Death Doesn’t Bargain Book Review (Deadman’s Cross #2)

Death Doesn’t Bargain is the second historical fantasy title in New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Deadman’s Cross series. Where Deadmen tell their tales, and every soul is damned or redeemed by the final choices they make.

The Deadmen are back…

But so are the demons who have broken free of their eternal prison and are bent on mankind’s destruction. The worst of the lot is Vine, determined to claim their lives for taking hers. She will see the world burn…and has the perfect lure to destroy them all. One of their own.

Kalder Dupree has never known a day of mercy. Born to the cruelest of mer-races, he sacrificed himself for his crew and is in Vine’s hands. He expects no mercy or rescue.

Yet Cameron Jack is determined to set Kalder free. As a Hellchaser, it’s her calling, and she cannot allow even a not-so-innocent to be tortured for an act of kindness that spared her damnation.

To defeat evil, it sometimes takes an even worse evil, and Cameron is willing to do whatever she must to make this right. If Vine thought she had her hands full before, she hasn’t seen anything nearly as powerful as Cameron’s resolve.

This series has to be one of the most addicting series that I have ever read! The only sad part is the fact that since I received this novel early, I will have to wait an even longer time to read the next installment.

This book FINALLY focuses on Cameron, and gives her a new love interest, Kalder! I appreciate the fact that these novels actually focus on one couple at a time, as we learn their backstories and they learn each other. It helps me to connect with the characters even more and learn to appreciate their stories.

Cameron is definitely a worthwhile character, and in this novel, we learn more about her and her brother, and their family life before the seas. She is a strong woman who is determined to set Kalder free and teach him that he deserves kindness.

Kalder has been hardened against the world for many years after a horrible experience with his family. He doesn’t give mercy, nor does he expect any back. He knows that Cameron is not the right woman for him. He doesn’t deserve someone so kind and pure. However, Cameron is determined to change his mind, and slowly he falls for her.

I can’t express how much I LOVED this book. A: There are MERPEOPLE. I love merpeople so much, it’s not even funny. B: Cameron and Kalder were so sweet to each other, I lived for the romance in this novel. C: The action scenes were even more intense in this novel. This novel scared me a few times, it is definitely a dark fantasy novel. If you read the first one and didn’t think it was dark enough, read this one. The scenes with Kalder and his brother nearly made me cry.

The world-building was definitely even better in this novel, and the pacing was perfect. I read this book nearly in two school periods or about 2 hours. I was completely drawn in and addicted to this novel. There were no editing errors even though I had an advanced copy, and as a plus, the cover art was beautiful. I have absolutely no complaints about this novel.

I would recommend this novel to lovers of romance and dark fantasy.

I received an advanced copy of this novel and this is my voluntary review.

Overall Rating: 6/5