Review: Darkness Hunts

Darkness Hunts (Dark Angles, book 4) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Darkness Hunts (1)

"New York Times" bestselling author Keri Arthur returns to the enthralling Guardian World--and a twilight realm of danger and desire...
Risa Jones, half-Aedh/half-werewolf, can enter the realm between life and death. She can speak to the dying and the dead, and she can see the reapers, collectors of souls. What she can not yet see is the identity of a stranger murdering women and draining their blood. Now Risa must summon her gifts to find him, even if it means putting her own life in danger. But Risa needn't look far. The killer knows who she is.
He tells her his victims are infected by darkness and he's fated to destroy them. Fascinated by Risa, he engages her in a sinister game: the chance to save the life of his next victim by deciphering his series of clues. In a race against time, she enlists the help of the reaper Azriel.
But as an attraction between them grows, so does the fear that the stranger's motives are only part of a larger, more dangerous stratagem--one that that has lured Risa and Azriel into the dark.

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Review:

Amaya is totally freaking awesome! What a cool demon sword! Yes, I have enough experience with demon swords to know when an amazing one is introduced. The connection Risa and Amaya have is awesome. And as the two get more acquainted I love it!! If the other “romances” were dropped and the story was about Amaya and Risa it would be perfect.

Sadly it's not. The truth about Lucian is out. It's just what I thought he was doing and I am so annoyed how unworried Risa seems. She's not worried that Lucian is spying, not really, it's that he physically attacks. Might even have accidently killed her when she confronts Lucian and doesn't fall into line. The only thing saving her was Azriel.

But don't get all chocked up that Azriel is standing up for his woman. Katy Perry's Hot'n Cold song is pretty much Azriel to a T, except he’s worse. And man is he on his Reaper menstrual cycle of mood swings. Firstly he seduced Risa in the last book. He opened that can of worms that Risa was fine to ignore. Now he's talking about all of these horrible things of what could happen by them being together, all these dangers. When he was the one that couldn't keep it in his pants.

Of course now that he broke through Risa's ignore barrier she can't say no any more. She has to have him. Despite all those dangerous reasons, and the huge fact that he's withholding information. Information that I know is going to seriously affect her. Probably information that is super important and will basically be a betrayal.

But she can't seek love/sex else where. No she doesn't do random casual, and if she did she could put that lover at risk. Not to mention that she was fine with Lucian screwing her for information, no really he was reading her mind. Oh, and all of the amazing characters that made the first book good still get benched. There's development but it's all behind the scenes. It's basically second hand information.

This book was too much. Riley's books were always a rush and somehow managed to combine the overall arc with the latest mystery/mission. Risa's books are not doing it. It's actually exhausting, and this time when Risa is pulled into a Directorate case it felt so sloppy. And I feel like Arthur is trying to take back her “gene” altering. You know Riley was experimented on and got tons of powers, well Risa was remade with more Aedh parts in the last book. Now I feel like Risa is too dumb to explore those new powers. Or . . .

I don't know. The romance feels super stupid. Especially since this, and the previous, book Riley's Ex has been back. It's three stupid male love interests in one go. Risa constantly talking about how she shouldn't be attracted but is. With Risa's involvement in this sloppy plot it feels like the search for the Keys and the impending terror of the gates of hell being opened/or closed forever don't seem like a real threat. I've hit a point of exhaustion with this series. Too much of the bad and not enough good. I really enjoy Risa's character. I love that she's got differences from Riley, enough anyway to feel like a different person. It feels like Arthur is trying to make the story so action packed that she forgot secondary characters are a good thing. That they are key to a story. Risa being unwilling to let people help her is passed as her protecting everyone. This is the most tiring book of the series. I'll keep going. But mainly because I want those cameos of the past faves. Oh, and Amaya.

Sexual Content: Wow, if there were sex scenes I can’t remember. I don’t think there were. Strange.

