Julian with a secret darkness is close to turning. So he is given a task, one more before he faces the dawn. only to find his lifemate. a singer who is one of them a carpathian travelling with her family who escaped as children from the wars of their homecountry and have been unknown of. I rather liked this book definately Julian. Desari is pretty much like all the female hero's in her books but then so is Julian. A great writer and a must read series.

Was She More Than His Mate? Julian Savage was golden. Powerful. But tormented. For the brooding hunter walked alone. Always alone, far from his Carpathian kind, alien to even his twin Aidan. Like his name, his existence was savage. Until he met the woman he was sworn to protect… Was Desari more than his perfect mate? Julian had met his match in this woman, but would she drive him to madness…or save his soul? A book that finally has two Carpathian characters instead of one, that captures your heart, and your love of music. Desari is not like all the other females that the carpathians are looking for. She is an ancient carpathian, and one of the last females of their race to still be living. She brings hope to our golden warrior, as he brings hope to her and her travellers that there are more of her kind still out there. This is definitely a classic to all Carpathian fans. One of the best stores in the series. Follows up to Dark Magic and is the fifth book in the series. If any reader has made it this far in the series, then you have to keep going. these books won't disappoint you. :)

I really liked this book, its my favorite so far, because Desari (the lifemate of Julian) is Carpathian herself and no fledgling but an ancient. She is equal in power to all the males but as female she possesses a different sort of power that the male Carpathians have never seen. With her unearthly voice she ensnares Julian and together they fight the ancient evil that stains Julians soul, taking their love to new heights. I liked Julian more then the Carpathians in other books as he really does treat Desari like his equal and is willing to sacrifice all for her happiness - a true romantics book.

Dark Challenge tells the story of Julian Savage, a powerful hunter amongst the Carpathians, and Desari, a Carpathian woman with a singing voice which is pure magic. Unfortuanately, Desari and her troop (who are also Carpathian) basically raised themselves and have no knowledge of the Carpathian culture and the existance of lifemates. Thus begins the enthralling tale of an alpha male, an independent woman and the challenges that they will face, not only from vampires but from the "vampire hunting" society who are determined to kill Desari because of her unique gifts. I highly recomend this book and can almost gaurantee that you won't regret the purchase of this particular book.