This eARC contained two stories. Lord of the Abyss was a fantasy with blood sorcerers and a family that has magic powers. The abused daughter of the sorcerer - a blood sorcerer herself - goes to find the youngest son of the family to aid him in taking back his country from her father. The son - Micah - was sent away by his mother to save his life and has become the Lord of the Abyss whose duty it is to capture evil souls and consign them to the Abyss. He is an object of fear to those around him. He doesn't remember his past until Liliana gradually brings back his memory.Micah may be an object of fear but he is still honorable and kind. His true self as a Prince of Elden is not destroyed. But it is buried under the spells cast by the blood sorcerer who wants to destry Micah's whole family. Even though she is ugly and has no self-esteem, Micah falls in love with Liliana. He admires her courage and sense of honor. She tells him stories and makes him laugh. Her goal is to restore his memory and get him back to Elden before her father manages to completely destroy the country. She is determined to defeat her father and thinks that her death will be necessary to defeat him. She is reconciled to this until she gets to know Micah.This was a nice romance (with some very hot love scenes) and fantasy adventure all in one.Desert Warrior was the second story. Apparently this one was first published in 2005. It reads a bit that way with a too handsome to be true sheik and a beautiful but insecure heroine. She was forced by her family to give him up at age 18 and he has been nursing a broken heart and damaged pride ever since. Her heart was broken too but she was too young to stand up and rebel against the only family she knew. No matter how badly they treated her. When his parents die, she goes to his desert kingdom to comfort him. Almost immediately he decides to marry her but never to trust her with his heart again. Since she loves him, she agrees. Next there are many instances of him being emotionally cruel to her as he tramples on her pride and her already low self-esteem. There are also lots of hot love scenes because, whether he will admit it or not, they do love each other.I don't know how or why Jasmine puts up with the stuff Tariq throws at her. I would think that love could be destroyed if it were treated as badly as it was in this story. The story was filled with intense emotions and heartbreak on the way to the happy ending. It was an emotional roller coaster of a story. Very intense!
