| | |  | Amazon Kindle | Home » » » Lover Unbound (Black Dagger Brotherhood, Book 5) | | | | | | | Description: | | The ruthless and brilliant brother Vishous possesses a destructive curse and a frightening ability to see the future. As a member of the Brotherhood, he has no interest in love or emotion, only the battle with the Lessening Society. But when a mortal injury puts him in the care of a human surgeon, Dr. Jane Whitcomb compels him to reveal his inner pain and taste true pleasure for the first time-until a destiny he didn't choose takes him into a future that does not include her...
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123 of 140 found the following review helpful:
 Both Amazing and FrustratingOct 09, 2007
By K. Montgomery
Lover Unbound garnered an instant impression from me on ending it. It was a hard journey, probably the hardest book to read of the series for me. I thought Ward had wrung out of me all the rough emotions I could possibly feel with Zsadist's book (Lover Awakened), but oh, how wrong I was. My first impression? Well, it was a mixed bag actually: disappointment, utter joy, a bit of a depression in regards to some characters, smiles for certain scenes, heartfelt sighs for others...and a definite piqued interest for continuing with the series. A mixed bag to say the least--more like a salad in which some ingredients were found exceptionally tasty and snatched up, others a bit wilted and set aside for pondering.
Vichous, resident IT geek and live wire (think the hand). He's had it tough the last several months. He's got some conflicting emotions to work through regarding his roommate, Butch, feelings he hates himself for. Meanwhile, the war with the Lessers isn't going away, but turning a corner instead into newer, possibly deadlier territory. Like all of the brothers, his life hasn't come without a price, and memories of his father's warrior camp impede his ability to heal on the inside. His way of dealing is to indulge some darker sexual preferences, but is it helping? When a Lesser roundup goes bad, V finds himself hospitalized, but in a human one where the brotherhood is in danger of exposure. There he meets Dr. Jane Whitcomb, a self-assured surgeon...his savior. If not for her, he'd most likely have died, so why not kidnap the brilliant doc to make sure the healing continues? There's something about her that sparks the "mine" instinct and V's not having it any other way. Only problem is there's this tiny little job he's got to handle for the SV and it may mean an end to what V wants and a beginning to what's best for the vampire race as a whole. Can V step down from what he wants? Is it really in a warrior's nature? Jane may have been more than he bargained for too, more than he can sacrifice this time. And for a brother that's made incredible sacrifices in the past, it just might be time to take a stand.
First off, I agree with some of the professional reviews--this is not the book to enter the series on. If anyone starts off with it, they're doing themselves and the books a disservice. This series is worth reading in order from book one. Vishous has had quite the interesting development in the last four books (in order: Dark Lover, Lover Eternal, Lover Awakened and Lover Revealed). It's probably safe to say that many readers developed some expectations--who wouldn't with these vamps? They're exceptionally developed, larger than life (in our minds) and full of some very engaging emotions. I realized though, that in doing so I was putting myself and the characters in a corner. Realizing this didn't make me appreciate the ending any more, which is different. Hard hitting, heavy and raw. This book WAS raw, gritty and in-your-face. It's the BDB though, that's what we've been getting. The author has stayed true to the roots of the series in that regard. Did I wish it could have been different for the main characters by book's end? Big yes. Jane felt too rushed, but the circumstances in which she entered the series were rushed too, so it could be explained that way. Regardless, I wished for more from/for her, and I suppose that is why the ending disappointed me. To me, the ending left a lot of questions; ones I hope will be answered in later books. She seems to still have an important role by the ending, so that gives me hope. The romance was a bit understated compared to previous books--there's a lot of detail about John Matthew and his friends included, a great set-up for Phury's book (next in the series titled Lover Enshrined, June 2008). Secondary characters do play a bigger role in this one and those parts were stellar. Even Zsadist continues to develop beautifully--Ward's not done with the individual characterizations! This book explored some deep emotions and a new take on the way romance can be written. While the ending left me feeling unsatisfied, I'm still convinced this is one bold, gutsy and talented author, which only lead me to wanting one thing in the end--Phury's book. We meet his possible mate and what we find out about her and the culture she arrives from is not to be missed. Lover Unbound is going to sure-fire please fans, or put them in reserve and on guard. Oddly enough, it did both for me. Sounds like a success to me.
