ONLY LYCANS NEED APPLY (Broken Heart Series)
By Michele Bardsley

PUBLISHER: Signet

PUBLISHED: 8 August 2013

GENRE: Fiction / Paranormal Romance

When I found the ancient tomb of the two most powerful vampires in history, I knew I was in for a lot of trouble ...

But archaeologists like me, Moira Jameson, are ready for trouble. Okay, maybe not human-species-threatening trouble. Or the kind of trouble that arrives in the form of a sexy werewolf named Drake. Yeah. Werewolf. And I thought ancient curses and walking corpses were a joke. Um ... not so much.

'Cause a walking corpse named Karn wants to reveal vampires, and all of parakind, to the humans. And everyone else thinks that's a bad idea. Then a pyramid mysteriously appears in Broken Heart, Oklahoma, and I'm appointed to get inside, survive booby traps, and awaken two very old, very hungry vampires. Luckily, Drake has my back (and my front). Unfortunately, archaeology sometimes reveals some very nasty surprises. And I'll have to decide between saving myself ... and saving the world.

MY THOUGHTS:

After a run of  "serious" fantasy /paranormal romance books, it was so much FUN to read Only Lycans Need Apply. A lighthearted and entertaining read, I raced through it in a day and enjoyed every moment!

The main characters, Moira and her assistant Dove, are sarcastic, feisty and full of attitude and amusing conversational exchanges.

I gasped, and Dove followed my line of sight, and gasped, too.
"Is that real?" asked Dove in a reverent voice. "Because that's the biggest dick I've ever seen."
"He can hear you," I whispered harshly. Then in a lower voice, I added "Don't you even think about taking dibs, you bitch."
"Riiiight," she whispered back. "You want me to call ahead to the hospital, tell them to expect you and your injured vagina?"

Extra points to the author for her use of vagina!

Then there's Moira's love interest, Drake - sexy and a werewolf ... no other credentials required! I loved the way they flirted with each other; they seemed like a natural fit.

When he reached the stone door, he hesitated.
"Did you miss your Hieroglyphs 101 class?" I asked sweetly.
"I was too busy taking Advanced Kick Your Ass courses," he replied. He spent useless seconds staring at the images he could not possibly interpret, and then sighed. He stepped aside and gestured eloquently. "My lady."

There's a host of other characters as well; like Patsy, the Vampire Queen, Ax, survivor of the covert experiments carried out by the Ethics and Technology Assessment Commission, Doriana, the middle-aged Academic and secret Mermaid, and Karn, the bad guy!, to name but a few. They're all full of life and colour and really add to the book's energy.

Lighthearted it may be, but it's also part of a rich and well thought out paranormal history and mythology that the author first introduced in I'm the Vampire, That's Why (Book 1 of the Broken Heart series). I love that the World she's created has a believable history but that the books don't get bogged down in this.

I think Michele Bardsley has just pinched the top spot in my not-serious-but-cracking-great-fun genre from Mary Janice Davidson! But if you could keep that last bit between us, I'd appreciate it!

HAUNTED MOON (The Otherworld Series)
By Yasmine Galenorn

PUBLISHER: Jove 

PUBLISHED: 16 May 2013 

GENRE: Fantasy / Paranormal Romance

We're the D'Artigo sisters: savvy, half-human, half-Fae ex-operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. My sister Delilah is a two-faced werecat and a Death Maiden. My sister Menolly is a vampire married to a werepuma. And me? I'm Camille, a wicked-good witch with three sexy husbands. I'm a priestess of the Moon Mother, and I'm training under the Queen of Shadow and Night. Unfortunately, playing in the dark means that sometimes you stumble over secrets better left buried ...

