Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin bk 1)

I’ve always been a sucker for anti-heroes. The concept of a

Assassin protagonist seemed right up my alley. In a world of black and white, long live the murky shades of gray. No apologies or noble excuses, just complexity; is often my cuppa. So did ‘Spider’s Bite’ scratch the itch? Somewhat, yes.

Gin Blanco is a notorious assassin.

All killers have their own style and she’s made a name for herself by being

 precise, patient, and crafty.  She’s works according to her own moral compass, In her own words “  I’m a killer, but not a monster”. As expected of a killer for hire she doesn’t have many emotional entanglements, but the loyalties she fosters run deep. When a botched job spirals into the murder of her handler/conspiracy where she’s slated to take the fall; she goes on the offensive Knives blazing to  get answers and deal out punishment to those responsible.  It seems spider’s don’t bite, so much as stab lol.

Gin Blanco is  a tough cookie in the best possible way. I really enjoyed the mixture of fierce predator with southern miss. Where this book really shines though is the action and investigation aspect and there’s more that enough to go around. I found many of the side characters appealing, and gin’s personal history seems like the set up for a wild ride indeed.

 

My name is Gin, and I kill people.

They call me the Spider. I'm the most feared assassin in the South — when I'm not busy at the Pork Pit cooking up the best barbecue in Ashland. As a Stone elemental, I can hear everything from the whispers of the gravel beneath my feet to the vibrations of the soaring Appalachian Mountains above me. My Ice magic also comes in handy for making the occasional knife. But I don't use my powers on the job unless I absolutely have to. Call it professional pride.

Now that a ruthless Air elemental has double-crossed me and killed my handler, I'm out for revenge. And I'll exterminate anyone who gets in my way — good or bad. I may look hot, but I'm still one of the bad guys. Which is why I'm in trouble, since irresistibly rugged Detective Donovan Caine has agreed to help me. The last thing this coldhearted killer needs when I'm battling a magic more powerful than my own is a sexy distraction...especially when Donovan wants me dead just as much as the enemy.

 

My favorite aspect of this novel is the concept of elemental magic. That some are born with the power to manipulate the elements, to different degrees of skill or application based on the person. This will sound sappy but despite all the: fantasy I’ve read, manga I’ve devoured, or harry potter dvds I’ve put through their paces;  I’ve never would’ve have thought of  element powers in this way. Take for example an Air Elemental. I’d think “ok, if I had this power I could blow the heck outta a shiz”  lmao. But from convenient air gusts  to weather manipulation, is as far as my imagination would go. In Gins world yeah you could do that. But you can heal using air pressure to hold cuts together like a supernatural Band-Aid. Or if someone were to break into your house, you could literally suck the oxygen out of the room suffocating them to unconsciousness until the police arrived or they died. Ooohh or  force air bubbles into their blood stream to stop their heart. Uber creative, no? Makes me wonder what Mz. Estep could do with Sailor Mercury. I always thought bubbles were an incredibly lame super power. But now my mind is blown open, so who knows what’s possible. Mayhap it’s time I revist the “fighting evil by moonlight, winning love by daylight” gang lol.

 There are different races world. From what I gathered there are Elementals ( which are just gifted humans…I think)/humans, dwarves  ( which weren’t really touched on, but I’m sure are more than just miniature humanoids, since 2 characters ages are beyond human life span), Vampire (It is mentioned often that some can feed on emotions or sex instead or as well as blood. But it’s not touched on how one becomes a vampire and  one or so of the vamps have children and are just dandy with the sun. ), and trolls (literally huge 7ft ish, hulking humanoids, very strong..,not sure about life expectancy). The races seem to get along smoothly, which class and then sort of magic if any at all being where social tension stems from. Hopefully it’ll be further explored in the series.

Jin in many ways is less anti-hero than I expected. The city is so corrupt that there aren’t really normal channels to turn to if someone is a threat to you and yours. For something to be wrong there has to be a right option, no?  It’s going to make me sound like a blood thirsty wench but I found the behind the scenes world of ‘murder for hire’ compelling. It had me wishing Jin was more social with her colleagues to get a chance to experience others in her profession or that she would have flashbacks of her apprenticeship.

Now on to what I didn’t like, Detective Donovan Caine. In fact dislike is too casual a word.  I think he’s an Asshat and should suck eggs. I get that his weakness was supposed to honor fueled naiveté,  but he never learned or changed his knee jerk reactions or though process, like a skipping record of incorrect assumptions.  I officially nominate him for the slow kid down the lane award for merely surviving the treacherous Ashland this long. I also saw their attraction as toxic. It all amounts to   him being a a total jerk, her pretending not to be hurt by it, and lusting after him anyway. Initially it didn’t bother me so much, when it just seemed to be a casual attraction, though it did make me scratch my head a bit. But when it’s later colored to be a deeper connection of some sort *cough* bullshit *cough*.

Also this novel would really  have benefited from tighter editing in terms of character interaction/responses. The constant ‘copy/paste’ repetition is maddening. I can honestly say I never want to read “his eyes going from/to desire. want, need, guilt”, “gold eyes meeting grey”, or  at the most random moment her going "Mhmmm* at his lean muscles and soapy smell ( at least 4x) and imagining herself on his "length" (gah…always  his "length" = / ) and her vagina aching for him, or every person she fights being "sloppy, sloppy, sloppy"; ever EVER ever again. It often knocked me out of the story.

  
Conclusion: where this book really shines is the action and investigation aspect and there’s more than enough to go around. I found many of the side characters appealing, and gin’s personal history seems like the set up for a wild ride indeed, if the writing and character motivations is improve  a tad.

 Grade:

 I thoroughly enjoyed myself. This read has most of the right elements, yet  lacks a little somethin' somethin' to truly rise above the pack. A fun ride, but doesn't quite scream "Oh Hells Yes!  READ-GASM!". (3 out of 5 stars)

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Rick Riordan - The Lost Hero

I haven't written a review in forever but it's Rick Riordan, who, sadly, only gives me two opportunities a year to gush, so I gotta seize the day.

Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up on a school bus holding hands with a girl. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper. His best friend is a kid named Leo, and they’re all students in the Wilderness School, a boarding school for “bad kids.” What he did to end up here, Jason has no idea—except that everything seems very wrong.

Piper has a secret. Her father has been missing for three days, and her vivid nightmares reveal that he’s in terrible danger. Now her boyfriend doesn’t recognize her, and when a freak storm and strange creatures attack during a school field trip, she, Jason, and Leo are whisked away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood. What is going on?

Leo has a way with tools. His new cabin at Camp Half-Blood is filled with them. Seriously, the place beats Wilderness School hands down, with its weapons training, monsters, and fine-looking girls. What’s troubling is the curse everyone keeps talking about, and that a camper’s gone missing. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist they are all—including Leo—related to a god.

