Reviewed by Jen B.
TITLE: Refined Instincts
SERIES: Instincts #5
AUTHOR: S.J. Frost
PUBLISHER: MLR Press
LENGTH: 64,000 words
BLURB: Troy Raines wants it all to end. His pain, his heartache, his regrets. Having been in hiding to avoid capture from the Tribunal, he returns to Chicago believing since that’s where everything began for him, that’s where it should end, as well.
Renart Bellerose has known many regrets in his long life as a vampire, but few are stronger than what he has regarding Troy Raines. As the one to make Troy a vampire, he gave him power, money, anything he thought Troy wanted, but he restrained on giving him what they both needed.
When Renart and Troy face each other again, anger and passion explodes between them. Renart wants to help Troy find redemption, but as danger closes in, it might be too late to set right the wrongs of the past.
REVIEW:
I’ve been looking forward to Troy’s story ever since Daniel threw him from the building, leaving him crippled. I just knew there was more to his story and was really happy to finally see that play out.
Sadly, when this starts, Troy is set on finishing things to finally end his pain and suffering. He returns to Chicago, the scene of the crime, so to speak, to make that happen. However, he didn’t count on his master, Renart, stepping in and essentially changing all of Troy’s plans. I actually always liked Renart, though I never saw him as Troy’s match, though after the sparks fly, I have no trouble accepting it. Here, we get to see more into Renart’s background and what made him the way he is today.
Things are going well for them as they finally decide they want each other. That is, until reality sets in and comes crashing down in the form of the Tribunal. Troy is wanted for his past deeds, and Renart is now on the radar as harboring a criminal. Thankfully, Titus has been making some headway with the way the Tribunal operates and seems to have become quite a powerful member. I quite enjoyed watching Titus throw some of his power around, and it was great catching a glimpse of Andreas and the other guys as well.
It was nice to see things finally work out for Troy and that Renart didn’t have to go through a replay of what happened to him in his pre-vampire life. While this wasn’t my favorite book of the series, I’m still hooked, enjoying it, and definitely looking forward to more.
Jen rates it – 