Summary: Can he exact revenge? High in the Pyrenees, a band of mercenaries led by Courtland MacCarrick wages war for General Reynaldo Pascal. When Court turns on the evil general, Pascal orders him killed but Court narrowly escapes and exacts revenge by kidnapping Pascal’s exquisite Castilian fiancée. Can she deny her passions? Lady Annalía Tristán Llorente despises her towering, barbaric captor almost as much as she does Pascal. Her inexplicable attraction to the Highlander only fuels her fury. But nothing will stop her from returning to Pascal — for if she doesn’t wed him, she signs her brother’s death warrant, as well as her own. Can there be love between them? From the moment Court discovers that Anna’s prim façade masks a fiery, brave lass, his heart’s ensnared, and he dares to defy the curse that has shadowed his life — to walk with death or walk alone. But Pascal vows that he’ll hunt the two, never stopping until he’s destroyed them both.

I am a big fan of Kresley Cole’s Immortal After Dark Series but I was a bit weary of reading her historicals – I was concerned that her sizzling style and heavy sex scenes that tend to start right in the very first pages of her paranormals would not be fitting in a historical setting. I needed not to worry, she has a different style and voice when writing historicals and If You Dare (and I am glad I did) was simply a most delightful read.

Court McCarrick is a Scottish mercenary who sells his services and of that his band to whoever pays more. As the story begins, he is under the employment of General Reynaldo Pascal in the small European country of Andorra. Although Court needs the money so he can finish paying for the piece of land he bought in the Highlands of Scotland , he realises that Pascal is nothing but a tyrant and decides not to carry on terrorising the poor people anymore. Pascal is not agreeable to this and orders Court to be killed. He is beaten up and manages to escape at the last minute and is found later – almost dead – by Lady Annalia Elisabet Catherina Tristán.

Annalia is an Andorran who hates and fear the Scottish for what they have been doing to
her people. She thinks they are Bestias (beasts) animals that pray on innocent people and she is not very happy when she finds Court near her lands but she ends up taking him to her house to help him recover. She is not afraid to voice the fact she would do the same to any animal she found hurting.

To bring these two together it’s like powder and fire: explosive. They begin things at odds with each other, without any trust – Annalia loathing him and Court thinking of her as spoiled and arrogant. But alas, she needs help: her brother has been taken by the very own Pascal who is using his as leverage to marry Annalia – she has Royal blood and Pascal plans to use this to get to the throne.

Court thinks her brother is dead or will be dead as soon as Pascal gets to marry her – she can’t believe that and plan to go ahead with the wedding, and Court kidnaps her to keep Annalia from making such a mistake. Now, they are being chased by a bunch of maniacs called the Rechazados, assassins who will not stop until they have annihilated their target whilst at the same time trying to find her brother who has escaped captivity with the help of Pascal’s daughter Olivia, another explosive and duplicitous Andorran.

I am having a hard time summarising the plot because it’s quite more complicated than that –behind any of their decision making or behaviour is the fact that these two believe they are cursed. Court’s family is under a curse spelled in his family version of the Book of Shadows:

The last two sentences in the curse are illegible but pretty much he and his two brothers believe that they can never marry or have children and that the person they love will always be under terrible danger. So he is terrified when he starts having feelings for Annalia. The Andorran , on the other hand also believes herself to be cursed – to behave like her mother who was seen as a woman who couldn’t control her desires and her passion.

It does require a certain amount of suspension of belief, because of all the curses, the improbability of such a couple ever working out, etc. I am not one reader who enjoy having to put aside my search for a believable plot especially with historicals but I am willing to compromise when it’s clear that the implausible plot is only but a starting point and that what matters is how the characters develop from that point onwards. In this sense, it doesn’t matter if they are really cursed or not, the important is that they BELIEVE they are and how that motivate their actions.

I really like this book. I fell in love with Annalia: she was a complete riot. Yes, spoiled and arrogant sometimes even bordering TSTL territory but she was so full of life and ever so funny with her complicated logic, which fascinated and attracted Court while at the same time almost driving him insane. There is this one sequence when Annalia pulls a stunt that sends her into trouble and she gets shot and she blames HIM for it:

She is just not a typical woman and he fights, and he fights, but she will not take a no for an answer when she realises she wants him. That was the best thing for me: how this big brute melts for this woman and can’t believe she would want him at all – a bit of beauty and the beast story to boot. She orders him about and he is certain that the day she learns to ask for things properly, he will be doomed because he won’t be able to deny her anything. So very sweet. Court starts to really fall in love with Annalia and he struggles but he can’t control himself. That makes it for great interactions between them : both funny and endearing leading to a climax with the potential to be heart wrenching given the fact that he can’t shake off his belief that being with her is endangering her life but this is romanceland after all and all is fine in the end.

In other words, read this book.