 
2/5- Average/disappointing, library check-out.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1)Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)

Review: Darkness Devours

Darkness Devours (Dark Angels, book 3) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Darkness Devours (3)

New York Times bestselling author Keri Arthur has been hailed for her “smart, sexy”* urban fantasy novels. Now, she continues her Dark Angels series set in the realm of danger and desire known as the Guardian World…

Half-werewolf, half-Aedh Risa Jones can enter the realm between life and death, and she can see the Reapers who collect the souls of the dead. Now, she is using her gifts—and the investigative know-how of a man who broke her heart—to find a cabal searching for the power to control time, reality, and fate. And this is besides her work for the Vampire Council, half of whom want her dead.

But for now the Council needs her alive. Someone is killing blood-whore addicted vampires, and Risa must find the guilty party. If she succeeds, she may finally convince the council to lift the execution order on her life. But before she succeeds, she must first survive…

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Review:

How does saving the world from the gates of hell being opened not work as enough of a storyline for a series? Oh, it’s probably not enough when you're trying to drag said series out for a while. The problem is the mysteries/jobs that Madeline Hunter is forcing Risa to work on are slapped on. It's both too much and boring at the same time. This time I will admit that it fleshes out the chilling world of vampires in the Arthur's world. Which is a nice touch.

What I don't like is that clearly Lucian is the leak. Or some kind of stink. Risa clinging onto her “belief” that she can trust him is exhausting. Especially since she's constantly saying she can trust him, but then thinking to herself “maybe”. Plus, Lucian is just an annoying slut. Please. Just stop. He’s reading your mind during sex. Yeah, that doesn’t sound shady at all.

Oh, Azriel. He knows a lot more then he's telling. Enough so that his little hissy about Risa not trusting him are annoying. Oh, and for goodness sake Risa shouldn't trust him. She should just ignore her feelings for him. It's smarter. I get that she needs sex as a werewolf half breed, but her own ideals about only having sex with people she can “trust” are silly. Because she's having sex with a lot of people she can't trust now!

In the end I enjoyed the dark twist of this book. The camos are again fun. However, Risa's story is becoming even more and more like Riley's. It is exhausting. And sloppy. Somehow Arthur has created male love interests that I can't stand. However, I don't think she can pull a Quinn. Amaya is the most interesting character here and she's a magical sword! It's sad when the person I want Risa to get to know more and explore her relationship with is a demon sword. (OK, a demon sword is super cool.)

Sexual Content: Oh, yeah. But I have to be honest that shit was stale. And I was saying no-no-no-no for frustrated-she-be-stupid reasons.

 
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1)Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)

Review: Darkness Rising

Darkness Rises (Dark Angels, book 2) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Darkness Rises (2)

The sexy, thrilling adventures continue in bestselling author Keri Arthur’s new Dark Angels series, starring half-werewolf/half-Aedh Risa Jones.

Risa will go to any lengths to avenge her mother’s murder—even if it means making a pact with the most evil vampire she’s ever met. Lethal and powerful, Madeline Hunter is leader of the vampire council, and will put her resources behind finding the killer—for a price. The venerable vampire requires the assistance of Risa’s psychic powers. Quid pro quo.

Someone—or something—is targeting the elders of the local council, cursing the immortal vampires to rapidly age, sink into madness, and die. Risa must track down the vengeful being responsible. But Risa’s father, a rogue Aedh priest, also enlists her in a dangerous mission. And not even the great Madeline Hunter may be able to protect her from the shadowy forces that desire nothing less than Risa’s destruction.

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Review:

It saddens me when the second book doesn't live up to the first book, or exceed it. Especially when it echoes too strongly of the previous series. Don't get me wrong, the first book of Arthur's Dark Angels series echoed strongly of Riley. But Risa's story was her own. This time Darkness Rising parallels the Riley books too much. Especially with Risa being suckered into working for Madeline Hunter. Basically like Riley being suckered into being a guardian. Risa is unwilling though, from solving the “cases” Hunter gives her to finding the Keys.

Ah. Madeline Hunter. Risa’s grief was in charge and maybe short circuited her power of reasoning when she made the deal. Because being Hunter's little trained bitch doesn't benefit Risa in finding her mother's killer. And having read up to book 4 while writing this review it doesn't help much through all of those other books either. It's a tiring trope. And at least Riley admits part of her wants that life, Risa keeps denying it.