20 of 23 found the following review helpful:
A Well Written Book, but...Sep 29, 2007
By T. D. Bell
"tink"
All in all I am disappointed. Not what I was so very much looking forward to. (I know! I ended that sentence with a preposition. Sorry.) Vishous has always been that one character whose inner workings (thoughts and feelings) were unknowable. I expected his story to be filled with dramatic tension. There was none. The V of the story did not live up to the V of former books or even that of his own past. When I read that he kidnapped a human doctor, I just knew there would ranting and raving on her part and implacable resolve on his. There would be his attempts to reconcile his usually emotionless self with the new emotions bonding would throw on him. Nope. Didn't happen.
There wasn't even any romance in the story. They fell in love and committed to each other in what 24 hours? The biggest love affair in this story was between Vishous and his mother (and I don't mean anything sexual by that statement), or maybe it was the romance between Phury and his conscience, but it sure as heck wasn't the one between V and Jane.
There should have been hundreds of pages of romantic and sexual tension, and there's nothing but slack. The best parts of the book were the dialogue betweenn Butch and V, and V and Jane, and the parts about John Matthew.
Speaking of Butch. Man, there was so much Ward could have done there. V's feelings for Butch combined with his feelings for Jane would have been HOT (still not talking sex, people)!!! His feelings for Butch drying up like a up-rooted dandelion just because he bonded to Jane? Disappointing.
Did I mention I found this book disappointing? But, as I said, well written. It just isn't much of a romance. Its just another addition to the Black Dagger Brotherhood series in which Vishous falls in love. And the ending? Talk about jumping the shark!!!!!
29 of 35 found the following review helpful:
 What a hot messSep 25, 2007
By SSG
A distressing misstep in Ward's otherwise addictive and enthralling series.
What's wrong? Three main problems:
1. The main love story is rushed and unconvincing. Vishous, the Brother with the most fear of trusting others (after Zsadist), falls in love the fastest of all -- and begins to think "mine" after hearing only a few words from the heroine. Truly unbelievable. The Vishous in this book barely resembles the one of previous installments.
2. The cosmology goes entirely off the rails, with a rethinking of the major deity in the Brothers' world. The only problem: This new Scribe Virgin is so inconsistent, so egocentric and so unreliable that it is hard to imagine any group of thinking beings being devoted to her. And it is hard to imagine admiring and wanting to know more about beings who would want to worship HER.
3. The picture we see of the Chosen -- the daughters of Brothers and the servants of the Scribe Virgin -- is so misogynistic and so claustrophobic that it is impossible to imagine it coexisting with the Brothers' culture, in which their females are revered, protected and exalted. The two sides cannot have come out of the same values -- which suggests incoherent and ad hoc world-building on Ward's part.
The flaws in world-building and the character contradictions with Ward's earlier books make me very worried for the coming books. Ward needs to step back, rethink the consequences of all her inventions and make sure that the next book is consistent with itself and the world she's built.
33 of 41 found the following review helpful:
Not good...Oct 03, 2007
By Chanelle
Wow, I can't believe I am writing a bad review for a JR Ward book. I have been such a huge fan of this series from the beginning, and have faithfully pre-ordered every book, but V's book feels like it was written by someone else completely. It was so disjointed and didn't flow at all. You could really tell that JR had a tough time with this book, and it feels as if she really didn't like V all that much.
All through the series so far, V has been very uncomfortable with his feelings, especially where love is concerned, yet he falls for Jane almost instantly. I don't mean the whole "mine" moment, because I know that happens right away with every brother, but he accepted and embraced being "in love" without any inner conflict what-so-ever. And the woman he falls in love with just doesn't measure up. Jane is very underdeveloped IMO, and her actions don't coincide with her profession or her upbringing. She is supposed to be this stoic no nonsense surgeon who grew up in a rich unfeeling home, yet she speaks like some street rat and falls in love just as quikly as V does...wtf???
I don't even understand why they fell in love in the first place. Jane thinks V is hot, and V likes Jane's brain? And why is Jane so okay with being kidnapped by a bunch of vampires. If I was kidnapped by vampires, I would be freaking out, not exchaning quips with my captor, no matter how hot he was. And the hand job thing...what the hell was that about? V has just kidnapped her, he is her patient, he is a vampire ( which I feel that any sane person might need a little time to adjust to), she is supposed to be very professional, yet she gives him a HJ ( on the first or second day...can't remember) without even knowing his whole first name?? the whole relationship was not believable at all.