Notable quotes/Parts: There are many scenes worth quoting, like all the scenes Court just stood awestruck by the incongruities of her brain : “You are a fascinating woman”. Or how he started to feel protective towards her in a very alpha sort of way. But one of my favourites is the one where Olivia, daughter of Pascal thought the two illegible lines in the curse would be:

Additional Thoughts: The new book in the Immortals After Dark series comes out TODAY!!!!

Summary: Used to cold silence, Faith NightStar is suddenly being tormented by dark visions of blood and murder. A bad sign for anyone, but worse for Faith, an F-Psy with the highly sought after ability to predict the future. Then the visions show her something even more dangerous-aching need…exquisite pleasure. But so powerful is her sight, so fragile the state of her mind, that the very emotions she yearns to embrace could be the end of her. Changeling Vaughn D’Angelo can take either man or jaguar form, but it is his animal side that is overwhelmingly drawn to Faith. The jaguar’s instinct is to claim this woman it finds so utterly fascinating and the man has no argument. But while Vaughn craves sensation and hungers to pleasure Faith in every way, desire is a danger that could snap the last threads of her sanity. And there are Psy who need Faith’s sight for their own purposes. They must keep her silenced-and keep her from Vaughn

Now, this is what I am talking about. I thought Visions of Heat was a much better instalment in Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series. At least, it grabbed my attention much more that Slave to Sensation.

It may be because the groundwork for her stories had been set previously and being already acquainted with the Psy and Changeling way of life certainly helped the easy flow of the story.

Faith NightStar is a F-Psy, a Foreseer. Before Silence , the program that conditions Psy into not feeling, most F-Psy would go insane from foreseeing deaths, disasters, crimes, etc. But because the Psy world these days is free from those things, Psy are merely used for predicting business trends. Faith is said to be the most powerful F-Psy of her generation and she has generated millions for her clan. The life of a F-Psy though is not one to enjoy the money they make. F-Psy must live alone, apart from everyone, otherwise their fragile minds can collapse. They are kept in a safe house, constantly monitored and cared. Their way of life reminded me quite a lot of Minority Report – where the Foreseers are imprisoned and do nothing but to predict the future. It is almost the same here, expect that some of the F-Psy like Faith are more conscious. For now. For she senses her abilities are mutating, something is happening to her and she can’t explain: she is having visions of disturbing, violent things. When she predicts the death of her own sister, she decides to get some answers. And the only person she can think of that would be able to answer her truthfully and not send her into re-conditioning is Shascha Duncan, the only Psy to ever leave the PsyNet and who is now the Alpha Female of the DarkNight Leopard pack.

She sets off to try and find her but she is found first by one of the pack’s Sentinels, Vaughn. Vaughn is a Jaguar who was left to die as a child by his own parents along with his sister, who died in front of him. He was found by the leopard pack and brought to live with them. He is very dark and moody and his animal side is much more prominent than the human.

He and Faith form an almost immediate connection – it seems he can not keep himself from touching her and even though touch is something F-Psy are particularly weary of , Faith can’t help craving for it either. Pretty soon is very clear that these two have a special bond and that Faith has a choice to make: to keep on living a robotic life, where her own family use her to make money or to join Vaughn and the pack. But this choice is not easy – Psy life is the only life she knows, they are her people. There is a inner fight and conflict about who she is and who she wants to be.

Visions of Heat was a very gripping read. Even if I still have some problems with the narrative and the way time after time it is repeated how the “beast thinks this and the man thinks that” , I was able to not let that bother me so much this time. The relationship between Vaughn and Faith was one exciting to follow but more than that the dynamics of the world they live in and the changes that are bound to happen were also very absorbing. It is clear now that the Psy world is a world founded on lies and that corruption is everywhere and that corruption is bound to bring them down eventually. And the change will come from within , which is even more interesting.

I also liked how book 1 interconnects so deeply with book 2. Slave to Sensation showed us how the Psy tried to destroy all emotions and how they tried to thwart the development of the E-Psy, the Empaths such as Sascha. Visions of Heat expands the theme by making it clear that by attempting to destroy the Empaths they made it more difficult for the F-Psy to remain sane once the more emotional visions started to appear. There is therefore, a deep connection between E-Psy and F-Psy and between Sascha and Faith , even more now that they are linked in the Net created by the changelings to keep them alive.

I am looking forward to seeing what’s going to happen next!

Notable quotes/Parts: I love the description of the Web of Stars – the web created between the Lucas and the Pack’s Sentinels that keep Sascha and Faith alive. How it was utterly different from the PsyNet:

“This Web had rainbows and sunshine, emotion and heart, predatory hunger and utter loyalty. Now those sparks healed the broken pieces of Faith and she never even knew that she’d been fractured. “

And the Wolves pack? Can not wait to read more about them. I think I may have developed a crush on Hawke, their alpha.

Additional Thoughts: The change from human to animal , from man to jaguar or leopard, reminded me of one of my favourite TV Shows from when I was a child. Do you remember Manimal?

Verdict: Interesting dynamics between the different races, hot relationship. Much preferred that than the first book in the series. And I believe the next books have the potential to be even better.

Rating: A solid 7 and I have the feeling further instalments will have higher grades.

