REVIEW: The Fever series by K.M.Moning

The words that are used the most when speaking about this series are epic, amazing, unforgettable.. And after finishing it, I agree. MacKayla Lane and Jericho Barrons are characters that you won´t ever forget.

This is an epic story. Because it is different. These are not 5 books in a series like we are used to. This is ONE story divided to 5 books. You can´t read one book. You have to read them all. That´s the reason why I review this series as a whole. Every book (especially the last 3) ends with a cliffhanger and not any ordinary one. The Mother of All cliffhangers. A cliffhanger that will make you stay up till the morning because you just HAVE to read the next book.

Mac´s life was good. She was spending her days sunbathing by the pool in her parents´ house and evenings working as a bartender. Her life was easy, like a sunny summer afternoon. And then her sister was murdered in Ireland and Mac´s world was torn apart. When the police closes the case as unsolved, Mac decides to leave everything behind and travel to Ireland to track down her sister's murderer by herself. The first day she meets the mysterious bookstore owner Jericho Barrons and it changes her life forever.

The world Moning created for Mac is not a nice place to live in. It is a world ruled by dark Fae, deadly artifacts, dangerous enemies and ever-present illusions. This world is incredibly complex and Moning did hell of a job. Nothing it as it seems and with every answer Mac finds, dozens of new questions appear. The Fae are not cute little fairies from the fairy-tales, they are deadly and almost all-powerful.

MacKayla Lane

Mac went through incredible character development through the series. In the beginning she was a young, optimistic and naive girl that only cared about the sunshine and fashion. The events that shaped her were brutal. In the end, there was nothing left from the Rainbow Girl she used to be. Being the only person able to track the Sinsar Dubh – a powerful object able to control both our world and the world of the Fae, her life became a living hell. With two dangerous men on her side, who have only their own interests in mind, always trying to use her, Mac was always alone. Because there was nobody she could trust. She was forced to become strong. She became a survivor. She didn´t have any other choice. We see the story unfolding from her point of view, we see her failures and her victories and in the end, she would be the one holding the fate of the world in her hands. Both literally and figuratively.

Jericho Barrons

Dark, dangerous, brutal, sophisticated, intimidating, rude, the great unknown. Me and Barrons have a love-hate relationship. He brought the whole range of emotions out. I wanted to scream out of frustration. I wanted to slap him and kick his secretive ass down the road. I wanted to push him to the wall and *cough* ..kiss.. *cough* him. Basically the whole time we knew NOTHING about him. Not.A.Single.Thing. He NEVER tells Mac anything. He follows only his own goals and follows them with deadly focus. He is loyal to nobody but himself. And yet in the end, he is the only one that ALWAYS keeps Mac alive.

V´Lane

The „Death by Sex“ Fae. Deadly, terrifyingly beautiful Fae Prince.

„I am every erotic dream you´ve ever had and a thousand more you´ve never thought of. I am sex that will turn you inside out and burn you down to ashes..

.. and if I choose, I can make you whole again.“

Not from this world, he lives by the Fae rules and the Fae moral. Humans are nothing to him. And yet Mac is different. Through her, he starts to understand. Starts to care. But can a being that is almost all-powerful and immortal, to whom the time means nothing and humans are just ants under his shoe ever really know compassion, love, trust? Where Barrons is the dark night, V´Lane is the sunny day. And yet they are both equally dangerous and equally deadly.

The characters in this series are brilliantly written, multi-dimensional, with many layers, having their own demons inside. In Moning´s world there is no black and white. There are only millions shades of gray. You will think about everything that happened even days or weeks after you finish.

It is urban fantasy on its purest so don´t expect hot scenes. But expect a great story that will stick in your mind. The series is written from Mac´s point of view and is full of her thoughts. The writing style is a little too descriptive for my taste but I loved every minute of it. It will break your heart and then heal it.. only to break it again. Bravo, Mrs. Moning. This series is one to remember.

And in the end one of my favorite quotes:

"One day you will kiss a man you can't breathe without, and find that breath is of little consequence."

~ Barrons

My rating: 4 EPIC STARS

And my two favorite clips.. My only complaint is about how they pictured V´Lane in the first one and in my mind, Barrons ALWAYS looked like David Gandy :-)

Reading order:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

REVIEW: Pale Demon by Kim Harrison

Title: Pale Demon

Author: Kim Harrison

Serie: Rachel Morgan (book 9)

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Reviewed by: Sonia

A witch, an elf and a pixy decide to make a road trip.

No, this is not the beginning of a lame joke but the beginning of a great book. And I totally loved it!

In order to have her shunning rescinded and to gain her life back, Rachel has to attend the annual witch convention in San Francisco and defend herself for using black magic. But as she soon finds out, that´s not as easy as it looks. The Coven doesn´t hesitate to use all means necessary to stop her. After she finds herself on the no-fly list, Rachel is forced to accept Trent´s offer to ride with him through the continent. Trent has 3 days to complete a mysterious elf quest that he doesn´t wanna speak of and needs Rachel to protect him. And so the journey begins.

Chased by elven assassins trying to stop Trent and by the Coven trying to stop Rachel, every mile becomes a fight for their lives. As if the trail of dead bodies, wrecked cars and destroyed national monuments left behind was not enough, something unimaginable happens – a demon able to walk in the sun. And this time it was not Rachel who releases him, but Trent himself.

Ku´Sox was an ancient attempt of the demons to fight the elves. Created by genetic manipulation and demon magic, he had become so dangerous for every race that the demons were forced to use all their collective sources to stop him. And now he is released again and destroying everything.

I loved this book. It was the perfect combination of action-packed scenes and character development. Rachel starts to see the other side of Trent. In fact she is attracted to him more and more. Could he really be more than the politician, more than the powerful biodrug lord, more than a man not hesitating to kill in order to gain what he wants? Dare she trust him with her life? Risk everything – her home, her friends, her entire existence if she chooses wrong? And in the end, her final fate lays in his hands. But this time, nothing will be the same again.

This book was a roller coaster, not giving us a moment to catch our breathe. We see Rachel fighting the wild, dangerous and uncontrollable elven magic in order to save Trent´s life, trying to clear her name in the process and yet failing because of a person close to her and in the end she is forced not only to accept her true origin but fight hard to prove it. Rachel finally sees that nothing is black or white, in fact it never has been.

I loved that we could see more of the life in the ever-after and especially more about her demon teacher Al. We see his weaknesses and we see his loyalty to Rachel. It might be twisted and wicked, but it is loyalty nonetheless. To my greatest pleasure, Rachel also realizes that she and Pierce can never be together, that he will never accept her for what she really is. I never liked him anyway :-)

In the end, Trent gives Rachel the biggest gift – a possibility to choose her own path, without being forced to any direction. And she did choose. I might not like her choice but she deserved the chance. And knowing her habit of always getting into trouble, I have a feeling that the peace will not last long :-) And that´s what we all love about this serie!

MY RATING: *****

REVIEW: This Side of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Title: This Side of the Grave

Author: Jeaniene Frost

Serie: Night Huntress (book 5)

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they've triumphed over the latest battle, Cat's new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance...

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing. A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous "ally" - the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war ...to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

(Amazon)

OUR REVIEWS:

SONIA

Woohoo, Cat and Bones are finally back!!! We've been waiting for this for so long.. and once again, they have not disappointed. If you haven't read this serie yet, start it asap!! Trust me, you don't know what you are missing!

Even after Cat became a full-blooded vampire, she still has enemies claiming her to be a threat to the ghoul nation. A war is coming, a war like never before – between two undead races and Cat stands right between them.

Where do I start? Oh yes, VLAD IS MINE!!!!! *bursts out laughing* Just sayin.. I totally adore Mr. Hot Hands!!! Ok, now seriously.. (or not! LOL)

The book couldn't start better!!! Naked Bones in chains? Hell yes!!!!

And Bones was as sexy as always! "Ask me if I sparkle, and I'll kill you where you stand." was one of my most favorite quotes!

Cat's and Bones's personal life has never been better – as a couple, they are stronger than ever before. The first infatuation has changed to something much more deeper, no more drama, no more inner or outer conflicts, no more rushed decisions or fights. (Even though I have to admit I missed some of that, some of the previous tension between them was missing.)

Chapter 21.. *sigh* OMG, CHAPTER 21!! The motto „Cat bites back!“ really says it all!! Oh yes, we might have a new chapter 32, ladies and gentlemen!!! I surely won't look at candles the same way again :-)

I loved how Cat finally dropped her guard with Bones and told him how she really feels about him, resulting in one of the most heart-warming moments of this book.

„I am forever yours, Kitten, in this life or the next.“

The main storyline didn't grab my attention as much as the previous ones. Maybe I didn't feel the danger as much as before. I would appreciate more direct action I guess.

After meeting with Marie, the queen of New Orleans, Cat gets some surprising new ability that will cause the probably most embarrassing moments in Cat's life and later one of the best scenes in the book including Cat and Vlad's and Mencheres's packages :-) We also learn about the previous half-breed and let's just say I didn't expect that history lesson!

One of the things I loved most in this book were the secondary characters. The girls here know that I absolutely LOVE Vlad.. *giggle* ..and I was enjoying every part with him (and of him.. *giggle*)!!! Beside Bones, he is the most intriguing character, cocky, with his wicked sense of humor and his loyalty to Cat. Once again he had one of the best quotes in this book where I was literally laughing out loud :-)

“What the hell was that?” I gasped.

“Premature inflamulation,” he replied. “Happens sometimes. Very embarrassing, I don't like to talk about it.”

Can't wait for his serie!!

And I also loved seeing Mencheres and Kira!! The scene when Cat and Bones arrived to find them „busy“ and later sitting all prim and proper drinking tea was hilarious :-)

I really liked this book!!! Jeaniene Frost did it again! I wasn't able to put it down. It is not my favorite NH book though, something was missing in this one, but it is still one of the TOP paranormal series I have read. The ending just left me with a huge smile on my face :-) Cat and Bones are one of my favorite paranormal couples, whether falling in love, fighting with each other or enjoying their mature relationship. Can't wait for the next book this fall!!! So my rating is 4* for the story and a half bonus star for Vlad and Mencheres :-)

MY RATING: 4,5*

MELISSA

Aahhhh... the much anticipated book five of Cat and Bones. I waited so long for this book it seems. :)

This Side of the Grave takes us pretty much where book four left off. Cat and Bones can't catch a break, as this time a war between the vampires and ghouls is brewing because of Cat's new "abilities". Masterless vampires are disappearing and they seek help from the Ghoul Queen of New Orleans to assist them, but at what cost?

Cat has really matured in this book. Whether that is a good thing is up for you to decide. Some people may miss Cat's sharp tongue and snark remarks, others may not. There is some typical Cat comments, so all is not lost because I personally love fiesty Cat. :) She does finally open up to Bones, which is long overdue in my opinion. It was actually a very touching scene. Bones has always been up front with his emotions and it was nice to have Cat attempting to do the same and thinking of him before she made any really rash decisions.

Vlad and Mencheres are the stars of this book, in my opinion. Both had memorable scenes and were just more involved in the storyline. They provided the comedic relief for this book. As a Vlad fan, I appreciated that. :) Mencheres really grew on me, too. I admit that he didn't hit on my radar until the the last couple of books. His own book, Eternal Kiss of Darkness, really provided the most insight into his character and personality and this book definitely embellished on that.

It didn't seem as if Cat wasn't as in immediate danger as the other books for some reason. I wasn't as afraid of the antagonist (trying to avoid spoilers) or the ghouls, as I guess I could have been. Maybe because C/B had such a good plan, it worked too good? I'm not sure, but something seemed missing.

I have to point out Chapter 21, as I am sure it is well spoken about now. It was very steamy, and would definitely give Chapter 32 of One Foot in the Grave a run for its money. Cat and Bones in the first chapter and in the garden also worth mentioning. They are just so great together. Definitely one of my favorite PNR couples.

There were a couple of surprises, that I am curious as to how they will effect the storyline in book 6. Overall, a good book. You'll laugh, and you might cry (so keep a tissue nearby). TSOTG might not be my favorite Cat and Bones, but still worth the read and I enjoyed it very much. Jeaniene Frost did a great job balancing the plot with the character development. Her ingeniously witty lines and writing style just make her characters all the more lovable. I highly anticipate book six, which is expected this Fall.

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Jessica

Since Sonia and Melissa have done such a good job reviewing the book, I'm going to keep my short and sweet. This will also save me the embarrassment of trying to top their reviews *wink*.

While I loved the book (because let's face it...it's BONES! That man in my eyes can do no wrong), I couldn't help but feeling like something was just off. I can't quite put my finger on it but something was just missing from this book for me.

Cat and Bones are stronger than ever and we see Cat finally (YAY!) let down her walls and fully open up to Bones, which was nice to see. I have to say that I missed their banter, and that sexual tension that's been in every book, was sadly lacking (IMO). But of course a certain little chapter COMPLETELY makes up for it.

We see a lot of Vlad and Mencheres in this book as well, which as you all know I'm a big fan of Mencheres so that's always a plus for me. And we get to see his more playful side.

Overall the book was fantastic. The humor was in full force with scenes making me *laugh out loud*, and even though the sense of danger/doom that I usually feel in this series was a bit lacking, I will forever be a devote follower of this series and anything new that Jeaniene Frost may come up with later down the road.

My Rating: 4 very big stars

More soon...

REVIEW: The Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison

Title: The Outlaw Demon Wails

Author: Kim Harrison

Serie: The Hollows (book 6)

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Reviewed by: Sonia

What I like most in this serie are the demons. Seriously, they rock! LOL..

As Halloween comes close and everybody tries to find the right costume, Rachel discoveres the hard way that "her" demon Al is not in the demon-prison anymore. Somebody keeps summoning him every night with the sole purpose to kill Rachel. Another shock for her is the discovery that Ceri is pregnant and because of the curse that demons put on the elves, her baby is going to die.


To help her and to help herself Rachel decides to do the unthinkable - to go with Trent to the ever after to retrieve an ancient elven DNA sample that can save the whole elven race. But of course nohting goes as planned and the result is a crazy wave of events when Rachel has to make a deal with Al that she never thought possible and discovers a shocking truth about who and what she really is.


Rachel still tries to find out who killed her lover Kisten but her memories still come back only fragmented. Inbetween a new set of characters enters the story - a charismatic new vampire leader Rynn, a gargoyle that moved in and refuses to leave and the witch Marshal returning to Rachel´s life.


This serie is highly addictive and once you start, you can´t put the books down!

MY RATING: ****