Let me start out by saying that The Lost Hero is amazing. Rick Riordan is amazing. And I'm going to tell you how and why without giving anything, at least anything major, away. Written in the third person, The Lost Hero (Heroes of Olympus, Book 01) volleys between the individual and combined experiences of Jason, Leo, and Piper; three out of the seven demigods involved in the new prophecy, revealing the secrets they keep, even from each other. The perspective changes between the three every two chapters and I think it translated better here than it did with The Red Pyramid (Kane Chronicles, Book 01). This style also keeps the book from feeling like a total PJ rip-off although there are a handful of glaring similarities which one cannot ignore. That said, the tone is slightly older than early PJ and R. Riordan does acknowledge, later in the story, that Percy and Jason serve as counterpoint to each other.

As for the prose, well, this man can write. It just flows. Jason starts out as the most intriguing of the three protagonists for three main reasons:

1. The story opens with him
2. The mystery surrounding his presence
3. the circumstances of his birth.

However, R. Riordan fangirl I may be, I do think that he could have done more to make the Jason character meatier. By the end I wasn't as interested with him as I was in the beginning which is a shame, really. Leo, now this guy, he was the dark horse of the story. Think Nico minus his Prince of the Undead charm. I found him pretty obnoxious initially but his vulnerability, ingenuity, and all around likability makes him, easily, my favorite of the three. The weak link, in my humble opinion, is Piper who is neither offensive nor spectacular (although it felt like I was being constantly told that she is) but is definitely more likable than other leading-lady type demigods out there. Her godly parent is...blah...but she, at least, isn't as useless as her cabin mates. The one thing I really did like about her is that she knows what she wants and isn't afraid to own up to it. *side-eye Annabeth*

Familiar characters from the PJ books make an appearance, Camp Half-Blood does become their base after all, but they do not figure prominently in the story. Percy is not a part of The Lost Hero at all but his presence, or lack thereof, is keenly felt. By the end, one cannot help but speculate on what his role is going to be in the next installment. There is no question that Percy, who may or may not be "The Son of Neptune" (Heroes of Olympus, Book 2), will be in the next book but I'm positive it's not gonna be his story. The one spoilerish thing I'm going to say about this series is that R. Riordan meshes Greek and Roman Mythology so beautifully and seamlessly (not that much of a spoiler since you'll catch on early anyway) that you don't even question it. The emphasis on how the same God could be two separate deities, genius! Plot-hole problems - solved!

Yipee, already I'm going on and on about the next book in the series - obviously October 2011 cannot come soon enough - so let me end my verbal diarrhea with this:
 
The Lost Hero is amazing. Rick Riordan is amazing. Flaws and all.

The Verdict:

If I had to describe this book in one word; it would be "Impressive". Though I may have a quibble or two, consider my socks rocked. Well played Author, Well played.

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Rick Riordan - The Red Pyramid

The Red Pyramid The Kane Chronicles, Book 01

In which I attempt to deliver a spoiler-free review AND make sense. First, the blurb:

Since their mother’s death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane.

One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives.

Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set--has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe--a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.

The Red Pyramid was a pleasant surprise. I got into the book with pretty low expectations because I adored the the Percy Jackson series so much and didn't think Riordan could follow it up with something (anything!) just as good. And was it just as good? Not really. Maybe it paralleled Percy a little bit too much to be OMG. THAT WAS AMAZING!!!!!, but, I enjoyed the Kane series debut nonetheless and eagerly await the second installment.

Carter and Sadie Kane, the two leads, were just okay for me. Unfortunately, when held against the Percy Jackson standard, okay isn't as interesting as the Camp Half-Blood kids were. I liked Carter well enough but found Sadie a bit grating on my nerves. I didn't really connect with either character but The Red Pyramid is the first book in the Kane Chronicles and my feelings for the two could be subject to change. The book is written in the first person POV with every two chapters alternately "recorded" by the Kanes. Unlike some other folks, I thought the two had distinct voices and personalities which helped me differentiate who was "speaking" - obviously I enjoyed Carter's chapters more since I find sassy 12 year old girls rude and annoying.

The Red Pyramid starts out a bit slow; Its plot is more complex than the PJ books and my lack of knowledge in the Egyptian Mythology department didn't help when assorted Gods and monsters sprung about. Riordan dumps all sorts of information from the get-go which kept me from getting into the story immediately; a little bit like Stephenie Meyer's The Host, but, unlike The Host, the depth of information given is written in a way that drew me in slowly as opposed to losing interest altogether. It gets plenty better though; Riordan does an excellent job meshing Egyptian Mythology with the 21st century (no surprise there) and, for those paying attention, even vaguely references the gods from his Percy Jackson books. I love, love, love it when authors do that and love it even more when it's done well. As mentioned earlier, the parallels between Percy and the Kanes keep it from being an amazing original; Riordan doesn't stray far from the formula that's made him successful: ancient mythology (albeit Egyptian this time), teenagers, birthright/chosen one/etc plots, however, he is talented enough to keep the two series from being identical (thus far).

The verdict? Very Good - even a keeper - but, alas, not as good as his other more popular series. That said, I eagerly await the next book in the Kane Chronicles as well as his Heroes Of Olympus Chronicles. At this point, I'd read anything this man writes.

Final Grade:

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Julie James – Something About You

My intro to Julie James' work was her second novel, Practice Makes Perfect. I loved J.D. and Peyton's story and looked forward to reading more from the author. I've been meaning to read her debut novel, Just the Sexiest Man Alive, but somewhere along the way it got lost in the TBR pile shuffle. But soon, Ms. James' third novel was on the horizon and I picked it up and forgot all about the TBR pile - as they say, out of sight, out of mind. I started SAY on a Sunday afternoon but only got a couple chapters in before I experienced life interruptus and regrettably had to set it down. I didn't pick it back up until the following Saturday where I was up into the late hours reading all about Jack and Cameron. For me, who usually takes 2-3 weeks to finish a book, it was an excellent sign.

FATE HAS THROWN TWO SWORN ENEMIES. . .

Of all the hotel rooms rented by all the adulterous politicians in Chicago, female Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron Lynde had to choose the one next to 1308, where some hot-and-heavy lovemaking ends in bloodshed. And of all the FBI agents in Illinois, it had to be Special Agent Jack Pallas who gets assigned to this high-profile homicide. The same Jack Pallas who still blames Cameron for a botched crackdown three years ago—and nearly ruining his career…

. . .INTO EACH OTHER’S ARMS

Work with Cameron Lynde? Are they kidding? Maybe, Jack thinks, this is some kind of welcome-back prank after his stint away from Chicago. But it’s no joke: the pair is going to have to put their rocky past behind them and focus on the case at hand. That is, if they can cut back on the razor-sharp jibes—and smother the flame of their sizzling-hot sexual tension…

The book opens with the heroine, Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron Lynde, unknowingly hearing a crime in the hotel room next to hers. It turns out a U.S. Senator is mixed up in the crime and with Cameron being the main witness, the FBI is brought in and thus we meet the hero, Special Agent Jack Pallas. These two worked together in the past and things were going pretty smoothly until something happened with a case, heated words were said, misunderstandings ensued and both parted ways thinking ill of the other. Now, with their paths crossing some 3 years later, there is still anger between the two but also the underlying attraction they never had a chance to explore. This provides for some seriously hot tension between the two main characters.

