Urban Fantasy

Review: Mane Attraction by Nicolette Reed

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Mane Attraction by Nicolette Reed

Title: Mane Attraction (A Soulstealer Novella, Book 1.5)
Author: Nicolette Reed
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Nicolette Reed (14th November 2012)
Source: Nicolette Reed, the author.
Format: E-book
Blurb:

Being a demon trapped in an elves body seemed a prison at first, but Mane has gotten used to his new home in the Riparian forest amongst the elves. When the waters of Lake Mavrovo start to run red it seems a sure sign that the demon king that cast him out may rise again. In order to investigate he will need to navigate the dominion of the selkie, and they aren’t known for playing nice.

Going from an apartment in the suburbs of Seattle to living in a castle at the bottom of a lake in the Realms was one change that Kit had to get used to, being half-selkie was another. Now she has to get used to the changes she undergoes after the selkie sleep. One that involves bloodlust and lust of a whole different kind. A problem she is hoping Mane will help her with.

Rating: ****(4 stars)
Review:

I really enjoyed Fae Hunter (read my review here) the first book in the Soulstealer ‘verse, so when Nicolette kindly offered me the chance to read this book I jumped at the chance. This book really lived up to my expectations. It is very definitely an adult book, as there are “sexy times” in it – so not one for younger readers!

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Review: If I Die by Rachel Vincent

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Soul Screamers #5 Cover

If I Die by Rachel Vincent, UK edition cover.

Title: If I Die (Soul Screamers #5)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: MiraInk (3rd February 2012)
Blurb:

KAYLEE CAN SEE DEATH COMING. NOW SHE MUST FACE HER OWN.

As a teen banshee, Kaylee’s blood-curdling screams are a death knell for others. Yet she never expected to see her own name at the top of a reaper’s list.

Scheduled to die within days, Kaylee knows her magic can’t change her fate. Worse, on top of worrying about her own demise, she needs to save mortal best friend Emma from the clutches of a deadly Netherworld creature.

As Kaylee’s time on earth slips away, troubled banshee boyfriend Nash and his reaper brother Tod refuse to give up on Kaylee. They’re ready to unearth murky family secrets to give her a last chance at life, as their fight to save Kaylee becomes a battle for her love.

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

I have enjoyed reading the first four books in Rachel Vincent’s Soul Screamer series, so of course I had to get this – the fifth – book. If I Die continues teen banshee Kaylee’s story as she discovers that she is on a reaper’s list.

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Review: Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent

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Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent, UK edition.

Title: Shadow Bound (An Unbound Novel, #2)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Mira (1st June 2012)
Blurb:

IF ALL YOU KNOW IS SHADOWS, YOU BEGIN TO FORGET THE LIGHT . . .

Shadow-walker Kori, able to travel from one human shadow to another, keeps her powers hidden from the world. Until supernatural crime lord Tower imprisons her and suppresses her magic. Freedom for her, and her magician sister Kenley, now comes at a price.

The job? Recruit Ian Holt, a man who can manipulate darkness – or kill him.

Yet Ian has a mission of his own: assassinate Kenley, whose unique powers give Tower a deadly advantage in their underworld.

Fighting for two different sides, Kori and Ian can’t deny the desperate magnetic pull that draws them together. But in a world of black and white, of good and evil, can their love survive in the shadows?

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

Shadow Bound is the second book in the An Unbound Novel trilogy. This book focuses on Kori Daniels, who appeared in Blood , Bound, and Ian Holt.

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Review: My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent

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Soul Screamers #4

My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Steal (Soul Screamers #4)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: MiraInk (21st October 2011)
Blurb:

SOMETIMES DREAMS
DO COME TRUE . . .
AND THAT’S THE LAST
THINK KAYLEE NEEDS

Working things out with Nash – her maybe boyfriend – is hard for Kaylee. She’s already coping with being a teenage banshee. Worse, Nash’s gorgeous ex-girlfriend just transferred to their school.

Sabine’s no ordinary girl. She’s a mara, a real-life walking nightmare. Draining people’s energy through their darkest dreams sustains Sabine . . . and makes her Kaylee’s top suspect in a cluster of sup-creepy deaths.