There's a new Fae sorcerer in town - Bran, the son of Raven Mother and the Black Unicorn - and I'm the unwilling liaison between him and our new Earthside OIA. With cemeteries being ransacked and spirits being harvested by a sinister, otherworldly force, Aeval sends us to rescue the missing wife of a prominent member of the Fae nobility. Our search leads us to the mysterious Aleksais Psychic Network and, ultimately, to face the Lord of Ghosts. There, Morio and I must undergo a ritual that will plunge us directly into the realm of the dead.

MY THOUGHTS:

This is my second venture into Galenorn's Otherworld series; I read the previous book in the series, Shadow Rising, earlier this year (my review is here) and I was excited to jump back into the World and find out what was going to happen with the characters next.

Told from Camille's point of view, I realised I much prefer her over Menolly (although I'm looking forwards to reading Delilah's point of view most) and I love her relationship with each of her husbands. I'd been a bit sceptical about the whole 3 husbands thing when I read the last book and thought it was a bit far-fetched, but in Haunted Moon, I gained a much better understanding and appreciation of the dynamics between them all. Plus the sex scenes are ridiculously hot!

I don't want to spoil the plot for anyone but like last time, a lot happens! I thought the storyline was really strong and the events flowed together much better and more naturally than they did in Shadow Rising. The book may end on a high but there are still lots of loose ends, as well as the main bad guy, that need dealing with so there's PLENTY of story left in this series. I will definitely be reading the next book, Autumn Whispers, when it comes out later this year.

Call me a bit of a troublemaker but what I'd like to see next is some disruption and tension between the sisters and their significant others. I want to see Trillian becoming resentful of Morio now that he has an Alpha role in relation to Camille's magic. Maybe even a pregnancy for Camille - now that would really throw the cat amongst the otherworldy pidgeons - and a falling out with Roman and Blood Wyne. Ha! Anyone would think they don't have enough to deal with already!!

Overall, this was another solid entry in the Otherworld series; great story, great characters and it will leave you wanting to read more!

BLACK CITY
By Christina Henry

PUBLISHER: Ace US

PUBLISHED: 6 June 2013

GENRE: Fiction / Urban Fantasy / Paranormal Romance

Former Agent of Death Madeline Black may have been stripped of her wings - but she hasn't lost her purpose ...

When Maddy finally killed her father, Azazel, she thought his depraved experiment died with him. But now Chicago has been infested with vampires immune to the effects of the sun, and the bloodbath is worse than she could have ever imagined. While the Agency refuses to interfere with other supernatural courts, Maddy is determined to do everything within her power to save her city - wings or no wings.

But when the leader of the vampires requests that she turn herself in or risk more deaths, Maddy becomes a target for the very people she's trying to save. Left with no other choice, she turns to Lucifer, the one creature who has the power to help her. But her grandfather's aid has always come at a price ...

MY THOUGHTS:                       ***CONTAINS SPOILERS***

Following on immediately from the events in Black Lament (review here), this is another action-packed, adrenaline-fueled installment in Henry's Black Wings series with a whole host of creatures for Maddy and her friends to contend with.

But even though there's a LOT of action (which did seem a bit obviously contrived), that's not really what this book is about. It's about Maddy coming into more of her powers, Nathaniel learning about his true heritage and his own powers, Maddy trying to do her best in difficult situations only, by the end of the book, to be abandoned by her friends and surrounded by the Agency's Retrievers.

Poor Maddy! The harder she tries to keep everyone safe, the greater the hold that darkness seems to have over her heart.  I really felt that even if she'd made different choices, Lucifer's net would still be closing in around her. The book created a real sense of inevitability about that.

But I can't help but compare the ending to "Becoming" the two-part finale of Season 2 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer:

Angelus: No weapons, no friends, no hope. Take all that away, and what's left?

Buffy: Me.

And because of that, I still have hope that Maddy can see this through and find a way to thwart Lucifer. I just hope the price of doing that isn't too great.