The dialogue in the book is very believable and most importantly relatable. Cameron joking around with some of the cops (Officer Man-Boy) or those on her protective watch telling stories about conversations they had with her. Then there's Jack's partner, Wilkins, as well as Cameron's two best friends, Collin and Amy, who also provide some comic relief. One part that made me laugh was when Wilkins is asked to look in Cameron's purse for her house keys.

He reached past Cameron and tossed her purse over the seat. “See if you can find her keys,” he told Wilkins.
“Are you kidding? What if she wakes up and sees me rummaging around in there? You don’t touch the purse. The purse is sacrosanct.”

I found it funny because there have been 3 separate occasions when a male friend or relative asked me for something and I told them it was in my purse and to go ahead and grab it from the side pocket or the inner zipper. They brought my purse to me every time, even if I was in another room and my purse was in the room they were in. I never thought it was a "thing" but it appears to be some unspoken guy code.:p

Another thing I enjoyed is the romance quirk that Ms. James puts into her books. I completely forgot to mention the one she uses in Practice Makes Perfect when I reviewed that book but it was one of my favorite parts. In PMP, some of the characters talked about the "grand gesture". I won't give away what the quirk is in SAY but it's another cute aspect of the author's writing.

Aside from the funny, is the sexy. The chemistry between Jack and Cameron is smokin' hot. One of my favorite scenes is the motorcycle scene.

Before they took off—since these could very possibly be her last words—she flipped up the helmet visor and leaned forward to speak over the bike’s engine. “Don’t do anything crazy. I’m the maid of honor in my friend Amy’s wedding, and she’ll kill me if I have to be wheeled down the aisle in a body cast. Plus I got these new four-inch heels just for the occasion and they will not go well with crutches.”
She flipped the visor down.
Jack spun around in his seat and flipped the visor back open. “Don’t worry—since it’s your first time, I’ll be extra gentle.” With a wink, he flipped the visor shut.
She flipped the visor back open. “Nice innuendo. Am I supposed to be charmed by—”
Jack reached around and cut her off by flipping the visor shut again. “Sorry, no more talking, it distracts the driver.”
From behind the helmet, Cameron clamped her mouth in frustration. If he killed them both on the stupid bike, it was really going to piss her off that she didn’t at least get the last word in.

They start out with some light and fun banter but soon things take a slightly different turn. You'll have to read the book to find out ;)

There are so many good things I could talk about but I'll go ahead and wrap it up with the other major part of the book, solving the crime. There were moments when the chapter changed to the criminal stuff and I wanted it to keep going with Jack and Cameron or the other characters. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I didn't like the suspense part of the book, it's just that the romance and humorous parts were very, very good. One thing about the suspense that I really liked was the fact that we, the readers, are shown early on who the criminal is and the plot is watching as the main characters try to figure it out. But overall, this was an excellent read and I look forward to reading book #4.

Speaking of book #4, there is an excerpt in the back of SAY but I did not read it. It's like putting chocolate in front of me and saying, "Sorry you can't eat it until next year". That's just plain cruel :D So…I won't read a word of the next book until I know the whole thing is available.

Final Grade:

Around The Net:

Babbling About Books, And More!: B
Dear Author: A-
Read React Review
closetwriter: Keeper
Book Binge: 4.75 out of 5
Thrifty Reader: A
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books: A-
The Romance Reader: 4 hearts
Petit Fours and Hot Tamales: 5 out of 5
The Book Smugglers: 7 out of 10
Mrs Giggles: 85 out of 100

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The Devil Earl by Deborah Simmons

The Review In Which The Wol(f) Fingers The Raven('s) Scar

Reader described The Devil Earl as a prim writer gal/morally questionable hunk pairing sprinkled with gothic flair. How could my response be anything other than a resounding "Hells yes, gothic crack here I come!"?  

The Couple: Prudence Lancaster & Sebastien Ravenscar  

The Setting: Spooky Wolfinger Abbey above the cliffs  

The Challenge: Can Sebastien solve the mystery of his brothers disappearance? Can Pru break out of writers block? And most pressing, can their respective siblings cease being twats?

Out of a Midnight Coach Stepped Ravenscar...The Perfect Gothic Mystery Man Dark and brooding and rumored to have done murder, the Devil Earl was everything Prudence Lancaster's imagination could conjure. But he was also flesh and blood, and infinitely more seductive than anything she had ever created. In his presence, the dreamy authoress became a sultry sleuth, hungry to solve the mystery of Ravenscar's missing brother and save her beloved Devil Earl from his own wicked legacy...

Prudence Lancaster is a published gothic writer, but she's been lacking inspiration for her next work. She takes a break to ponder her favorite muse Wolfinger Abbey from her window. She has adored the structure, the history, the legends of it; since childhood. Pru is interrupted from mooning over the creepy abbey next door by her chirpy younger sister, who gifts us with a dramatic account of the sparkly dandy she met in town; blah blah blah, he's one of the heirs of the Abbey, blah blah, and isn't it all grand *yawn*. Some too boring to rehash courting, visits, conversations, and attempts to finagle a visit to the abbey follow.

Then the clouds part and Earl Ravenscar bursts into the story, he's intense, tortured, and impertinent; and I tittered like any bookslut worth her salt lol. Sebastian's grandfather, The Devil Earl, was oh so evil. He was mean, violent, and handsy. There was also a little to do about locking his wife in a tower until she went mad. The combination of this bleak family history and some of Sebastien's own doings in youth, have all of proper society convinced that he's is cut from the same cloth. The fact that he often plays into the part society has assigned him, doesn't help matters. Before you can say "Holy complications, Batman" the yummy Sebastian is suspected of doing away with his brother and a meddlesome authoress is determined to clear his name.

 Five minutes into this book I wanted to beat Pru's sister Phoebe to death with a mallet. Phoebe's the quintessential one dimensional "the world revolves around me" empty headed sister; which makes her the perfect match for Sebastien's Bro the silly "ne'er can do right" spare heir. There is no explanation or hints to the cause of their character,  this vagueness of character motivation and plot seem to be a running theme in this novel. Prudence and Phoebe's background gist seems to be that the sisters' parents are deceased and they were then raised by their elderly grandmother who is also now deceased. But that's just a guess, all I know for sure is that the 2 young females live alone save for a servant or 2, with reputations in tact. Highly unlikely and though I'm not a hardass regarding historical accuracy, some insight to the situation would have been welcome.

The scenes between Prudence and Sebastien, chock full of tension and mirth, are where the book really shines. As a couple they're just the right blend of entertaining, adorable,and sensual. Pru's refreshingly sensible and perceptive. She doesn't temporarily spurn Sebastian for the heck of it, lose who she is, or resist the pull she feels towards the earl. From very early on she knows he's the man she's been dreaming of and trusts that he's a better man then he believes. Not even I can bring myself not to like her, despite her tendency to utter "Oh my" (13 times, and yes I'm anal enough to count lmao). After his initial combination of aloof maneuvers and insults, Sebastien shapes up into a right nice reformed rogue. He falls for Pru; spectacles, ink stained hands, eccentricities and all.

