Jane Jameson Series Review (1-3) by Molly Harper

March 31st 2009, Pocket Star
355 pages, Paperback
Received from Publisher
First in Jane Jameson series
Adult Fiction

Maybe it was the Shenanigans gift certificate that put her over the edge. When children's librarian and self-professed nice girl Jane Jameson is fired by her beastly boss and handed twenty-five dollars in potato skins instead of a severance check, she goes on a bender that's sure to become Half Moon Hollow legend. On her way home, she's mistaken for a deer, shot, and left for dead. And thanks to the mysterious stranger she met while chugging neon-colored cocktails, she wakes up with a decidedly unladylike thirst for blood.
Jane is now the latest recipient of a gift basket from the Newly Undead Welcoming Committee, and her life-after-lifestyle is taking some getting used to. Her recently deceased favorite aunt is now her ghostly roommate. She has to fake breathing and endure daytime hours to avoid coming out of the coffin to her family. She's forced to forgo her favorite down-home Southern cooking for bags of O negative. Her relationship with her sexy, mercurial vampire sire keeps running hot and cold. And if all that wasn't enough, it looks like someone in Half Moon Hollow is trying to frame her for a series of vampire murders. What's a nice undead girl to do?

August 25th 2009, Pocket Star
376 pages, Paperback
Received from Publisher
Second in Jane Jameson series
Adult Fiction

Following Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs, the second in a hilarious, smart, sexy romantic series about an out-of-work librarian who is turned into a vampire.

With her best friend Zeb’s Titanic-themed wedding looming ahead, new vampire Jane Jameson struggles to develop her budding relationship with her enigmatic sire, Gabriel. It seems unfair that she’s expected to master undead dating while dealing with a groom heading for a nuptial nervous breakdown, his hostile werewolf in-laws, and the ugliest bridesmaid dress in the history of marriage. Meanwhile, the passing of Jane’s future step-grandpa puts Grandma Ruthie back on the market. Her new fiancÉ, Wilbur, has his own history of suspiciously dead spouses, and he may or may not have died ten years ago. Half-Moon Hollow’s own Black Widow has finally met her match. Should Jane warn her grandmother of Wilbur’s marital habits or let things run their course? Will Jane always be an undead bridesmaid, never the undead bride? Combining Mary Janice Davidson’s sass and the charm of Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse novels, this is an incredibly satisfying read for fans of paranormal romantic comedy.

December 29th 2009, Pocket Star
324 pages, Paperback
Received from Publisher
Third in Jane Jameson series
Adult Fiction

Nothing sucks the romance out of world travel like a boyfriend who may or may not have broken up with you in a hotel room in Brussels. Jane Jameson’s sexy sire, Gabriel, has always been unpredictable. But the seductive, anonymous notes that await him at each stop of their international vacation, coupled with his evasive behavior over the past few months, finally push Jane onto the next flight home to Half Moon Hollow — alone, upset, and unsure whether Gabriel just ended their relationship without actually telling her.
Now the children’s-librarian-turned-vampire is reviving with plenty of Faux Type O, some TLC from her colorful friends and family, and her plans for a Brave New Jane. Step One: Get her newly-renovated occult bookstore off the ground. Step Two: Support her best friend, Zeb, and his werewolf bride as they prepare for the impending birth of their baby . . . or litter. Step Three: Figure out who’s been sending her threatening letters, and how her hostile pen pal is tied to Gabriel. Because for this nice girl, surviving a broken heart is becoming a matter of life and undeath...

Cover Review:
I love all the covers! They fit the book so amazing well. But my favorite cover has to be Nice Girls Don’t Live Forever. I love giant book.

Opinion:

Entire Series- I adore Molly Harper’s humor. She is simply hilarious and always has a great line coming from Jane. I love all of the characters and they are so true to small town America. I love how every chapter starts with a quote from a fictional book that applies to overall theme of the chapter. The main drawback with the first two books is the lack of a cohesive plot, but as the series goes on this is fixed and culminates in an EPIC third book. This series is like taking a backseat in an ordinary life, oh yeah she’s a vampire that is consistently hilarious! This is chick-lit with paranormal twist!

Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs (4 stars)- Hilarious! Absolutely hilarious from the very first page! Most of the beginning is just watching her adjust to her new life as newly unemployed vampire. The plot was slow but the hilarity made it seem to fly by!

Jane is constantly saying off the cuff hilarious things. She’s completely snarky and real.

Nice Girls Don’t Date Dead Men (3 stars)- The humor is still in full force, but the overemphasis on Zeb and Jolene’s wedding made me incredibly annoyed. I am not huge on weddings in the first place so that may be the issue, but I simply did not need to know every drama filled moment of a wedding that wasn’t the main characters.

Jane put up with Gabriel’s evasiveness WAY longer than I would have and he didn’t have a good reason for keeping the truth from Jane in the first place and this put her in serious danger again and again. When he finally told her what was going on they as a team were able to handle it.

Nice Girls Don’t Live Forever (5 stars) – Finally the great characterization is combined with an actual truly cohesive plot! Every single complaint I had with this series vanished in this book.

Overall Rating:

Rie

I'm a wife, student, and a dog-lover who reads when I should be folding laundry (bane of my existance), I write (rarely as academic papers consume my life), and love getting wrapped up in fiction.

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Taken at Dusk by C.C. Hunter

April 10th 2012, St. Martin's Press
400 pages, Paperback
Received from Publisher
Third in Shadow Falls series
Young Adult Fiction

Step into Shadow Falls, a camp for teens with supernatural powers. Here friendship thrives, love takes you by surprise, and our hearts possess the greatest magic of all.


Kylie Galen wants the truth so badly she can taste it. The truth about who her real family is, the truth about which boy she’s meant to be with—and the truth about what her emerging powers mean. But she’s about to discover that some secrets can change your life forever…and not always for the better.

Just when she and Lucas are finally getting close, she learns that his pack has forbidden them from being together. Was it a mistake to pick him over Derek? And it’s not just romance troubling Kylie. An amnesia-stricken ghost is haunting her, delivering the frightful warning, someone lives and someone dies. As Kylie races to unravel the mystery and protect those she loves, she finally unlocks the truth about her supernatural identity, which is far different—and more astonishing—than she ever imagined.

Cover Review:
To tell the truth, I’m not sure I get any of the covers for this series. I get that it’s supposed to be portraying the time of day that the title does, but they have nothing to do with the story. I do love it though. Very serene.

Opinion:

What is up with third’s being the best in series? Ascend? Dark Frost? And not Taken at Dusk? I mean seriously thirds have been EPIC!!! I do mean EPIC!!! It seems that the first book is setting the stage, seconds are often filler and then thirds are where these series are really hitting their strides!

Kylie has grown as a character tremendously since the first book. She was constantly in other peoples issues, whining about everything, and clueless about so much. Now she really gets to the bottom of an issue before she makes a judgment about the situation. She’s still a peacekeeper, but in a way that isn’t as obtrusive. Her powers are growing as well and it’s so interesting to watch as she learns to use them.

Other characters seem to be growing as well. From Della and Miranda not fighting at every turn to developments between Holiday and Burnett. Lucas and Derek are as steamy as ever!

The ghostly presence is such an intriguing case in this one. An unknown spirit that seems to carry messages and be incredibly protective of Kylie. At times I was a bit scared of the ghost, but mainly I just wanted to get to the bottom of her story. The other ghosts in this book seem to be really getting that she can’t deal with all of them at once and she’s getting better at handling them in general.

Kylie learns so much in this book and I cannot wait to see her use that knowledge in order to protect her friends and herself in the upcoming book!

Rating:

Rie

I'm a wife, student, and a dog-lover who reads when I should be folding laundry (bane of my existance), I write (rarely as academic papers consume my life), and love getting wrapped up in fiction.

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Dark Frost by Jennifer Estep

May 29th 2012, Kensington
336 pages, E-galley
Netgalley
Third in Mythos Academy series
Young Adult Fiction

I’ve seen so many freaky things since I started attending Mythos Academy last fall. I know I’m supposed to be a fearless warrior, but most of the time, I feel like I’m just waiting for the next Bad, Bad Thing to happen. Like someone trying to kill me—again.