REDEMPTION (A Novel of the Seven Signs #2)
by Erica Hayes

PUBLISHED: Berkley US

PUBLISHED: 6 June 2013

GENRE: Fiction / Paranormal Romance

Japheth the Tainted is on the hunt for a mysterious demon vampire. But meeting her face-to-face might disarm his warrior spirit - and spark an unquenchable passion with apocalyptic consequences.

As a fallen angel, Japheth is determined to make his way back to heaven by staying pure and slaying hellspawn. With a new scourge of vampires, unleashed by a blood-drinking demon, the Prince of Thirst, there's plenty to be done. But Japeth is after one vampire in particular - the one they call the Angel Slayer.

Rose Harley never wanted to be a vampire, but the Prince of Thirst can turn even the kindest soul into a soldier of hell. Feeling abandoned by God, she stalks the West Village taking revenge on his angels - until she meets her match.

When Japheth and Rose encounter each other, the battle is fierce and charged with desire. But when they discover a common enemy - the Prince of Thirst himself - they form a dangerous alliance that could either cost them their eternal lives, or spark a love more powerful than heaven or hell.

My Thoughts:                    ***WARNING - CONTAINS SPOILERS***

You might remember me mentioning this book in my Teaser Tuesday post.  Well, it's the second in Erica Hayes' Seven Signs series and it follows on from the events in the first book, Revelation, which I reviewed here.  I was nervous starting it because I wasn't sold on the character of Japheth at all. The fact we learned in Revelation that he'd had a relationship with Michael - who's as full of sin as they come - made me think he had seriously flawed judgment and questionable morals. Well, how wrong was I??!!

I totally fell in love with Japheth and his quest for redemption. He is one seriously hot character and yes, I know he's fictional but I would be happy to redeem him over and over! Rose is another fabulous character, tormented by her own demons and conflicted between wanting to believe that she can be saved but knowing that in her hour of need, God didn't care. I loved the relationship between them, how it developed and the sizzle, my goodness!

I thought I'd guessed how the plot would play out but the author caught me out several times, which was nice. I thought we'd find out that Rose hadn't killed her 6 year old niece, Bridie, but that the Prince of Thirst had and he'd let her believe that she was responsible. I didn't anticipate that he would actually have turned her into a tiny child vampire.  I also couldn't believe it when Jadzia was killed! I was gutted, as I'd been so looking forwards to reading more about her. Fortunately, we find out she's been resurrected by her demon lover but then we're hit with the HUGE revelation of who he actually is! How did I not see that coming? How?

I'm still not a fan of the swearing and could really do without all the "hellshit" and "heavenshit" references but that's my only gripe. This series is shaping up nicely and I cannot wait to read the next book!

NIGHTBRED (Lords of the Darkyn)

By Lynn Viehl

Publisher: Signet

Published: 7 March 2013

Genre: Fiction / Paranormal Romance

Jamys Durand has survived being made an immortal Darkyn, horrific torture, and years of grueling warrior training. But he has no future to offer Chris, the mortal woman he loves. When he learns of a lost Templar treasure, Jamys vows to possess it and win his lady's heart.

No one knows Chris Lang wants to be a tresora so she can live with Jamys, her secret love. Her superiors offer to make her dream come true, but only if she finds the lost treasure before Jamys can. Working together, Chris and Jamys track the jewels through a shadowy maze of priceless artifacts, decadent secrets, and a ruthless opponent who can possess and immortal's mind ... and will stop at nothing to have Chris.

My Thoughts:

This was a quick, straightforward and solid read. 

On the whole, I liked the characters - although I found it impossible to imagine being attracted to Jamys (he was turned at 17 and even though he's now hundreds of years old, he still looks like a 17 year old so the thought of doing rude things to him was just icky). Also, the author should have just called Lucan's tresora Alfred rather than Burke, as he seemed to have been styled on Bruce Wayne's butler and confidante.

Even though there were a few over the top elements - like the Pirate Captain, Dutch, and the lap dance at Stryker's private orgy party - they didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the story. I just hope that the next Lords of the Darkyn book features a slightly older in body Darkyn!