To win back Nash, Kaylee’s determined to unearth the truth. But Sabine knows the deathly secrets of Kaylee’s subconscious – and she’s not afraid to use them to get whatever and whoever she wants . . .

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

My Soul to Steal is the fourth book in Rachel Vincent’s brilliant Soul Screamers series. It continues the story of Kaylee and her friends as they struggle against the forces of the Netherworld.

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Review: Fae Hunter by Nicolette Reed

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Title: Fae Hunter (Soulstealer Trilogy, Book #1)
Author: Nicolette Reed
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Nicolette Reed (23rd June 2012)
Source: Nicolette Reed, the author.
Format: E-book
Blurb:

Who is the enemy when you hunt your own?

Valora Delos is a Hunter, charged with tracking the treacherous Soulstealers and bringing them to justice. Unlike the other fae of her kind, Valora was born with stunted wings that render her flightless, driving her to prove herself in the eyes of King Aric, with whom she has been infatuated since she first set eyes on him as a young prince.

She descends to Earth and finds herself trapped in suburban Seattle after the portal to her world closes. With the help of a sexy half-fae named Dooley, Valora must find her way back to save Dell’Aria. Dooley uses his own brand of magic to help Valora discover memories buried deep within her, which produce more questions than answers- questions about her growing attraction to Dooley and her devotion to her King. Uncovering who the Soulstealers are and who is behind the destruction of Dell’Aria brings Valora a truth she may not be able to handle.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

Fae Hunter is the first book in Nicolette Reed’s Soulstealer Trilogy. In it we are introduced to Valora Delos who is a Hunter and fae, despite this she doesn’t really fit into her world – and her colleagues are sure to let her know this. By order of her king she ends up in Seattle.

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Review: Angel by L. A. Weatherly

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Angel by L. A. Weatherly

Title: Angel (Angel #1)
Author: L. A. Weatherly
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: Usborne (1st October 2010)
Blurb:

Willow knows she’s different from other girls. And not just because she loves tinkering around with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into people’s futures, their hopes and their regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where she gets this power from . . .

But Alex does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows Willow’s secret and is on a mission to stop her. The dark forces within Willow make her dangerous – and irresistible. In spite of himself, Alex finds he is falling in love with his sworn enemy.

Utterly intoxicating and deeply compelling, ANGEL is an epic take of love, destiny and sacrifice.

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

Angel is the first book in L. A. Weatherly’s Angel series. It tells the story of Willow and Alex. At the start of the book Willow thinks she is a pretty normal highschool student, even if she is considered weird by her peers. The narration is a mixture of first – from both Willow and Alex’s point of view – and third person.

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Review: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

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A Blood of Eden Novel, #1

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Immortal Rules (A Blood of Eden Novel, #1)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Genre: Dystopian, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: MiraInk (24th April 2012)
Blurb:

IN A FUTURE WORLD VAMPIRES REIGN.

HUMANS ARE BLOOD CATTLE.

AND ONE GIRL WILL SEARCH FOR THE KEY TO SAVE HUMANITY.

SHE MUST DECIDE WHAT – AND WHO – ARE WORTH DYING FOR.

–

MY VAMPIRE CREATOR TOLD ME THIS:
‘Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?’

I DIDN’T THEN, NOT REALLY.

I DO NOW.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

The Immortal Rules is the first book in Julie Kagawa’s second series Blood of Eden. Kagawa has moved away from the fair folk who populated her first series The Iron Fey, and is instead focusing on vampires. In The Immortal Rules we follow Allison – Allie – Sekemoto, who has learnt how to survive in a dystopian future.

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Review: My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

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Soul Screamers #3

My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Keep (Soul Screamers #3)
Author:  Rachel Vincent
Genre:  Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher:  MiraInk(15th April 2011)
Blurb:

KAYLEE HAS ONE ADDICTION: HER BOYFRIEND NASH

Like Kaylee, Nash is a banshee. So he understands her like no one else. Nothing – supernatural or otherwise – can come between them. That is, until something does.

Demon’s breath – a potent paranormal drug with the power to kill. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. Kaylee and Nash need to cut off the source and protect their human friends – one of who is already hooked.

Bu Kaylee’s plans are soon derailed when she discovers another secret demon’s breath addict in their midst. Nash.

