DEMON BY MY SIDE is the follow-up to Victoria Davies's previous book, Seducing the Demon Huntress. It's a good idea to read that one first because a lot of the events that unfold in that story are central to the plot of this one. I loved the previous book, so I was eager to read this one. Happily for me, DEMON BY MY SIDE has a lot of the same qualities that made me love the previous book. I also liked catching up with the two previous main characters -- Kerilyn, the demon huntress and Arawn, Lord of the Spirits.

Darcy Snow and Jaral are natural enemies. He is a demon prince and she is a demon hunter. From the first moment they meet, there is a lot of heat between the two. In spite of the antagonism between their people, there is a strong immediate sexual attraction. They are both deeply conflicted the attraction. At first, the two appear to be on missions with similar goals so that they form an uneasy alliance working together making the story part "buddy movie" and part hot paranormal romance.

The sexual tension is fabulous. I love the romantic game of cat and mouse that the two play with each other. I also like that the author fleshes out the characters and their motivations, making them more than just two sex-crazed, one dimensional characters. You especially got a sense of the high stakes they're both playing for and the difficult ethical dilemmas they both face.

Darcy doesn't want to trust Jaral totally and put her own happiness ahead of the safety of the human race, and Jaral reluctantly recognizes Darcy as his mate but has to go against his powerful and very evil father to find happiness with Darcy. The screws are tightened even more when Jaral's mission changes and puts him at odds with Darcy's mission, even though he keeps that fact a secret.

Trust is a big theme in DEMON BY MY SIDE. The decision to trust a person based on what the heart says is something that Darcy and Jaral both agonize over. This story was the right amount of sexy and substance for me. I look forward to reading more from Victoria Davies and hopefully more stories in this series. I hope to read stories about Darcy's friend Cailin and Jaral's friend Liam.