SHIFTING PLAINS
By Jean Johnson

PUBLISHER: Berkley

PUBLISHED: 14 February 2013

GENRE: Fiction / Paranormal Romance

Centuries before the time of the Sons of Destiny, a female shapeshifter became the leader of the people of the Shifting Plains ...

Tava Ell Var never really knew her mother, but she did know her tragic fate at the hands of a band of cruel shapeshifters - a history set down by Tava's father as a warning about life on the Shifting Plains. But after her father is murdered, Tava encounters a Shifterai warband fighting to rid the Plains of the terrorizing bandits.

Shifterai leader Kodan Sin Siin is sympathetic to Tava's suffering, but he's determined to bring the wary young woman to the Plains. Because he knows her secret; She, like he and his men, is a shapeshifter. Once she joins them, he knows that she will see for herself the true fate that awaits her on the Plains, and most of all, lose her fear of his people. And, in time, he knows she will find her place in their fight - and by his side.

My Thoughts:

Quite honestly, the first half of the book was such a long, hard slog that I was convinced it wasn't for me and I nearly gave up. Fortunately, with the arrival of Tava and Kodan and the rest of the warband at Family Tiger's camp, the story picked up a little and I started to warm to the characters a lot more.

I do think Jean Johnson has written a book which is very different to others in the Paranormal Romance genre. Usually, it goes like this: girl meets boy, they can't stand each other but are inexplicably attracted to each other, they have sex, there's a misunderstanding/are somehow torn apart, everything gets sorted out and they commit to a proper relationship with each other.

In the case of Shifting Plains, you need to think of it as a history book rather than fiction because what Jean is doing is building a picture of the Families, how they work and live, how they interact with each other, the rules that apply etc. This is much more about learning about the history of the Shifterai than it is about the relationship that develops between Tava and Kodan.

I did find some of the writing a bit awkward. The author includes passages in italics to represent a character's inner thoughts but the extra tidbits of information these provided quite often felt very forced, or repeated things we already know, and therefore didn't sound like how a character would normally think. For example:

In fact, I'd be surprised if this Kodan doesn't plan to use this Truth Stone to reveal that fact to the Alders. After all, the terms of the contract are "...in exchange for the deaths of the bandits responsible for slaying Varamon Vel Tith of Five Springs village ..." and the odds are, this Truth Stone could be my father's Stone, liberated from the bandit's loot. So they could just go away for a short while, pretending to hunt and kill the bandits, then come back.

Although it's not my usual choice of book, I'm glad I persevered and read it through until the end. Tava and Kodan really grew on me and I found their relationship quite charming. But I'm not sure that I'd jump to read anymore set in the same World.

MORTAL TIES (A Novel of the Lupi)
By Eileen Wilks

PUBLISHER: Berkley

PUBLISHED: 14 February 2013

GENRE: Fantasy / Paranormal Romance

FBI Agent Lily Yu is living at Nokolai Clanhome with her fiance, lupi Rule Turner, when an intruder penetrates their territory, stealing the prototype of a magical device the clan hopes will be worth a fortune - if a few bugs can be worked out ...

But the prototype can be dangerously erratic, discharging a bizarre form of mind-magic - and it looks like the thief wants it for that very side effect. Worse, whoever stole the device didn't learn about it by accident. There's a Nokolai traitor in their midst.

As they race to recover their missing property, they find Robert Friar's sticky footprints all over the place. Robert Friar - killer, madman, and acolyte of the Old One the lupi are at ware with ... an Old One whose power is almost as vast as her ambition to rock the entire world.

MY THOUGHTS:

This is the 9th installment of Wilks' Lupi series and I LOVED it! I was hooked from the opening sentence:

"Lily Yu hadn't planned to visit a graveyard at sunset. It just worked out that way".

The tone and writing was consistent. The characters were wonderful and the story was convincing and moved along nicely. 

