Dark Celebration
Dark Celebration
By
Christine Feehan
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Dark Desserts
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
From the back page and flaps:
"Feehan has a knack for bringing vampiric Carpathians to vivid, virile life in her Dark Carpathian novels."—
Publishers Weekly
"[An] out-of-the-ordinary romance… deeply sensuous… exquisitely detailed."—
Booklist
"I don't just read Ms. Feehan's Carpathian series, I devour them.
Connoisseurs of paranormal romances will find this series
THE BOMB! Triple kudos to Ms. Feehan for her stupendous imagination and talent."—
Rendezvous
"After Bram Stoker, Anne Rice, and Joss Whedon (who created the venerated
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
), Feehan is the person most credited with popularizing the neck gripper."—
Time
Dark
Celebration
They seek liberation through their unspeakable desires. They find deliverance in forbidden fantasies. They are drawn to their lifemates after centuries of wanting. Vampires, shapeshifters, hunters, demons, lovers, healers, seducers and betrayers.
You are cordially invited to attend…
With her erotically charged Carpathian tales, Christine Feehan has enthralled a legion of fans, captivated by a strangely seductive world and the unforgettable characters—both human and not—who inhabit it. Now she reunites them all in a
Dark Celebration
…
After centuries as the prince of the Carpathians, Mikhail Dubrinsky fears he can't protect them for long from their greatest threat: the extinction of their species—a fate that has become the wicked prayer of his enemies. To ensure it, they are devising a scheme to slaughter Carpathian females. But even with his own lifemate, Raven, and their daughter, Savannah, vulnerable to the encroaching evil, Mikhail's hope is not lost…
In this desperate season, Carpathians from around the world are gathering to join their strengths, their souls and their powers to bring light to the darkness. But so too are their adversaries uniting—hunters, vampires, demons and betrayers—bringing untold dangers into the fold of the Carpathian people.
Now for the first time, borne from the uninhibited imagination of Christine Feehan, all the inhabitants of Carpathian legend are reunited for a celebration of sensual adventure, undying passion and astonishing fantasy—one to remember for a thousand lifetimes.
CHRISTINE FEEHAN
I live in the beautiful mountains of Lake County, California. I have always loved hiking, camping, rafting and being outdoors. I've also been involved in the martial arts for years—I hold a third-degree black belt, instruct in a Korean karate system and have taught self-defense. I am happily married to a romantic man who often inspires me with his thoughtfulness. We have a yours, mine and ours family, claiming eleven children as our own. I have always written books, forcing my ten sisters to read every word, and now my daughters read and help me edit my manuscripts. It is fun to take all the research I have done on wild animals, raptors, vampires, weather and volcanoes and put it together with romance. Please visit my website at
Cover art by Larry Rostant
Cover handlettering by Ron Zinn
Cover design by George Long
Visit our website at
A BERKLEY BOOK
Published by The Berkley Publishing Group
A division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street
New York, New York 10014
09/06
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada
(a division of Pearson Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr. Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This book is an original publication of The Berkley Publishing Group.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The recipes contained in this book are to be followed exactly as written. The publisher is not responsible for your specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision. The publisher is not responsible for any adverse reactions to the recipes contained in this book. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
Copyright © 2006 by Christine Feehan.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
BERKLEY is a registered trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
The "B" design is a trademark belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First edition: September 2006
Berkley hardcover ISBN: 0-425-21167-3
An application to register this book for cataloging has been submitted to the Library of Congress.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
For my beloved daughter, Cecilia, who has always given us reason for celebration!
For My Readers
Be sure to write to Christine at
[email protected]
to get a FREE exclusive screen saver and join the PRIVATE e-mail list to receive an announcement when Christine's books are released.
Acknowledgments
Many thanks to Diane Trudeau for her help with the recipes. Cheryl Wilson, you know you are invaluable. Denise, Manda and Brian, thank you for your unfailing support and all of the work you do to help me put these books together.
Dear Readers,
Over the past few years, I have received thousands of letters asking for a reunion of the Carpathian characters. I resisted the idea for a long time, uncertain how one could bring so many vivid and larger-than-life characters together in the same book. It seemed a daunting task. Then one evening, I was sitting around a fireplace talking with some author friends about the mess we'd made of the dinner that night. We'd rented a house together to work, and unfortunately, some of us were a little lax on the cooking skills. (I'm not mentioning names here or raising my hand, but a few of the disasters depicted in this book actually did happen, sadly enough to say.) We were laughing so hard, and the idea of a Christmas party where the Carpathians cooked for their friends was born.
I pitched the idea to my editor as a special thank-you gift book at Christmas time for my readers. I was very excited to have a fun, lighthearted book to write. I was thrilled with the idea of adding in the Dark Desserts, and so many wonderful people from all over the world sent in the most scrumptious recipes. The concept was completely different than anything I'd ever conceived of writing, so it was going to be great fun! And then I sat down and started to write it…
First of all, it hadn't occurred to me that there was no hero and heroine, and that I would have to find a way to transition each chapter smoothly. And second, and more important, I don't write fun and lighthearted. My characters tend to take over the book and run away with it, and this book was no exception. No matter how hard I tried, the book turned—yes, you guessed it—
dark
!
Once I called my editor and warned her that the book had taken on its own life and I wasn't going to be delivering that lighthearted book, I simply accepted it and allowed the characters free rein. They took over, and
Dark Celebration
became a huge part of the rich tapestry that makes up the Carpathian world. I had fun revisiting the characters and finding out how they were doing together and what their lives were like as couples as well as what the Carpathian society was like as a whole.
The book turned into something very unexpected, but in all honesty, I thoroughly enjoyed myself writing it, and I certainly hope you have just as much fun reading it. When I write, the characters definitely dictate the story, so several were very forthcoming while others hung back a little more than I would have liked. All in all, in the end I think we caught a glimpse of old friends and what their lives are together. I found myself smiling a lot while writing it and hope you have the same reaction reading it!
Warmest regards,
Christine
