Urban Fantasy

Review: Dark Debt by Chloe Neill

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Dark Debt by Chloe Neill

Title: Dark Debt (Chicagoland Vampires, 11)
Author: Chloe Neill
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Gollancz Fiction (5th March 2015)
Blurb:

A vampire never gets old. But neither do his enemies. When a figure from Ethan’s dark past makes a splashy debut in Chicago, Merit and her Master don’t know whether he’s friend or foe. But they’ll have to figure it out soon, because there is trouble brewing in the Windy City.

At an exclusive society soiree attended by the upper echelons of the human and supernatural worlds, Merit and Ethan barely stop the assassination of a guest. When the target turns out to be a shady businessman with a criminal edge, Merity suspects a human vendetta. But the assassins have fangs.

The connections to Chicago’s Houses go deeper than Merit knows, and even one wrong move could be her last . . .

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

DARK DEBT is the eleventh book in Chloe Neill’s fantastic Chicagoland Vampires series. This book continues Merit’s story, as she and her Master, Ethan, get drawn into some more trouble. A figure from Ethan’s past makes a dramatic reappearance, and there is trouble brewing in Chicago that could mean problems for all the Houses.

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Review: End of Days by Susan Ee

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End of Days by Susan Ee

Title: End of Days (Penryn and the End of Days, 3)
Author: Susan Ee
Genre: Dystopian, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (21st May 2015)
Blurb:

AFTER A DARING ESCAPE FROM THE ANGELS, PENRYN AND RAFFE ARE ON THE RUN.

They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.

When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: their own kind, or each other?

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

END OF DAYS by Susan Ee is the concluding book to the brilliant Angelfall Trilogy/Penryn and the End of Days. Penryn and Raffe’s journey continues, and they face many obstacles but as the apocalypse approaches they are faced with a tough decision.

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Review: Dead Ice by Laurell K. Hamilton

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Dead Ice by Laurell K. Hamilton (UK edition)

Title: Dead Ice (An Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Novel, #24)
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Erotica, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Headlines (4th June 2015)
Blurb:

MY NAME IS ANITA BLAKE AND I HAVE THE HIGHEST KILL COUNT OF ANY VAMPIRE EXECUTIONER IN THE COUNTRY.

I’m a U.S. Marshal who can raise zombies with the best of them. But ever since master vampire Jean-Claude and I went public with out engagement, all I am to anyone and everyone is Jean-Claude’s fiancée.

It’s wreaking havoc with my reputation as a hard ass – to some extent. Luckily, in professional circles, I’m still the go-to expert for zombie issues. And right now, the FBI is having one hell of a zombie issue.

Someone is producing zombie porn. I’ve seen my share of freaky undead fetishes, so this shouldn’t bother me. But the women being victimised aren’t just mindless, rotting corpses. Their souls are trapped behind their eyes, signalling voodoo of the blackest kind.

It’s the sort of case that can leave a mark on a person. And my own soul may not survive unscathed . . .

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

DEAD ICE is the twenty-fourth instalment of Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter novels. Anita is dealing with the chauvinistic attitudes of those around her, since her engagement to Jean-Claude. This book also has Anita trying to track down someone who is raising zombies for porn, as well as the return of characters we haven’t seen on the page in a while.

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Review: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop

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Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop

Title: Vision in Silver (A Novel of The Others, 3)
Author: Anne Bishop
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: ROC (3rd March 2015)
Blurb:

New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop transports readers to a “mesmerizing”* world of magic and political unrest – where the only chance at peace requires a deadly price . . .

The Others freed the cassandra sangue to protect the blood prophets from exploitation, not realizing their actions would have dire consequences. Now the fragile seers are in a greater danger than ever before – both from their own weaknesses and from those who seek to control their divinations for wicked purposes. In desperate need of answers, Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter leader among the Others, has no choice but to enlist blood prophet Meg Corbyn’s help, regardless of the risks she faces by aiding him.

Meg is still deep in the throes of her addiction to the euphoria she feels when she cuts and speaks prophecy. She knows each slice of her blade temps death. But Others and humans alike need answers, and her visions may be Simon’s only hope of ending the conflict.