But far and away the best thing about this book was Lily and Rule's relationship. I'm so used to reading about relationships in fantasy novels where the couple are opposites or one of them has more power than the other that it was really wonderful reading about Lily and Rule. Their relationship is balanced and one of equals. They work well together and are understanding and respectful of each other. I actually felt like it was a relationship to aspire to.

There were some great moments in this book and some lovely subtle humour. I also enjoyed the references to Chinese culture, even  though I still don't know the difference between a friend of the fifth degree and a friend of the third degree! 

Here's one of my favourite quotes:

"Lily didn't ask if any of those outside had survived. Tigers, Grandmother had said once, see no point in disabling an enemy".

The only problem I had was that I kept forgetting the prototype wasn't a type of magical raygun! That was the image that kept popping into my head whenever it was mentioned and as a result, I found it hard to picture the prototype as it should be, contained within a skull. That is such a minor, minor point though!

I had never heard of the Lupi series before I read this book but I will definitely be reading the series from the very beginning now.

I really do think everyone should have a bit of Lily and Rule in their lives.

SHADOW RISING (The Otherworld Series)
by Yasmine Galenorn

PUBLISHER: Jove

PUBLISHED: 14 February 2013

GENRE: Fantasy / Paranormal Romance

We're the D'Artigo sisters; savvy half-human, half-Fae ex-operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. My sister Camille is a wicked-good witch with three sexy husbands. My sister Delilah is a two-faced werecat and Death Maiden. And me? I'm Menolly, a jian-tu turned vampire in love with a wildly hot werepuma. Unfortunately, life is about to get very, very nasty ...

Nerissa and I can't decide what we want to do for our promise ceremony and we're bickering like an old married couple. My sisters and I head to Otherworld for a meeting with Queen Asteria. Once there, we discover that Shadow Wing has dispatched Telazhar - a malevolent necromancer - to reignite the Scorching Wars. And as soon as we return home, we find Gulakah, the Lord of Ghosts, waging a battle to control the magical beings over Earthside. Caught between two terrible enemies in a battle spanning two worlds, we can only hope we're in time to stop all-out annihilation.

MY THOUGHTS:

I had my first brush with Yasmine Galenorn's writing when I was given the chance to review Night Seeker (Indigo Court #3) last year. Having thoroughly enjoyed jumping into the middle of her Indigo Court series, I wasn't overly concerned that my first encounter with Galenorn's Otherworld series was not going to be from the very beginning and I'm pleased to say I was not disappointed.

I soon noticed there are a LOT of characters to remember and as a total novice to the Otherworld, I did find this tricky. There were also references to characters and terminology which would have had more meaning to those readers that have been with the series from the beginning but which I did not always immediately understand. But, never fear, Galenorn has very helpfully provided a cast list and glossary at the back of the book! I only wish I'd realised that sooner!

I don't want to spoil the plot for anyone so all I'll say is that a lot happens! For me, it didn't always flow naturally but considering it's set in a well-established World with a variety of strong characters; each with their own strengths and weaknesses, I was happy to overlook this.

As much as I enjoyed reading the story from Mennolly's point of view, I have to admit I quickly tired of the terms of endearment that her and Nerissa seem to use in every sentence that they speak to each other. Describing each other as "love" and "my sweet" didn't work for me, as I don't think anyone refers to their other half in this way, do they? It certainly sounded awkward to me. Anyway, I realise that probably sounds quite petty but I think it's why I didn't feel particularly invested in their relationship. I wonder whether I would feel the same if I had read the previous books first?

There are a whole host of other characters, not just the D'Artigo sisters themselves, and one of the stand-outs for me was Carter, half-demon, half-Titan, and Leader of the Demonica Vacana Society. But there really is such a mix of characters that I imagine everyone will have someone different that spikes their interest.