The first book managed to stand out on it's own. Reminisced enough of Riley's books, but still managed to be its own. The cameos of favorite characters were awesome. This time the cameos are low, but it smacks so strongly of Riley's series that it's . . . insulting.

Not to mention that something is up with Lucian. Come on! Risa is so adamant that she can trust him is warning flags enough. Not to mention that it's clear Risa has an information leak somewhere. Not to mention when she's kidnapped yet again Lucian conveniently shows up to kill the guy. Kill the guy before they can question him, hmmmmm? And other blatant stuff.

It was also annoying that the ending suddenly pooped up and she needed her frinds. Friends she kept out of the loop of her “dangerous life”, basically putting them at risk. Forewarned is forearmed. And I have a feeling this is going to be an issue that is going to plague Dark Angles. Because while I enjoy Risa I do feel like a lot of times she makes the wrong mistakes and Arthur simply claims Risa is just stubborn. Insert nonchalant shoulder shrug.

In all honesty this was a huge let down. Risa is coming off really bad. While I enjoy a lot of her character traits I feel like she's just being more and more unbearable. And there's certain things in Arthur's stories that always annoy me. Undeniable attraction that her leads can't ignore being one of them. Risa however can't stop her vagina loving. At least Riley could separate just sex from love when she needed to, especially when she couldn't fully trust someone. In the end it was still fun, but there's a point when your new series needs to stand on it's own.

Sexual Content: Sex, yep indeedy.

 
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1)Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)

Review: Darkness Unbound

Darkness Unbound (Dark Angels, book 1) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Darkness Unbound

The fight against darkness rages on for the next generation—in New York Times bestselling author Keri Arthur’s exciting new series set in the world of the Guardians.

Being half werewolf and half Aedh, Risa Jones can enter the twilight realms between life and death and see the reapers, supernatural beings that collect the souls of the dead. But she soon makes a terrifying discovery: Some sinister force is stealing souls, preventing the dead from ever knowing the afterlife.

Reapers escort souls—not snatch them—but Risa is still unnerved when a reaper shadows her in search of someone Risa has never met: her own father, an Aedh priest, who is rumored to be tampering with the gates of hell for a dark purpose. With the help of her “aunt”—half-werewolf, half-vampire Riley Jenson—and an Aedh named Lucian who may have lost his wings but none of his sex appeal, Risa must pursue whatever shadowy practitioner of blood magic is seizing souls, and somehow stop her father . . . before all hell breaks loose.

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Review:

After finishing Riley Jenson's series I immediately looked towards the Dark Angels series. After all it follows the grown up Risa from Riley's books! Definitely a character that would be worthy of having her own series! After chatting with a friend she told me that “Risa slut shames Riley!” Riley's sexuality and overall owning of it is what I loved about her books. And there was no way that I'd read about a character slut shaming my girl Riley. Years later chatting with another Goodreads friend and discussing why I hadn't read the Dark Angel books it hit me. That other Goodreads friend wasn't telling me that Risa had slut shamed Riley, but that Goodreads friend was slut shaming both Riley and Risa!

Grrrrrrrrrrr!

Strong female leads who own their sexuality are so hard to find! Ones who are brave with their image and body. Female leads who aren't hung up on a million different reasons why their first time was bad, that sex is bad, and all kinds of other sex issues. Risa owns it! Just like Riley. Maybe even a bit more. While the sex isn't anymore over the top than some of the Paranormal Romance series out there, it is maybe a bit more then what some Urban Fantasy fans are used to. But let's be honest sex is a big part of both genres anymore. So when a female character owns her sexuality I am for it. Nuff said.

Risa isn't an amazing character just because she owns her sexuality. No she's awesome because she's really smart and badass! But she is not Riley. There are definitely some traits and I’m starting to see with Arthur her leading ladies tend to share a few. Risa is a rich spoiled girl who is still afraid of bugs and other strange things. She owns a restaurant called RYT—Rich Young Things—with two of her other rich friends that she lives with. At first I found her super rich status with a famous mother to other famous people annoying. It didn't take long for me to warm up to Risa. Her life hasn't been easy. If her friends or loved ones are in trouble girl steps up! With Riley, Quinn, and Rhoan you know the girl has some mad skills!