So in conclusion I adored this book when it focused on the the hero and heroine and was bored to tears during the rest,when the bleh cast of characters and many unconvincing coincidences passing for plot interrupted my fun.  

Bookslut Highlights

• Heroine too sexy for her gloves

• Bronze wolf abuse

• Bitchy chaperones

• Love is blind to bony feet

• Smugglers a smuggling

• Skeezy Ton folk

• Secret tunnel shenanigans

The Grade

Liked the premise of this book but aspects of its execution were WEAK. Enjoyed it enough to continue riding the series/author out at my own leisurely pace. Beyond the hype, this book is fine for a fluffy, generic read and has more of a library rental/swap quality rather than a keeper for my personal bookshelf.

Around The Net:

Mrs Giggles 98/100

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JR Ward - BDB 03 - Lover Awakened

The Challenge: The beginning of this book wasn't as hard to get into as the last. It still had some funky opening dialogue but I pushed through and made it over the first hump fairly easily. Later though, when switching to text, it took A LOT for me to ignore Ward's gems like ahvenge, cohntehst, ghardian and sehclusion. Seriously, I wonder how she decides which words get that extra special attention. Things that make you go WTF…er…hmmmm.

Format and Setting: I listened to about 1/3 of it in audio when I could at work but it's long so I switched to reading the rest of it here, there, everywhere.

The Music: The official rapper name dropped was Mystikal. For me, I'd say the song for this book in general would be Lady Gaga's Bad Romance

…. I want your ugly
I want your disease
I want your everything
As long as it’s free
I want your love
Love love love
I want your love…

The Couple: Zsadist and Bella

The Surprise: I liked this book…for the most part.

A former blood slave, the vampire Zsadist still bears the scars from a past filled with suffering and humiliation. Renowned for his unquenchable fury and sinister deeds, he is a savage feared by humans and vampires alike. Anger is his only companion, and terror is his only passion—until he rescues a beautiful aristocrat from the evil Lessening Society.

Bella is instantly entranced by the seething power Zsadist possesses. But even as their desire for one another begins to overtake them both, Zsadist’s thirst for vengeance against Bella’s tormentors drives him to the brink of madness. Now, Bella must help her lover overcome the wounds of his tortured past, and find a future with her…

Zsadist was one of the characters that stood out for me in books 1 and 2 so I was glad his story was next in the series. Z was made out to be the loner with a past so horrific that even the other members of the Brotherhood appeared wary of him. So why did someone like that stick out to me? Because we also caught glimpses of a caring soul and I wanted to see more of that side. In Lover Awakened, Zsadist is awakened to true emotions, true security, true personal growth and of course, true love.

This story continues the plot of Bella's kidnapping by the lessers, which occurred towards the end of book 2. It opens up with Z and the Brotherhood looking for her and when she is found early in the story, we see more of the softer side of Z as he cares of her during her recuperation. We also learn more of what happened to him when he was a blood slave. Learning what Z endured in his past absolutely explains the scared and wounded person he is now. In his eyes, he is dirty and unworthy and anyone who tries to get close to him will be tainted. As Z and Bella spend more time together, it was sweet to see him sort of blossoming emotionally. He would tell Bella why something was difficult for him to accept and sometimes they were able to work through the issue but most of the time, Z still felt he wasn't good enough for Bella. She tried to convince him that he was neither dirty nor unworthy of her love but in the end, the only one who could change Z's outlook was Z. That's what I thought was great about this book. Z ended up making decisions and taking actions that showed he finally believed he was worth having more in his life. When compared to the previous two books, I'd say Bella and Zsadist's is my favorite.

Another thing I enjoyed was learning more about Zsadist and his twin brother Phury's history. Phury takes a trip down memory lane and we see how Z was taken from their family and became a blood slave. We learn how long Phury searched for his brother and what he sacrificed to rescue him. I felt such compassion for both brothers and Phury became another stand out character for me. I really felt for him because he started to fall for Bella too but she chose Z and he had to stand by and watch their happy ending. He sealed the deal for me towards the end when he sacrificed himself again for his brother…I look forward to reading his book.

Phury knelt beside him and stroked his face. "I've only ever had you to live for. If you die I have nothing. I'm utterly lost. And you are needed here."

Zsadist tried to reach out, but couldn't lift his arms as Phury stood up.

"God, Z, I keep thinking this tragedy of ours is going to be over. But it just keeps going, doesn't it?"

Zsadist blacked out to the sound of his twin's boots heading from the room.

One of my favorite things is still the moments of solidarity between the Brothers. There's a scene when a change in Z's physical appearance is noticed and the Brothers are all there for the surprising revelation.

Z jacked his head up. "Why?"

"He didn't give a reason—" Tohr's eyes narrowed on Z's face. "Oh… my God."

The others in the room glanced over, and there were a couple of low gasps. Then the Brotherhood and Butch just stared at him.

"What the fuck are you looking at?"

Phury pointed to the antique mirror hanging on the wall next to the double doors. "See for yourself."

Zsadist marched across the room, ready to give them all hell. Bella was what mattered—

His mouth went lax at his reflection. With a shaky hand he reached out to the eyes in the old-fashioned leaded glass. His irises were no longer black. They were yellow. Just like his twin's.

"Phury?" he said softly. "Phury… what's happened to me?"

As the male came up behind him, the brother's face appeared right beside Z's. And then Wrath's dark reflection showed up in the mirror, all long hair and sunglasses. Then Rhage's star-fallen beauty. And Vishous's Sox cap. And Tohrment's brush cut. And Butch's busted nose.

One by one they reached out and touched him, their big hands landing gently on his shoulders.

"Welcome back, my brother," Phury whispered.

Zsadist stared at the males who were behind him. And had the oddest thought that if he were to let himself go limp and fall backward… they would catch him.

We also meet another character, Bella's brother Rehvenge, who seems like an interesting addition. There's a little twist at the end, that I admit I didn't see coming, and I'm curious to see how he plays into the rest of the series.

Now for the lessers, the baby powder smelling adversaries of the vampires. In earlier books I never found them very threatening but this book seemed to step up the action. I'm still waiting for my epic Lord of the Rings Battle at Helms Deep type fight but so far things are heading in the right direction. In this book there's the creepy and obsessive stalkerish lesser holding Bella captive and refers to her as his wife. He was so loony tunes over her that he even ignored his duties as fore-lesser to find her. When he finally gets a lead on her location, he sets in motion something that I really, really, really hated in this book.

If you haven't read any of these books and are planning to, I suggest you skip over the next section.

*SPOILER RANT ALERT* Scroll mouse over to read.

