Willing Sacrifice

Praise for Shannon K. Butcher’s

Novels of the Sentinel Wars

Falling Blind

“A taut mixture of action and suspense.”

—Smexy Books Romance Reviews

Dying Wish

“A superb paranormal suspense.”

—Genre Go Round Reviews

“Butcher’s rise to the top of the paranormal and romantic suspense genres has been swift. . . . Her hallmark is consistent, superior storytelling that combines emotional punch with high-adrenaline danger—a recipe that can’t miss!”

—
Romantic Times

Living Nightmare

“There’s only one way to describe this book to me: fabulous!”

—Night Owl Reviews

“[An] action-packed story of the brooding and angry warrior Madoc and his journey to the future. This series rocks!”

—Fresh Fiction

“Utilizing her ability to combine excellent characterization with riveting danger, rising star Butcher adds another fascinating tier to her expanding world. You are always guaranteed generous portions of pulse-pounding action and romance in a Butcher tale!”

—
Romantic Times

“Ms. Butcher’s written word began to grab hold of my imagination and lead me on a ride unlike anything I have read before.”

—Coffee Time Romance & More

Running Scared

“What an entertaining and thrilling series! The characters are forever evolving, secrets are revealed, powers are found, new details come to life, and love is the cause of it all. I love it!”

—Fresh Fiction

“Superb storytelling. . . . I am amazed how Ms. Butcher’s intricacies and subplots continue to expand the story without bogging down the overall plot.”

—Romance Junkies

“This book jumps right in the fray and keeps you hooked till the end, and I was unable to put it down. Emotionally dark, this is a wonderful blending of paranormal romance and urban fantasy [with] many twists and turns.”

—Smexy Books Romance Reviews

Finding the Lost

“Exerts much the same appeal as Christine Feehan’s Carpathian series, what with tortured heroes, the necessity of finding love or facing a fate worse than death, hot lovemaking, and danger-filled adventure.”

—
Booklist

“A terrific grim thriller with the romantic subplot playing a strong supporting role. The cast is powerful, as the audience will feel every emotion that Andra feels, from fear for her sister to fear for her falling in love.
Finding the Lost
is a dark tale, as Shannon K. Butcher paints a forbidding, gloomy landscape in which an ancient war between humanity’s guardians and their nasty adversaries heats up in Nebraska.”

—Alternative Worlds

“A very entertaining read. . . . The ending was a great cliff-hanger and I can’t wait to read the next book in this series. . . . A fast-paced story with great action scenes and lots of hot romance.”

—The Book Lush

“Butcher’s paranormal reality is dark and gritty in this second Sentinel Wars installment. What makes this story so gripping is the seamlessly delivered hard-hitting action and wrenching emotions. Butcher is a major talent in the making.”

—
Romantic Times

Burning Alive

“A wonderful paranormal debut. . . . Shannon K. Butcher’s talent shines.”

—
New York Times
bestselling author Nalini Singh

“Starts off with nonstop action. Readers will race through the pages, only to reread the entire novel to capture every little detail . . . a promising start for a new voice in urban fantasy/paranormal romance. I look forward to the next installment.”

—A Romance Review (5 roses)

“This first book of the Sentinel Wars whets your appetite for the rest of the books in the series. Ms. Butcher is carving her way onto the bestseller lists with this phenomenal nonstop ride that will have you preordering the second book the minute you put this one down.”

—
Affaire de Coeur
(5 stars)

“Absorbing. . . . Butcher skillfully balances erotic, tender interactions with Helen’s worries, and intriguing secondary characters further enhance the unusual premise. Fans of Butcher’s romantic suspense novels will enjoy her turn toward the paranormal.”

—
Publishers Weekly

“Ms. Butcher offers fresh and delightfully creative elements in this paranormal romance, keeping readers engaged as the story unfolds.
Burning Alive
is a well-crafted beginning to this exciting new series, and will have fans of the genre coming back for the next adventure in the Sentinel Wars.”

—Darque Reviews

“An exciting romantic urban fantasy. . . . Shannon K. Butcher adds her trademark suspense with plenty of tension and danger to the mix of a terrific paranormal thriller.”