Reading: If you Dare by Kresley Cole.

Pretty In Pink - Duckie, BLAINE, and Andie strut their stuff in this Hughes classic

Some Kind of Wonderful – Your tomboyish drum playing best friend? Or the hottest gal in school? Decisions, decisions.

St. Elmo’s Fire – Defining brat pack flick about Georgetown grads and dealing with becoming adults.

The Outsiders – This cast cannot be denied! Arguably the movie that started them all, with Greasers and Socs rumbling to a cool soundtrack

Sixteen Candles – “Dong, where is my automobile?” “Au-to-mo-bi-le?” ‘Nuff said.

War Games – There is something hilariously apropos about an artificial inteligence war machine discovering the merits of peace through playing tic tac toe.

Weird Science – If you can’t get a date, MAKE ONE!

The Breakfast Club – The quintessential Brat Pack movie.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Ahh, Matthew Broderick. How you’ve grown. Err…wait, not really.

One Crazy Summer – Recently saw this on cable–did you know Jeremy Piven is in this one? Really cool boat race.

Any thoughts?

And they say TODAY we reveal waaay too much in previews!

Title: Touch the Dark (Cassandra Palmer Series, book 1)

Author: Karen Chance

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal

Stand alone or series: First in the Cassandra Palmer series

Summary: (from Amazon.com)

Like any sensible girl, Cassie tries to avoid vampires. But when the bloodsucking Mafioso she escaped three years ago finds Cassie again with revenge in mind, she’s forced to turn to the vampire Senate for protection.

The undead senators won’t help her for nothing, and Cassie finds herself working with one of their most powerful members, a dangerously seductive master vampire- and the price he demands may be more than Cassie is willing to pay.

Review

First impressions

Thea: I am a confessed Urban Fantasy fan. I like sassy heroines, and I like the obsessive compulsive nature of these books—once I find a series I like, I will marathon read that baby til the end. True, a lot of the heroines start to sound the same, some universes aren’t as distinct as others—or worse off, characters suffer from Anita Blake syndrome and lack any depth beyond a smart mouth and pissed off attitude. Not cool.

I’m happy to say that Cassie Palmer does not fall into that latter category—and actually stands out as an urban fantasy heroine. She’s neither a shape shifter, nor a badass deadeye with a gun. Physically, she’s your typical girl, not adept at street fighting or martial arts. What Cassie’s advantage is, however, is her gift (curse?) of clairvoyance, and her unique upbringing in a Vampire court. Cassie is smart without being overbearing and strong without being snarly or abrasive. She knows that her weapon is wile, and running away when she can’t win a fight.

I have to say this is a good start to a new series. I liked this alternate urban universe created by Ms. Chance, her own spin on vampire/supernatural creature lore, and her writing style has a nice flavor to it. I wasn’t a fan of certain aspects of the book (the heavy sex stuff at the end seemed completely out of place for me, regardless of it being hot), but overall I was pleased with it, and will definitely be picking up the next books in the series.

Ana: I am new to Urban Fantasy having read but a handful of novels. My favourite so far was Sunshine by Robin McKinley and I couldn’t help but to compare it with Touch the Dark – it seemed rather appropriate since the overall feel of the book was similar – a first person narrative of a young woman who finds herself right in the middle of something larger than her little self until she finds out that she has a much bigger role to play than expected. As with Sunshine we are catapulted in this world and we find out about it as we go along but if the former made me intrigued and fascinated with the story, the latter was just confusing.

I had a hard time finishing this, and it took me a bit more than one week to finish the book. I had to force myself to go through with it and was on the verge of quitting it but pressed on, hoping it would get better. It didn’t.

On the plot

Ms. Chance sure packs a whole lot into a smaller package. The story follows our heroine, Cassandra Palmer, who is a 20-some-year-old orphan. The book opens with Cassie on the run—she receives a cryptic message on her computer, an obituary for herself that states she will die that evening. Cassie has been in hiding for years now, after pinning her ‘guardian’, a Mafioso Vampire named Tony, with a bunch of racketeering charges. When she sees the message on her computer, Cassie doesn’t even skip a beat—she immediately trucks outta there to gather her few possessions (including a .357 magnum which she isn’t really adept with), and makes off to say goodbye and warn her current roommate, Tomas. Unfortunately, Cassie doesn’t move fast enough, and is cornered by five vampire assassins at the nightclub where she used to work.

It is here that we get a blast of what Cassie’s strengths really are.

While Tomas starts fighting off vampires—surprise! He’s one too—Cassie tries to take out another with her gun. Which proves disastrous. Luckily, she has a pentagram ward tattooed on her back (strong, old magic) that protects her from harm when someone comes in direct contact with it. And then the ghosts come in.