Everyone at Mythos Academy knows me as Gwen Frost, the Gypsy girl who uses her psychometry magic to find lost objects—and who just may be dating Logan Quinn, the hottest guy in school. But I’m also the girl the Reapers of Chaos want dead in the worst way. The Reapers are the baddest of the bad, the people who murdered my mom. So why do they have it in for me?

It turns out my mom hid a powerful artifact called the Helheim Dagger before she died. Now, the Reapers will do anything to get it back. They think I know where the dagger is hidden, but this is one thing I can’t use my magic to find. All I do know is that the Reapers are coming for me—and I’m in for the fight of my life.

Cover Review:

The cover is interesting. It has Gwen with her necklace and the place from the opening scene so it definitely does have something to do with the storyline, but the fonts don’t seem to fit the cover. I guess I’m just being picky.

Opinion:

In one word: EPIC!!! This book is the best of the series with none of the issues that have plagued the first two. The boring needless first half is non-existant in this one! From the very first page the action is fierce! I didn’t want want this book to end which got me to read the chapter teaser from the next book at the end and OH MY GOSH!!! I simply cannot wait to read the next!

Gwen is incredibly brave even though she doubts herself endlessly. I like how relatable she is. She isn’t brave without incredibly human fear. At times she seems oblivious to clues around her and I wanted to yell at her, “Look over there!” It may simply because the foreshadowing is done in a way that those that aren’t as analytical as they read can guess along.

Logan sadly isn’t as present as I would’ve liked. I need my Logan fix! He’s such a hottie! He was as always fighting right beside Gwen every single time she was in danger, but there simply wasn’t enough romance for me. But I’m a romance addict!

The other side characters while busy with their own lives and drama add so much to the storyline. Gwen no longer is the loner she was in the first book with best friend Daphne and her boyfriend always being present. But my favorite side character would HAVE to be Nott! I loved her OH SO MUCH!!!!

I enjoyed the rest of the series, but this one tops them all and I can already see that the next one is gonna be just as good! Can’t wait!

Rating:

Rie

I'm a wife, student, and a dog-lover who reads when I should be folding laundry (bane of my existance), I write (rarely as academic papers consume my life), and love getting wrapped up in fiction.

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Review: Ascend by Amanda Hocking

April 24th 2012, St. Martin's Griffin
336 pages, Paperback
Received from Publisher
Third in Trylle trilogy
Young Adult Fiction

Wendy Everly is facing an impossible choice. The only way to save the Trylle from their deadliest enemy is by sacrificing herself.  If she doesn’t surrender to the Vittra, her people will be thrust into a brutal war against an unbeatable foe.  But how can Wendy leave all her friends behind…even if it’s the only way to save them?

The stakes have never been higher, because her kingdom isn’t the only thing she stands to lose. After falling for both Finn and Loki, she’s about to make the ultimate choice…who to love forever. One guy has finally proven to be the love of her life—and now all their lives might be coming to an end.

Everything has been leading to this moment.  The future of her entire world rests in her hands—if she’s ready to fight for it.

Cover Review:

I love the imagery and the fact that it actually has something to do with the story. She is coming upon the throne, but everything dark is looming around her. Great cover!

Opinion:

As soon as I received this book I put aside the book I was reading and delved into this one. I can’t believe it’s the last.

This aptly describes my feeling of finishing this book series. I’m incredibly sad. And did it ever go out with a bang! This is probably the best book within the series and the series is AMAZING!!!

This series was spoiled by someone complaining about the series to me on twitter while I was still on the first book, so I knew what was going to happen, but I don’t fault Wendy for her decision in the least. Wendy is dedicated to her kingdom and she will do all that is necessary to make sure it is safe even sacrificing herself. She has grown so much since the first book.

The side characters are so alive. Each one has it’s own personality, goals, and feels completely unique from another. Wendy has an incredible gang around her. They are willing to die for her.

Sorry I’m being so vague. I’m trying desperately not to spoil anything for those who haven’t read the series! This is an AMAZING series and you really should read it. Like now.