There are some fun tie-ins to the Riley books with plenty of cameos. None of it feels like oh-here-is-a-character-you-love blatant cameo! Besides awesome female leads Arthur always populates her worlds with fantastic and diverse characters. Which is exactly what she does here. Not only am I looking forward to seeing old favorites, but now I care about the new cast and I’m invested in what happens to them. Ah! I wish more authors, when done with a beloved series, could still write in their old series universe. Arthur does it beautifully and while this was a bit of an average read Arthur’s talents make this a nice introduction to a new series, and probably what will become a great series for me!

Sexual Content: Plenty of sexual humor, talk, thoughts, and so on. Sex, and even a mild threesome.

  
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1)Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)	Darkness Unbound (1) Darkness Rising (2) Darkness Devours (3) Darkness Hunts (4) Darkness Unmasked (5) Darkness Splintered (6) Darkness Falls (7)

Review: Fireborn

Fireborn (Souls of Fire, book 1) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Goodreads

From New York Times bestselling author Keri Arthur comes a brand new series featuring heroine Emberly Pearson—a phoenix capable of taking on human form, and cursed with the ability to foresee death…

Emberly has spent a good number of her many lives trying to save humans. So when her prophetic dreams reveal the death of Sam, a man she once loved, she does everything in her power to prevent that from happening. But in saving his life, she gets more than she bargained for.

Sam is working undercover for the Paranormal Investigations Team, and those who are trying to murder him are actually humans infected by a plague-like virus, the Crimson Death—a by-product of a failed government experiment that attempted to identify the enzymes that make vampires immortal. Now, all those infected must be eliminated.

But when Emberly’s boss is murdered and his irreplaceable research stolen, she needs to find the guilty party before she goes down in flames…

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Review:

Claims that this book was a lot like the Riley Jenson series had me practically foaming at the mouth for Fireborn!! Pretty please and thank you. Ironically that's probably why I didn't love it. Because it was too much like the Riley Jenson series. Emberly had plenty of potential, but I didn't feel like she was fully fleshed out. Instead she had all the basics of Riley, and not enough Emberly to separate them. She has a male roommate, her soul mate who she can never be in love with—but still a lot like Riley's brother. Emberly is completely comfortable with her sexuality and owns it! (And really that is an aspect I'm happy to live with.) Emberly wants to live a quiet and normal life—this time around—but she's clearly all over the action and her justifications for getting involved seem stupid. Even the love interest has a lot of qualities like the Riley series, but worse.

Sam is already at that he's-an-asshole-who-felt-betrayed-but-really-just-didn't-understand-and-hurts-Emberly-continually jerk state. No really. Sam is already introduced as Emberly's ex. And he's probably one of the most insufferable male love interests to grace the pages of literature. OK, I've read a few worse ones, but this is a status update as I read: “Queue bus. Sam splatter. Now.” Arthur doesn't set up any time span for readers to get to know Sam as anything but an ass. There's no tender flashbacks. Readers are just supposed to take Emberly's word for it that their love was amazing, and that five years was not enough to get over him. Even though now that he's back in her life he's drugged her multiple times, threatened her, expects her to help him but practically gives her nothing, and one of those druggings leaves Emberly and another person completely defenseless against some enemies he knew where coming after her! Emberly annoyingly pining and Sam being an unmitigated ass gets old fast. Knowing Arthur she will drag this out, and I hate Sam. No matter what there will be no redemption for him.

Other then that, this book is a great start to a knew series! Jackson enters as a fire Faye who's down right sexy and helps Emberly steam up the page! While there is some questions to whether he is a good or bad guy, Arthur is kind enough not to torture readers too long. Also, some question to whether Jackson will be the other side of the love triangle. The vibes I’m getting are just good friends with benefits. They're a great team together and I like the idea of following a series where they both interact. Rory is also a surprisingly fun character, and I hope to see more of him considering he has a pretty tight connection to Emberly.