As a clairvoyant, Cassie also has the ability to see and converse with ghosts. Neither humans nor vampires (nor mages nor the fey for that matter) can do this, so while it provides some comic relief (Cassie appears a bit touched in the head by talking to herself, in the eyes of other characters), it also provides her with an invaluable tool to amass allies. Cassandra, with the help of ghostly lookout Portia (who is a whiny spirit of a southern belle) is able to round up help from spirits of Civil War soldiers–and uses their help to destroy another of the vampire assassins. One of the most regular presenses in Cassandra’s life is a ghost named Billy, who she is tied to through a necklace she picked up at a pawn shop (he “haunts” the necklace), and they share a sort of symbiotic relationship–Cassie gives Billy freedom to travel with her (via necklace) and gives him free energy, while he serves as a lookout for her (since no one else can see the spirits, Billy is an ideal spy).

With the foiled assassination attempt, Cassandra is taken under the wing of the Vampire Senate–who of course don’t give aid for free. Turns out, Cassandra’s birthright and her power as a clairvoyant is anything but ordinary, and she finds herself in the midst of a power struggle involving a dual faction of vampires, light and dark mages, heck even witches and the fey too.

Thea:I like Ms. Chance’s writing style. She writes a fast paced, jam-packed story. Plot-wise, I had no idea what was coming next, and that’s a very good thing. Predictable whodoneits aren’t as fun, and I can honestly say that portions of this plot twisting and turning definitely caught me unawares!

Ana: I sort of like her style as well – I agree that the story is fast-paced and unpredictable at points but there were some turns, specially towards the ending that I found less than believable and frankly I was rolling my eyes. Without spoiling it much , let me just say that when a major battle is about to happen it is not really urgent to learn the story of the Man in the Iron Mask is it?

But I do like her descriptions of the the places and the people. Her fighting scenes were well done and thrilling and that was the one thing that kept me from putting the book down.

On the characters

Thea: I really, REALLY like Cassie. As with most Urban Fantasy, or any story told from the first person POV, the hero(ine) can make or break the book. So much of the story depends on what Cass is feeling, as a clairvoyant, she needs to be in touch with herself lest she go nutso with all the curveballs her visions throw her. I adored how Cassandra was not ever going to be taken for a ride by any of the vampires–having grown up with them, she knows that anything they want, or any affections they show her stems from some ulterior motive. I especially loved that Cassandra had no smartmouth bitchy tendencies–like Mercy Thompson, Cassandra Palmer knows that she is low on the power totem pole, and needs to act accordingly.

So…with that said, there were some character aspects I was less than thrilled with. I really REALLY was not digging the whole ‘famous vampires’ thing. Cleopatra, Rasputin, Rafael, Jack the Ripper, etc etc etc are actually very powerful, ancient vampires. Maybe if it was just one or two, but given the all-star historical roster, I was heavy into eye-rolling territory with each new reveal. Baah! Not to say it was written badly, just that it felt kinda hokey. But…that’s just me. I’m certain other readers were very pleased with this historical quirk.

Famous vamps aside, I felt that all of the characters were pretty well developed (well, at least the ones you get to meet). The Big Bad Baddy Rasputin didn’t really have much screen time, but I am looking forward to seeing more of him in the next books. I enjoyed the interactions between Cassie and Billy, and her Vampire protectorate–Mircea, Louis-Cesar, Rafe and Tomas. Heck, even the driven, single-minded Pritkin was very well done.

Ana: WHO is Cassie? I have only but a faint idea. Plotwise the book was surprising but I felt that it was all plot, plot, plot at the expense of a more deep characterisation. Even though we were inside Carrie’s mind for the entire book , I still don’t know much about her, what moves her – I specially know very little about her feelings. I didn’t relate to her and that is one of the reasons I didn’t enjoy the book very much. I also lost my patience with her several times when other characters would bring to her attention that she was more than JUST a human and she would just ignore them. How many times can someone call you sibyl without making you wonder? Cassie? She would just say “the name is Cassie” Oh, please. Get a grip.

Up until the very end when it was revealed who she was, she kept denying it even though her powers grew exponentially over a mere number of hours – granted it may have been too much to process over a small amount of time but come on.

As for the other characters , I have to agree with Thea. The whole thing with the famous vamps: Rasputin, Mircea – Dracula’s brother – and Marlowe/ Shakespeare did my head in. Heck, even Tinker Bell made an appearance. She mentions en passant that Michelangelo was also a vampire and with Raphael being Cassie’s friend , I kept waiting that Donatello and Leonardo would show up and then voila, we would have the Vampire Mutant Ninja Painters.

The only character I really really liked was Pritkin, the Mage who is bent on fighting evil in any form. His reaction to the vampires torturing other beings was very much realistic. Also, his powers were very cool.

Final Observations

Thea: I liked the new spin on vampire lore Ms. Chance took here. Yes, we have our share of your run of the mill leather wearing sexy marble bodied vampires. But instead of everyone being beautiful, Cassandra explains that a vampire in death (undeath?) appears just as they did in life–for example, her former guardian Tony is a rotund, unattractive, badly dressed dude.

