Review - River Marked

Title: River Marked
Author: Patricia Briggs
Publishing Date: April 2011
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: A-
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new ebook for my Nook.

River Marked is the 6th book in Patricia Brigg’s Mercy Thompson series. In this installment, Mercy and Adam are on their honeymoon. They are up in the woods of the North West, where a series of mysterious events have left the local authorities puzzled. As you know, where Mercy goes trouble follows. Mercy and Adam find themselves unexpectedly involved in helping with the problems that keep occurring along the river, problems that involve missing or injured people.

River Marked was such a treat for me. I loved that the author takes pity on romance fans and gives them what they want. As fans of Mercy and Adam we get to witness their wedding!!! In most romance novels the books end with the happy ever after and usually that doesn't include the wedding ceremony. In River Marked the reader is actually invited to the wedding. I thought that was a lovely surprise. I also loved that the book was entirely devoted to Mercy and Adam. Pretty much everybody else is absent from this book. While for me that proved to be a good thing, fans of Samuel and Sebastian might be disappointed.

As far as the actual mystery goes, I was really floored at the viciousness of the "bad guy". There is some very serious sh*t going down in this book. It was ugly and unpleasant to read about. I will say one thing for Ms. Briggs, she doesn't shy away from the hard stuff, as readers of this series know. However, there is balance with the good development between Mercy and Adam. This is another fantastic installment in the Mercy Thompson series. Fans will not be disappointed.

Review - Shady Lady

Title: Shady Lady
Author: Ann Aguirre
Publishing Date: April 2011
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new book.

Shady Lady is the 3rd book in Ann Aguirre's Corine Soloman series. Corine Soloman narrates this book in the first person. Corine is a handler, which means that she can sense an object's history when she touches it. Corine in the past couple of books has become an enemy of a very powerful cartel near the Mexican border. She finds herself teaming up unexpectedly with Kel Ferguson. Without his help, she likely wouldn't live long with the Montoya cartel after her.

Wow. Shady Lady really surprised me. This book was quite a bit different from the first two books in the series. Corine is still the same... well maybe she has grown from the first book. Actually, now that I think about it, she has definitely grown as a character. I was just surprised at the direction the series is taken. I didn't really envision this. However, just because I didn't envision it, doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it, quite the contrary. I found this installment to be quite enjoyable and thrilling. Oh and can I say, I just adore her little dog, Butch?!

I really like the world building that Aguirre has created in this series. It is still very much our world with a supernatural touch that feels eerily believable. For romance fans, Corine is in self discovery mode and has yet to understand her appeal to the male gender or who she wants permanently in her life, as far as love goes. I felt that this book was very transitional as far as romantic entanglements for Corine. I have my own personal bias about who Corine will end up with romantically, but at this point it looks like nothing is set in stone. I am enjoying this series. I am along for the ride and am definitely interested to see where things go.

Review - From Dead to Worse

Title: From Dead to Worse
Author: Charlaine Harris
Publishing Date: 2008
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Mystery
Rating: C
Sensuality: Subtle
Book Disclosure: I listend to an audio book that I downloaded from my library.

From Dead to Worse is book 8 in Charlaine Harris's Southern Vampire Mystery series. Sookie Stackhouse, a waitress for a Louisiana bar, finds herself in the middle of a werewolf war. There is actually quite a few plots going on in this installment of the series and somehow Sookie ends up in the middle. Sookie's boyfriend Quinn has gone missing and Sookie isn't sure what to do about it. Jason insists on involving Sookie in his life with the shifters. Sookie doesn't want anything to do with any of it, but she is involved anyway.

From Dead to Worse felt like a very transitional book in the series. There were a lot of little subplots without there being a major one. This book felt like the author had to tie up some loose ends before she could move on in a new direction. I am interested in seeing where the author is going to go with the series. However, Ms. Stackhouse needs to pull her head out her butt!

I have to say, I was not overly thrilled with this book. Sookie was getting on my nerves with her incessant whining. I have noticed before in other books, but this one really takes the cake. The hair that broke the camel's back for me was how she treated Quinn. It really pissed me off. Don't worry; I am not going to give away spoilers or anything like that. I am just going to leave it at that. I did NOT like how Sookie reacted or handled that situation. Of course, I am going to continue with the series, but this is my least favorite of the bunch thus far.

Review - Storm Born

Title: Storm Born
Author: Richelle Mead
Publishing Date: 2008
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I purchased a used copy.