I kept having to put this book down. It took me almost four days to read it, and pretty soon I was just skimming. The ending was really lame, but by that time I just didn't care anymore. I'm not invested in their relationship, so don't feel disappointed about the casper issue.
I did enjoy the parts with Phury, and I am probably in the minority as far as Cormia goes. I actually liked her, which is funny because I couldn't stand Marissa. I also really loved the parts with Z and JM, and was happy that JM went through his transition. It really sucks that the good parts of the book were the ones that had nothing to do with the main characters.
11 of 12 found the following review helpful:
 The series jumps the sharkFeb 26, 2010
By Reviewer Aus
I gave five stars to the first four books in the series. It was generous perhaps, but to use a favourite description of the series, JR Ward writes crack and once you're sucked in it's hard to stop.
However, Lover Unbound proved it was capable of ending the addiction.
This book signals a sad change in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, and in all honesty I wish I had stopped at book four. I am sometimes leery of book series that go on too long, and have in the past sometimes avoided reading beyond the first few books. This series is a perfect example of why this is often a good thing to do.
JR Ward has lost interest in her story. She's trying to change her world into something else, but God I wish she'd finished off the six brothers' stories before ruining her original premise.
Where was the love in this book? Love of any sort? How come nobody in the huge household came to see Jane, knowing she'd been kidnapped and was terrified? Where were the other women? Where was the `brotherhood'?
Oh, that's right. Ward was so busy playing favourites with her secondary characters she forgot to write the main story.
I did not warm to any of the characters in this story. Jane, a fairly butch, pushy woman, was supposed to be from some fancy, upper class world, and yet she spoke like something from the gutter. And then as the story progressed she dissolved into a whiny, whimpering idiot. Vishous fascinated in other books. Here he was so bland I found it hard to care. I really wanted to love him. From the first book when he was so funny with Butch, and so caring of Beth, I expected to love him. Here, I didn't.
JR Ward likes to push the sexual envelope, and while it isn't always my thing, I don't have a particular problem with most of it (apart from Vishous' admission he committed rape!). However, a bit of touching in a sick bed and the weakest BDSM scene to ever appear in print do not a relationship equate. Who cares about a bit of kinky sex that's so cold? So clinical and technical and devoid of emotion?! How does that make us care what happens to these characters?
And Vishous was a sexual dominant for, what, five minutes? And all of a sudden he's having regular sex and then...Jane's the dom?! Huh?!
In past books a male vampire has been fiercely protective and caring of his mate. He would not eat until she had, would not allow her to be uncomfortable in any situation. And yet here Vishous abducts Jane, keeps her prisoner, does little to allay her fears, and then makes her SLEEP ON A CHAIR in his room. He leaves her unprotected in her house, and does very little to prevent her from being terribly hurt at the end. When I think about the way the heroes of previous books have cared for their women, this one was astoundingly lacking in emotion.
The rules of the Brotherhood world (if it even is the Brotherhood world anymore) are changing to suit the author's interests, and it's ruining the story. How is it Rhage was beaten and whipped within an inch of his life for loving a human, and yet Wrath just says `meh' to Jane and allows it? How is it anything that mattered in the past no longer matters?
Before this book there was always an air of secrecy about `the other side' of this world. The mystical, godlike characters who determined fates should have stayed mystical and godlike. Removing the mystery from that aspect of their society ruined the story. The more we see of the Scribe Virgin and her world, the more I am left thinking of something along the lines of Conan the Barbarian or a Monty Python skit. Keep the secrecy, I beg you!
And as for the end? I'm sorry, but when you create a world, there are rules to follow. You can't create a fantasy world and then after five books change it on a whim. This is world-building at its worst. Suddenly introducing Casper the Ghost at the end of the book was most certainly the moment this series jumped the shark.
I don't read this series for a `coming of age' story. I understand the author is disturbingly obsessed with the disturbingly dull and boring John Matthew, but if I wanted to read about vampire adolescence I would have picked up a very different series. It is very hard work to even get myself to read these parts of the story.
There is only thing I enjoyed about this story, but it's most certainly not enough to earn a star. I enjoyed the `rescue' of Vishous from the hospital. It was funny. But that the only good thing.
Ward excuses her weak effort with this book on the fact she can only write what her characters tell her to write. This is beyond stupid. Take charge of your series instead of blaming its failures on imaginary characters!
These books were always wildly entertaining. So much fun you'd read them in one sitting. The magic is gone, and the series seems beyond redemption. I'll be sticking to Lara Adrian from now on.
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