Laura Kaye – South of Surrender

The third book in the Hearts of the Anemoi series, published May 28, 2013.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: my book has the small cover, and those hands don’t look good there. For the rest, I like my cover better.



She's the only one who can see through his golden boy façade to the broken god within...

Chrysander Notos, Supreme God of the South Wind and Summer, is on a mission: save Eurus from his death sentence, and prove his troubled brother can be redeemed. But Eurus fights back, triggering vicious summer storms that threaten the mortal realm, dangerously drain Chrys, and earn the ire of the Olympic gods who ordered Eurus dead.
Laney Summerlyn refuses to give up her grandfather's horse farm, despite her deteriorating vision. More than ever, she needs the organized routine of her life at Summerlyn Stables, until a ferocious storm brings an impossible--and beautiful--creature crashing down from the heavens.
Injured while fighting Eurus, Chrys finds himself at the mercy of a mortal woman whose compassion and acceptance he can't resist. As they surrender to the passion flaring between them, immortal enemies close in, forcing Chrys to choose between his brother and the only woman who's ever loved the real him.


I have enjoyed the first two books in this series, but this one is the best so far. Chrys is the Supreme God of the South Wind and Summer, and as it is his season now, he should be the strongest of all his brothers. But his evil brother Eurus of the East Wind still beats his ass every time they meet, wounding him badly, and he should not be able to do that. Chrys stubbornly believes that his brother can be redeemed, if only he turns himself in, and asks for clemency, even though the Olympian Gods have asked for his death because of his recent deeds.
When he finds out that Eurus is wearing their father’s ring that was specifically made to control them when they were boys, he fears for his father’s live. But this time the battle between them is so severe, Chrys can’t remain his shape and the huge storm conjured by Eurus throws him through the roof of a barn.

Laney Summerlyn is almost blind, and only the routine she follows from day to day allow her to keep living by herself, with a good friend to help out and look after her if necessary. When the storm damages her barn and she hears the horses panicking, she sets out to investigate. Not believing her senses when she finds a strange horse in the barn, a horse with wings! But the horse is injured and when she has finally treated it, she is exhausted. Intending to only rest for a while, she falls asleep beside it. When Laney wakes up the next morning, the winged horse is gone, and a naked man is asleep beside her. She panics and injures herself trying to get away from him. Now it is Chrys’ turn to help her, but his energy levels are too low to heal her, he can only clean and bandage her wounds. He is very much attracted to Laney and especially the amount of heat she radiates. As the God of Summer he needs warmth to survive. Cold and ice will kill him.

Chrys would love to stay with Laney and find out what is happening between them, but he can’t. He has a brother to fight and a father to find. When Chrys finally comes back to Laney and he senses that Eurus has been inside her bedroom with her, he is furious and scared for her. Eurus doesn’t mind killing people; he was sentenced for killing his second brother’s wife just a few months ago. It doesn’t matter that she has been made into a goddess herself, he killed her first. And so he takes her with him to Owen, while he meets with his brothers to discuss what has to be done.

A battle starts while they are all there, and Laney is thrown into their world. Chrys wants to keep her safe, but it is Laney who safes him in the end.


I really enjoyed this book, and read it in one sitting. I confess I don’t really like reading about a heroine with a disability, but Laney was great, and she handled it perfectly. No pity, no wining, she dealt with it and I admire her for her courage. For an avid reader like my self, there is no bigger fear than going blind.

Chrys feels guilty that his father never loved Eurus, and did show affection to him instead, and thinks it is partly his fault that Eurus is such a bad guy. He wants to give him another chance, but he finally realizes that Eurus cannot be saved. He is evil to the core. The things he has done are unredeemable and unforgivable.

Of course this is the worst timing ever, to find a woman to finally love, but he has found Laney and he will keep her. If she wants him. Chrys will also have to deal with Laney’s friend and protector, who is a bit more than he seems.

There is a lot of fighting between the Gods, and that is amazingly well written. I am glad I am not outside in a storm like that. Some die, and others are taking their place. I admit I would have liked a daughter to step into her father’s place instead of just sons taking over, so they are all male gods.

Some of the Olympian Gods play a surprising but very nice part in this book as well, and I won’t spoil the surprise for you if you still have to read this book. I look forward to the next book, which will be the last in the series. I do hope that Eurus dies a horrible death as I can’t believe in his redemption through love at the moment. Laura would not tell me when I asked. So, I’ll see for myself soon.
Yes, I am a vengeful reader sometimes and I do want some characters in some books and series I read to get what they have so richly deserved instead of love and happy ever after.

9 stars.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian