Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

Series: Kate Daniels, Book 1

Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy

Copyright: 2007

Pages: 260

Rating: 4 / 5

Synopsis: When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.
Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate's guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta's magic circles.
The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate's guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she's way out of her league—but she wouldn't have it any other way…

Review:
I've been stalling against reading Magic Bites mostly because of the good reviews I've read. A lot of times books don't live up to all the hype. Plus there's such a thing as having too many good books to read and then ending up being confused between the worlds and scenarios and unable to enjoy the book for all it has to give you. I finally succumbed , mostly cause my sister wants me to catch up so I can buy the second book which she's dying to read. Big mistake putting off reading this series, i absolutely loved it.

Ilona Andrews has created a beautiful world which alternatively runs on magic and technology. There's a different class of vampires, a pack of shapeshifting beasts, a whole bunch of mages, guilds and other magically inclined protectors and other things that go bump in the night. And in the midst of them all there's Kate - a mercenary who works to clean up the bumpy things and has a fair bit of mystery about her.

This one has Kate investigating the death of her guardian while introducing us to the other supes in the story. The world building is detailed just right and paced in a way that everything doesn't at you all at once.

"I'm not dumb, but if I tell you I'm tough, you'll peg me for a bravo, so I'm going to smile cryptically."

Any book with a chick with mysterious powers yielding a saber and an even sharper tongue is always going to be a pick-me-up book. But with Andrew's writing, this became an awesome read. The characters have depth, the writing gives you a sense that you're actually there with Kate, the conversations are sharp and witty - and this is urban fantasy the way its meant to be written.

 If the first book is enough to add an author to your favourites read, you know there's good reading ahead

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Fire by Kristin Cashore

Series: The Seven Kingdoms Trilogy, Book 2

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Copyright: 2009

Pages: 352

Rating: 5 / 5

Synopsis:


Fire, Graceling's prequel-ish companion book, takes place across the mountains to the east of the seven kingdoms, in a rocky, war-torn land called the Dells. 

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans. 

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story. 

Wondering what makes it a companion book/prequel? Fire takes place 30-some years before Graceling and has one cross-over character with Graceling, a small boy with strange two-colored eyes who comes from no-one-knows-where, and who has a peculiar ability that Graceling readers will find familiar and disturbing...

Review:

After the awesome debut that was Graceling, I wanted to get my hands on anything that was Kristin Cashore. And the wait for Fire was well worth it. Fire is the prequel to Graceling, in that is set 30 years before and has one cross over character that you’ll recognize at once. The book is based in the lands beyond the Seven Kingdoms, where there are creatures called monsters who are beautifully coloured and can mesmerize you. Fire is the last of the human monsters, but one who understands the effect of her beauty on others, and who understands the difference between right and wrong.


The book is based in a land at war with its neighbours and a kingdom shaped by the late king, and his trusted advisor Cansrel, who was Fire's father. Fire tries to use her monster powers to help with the war when asked. She struggles to use her powers now, when she's been trying not to all this while, and the attraction she feels for the king’s brother isn’t helping.

This book, for me, was a lot better than Graceling, and I absolutely loved Graceling. It is a lot more mature, and I felt it covered a lot more emotions and situations. Each character has its own distinct personality, and you'll feel for all of them. Nash, the weak-minded king smitten by Fire; Brigan his stoic brother; Brocker, the man who brought up Fire and Archer, her first lover and friend. I loved em all.

I loved Fire as a character. Gorgeous in body, she was gorgeous in mind as well. She cared about those around her, and despite the brave face she showed the world, had her own little insecurities. Cashore has created a breathtaking world, with vivid characters and an even paced storyline. You will feel a part of this book while reading it, and live through all of Fire's experiences. You'll love the time with Brigan, and your heart will go out to Archer.

Go. Read.

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First Drop of Crimson - Jeaniene Frost

Series: Night Huntress World, Book 1

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Pages: 371 

Copyright: 2010

Rating: 3 / 5

Synopsis:

The night is not safe for mortals. Denise MacGregor knows all too well what lurks in the shadows - her best friend is half-vampire Cat Crawfield - and she has already lost more than the average human could bear. But her family's dark past is wrapped in secrets and shrouded in darkness - and a demon shapeshifter has marked Denise as prey. Now her survival depends on an immortal who craves a taste of her.
He is Spade, a powerful, mysterious vampire who has walked the earth for centuries and is now duty-bound to protect this endangered, alluring human - even if it means destroying his own kind. Denise may arouse his deepest hungers, but Spade knows he must fight his urge to have her as they face the demon nightmare together...
Because once the first drop of crimson falls, they will both be lost

Review:
I had really high hopes for this book. Considering how much I liked Spade as a secondary character in the Night Huntress novels, i really hoped his book would be great. But alas, FDOC is nothing but mediocre stuff...good, but mediocre.

One of Denise's   ancestors made a deal with a demon and then reneged on it. The demon wants what was due to him, but since he can't find the ancestor, he's getting Denise to do his dirty work..He's branded her with some Demon marks, so she's got some demon powers (like being able to run real fast, extra strength and eating a lot and such) She needs a vampire's help to find said ancestor..enter Spade.

Problems...Where do i start?
How about the god awful cover. Seriuosly? The Spade in my mind was so much more yummier that the ugly ass guy on the cover. I read this as a free e-book, and i have to say i'd never buy the book based on that cover.

Then there's Denise. Oh Denise.. what do i say. I did not like Frost's depiction of her character at all..She was just this sad case who couldn't seem to do anything right and had lil spurts of courage on an off.  Not a likeable heroine.Spade was a total sap too.. sigh.. if you've read the Night Huntress books you'll know he's way cooler than this book makes him out to be. Cat and Bones make an appearance here, although very brief. All in all, the villians seems to keep the plot interesting.

The storyline is actually good. It had a lot of potential and had Frost worked on the characters a bit more, would have made a great book.  I really really hope she makes up with the next stand-alone novel which is based on Mencheres. I know this seems like a rant more than a review but its just that i had really high expectations and i'm a bit peeved that all this can get is 3 stars. (Part of the 3 stars is from my previous love of Spade)
Read only if you're a die hard Night Huntress fan

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Covet (Fallen Angels, #1) - J.R. Ward

Covet (Fallen Angels, #1) - J.R. Ward

Genre: Paranormal

Copyright: 2009

Pages: 474

Rating: 4/ 5

Blurb:
Redemption isn’t a word Jim Heron knows much about - his specialty is revenge, and to him, sin is all relative. But everything changes when he becomes a fallen angel and is charge with saving the souls of seven people from the seven deadly sins. And failure is not an option.

Vin DiPietro long ago sold his soul to his business, and he’s good with that
—until fate intervenes in the form of a tough-talking, Harley-riding, self-professed savior. But then he meets a woman who will make him question his destiny, his sanity, and his heart—and he has to work with a fallen angel to win her over and redeem his own soul.

Review:
Very very entertaining. If there’s one thing you can be sure of when you begin a Ward book, its that you will want to read it at one go and you will be thoroughly entertained. This book did not disappoint. Covet is set in the same world as Ward's famous Black Dagger Brotherhood (BDB) series, but it is a completely different story and you don’t need to read the BDB books to enjoy this one.

This is basically a battle of good vs. evil and the choices we make in life, all neatly packaged in Ward’s typical writing style of snarky urban slang dosed with lots of male bonding.

I'll try not to give away much of the plot, the blurb explains it all. Jim Heron is a carpenter with a past filled with violence and death - now he's dead and charged with saving the souls of seven people. The fate of all things good in this world and the next depend on him successfully completing this mission. Most of the story is from his point of view, and the stuff in Jim's head really makes interesting reading."You can do it. You're a carpenter. You build things and you rebuild things. Lives are constructions just the same."

This book is about the first soul Jim has to save - his boss from his construction site who Jim doesn't really like. Or in Jim's words: "..Was he going to have to get this silk-suited, M6-driving, misogynistic m******f****** to renounce everything material and turn his ass into a monk?" Vin diPietro, soul # 1, is guilty of avarice / greed. He's handsome, rich, self-centered, sexy and insanely driven towards all things materialistic. You'll enjoy his journey from anti-hero to realising the important things in his life with help from Jim and his friends. Vin has some horror-inducing 'gifts' which add to the books dark side. His salvation also comes by the way of Marie Terese - a woman on the run from her past and trying to make ends meet. We met Marie Terese in Lover Avenged - the 7th BDB book where she works as a prostitute at ZeroSum. Ward does a good job with explaining her life and tough choices, and you can't help feeling for this woman. The romance between these two is just beginning, but the sex is really hot - with special mention to a very hot shower scene.

The other characters in this book really enhance the story. I love the concept of the 'fallen angels', and the angels in this book are unlike any you've read before. I can't write this review without mentioning the guest appearances from the BDB characters - there's Trez, the moor from Lover Avenged who owns the club Marie Terese works at, detective de la Cruz, and appearances from 2 of the Brothers- a yellow-eyed beautiful-haired Brother on his way to an AA meeting and another with usually seen wearing a Boston red Sox cap.

So despite all the gushing, why the four stars and not five? Because Ward's unique writing style works against her at places. At times I felt that the angsty writing was a bit forced and it definitely got to be a bit too much in places. I felt that simple normal vocabulary would have worked better and enhanced the overall effect of her writing style. My other issue with this book was the easy acceptance by some of the characters of what they're being told no matter how weird. Yup, it is PNR, but Jim accepting so easily that he was dead and hardly asking any questions about this task he was given didn't sit well with me - its not like something like this happens every day. It seemed like the angels basically talk and guilt him into saving the world by reminding him of his mother (small spoiler, I know..but I didn't really spoil anything, I promise).

But don’t let my cribbing keep you from this book, it didn’t stop me from enjoying it. I read this book at one go - happily wondering where the story is going to lead and what's going to happen next. Pick this book up if you want a refreshing change from the normal paranormal stuff out there and also a satisfying good vs. evil story. Jim has six other souls to save, so you can be sure I'm definitely going to read the next one. Crave the second Fallen Angels book comes out next year.

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On the Edge - Ilona Andrews

Series: The Edge, Book 1
Genre: Urban Fantasy
309 pages
Published: 2009
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Blurb: Rose Drayton lives on the Edge, between the world of the Broken (where people drive cars, shop at Wal-Mart, and magic is a fairy tale) and the Weird (where blueblood aristocrats rule, changelings roam, and the strength of your magic can change your destiny). Only Edgers like Rose can easily travel from one world to the next, but they never truly belong in either.
Rose thought if she practiced her magic, she could build a better life for herself. But things didn't turn out how she planned, and now she works a minimum wage, off the books job in the Broken just to survive. Then Declan Camarine, a blueblood noble straight out of the deepest part of the Weird, comes into her life, determined to have her (and her power).
But when a terrible danger invades the Edge from the Weird, a flood of creatures hungry for magic, Declan and Rose must work together to destroy them, or the beasts will devour the Edge and everyone in it . . .

Review:

You know what you'd see if Rose 'flashed' you?

Erm, no. Not what you're thinking.

For a second, all you'd see is white light - magic. See, in the world she lives in...flashing is a means of releasing your magic, and the brighter/whiter your flash, the stronger your magic. Rose has very strong magic. Too strong for someone who lives in the Edge. And that's where the problems began

Ok, now that I'm done with the intended-to-be-but-wasn’t dramatic beginning, I'll start the proper review:

On the Edge is a fantasy tale with a formula I haven't read before. Rose Drayton lives on the Edge, the place in between the world of the Broken and the Weird; surviving on the job and the facilities from the Broken - where there's no magic and life is as we know it, and the Weird - where magic is might. The Edge is the in-between place and the Edgers who live there have their magic but also are a part of the non-magical world of the Broken. Unlike the inhabitants of either world, the Edgers can easily pass between these two worlds with little or no unease. However, living an in-between kind of life comes with its own issues for the Edgers. Their magic isn't as great as of those from the Weird. Theres no semblance of organisation and law, and things are resolved in their own way in the Edge.

Rose lives in the Edge with her two brothers while eking out an existence on a cheap cleaning job in the Broken. She carries a rifle around, which she seems to need to use quite a bit to defend herself from those wanting to exploit her for her magic. Her mother's dead, her father's out on some harebrained treasure hunt, her grandmother thinks she knows best, and her grandfather's now a Zombie raised by her brother. Aah, the brothers - they're as naughty and cute as any young boys you've seen, but their hearts are in the right place. Jack is a changeling, and Georgie doesn’t like it when things die - so he raises them from the dead, like her did Grandpa. Add the eccentric family background with no support and people trying to either marry her or enslave her, and there's not much Rose has to rely on but her magic and herself. That’s when Lord Declan comes along. A blueblood from the Weird, he's here to claim Rose as his - something Rose isn't all that keen on. Things heat up when people start disappearing in the Edge and strange hounds with weird magic and even scarier appearances pop up.

The beginning of this book was a bit confusing for me - for 2 or 3 pages only - but even then I instantly felt for Rose. She appears resigned to life as she knows it, but at the same time confident in her abilities and that she can handle everything thrown at her. The best part is that Rose does have the ability to handle it - be it the magic or taking care of her brothers who are more than a handful. This strength of character is what'll make you like Rose. The other characters in the book are sketched pretty well too. Declan is ...well, exactly as you'd imagine a blueblood to be - the I know best, I command you obey mentality. Atleast in the beginning, but he grows on you (lustfully, and otherwise) and you see him thaw that icy outlook for Rose. Yummy really. And all those swords and knives he carries only adds to the yumminess.

The other characters in the book have their own quirks as well. And none more so than our villain extraordinaire, although quirk is not the word I'd use. The man is insane and so damn polite and reasonable as he tells you he wants to kill you and eat you that if it weren't for the words you'd think he was discussing his favourite niece. It’s a bit hard to connect with all the secondary characters in this book, and I get that they have their own quirks cause its fantasyland, but the parts where they're acting as humans balances it out. Like when Rose's grandmother has a talk with Declan. There was a possibility for a tear and some sniffing there.

This is my first Ilona Andrews book and I quite like her style of writing. It's simple and the story flows along so well that you don’t realise you've been sucked in until you look up and realise its 3 in the morning, you've been sitting there since 9 and the dinner you made hours ago is sitting next to you cold. The world building was done so well, that you don’t even realise you're learning more about it as it forms part of the story - something many authors fail to do well, specially in a first book.

The humour and conversations make this a joy to read. You'll be giggling, and appreciating the good lines as well:

"Sometimes two people meet and there is a connection of sorts. An instant attraction. You look at somebody and wonder what it would be like. I don’t wonder that about you. You’re a nice handsome guy. And I want to like you in that way, honestly I do, but there’s just nothing there.”

“Life is so precious because it’s short,” she said. “Even the most resilient people are fragile. Life isn’t about dying or not dying. It’s about living well, George. Living so you can be proud and happy.”

You know, no matter how many times they mentioned it, I still kept getting a completely different image in my head when someone in the book talks about flashing. But that’s just me and the lack of said dinner which never got eaten. No reason to keep you from reading this one. Its not a masterpiece, but it’s a good story to get lost in.

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Touch the Dark - Karen Chance

Series: Cassandra Palmer, Book 1
Genre: Paranormal
307 pages
Published: 2006
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Blurb: Cassandra Palmer can see the future and communicate with spirits;talents that make her attractive to the dead and the undead. The ghosts of the dead aren't usually dangerous; they just like to talk; a lot. The undead are another matter.

Like any sensible girl, Cassie tries to avoid vampires. But when the bloodsucking Mafioso she escaped three years ago finds Cassie again with vengeance on his 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:  Touch the dark suffers from what can only be described as First Book Syndrome - there's so much of world building and explanations of the past put in here that it really bogs you down and leaves you wondering whether you want to go on. But once you get past, say, the first 50 odd pages, you will get sucked right into the story.

Cassandra Palmer is a clairvoyant on the run from the vampire who raised her. Her life takes a turn when she receives an email with her obituary with the exact time of her death. Trying to escape her fate, Cassie instead ends up at the Vampire Senate and suddenly learns a whole lotta things about herself - she may make chief clairvoyant, there's more about her parents she didn’t know, her old Vampire boss is now keeping dangerous company, there's a war beginning, her childhood crush vampire is out to seduce her, oh and she keeps getting transported to the past.

This is a pretty neat story with a lot of action to keep you engrossed..whats keeping it from being great is that in many places it lacks better execution and narration. The story is told from Cassie's point of view, and sometimes she's just to ditzy to be appealing as a speaker. I liked the other characters a lot though- they're all fascinating. The world Chance has build is pretty interesting - the vampire order is based on their degree of power, there's good and dark fae & mages, and the older vamps are all figures you might recognise from history. Mircea, the sexy vamp senate member who I'm drooling over is the Dracula's brother. The others I'll let you read about - Kit, Louis-Cesar & Ralf. I also liked Tomas and Billy the Ghost. And then there's Pritkin, the mage who is quite a pain in the arse. Not giving much info on them here, but you'll love them when you read about them.

I thought all these characters had their personalities sketched a lot more than Cassie herself. But again, I think that’s because its her doing the narration and she's describing things to the reader - the parts where she does talk about herself don’t reveal much about her as a person enough. This is still a good book. I must admit though that I'm saying that mostly cause I've read book 2, Claimed By Shadow , which is a BIG step up from this one and this really is a very interesting series that you will love and get engrossed in. Just those first 60 pages to slog through in the beginning.. Its all good from there.

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Dime Store Magic (Women of the Otherworld, #3) - Kelley Armstrong

416 pages
Series: Women of the Otherworld, book 3
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Paige Winterbourne needs to be slapped...I don't know any other way i can start this review. Maybe she was just such a big pain in Stolen, the second book, that I’ve carried that prejudice into this book. No wait, no maybe about that. I definitely did.

The only saving grace this woman had for the first quarter or more of this book was that she did everything she could do defend Savannah from everyone else.

Ok, let me start at the beginning. In Stolen, Paige's mother is killed at the facility where Savannah and Elena are also kept captive. Savannah is the teenage daughter of a now-deceased witch and a powerful sorcerer. After rescuing and gutting the facility, Paige now has custody of Savannah, and she's also the new head of the American Coven of witches. But Leah, the demon who helped capture people for the facility, wants Savannah back and gets Savannah's father involved in the claim as well.
See, Savannah hasn’t yet matured into witch-hood yet, so there's potential to lure her over to the dark side.

Paige now has to fight for custody of Savannah, against the wishes of the other witches in her coven. The only hope she has is in the form of Lucas Cortez, a sorcerer-lawyer who comes to her rescue
Can they save the day and keep Savannah with Paige?

Paige in the beginning is irritating. She's one of those I let my temper rule and don’t see what I don’t want to see kind of people. On the other hand, i found Savannah to be pretty mature and perceptive at most times, specially for her age. Lucas is a bit of a geeky type, also the son of the CEO of the biggest sorcerer Cabal and reluctant heir-in-waiting, with nothing else much going for him except his willingness to help Paige.

This best described Lucas, and was also when i really began to like him:
"The Caped Crusader is Batman, whose alter ego would be Bruce Wayne. Clark Kent is Superman. Neither analogy, I'm afraid, is quite accurate. I lack the tormented brooding sexiness of the Dark Knight and, sadly, I've not yet learned to fly, though I did manage to sail a few yards when Leah threw me this afternoon."

There wasn’t much of romance in this book. And not the best of plots, although there’s quite a bit of situations they get into. But it still made a good read. I liked watching both Paige and Savannah growing stronger as individuals and with each other.

It also had some pretty LOL moments when I was in tears:

Witch: "We are as the Goddess requires."
Paige: "The Goddess requires you to be naked on my lawn?"
Witch: "We aren't naked, child. We're skyclad. Clothing impedes mental vibrations."

See my review of the previous books from this series here

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Stolen (Women of the Otherworld, #2) - Kelley Armstrong

468 pages
Series: Women of the Otherworld, book 2
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars


Stolen is the second book in the Women of the Otherworld series.
While Bitten laid the foundation of Armstrong’s world, it did seem pretty stand-alone. It is Stolen that seems like the first book in a series. We expand from only werewolves to a whole new world with more supernaturals added – witches, shamans, half-demons, vampires and I’m sure more to come.

Stolen is narrated by Elena again. It beings with Elena investigating someone selling information about werewolves, only to have her view of the supernatural world expanded with two witches telling her about supernaturals of all types disappearing and warning her the werewolves may be next. There’s an interracial council that’s trying to get to the bottom of this situation while ensuring no-one else disappears, and the werewolves are asked to join back in..but the human mastermind behind this kidnapping finally gets his hands on Elena – and learns what happens when you deal with a werewolf.

This book doesn’t have the punch from Bitten, but it was pretty good in itself. Elena is her usual sarcastic, strong woman who has decided to settle with the werewolf pack but still thinks with her human mind. We have more of Elena and Clay – they left off in Bitten deciding to be together, and Stolen has them working towards their relationship and getting closer towards the end when it finally dawns that they could have lost each other. Witches, vampires and other supes are added – some more noteable than the others. Paige, a young witch who is completely annoying and Cassandra, the vampire who doesn’t seem to care about whats happening.

I wish there were more interactions among the werewolf pack – that’s what made Bitten such so wonderful. You’ll love the times Clay and Elena have together, specially the parts towards the end. This book also sets up the next one – Dime Store Magic – which I’m guessing with be narrated by Paige. Wondering how that’ll work seeing as Paige completely got on my nerves in this book, even if she was good at her stuff. Go read this.
See my review of Bitten here

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Bitten (Women of the Otherworld, #1) - Kelley Armstrong

453 pages

Rating: 5 + + / 5

This book has the distinction of getting me hooked from the first line itself. I didn’t need to wait a few pages for the story to pick up and get absorbed into it, Bitten did it from the get go.

I have to.
I've been fighting it all night. I'm going to lose.My battle is as futile as a woman feeling the first pangs of labor and deciding it's an inconvenient time to give birth. Nature wins out. It always does.


Bitten is about Elena - the only female werewolf in the world. Not by her choice - she was bitten by her lover and forced into this world. That’s one of the reasons she's so determined to live as a normal human away from it all. That’s where this story beings - with Elena and her experience undergoing the Change into a werewolf late night in the streets of Toronto - not an ideal place to change. She's living with Philip, a nice patient human guy and another attempt to integrate into the normal world.

Elena is no ditzy character. She's sarcastic but strong-willed and determined. She tries to be grounded in reality- as much as a bitten werewolf who's rebelling against the werewolf lifestyle can be. I liked her sense of independence - she didn't need someone else to come save her. As much as she rebels, eventually, when they need her help, she returns to the Pack, and to the man who bit her.

I kept looking at the number of pages and gleefully anticipating what would happen next and how the troubles facing the werewolves would eventually end - because what this book is filled with is one action packed situation after another.

What it is also filled with is Clay.
Oh Clay. When Elena kept fighting with him I really wanted to tell her to settle for Phillip and leave Clay for me.
He figures up there with Bones from the Night Huntress world and Adam and Charles from Mercy Thompson world for swoonworthy heroes for me. Must I say any more?
I think I should
I've never liked reading a man calling a woman darling as many times as Clay did in this book. I loved all his conversations with Elena. He has a single minded-determination to get what he wants; and also say what he wants - which is Elena.

"What the hell do you want?" I said.
His smile turned to a grin, white teeth flashing. "You. What else?"
"Where? Right here? On the floor?"
"Nah. Not that. Not yet. Just the same old thing I always want. You. Here. For good...I'm glad you're home, darling. I missed you."

And i won't even begin to talk about all the romping-around-the-jungle sex these two had..they're always ripping each others clothes out and while I don’t usually like reading such 'frenzy' cause the authors never makes it believable, I wished I was Elena many times in this book.

