Great for the series fans

Charlie is a great writer and – as always – really has a way with combining action, romance and humor.

I’m not a big fan of “reunion” romances – I like that initial spark too much – but I did love that after all this time our guys finally get their chance to be together.

Of course, there is other drama going on – and more danger - as well as some more Dex/Sloane interactions – and a furthering of the overall mystery/arc.

For fans of the series, this is a must, and while I bet you could read this as a standalone, I think you’d miss a lot.

I'm glad the series is wrapping up, however, because we are starting to ease into the land of soap opera (i.e. people coming back from the "dead) and I think we've just about done all there needs to be done with this.


Audio


Mark Westfield is the voice for this series, so I can’t really add much to this review that hasn’t already been said.

I thought his English accent was fine and I enjoy his little “extras” that he throws in to keep the narration fresh and engaging.

I still sometimes struggle to appreciate his intonation, as he does seem to end each sentence in the same way, regardless of the emotion being portrayed – but after awhile I don’t notice it.

Overall, I’d give this 4 of 5 stars.

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I’m not crying, you’re crying!

Seb’s and Hudson’s love story was a cautionary tale that circulated throughout THIRDS HQ and I’m glad to finally dive deep into their story.

We have glimpses of their story from the previous books in the series.. but this time, it’s from both their POVs.

Hudson’s self flagellation was hard to read. He was punishing himself and punishing Seb. On one point, it’s understandable as to how it became that way, but it’s heartbreaking whenever he gives himself and Seb hope, only to snatch it away again.

These two fought for their HEAs that when they finally, FINALLY, got their HEA, I got severely misty eyed. 🥺

Thrown in some plot twists and one plot line that I knew was gonna happen, this story makes for another great one in this series.

Five stars and more for Seb and Hudson.

1 person found this helpful

Loveable Hudson

I just love Hudson so much, he is one of my favorite characters in the series. And with my afore mentioned sentence if you haven't guessed, this book focus is on Hudson and Seb (YaY). Their love story is bitter sweet, so have tissues nearby, there are some rollercoaster moments.
And I got to say I'm loving the bad guy Wolf too, I don't know what it is but since he was first introduced he was such a gentleman, and yeah he did terrible things to our lovable Dex, I'll just blame it on Charlie Cochet she made such a lovable bad guy... Plus the narrator gives him such a sweet alluring accent.
And you find out a little secret about Wolf too..... Psssst... Tony Montana's Bad Guy speech comes to mind when I think about Wolf.....

1 person found this helpful

5 star narration

Time after time Charlie Cochet creates such amazing stories filled with non-stop action, intrigue and romance, while narrator Mark Westfield makes that world all the more richer; Darkest Hour Before Dawn, the ninth book in the THIRDS series is no exception. You definitely do not want to read this without having read all the other books in this awesome series.

Mark Westfield delivers us back into the world of the THIRDS agents, namely Sebastian Hobbs and Dr. Hudson Colburn.

While the story is filled with tons of action and suspense the author really gives readers a more intimate view of one of my favorite couples, Seb and Hudson.

These two men belong to each other. Hudson is marked and truly mated to Seb. A tragedy in their past breaks them apart and throughout the series we see them dance around each other. In this installment we get an inside view into the how’s and why’s of their relationship.

I really enjoy Seb and Hudson interacting. Seeing the push and pull between the two and how these guys truly ‘pine’ for each other. I love seeing how close Hudson still is with the Hobbs family, especially his relationship with Seb’s Mom and Dad. With Westfield’s narration I could feel how important and emotional being connected to them is for Hudson. Hudson also frustrates me with his back and forth because it’s so plain to see how much Seb really cares for him. But it’s nice to see them circle around each other and slowly realize the depth of their love for one another.

Darkest Hour Before Dawn is not all romance, there is definitely plenty of action and intrigue going on throughout the story. The timing is perfect and the action scenes fleshed out.

Mark Westfield is definitely at his best when narrating fight scenes and confrontations and with the many revelations in this installment his narration kept me listening and wanting more.

I can’t wait to see what’s next for our favorite fellow agents.