For the shadows of war are deepening across the Atlantik, and the prejudice of a fanatic faction is threatening to bring the battle right to Meg and Simon’s doorstep . . .

*RT Book Reviews

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

VISION IN SILVER is the third book in Anne Bishop’s brilliant The Others series. In this series Bishop has moved from high fantasy to urban fantasy/paranormal romance; and she does it well. There are repercussions for the events in MURDER OF CROWS (review) which are far reaching. Meg is the only one who can help with one situation, but it means putting herself in danger something her friends oppose as it means she must put her own life at risk.

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Review: Blood Games by Chloe Neill

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Blood Games by Chloe Neill (UK edition)

Title: Blood Games (A Chicagoland Vampires Novel, 10)
Author: Chloe Neill
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Gollancz Fiction (7th August 2014)
Blurb:

While Merit didn’t choose to become a vampire or Sentinel of Cadogan House, she vowed to fight for her House and its Master, and she’s managed to forge strong alliances with powerful supernaturals across Chicago. But even though Merit has had wild adventures, this may be her deadliest yet . . .

A killer is stalking Chicago, preying on humans and leaving his victims with magical souvenirs. The CPD hadn’t been able to track the assailant, and as the body count rises, the city is running out of options. Vampires and humans aren’t on great terms, but murder makes for strange bedfellows. Can Merit find the killer before she becomes a target?

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

BLOOD GAMES is the tenth book in Chloe Neill’s Chicagoland Vampires series. Things have settled down a bit after the events of WILD THINGS (review), and vampires are once again seen as something cool by some humans. Someone is murdering people in a way that suggests there is a supernatural connection, and Merit finds herself investigating. Meanwhile, things are afoot in the vampire world.

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Review: Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs

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Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs (UK edition)

Title: Dead Heat (Alpha and Omega, 4)
Author: Patricia Briggs
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Orbit (3rd March 2015)
Blurb:

THE THRILLING NEW ALPHA AND OMEGA NOVEL FROM NO. 1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER PATRICIA BRIGGS

The Alpha and Omega novels transported readers into the realm of the werewolf, where Charles Cornick and Anna Latham embody opposite sides of the shifter personality. Now, a holiday to Arizona drops them into some bad supernatural business . . .

Charles and Anna will discover that a dangerous Fae is on the loose, replacing human children with simulacrums. The Fae’s cold war with humanity is about to heat up – and Charles and Anna are in the crossfire.

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

DEAD HEAT is the fourth book in Patricia Briggs brilliant Alpha and Omega series, a spin-off from her Mercy Thompson series. Charles and Anna decide to take a break and visit Arizona with the dual purposes of Charles visiting an old friend and Anna getting a new horse. Unfortunately, the trip isn’t quite as uneventful as either of them would like when the Fae start causing trouble.

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Review: The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

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The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

Title: The Ruby Circle (A Bloodlines Novel, 6)
Author: Richelle Mead
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: Penguin Books (10th February 2015)
Blurb:

THEY WILL BE TESTED . . .

THEIR FORBIDDEN ROMANCE EXPOSED, ALCHEMIST SYDNEY AND ROYAL MOROI VAMPIRE ADRIAN FIND THEMSELVES FACING THE WRATH OF BOTH OF THEIR KIND.

When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire vampire world and alter his and Sydney’s lives forever.

LOVE WILL CONQUER ALL.

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

THE RUBY CIRCLE brings Richelle Mead’s fantastic Bloodlines series to its conclusion. Sydney and Adrian are living with the consequences of their actions at the end of SILVER SHADOWS (review), but things don’t seem to be going anywhere and they feel trapped. That is, until an unexpected arrival sets a chain of events in motion.

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Review: Archangel’s Shadows by Nalini Singh

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Archangel’s Shadows by Nalini Singh (UK edition)

Title: Archangel’s Shadows (A Guild Hunter Novel, 7)
Author: Nalini Singh
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Gollancz (6th November 2014)
Blurb:

Return to New York Times best-selling author Nalini Singh’s sensual and painfully beautiful Guild Hunter world, and a new novel about sacrifice, loyalty, and the choices of love that can shatter the heart.