Which brings me to the coolest aspect of this series. Phoenixes! There's only one book that actually had a lead who was part phoenix that I've read, and others they've just been magical creatures. Arthur spins her mythology well. As phoenix are fire spirits and are quiet different from humans. They have three forms: human, fire, and phoenix! Phoenixes come in pairs, or soul mates, and can not live without their other half. Of course there's a tragic twist that pairs cannot ever be in love, romantically, with each other. Every life they are reborn their destined to have true love, and it is fated to never end well. Really sad crap. But I wonder how much it is they find that “true love” for that life and then they give up on “normal love”. You know the practical kind that you have to work at? Just a thought.

While Fireborn didn't have as powerful a murder mystery as what I'd grown accustomed to from my beloved Riley, I did have fun. (Come on, we all no ones different/wrong with Sam.) The setup for the Red Cloaks was interesting and left open to sprawl out in future entries into the series. (Though how no one would think that there's something fishy to a bunch of “crazy mindless beings” all having red cloaks? Mindless creatures don't wear uniforms.) The dark world and humor that readers have grown to love, and expect, from Arthur is present! While I find two of the men in Riley's life fantastic and love them without actually needing them to be her HEA. I will say that if Sam is dragged out as “the one” I'll probably not continue this series too long. However, I love the promise and I hope to get to know Emberly more! Arthur can deliver better mystery and love story then this and I look forward to it.

And no. You do not need to have read the Riley or Dark Angels series to read this It’s the same universe, but no cross over a that feeling of missing something.

Sexual Content: Hot bedroom scenes, plenty of sexual humor, and well . . . tons of sexual content. It’s Arthur it comes with the turf.

 
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Fireborn (1)	Fireborn (1)	Fireborn (1)

Attention Immortal After Dark fans!

Feels strange for how much I stalk my fave authors that I never seem to post Author Gossip anymore. So I thought a good place to start up would be with one of my favorite authors Kresely Cole.

Oh, and then some Keri Arthur goodness.

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The latest IAD has been revealed in author Kresely Cole’s newsletter. Honestly I thought it was going to be twin time! Especially after that huge cliffhanger. But nope.

Lanthe and Thronos

Now if you’re like me if you’re not currently reading the book there are probably some characters you don’t remember off the top of your head.

Lanthe is also known as Melanthe Queen of Persuasion. If that doesn’t ring a bell she’s the sister of Sabine Queen of Illusions, they’re both born of sorceri parents. AKA Sorceresses. Last I recall she was being dragged off by her winged nemesis on the island that The Order had her imprisoned on. Now that was a cliffhanger from a few books ago!

Now speaking of the “winged nemesis” come on we all new it was going to be Thronos. He’s hunted her for how long? He helped kill her parents, she helped kill his father. This is angst love of the Cole kind! Thronos is a Vrekener, a race that’s on the verge of extinction and they’re main goal is the to hunt evil sorceri.

If you want further refresher you should check out Wicked Scribe’s amazing character guide.

Lanthe and Thronos’ story is one that I have been waiting for! Ever since Thronos dragged her off, but that has been quite a few books ago and I have to admit I’m 100% ready for the next MacRieve’s tale. Oh, well. Twin power later.

Look for more info on this installment in the upcoming months. Tentative publication date is next spring (2014). –Cole’s newsletter

Keri Arthur will be releasing her first self-published title this month, Who Needs Enemies. Instead of “sexy urban fantasy, this is straight up paranormal romance.

It’s startling how many well known authors are starting to go the self published route. What I really want to know is if they’re established fan base helps them out, and if they get more money this way? Obviously it helps them to have total control over the creative development of the story. Which is a plus in my book. But I still want to know if it works out for them.

Harriet Phillecky is a rare part elf, part siren and wanted by neither race. Not that she really cares. A successful news photographer turned paranormal investigator, she now has a 'family' of friends that includes ogres who constantly raid her refrigerator and take over her TV, and a dragon who drinks far too much for his own good.

But when the only elvan relative she has any contact with asks her to investigate the disappearance of a siren, she finds herself unable to refuse.