Storm Born is the first book in Richelle Mead's Dark Swan series. Eugenie Markham is a shaman. This means that she can walk two worlds, the natural world and the unnatural. Eugenie has been trained since she was a young girl to banish the unnatural back to their world. Recently, more and more attacks by these supernatural creatures have been aimed specifically at her. She becomes the object of much attention because of a prophecy and these creatures even know her by name. Eugenie discovers that a young girl has been kidnapped by the fey. To get the girl back Eugenie must traverse the unnatural world and face a most dangerous fey. To do that, she needs the help of Dorian, another dangerous fairy king. Along the way she also meets a sexy shapeshifter.

Why has it taken my so long to read Richelle Mead? I loved this book! It was rich with world building. I loved the strange fairy world and the beautiful picturesque descriptions. I found Eugenie to be a very straight forward and endearing character. She is a total hard ass when it comes to banishing the bad guys. She doesn't hesitate. Yet she does have a soft vulnerable side, which makes her very appealing to readers. I liked that Eugenie is a work in progress. She doesn't have all the answers. As she walks among the fairies and she learns more about them, she realizes that maybe she misjudged them.

As far as the romance goes, there is a little bit of a love triangle. I know some readers love that and some readers hate it. This has to be the one time that I really can't pick the hero the heroine is leaning towards. I have my own favorite, but I am not sure if that is who Eugenie will pick. I really enjoyed this first installment of Richelle Mead's new urban fantasy series. I can't wait to see where she takes readers next into this interesting world.

Review - On the Edge

Title: On the Edge
Author: Ilona Andrews
Publishing Date: 2009
Genre: Paranormal
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I received a used copy from Paperbackswap.com

On the Edge is the first in a new series by Ilona Andrews. Rose Drayton lives in The Edge. It is a narrow strip of land that divides our world, known as The Broken and the magical world, known as The Weird. Rose can cross over to the Broken. She holds a job there to support her two young brothers. However, Rose has never entered the Weird. Even though her magic is strong in the Edge she is afraid to cross over to the Weird where it might not be strong enough.

Rose is quite a prickly heroine. She has good reason. She is living on the edge of poverty, the guardian to two rambunctious boys and has lived through attempted abductions from people wanting to use her as a brood mare. You'll have to forgive her for not extending trust to anyone who comes her way. One such traveler finds himself at the mercy of that attitude when he stumbles into her front yard.

Declan and Rose work together to fight an evil army that has been infiltrating Rose's small world and threatening her loved ones. Regardless of whether or not Rose wants Declan's help, she can't turn him away all the while fighting her attraction to him. This book is chock full of sexual tension. Declan and Rose fire up the pages. The world building is very creative and thorough. If readers can get past Rose's prickly disposition they are in for a treat. Ilona Andrews has written an intense story that fantasy fans will find hard to put down.

Review - Shadowfever

Title: Shadowfever
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publishing Date: January 2011
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: A-
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I downloaded an ebook from Barnes & Noble to my Nook.

Shadowfever is the long awaited conclusion to Karen Marie Moning's Fever Series. MacKayla Lane AKA Mac, after the huge cliffhanger in the last installment Dreamfever, is about to finally get answers to all her questions. What did happen to her sister, who is Jerrecho Barrons and more importantly just who is MacKayla Lane and how is she supposed to save the world?

I have been enthusiastically awaiting the release of Shadowfever ever since Dreamfever's release. I am happy to say that the book was able to live up to my lofty expectations. I was a little worried n the beginning when things looked bleak for Mac. I couldn't imagine how Ms. Moning was going to fix the situation in which Mac had found herself. Once things turned around the book really took off for me. It was one revelation after another that kept blowing me away. This book had more twists and turns than the Indy 500. I loved every minute of it.

While I did feel that Mac and Barron's relationship finally came to the place readers have long waited for it to get to, I also was surprised at the way it happened. I thought Barron's would do the taking, but that was not the case. I will refrain from saying more because I do not want to give away anything. Suffice it to say, you will just have to read it yourself.

Shadowfever was a great conclusion to a fantastic series. Ms. Moning left a few questions unanswered and hinted at other books. I am so excited that she has more stories to tell because I definitely am looking forward for more of her Fae magic!

