Book Review: Fated: Blood and Redemption by Bey Deckard

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Fated: Blood and Redemption
Author: Bey Deckard
Series: Baal’s Heart #3
Heroes: Baltsaros/Jon/Tom
Genre: MM Fantasy
Length: 350 Pages
Publisher: Bey Deckard
Release Date: April 11, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  With the captain’s mind in shambles, Jon and Tom set out to find the passage home through the black mountain range, hoping to find a cure for Baltsaros’s madness. However, when the men are forced to part ways, darkness takes root in the schism created; fate, lust, and vengeance become obsessions threatening to tear apart the fragile bonds holding the three together.

Following on the heels of Sacrificed, Fated takes the pirates on a quest to find those responsible for the captain’s bloody beginnings. But can they survive what awaits them where past and present meet?

Review:  Well, Mr. Deckard has managed to do it again with this third installment of the Baal’s Heart adventure.  This was every bit as good, if not better in some ways, than the first two.  The writing is unbelievably smooth, and the scenes just flow almost seamlessly from one to the next.  It actually feels as though you are along for the ride with these guys, and what a ride it is.

This picks up where the previous one left off with the men heading back to Madierus for help in curing the Captain.  Jon is the captain now, and it’s taking some adjustments on everyone’s part, including him, though I say he’s stepping up to the plate quite nicely.  Of course, he has the every fabulous Tom by his side to help him along.  Tom, what a breath of fresh air it is to hear him again.  I actually like that they are still kind of struggling with their threesome given the circumstances they’ve encountered.  Yet, they are all still on the same page of wanting to make it work.  They face many obstacles, question things and each other, but still their desire and love for each other shines through.  Even Captain B shows us some of his more emotional caring side every now and then.

One of the things I don’t generally enjoy are flashbacks…unless they are done right, as they most definitely are here.  Through them, we gain insight on how things came to pass, learn more intimate details about the characters and how events unfolded, and they all just added a lot of color to this already colorful story.  Again, everything flowed very smoothly.  It was like doing a dance, taking a few steps forward, then one step back to fill in some details, then a few more steps forward.  Very well done.

Another thing I absolutely loved were the chapter titles and chosen quotes at the beginning of the various chapters.  Honestly, I often don’t read these, but I looked forward to and loved every one, finding they each fit perfectly with the corresponding chapter.

This story is truly an adventure through an amazing world created with the help of tantalizing words, beautiful imagery, and is just one heck of a good story.  I happily savored every word and was not ready for their story to end.  Thankfully, it seems Mr. Deckard isn’t quite ready either and has given us a nice teaser at the end of more to come in this fabulous world.  This was a perfect end to one of my all-time favorite fantasy series.

Overall Impression:  It was amazing

*I received a copy of this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review.*