My love for romance reading is based on many things, but I must admit that alluring heroes top that list. It seems that I seldom find one of those perfectly desirable heroes these days, but Jennifer St. Giles serves up such a delectable one in her latest release that I fear most other heroes will fall short by comparison for some time to come.

The Dragon’s Curse has held the Killdaren family in its grip for over a thousand years and history has shown that any time twins are born, one twin eventually kills the other. Twins Alexander and Sean Killdaren are living the nightmare after a fight eight years ago between the two ended with Sean crippled from the brothers tumbling over the side of a cliff. Although both live in Dartmoor’s End, they neither speak nor see each other, but their game is one of avoidance, resentment, and a desperate attempt to hamper the curse. Lord Alexander Killdaren, Viscount Blackmoor, is the elder of the two and he chooses to pay his penance for his part in the crippling fight by leaving no legitimate heir, thus allowing the title to pass to Sean and his heirs.

Andrie Andrews lives in Dartmoor’s End with her sister, who recently married Sean Killdaren (Midnight Secrets). However, it is progressively difficult to live with the newly married couple since Andrie sees a lot more of their lives than they realize. Gifted with the ability to read another’s thoughts when she touches them, Andrie knows her gift is increasing and the burden of seeing the thoughts of those around her, despite her efforts to tune them out, is almost too much to bear. Long ago she made the decision to live her life alone without inflicting her gift on another and she knows the time has come to support herself. She believes her knowledge of antiquities and her ability to catalogue them will provide her with the needed income and she seeks to gain local employment. The forbidden twin, Alexander, has a large estate close by filled with such antiquities and Andrie bravely asks him for employment cataloging his artifacts.

In Andrie’s mind, Alexander is the most dynamic person she has ever met, as well as the most intriguing. Added to her intense attraction to him, she has yet to “see” into his mind although she has touched him several times. The added benefit to working in his home is the pact she and Cassie have made to reunite the brothers. Now that Cassie carries Sean’s child, her fear is great that the curse will affect her child as well. Both Andrie and Cassie agree that the brothers must come to the realization that they have the power to stop the curse by refusing to believe in it.

Danger seems to be lurking around every corner, but Andrie and Alexander’s romance remains the primary focus of the story. Although I prefer romances that are character driven and don’t rely on the overused obligatory suspense element, I decided early on to accept this suspense plot and did not begrudge the scenes necessary to support it. I think I have already made clear my favorable opinion of the hero, but allow me to point out that Andrie was a pretty terrific heroine as well. Romance works so much better when you thoroughly like both leads!

In addition to the suspense element, there are numerous secondary characters and a total of four romances, one of which involves Sean and Cassie, whose story was told in the first book of this series. Theirs is not the sickeningly sweet, romance-laden relationship most often seen when past lead couples appear in a sequel, but rather a relationship that remains full of challenges. As the second of a series, Darkest Dreams suffers significantly from ongoing plot descriptions with many pages devoted to past events and character profiles. Before writing this review, I read Midnight Secrets for a better understanding of the entire story and am sorry to say that since it failed to hold my attention, had I had read it first, I may not have picked up this wonderful book. Ultimately, this heavy reliance on the previous book’s events reduced my final grade to the B range. If one is willing to work through the first four chapters, though, this book does perform well as a stand alone.

Although I can’t say I dislike stories written in first person, I can state that I definitely prefer to read the hero’s thoughts. However, first person works quite well here since Alexander’s hidden thoughts enhanced his mysterious sexy persona and when a few of those thoughts were later revealed – whew! – I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. And while Andrie can’t read Alexander’s thoughts, she picks up just enough to add considerable heat to a few of the scenes that may have tempered the first person voice as well.

Two people determined to never marry is a plot device I have read too many times to appreciate it much anymore, but St. Giles’s approach is rather refreshing. And, though there is a very satisfying HEA for Alexander and Andrie, Darkest Dreams most definitely does not end with its final pages. It is obvious that at least one other romance is in the works and you better believe, now that I have processed the background storyline, I will follow it through to the next HEA as well.