Review - Wicked Lovely

Title: Wicked Lovely
Author: Melissa Marr
Publishing Date: 2007
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy
Rating: B
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I borrowed a copy from my library

Wicked Lovely is the first book in Melissa Marr's Wicked Lovely series. Aislinn has always been able to see faeries ever since she can remember. Her Gram taught her that no matter what, she must pretend as if they don't exist. Up until now that really hadn't been a problem for Aislinn to pretend as if they didn't exist, until Keenan the Summer King decides that Aislinn is his Summer Queen and must make it so. Keenan sets out to court Aislinn but to his dismay she doesn't want anything to do with him, no matter that he is the most beautiful man she has ever laid eyes on.

I don't usually read YA novels, but there has been a lot of buzz revolving around Miss Marr's popular series and what the hell, why shouldn't I jump on the faery train too? With that said, I liked the story. It was very captivating, although with Aislinn being so young I felt like her maturity level was difficult for me, personally, to relate too. This is one of the reasons I have hesitated to read YA. But that minor issue of mine aside, I did enjoy the story and wouldn't mind continuing with the series.

Wicked Lovely's pacing was great and the story just flowed beautifully. There is plenty of conflict between Aishlinn trying hard not to attract any attention from the faeries, Keenan not being successful with his courtship of Aishlinn and to Aishlinn and Keenan defeating the Winter Queen. I wish there would have been more description of the faery world and how everything works. Although as the series progresses, I am sure more will be revealed. Also, I thought Aishlinn was a little weak as a heroine, but that also could have been attributed to her age. I mean what teenager isn't riddled with doubts, right? Good story. Good writing. I'm definitely reading more.

Review - The Empress' New Clothes

Title: The Empress' New Clothes
Author: Jaid Black
Publishing Date: 2002
Genre: Sci-Fi Erotic
Rating: C+
Sensuality: Burning
Book Disclosure: I purchased a used copy at a bookstore that specializes in trades.

The Empress' New Clothes is the first book in Jaid Black's Trek Mi Q'an series. Kyra Summers is spending her vacation at a resort that specializes in stress relief and relaxation with her best friend Geris. She is completely clueless that meanwhile, in a galaxy far, far away, the Emperor of Trek Mi Q'an has learned that his queen shall be none other than Kyra Summers. Zor takes a trip to Earth to pick up his destined mate. He finds her outside the resort and whisks her away to his planet. There Kyra must learn the new customs of Zor's world and succumb to his passionate nature.

This book was a lot of fun. It's hokey and over-the-top, but it is also entertaining as all get out. So the theme is a fish out of water. Kyra is taken to another world, existing in another time. It's nothing at all what she is accustomed to and she must learn a whole new way of life. This is the part of the story that I was most interested in and found entertaining.

Since this is an erotic romance there is a lot of sex in this book. The customs on this particular world all seem to revolve around sex. I liked reading about the different customs, but after a while I was bored with the sex. It just seemed like the sex scenes became repetitive. Wash, rinse and repeat. Boooorrring. The entertainment for me came from Kyra finding out the hard way certain customs. That was always good for a laugh. Zor was completely clueless as to what Kyra would accept and not accept as a custom. I actually enjoyed reading this book, but it is no literary classic. If you like Sci-fi and enjoy a good laugh, then you might want to give this one a try.

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Review - Waking the Witch

Title: Waking the Witch
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publication Date: August 2010
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: C
Sensuality: Subtle
Book Disclosure: I borrowed a copy from my local library.

Waking the Witch is book eleven in Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series. Savannah Levine whom readers of this series first met as an unruly teenager and a very powerful witch in the second book Stolen. Savannah is all grown up now and has the opportunity to be a lead investigator on an important case while her guardians and employers, Lucas and Paige are off on a much needed vacation. Not wanting to bother Lucas and Paige, Savannah heads to the small town of Columbus to investigate the murders of three young women.

It's no secret that I am a huge fan of Kelley Armstrong and really enjoy her Women of the Otherworld series. Unfortunately, Waking the Witch is probably my least favorite book in this series. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that this book seems very transitional. Kelley Armstrong seems to be taking her series in a new direction with Savannah as a lead character. She needed this book to set up new storylines and new characters for future books in the series. Plus, it was a way to show how Savannah is changing and growing into womanhood.

I have trouble with Savannah as a lead heroine. Since Savannah was introduced as a character early on in the series, I never really liked her. Savannah has always come across as selfish and her moral compass is slightly skewed. She is not afraid to use her powers and does not shy away from dark magic. By the end of Waking the Witch I felt much more sympathetic to the choices she makes. In this story she gets a rude awakening and I think it is the beginning of a new Savannah. She has a lot of growth to make and I think the upcoming books will reflect that.