Then there's Jeremy - the Alpha of the pack - with his amazing self control and quiet strength of character. Another character so full of awesomeness. The world building in this book is brilliant. The characters are well-drawn out so you feel like you've know all of them for a long time and you want to be their friends. (well, I did and I'm sure you will too)

This one is definitely up there among my favourite reads. I read it more than thrice already and each time I tried writing a review I'd go back to check some part I liked and end up reading it all over again. What that should translate into for you is to stop reading my rantings here now and go find yourself a copy to keep. Don’t borrow. Buy

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Fractured (Will Trent, #2) - Karin Slaughter

416 pages
Blurb: The #1 internationally bestselling author returns to the damaged landscape she knows so well in a bold new novel—at once a powder keg of suspense, a gritty portrait of a cop’s life, and a searing exploration of a shocking crime and its aftermath…

With its gracious homes and tree-lined streets, Ansley Park is one of Atlanta’s most desirable neighborhoods. But in one gleaming mansion, in a teenager’s lavish bedroom, a girl has been savagely murdered. And in the hallway, her horrified mother stands amid shattered glass, having killed her daughter’s attacker with her bare hands.
Detective Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is here only to do a political favor; the murder site belongs to the Atlanta police. But Trent soon sees something that the cops are missing, something in the trail of blood, in a matrix of forensic evidence, and in the eyes of the shell-shocked mother. Within minutes, Trent is taking over the case—and adding another one to it. He is sure that another teenage girl is missing, and that a killer is on the loose.
Armed with only fleeting clues, teamed with a female cop who has her own personal reasons for hating him, Trent has enemies all around him—and a gnawing feeling that this case, which started in the best of homes, is cutting quick and deep through the ruins of perfect lives broken wide-open: where human demons emerge with a vengeance

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a amazing novel. When I say amazing I mean go-pick-up-a-copy-to-read-amazing. Triptych was the first Karin Slaughter book I read last year and I was hooked. I loved Will Trent - the detective with undiagnosed dyslexia who cannot read, is socially awkward, looks at everything with different eyes, is extremely intelligent and makes one hell of a detective.
In Fractured, Slaughter brings Will's past and his disability to the forefront - he excels because of what he is and is held back because of his dyslexia too. But enough about Will.
What this story really is about is Emma and getting her back.

"This time yesterday morning, Kayla and Emma had probably been getting ready for school. Maybe Adam Humphrey had slept in because he had a later class. Abigail Campano had been getting ready for her day of tennis and spa treatments. Paul had been on his way to work. None of them had known how little time they had left before their lives were forever changed or—worse—stolen."

When the Atlanta police are called in to a crime where a mother has just killed her murdered daughter's attacker, they peg it as a murder-and home invasion gone wrong. Only Will sees the clues, and realises there is more than meets the eye (see blurb for more)

Partnered with a female cop who hates him and blames him for her mothers retirement from the Atlanta Police, Will has to piece the clues together to find Emma, his old nemesis' kidnapped daughter, before her time runs out and even the cops on the case give her up for dead.

If you've read any Karin Slaughter, you'll know why you need to pick up this book. Its only my second by her, but I know I'll be reading a whole lot more of her as soon as I can get my hands on em. This book grips you from the get go, makes you feel what each of the characters are going through (and not just the main ones), their hopes and frustrations, it makes you cheer for every breakthrough they make and gets you emotionally invested in saving Emma and praying for hope of a happy ending for all these guys.

Slaughter's depiction of situations is real and at times heartbreaking. See, I don't cry. No matter how emotional the book or movie. But when Will was trying to break their suspect into telling him where Emma was, and he used his own experiences to connect with the suspect and get him to talk and everything that happened thereafter - well, that was pretty heady stuff.
I hope she writes more Will Trent books. Go read this one people.

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Daughter of the Forest (Sevenwaters Trilogy, Book 1) - Juliet Marillier

560 Pages

Fantasy

At the heart of this surprisingly accomplished first novel, first book of the Sevenwaters trilogy, is a retelling of an ancient Celtic legend. Marillier's story, however, is much more than a slightly disguised fairy tale. Young Sorcha is the seventh child and only daughter of Irish Lord Colum of Sevenwaters, a domain well protected from invading Saxons and Britons by dense forest where, legend says, fey Deirdre, the Lady of the Forest, walks the woodland paths at night. Colum is first and foremost a warrior, bent on maintaining his lands against all outsiders. Not all of his sons are so bound to the old ways, and that family friction leads to outright disobedience when Sorcha and her brother Finbar help a Briton captive escape from Colum's dungeon. Soon after, Colum brings home a new wife who ensorcels everyone she can't otherwise manipulate. By her spell Sorcha's brothers are cursed to become swans. Only Sorcha, hiding deep in the forest, can break the spell by painfully weaving shirts of starwort nettle--but then Sorcha is captured by Britons and taken away across the sea. Determined to break the curse despite her captivity, Sorcha continues to work, little expecting that ultimately she will have to chose between saving her brothers and protecting the Briton lord who has defended her throughout her trials. Marillier's writing is deft and heartfelt, bypassing the usual bombast of fantasy fireworks for a rich, magical story of loyalty and love

 Rating: 5/5.. more like 5+ + +

The one thing I kept wondering once I finished this book was why have I never heard about this book before. Fantastic and amazing are words that come to mind to describe The Daughter of the Forest.

I could not put this down for a minute - stayed up till 5.30 reading this on a workday, and amidst a lot of yawing the next day I couldn't get this book out of my mind. Still can't.

Daughter of the Forest has its basis on ancient Celtic legend where the Fair Folk walked the lands of the forest along with other mythical beings. But at its core, this is a story of love, loyalty and strength of character.

Sorcha is the seventh child of Lord Colum, the Irish Lord of Sevenwaters, whose domain is well protected by the magical forests that surround it.  Their mother died after giving birth to Sorcha, and her six brothers raise her a strong, free-willed, well protected and loved girl. I loved the concept of the seven siblings taking strength from each other.

So close were we, the seven of us, that no childhood injury went unnoticed, no slight, real or imagined, went unaddressed, no hurt was endured without comfort...The strength of one is the strength of seven

Sorcha is strong, brave, tough, a healer and a fighter in her own way. She has a special bond with all her brothers - but most of all with Finbar - a character I came to admire a lot. Finbar is far too old for his years, too mature with his ability to see into the future.

"Faith in myself," he said simply. "To do what's right, and not falter, no matter how hard it gets." - Finbar when talking about the gifts their mother left each of her children

Things start changing for Sorcha, not yet a teenager, when a Briton - Calum's sworn enemies - is captured. Finbar and Sorcha help to rescue the tortured man, a teenager himself - and Sorcha helps try to heal him. Calum then marries again - a Sorceress. In classic fairy tale format, the evil stepmother wants to get rid of the kids - and turns the sons into swans.

What follows is a nightmarish ordeal that Sorcha has to bare alone and silently to get her brothers back. On the way she meets another Briton - one who rescues her, takes her home, is there for her and defends her at every step of the way.