Now she’s ready to kick some serious Netherworld but – but is it too late to save the boy who’s stolen her heart?


Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

My Soul to Keep is the third book in Rachel Vincent’s fantastic Soul Screamers series. My Soul to Keep starts just as Kaylee completes the grounding she earned as a result of her actions in My Soul to Save (you can find my review here), and attends her first post-grounding party. Things go a little awry.

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Review: Biting Cold by Chloe Neill

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As this is the sith book in the series it may be possible that this review will contain spoilers for previous books in the Chicagoland Vampires Novel series.
A Chicagoland Vampires Novel, #6

Biting Cold by Chloe Neill

Title: Biting Cold (A Chicagoland Vampires Novel, #6)
Author:Chloe Neill
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Gollancz Fiction (9th August 2012)
Blurb:

Turned into a vampire against her will, Merit found her way into the dark circle of Chicago’s vampire underground, where she learned there was more to supernaturals than met the eye, and more of them than the public ever imagined. And not all the secrets she learned were for sharing – among humans or inhumans.

Now Merit is on the hunt, charging across the stark American Midwest, tailing a rogue supernatural intent on stealing an ancient artefact that could unleash catasrophic evil on the world. But Merit is also the prey. An enemy of Chicagoland is hunting her, and he’ll stop at nothing to get the book for himself. No mercy allowed. No rules apply. No lives spared. The race is on.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

Biting Cold is the sixth book in Chloe Neill’s brilliant Chicagoland Vampire Novels.  We are reunited with Merit, Sentinel of  Cadogan House, and recently turned vampire. A lot has happened to Merit and her House since she became a vampire. It has been an exciting and enjoyable read. This sixth book is no different.

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Women of the Otherworld Challenge: Haunted Review

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Each month beginning March 1st, 2012, challenge members will read or re-read the title for that month. In addition, challenge members will either post a review, their reading experience, character castings or anything else related to that title. You have freedom to have fun with your monthly post so be creative! Seeing as this series is 13 novels long, this challenge will last 13 months.

As this challenge started in March and it is already late August, you can tell that I am a little behind…

Women of the Otherworld #6

Haunted by Kelley Armstrong, UK edition cover

Haunted (Women of the Otherworld #5)
by Kelley Armstrong

Published: 26th May 2005

Eve Levine – half-demon, black witch and devoted mother – has been dead for three years. She has a great house, an interesting love life and can’t be killed again – which comes in handy when you’ve made as many enemies as Eve. Yes, the afterlife isn’t too bad – all she needs to do is find a way to communicate with her daughter Savannah and she’ll be happy.

But fate – or more exactly, the Fates – have other plans. Eve owes them a favour, and they’ve just called it in. An evil spirit called the Nix has escaped from hell. She feeds on chaos and death, and is very good at persuading people to kill for her. The Fates want Eve to hunt her down before she does any more damage, but the Nix is a dangerous enemy – previous hunters have been sent made in the process. As if that’s not problem enough, it turns out that the only way to stop her is with an angel’s sword. And Eve’s no angel . . .

As with both Bitten, Stolen, Dime Store Magic and Industrial Magic, this is not going to be a “normal” review.

In Haunted we get our first real introduction to Eve Levine. Sure she’s appeared in previous books, but she hasn’t had much page time, and as such has remained rather mysterious up to this point. There are only three things that we know for certain about her: she’s a black witch, she loves her daughter, and she had a long/short enough relationship with Kristoff Nast to have Savannah. Eve is everything I expected her to be, and yet completely different.

Eve is the star of Haunted, and I have to admit that I really enjoyed her as the protagonist. I also enjoyed the fact that occasionally Armstrong slipped in a chapter from Nix’s – or one of her dupes – point of view. It broke up the narrative, and gave some interesting insight into Nix. I also enjoyed the fact that whilst the story stayed mainly in  the afterlife, we did get a quick peek at some familiar faces.

The plot of Haunted is of a similar style to that of Bitten – part bad guy chasing/hunting, part romance. This really helped to cement Eve as a complex character for me. She is very dedicated to the task that the Fates set her, but at the same time she’s blind to what is in front of her. The ending of this book was particularly poignant, I thought.