Another reason why Waking the Witch wasn't my favorite is because there is almost no romance. Savannah has had a crush on Adam, a half demon who works for Paige and Lucas, since she was a teenager. Their relationship or the one sided feelings Savannah has for Adam was the extent of the romance. Again, I believe that Adam might have feelings for Savannah but won't act on them because he feels she is too young, as he is eleven years her senior. Plus, the story is told from Savannah's point of view and the reader only gets the romance from Savannah's perspective. But I am definitely intrigued as to how things are going to play out in future books.

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Review - Hell Fire

Title: Hell Fire
Author: Ann Aguirre
Publishing Date: April 2010
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B-
Sensuality: Kisses
Book Disclosure: I borrowed a copy from my library.

Hell Fire is book two in the Corine Solomon series. In this book Corine Solomon narrates the story. She heads home to southern Georgia to determine the circumstances of her Mother's death. Corine has always suspected that there were supernatural reasons associated with her Mother's death and they all stemmed from the town itself. She takes Chance, her former boyfriend back to Georgia with her to find out what really happened.

Hell Fire is an excellently written book. However, I didn't enjoy it as much as I did Blue Diablo, the first in the series. This mostly stemmed from the direction or lack there of that Hell Fire went in terms of romance. It seems Hell Fire has more questions instead of answers when it comes to Corine and her men, Chance and Jesse. Corine is at a crossroads in her life and she can't seem to make up her mind on who will fit in her life better. I think it is obvious, but she will walk that path with or without anyone's help.

Okay, so back onto the plot, which was excellent by-the-way. I loved the dark mysterious setting. There is plenty of tension and Aguirre knows how to set the mood. There is something dark and mysterious about the town and this book is about getting to the bottom of that. I love how Corine references that her team almost equals that of Scooby Do and she even goes as far as making a reference to "those meddling kids".

I think this is a series to watch. The writing is excellent. I just would like to know where the romance is going. You know me. I am totally romance driven!

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon

Review - Magic Bleeds

Title: Magic Bleeds
Author: Ilona Andrews
Publishing Date: May 2010
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: A
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new copy.

Magic Bleeds is the fourth book in Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels series. Kate Daniels is a mercenary who works for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, an organization that polices the Magic in the city of Atlanta. Kate goes to investigate a murder that takes place in a border bar frequented by pack and necromancers. Kate encounters a dangerous enemy with the power to control disease. She must put her feelings for Curran the pack leader aside as she tries to hunt down this harbinger of death.

I will admit that it took me a little while to commit to this series. The romance between Kate and Curran was developing a little too slowly for my tastes. I will now gladly eat those words because Magic Bleeds delivered and delivered well even above my high expectations. Slow in this case really works. The build-up was well worth the wait and makes it all the more delicious. Kate and Curran have a lot of problems to overcome if they are to have a successful relationship. I loved that Curran really comes to light in this book. His motivations for why he does the things he does are revealed and the reader gets some back story on Curran.

The world that Andrews has created is complex and terrifying. These creatures that go bump in the night are very powerful. Amazingly enough Kate is able to fight against them and triumph. I found Magic Bleeds to be better balanced between the grimness of situation Kate is trying to fix and the sarcastic humor with how she handles it. Magic Bleeds was funny. I wasn't expecting that. It's always good when a heroine doesn't take herself too seriously and can see the humor in the situation. It lightens things up. This was definitely the best book in the series thus far and one for the keeper shelf.

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon

Review - Mind Games

Title: Mind Games
Author: Carolyn Crane
Publishing Date: March 2010
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new copy at the RT book signing. I was able to meet Carolyn Crane at RT. I will say that I consider CJ a good friend and it's possible my review might be biased :)

Mind Games is the first book in a new trilogy by Carolyn Crane. It is told in first person by Justine Jones, a very unusual character indeed. Justine is a hypochondriac who swears she is on the verge of having a vein star rupture in her brain. See her mother was also a hypochondriac who believed she suffered from vein star syndrome. Ironically enough Justine's mother died from the exact thing that she feared. Justine is approached by a man named Packard who mysteriously knows more about Justine than their first meeting would warrant. He asks Justine to be a part of his vigilante crime fighting team.

