human” and the road of redemption for the hero was amazing! He had lived through and seen it all and to somehow start seeing things a different way as well as start to feel- well it gave me all the feels! Loved this book and can’t wait for the next in the series.

The first part of this book was a big information dump, it took a bit to even get into the story. I felt like I was playing catch up the whole time. This book links to The Vessel Trilogy & The Deepest Well but I had no clue and I haven't read those books. 

I don't really think you have to read those books before you start this one but I think that some of the answers I have would be in those books. I like the characters and I always enjoy a good PNR book but this one was just hard to get into. It never really felt like its own book to me. This is my first book by this author and I would check out her other stuff even though this one was iffy for me.

DNF at 44%. First off, let me just say, it's me not the book.

The angels and demons have started waging war on each other and the humans are caught in the cross-fire. Anya is an angel who has become disillusioned with the angels and their disregard for human life, she's been bitten by a demon prince and has very little time before she becomes his thrall.

Dommiel is a demon who has grown sick of the violence and the war, when a favour is called in he can't refuse, but soon the unthinkable happens, the demon and the angel have feelings for one another.

Let me be 100% honest, the reason I did not finish the book was because what I really wanted was an urban fantasy type arc where Anya and Dommiel love from afar but but do nothing for at least three or four books. When the plot veered towards instant resolution my interest waned. I wanted snark and unrequited love and angst but what I got was more instalove.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

When I started Darkest Heart I was a little afraid that Anya was going to be this Little Miss Perfect goodie two shoes. And whilst she's the good to Dommiel's bad, the light to his dark, she is in no way Little Miss Perfect. This girlie has some serious badass going on, and wasn't afraid to fight to the death for what she wanted.

"I knew he was afraid, and I accepted that. But I wouldn't accept him pulling away from what was happening between us. It was precious and rare"

Dommiel .... sigh. Be still my beating heart....

"I'd never drop you." Her mouth flattened as she gripped me even tighter. "I'd never let you go." ...........
"Then take me to the stars, baby"

I so love me an anti-hero, especially one that underneath it all there's still that inherent goodness. Dommiel had that in spades despite his living on the knife edge of good and evil.

So, Darkest Heart is a slow burn romance. Paranormal/fantasy romances can tend to be a bit on the insta-everything side, Darkest Heart is anything but. There's a lot of world building in this one along with a suspense plot running through, twists and turns aplenty and lots of characters. I think this slowed things down for me at times, I just wanted them to get to Uriel without all the side battles .... I'm impatient like that <span class="emoji-outer emoji-sizer"><span class="emoji-inner" style="background: url(chrome-extension://immhpnclomdloikkpcefncmfgjbkojmh/emoji-data/sheet_apple_32.png);background-position:61.98589894242068% 12.044653349001175%;background-size:5418.75% 5418.75%" data-codepoints="1f61c"></span></span>

3.75 Stars

Arc received from Netgalley for review.

Gah!! This story was sexy and romantic. I loved the forbidden.demon/angel angle and never wanted this story to end
it to end!

In Darkest Heart, Juliette Cross created an atmospheric world and populated it with brooding heroes and badass heroines. There’s so much to love and then she threw in classic literary quotes and references which made me glow in happiness.

Dommiel is a demon who despite his arguments otherwise cares about more than himself. When he’s asked by a friend to help someone he finds he may have gotten himself into more than her bargained for. Because even though he’s been branded a traitor by his own kind, is he really willing to aid the other side?

Anya is a warrior angel living on borrowed time. Bitten by a demon prince and infected with his essence, she must find the Archangel Uriel to have the poison removed before it’s too late. She could never have guessed she’d be working with one whose kind is the reason she’s in her current predicament in order to get out of it.

Ms. Cross created a post-apocalyptic world where the animosity between angels and demons is palpable as well as the apathy they each seem to feel towards humans. I could almost feel and smell the air on the gritty streets, in the crowded club, and in the snow-laden countryside. And then there were the characters. Dommiel is dark and brooding, attempting to maintain a facade of selfishness and self-indulgence. He didn’t believe in love after the betrayal he’d suffered but Anya made him hope. Anya, despite being a warrior, had a heart of gold, always caring for those most affected by the war between Heaven and Hell…the children. That these two were so drawn to one another seemed wrong but was so right. And their shared love of classic literature only added to my adoration of them.

