Product Description

They're called the Nightwalkers - proud, ancient beings who live in the shadows, existing just beyond the human world. But there are also dangerous humans who hunt them - necromancers who use the blackest magic to manipulate them. And for a Demon named Gideon, the battle against these evil forces will soon be all too personal...For a thousand years, Gideon has healed his people. And as the oldest surviving male of his race, his wisdom has always been respected without question. But Gideon knows that even he is vulnerable to the powerful, primitive desires that befall his kind during Hallowed moons - and nine years ago that truth was hammered home when he found himself claiming Magdalegna, the Demon King's sister, in a wild embrace. Horrified by his lack of control, he left her wanting and furious - and then exiled himself for the better part of a decade. Now, with necromancers threatening his people - and Magdalegna nearly their victim - Gideon must face another truth. He and the beautiful, stubborn Magdalegna are destined to be together, to share a love as deep and old as time itself. But first he needs to regain her trust. Then he'll have to save her life...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77737 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 352 pages

Customer Reviews

Love at first... teleport?
"Gideon" is the second in the Nightwalkers series by Jacquelyn Frank, the first being "Jacob". It doesn't matter if you haven't read the first book in the series when reading this one as the backstory is given fairly early on, in fact in a rather clumsy and inelegant fashion. Still it helps to set the scene for what is, unfortunately, rather a thin plot but in an interesting world.

Gideon and Magdalegna are both Demons, not demons as we know them but a race of people with special talents (ability to manipulate fire, to heal, to teleport, to work with emotions, etc) who keep away from humans. However, human necromancers can occasionally catch demons and their influence somehow turns demons into evil creatures, thus the cause of the legends of evil demons amongst humans. The demons are just a part of the "Nightwalkers", things that go bump in the night such as vampires and lycanthropes, who have all been warring against each other for hundreds of years.

As this book starts the wars between demons, vampires and lycanthropes have been stopped and the races are just beginning to settle into the peace, albeit with considerable mistrust. However Gideon, the oldest of the Demons, at over a thousand years old, has been working with Damian the head Vampire and with Siena the queen of the werewolves to build bridges. Gideon has a reputation as an emotionless man whose wisdom comes from his advanced age and whose healing skills are legendary but who doesn't have many close friends.

Magdalegna is the sister of the King, Noah, and she's a young thing at just 300-odd years old. She's always been aware of Gideon as she was growing up but an unfortunate brief kissing session nine years ago with him, which ended with him running away from her, caused her to dislike and resent him. However at the beginning of this book she finds herself in company with him, especially after her half-druid friend Isabella is seriously injured by some mystery foes. Gideon helps to heal Isabella and comes into contact with Legna and they both discover a strange affinity for each other. We are informed of something in Gideon's history that may cause Magdalegna to permanently turn away from him when she finds it out although the novel didn't really make much of this possible plot twist.

The world of the Demons works with 'imprinting', that there is one special person for them, and Magdalegna and Gideon discover fairly early on in the book that they are Imprinting one another. This means that their powers and skills are partially transferred to each other which enables them to work together with other Demons to uncover who was behind the attack on Isabella and who is also plotting against the other demons and druids. At the end of the book there's a kind of crescendo as the Nightwalkers fight against the evil humans to protect themselves but mostly this book is a little slow in action with rather long passages where Gideon and Magdalegna talk about imprinting with each other and talk to each other telepathically, talk to their relatives and generally don't do a lot.

Although written in lush prose and with some interesting characters and skills the paucity of the underlying plot was rather a weakness in the story. If you are happy to read about a romance which isn't actually a choice between the people, but is their destiny, and how they learn to live with knowing each others' thoughts, this book is interesting enough. If you are interested in reading more character development and action and events then this book may disappoint.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book, www.curledup.com. © Helen Hancox 2007

Gideon - Jacquelyn Frank
More of the same in this one really. If you've read Jacob, you know the plot of Gideon already. Gideon, the eldest Demon has lived in self-imposed exile for over a decade, ever since the night he encountered Magedelena under a Hallowed Moon. Now, with necromancers threatening the safety of all Nightwalker species, Gideon must face his past and his fears to fight for his people and win his destined mate.

The Nightwalker books are lushly written and highly enjoyable for that, but the plot of Gideon, like Jacob, depends more upon skilfull and intriguing world-building than action and intrigue. Despite a history of animosity and mistrust between Gideon and Legna, they come together as an Imprinted pair very quickly and with very little angst. Legna cries loud and long about not wanting the pairing, not wanting Gideon himself, whilst he prattles and moans in a patronising manner, but their issues are quickly swept under the rug and forgotten. Even those who oppose their mating, such as Legna's brother, the Demon king Noah, seem to forget their objections after a while.

As with Jacob and Bella from the first book, Gideon and Legna are "destined" to be together, which removes any real sense of conflict from their relationship. Although Legna initially struggles against her attraction, she can't escape it so she just resigns herself to it and hey-presto, she's madly in love. Ta-da! I have to admit it's a factor in these books I find irritating.

Where Frank excels is in her world-building and mythology, and it's that which keeps me coming back. We see for the first time some of the other Nightwalker races - Vampires and Lycanthropes, and get an intriguing glimpse of their societies. Frank gives some new twists to shape-shifters, although there's not much fresh in her take on vampires. That doesn't really matter though, since the characters are fascinating. Siena, Queen of the Lycanthropes will be back in the third book, Elijah, and I look forward to seeing her.

If it weren't for the sense I had that I was running in place with this book, I might have rated it higher. Frank is a great writer with a powerful imagination, but her characters spend more time talking than acting and that lets Gideon down. And one other question - why do the Demons have a king, the Lycanthropes a Queen, but the Vampires only a Prince?

Somewhat disappointing
After reading "Jacob" which was excellent, I was a bit disappointed in this book. I found that I skipped pages just to find out what happened. The storyline was weak although the characters was strong and it took forever for the characters to sort themself out and get it together, although they knew each other. When they finally did I was expected much more and the anticipation just evaporated into nothing. The book did explain a lot (maybe too much) from they relationship in reading Jacob. Everything that made "Jacob" and excellent book was lacking in "Gideon: The Nightwalkers" I was sadly.....disappointed