Crazy stalker dude that kidnapped Bella ends up killing Wellsie!!! Why, why, why?!?! Aside from Zsadist, Tohr was the other character that stood out for me in the previous books. I wanted to see how he and Wellsie's future turned out since she was pregnant. I wanted them to have their happy ending. The scene where the Brotherhood comes to tell Tohr what happened is heartbreaking but after that, there's practically nothing else. We see John's mourning but there are only a couple mentions of Tohr still being missing. C'mon, dammit. In previous books, Wellsie was there for Brotherhood dinners and she took John in when they found him. I know they couldn't do the formal Fade ceremony because Tohr was gone, but damn someone shed a tear for her. Someone talk about her and what she may have meant to them. Someone do more to try and find Tohr.

*END SPOILER RANT*

While Bella and Z's story has been my favorite so far, there are still things that bug me.

1. Of course there's the funky slang. I can't tell you how annoying it is to hear/read about the "shitkickers" or "What's doing?" or "How's doing?" For the love of all that's grammatical, can I please get a complete sentence?
2. When Z remembers back to what he endured as a blood slave there were several uncomfortable moments for me. I understand the need to show us what he went through but some of the frequent and detailed descriptions were uncomfortable to read.
3. Coming back to the present, Bella goes into her needing period.
   
   

   needing period(n.) Female vampire's time of fertility, generally lasting for two days and accompanied by intense sexual cravings. Occurs approximately five years after a female's transition and then once a decade thereafter. All males respond to some degree if they are around a female in her need. It can be a dangerous time, with conflicts and fights breaking out between competing males, particularly if the female is not mated.
   

    This is too close to animals in heat and weirded me out. Seriously, every male in the house started sportin' wood and since it was daytime, those without female mates in-house were shit out of luck. They had to turn to alcohol, red smoke or "self-love" to get through the needing period. During this time, Bella and Z started their sex-a-thon. It was all just very, very bizarre.
   
   
   

As for grading this book, the portions with Bella and Z's romance and Z and Phury's interactions would be a B- but the rest would be a C-. What to do, what to do? I'll go ahead and give it the higher one.

Final Grade:

ETA: 01/21/2010 - Made minor changes to review for clarity of thought, spelling/formatting issues and overall cohesiveness as original review was written while I was super tired and therefore did not re-read it thoroughly before hitting Publish Post :D


Around The Net:
Loves Vampires: 5 out of 5 stars
A Journey of Books: A
Dear Author: A-
Romantic Times: 4.5 out of 5 stars
The Hope Chest: 5 out of 5 stars
The Romance Reader: 4 out of 5 hearts

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Keri Arthur - Bound to Shadows (Riley Jenson Guardian Book #08)

Yet another series I'm a fan of and after the last book I was eager to see what Riley would be facing in her personal life. As fans of the series know Riley Jenson and her twin brother Rhoan are half vampire and half werewolf. The wolves in this tale have one soul mate they go through life hoping to find. The connection between wolf soul mates is so strong that more often than not, if one dies their soul mate dies with them. The big question Riley faces is can a person with two souls have two soul mates? She's been in a committed relationship with the zexy vampire Quinn but they always knew one day she would find her wolf soul mate. How would they deal with that when it happened? This book gives us some of the answers.

Part vampire, part werewolf, Riley Jenson knows what can happen when vamps don’t play well with others. But she’s never seen anything like this: a series of brutal murders surrounding the latest hot spot for vampire-human hookups—and the victims aren’t just killed, they’re beheaded. Now Riley is launching into action, toying with a seductive—and highly suspicious—club owner, and finding herself in the middle of another mystery: women being killed one by one, without a trace of violence.

For Riley, solving multiple cases—in a world going mad with human and vampire passions—would have been tough enough. Instead she has two jealous lovers on her hands: Kye Murphy, the amber-eyed werewolf who makes Riley’s wolf blood howl—and Quinn, the cool, elegant vamp who has over a thousand years’ experience at fulfilling women’s desires. While she’s busy juggling these two sexy beasts, Riley’s detective work takes a stunningly violent turn. Finding a murderer is now a matter of life and death. Especially since the killer has long since found her . . .

At the end of the previous book Riley finally finds her soul mate; too bad he's more foe than friend. I thought making Riley's soul mate someone she despises was an interesting twist by Ms. Arthur so I was anxious to see how things would turn out in this book. I thought Riley and Kye would eventually work things out which would cause problems between Riley and Quinn and that would be the big to-do in this book. Instead, the animosity continues to grow between Riley and Kye and they fight against the soul mate connection while also occasionally giving in to the physical pull of their bodies (hot and hard sex up against the door jamb anyone?).

As for Rhoan, he's already found his soul mate in Leander and is finally taking a big step towards a more committed relationship: he and Leander want to have a baby. Leander's sister is willing to carry the baby and they ask Riley to donate an egg so the baby will be a part of the Jenson clan too. This is a huge deal for Riley because above all else, her heart's desire has been to have a baby. With things that happened to her in the past, she is unable to carry one. I can't wait to see where Ms. Arthur takes this story line.

We also got to see more of Riley's friend Dia, a woman/clone Riley helped in the past, and Dia's daughter Risa. We find out Risa's father was one of the same creatures Quinn used to be before he became a vampire. Dia asks for Quinn's help with mentoring Risa since the young girl's powers are growing every day. Dia is also psychic and Riley goes to her for some advice about her future and the whole soul mate situation. There's also more of Kade, the were-stallion (*snickers*) who has a corral of mares and new colts to look after. Kade is also a co-worker of Riley's and is the funny sidekick type character. It was nice to have Kade and Riley working together on solving the latest crimes.

I have to say I really, really, really disliked Kye. He's a cold-hearted, selfish and cocky son-of-a-bitch with a dash of crazy. At first I thought he would change because of Riley but as things progressed I started to sense something really wasn't right with him. In the end, we found out what he was really up to. I felt sorry that after all this time and hope, this is the soul mate Riley ended up with. I wondered how Ms. Arthur would resolve this horrible situation and what she did was shocking. Not just what happened with Kye (which looking back on the series, I can see it was heading that way) but what happened with Kade. I was not feeling that particular bit at all.

With that said, I can't wait to read book 9 which is the series finale.

Final Grade:

Around The Net:

Steph Su Reads: 2.5 out of 5
Leontine's Book Realm: 4 out of 5 stars
Romantic Times: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Carolyn Jewel - Scandal

Scandal has a bit of a different start to it compared to the romances I've read in the past. We meet the hero, Banallt, who is just arriving with his friend John Mercer to John's home where John's sister, Sophie, also resides. We find out right away that Banallt is there to win Sophie's heart. Sophie and Banallt have met in the past, when both were married to others, but they struck up a friendship that apparently has turned to love on Banallt's side. He expresses his intent to marry her and I was extremely interested in finding out what exactly happened in the past to make this man almost desperate in his pursuit. Great way to draw the reader in!

The earl of Banallt is no stranger to scandal. But when he meets Sophie Evans, the young wife of a fellow libertine, even he is shocked by his reaction. This unconventional and intelligent woman proves to be far more than an amusing distraction-- she threatens to drive him to distraction. Unlike the women who usually fall at Banallt's feet, and into his bed, Sophie refuses to be seduced. And soon Banallt desires her more than ever-- and for more than an illicit affair.