Rating:

Rie

I'm a wife, student, and a dog-lover who reads when I should be folding laundry (bane of my existance), I write (rarely as academic papers consume my life), and love getting wrapped up in fiction.

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Changeling Dawn by Dani Harper

January 1st 2012, Kensington-Brava
Pages, Galley
Received from Publicist
Third in Changeling series
Adult Fiction

RUN

Shadow and moonlight merge beneath her bare feet,the forest floor blurring as she flees the dogs and torches. Werewolf, monster -- those are the names given her kind by the humans who hate them.

HUNT

Kenzie Macleod has spent her whole life hiding what she is, and she’s not about to open up to any man, even one as powerfully attractive as wildlife expert Josh Talarkoteen. But legend says that a Changeling cannot escape the call of her true mate, even in the wilderness of backcountry Alaska.

MATE

An isolated archeological site, a terrified Changeling cub, a secretive research center -- as Kenzie and Josh face the ultimate betrayal, his obsidian eyes promise untold pleasure and hint at dark secrets of his own . . .

Opinion:

As you many of you should know (I talk about it nearly non-stop) this is my favorite adult paranormal series. Hands down. I am frequently told that people haven’t heard about it which is like the saddest thing ever cause it is pure writing gold.

The latest book in the series is about Kenzie, the first female changeling in the series. Kenzie has a past with humans and this past clouds her interactions with others. Especially males. This is the first book within the series that the actual age of the changelings is kinda delved into as well.

Kenzie and Josh have instant attraction, but the bridge between Kenzie’s distrust and Josh’s humanity is the saddest cutest little Changeling. As always in Harper’s writing the love story was built on a foundation of trust, love, and respect. The love story was realistic and touching.

One of the best things about this series is the antagonists aren’t simply an evil force without a reason.You can almost always see where the other side is coming from. Ignorance often breeds evil and so it is within Changeling Dawn. Even if you are completely outraged by the way the changelings are being treated you see why they don’t feel guilty for their part in it.

Josh’s own paranormal experience is an interesting and refreshing change within this series.

Rating:

Rie

I'm a wife, student, and a dog-lover who reads when I should be folding laundry (bane of my existance), I write (rarely as academic papers consume my life), and love getting wrapped up in fiction.

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Twice Bitten by Chloe Neill

Twice Bitten (Chicagoland Vampires, Book 3)

July 6th 2010, Penguin

355 pgs., Paperback
Won from Lori @ Romancing the Darkside
Third in the Chicagoland Vampires series
Adult Fiction

Previous reviews in this series:

Some Girls Bite

Friday Night Bites

From Goodreads:

Shapeshifters from across the country are convening in the Windy City, and as a gesture of peace, Master Vampire Ethan Sullivan has offered their leader a very special bodyguard: Merit, Chicago's newest vampire. Merit is supposed to protect the Alpha, Gabriel Keene-and to spy for the vamps while she's at it. Oh, and luckily Ethan's offering some steamy, one-on-one combat training sessions to help her prepare for the mission.

Unfortunately, someone is gunning for Gabriel, and Merit soon finds herself in the line of fire. She'll need all the help she can get to track down the would-be assassin, but everywhere she turns, there are rising tensions between supernaturals-not least between her and a certain green-eyed, centuries-old master vampire.

Opinion:

This is most mature book in series with Merit coming into her own finally. When a oppurtunity comes her way she doesn’t jump on to it without forethought as she would have previously. The spineless childlike Merit of the last book is not to be found within this book.

The plot is very interesting as it brings both complex situations and three dimensional characters that have been lacking. One such character is Gabriel. Gabriel is the alpha of the shifters and much more passionate than what we see within the vampires. This is a species difference. Shifters passionate, aggressive with the vampires being cold and manipulative. This aspect of the plot works incredibly well within this book.

Oh and of course the fact that there is FINALLY steam between Merit and Ethan.

This book in the series is much better than the previous and I don’t see why you couldn’t basically skip over the second in this series as it is basically a long transitional book without real purpose.

Great plot, much more interesting characters and gets this series back on track.