And finally, just as with Night Seeker, I can't review this book without mentioning the sex scene with a bitter-sweet ending between Mennolly, Nerissa and Roman. Although to be honest, I am more interested to see how the relationships will evolve now that Mennolly has ties to Blood Wyne herself, and not just Roman.

Overall, and I know I said this last time, I can honestly say I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely read more from Yasmine Galenorn.

 

Read this if: ... you've read the previous books in the Otherworld series, you like your fantasy with more than just vampires and werewolves, and you like stories which include a strong family dynamic

Don't read this if ... you object to same-sex/polygamous relationships, or if you like a more light-hearted form of fantasy.

REVELATION (A Novel of the Seven Signs)

by Erica Hayes

PUBLISHER: Berkley US

RELEASE DATE: 14 February 2013

GENRE: Paranormal Romance

A fallen angel with a mission and a medical examiner who's lost her faith are fighting for their souls in a glittering, near future Manhattan ...

Blind faith is for fools.  That's what Dr Morgan Sterling believes.  And she's going to prove it by curing the zombie plague ravaging here city's slums. She's certain it's not a sign of the End of Days, but a nasty disease - until an angel appears in her morgue in a flash of glory.

Luniel is not just a fallen angel.  He's a powerful warrior sworn to fight evil in hopes of a chance at redemption. He's after the demon princes who are stealing the seven vials of holy wrath that, when perverted, will unleash eternal hell on earth. 

To stop the plague, Luniel needs Morgan's help, and her faith.  But Morgan believes science is their salvation. If the zombie plague is a demonic curse - and if Luniel is true - he'll have to prove it. Even if he loses his heart to love or his soul to hell ...

My thoughts:

In an alternate - and somewhat futuristic - Manhattan, we meet the Tainted Host; a group of fallen angels who were cast out of Heaven by the Archangel Michael and who continue to carry out Heaven's bidding in the hope of redemption and a chance to return home. 

Naturally, we're talking hard-drinking, hard-loving, hard-slaying and hard-sinning fallen angels here (apart from Japheth who's trying way too hard to be way too pure). They're a group of bad boys - and women - all flawed and each with a story to share; someone for everyone.

I was excited to start reading this book, as I was interested to see how well the angel and zombie themes would merge together but I found the first few chapters heavy going and nearly gave up on a couple of occasions. 

There's a lot of swearing and in my opinion, it's completely unnecessary. It's obvious that the characters aren't pure, angelic types and it's also obvious there's a lot of banter between them so the swearing doesn't add anything, it just feels over-the-top and after the millionth time of a demon being referred to as a "hellshit", it was incredibly irritating. 

The chapter in which we're introduced to the Archangel Michael and his hedonistic lifestyle also felt too much; although I am looking forward to finding out why Michael is doing what he is doing and whether he will get his comeuppance at any point.

However, as the book progressed, I found myself easing into the story more and more. 

The characters are tried and tested types that we've all met before. 

Luniel is a man of faith who's terrified to get close to a human woman because he failed to protect the last woman he loved and he can't take any chance that the same thing will happen again. Dr Morgan Sterling is a woman of science who's terrified to put her trust in a man of God - let alone an Angel - after she saw how so-called religion stripped her mum of everything, including her life. They're immediately attracted to each other and we all know they'll have found their way to each other by the end of the book. That knowledge doesn't make you want to stop reading though - you want to see how the story will play out.

Talking of the plot, I really like the idea behind these novels. Basically, there are seven vials, each filled with God's Wrath,and each looked after by an Angelic guardian. It's not known what has happened to one of the guardians but another has been murdered and both of their vials have been emptied, releasing the first 2 "plagues" and beginning the countdown to the apocalypse. I wonder how the author will interpret the other 5 signs?

The main storyline obviously belongs to Luniel and Morgan. It's relatively strong and very fast-paced, even if it is slightly predictable. I mean, as soon as you hear about Luniel's past, you know that at some point he's going to have to go up against the demon prince that stole his last human lover's soul. They do have great sex though and it's well-written!