Years later, the widowed Sophie is free, and Banallt is determined to win the woman he still loves. Unfortunately, she doesn't believe his declaration of love and chivalrous offer of marriage-- her heart has already been broken by her scoundrel of a husband. And yet, Sophie is tempted to indulge in the torrid affair she's always fantasized about. Caught between her logical mind and her long-denied desire, Sophie must thwart Banallt's seduction-- or risk being consumed by the one man she should avoid at all costs...

The chapters flow seamlessly back and forth in time from Sophie and Banallt's past to their present day interactions. We learn that Banallt was a friend of Sophie's husband, Tommy. One night Tommy comes home drunk, passes out in his and Sophie's bed and leaves her to deal with the two strangers in the hallway. The strangers are Banallt and one of his many mistresses. A servant shows the mistress to a guest room and Sophie shows Banallt to a separate guest room. This is where he first makes a pass at her but Sophie is faithful to her husband and slaps Banallt in the face. What a nice first meeting, eh?

Back to the present, both Sophie and Banallt's spouses have passed away so both are free to pursue new relationships. Unfortunately Sophie is too wounded from her past marriage and Tommy's infidelities to trust another man, let alone Banallt. Considering Banallt and Tommy were fans of good ol' debauchery, she has every right to be wary. But something has happened and Banallt is a changed man. He has given up the rake's life and wants to build a life with Sophie. The only problem is convincing her that he will be faithful.

During all this, John is the typical protective brother and warns Banallt away from Sophie. He knows the hurt Sophie suffered during her marriage and with Banallt's reputation he only wants to protect his sister from future harm. John is also rising in his political career and through him Sophie meets a couple of men who also seem to be interested in courting her. There is also a secondary budding romance between John and Banallt's cousin's daughter that I found very sweet.

I read Scandal in two sittings which is very rare for me because of time constraints but I found myself eager to see how it would end. Which brings me to the not so good stuff: there I was minding my own business, happily reading along when something unexpected happened. I am not lying when I tell you my good reading mood was broken when this incident happened. Complete bummer! There were also a few issues I was confused about and since I was in the last days of my NaNoReadMo challenge I didn’t do as much re-reading as I normally would when needing clarification. First, Sophie and Banallt sometimes referenced how horrible Banallt was on the final day they saw each other. I thought he had revealed Sophie's secret occupation but I have since re-read that portion of the book and know it was him making another pass at her. The second issue is what exactly made Banallt decide to turn his life around. I've re-read more of the book and still unsure if there was an actual event that changed his life. Was it the loss of his wife? There is someone else from Banallt's past and I thought it was the loss of that person but that also happened back when he knew Sophie. I thought something major happened to him since their last meeting and that was the reason for the redeemed man.

Aside from that confusion and the incident that bummed me out, I really enjoyed this book. I loved the glimpses (outside of the chapters set in the past) we got of Sophie and Banallt's close friendship like when Sophie sees the painting in Banallt's home and tells him it is as beautiful as he had told her. I love how she knows his little quirks like always tugging on his cravat. My all time favorite line in the book is Banallt describing Sophie when they're in the carriage. I've read a few romances where the heroine isn't the conventional beauty yet has that certain something that attracts the hero but I've never read it described better than this:

He leaned back so that he had a better view of her face. She was one of those women, he’d long ago decided, whose appeal did not lie in repose, but in action, in the change of expression, the quick, intelligent eyes.

I LOVE this description! "…whose appeal did not lie in repose, but in action, in the change of expression…" It is absolutely true. Someone's personality and spirit can definitely shine through one's expression and bring absolute beauty to it no matter what their physical appearance may be.

I've had this book in my TBR pile for a while and am so glad to have finally read it. My new challenge will be figuring out which Carolyn Jewel book to read next.

Final Grade:
A very high

Around The Net:

The Book Binge: 4.5 out of 5
Dear Author: A-
Love Romance Passion: 4 - 4.5 stars out of 5
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books: B+
All About Romance: B+
Romantic Times: 4 stars out of 5
The Book Smugglers: 9 out of 10
Romance Novel TV: 5+ stars

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Janet Evanovich - Finger Lickin' Fifteen

It's hard to believe I am still with a series 15 books in because I normally fizzle out around book 7. The Stephanie Plum series was always light and fun reading so it never bothered me how Stephanie was up to her usual antics or that she was still floating back and forth between staying with Morelli and having some fun with Ranger. There was a time when I read each book as soon as it came out but it was six months before I picked this one up. Sadly, there was good reason for that delay.

UNBUCKLE YOUR BELT AND PULL UP A CHAIR. IT'S THE SPICIEST, SAUCIEST, MOST RIB-STICKING PLUM YET.

Recipe for disaster:
Celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle comes to Trenton to participate in a barbecue cook-off and loses his head --literally.

Throw in some spice:
Bail bonds office worker Lula is witness to the crime, and the only one she’ll talk to is Trenton cop, Joe Morelli.

Pump up the heat:
Chipotle’s sponsor is offering a million dollar reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the capture of the killers.

Stir the pot:
Lula recruits bounty hunter Stephanie Plum to help her find the killers and collect the moolah.

Add a secret ingredient:
Stephanie Plum’s Grandma Mazur. Enough said.

Bring to a boil:
Stephanie Plum is working overtime tracking felons for the bonds office at night and snooping for security expert Carlos Manoso, A.K.A. Ranger, during the day. Can Stephanie hunt down two killers, a traitor, five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, solve Ranger’s problems and not jump his bones?

Warning:
Habanero hot. So good you’ll want seconds.

Yeah, yeah, yeah Stephanie is out hunting a skip and the usual stuff happens like the guy getting away, cars blowing up, Ranger helping her out, Joe Morelli warning her away from him….basically a little bit from books 1-14 mixed together and repackaged with different secondary character names. The main difference of this book is that Lula is the main focus. She is a witness to a crime so has to hide out from the people looking to silence her. Where does she hide? Well at Stephanie's place of course! This arrangement doesn't work too well for either of them so Stephanie ends up staying at Ranger's place for a while.

I've listened to most of this series on audio and for some reason Lula has always been a bit annoying. It may be how the narrator voices her but I usually end up wondering how Stephanie can put up with some of her quirks. So with Lula being the focus of this book, I was rather annoyed for most of it. It just seemed like everything she or Stephanie did was the most stupid thing anyone could do when someone is looking to kill them. I won't even go into the ridiculousness of Stephanie in the hot dog suit at the end.

Another thing that bugged me was the fact that Stephanie never got it on with Ranger. While working at Range Man AND staying in Ranger's apartment, she had ample opportunity to be up in his Bvlgari goodness but she declined each and every time. The way I look at it, if she's not with Morelli why not have some fun with Ranger? Maybe that's why I'm still with the series. There's that small hope that she will have another fling with Ranger. At the same time, as much as I want that to happen, I can only see Stephanie ending up with Morelli.

Confession: I received Ms. Evanovich's latest newsletter which revealed the next book will be titled Sizzling Sixteen. Guess who will be reading it? Yes, me. Even though this book bugged me I still find them light, easy and fast reads (listens?). It won't be a "dash to the store on release day" deal, but I'll pick it up eventually.