All too quickly the disappearance becomes murder, relatives come out of the woodwork, and a man she'd much rather forget steps back into her life. Harri wants nothing more than to run—especially when the evidence beats a path to the doors of those who'd long ago abandoned her. But when the life she's created for herself comes under threat, Harri has little choice but to hunt down a killer—before everything she holds dear is destroyed.

Grab the book on Amazon or Goodreads.

Brandon Sanderson’s first venture into urban fantasy, though I don’t think it’s as simple as that, it’s got super heroes too with a bit of a dystopian world. The official book trailer is out.

Plus, fans can read a 5 chapter preview and an Audible sampler released by Random House. Just click here to enjoy.

Author’s Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl of the Beautiful Creatures series have news! Yep, you probably guessed (or heard about it by now) there is to be a spin off series called Dangerous Creatures.

Here’s the official word:

The Dangerous Creatures series will follow Link and Ridley, two fan-favorite characters from Beautiful Creatures. Readers will catch up with Ethan, Lena, and Link as they graduate from high school and get ready to leave the small Southern town of Gatlin, along with Link’s sometime girlfriend, Ridley. The series will launch on December 17, 2013, with Dangerous Dream, an e-novella that will tie Dangerous Creatures to the world of the original series. Dangerous Creatures, the first book in the new series, will be published simultaneously in hardcover, ebook, and audio formats on May 6, 2014.

“We are ecstatic with the massive success of Beautiful Creatures, which has sold nearly 3.5 million copies to date,” said Megan Tingley. “We’re eager to satisfy Kami and Margaret’s passionate fans with the swift release of a riveting e-novella just in time for the holidays, and a brand-new novel the following spring.”

To be honest I don’t really care. The book Beautiful Creatures book actually put me to sleep. (You should never fall asleep reading, even if you’re tired!)

Andrea Cremer (seen on our left) is cooking up something for fans in the Nightshade world! OK. So there’s the original Nightshade series, then Nightshade Prequel series, and now Nightshade Legacy. The first book in the Legacy series is Snakeroot and it follows right after events in Bloodrose. Snakeroot releases December 10th of this year.

Fans asked for it, and now they've got it! Andrea Cremer is continuing the story she began in in her internationally bestselling trilogy: Nightshade, Wolfsbane and Bloodrose. In this new installment, Bosque Mar haunts the dreams of both Adne and Logan, trying to escape for the Nether, where Calla, Shay and the other Guardians trapped him in the final battle in the War of All Against All. Will he turn Adne to the dark side? Will Logan reclaim his birthright? And will darkness take over our world? In a novel filled with magic, romance and breakneck action, master storytelling Andrea Cremer's newest installment will not disappoint!

Grab it on Amazon or Goodreads!

Still on Andrea Cremer news, she is putting out a The Forbidden Side of Nightshade adult romance and erotica. She will be writing them under A.D. Robertson so if you search for them under Andrea Cremer you might not have any luck. (Oh, you should look at her profile image for her pen name. She even looks more “erotica” writer!)

The first adult novel set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Nightshade series, Captive delivers a steamy, forbidden romance between sworn enemies drawn together by an irrepressible desire.

Twenty-five-year-old Tristan Doran enjoys a life of incredible power and privilege. As a direct descendant of the Keepers—witches who have embraced dark magic—he defers to no one but his overlord, Lord Bosque Mar. For most of his life, Tristan has been kept out of the centuries-old Witches War, his bloodline too valuable to risk in battle.

But when a beautiful, young human Searcher named Sarah is captured and made a prisoner in his Irish castle, Tristan’s infatuation with her flings him headlong into the fray. Captive and captor, unable to contain their longing, embark on a passionate, forbidden romance together—only to learn that their love is at the heart of a prophecy predicting the downfall of the Keepers’ ages-old reign.

Captive explores the darker side of the richly imagined Nightshade universe, a fantasy world of powerful dark witches, shape-shifting wolf warriors, and fascinating history. The first of three erotic novels, Captive delves deeply into the fiery, illicit romance of two young lovers whose very desires invite their doom.

