“You are an adventure I’ve always wanted to take—and I’m so glad I have. But adventures have consequences…. You know, I’m not sure they would be adventures if they didn’t.”
King Oberon of the Dark Court has been in a coma for decades, brought on by an attempted assassination. His long sleep has caused devastating effect on the lands of Lyonesse and his people have been fighting to survive against Isabeau, Queen of the Light Court who is determined to eliminate the Dark Court entirely. So while the situation hasn't been good for the Dark Court and the people of Lyonesse, it has been status quo. Until now. King Oberon is getting worse (meaning closer to death) and as he gets worse, their situation gets more dire. Enter Dr. Kathryn Shaw. Kathryn is a Wyr (a magic-user) and a surgeon who works in New York. When the King's sister asks her to travel to the lands of the Fae, she initially refuses - not because she doesn't want to help, but because she's not sure she can. When it's made clear that she is perhaps their last hope to help Oberon, Kathryn agrees with the understanding that what she says for his treatment goes. Kathryn's treatment of Oberon doesn't go as expected. Within a few days Oberon wakes from his coma - much to Kathryn's dismay - and since the coma was the only thing slowing the progress of the poison that's killing him, she now only has days to save him.
This is the third in Thea Harrison's Moonshadow series, an offshoot of her Elder Races books, and it's right up there with some of her best urban fantasy romances. Oberon and Kathryn are evenly matched in strength and intelligence which is something that always delights me in a romance. I'm okay with super strong heroes who have super powers (the Faerie and shapeshifters version, not the superheroes one) as long as they have love interests that can meet them halfway. That combined with Harrison's excellent world-building and fast-moving plots make for a fun, fabulous read. You don't have to have read all the Elder Races books to enjoy this one, but you might start with the first in the series, Moonshadow, to have an understanding of the overarching war taking place in these worlds.