We also start to see the beginning of some of the other character's stories; particularly Jadzia's and her infatuation with the demon, Shax. I liked the fact that the book wove the start of these storylines in as I felt it gave the supporting characters more substance and the book felt like it was "more" than just a romance novel.

There were some descriptive passages that caught my attention, like this one:

She expected him to take the chair in the corner, but when she laid her head on the pillow he lighted on the dark wooden bed end, wings flaring. He crouched there on his toes, perfectly balanced, wrists crossed on his knees. His black hair tangled, windswept. His feathers twitched, black and silky, a golden spark or two dancing, and his deep blue gaze settled on her. 

And serious heart felt moments like this:

"Screw you okay?" Sweat trickled from Jae's hair, and he shook it away angrily. "If it's so damned simple, why don't you just flit back off to heaven whenever you f--"

"Because I'll never forgive myself!"

 Japheth's breath drained cold.

 "Okay?" Dash's dark eyes flamed scarlet with shame. "I can't forgive the things I've done, or the way I feel. I've drowned my soul in blood and screams, and it felt so fucking good that I deserve to burn in hell. Forever".

And there are enough loose ends left dangling to make you want to read the next books in the series and find out what will happen. 

One final gripe though, the dark-haired warrior with the blue flaming sword on the cover of the book is NOT Luniel. His hair isn't long enough, his breastplate should have buckled leather straps and those leather trousers are ill-fitting and quite appalling. Shame on whoever designed it for not paying enough attention to the author's writing!

Okay, so I know it probably sounds like I've mainly complained about it but I actually think this book will appeal to a lot of readers. Certainly, if you love paranormal romance, long-haired angst-ridden heroes, sizzling sex scenes and you fancy a change from vampires and werewolves, then this is one for you!

STYGIAN'S HONOR (A novel of the Breeds)
by Lora Leigh

PUBLISHER: Berkley - US

RELEASE DATE: 04 October 2012

GENRE: Paranormal Romance

Window Rock, Arizona, is the last known location of Honor Roberts, who vanished when she was just thirteen. It was her only sanctuary from the Breed research that would surely have ended in her death - one such insidious experiment should, indeed, have killed her. That she lived is both a miracle - and a great mystery.

 

Stygian's mission is to find Honor Roberts, no matter the cost. Now, with the help of Liza Johnson, assistant to the chief of the Navajo Nation, he is closer than ever to his goal. But will the discovery of Honor Roberts mean the destruction of the mating heat that has developed between Stygian and Liza?

 

I haven't read any of the previous novels about the Breeds and although you don't really need to, I think I would have been able to follow certain aspects of the story a bit easier if I had done. For example, there isn't much of an explanation about who the Breeds are and how they came to be, or about the work of the Genetics Council, or what's happened to Amber, Jonas Wyatt's 2 year old daughter. I do wonder whether my opinion of this book would have been different if I'd had a better understanding of the world it was based in.

 

Although I liked the idea of the storyline, it was very predictable and I knew by the end of chapter 1 what the "twist" was going to be. I decided to keep going and give it the benefit of the doubt but what unfolded before me, rather than being an action/romance/mystery, was sex, sex and more sex. In fact, there was whole lot of Stygian and Liza hanging around a hotel and having sex, and not very much in the way of tracking down Honor Roberts. And lets face it, there's only so many times you want to hear about Liza and her creaming pussy . . .

 

Both Stygian and Liza were very formulaic characters that didn't bring anything new to the table and I didn't particularly engage with any of the other major characters. There were a few bit players who caught my attention and who I would be interested to read about, notably Cassie and Gideon.

 

A book about Gideon is a cert as the author has set up what could be a really interesting story arc about the other girl and the 2 breeds that were held captive and experimented on with Honor. But, I suspect it will go down the same erotic fiction route as this book; too much sex and not enough depth and character development.