This is a tale of sacrifice at the highest level. This book for me had many levels, each more profound, delightful and heartbreaking at the same time. Fate has many twists and turns planned, and even those who can see the future can scarcely keep up with it.

I was happy for Sorcha in the end, but my heart went out to Finbar. The weird this is now everytime they show a swan on TV (they aren't flying around in Singapore, so where else would I see any) I think of Finbar. Someone who wanted to make the world a better place, whose faith in himself and his beliefs weren't enough to deal with the cruel game life played on him.

You take a lot of good stuff away from this book. Some I'll remember for a long time.

There is no good or evil, save in the way you see the world. There is no dark or light, save in your own vision. All changes in the blink of an eyelid; yet all remains the same.

(I added an alternate jacket cover as well - it was too beautiful to leave out) 

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The Secret - Julie Garwood

The Secret by Julie Garwood


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Go read this book.
This is a story of two 4-year-old girls who “became friends before they were old enough to understand they were supposed to hate each other.” Judith is English while Francis Catherine is Scottish.

Years later Francis Catherine is pregnant and she sends her husband's brother, the Laird of the Maitlands to get Judith from England in keeping with their long ago promise to be there during the birth.
Iain, the Laird comes to bring Judith to Maitland Land, and the two fall for each other during the journey. Sparks fly between these two amidst their constant verbal sparring and trying not to care for each other but unable to control the attraction.
Iain is one hot Laird – he’s arrogant, used to getting his way, but also honourable and with a protective streak, specially towards Judith.
Judith is a strong willed, stubborn and loving.
Read this book – it makes awesome reading. You’ll be laughing a lot.

Francis Catherine on pregnancy:
"Once they get married, the papa spits into his goblet of wine and then he makes the mama take a big drink. As soon as she swallows, she's got a baby in her stomach."

Judith: "Mama says I shouldn't even want to talk to the damn Scots."
Francis Catherine: "Papa, am I damn Scots?"
Francis Catherine’s father: "You most certainly are not."
"Am I?" Judith asked, her worry obvious in her voice.
"You're English, Judith," her friend's papa patiently explained.
Judith: "Am I damn English?"
Her friend's papa was clearly exasperated. "Nobody's damn anything,"

The perfect proposal:
The moment needed to be perfect for her. "Judith," he began.
"Yes, Iain?"
"I'm keeping you."

Francis Catherine: "Did you marry Iain?"
Judith: "I think so.'"
Francis Catherine: "What do you mean, you think so?"
Judith: "Graham was standing between us. I might have married him. No, I'm certain it was Iain. He kissed me after… Graham didn't."

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To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (1961)
336 pages

A gripping, heart-wrenching, and wholly remarkable tale of coming-of-age in a South poisoned by virulent prejudice, it views a world of great beauty and savage inequities through the eyes of a young girl, as her father—a crusading local lawyer—risks everything to defend a black man unjustly accused of a terrible crime.
Synopsis
At the age of eight, Scout Finch is an entrenched free-thinker. She can accept her father's warning that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird, because mockingbirds harm no one and give great pleasure. The benefits said to be gained from going to school and keeping her temper elude her.
The place of this enchanting, intensely moving story is Maycomb, Alabama. The time is the Depression, but Scout and her brother, Jem, are seldom depressed. They have appalling gifts for entertaining themselves—appalling, that is, to almost everyone except their wise lawyer father, Atticus.
Atticus is a man of unfaltering good will and humor, and partly because of this, the children become involved in some disturbing adult mysteries: fascinating Boo Radley, who never leaves his house; the terrible temper of Mrs. Dubose down the street; the fine distinctions that make the Finch family "quality"; the forces that cause the people of Maycomb to show compassion in one crisis and unreasoning cruelty in another.
Also because Atticus is what he is, and because he lives where he does, he and his children are plunged into a conflict that indelibly marks their lives—and gives Scout some basis for thinking she knows just about as much about the world as she needs to


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
No review - Just some of my favourite lines

"Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to livewith myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.”

"There are just some kind of men who’re so busy worrying about the next world they’ve never learned to live in this one"

"You never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them."

I dunno what took me so long to get to this one

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Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress, #4) - Jeaniene Frost

355 pages

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Stayed up reading this till 5 am and was completely worth it.
Cat and Bones are back – and on holiday. Cat has resigned from her job and Bones has settled all affairs from the vampire war in book 3 - At Grave's End
Cat starts dreaming of another vampire, Gregor – who has connections to her past from before she met Bones, Gregor claims she's his wife and wants her back. Cat keeps Bones, who can now read minds, out of her mind with mental shields – and that leaves Bones wondering what she’s hiding or not telling him. Cat, in typical Cat manner also does some things without thinking in entirely through, thinking she’s helping save the day. Enter Mistrust and a lack of communication that leads to things getting even worse.

Cat and Bones both being head strong individuals do things their own way - thinking they’re protecting the other – and that leads to a huge fight which made for very horrible reading since I love these two, but at the same time I kinda agreed with the things Bones said. Heartbeaking stuff.
Things obviously get worse before they get better. In the end, it was adds up to an awesome read that still has me left with a huge grin on my face.

The old characters are back – specially my two favourite ones - Spade, who was too cute as he kept trying to get the fighting couple back together and Vlad, as the voice of reason proved to be a very good friend to Cat
Mencheres, Rodney, Annette and Justina are back too – things don’t turn out well for some of them. There’s also Fabian – the friendly ghost who helped a lot.

Amid the fighting, splitting, and eventual getting back together, there’s the trademark Frost one-liners that make this series one of my favourites. Midway during reading the book, I realized that everytime Bones had a line, I’d be reading it to myself with an imagined British accent.

Cat, while waiting in line at the loo in Paris:
“He fucks even better than he looks,” I settled on saying. Several heads turned. I didn’t care; I was pissed. “And that beautiful face is going to be clamped between my legs as soon as we get ooome, don’t you worry.”

The fear of that made my reply snappy. “Hey, Walks Like An Egyptian, how about for once you drop the formal stuff and talk like you live in the twenty‐first century?”
“The shit’s gonna splatter, start buggin’, yo,” Mencheres responded instantly.
I stared at him, then burst out laughing, which was highly inappropriate considering the very grave warning he’d just conveyed.