My wish: end the Stephanie Plum series with Stephanie and Joe getting their happily ever after and spin-off Ranger to a Range Man series. My favorite book is #12 where the main focus was Ranger and finding his daughter. We could follow him in his bad ass bounty hunter/security expert exploits where he meets an equally bad ass female hunter/secret agent/uber spy and they have a Mr. and Mrs. Smith type relationship. That would be hot.

Final Grade:

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Madeline Hunter - By Possession

Every time I read a book I tell myself to write down the page numbers with passages that moved me in some way so I can quote it in the review. Of course, I never do. I usually don't regret it because I can remember certain phrases and do a search in the ebook or if it's a print book, I can recall the placement of the phrase (e.g. last paragraph on a left-sided page) and place in the book (e.g. 1st third of book) and find it that way. This time; however, there was so much richness in the story I can't even recall the specific moments I wanted to point out. Bummer for me, but a great sign for this book! I've often heard the term "meaty" in reference to stories but never gave it anything more than a passing thought until reading this book. I totally get it now.

A Common Lady

For years she had thought he was dead. Yet when Addis de Valence strode into Moira Falkner's cottage, there was no mistaking the sharp planes of his face, and the scar she herself had helped to heal. The young squire who had once been her hero was now her lord, a hardened man who returned to claim the son she had raised as her own. But Moira couldn't deny that Addis roused a passion she never thought to feel-and a perilous hope for a future that could never be....

An Uncommon Love

Addis returned from the Crusades to find his lands usurped by his stepbrother, and his country on the brink of rebellion. Determined to reclaim his birthright, Addis could not afford to be distracted by a woman-even one as tempting as Moira. Yet the only living part of his contented past lay in Moira-and his desire for her was more dangerous than his deadly battles with the king's men. By law, Moira belonged to him...but possessing her heart might be far more difficult.

Addis de Valence, Claire and Moira grew up in the same household. Addis was a few years older and when they came of age, he was betrothed to Claire. There was no love between them but duty called for the marriage. Afterwards, Addis goes away to battle and soon word comes of his death. Claire also dies leaving a son, Brian, and since Moira was her companion through most her life, she hides and cares for Addis' heir. When Addis shockingly returns a few years later, he takes Brian elsewhere for safekeeping and proceeds with plans to regain his lands - lands that were given over to his step-brother, Simon, after the death of Addis' father.

With Brian gone and her heart broken, Moira feels there is nothing left for her and decides to leave. She is stopped on the road by 3 men who attack her but is soon rescued by Addis. He decides he will not return Moira home but take her with him on his journey. It is during these travels that we witness the growing love between Addis and Moira. Unfortunately, it is an impossible situation because of their stations in life: he is a baron, she a serf. In truth, though, Moira is a free woman. Her mother was a serf who was also Patrick de Valance's (Addis' father) mistress. Upon his deathbed he gave Moira's mother and herself their freedom. When Addis returns, he only has Moira's word on the matter because the witnesses to this deathbed proclamation are no longer present at the holding. He is too intrigued with her to let her go and so he claims she is still a bondwoman and the price of her freedom is set so ridiculously high, he is sure she will be unable to pay it. Thus he keeps her bound to him unjustly. I had issue with this because for a time after the Crusades, Addis himself lived as a slave. Knowing what that life meant, how could he make Moira suffer the same fate? Those moments when he held his ownership over her were the moments I disliked him. Then in the next breath we would see how much she meant to him and how much hope she brought him and it was easy to see why he went to such desperate measures to keep her near.

Throughout the book, Addis is constantly struggling with the duties of his birth and the longing of his heart. There is a point where he speaks of feeling he has two souls waging war against each other yet when he is with Moira, he is complete and at peace. Moira struggles with the longing of her heart but also the power of her pride as that is all she truly has since she is still a bondwoman. She saw the life her mother led and heard the names the villagers called her behind her back. No matter how much she loves Addis, she refuses to follow her mother's path. She fights off the attraction as much as she can for most of the book but there are times when she allows herself to live in that moment and not worry about all the burdens they carry.

As I neared the end of the book I had to remind myself that this is a romance and a HEA is coming up. It really was down to the wire. I think that may be the only other issue I had with By Possession. With so many things weighing them down that never truly left their shoulders even in the intimate moments, I would have loved seeing more of Addis and Moira's unburdened happiness. A few more pages that showed them finally enjoying a complete union, a union made in freedom.  

Bookslut Highlights:
*No absurd denials. Heroine knows she'll probably give in after a few kisses from the hero.

*Flashbacks that show the history of the h/h.

*Comedic moment when hero realizes profession of secondary character who is a possible love interest for heroine.

*The 'other man' was not made out to be a bad guy

*Several instances of the word phallus

*Kidnapping scenario with hero ignoring all laid out plans to go rescue the damsel in distress

*True lurve of the soul-deep variety

Final Grade:

Clutching the book to my chest now as I bask in the afterglow. Exceptional…brilliant, even. I strongly recommend. You can thank me later.


 

Around The Net:
 The Romance Reader: 4 stars
All About Romance: B+
Romantic Times: 4.5 starts

ETA: highlights

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Splendid by Julia Quinn

Some Gingers Have All The Fun

Emma is a feisty American shipping heiress sent to live in London for a year. To...well I'm not quite sure what for exactly since it isn't explained well. But lets just assume the usual social polishing and marriage mart suspects. What’s a heroine to do to avert boredom? Find her way into all sorts of silly, dangerous mischief of course. Duh.

The Couple: Emma Dunster and Alexander Ridgely

The Setting: My Mom's Physician's waiting room

The Challenge: Can Emma stop fighting feelin' and fight for his love? Can Alex over come his fears like a big boy and start playing for keeps? Can I ignore the toothless old man making kissy noises at me? Next time on The Young and The Restless. lol

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JR Ward – BDB 02 – Lover Eternal

The Challenge: Trying to get past page 1. Seriously – I couldn't get past this page for a week. I've since realized it's probably because the page starts out with dialogue and we all know how much I love the dialogue *end sarcasm*. Now, the challenge is writing my review.  

The Setting: My room  

The Music: Jay-Z bumpin from the speakers j/k  

The Couple: Rhage (aka Hollywood, Hal E. Wood) and Mary Luce  

The Surprise: The book was dedicated to me. What, you doubt me? Read 'em and weep people. Read 'em and weep:

Dedicated to: You. In the beginning, we didn't hit it off, did we?

See, told ya so. JR Ward obviously had Vishous prognosticate my reaction to book one, Dark Lover.

Within the brotherhood, Rhage is the vampire with the strongest appetites. He’s the best fighter, the quickest to act on his impulses, and the most voracious lover—for inside him burns a ferocious curse cast by the Scribe Virgin. Possessed by this dark side, Rhage fears the times when his inner dragon is unleashed, making him a danger to everyone around him.