 

Overall, I was disappointed with the author's offering and honestly, I'm not tempted to read any of the other Breeds novels. I'll stick to Sherrilyn Kenyon and her Dark-Hunter World and Meljean Brook and The Guardians.

 

The previous Breeds novels are:

Bengals' Heart
Coyote's Mate
Harmony's Way
Nauti Boy
Lawe's Justice

NIGHT SEEKER (Indigo Court #3)
by Yasmine Galenorn

PUBLISHER: Berkley - US

RELEASE DATE: 06 September 2012

GENRE: Fantasy, Paranormal Romance

Eons ago, vampires tried to turn the dark Fae in order to harness their magic, only to create a demonic enemy more powerful than they could have imagined. Now, the Vampiric Fae are on the move, hunting anyone in their path. As the war with the vampires ratchets up, Myst, Queen of the Indigo Court, enshrouds New Firest in her chilling grasp.

Cicely Waters, owl shifter and Wind Witch, has rescued the Fae Prince Grieve, at a great cost. Their reunion has lost them the allegiance of the Summer Queen, Lainule - and the tolerance of the vampires. In desperation, they turn to the Consortium - the preeminent magical guild - for help. Now, to regain the goodwill of Lainule, they must dare to enter the heart of Myst's realm. But as Cicely and Grieve embark on their search for the heartstone of Summer, Myst, the Queen of Winter, is already wreaking her terrifying revenge.

I've never read any of the Indigo Court novels before and was slightly worried that jumping into the middle of this series would prove to be a mistake. Fortunately, Night Seeker can be read as a stand-alone book; however, I wouldn't be surprised if, like me, you then end up wanting to read the first 2 in order to find out what you've missed!

 

It is such a refreshing change to read a book that focuses predominantly on the Fae. Most of the books I read tend to be about vampires/werewolves/zombies so I really enjoyed learning some new supernatural lore.

 

There weren't any characters that seemed superficially drawn or out of place and whilst I may have found myself questionning some of their names ("Chatter", really?), I was able to suspend my disbelief and immerse myself in their adventure.

 

I can easily imagine the author writing a spin-off novel for each character and if there was one about Ysandra Petros, an uber powerful member of the Consortium or Kaylin Chen, a dreamwalker with a night veil demon merged into his soul, I'd definitely read it. I can imagine there's a lot of people who'd definitely read one based on the hedonistic vampire, Lannan Altos!

 

The story unfolded at a decent pace and although the main revelation was, for me, slightly anti-climactic, as I guessed it quite early on from the clues given by the author, this didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book and, in fact, I felt the story unravelled in a very natural way.

 

I don't want to spoil the series for anyone that hasn't read this book yet by talking about precisely what happens in it but I don't think you'll be disappointed and the ending will certainly leave you wondering what will happen next. It's definitely not a happy-ever-after situation.

 

And finally, I can't review this book without mentionning the sexual tension within it. And not forgetting some sizzling sex scenes as well! It will be very interesting to see how the relationships between the characters develop and potentially change in the next book in the series.

 

Overall, I can honestly say I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely read more from Yasmine Galenorn.

 

The previous Indigo Court novels are:

 

Night Myst (Indigo Court #1)

Night Veil (Indigo Court #2)

It feels like a long time since I last wrote a blog post. In reality, it's been a month. And there are reasons but I'm not quite ready to sit down and write about them. That'll come later.

I've not stopped writing completely though. I've actually been lucky enough to have the opportunity to write a couple of guest book reviews for Amanda at One More Page.

I love, Love, LOVE to read but have only ever written one book review before (which you can read here) so I was very nervous about whether I'd be able to make a good job of it, especially as someone could potentially make a decision to read or not read a book on the strength of what's been said about it in a review. With great power comes great responsibility and all that jazz...

Anyway, here's my first guest book review Demon Marked by Meljean Brook. I hope you enjoy it x