I also found the idea that vampires feed not only by sucking blood, but by entrancing with sight, touch, etc intriguing. At one point, when trying to explain to the obtuse Pritkin how vampires operate, Mircea makes the point that if vampires could only go around biting and sucking blood from victims at will, there really wouldn’t be that much food left.

I should also mention, there is some racy sexy stuff in this book–especially towards the end. Now I’m no prude, but it all felt kinda strange and out of place for me. And I’m also in general not extremely at home with play-by-play sex scenes (you know, the bread and butter of the romance novel), so…I wasn’t a huge fan. I think the entire sequence at the end was not really essential to the story, and I could have done without it. But again, that’s just me, and probably comes down to personal preference.

One note–given that I would have eliminated the sex altogether, in its defense, the sex that happens isn’t by the characters’ choice. That’s a bit of a misleading assumption. They ‘jump’ into the situation and the bodies they inhabit happen to be doing the nasty. So…It’s not as inappropriate, in my opinion. Also, the vamp Cassie gets down with is someone she has known from her entire childhood–since he’s a vamp and undead, he doesn’t age, whereas Cassie gets older. Some readers may find this creepy, but I didn’t really have a problem with it (I mean, in all of these paranormal books, be they Urban Fantasy or Romance or even straight up SF, humans have sex with immortals all the time…and when you think of how old the immortals are, i.e. Rain Tairen Soul being over a thousand years older than Ellie who has been dreaming of the ancient old fey dude for her entire life; or Sunshine has almost sex with an ancient vampire–that isn’t human at all even in resemblance–and looks like an old mushroom, any supposed willies concerning this situation with Cassie and her vamp don’t hold ground with me. Just sayin’.)

Ana: Even though as I said, the plot was kind of interesting, the worldbuilding and new spin on vampire lore as Thea puts it, were indeed creative, as creative were her descriptions of the places such as the Vegas casino belonging to Tony, it still didn’t grip me. I kept thinking what it was that kept me from enjoying it and I figured out: I think the story lacks emotion – it is all about plot and world building and the emotional side was just kept aside and that is something that I am always looking for in my reads. I don’t know if the next instalments will remedy this since the worldbuilding has been done in book one, but I am not sure I am interested enough in finding out.

I also have to agree with Thea with regards to the sex. I am a romance reader and l love me my sex scenes – but the sex scene in this book came out of nowhere, which is not a problem per se hadn’t it be coupled with the awkwardness of the situation behind it plus it felt like the sex came in the direct train from inappropriatemuchville - the person Cassie was about to have sex with was like an uncle to her when growing up. A few pages before the said sex scene she was remembering how she used to sit on his lap as a 11 year old to hear his stories. Ew.

Overall? Not my cup of tea.

Notable quotes/ Parts

Thea: There is one particular part that had me in stitches. When Cassandra touches Louis-Cesar for the first time, she experiences a new kind of vision–where she is transported back in time, and inhabiting Louis-Cesar’s body. In a compromising situation.

Genre: Fantasy

Stand alone or series: Third book in the Hero series

Summary: (from amazon.com)
The Empress wants to locate the descendants of her exiled sister. No magically-bonded Pair is more ill-suited for the job than long-suffering Shield Lee Mallorough and her all-too-charming Source Shintaro Karish. Yet it’s a mission they can’t refuse.

Why did I read the book: I very much enjoyed the first two books in this series (Resenting the Hero and The Hero Strikes Back), and was eager to continue the adventures of the stoic but hilarious Shield Lee and her obnoxiously charming Source Taro. These books are compulsively readable, and firmly in the ‘unputdownable’ category.

Review:

Heroes Adrift takes off shortly after the conclusion of The Hero Strikes Back. Instead of having the nice, peaceful, uneventful rest from crazy catastrophes and death threats, the Pair is thrown right back into the thick of things with a summons from the Empress herself. Sheild Dunleavy Mallorough (she’s a girl, goes by the nickname Lee) is less than thrilled–as usual.

An introduction for those who may not have read the first two books, or a recap for those in need of some memory jogging. In this world, there some people are regular folk, but then some are Sources and some are Shields–together, they Sources and Shields make a Pair (should they be so lucky to find their other half). Sources are able to channel and control the forces of nature–they can manipulate Sources when things are out of whack, most notably when some impending natural disaster is going to occur. Sources are therefore more emotional, tempestuous and akin to feeling everything around them. On the flip side, there are Shields. Shields are diametrically opposed to the Sources–they do exactly as their name implies: they shield their Source while they are channeling surrounding forces (in the old days, Sources would go mad or would be torn apart when trying to channel forces since the very action leaves them completely vulnerable, and without their own mental shields). Shields are more stoic, serious, and necessarily more numb to feeling–all the better to protect their Sources.

A Pair is mere match up of a random Shield and Source–there is only one true partnership, and they must ‘discover’ this bond before they can be sent out into the field to protect the common folk. A Shield or Source can go their whole lives without finding their Pair. By the same token, Shields and Sources go to separate academies (under a larger organization called the Triple-S) as soon as they are discovered, to make sure they don’t spontaneously bond with their Pair. Upon graduation from the academy, they attend a bonding ceremony and hope for the best.