Mind Games pleasantly surprised me with its highly unconventional plot and characters. It has a comic book, superhero kind of vibe to it. Only the superheroes in this book don't have superpowers. They have varying degrees of hypochondria that allow them to take down bad guys by transferring their fears into their evil opponents/victims. These superheroes are a group of misfits who never seemed to belong until Packard gave them a home and a focus - a way to channel their fears to let them live reasonably normal lives. Most of the characters are unusual, but Crane is able to walk a fine line between interesting and quirky. Yes, they are strange but not caricatures of strangeness.

Mind Games has a definite heroine, but two possible heroes. Justine has to determine which one is good and which one is bad. What is interesting is that things are not defined by black and white, but varying shades of grey. This makes Justine's decision all the more difficult, but makes for a much more interesting read. Hard core romance readers might not like that the hero is not clearly defined and by the end of the story it is still not determined who Justine will be with. I am very curious to explore this interesting world Ms. Crane has created.

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - Dawnbreaker

Title: Dawnbreaker
Author: Jocelynn Drake
Publishing Date: 2009
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: C+
Sensuality: N/A
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new copy.

Dawnbreaker is the third book in Jocelynn Drake's Dark Days series. Dawnbreaker is told in the first person point of view from the main character Mira, a centuries old vampire also known as the fire starter. She has a major battle coming up between herself and her unlikely partner Danaus against the Naturi, unearthly creatures that have been locked in captivity for years. If these Naturi were to escape, then vampires and humans alike would be in serious trouble, as the Naturi want to kill them all.

Alright, I admit it. I had some problems with this book and I did struggle through the reading of it. Mainly the romance is pretty much non-existent and by book three in the series, I really need a connection to be established between the main couple. To put it bluntly, I need more romance!

Mira is a hard character to connect with. She is fair and protective, but at the core of her is a killer. The plot and characters are very well drawn and well developed, but the pacing of the book is on the slow side. It is most evident at the beginning of the book when things are being set up. It had been a while between reading books in this series and therefore I couldn't quite remember everything that had happened previously. So for a little while there in the beginning I felt a little lost as to what the heck was going on. Eventually, things started to pick up, but it took me a while to be drawn into the story.

I really like the mystery surrounding Danaus. The reader really has no idea what is going on with him. As I heard it from Jocelynn herself, Danaus will be narrating the next book, Pray for Dawn. I think this is such a smart move on her part. I really don't think I would be all that interested to continue this series, but that is some serious temptation. I want to know more about Danaus!!

This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - Tales of the Otherworld

Title: Tales of the Otherworld
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publishing Date: May 2010
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: A
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: Borrowed from the library.

Tales of the Otherworld is a collection of short stories by Kelley Armstrong. These stories are a part of Kelley's Otherworld series. I am going to review this collection of stories as one book, instead of reviewing the individual stories. Each story pretty well ties into each other and it will just be easier for me to give an overall review.

I absolutely loved Tales of the Otherworld, if for no other reason than it had the story of how Clay and Elena met. For those readers who are familiar with Ms. Armstrong's series, will know exactly what I am talking about. For those of you who don't, go out and read Bitten, the first book in the series and you will be as hooked as the rest of us! Aside from Clay and Elena's story, there is also the story of how Eve and Kristof met and it has a story of Lucas and Paige investigating a murder that may have been done by a vampire.

Kelley Armstrong is such a fantastic writer. Her characters are fully fleshed out and she has a way of making the reader really connect with them. It doesn't matter which character I am reading about, I am 100% involved in them and their plight. She makes her characters seem so human, with problems and emotions that everybody has experienced at one point or another in their lives. They are so relatable and thus it makes for a very enjoyable reading experience. I highly recommend Kelley Armstrong. You could easily read this book as your first introduction into her writing, but it would mean so much more if you started with the first book in this series Bitten. If you enjoy paranormal romance or urban fantasy and haven't read Ms. Armstrong out, you are truly missing out.

Alpha Reader
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Tez Says

This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon

The Betsy Taylor Series - Reviews of Books 4 and 5

Title: Undead and Unreturnable
Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publishing Date: 2006
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: C
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I downloaded this audio book from my library.

Undead and Unreturnable is the fourth book in the Betsy Taylor Vampire Series by MaryJanice Davidson. In this book, Betsy is making plans for her wedding to Sinclair. Also, serial killer is on the loose and targeting tall, blue-eyed blonde-haired women.