The romance developed organically – which was a feat considering they were opposites in many ways. Their love blossomed between suspense and action as they worked at finding Uriel. Darkest Heart was exciting and hard to put down. This was an excellent start to a new series. There are characters I hope to see again and this is a world I look forward to spending more time in.

This forbidden love story is a fascinating and thrilling apocalyptic read that involves the war between heaven and hell and everything in between. Anya and Dommiel are two strong, entrancing characters that easily draw readers into their intriguing story, especially since love between an angel and a demon is a very unlikely relationship. The romance part of this story is sweet, yet rousing as it is full of steamy, zinging chemistry and fiery passion while the relationship has not only that major obstacle to be overcome but quite a few others and since both characters aren’t even remotely thinking of a relationship, but the chemistry keeps pulling drawing them together, letting the feelings sneak up on them.

The plot is fast paced and flows smoothly throughout the book, keeping readers glued to the pages with lots of excitement and danger as they face dangerous adversaries throughout their treacherous quest to find and free the archangel that can stop the ark poison that is corrupting Anya’s body and soul. There is lots of exhilarating battles and surprising twists that keeps readers glued to the pages and the author brings it all too vivid life so the readers can easily picture each and every scene as it happens.

Dominion is an apocalyptic world where heaven and hell are at war and the angels and demons fight among the humans and together with the fascinating characters gives readers an exciting experience as they become caught up in the story. I was completely caught up in Darkest Heart from the very beginning and found the world very intriguing with some fascinating unique elements to add that something extra to the story as well as the characters. I was especially fascinated by Dommiel as he is dangerous and sexy with some unique attributes, so I am looking forward to future books in this series.

Dommiel is one sexy bada$$ Demon with a capital D! I haven't read a demon this good...well, maybe never. I love that he is perfectly imperfect physically. It's genius to create a demonic character this sexy and evil and heroic with his physicality that only enhances his allure. He is magnificent! (Made my lady parts ache.) And Anya as his counterpart angel is a truly wonderful character. I love her sensitivity and valor and determination. These two sizzle together in the best way. Even though angels and demons are not supposed to mix romantically Anya cannot resist his magnetism. A very sexy couple!
The nuances in this story are incredible and a testament to this fabulous author and her creativity in character development and storytelling. This is an exciting thrill ride into the world of demons, angels, witches, otherworldly creatures, abominations and humans thrown into chaos by the Great War that split apart the fabric between the worlds. It's everything I love in a great read whether it's a paranormal or not. There's an entertaining, dangerous, engrossing storyline, a hero and heroine that are beyond compare, a steamy forbidden love story and a terrific ending promising more stories in this fantastic series. Five stars all the way!

3.5 Sexy Demon with an Eye Patch and Mechanical Hand Stars.

He was once an Angel but fell from grace and is now known as demon. She is an Angel Warrior and the protector of orphans and lost children. Only in the apocalypse could love find a way.
The upside of the apocalypse? No bills. Downside? Nothing was open. I’d kill for a Big Mac right about now.

Dommiel might be a demon but he isn’t all bad and it looks like he might be switching sides. He seems to have some friends on both sides of the battle and since the apocalypse began, the lines between good and evil seem to be blurring a little. Temptation is well, tempting, you know.

Anya is the good girl and warrior angel but she has a little problem. Seems she was bitten by a Demon and if she can’t find the Archangel Uriel, she is doomed to have a demon take possession of her. When you’re going to play with Demons, you will need one on your side to help along the way.

Darkest Heart is a spin-off to the Vessel Trilogy by Juliette Cross. I have never read the Vessel Trilogy and while I could tell that many of these characters had been involved with one another in another book series, I didn’t think it really affected my overall enjoyment of this book, it stood alone well.