Spade: Lucifer’s bloody balls, is this why you haven’t returned my calls?”
Spade: “Lucifer’s hairy ball sack. You’ve become a Morlock.”

Bones: “Don’t care for her tongue, do you? How strange. I find it’s one of my favorite parts.”

There’s a new book on Spade and Denise coming out Jan 2010 : First Drop of Crimson.. Cant wait for that one. See more here

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Destiny Kills - Keri Arthur

Desire Calls. Danger Lurks.
But…
Destiny Kills

When Destiny McCree wakes up beside a dead man on an Oregon beach, she knows only this: she has to keep moving, keep searching, and keep one step ahead of the forces that have been pursuing her from the heart of Scotland to this isolated spot. Why? The death of her lover has left her alone, with little memory of her past. A glimmering serpent-shaped ring is the one clue she has—and a bargaining chip in a most dangerous game…
Enter Trae Wilson, a master thief with a sexy, knowing grin and a secret agenda of his own. Destiny and Trae both have powers far beyond the human—and both are running for their lives. Together they’re riding a tide of danger, magic and lust…but with killers stalking their every move, they must use any means necessary, even each other, to survive—until the shocking secret of one woman’s destiny finally unravels…


321 Pages

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Destiny is a half air dragon and half sea dragon who’s just escaped from a facility that’s been kidnapping and experimenting on dragons. The Air dragon she escaped with is dead and Destiny now meets his brother Trae – who she’s very attracted to.
She needs to go back and rescue her mother and the other kids at the facility - while evading the hunters after her, meet her dying father, and outsmart a sexy air-dragon with an agenda of his own.
This is a nice story. Its pretty simplistic, no great writing here. But I liked it anyway – and that has a lot to do with Destiny and Trae – both strong individuals and amazing together. One thing this duo have going for them is great dialogue –

Destiny: “Look, I don’t want to get you into trouble—”
Trae: “Well, good, because I can manage that quite well by myself.”

When the hunters are chasing them :
Destiny: “Then what are we going to do if we can’t outrun them?”
Trae: “Outsmart them. You feel like breakfast?”
Destiny: I blinked. “You can’t stop and eat breakfast at a time like this!”
Trae: “You tell me where in the rule book it says I can’t, and I’ll obey.”

There was much more and better stuff, but my pizza’s waiting and I’m hungry..Pick this one up for a feel good read.

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Graceling - Kristin Cashore

471 pages

Genre: Fantasy / Young Adult
Awards: Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature 2009

Rating: 5/5

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight; she's a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king's thug. She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po. She never expects to learn the truth behind her Grace--or the terrible secret that lies hidden far away. . .a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone. With elegant, evocative prose and a cast of unforgettable characters, debut author Kristin Cashore creates a mesmerizing world, a death-defying adventure, and a heart-racing romance that will consume you, hold you captive, and leave you wanting more.

Wow. Just wow.
This book was such a joy to read.

Gracelings are children gifted with special abilities and distinguished by their different coloured eyes. . Graceling is about Katsa, a girl ‘graced’ with the ability to kill. Extremely well. She’s her uncle, the king’s, enforcer – not something she enjoys at all. He makes her feel like a thug and a brute, and Katsa sometimes imagines herself to be the savage everyone thinks she is. But Katsa also sees the injustice of the kings and takes it upon herself to use her abilities to help where she can. On one such mission she meets Po. Prince Po. Prince of one of the other seven kingdoms, and also a Graceling who is a good fighter.

Both Gracelings understand how the other feels, with the uncomfortable stares and fear they arouse in people, and form a bond. Po and Katsa become sparring partners and then fast friends. When Po asks her why she doesn’t refuse being under her uncles’ control, Katsa begins thinking and making changes, which lead her to some hard decisions. ( "When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?") Their trail leads them to Po aunt’s kingdom and what follows is a secret that has the power to ruin all the 7 kingdoms.

This is a lovely story of fragile friendship with its own ups and downs and the strength of character that shines through from these two. You cannot help but love Po. (Despite his name) Katsa is someone who finds it hard to let people in, but cares for those she’s close to. It is heartbreaking when Katsa and Po finally discover their feelings for each other and share them. She has this weird thing about never getting married, which didn’t make sense seeing as she loved Po and agreed to be his lover but not his wife. Katsa has control issues.

There were no frivolous descriptions or filler in this book. Everything written worked towards giving the reader a sense of the characters frame of mind or what was happening around them. Cashore can make you picture a situation and the surroundings with a few short words, and get you completely involved in whats happening. There's whole cast of characters that you connect with. I loved Raffin, Oll, Bitterblue and even Giddon.

This book didn't have the typical ending with everything just falling in place, there was more left to do and still problems to overcome, and i was glad for that. Read this book. There's a reason this won a award people. There's 2 more books coming soon:

Fire, Graceling's prequel, is out in Ocotber 2009 and Bitterblue has no release date yet. Find out more here

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Playing With Fire (Silver Dragons, #1) - Katie MacAlister

331 pages
Rating: 5/5

Gabriel Tauhou, wyvern of the silver dragons, has found the one woman who can withstand his fire. Too bad May Northcott is already bound to a demon lord. But when the demon orders May to steal one of Gabriel's treasures, an immensely important relic of all dragonkin, Gabriel has to decide which to protect: his love or his dragons.

I've been waiting a while to get my hands on this book. May Northcott is a doppelganger (a being created from her twin); she's bound to a demon lord Magoth, who she works as a thief for; she has a twin Cyrene who gave up her common sense when creating May; she's in a lotta trouble for stealing from the chief archimage of the Otherworld; is being blackmailed, and now finds out she's also a wyvern's mate. Gabriel's mate to be more exact.

Gabriel Tahou, the wyvern of the Silver Dragons, was first introduced in Fire Me Up - the second Aisling Grey book where he healed Aisling's wound after the amulet was stolen. I loved Gabriel then, and he's just as great now.
This books starts off where Book 4 of Aisling Grey left off.

The Silver Dragons broke off from the black dragons and were cursed with no mates born to them. Hence Gabriel is mate-less unless he steals someone else's. Enter May. Who isn't born but created from her twin, or in Jim's words:

" May’s a virgin lesbian doppelganger wyvern’s mate"

I was laughing my ass off at the part where Cyrene tries to tell Gabriel and everyone else how Mayling cannot be his mate because she isn't into men or sex. Read it to know more. I love Cyrene. She's just to stupid you have to love her.

