Where Demons Fear To Tread by Stephanie Chong

Publisher: Mira (Harlequin)
Pages: 368

(Release Date:  August 23, 2011)

From the Cover:

Fledging guardian angel and yoga teacher Serena St. Clair dares enter Devil's Paradise nightclub on a mission—to retrieve the wayward Hollywood "It Boy" she's assigned to protect. But she's ambushed by the club's owner, arch demon Julian Ascher. The most powerful demonic entity in Los Angeles, Julian is handsome as sin, a master of temptation who loves nothing more than corrupting pleasure–seeking humans. He won't release the lost soul Serena is supposed to guard. Unless she accepts his dangerous wager…

After the disastrous way his human life ended, Julian vowed that no woman would get the better of him again. Yet this sexy–sweet angel, smelling of fresh ocean air and happiness, triggers centuries–old feelings. Now, their high–stakes game of seduction, where angels fall from grace and where demons fear to tread, will lead them either to an eternity in hell.or a deliciously hot heaven.

Serena (names reminds me of serene which all angels should be) is an angel with a purpose. It's her job to save the young heartthrob, Nick Ramirez, from himself. He's on a destructive path being led by Julian Ascher. When Nick ends up in Devil's Paradise (Julian's devilish club complete with hookers willing to let Nick snort cocaine off their... various body parts), Serena makes it her business to enter the Devil's hunting ground to retrieve the wayward Nick. She doesn't count on Nick falling in puppy dog love with her or Julian for that matter.

Julian Ascher spies the fledgling guardian angel entering his demented domain and makes it his business to keep young Nick and to bring Serena to the status of a fallen angel. Nick is an easy score, he's well on his way to giving the devil his due. But, Serena on the other hand, is nothing like Julian has met before, and probably won't ever again. If he doesn't watch out, he'll be the one falling, out of grace with the devil and in love with a guardian angel.

Where Demons Fear To Tread by Stephanie Chong is a paranormal romance between a sexy sweet guardian angel and a soul sold long ago to the devil (though I'm not sure that makes him a demon. I've always viewed soul sellers are minions of the devil, where demons are those fallen angels less powerful than Lucifer, controlled by demonic needs as well as the master himself...so this is a new concept for me). As Serena tries to save Nick, she becomes the devilish delight of Julian Ascher. He lets the fledgling guardian escape his clutches on her first transgression, but he can't say the same for himself. He finds himself entrapped by the angel's charms, and it infuriates him. It makes him feels things long forgotten, and he figures he's better off with them forgotten. The angel must be brought down, to bask in his need, to give until he can't take anymore. And he succeeds.... almost. Can things get worse? Will Serena become one of the fallen? Or can she save herself and her new love?

Where Demons Fear To Tread starts out pretty darn good read. I was instantly taken in by Julian's magnetism, his need to have, take, keep. By the way, he's one hot demon! Serena on the other hand was just a little bit whiny, but I'm a little bit whiny, so I can forgive her this one sin. As I continued to need, the plot builds, and diverts from the original purpose without the knowledge of the main character, Serena. It's a nice little subplot...so I keep reading, waiting for the time when she achieves her goals. But, then, she's having trouble achieving in her first purpose...and then she finds herself drawn to the demonic Julian. I'm really liking this part, lots of good Julian tidbits and I'm still enjoying the story. But, it gets to the end, and suddenly, it feels rushed, almost like I've missed something. So, I go back and re-read the last chapter, but I haven't missed anything either. The book is about angels and demons, so I expected angel-like qualities, but at the end, it felt almost too much angelic. All in all, I enjoyed this quick little read, and I'll be looking forward to the next in the series, The Demoness of Waking Dreams, February 2012. I can recommend this book to all paranormal romance lovers. 3.5 out 5 fairy kisses for this reader.

Other reviews: My Overstuffed Bookshelf, Anna's Book Blog, Lovin' Me Some Romance, Geeky Blogger's Book Blog.

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I received my copy for review from PTA Reviewer Rewards. All opinions expressed are my own.