Grab them up on Amazon and Goodreads!

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That’s it for me! Hope everyone enjoys their weekend!

Review: Moon Sworn by Keri Arthur

Moon Sworn (Riley Jenson, Book 9) by Keri Arthur

Genre: Urban Fantasy 
Edition Reviewed: eBook
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Moon Sworn

Some nights never end.
Some desires never die. . . .

She ventures where no one else dares—into realms of peril and pleasure. But will this next journey be her last?

Shape-shifting werewolf and vampire Riley Jenson is through with death–causing it, solving it, surviving it. Her soul mate, Kye Murphy, is dead–and at Riley’s own hands. Not even the seductive embrace of her vampire lover, Quinn, can fully ease her mind, for she has begun questioning everything that makes her Riley–including her job at the Directorate.

Now, the ritualistically slain bodies of ex-cons have started turning up. Reluctantly, Riley takes the case, but something even worse is waiting in the wings. For a vicious enemy from her past is determined to strip Riley of everything that gives her life any meaning: her lover, her brother–and even her own identity. Can Riley survive this ultimate assault? All she knows is, she must fight one last time to find answers, before everything goes dark forever…

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Review:

Fellow readers gave me soooo many warnings about this book. The conclusion to the much beloved Riley Jenson series. So I was bracing for the worst. Like some kind of gun-ho drama where everyone dies and the lead wakes up in an alternate universe where she is God. (Though those endings might only happen in Anime.) Because in my mind I have never read a truly brilliant final book. "The Ends" always disappoints. Maybe because you know everyone is going to get a Happily Ever After or the author spelled it all out for you books ago. In my mind end books are just there to say P.S. this series is over here's your closure. Even Harry Potter's final book didn't blow me away. End books are average reads at best.

That said, this book surprised me. Instead of pulling away from the general guidelines of this series, Arthur comfortably sticks to the good stuff. After all, if it's not broke don't fix it. Riley is set on a murder mystery where criminals released from jail are being killed by a red cloven hove demon. Kye's warnings of Blake, the alpha wolf that tossed Riley off the face of a mountain, are nagging at Riley. She's not sure whether she's paranoid or if Blake's "revenge" is coming. This is a Riley book, of course the bad guys are out to get her.

After yet another car accident Riley wakes up in the desert with a patchy memory and only a week to get her memory back or die. Unlike the other many UF/PNR titles out there where the lead has no memory it's a real treat to have one up on the lead. It was beautiful frustration knowing more then Riley as she struggled to figure out what was going on. Of course, the original murder mystery follows her. So yeah, even the final book gets hung up on the same old formula that Arthur desperately clings to. At this point I wonder if this is the formula she will use for every book she writes.

What is great about this final entry is that readers get closure. Quinn and Riley's relationship has been so intense and REAL for me. Especially Quinn. I've gone from mild interest, to loathing him, wanting him dead, and now to absolute adoration. Riley has grown from a free and loose wolf, with a white house picket fence complex, to a real person. Realizing that love can't be planned out or forced. The two have come so far, and I am beyond over joyed to see things come together.

In the end, this isn't a brilliant conclusion. Arthur needed to break a way from her overly done plot. Shake it up! Quite borrowing plots from your own stories. However, for this series it worked just find. All a reader can ask for at the end of a series is for closure. That's exactly what Moon Sworn delivers.

Sexual Content: For a Riley Jenson book pretty sparse. There is abuse of a pregnant woman, while it’s not graphically illustrated it’s mentioned.

 
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

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Previous book(s) in series:
Reviewed on BW:	Amazon:	Goodreads:
Full Moon Rising (1) Kissing Sin (2) Tempting Evil (3) Dangerous Games (4) Embraced by Darkness(5) The Darkest Kiss (6) Deadly Desire (7) Bound to Shadows (8) Moon Sworn (9)	Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle Paperback | Kindle	Full Moon Rising (1) Kissing Sin (2) Tempting Evil (3) Dangerous Games (4) Embraced by Darkness(5) The Darkest Kiss (6) Deadly Desire (7) Bound to Shadows (8) Moon Sworn (9)