In the wake of a brutal war, the archangel Raphael and his hunter consort, Elena, are dealing with the treacherously shifting tides of archangelic politics and the people of a battered but not broken city. The last thing their city needs is more death, especially not death that bears the eerie signature of an insane enemy archangel who cannot – should not – be walking the streets.

This hunt must be undertaken with stealth and without alerting their people. It must be handled by those who can become shadows themselves . . .

Ash is a gifted tracker and a woman cursed with the ability to sense the secrets of anyone she touches. But there’s one man she knows all too well without a single instant of skin contact: Janvier, the dangerously sexy Cajun vampire who has fascinated and infuriated her for years. Now, as they track down a merciless killer, their cat-and-mouse game of flirtation and provocation has turned into a profound one of the heart. And this time, it is Ash’s secret, dark and terrible, that threatens to destroy them both.

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

ARCHANGEL’S SHADOWS is the seventh addition to Nalini Singh’s brilliant GUILD HUNTER series. The book is split into two main plots – the fallout from the events of the previous book in the series, and the hunt to find and destroy the monster bringing death to the recovering New York City.

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Review: The Black Swan Inheritance by Marigold Deidre Dicer

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The Black Swan Inheritance by Marigold Deidre Dicer

Title: The Black Swan Inheritance (The Black Swan Series, 1)
Author: Marigold Deidre Dicer
Genre: New Adult, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Smashwords Edition (November 2014)
Source: The author/Smashwords
Blurb:

Anita had the kind of reputation in high school that no one wants to carry into adulthood, especially since she wants to be a doctor like her dad. Now at university, she is determined to be good, but one little end-of-semester celebration can’t hurt, right? Well, it can if she ends up having a one-night stand with a werewolf that triggers a dark awakening. Turns out Anita’s over-active libido has become more than something hormonal – it’s magical.
The Black Swan is a powerful legacy that brings both temptation and danger. Having now inherited the title and all that comes with it, Anita finds herself beset upon by ancient abominations that won’t take no for an answer. No wonder the Black Swan had been driven to seclusion and banishment in the past. But Anita is determined not to run away – she is here to help, whether the medieval dragon-wolf or the undead cultists want it or not.
She will be no one’s pawn. She will rise to the challenge.
If she can just manage to deal with her own flaws first. Anxiety, panic-attacks, and bouts of bitchiness does not a successful diplomat make.
Rating: ** (2 stars)
Review:
THE BLACK SWAN INHERITANCE is the first book in Marigold Deidre Dicer’s BLACK SWAN series. The story is set in Australia and follows the story of Anita as she settles into life at university, trying to be a different girl than the one she was in high school. Anita is determined to reach her goal of becoming a doctor like her father. Life, however, decides that her path won’t be quite as easy as she’d like.

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Review: Wild Things by Chloe Neill

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Book Cover of Wild Things

Wild Things by Chloe Neill

Title: Wild Things (Chicagoland Vampires, 9)
Author: Chloe Neill
Genre: Mystery, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Gollancz Fiction (20th February 2014)
Blurb:

Since Merit was turned into a vampire, and became the protector of Chicago’s Cadogan House, it’s been a wild ride. She and Master Vampire Ethan Sullivan have helped make Cadogan’s vampires the strongest in North America, and forged ties with paranormal folk of all breeds and creeds.

But now these alliances are about to be tested. A strange and twisted magic has ripped through the North American Central Pack, and Merit’s closest friends are caught in the crosshairs. But who – or what – could possibly be powerful enough to out-magic a shifter?

Merit is about to go toe to toe, and cold steel to cold heart, to find out.

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

WILD THINGS is the ninth addition to Chloe Neill’s brilliant Chicagoland Vampires series. Merit’s story continues with the mayor of Chicago looking for someone to blame for Chicago’s recent paranormal activity, and Ethan Sullivan makes a good target. Merit and Ethan retreat only to find another enemy waiting for them.

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