In the first novel, Resenting the Hero, we are introduced to Shield Mallorough Dunleavy, our protagonist in first person POV fashion. Immediately, I found the choice of main character very interesting. Lee is neither beautiful, nor sensational–she is completely and utterly reasonable. Her first thoughts are about how she would much rather be Paired with a sensible, non-heroic type Source, so that she can live out her responsible, middle of the road life. She has no interest in saving the day and earning fame. Unfortunately for Lee, she bonds with Source Shintaro Karish (Taro for short). Taro is a gorgeous specimen of man, loved by all, and nicknamed ‘the Stallion of the Triple-S’. Not because he looks like a horse. Well…not his face, anyways. He also happens to be enormously talented, and a ‘hero’ in his own right.

After the shenanigans of the first two books, saving the world and such, Taro and Lee develop a deep bond that goes beyond just being a Pair. They understand each other, respect each other, and–naturally–there is some serious underlying romantic tension (although that sort of thing is frowned upon at the Triple-S…for obvious reasons, if things don’t work out romantically between a Pair, they are still Paired, and must continue to work with each other for the rest of their lives…just imagine that level of awkwardness).

Heroes Adrift begins with a summons to the Empress, and her desire for the Pair to find her long lost sister, or any of her descendants. The Empress is getting old, and has no heir. The next to inherit the throne is her Prince cousin, who isn’t up to her standards. Since Taro and Lee are the famous pair that has saved the world twice before, the Empress needs them to serve her bidding. Turns out, when she was very young her mother had a bastard child, who was sent away to the Southern Isles into hiding.

Thus, Lee and Shintaro take off for the exotic Southern Isles, which are kind of a cross between Southeast Asia and some sort of West African type culture–you know, kind of a typical (if something of a parody) of the Southern Isles that seem to be in a lot of fantasy series. It is here that circumstances from the first two books are flipped topsy turvy. Lee has always been the sensible, plain one. She quietly, somewhat mockingly, sits back and observes Taro’s acts as social butterfly and local darling, making her own tongue in cheek narration. However, upon reaching the Southern Isles it seems that no one is impressed by Taro’s charm. Instead, Lee is seen as the great beauty (mostly due to her fiery red hair and more ample figure). Also, unlike back in their homeland, no one in the Southern Isles recognizes Pairs and expects them to pay for everything–since Taro and Lee have never had need for currency before, they must seek work. And since they have no skills other than channeling and shielding, this proves slightly complicated.

Not to mention the fact they must also figure out how to find the missing royal family member and/or her descendants–which seems to be a wild goose chase.

This installment to the series is…mmm, ok. It’s good, just not as good as the prior two books. I loved the change of scenery, and I loved that the focus of attention this time was Lee instead of the usual Shinatro show. I found it hilarious that sensible, down to earth Lee became “Leavy the fire dancer” (read the book–you’ll see!), and that Taro got to see how it feels to be in Lee’s less than extravagant shoes. Also, this volume brings a turning point in Lee and Taro’s relationship. I won’t say how or what, but it’s a turning point.

However. This one lacked the same magic as the first two books. This book felt much more like a middle sibling, or a transition type book–the search for the royal family was oh so predictable, and the plot felt very vague and…well, transitional. Not to say it was bad, just not as sharp or crisply written as the first two books. I also found myself not liking Lee as much as a narrator in this one–but since this is all part of her journey of self discovery and trying to ‘regain her balance’, I’ll take it. I also felt like there wasn’t enough on Taro–he felt more like a side character in this one. Then again, this is kind of cool because Lee no longer is revolving her world around Karish and for once takes center stage.

I finished this book very quickly, in one sitting, and despite the fact that it was not quite as funny or witty as the first two, it was no slouch either. Ms. Moore has a gift for writing a gripping story, and I eagerly await the next installment to the series. I like the new directions and growth that Lee and Shintaro have taken in this latest volume, and cannot wait to read more about them.

Notable Quotes/Parts: Wait for the portion when Lee performs her fire dance for the first time…seriously. *puts on ninja mask and handsprings away*

Additional Thoughts: A general note–many fantasy type series’ follow this sort of story arc, where the third book in a series introduces a leading couple to either a child of their own, or they discover some sort of orphan child they must care for (and thus learn responsibility and selflessness, settle down, etc). Heroes Adrift is no exception–like Kushiel’s Avatar (book 3 of the Phedre trilogy portion of the Kushiel’s Legacy series), Lee and Taro find an abandoned child, and despite misunderstandings and clashing personalities, they take the orphan child under their wing. Not a bad thing, but just an observation.

Also, randomly, on the cover: I like this one, even though it looks nothing like the first two. More grown up, if still a bit cheesy.

Verdict: I enjoyed this one very much, even if it wasn’t quite as good as the first or second volume. Will definitely be back for more.