This is definitely more PNR than UF, in that there isn’t a lot of time before the characters started ‘noticing’ the hotness of the other. I thought it might take a little longer since Anya is an angel and Dommiel is still a demon and a little on the bad boy side of life. Opposites do tend to attract and before you know it, both are having a difficult time denying their attractions to the other.
Maybe she’d somehow captured what part of my soul remained and kept it in her pocket so that every time she drew near I yearned to get closer, needing to reunite with that part of myself she’d stolen from me.

The search for Uriel is a dangerous one, since he has gotten himself in a heap of trouble and they must go into the pits of hell, so to speak, to get him back.

Darkest Heart has a few things going for it. There is some sizzle happening between Anya and Dommiel, of course. There is also the world with danger around every corner and the struggle between the humans, Angels and Demons. This is not a safe place to be a mere mortal anymore. I liked that because of the ability of both Angels and Demons to shift, we got a pretty good range of locales without any of that pesky travel time.

The only thing I wished I got more info on, was why heaven and hell are fighting on earth. I’m sure that is in the Vessel series and I could get a lot more backstory if/when I read those. I appreciate that Juliette didn’t rehash the events of all the prior books but I was curious to find out more of how this world ended up in the state it did.

I’m very much hoping the next book in the series involves Uriel and a certain demonic Witch. I think that would be a lot of fun.

3.5 stars

Anya is an angel on a mission to save the missing archangel Uriel and if that means she has to pair up with the demon Dommiel, a very unlikely ally, then she's willing to take that risk. The journey to find Uriel is fraught with danger but Anya is on a deadline and she knows that failing to find him quickly will have devastating consequences.

I didn't realise when I requested Darkest Heart that this is a spin off from Juliette Cross' Vessel Trilogy and to be honest there were times, particularly at the beginning of the story, that I was a little lost in this world. I think if I'd already read the previous trilogy I would have found this story much easier to get into but as it stands I still have a lot of questions about how angels and demons ended up using earth as a battleground. I got a bit lost when it came to the different groups of fighters and who was fighting for which side. This did get easier in the second half but it made the first half of the book lag a bit while I tried to figure things out so I definitely think people who are familiar with the earlier books will appreciate this one more. Having said that I did enjoy the story enough that I want to go back and read the earlier series and I'm definitely hoping that we're going to get a book about Uriel soon!

Anya and Dommiel are total opposites which isn't surprising when you consider one is an angel and the other is a demon. Anya was a little too innocent for my tastes but she was a very skilled warrior in her own rights and I liked that she was willing to accept her own feelings quite quickly, we didn't have a pages of her doubting herself and Dommiel and instead she was focused on making things work. Dommiel is a reluctant ally at first, once an angel he was stripped of his wings when he fell and became a demon and he now seems to play both sides off against each other. I wish we'd been given more information about his background and what happened to make him fall, he seemed to believe he was betrayed by his brother but I'm still a little hazy on why that is or how it all happened. He may be a demon but Dommiel has his own moral code and there are lines he isn't willing to cross, make no mistake he admits he's done terrible things, but he's not an all out evil character and I think we probably would have seen some of his struggle in previous books.

This is paranormal romance so the attraction between Anya and Dommiel is pretty instant but as far as relationship building goes they did take a little time to act on it. I enjoyed spending time with them both the banter between them was fun and there was a nice amount of flirting as things started to heat up. I'm definitely interested to see where this series goes, especially if we're going to get a book about Uriel, but I think I'll try to read the Vessel Trilogy and the connected novel, The Deepest Well, before I continue reading. Hopefully that will give me a better understanding of the world and help me avoid the sense of confusion I felt reading this one.

Favorite Quote:
“You’re the original light, Anya. Brighter than them all.”

I picked this book to read and review because not only was this the first book in a new series, but Juliette Cross is a new to me author. This series is labeled PNR, but there isn’t a shifter or vampire in sight. This series features angels and demons and their war with each other. The hero, (anti-hero really) is a demon who has been marked as a traitor to his kind. The heroine is an angel who is desperate to find a missing archangel in hopes that he will save her life. They are brought together by a mutual ally and their desire for each other is apparent from the moment they meet.

