Kiyoko Ashida exemplifies the Japanese culture as we see it. Her tranquil beauty and strong self-control are a result of her training to battle demons. Her sense of duty completely focused, even though she knows she is slowly dying.

Jamie Murdock could not be further from the pristine calmness of Kiyoko and the Japanese society he must now enter in order to search for and retrieve a mysterious artifact. Jamie constantly struggles against the aggressiveness of his berserker side, always seeing it as a monster within himself that he must try to control but often fails at.

The artifact known as The Veil can consume or restore. Jamie learns that Kiyoko has it, and all he knows is that he must obtain it in order to keep it from demon control. However, one touch from Kiyoko and he loses all control of his berserker, and experiences a raw need for her that he has never known. Kiyoko is not immune to Jamie's touch either as it brings on a need she has difficulty quelling in her normally tranquil life.

When a fallen angel sets his sights on obtaining The Veil, which Jamie has learned keeps Kiyoko alive, he must find a way to separate Kiyoko from the artifact without losing her, or choose between her life or protecting humankind.

SURRENDER TO DARKNESS is the third book in Annette McCleave's Soul Gatherers series. She paints a beautiful picture of the peaceful power behind Kiyoko's training and the raw energy of Jamie's berserker well. Both characters have a strong sense of duty that fights with their own desires throughout the novel. The fight scenes are full of action and the scenes pull you along at a very good pace.