Rating:

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Archangel’s Consort by Nalini Singh

 

January 25th 2011, Berkley Sensation
324 pgs. , Paperback
Library Copy
Third in the Guild Hunter series

Adult Fiction

From Goodreads:

Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux and her lover, the lethally beautiful archangel Raphael, have returned home to New York only to face an uncompromising new evil…

A vampire has attacked a girls’ school—the assault one of sheer, vicious madness—and it is only the first act. Rampant bloodlust takes vampire after vampire, threatening to make the streets run with blood. Then Raphael himself begins to show signs of an uncontrolled rage, as inexplicable storms darken the city skyline and the earth itself shudders. The omens are suddenly terrifyingly clear.

An ancient and malevolent immortal is rising. The violent winds whisper her name: Caliane. She has returned to reclaim her son, Raphael. Only one thing stands in her way: Elena, the consort who must be destroyed…

Opinion:

As always Nalini Singh is a master with playing with words to make you feel and to make you see. There is no power such as love and she makes this apparent with every verse of her beautiful prose.

Elana is back among the living. The mortals her friends, her city, her family. She is also still part of the immortal world and she has to straddle the two parts of herself.

Raphael still at times tries to control Elana as he has always been powerful, but she never allows it which makes her an equal among those that are of the most powerful.

She is understanding more of the pain that her father is in and although he made terrible choices he is real. He is in so much pain that is palatable.

This book certainly pulls on the heart strings.

Rating:

Mission accomplished; read again and again.

A masterful piece of writing.

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At Grave’s End by Jeaniene Frost

December 2008, Avon

342 pgs., Paperback

Personal Copy

Third in Night Huntress Series

Adult Fiction

From Goodreads:

Some things won't stay buried . . . at grave's end

It should be the best time of half-vampire Cat Crawfield's life. With her undead lover Bones at her side, she's successfully protected mortals from the rogue undead. But though Cat's worn disguise after disguise to keep her true identity a secret from the brazen bloodsuckers, her cover's finally been blown, placing her in terrible danger.

As if that wasn't enough, a woman from Bones's past is determined to bury him once and for all. Caught in the crosshairs of a vengeful vamp, yet determined to help Bones stop a lethal magic from being unleashed, Cat's about to learn the true meaning of bad blood. And the tricks she's learned as a special agent won't help her. She will need to fully embrace her vampire instincts in order to save herself—and Bones—from a fate worse than the grave.

Opinion:

The third in the series is a heart-stopping, tearful, ride. When Cat’s father finds her Bones is put in a position where he must chose Cat’s emotional safety over her immediate feelings which leads into yet another fight.

This couple fights for their relationship through circumstances that would test the most devoted marriage.

Mencheres and Bones team up to fight a war that will take the members of the team past all of their limits.

This is my favorite book within my current favorite series, so I would say it’s a definite must read. From page one you’ll be on a twisty-turvey ride that is the best I’ve read lately.


Rating:5/5

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Embrace the Night by Karen Chance

April, 2008

400 pgs., Paperback

Personal Copy

Third in Cassandra Palmer Series
Adult Fiction

 

From Back Cover:

 

Recently named the world’s chief clairvoyant, Cassandra Palmer still has a thorn in her side. As long as Cassie and a certain master vampire—the sizzling-hot Mircea—are magically bound to each other, her life will never be her own …

The spell that binds them can only be broken with an incantation found in the Codex Merlini, an ancient grimoire. The Codex’s location has been lost in the present day, so Cassie will have to seek it out in the only place it can still be found—the past.

But Cassie soon realizes the Codex has been lost for a reason. The book is rumored to contain some seriously dangerous spells, and retrieving it may help Cassie to deal with Mircea, but it could also endanger the world…

 

Opinions

When Cassie goes to fulfill the promise she made and to remove the geis she gets more than she bargained for. This is complicated by the fact that she is hunted by those who have always controlled the Pythia. She even has to go against the original Pythia. Action-packed, but low on actual character building. Hopefully in the next we’ll find out more about her core relationships. I haven’t actually read the last one, but it’s on my nightstand as we speak. It’s review will be up within the month.

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