Well, I hate to say it but this book gets the kiss of death "meh" rating. It was just okay. I really would like to know where this series is headed, because nothing really special happened in this book. There were no major events and everything felt rather stagnant. No new characters were introduced. It was short and dare I say it, just a tinsy bit boring. There was a mystery that was solved very efficently. A lot of bickering took place between Betsy and Sinclair.

Title: Undead and Unpopular
Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publishing Date: 2007
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I downloaded this audio book from my library.

Undead and Unpopular is the fifth book in the Betsy Taylor Vampire series by MaryJanice Davidson. In this book Betsy is still planning her wedding to Sinclair. She also has a group of European vampires who have finally come to pay their respects to Queen Betsy. Unfortunately, a vampire turns up dead and Betsy is on the case.

I felt like this book had more meat to it than the previous one. Although, I think there was a novella between this book and the last one because there were events that came to light in this book that I don't remember reading about. I am going to have to go back and determine what I missed. New characters where introduced and I felt like things were a little more interesting this time around. I still am not entirely certain where this series is going, though. There was a twist I didn't see coming with Betsy's best friend Jessica. Still, I am not sure if I will continue with this series. Generally speaking, quirky vampire books are not my thing. Although, I must say Betsy is a charming individual. Her voice is most unique.

Review - All Together Dead

Title: All Together Dead
Author: Charlaine Harris
Publishing Date: 2007
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: Borrowed a copy from the library.

All Together Dead is book seven in Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire (Sookie Stackhouse) series. In this book Sookie has to travel to Rhodes to attend a vampire summit. She is serving the Queen vampire of Louisiana. The Queen is in a very vulnerable position. She has been accused of murdering her husband and Sookie is the only witness to what really happened that night. Sookie is attending the Summit to help the Queen discover who her enemies might be by listening into human minds.

Oh man, things are really starting to heat up politically in Sookie's world. I really felt that All Together Dead is a turning point in the series. Up to this point Sookie has been able to keep to the edges of the supernatural world. In this book it becomes blatantly obvious just how immersed in this world she is, whether she wants to be or not. The turning point comes when Sookie finally realizes that as much as she wants to live a normal life, she will always be on vampires’ radar. She is to valuable a commodity for them to ever ignore her and her special gift.

Sookie's relationships with Eric and Quinn continue to move forward. Because this is urban fantasy, there is not a clear cut hero in the picture for Sookie. Is it Eric? Is it Quinn? Or could it possibly some other guy not even introduced into the series yet? I must admit this worries me, not to mention that there might never be a "happy ever after" for Sookie either. However, I will keep reading. Ms. Harris has me thoroughly hooked like a big mouth bass on a fishing line.

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - Magic Strikes

Title: Magic Strikes
Author: Ilona Andrews
Publishing Date: 2009
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B+
Sensuality: Subtle
Book Disclosure: Borrowed from the library.

Magic Strikes is the third book in Ilona Andrews’ Kate Daniels series. I have given a brief summary of this series here if you are interested in learning more about it. In this book Kate's young werewolf friend Derek is viciously attacked leaving him in a comma like state. For a werewolf this is almost unheard of and Kate is determined to help him heal. To do that she must track down the creatures that did this to Derek and she will also uncover why they did it. Meanwhile, Kate and Curran's relationship is also building.

Things are finally starting to heat up between Kate and Curran. Curran is actively courting Kate by shape shifter rules. Since Kate is not a shape shifter she doesn't know what those rules are. She sometimes finds out the hard way. Kate is afraid of being another notch on Curran's belt. She actively tries to resist his courtship even though she is attracted to him and her feelings run deeper than she is willing to admit. Curran is very confident in his prowess and has no doubts that eventually Kate will be his mate.

With each book the reader learns a little more about Kate's background. Finally in Magic Strikes the reader finds out who Kate's father is and why she has been so secretive about her heritage. I think this is the strongest book so far in the series. I have really warmed up to Kate since the first book. She is a total bad ass, but very protective and loyal to those she loves. I am really glad I don't have to wait long for the next book Magic Bleeds.

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - Betsy Taylor books 2 & 3

My library happens to have almost the whole Betsy Taylor series as audio books and so I listened to the first three books back to back. I vowed not to do this, but it couldn't be avoided because they were the only downloadable audio books that interested me. *Sigh* Poor planning will do that to a girl. Here are reviews of books 2 and 3 in the Betsy Taylor series.