I found the world building of this series fascinating. Angels and demons set amid a post apocalyptic world full of sin and desire and war and death. Anya and Dom travel across the world looking for clues about Uriel’s whereabouts. The line between good and evil is blurred and even the demons running fight clubs and singing in hard rock bands can be allies, while hard nosed angels leading an army to defeat demons show their true colors in their disregard for human life.

Anya and Dom quickly form a bond and their relationship is suuuupa sexy. Super, super sexy. I love it when the bad, bad boy falls for the good girl. But while I did enjoy their love story quite a bit, I think my favorite part of this story was the atmosphere and world-building. It was so dark and gritty. I absolutely can not wait to find out what comes next. I have a feeling this will be one of those series that just gets better and better as the series evolves.

Darkest Heart quickly became one of my favorite reads of 2018!!

Time is running out for Anya. She was an angel bitten by a demon prince and his venom was slowly but surely working its way to her heart. Once it did, she'd be a slave to the demon and no longer in control of herself. She's desperate to find the archangel Uriel because as far as she knows he's the only one who can save her. However, Uriel has proven difficult to locate and she needs help to navigate among the mortal and immortal world to find him. Dommiel, archangel-turned-high demon, has been summoned by a blood bond to help Anya recover Uriel. Together, they must battle witches, furies, soul eaters, and other high demons to not only survive, but to right the wrongs and injustices these beings have plagued Earth with.

I would like to say that it was the world building and plot that really got my juices going, but while they were both spectacular, that wasn't what pushed this onto my favorite reads list. This tale was very much character-driven and these characters were more than worthy to tell a story about.

Anya was an angel warrior who's calling was the orphaned children of Earth. She worked alongside her fellow angels to drive warmongering demons back to where they came from. She didn't get personal and she didn't fraternize with anyone. She got along well with other angels but she knew nothing of personal pleasure or satisfaction. She also had a distorted view on other beings on a whole and grouped Dommiel under the 'unworthy' label. But everyone should know not to judge a book by its cover. Dommiel may have been an archangel cast out and made into a high demon, but at his core, after luxuriating in his new 'evildom', he was still one hell of an angel. He was kind and caring and honorable and his hard was HUGE!! This demon was truly worthy of redemption.

Tasting her might've been a mistake, because that lone demon who preferred to follow his own path could only see one now. The one that led to her. Always to her.

Something about this angel pulled at Dommiel and no matter how hard he tried to fight it, he could only last so long against the irresistible. I loved the way the author captured not only the chemistry but the inevitability of this couple. Their love transcended everything and virtually seeped from the pages. Adding in the heartache, betrayals, camaraderie, true friendships and alliances, along with the intense and amazingly detailed fight scenes, this was a story I'm so glad I didn't miss. Teaming fantasy with paranormal romance, Juliette Cross created a world full of must-read characters and I can't wait to see what's next!

********2.5 Stars********

I think this book had a lot of potential, but fail short in so many areas. My two many issues are:

1. The World building was lacking. I felt we were thrown into a world at war with no reason why. This lead me to not be able to connect to the characters or care about their actions. It felt like this was just a regular romance novel with some paranormal elements thrown in, but with no real purpose to the story line or the characters.

2. The insta-love just didn't work for me. I'll admit i'm not a fan of the insta-love trope, but I can usually overlook it, but not here. I think the lack of character development just didn't endure me to the two leads and didn't buy there instant love. I just felt it was all about sex and not about building a real relationship and I need something other then sex in a couple.

As I was unable to really connect to this world or characters I will not be reading the next book in the series.

The world is a devastated place. Angels and Demons are at war, and the humans are caught in the middle.

Dommiel was once the high demon who ruled New Orleans. Now he is a mercenary using his powers as he sees fit. An old friend has called in a favour. This could get very dangerous.

Anya is an angel and a warrior in her own right, but she has a secret that could destroy her. It could make her do unspeakable things. There is one archangel who can help her, but he is in trouble himself. She needs help to find him, but can she trust a demon.

A very exciting story set in a scary world. Fantastic characters that you can't help falling in love with. The action will pull you in from the very first page until the last.

Great fun.