Even though Entwined is the second in the Eternal Guardians series, I didn’t feel like I was missing a huge chunk of backstory when I read this book, which was nice. Zander, our hero, is an Eternal Guardian who is supposedly invincible, immortal and desperately unhappy. Zander believes that he’s succumbed to Hera’s curse, to meet his soul mate and then lose her, and live out his immortal years remembering what it was like. That’s some curse. <> Almost eleven years before our story begins, Zander met and fell in love with Callia, the totally inappropriate (for him) daughter of one of the twelve Council members. Zander knew he shouldn’t touch her, that she was betrothed to someone else and that he was a totally unsuitable match for him, but unexpectedly he found his soul mate. Unfortunately, Callia’s father’s harsh disapproval of their relationship, and an unexpected pregnancy that Zander found out had been terminated, made Zander hate Callia almost as much as he had once loved her.

Flash forward to the present day, and Callia is the King’s personal physician. Zander is an Argonaut protecting the human world, and they shouldn’t really ever have to see each other again. Until the sickly King decides that his daughter Isadora needs to be bound to an Argonaut within weeks and produce an heir to the throne as soon as possible. Zander volunteers for the job, thinking that he doesn’t have anything to lose.

Suddenly, Callia and Zander are thrown back together again by a mysterious tattoo, hidden scars, family secrets and the King’s plan. They find that their attraction is roaring back to life hotter than ever, but that there are so many secrets between them that their anger is just as hot. They need to work together if they are to fulfill their destinies.

Okay everyone, let’s make this clear – I loved this book. I loved the hero, I loved the heroine, I loved the background characters, I loved the suspense.

Zander is a gorgeous heartbreaker of an alpha male. He was just unhappy enough to be vulnerable without being a sap. He’s also got the protective instinct that makes him more attractive. He’s still a warrior, and a bit of a scary one, and that nicely balances his softer side.

Callia feels like her life has been one big chain of mistakes but instead of feeling sorry for herself, she takes charge and starts making her own choices, owning her past. This is a tricky balance to write, but it really worked here, making Callia sympathetic and real to the reader.

The background characters are plentiful, each with their own side story, but the flow is beautiful. This colorful cast never allows for a dull chapter to pass.

Also, the suspense is beautifully written. The tension in the story as the stakes escalate build naturally to a fever pitch and the character development is retained throughout the scenes. Also, I love that Naughton keeps her dialogue fresh and fun without leaning on the drawn out lyrical paragraphs that sometimes happen when characters are caught in a mysterious scenario.

For all of those reasons and more, I loved Entwined and I’m betting you will too!

--Amy Wroblewsky