Title: Undead and Unemployed
Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publishing Date: 2004
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B-
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: Downloaded the audio book from my library.

Undead and Unemployed is the second book in the Betsy Taylor series. In this book Betsy the designer-shoe-loving vampire gets a dream job as a shoe salesman for the Macy's department store. At the same time a vigilante killer is on the loose and targeting specifically women vampires.

I don't know what it was about this book, but it just didn't captivate like the first one did. Nancy Wu is still the narrator, and she does a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life for the audio book. However, Undead and Unemployed just wasn't as funny as I found the first book.

One section in particular when the characters discussing who the possible vampire killer could be was incredibly boring. Betsy's character is a little slow on the uptake and so Davidson really spells things out for the reader. Some readers might take insult to this since they don't need things spelled out like Betsy does. In any case, certain parts of the book dragged for me. I will say that the ending totally took me off guard. It was riveting and saved the book from getting a lower grade.

Title: Undead and Unappreciated
Publishing Date: 2005
Rating: B
Sensuality: Warm

Undead and Unappreciated is book number three in the Betsy Taylor vampire series. Betsy discovers the she has a half sister she never knew about. Not only does she learn of her sister, but she also learns that her sister was sired by the Devil and is fated to take over the world, according to the Book of the Dead.

Undead and Unappreciated was a little bit darker than the first two books. It still had Betsy's snarky humor and sarcasm but not everything was all light and fun. Davidson is able to keep things in the series moving forward and fresh by bringing in new characters. I also liked that Davidson changed things up between Sinclair and Betsy. Betsy has to reevaluate what she wants in her relationship with Sinclair. This puts an interesting spin on things.

Review - Undead and Unwed

Title: Undead and Unwed
Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publishing Date: 2004
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: B
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I downloaded a copy of the audio book from my library.

Undead and Unwed is the first book in MaryJanice Davidson's Betsy Taylor series. Betsy is a young woman in her mid twenty's who happens to get hit by a car and die. Only she wakes up in a coffin wearing shoes from payless and a designer knock-off suit. Betsy is hard pressed to decide which is worse: the suit and bad shoes or waking up in a coffin. Undead and Unwed is the first book in Betsy's new like as a vampire.

Betsy Taylor has a very unique personality. It's very fun and snarky. She loves designer shoes, Gone with the Wind and is a major girly girl. Not every reader will like her or relate well to her, but I found her narrative entertaining. However, too much sarcasm and pop culture references can tend to make the passages drag a little.

Davidson puts a more light hearted spin on vampires. Some of the antics of Betsy and her friends reminded me of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, without the love triangle.

So far it is a good start to the series. There is just a hint of romance to keep fans of romance interested. You know me though, and I am always interested in seeing where things will go for Betsy. One hero, Sinclair seems to stand out the most and I wonder how things will work out for Betsy and him. I do plan on continuing with the series to find out.

This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - Definitely Dead

Title: Definitely Dead
Author: Charlaine Harris
Publishing Date: 2006
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Mystery
Rating: B
Sensuality: Subtle
Book Disclosure: I downloaded the audio version to my iPod.

Definitely Dead is the sixth full length novel in Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire Mystery series. In this book Sookie goes to New Orleans to clean up her cousin’s apartment. Her cousin Hadley was a vampire who died and left her things to Sookie. When Sookie gets to Hadley's apartment she uncovers the body of a man stuffed in a closet. With the help of a witch Amelia, Sookie discovers what happened.

So this was my first audio book and a big concern of mine was whether or not I would be able to concentrate enough to listen and comprehend the story while driving or doing chores. I was pleasantly surprised that for the most part I followed along just fine. The narrator Johanna Parker did a good job. I think it helps that the story is told in first person so the narration fits.

On to the review... well I felt this was a fine installment. Some of the romantic entanglements are tidied with this book. Finally I feel like Sookie is getting a normal boyfriend with Quinn. I like that their relationship starts out conventionally with him asking her out on a date. Quite a few surprises about Sookie are revealed to keep the series fresh and interesting. I wish I could talk about one reveal involving Bill, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who isn't caught up with this series. For those of you who know what I am referring to with my cryptic statement feel free to comment.

Yeah, this is a lazy review. What can I say that I already haven't said about this series? For fun I have added links to all the reviews for the previous books in the series. If you aren't familiar with this series, check out my other reviews.


Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Series Sunday

This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.