—
Midwest Book Review

“
Burning Alive
is Shannon K. Butcher’s first foray into paranormal romance and what a doozy it is! Filled with sizzling love scenes, great storytelling, and action galore; fans of paranormal romance will rejoice to have Ms. Butcher finally join the genre!”

—ParaNormal Romance

“A different twist on the paranormal genre. . . . Shannon K. Butcher has done a good job with
Burning Alive
, and I will definitely be reading the next in the series.”

—Fallen Angel Reviews

NOVELS OF THE SENTINEL WARS

Falling Blind

Bound by Vengeance

(A Penguin Special)

Dying Wish

Blood Hunt

Living Nightmare

Running Scared

Finding the Lost

Burning Alive

THE EDGE NOVELS

Edge of Sanity

Razor’s Edge

Living on the Edge

WILLING SACRIFICE

T
HE
S
ENTINEL
W
ARS

SHANNON K. BUTCHER

SIGNET

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) LLC, 375 Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014

USA | Canada | UK | Ireland | Australia | New Zealand | India | South Africa| China

penguin.com

A Penguin Random House Company

First published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) LLC

Copyright © Shannon K. Butcher, 2014

Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity, encourages diverse voices, promotes free speech, and creates a vibrant culture. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. You are supporting writers and allowing Penguin to continue to publish books for every reader.

REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

ISBN 978-1-101-62783-9

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

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.

For Terri L. Austin, a fabulous writer and even better friend

Drake Asher:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Helen Day

Briant Athar:
Sanguinar

Connal Athar:
Sanguinar

Logan Athar:
Sanguinar, blood hunter, Hope Serrien’s mate

Aurora:
Athanasian servant

Cain Aylward:
Theronai warrior, Sibyl’s protector

Angus Brinn:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Gilda

Gilda Brinn:
the Gray Lady, Theronai, bonded to Angus

Maura Brinn:
Theronai, Sibyl’s twin sister

Sibyl Brinn:
Theronai, Maura’s twin sister

Canaranth:
Synestryn, Zillah’s second-in-command

Meghan Clark:
blooded human

Helen Day:
the Scarlet Lady, Theronai, bonded to Drake Asher

Eron:
Athanasian prince

Neal Etan:
Theronai warrior

Madoc Gage:
Theronai warrior

John Hawthorne:
blooded human

Mabel Hennesy:
blooded human

Dakota Kacey:
Theronai, bonded to Liam Lann

Lexi Johns:
the Jade Lady, Theronai, bonded to Zach Talon

Nicholas Laith:
Theronai warrior

Liam Lann:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Dakota Kacey

Samuel Larsten:
Theronai warrior

Thea Lewis:
human woman living at Dabyr

Tynan Leygh:
Sanguinar

Lucien:
Athanasian prince

Andra Madison:
the Sapphire Lady, Theronai, bonded to Paul Sloane

Nika Madison:
Theronai, Andra’s sister

Victoria (Tori) Madison:
Theronai, sister to Andra and Nika

Torr Maston:
Theronai warrior

Beth Mays:
blooded human, Ella’s sister

Ella Mays:
blooded human, Beth’s sister

Jake Morrow:
human, member of the Defenders of Humanity

Blake Norman:
human, Grace Norman’s stepbrother

Grace Norman:
blooded human, Gerai

Jackie Patton:
Theronai, daughter of Lucien, bonded to Iain Terra

Andreas Phelan:
Slayer, leader of the Slayers

Lyka Phelan
: Slayer, Andreas’s half sister

Joseph Rayd:
Theronai warrior, leader of the Sentinels

Viviana Rowan:
the Bronze Lady, Theronai, bonded to Neal Etan

Hope Serrien
: Logan Athar’s mate

Cole Shepherd:
blooded human

Alexander Siah:
Sanguinar

Paul Sloane:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Andra Madison

Carmen Taite:
blooded human, Gerai, cousin to Vance and Slade Taite

Slade Taite:
blooded human, Gerai, cousin to Carmen, brother to Vance

Vance Taite:
blooded human, Gerai, cousin to Carmen, brother to Slade

Zach Talon:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Lexi Johns

Iain Terra:
Theronai warrior, bonded to Jackie Patton

Morgan Valens:
Theronai warrior

Zillah:
Synestryn lord