This review was first posted on http://www.rubysreads.com. 
 It's unlikely that I will ever hate a Nalini Singh book. My love of the Psy-Changeling books will carry me through any less than satisfactory tale she might tell. I don't mean to imply that Archangel's Blade wasn't a good book--it was. It entirely revived my interest in the Guild Hunter books, which have always taken a back seat to her other series. For me, anyway. 
 In the first three Guild Hunter books, Raphael and Elena were center stage. But Raphael's right hand, Dmitri made appearances in all three books. He was the slightly malevolent but essentially good character you go all dreamy over because he's "the bad boy". And goodness knows we love a bad boy. Dmitri also houses another male cliche--he's that guy with the tortured past. Between these two characteristics, he's had a legion of (female) admirers since we first met him in Archangel's Blood. 
 In the first three Guild Hunter books--and, indeed, in this one--Dmitri comes off as a cold-hearted you-know-what. Archangel's Blade being his book, we get the opportunity to delve into his psyche, and to learn what events are responsible for him having so thoroughly closed off his human side. The truths that are revealed are so devastating you begin to think of him as well-adjusted. 
 Archangel's Blade also tells the story of a Guild Hunter named Honor. On the surface, this vampire and this hunter have very little in common--except, of course, a mutual attraction. Furthermore, Honor was abducted and tortured by some vampires not so long ago, and so she's understandably wary around Dmitri. He may be good-looking, but he has a reputation for mixing pain and pleasure and Honor, scarred as she is, wants no part of it. In typical Nalini Singh-hero-fashion, Dmitri doesn't see this as an obstacle and commences pursuit. What evolves between these two is more than either of them bargained for, and because this is a Nalini Singh book--that's a wonderful thing. 
 While I enjoyed my reading of this novel, I guessed the twist fairly early on in my reading. Which would have been fine, except that the hints felt clumsy instead of like admirable foreshadowing. And then, when all the details came to light, I wanted a better ending for these two. Spoiler:(view spoiler)[Specifically, I was upset that they won't be able to have children, after what they had lost. (hide spoiler)] I also got really worked up over the fact that (view spoiler)[Honor had to go through rape and torture twice! (hide spoiler)] 
 In the end, though I whizzed through Archangel's Blade, the love story didn't completely satisfy me. I did enjoy seeing Raphael and Elena from another perspective. I'm also greatly looking forward to Venom and Poison's book--I'm going out on a limb here, but I think they're meant for each other. I know I'm going to have to wait for it, but hey--I've learned that with Nalini Singh, the waiting is definitely worth it.