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Worst narrator

His British accent is abominable. I suggest he doesn’t overreach his own abilities again. No one should employ this terrible narrator.

romanticizing emotional abuse

Hudson is very emotionally abusive constantly knows what he's doing to Sebastian and continues to do so knowing Sebastian will always take him back should've ended with Sebastian accepting his loss and overcoming the mark and starting over again

Another brilliant entry in an already great series

Original Audiobook Review October 2022:
Seb and Hudson are just as great as the first time I read them 5 years ago. Their chemistry is so palpable you can feel it in the air as you listen. I would have to say that Seb/Hudson is still my 4th favorite pairing in the THIRDS universe but the margins between them, Ash/Cale, and Calvin/Hobbs is so infinitesimal that it's more of a 3-way tie behing Dex/Sloane.

As I've said before, I collect old radio shows out of the 30s & 40s and an unofficial box I tick to judge greatness when listening to audiobooks is when a narrator's reading is so powerful when portraying multiple characters, I expect to hear the sponsor's ad. Once again, Mark Westfield has done just that as he puts voice to Seb & Hudson's journey.

And as always, Charlie Cochet adds more layers to her THIRDS' individual characters and overall paranormal universe of mayhem she's created.

Original Review October 2017:
We've learned snippets here and there throughout the THIRDS series about Seb and Hudson's past. When Seb marked Hudson he thought their love was enough to get them through anything life could throw at them. He was wrong. But since Dexter J Daley joined Destructive Delta it seems that Seb and Hudson are continually in each other's orbits. Now that Hudson is in danger, Seb is determined to keep him safe but can his determination be enough to get the job done and can it possibly be what tips the scales of love back in their favor?

As with the entries that featured Ash/Cale and Calvin/Hobbs, I worried that perhaps I would not be able to get as invested in Darkest Hour Before the Dawn simply because I absolutely love and adore Dex/Sloane so much. Equally as with Ash/Cale and Calvin/Hobbs, I needn't have worried because even though Seb/Hudson may not be on the same wavelength as Dex/Sloane for me they definitely burrowed into my heart right along side the rest of the THIRDS duos.

Darkest has plenty of what we come to expect from a THIRDS tale: action, lust, mystery, romance, drama, but above all it has the heart that Charlie Cochet continually weaves these other elements together with and add in the whole shifter factor and its a perfect tick to everyone's paranormal box.

Dankest Hour Before Dawn

Omg this audio book was absolutely positively amazing. i would highly recommend this audiobook.

Mixed feelings, but overall really good

First the negatives:

The secondary title for this book could’ve been “___ Swallowed Hard.” I’d bet that sentence appeared every fifteen minutes of this ten-hour book. It got to be a running joke in my head.

The sticky-sweet romantic dialog and declarations were a little over the top.

This narrator has grown on me with all the previous books and I’ve gotten used to his characteristic phrasing and tone. I really like his voice. But, the English accents were truly terrible. That wouldn’t ordinarily be a big deal for me, but one of the two main characters in this book is English and has a LOT of dialog. What’s even worse is that Hudson’s voice sounded more like a woman than either Nina or Sparks did. It was really off-putting. Not one of Westfield’s beat efforts.

Now the positives:

The story is excellent. I’m really impressed with the world-building and the complexity of the plot and the characters. Also, the author seems to finally feel more comfortable writing the sex scenes. I really love this series and I’m sorry to know it’s almost over, this being the ninth in a ten-volume series. I’ve binge-listened to the whole series to the point where II’ve dreamt about Destructive Delta a couple of times. I love all these guys, especially Dex and Ash.

The heat scale for this one is 3.75 of 5 chili peppers. Fairly explicit, but still feels like the author is a tad uncomfortable with too much detail. I like it dirty. And, no man I know, straight or gay, reaches for wet-wipes right after they come. :)

Emasculated military Therians

I love the overall story. I know this is romantic series, but it is a very frustrating series. For a bunch of military men, they sound like a bunch of whiney pussies. No one gets over betrayal or torture as quickly as these characters do. It is not realistic & is quite the turnoff. Just because they are gay, they should not be emasculated.