Rating: 7 Very Good

Reading Next: Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Horror

Stand alone or series: Fourth novel in The Hollows (Rachel Morgan) series

Summary: (From amazon.com)
The evil night things that prowl Cincinnati despise witch and bounty hunter Rachel Morgan. Her new reputation for the dark arts is turning human and undead heads alike with the intent to possess, bed, and kill her — not necessarily in that order.

Now a mortal lover who abandoned Rachel has returned, haunted by his secret past. And there are those who covet what Nick possesses — savage beasts willing to destroy the Hollows and everyone in it if necessary.

Forced to keep a low profile or eternally suffer the wrath of a vengeful demon, Rachel must nevertheless act quickly. For the pack is gathering for the first time in millennia to ravage and to rule. And suddenly more than Rachel’s soul is at stake.

Why did I read the book: Well, considering how much I adore Ms. Harrison and the stellar books in this series, of course I read this.

Review:

I have a huge girl crush on Kim Harrison. Seriously, just when I think her books can’t get any better–they do. I should probably remark that I am writing this review after having read the last available book in the series, so my partiality may be compromised–but no matter, because each of the Rachel Morgan books build on each other, reaching a powerful crescendo.

As with the previous three books, A Fistful of Charms picks up almost immediately after the conclusion of the previous work, setting straight off to work with lose ends tantalizingly dangled in front of the readers’ noses. In the fourth installment, Rachel begins on a run with werewolf insurance adjuster David–who also happens to be her Alpha (for insurance reasons, purely business). And, in typical Rachel Morgan fashion, the run doesn’t go exactly as planned as Rachel ends up somehow in a challenge for her standing as a pack leader (it’s a werewolf thing).

While the first three books focused more on Rachel’s struggles to dodge assassination attempts, evade demon attacks, and navigate Vampire politics, this entry focuses on weres. Something weird is going on with the werewolves–they are somehow working together and combining their strength, something unheard of for the species given their extreme dominance games and power struggles. With a sinister, magic based were alliance in the works, the whole balance of supernatural power would be turned on its head.

Meanwhile, Rache’s former partner, Jenks has finally come out of the funk that he had been in since the third novel–his son Jax is missing…and it’s Rachel’s old (jerk off) flame Nick that is the cause of all the trouble. Turns out…Nick isn’t the straight laced librarian student type Rachel initially took him for. He is in fact a thief, and enlisted Jax’s aid in stealing an artifact that has landed them all in hot water.

Rachel, armed with help from Ceri (Big Al’s former familiar), is forced at a crossroads in her magic. In book 1, Rache insisted that she was a good witch, an Earth witch and didn’t try to mess with ley lines or anything darker because of the threat such power places on the wielder’s soul. That clean cut distinction has come under a lot of blurring in these later books, as Rache learns to master ley line magic…and now she twists some dark magic. Even though the ends are being used for good, the dark magic places more smut on her already smutty aura. In any case, Rachel makes the decision to use whatever power she can to help Nick and Jax, and through the demon curses manages to turn Jenks life size, as well as arm herself with her own transformation spell (as a wolf, just in case she has to face any weres).

As it so happens, when Rache and Jenks finally find Nick and Jax, they are in a whole heap load of trouble. The artifact Nick stole is something the weres want very badly, and they have been torturing Nick to discover its location. Enter Rachel, into the myriad messes she always seems to find herself in.

Yes, this book is more of the same. But as the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. When ‘the same’ is this good, why would you want anything else! One thing that I am happy Ms. Harrison does, however, is move on with old plot seeds. In this installment, Rachel and Ivy experience a new milestone in their relationship. Whereas some authors try to refrain from moving on with plot lines and giving answers to old questions, Ms. Harrison handles the ever changing relationship between these two characters with awe-worthy skill. I love the complexity of the multiple plot lines, the politics, and especially the relationships in this book. I am frequently amazed at how nothing–and I mean NOTHING–is forgotten. There are no dropped plot lines that are glossed over, or details that are left behind in obscurity. Ms. Harrison is truly exceptional.

I gotta admit–Kim Harrison has definitely crossed into automatic read territory. I don’t care what the book may be about. If she wrote it, it gets bumped up to the top of the TBR, to be read with reckless abandon. Yes–she’s THAT good.

Notable Quotes/Parts: Must. Resist. The. Urge. To. Spoil. Ok ok, spoiler free, when Jenks is turned into a full-sized person (sans wings and other pixie attributes), he provides much needed levity to the story. Not only is Jenks one mighty fine looking pixie, but his experiences with everything–from food, to drink, to karaoke and clothes shopping–is hilarious.

Additional Thoughts: One last gush about Rachel as a heroine–I find her completely endearing, in all her blundering and spontaneity. Can’t wait to read more!

Verdict: Absolutely enamored. I love Rachel Morgan and have become a shocking Kim Harrison fan girl.

Rating: 9 Damn Near Perfection

Reading Next: Heroes Adrift by Moira J. Moore

In Slave to Sensation, Nalini Singh has created an alternative Earth where there are other races living alongside humans.