This book was typical MacAlister funny. Even the sex scenes between Gabriel and May were funny. Gabriel cannot seem to control himself around May, which while weird, made more quite a few laughs:

Gabriel: ‘‘Only because I am determined to prove to you that I value you more than anything else in my life. I would greatly appreciate it if you didn’t explore any more of my stomach, because that too will send me over the edge. In fact, I’d be eternally grateful if you would arouse yourself, and tell me when you are ready.’’

Magoth made for one interesting Demon Lord. I also enjoyed Savian character - the thief taker who was chasing May for the Otherworld reward. And there's more of Kotya, with his constant "The black dragon sept will regain what we once held but was taken from us" tirade.

Nice book this. It ended on a sad note, but intriguing enough to make sure you pick up the next book.

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At Grave's End - Night Huntress 03 - Jeaniene Frost

384 pages

Rating: 4/5


It should be the best time of half-vampire Cat Crawfield's life. With her undead lover Bones at her side, she's successfully protected mortals from the rogue undead. But though Cat's worn disguise after disguise to keep her true identity a secret from the brazen bloodsuckers, her cover's finally been blown, placing her in terrible danger.
As if that wasn't enough, a woman from Bones's past is determined to bury him once and for all. Caught in the crosshairs of a vengeful vamp, yet determined to help Bones stop a lethal magic from being unleashed, Cat's about to learn the true meaning of bad blood. And the tricks she's learned as a special agent won't help her. She will need to fully embrace her vampire instincts in order to save herself - and Bones - from a fate worse than the grave.


Have i mentioned before that i love Bones. This is one paranormal series where there's the right amount of humour, sarcasm and all round nastiness. My type of book.

Cat is a half Vampire who is back with her hot Vampire Bones. She heads a team that deals with the nasty vamps who kill humans. In the last book, Cat got back with Bones, married him vampire style and met her father Max.
Book 3 of the Night Huntress Series begins with Cat and Bones deciding to get married (white dress and big wedding style) and Tate deciding to go the vamp way.

Things spiral out of control after that with Max kidnapping and torturing her before Bones rescues her.
There's a wider plot that unfurls where Mencheres, Bones' grandsire had made a long ago prediction due to which Cat and Bones' lives are now in danger.

What follows in unions and alliances, a two thousand year old love story gone wrong and the use of forbidden magic that wreaks havoc. In short - war.

There are quite a few new characters in the books - the villains and people from Bones' family. Then there's Vlad, the original Dracula, who i quite liked. As always there's banter between Bones and Justina. The best was Bones telling Justina that him and Cat are getting married. You can always rely on Bones for the sarcasm, humour and the always present British accented one liners.

The characters have grown in this third book. i felt they've grown a bit more serious. I still think that Cat is a bit childish at times. Like after the ceremony between Bones and Mencheres when they realise there will be war, Cat's worried about postponing her wedding.

This is a fast paced fun read that you shouldn't miss.

My reviews for the previous books are here.

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Holy Smokes (Aisling Grey, Guardian, Book 4) - Katie MacAlister

352 pages
Rating 4/5

I’m Aisling Grey—but you can call me "frustrated."

The man of my dreams—uber-sexy Drake Vireo, wyvern of the green dragons—has finally decided to make an honest woman of me. That is, if we ever make it to the wedding at the same time! Being left at the altar may have cooled my jets, but not my passion...a good thing when Drake disappears and it's up to me to find him.

Most brides just have in-laws to worry about. Me? I have warring dragons, ticked-off demon lords, eternal damnation, and a mage who wants to challenge me for an otherworldly position I don’t even want. Good thing I have Jim, my doggie-demon at my side. He’s never let me down—yet...

Aaargh!! You describe the man as Uber Sexy. He's a dragon. And then you have Aisling calling him Sweetie every second line of the book. So not done.

This book did tie up all the ends well - Aisling the Dark Prince, the position Venediger, her other issues with the Otherworld. And a wedding that gets postponed a million times. It also adds more to the war with the Dragons, what with having to rescue Drake and all. It also adds more characters to the book - Bastian the blue dragon, Kostya the Black dragon intent on uniting the black and silver dragons together - more ammo for the Silver Dragon books which primarily feature Gabriel.

All in all, a pretty good book. If only she didn't call him Sweetie so much.

I'll miss you Jim, Oh Sarcastic Demon.

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Light My Fire (Aisling Grey, Guardian, Book 3) - Katie MacAlister

352 pages

Rating 3.5 / 5

Aisling Grey is juggling being a demon lord, a Guardian, and a wyvern's mate, even though she's keeping her distance from said wyvern, Drake, these days. But her presence is still required at a meeting of the green dragons. Since several attempts have been made on her life, Drake is sure to get protective of her. Which might not be a bad thing when war breaks out and all hell breaks loose-literally

Aisling: “Well, I know it’s no substitute for a corgi, but you’ve got a dog for companionship. You’ve got Paco now.”
Jim: “Paco isn’t a dog. Paco is a snack.”

Aisling: “Demon, I command thee to zip thy lips until you get over your case of the grumps"

“The sun will never rise on a day when I say something that’s not worth its weight in platinum,” my demon answered. “Hi, Rene. How they hangin’?”

Fiat rose from his chair with swift elegance. “You have much to learn of our ways, cara. Your ignorance is almost as dazzling as the whiteness of your breasts.”
I looked down at my chest for a minute, making sure my boobs weren’t suddenly popping out of my sundress.They weren’t.

“Jim, stop reading the paper and get ready to be my trusty sidekick.”
“Yes, kemosabe,” it answered, turning the page

Jim rolled its eyes. “Ash, sweetie, honey, babykins—you’re not the most astute person in the world.”

Needless to say, i'm more or less reading this mainly for Jim. That demon has wicked lines in all the books. Aisling has now moved to London and begun training with Nora who we met in the previous book. We finally find out who Rene is. There's a war brewing among the dragons, assassination attempts on Aisling, an imp uprising against her thanks to Jim, a dragon challenge for Drakes position, Fiat and his wicked plans for everyone, a promotion for Aisling in the demon world...and a whole lot of other things going on. Nice book this. Now if only Aisling can stop saying things like "Criminy Dutch".

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