Mary Luce, a survivor of many hardships, is unwittingly thrown into the vampire world and reliant on Rhage’s protection. With a life-threatening curse of her own, Mary is not looking for love. Her faith in miracles was lost years ago. But when Rhage’s intense animal attraction turns into something more emotional, he knows that he must make Mary his alone. And while their enemies close in, Mary fights desperately to gain life eternal with the one she loves…

Mary and Rhage's story starts out pretty good. I found it to be an easier read, once I got past page one, than the first book. We see how hard it's been for Rhage to live with his beast and we meet Mary who's had a rough life. She took care of her sick mother and watched helplessly as she faded away into death. Mary also battled leukemia and after two years of remission, may now have a recurrence. I was very interested in these two until everything got repetitive. Here's a summary:

Mary: I'm plain, why is Hal (aka Rhage) with me?

Rhage: Your voice, it's so soothing yet it also makes me hot.

Mary: He's only being nice because Bella told him I'm sick.

Rhage: You're so beautiful and you make me all tingly in my special places. Wait, even in my non-special places.

Mary: Stop pitying me. You're way out of my league.

Rhage: But I'm so hard for you. Oh no! I'm also dangerous for you. See how my teal eyes glow for you. My secret beast wants out and will probably eat you.

Mary: Hmm….his teal eyes are glowing but that doesn't bother me at all because glowing teal eyes are oh so normal. Oh and I'm wet for you, but you're just being kind to the unattractive girl. See you even pull away from me because I disgust you.

Rhage: I love you! Stay here with me in my room. You're my girl now and forever.

Mary: What? You don't even know me, I don't know you. We may be practically sexin' it like monkeys but you, Mr. Hottie McNaughty, cannot love me, Ms. Demure Insecure.

Rhage: How can you think me so unworthy? I only want to love and take care of you.

Yada, yada, yada. Shampoo, rinse and repeat a couple dozen times with some breaks for kissing, fondling and feeding (food not blood) because apparently it means a whole lot in the vamp world to feed another. Whatever….moving on.

There was one part that I really liked in the first half. It's when Rhage is reflecting on the burden the beast has been on him. I really feel for him here:

God, he was tired of being stuck inside his body, managing its demands, trying not to fall into a brutal oblivion. Sure, his stunner of a face and the strength were all fine and good. But he would have traded both to a scrawny, ugly mo'fo, if it would have gotten him some peace. Hell, he couldn't even remember what serenity was like. He couldn't even remember who he was.

The disintegration of himself had started up pretty quick. After only a couple of years into the curse, he'd stopped hop-ing for any true relief and simply tried to get by without hurting anyone. That was when he'd started to die on the inside, and now, over a hundred years later, he was mostly numb, nothing more than glossy window dressing and empty charm.

Early on in the book, we meet a young man named John Matthews who Mary befriends despite his stalkerish behavior. She also introduces John to her neighbor Bella, who happens to be a civilian vampire. John is mute but of course Mary, in all her holy goodness, knows sign language. While chatting/signing with John, Mary and Bella discover he is an orphan. He is also wearing a bracelet he made that has symbols he dreamt about. Guess what those symbols are? They're old school vamp talk and Bella just happens to read OSVT. The following is what she discovers after reading the symbols. It is also the point at which I set the book down and laughed:

Putting her hands on her hips, she stared at the floor. What the hell was she going to do? When she'd searched John's conscious mind, she'd found nothing about his race, his people, his traditions. The boy didn't know a thing, had no idea who he really was or what he was going to turn into. And he honestly didn't know what those symbols meant.

She did. They spelled out TEHRROR in the Old Language. A warrior's name.

Seriously? TEHRROR? Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

*picks book back up and continues reading*

So apparently John Matthews is destined to be one of the Brotherhood. I love how Tohr is with him. Again, Tohr is one of my faves from the books and I can't wait to read more about him and Wellsie.

There's also a part where Rhage cheats on Mary. She knows where he's going (and why) and I see why he did it but after all his sweetness towards her, he lost many points in my book.

After Mary finally admits her feelings for Rhage things go a little smoother. There's still a lot of repetitiveness but I was less annoyed by then. There's a part where Rhage realizes that his beast wants to sex it up with Mary too, and she agrees to let him. So they proceed and I won't lie, that scene was kinda creepy. It had nothing to do with the chains (they had to chain Rhage so the beast wouldn't hurt Mary) but with the actual thought of some alien-like creature up in there too…CREEPY!

The Lessers are snoozeville for me. I don't see them as any real threat except to Johnson and Johnson, the makers of baby powder. Have nothing else to say about them.

One of the things I really like about the BDB world is the brotherhood aspect. I like the solidarity they show towards Rhage after his punishment for breaking the Brotherhood's rules. I LOVE the scene afterwards with Zsadist at Rhage's bedside chanting or praying for him. I wished for more scenes of the brothers together WITHOUT the slang. That would have made a huge difference for me! I also wanted more interaction between the ladies. When Mary first arrives, Beth is there for a brief second and Wellsie is mainly in scenes with Tohr. At the very least, I would have expected Beth to befriend Mary since she was living there. She could have provided some advice on dealing with the brothers considering she was fairly new to the group as well.

I did get a little bored towards the end with the exception of the scenes with Bella and Phury, then Bella and Zsadist. It really got me interested in learning more about both brothers. I liked Bella because she was upfront, she straight up told Z she was attracted to him and wanted to sleep with him. You.Go.Girl. Very refreshing after all Mary's wishy-washy ways. We also learned earlier that Bella has a brother named Rehvenge, probably a future member of the brotherhood.

The ending wasn’t unexpected but rather a bit unsatisfying. I seriously thought the path they were taking was heartbreakingly beautiful. Don't get me wrong, I wanted a happy ending and knew there would be a twist but didn't think it would be that. Since the rule was Rhage couldn't go to the new Mary, I thought somehow the new Mary would cross paths with him and they would rebuild their relationship. I actually would have preferred it that way. Anyway……

I still have my issues with JR Ward's writing (the names, the slang, the caveman talk - see link above for the list in my review of the first book) but I have to admit the little peeks she provides on the other brothers are enough to catch and hold my attention. My faves are still Zsadist and Tohrment. I want to learn more about what happened in Z's past and I want to see what happens with Tohr, Wellsie and their baby. I also, want to see how they help John Matthews since they pretty much adopted him. I even want to see what's up with Phury and why the celibacy. Oh yeah, not to mention V and his awesome yet burden laden gift of prognostication.

In short, these books are mind-crack and I have succumbed. Well played, Ms. Ward. Well played. I still need recovery time from each book so I'll see you in another 3 months when I read the next one.

Final Grade:

Liked the premise of this book but aspects of its execution were WEAK. Enjoyed it enough to continue riding the series/author out at my own leisurely pace. Beyond the hype, this book is fine for a fluffy, generic read and has more of a library rental/swap quality rather than a keeper for my personal bookshelf

Around The Net:
A Journey of Books: A+
The Romance Reader: 3 Stars
Love Vampires: 5 Stars
Dear Author: B
The Hope Chest Reviews: 4 Stars
Romantic Times: 4 ½ Stars

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