Meet the Psy, the most powerful and rich race and therefore the dominant one. The Psy are cold, emotionless people who have psychic power. Back in the 20th century they realized that to control the levels of insanity and serial killing amongst their race they needed something to change. A program called Silence was institutionalized, a program where Psy were conditioned from birth not to feel anything. The reasoning being that: no bad feelings – no killings. From that point onwards, Psy feel nothing: negative or positive. By wiping out rage and hate, jealousy and envy, they ended up wiping happiness and love as well.

All Psy minds are connected to each other over the PsyNet: it would be something like the Internet, where everyone has to access to it but mentally. Psy can talk to each other over the PsyNet which also means that all of them are somewhat monitored by the Council, who are very conveniently, above the Law. Any rare signs of mental breakdown, any rare signs of emotions and they are either sent to re-conditioning or in case they are considered “broken” , sent to be lobotomized. Psy also have differences in the way their minds behave – some are Telekinetic and their denomination is Tk-Psy. There are also Telepathic Psy (Tp- Psy), Medical(M –Psy), Foresight (F-Psy) and the never seen, never heard of in many many years, E-Psy. What the E stands for, no one knows. No one cares. It would be a terrible, fearful way of living, except that the Psy feel no fear, fear no evil. They do not touch each other, their children are bred artificially, their family ties are usually money related.

One thing is clear though: no Psy can live without his or her mind connected to the PsyNet. Or can they?

Meet the Changelings: both human and animal with the ability to change whenever they want to into animal form. There are Leopards, Jaguars, Wolves. They usually live in packs and the leader is the alpha male. No one is above the law and in order to make certain that even the Alpha Male is controlled if necessary, there are Sentinels. They are the very opposite of the Psy. They thrive in their emotions, good or bad. They accept the beast within; they have a close contact with nature. They live for love, they love sex, and they show they care for each other by touching other members of the Pack constantly (skin privileges).

Changelings mate for life and when they find their mates they will not let go.

Psy and Changeling do not get along. Psy look down at any race controlled by its own emotions and the Changeling abhor what the Psy have made to their own minds.

Now meet our protagonists:

Sascha Duncan is a Psy. A Cardinal Psy which means she is more powerful than normal Psy. Except that her powers are dormant and she still doesn’t have a proper designation. Beyond that, Sascha is starting to break down – she has been feeling. More and more. She tries to hide the feelings from the PsyNet but she knows it is only a matter of time before she is found out and her mind wiped out. She is terrified. But she can not show it. Lucas Hunter is the alpha of the DarkRiver Leopard’s Pack. They are doing business together.

Sascha’s family has realized the potential in investing into building houses for the changelings, a project that is to be developed by Lucas’ pack. It is good business opportunity for Sascha but it is an amazing opportunity for Lucas to be able to be near a Psy. Because you see, someone is killing Changelings, the last one killed was a female of his own pack and now the killer has taken one of the Wolves’ pack as well (their business associates who eventually become blood bound with the Leopards) and the changelings are convinced that the serial killer is a Psy.

Except that this is impossible. The Psy do not kill. But the impossible has happened and it is down to Sacha to figure out why once she is convinced by Lucas that there is something fishy. And in the way of doing so, she finds out a lot about life and love, about the very feelings she has been taught to fear and to destroy. She also finds out what the enigmatic E-Psy are and how come she is one of them. And she realizes that the Council will go at terrible lengths in order to maintain the status quo.

You must have figured out by now that Sascha and Lucas are also very much a thing – it turns out they are mated. And Lucas will do anything to keep her with him, even if it kills him.

This book has everything going for it. The world is interesting, the dichotomy between the Psy and Changeling intriguing, the pack interactions with each other were sweet, Lucas and Sascha’s relationship hot and heartwarming. And yet I find myself in the same predicament as Thea with her recent review of Scent of Shadows.This book has all of the elements I enjoy in a novel: strong protagonists, an interesting premise and a different world , the mate for life thing which I happen to LOVE but I was left cold and cold is this review. It just didn’t capture my heart and my attention as I would have hoped.

I can’t really explain why – maybe it was the fact that some things kept being repeated ad nauseum? Like for example how Sascha’s inner dialogue would go on and on about how she was broken and how they would get her? Or maybe it was the repetitive man/beast dialogue inside Lucas mind: “The man liked it, but the beast loved”; or “the man wasn’t prepared for it, but the beast was” or something to that effect. Or maybe I just read it in the wrong time of the month.

Things got a little better half-way through the book though, I got a bit more involved in the romance but to be honest, my emotions weren’t all there. It was hot, interesting, but there was something missing. I think the best way to explain exactly how I felt is: reading this book, to me, was like eating dark chocolate. I have a passion for all things chocolate but I find that the dark chocolate is not as fulfilling as plain, milky chocolate. Simple as that. It is still chocolate, I will eat it, still get a kick out of it, just not that satisfying feel that makes me sigh.

To sum up: good, not excellent. I very much preferred Visions of Heat, book two in the series. More on that next.