Bangkok Warlock by John P. Logsdon and Noah Sturdevant

I like the fact that new readers to the PPD series' get a quick crash course in the world of PPD but they don't have to worry about what is going on in those other settings to get to know about Mark Vedis and Co. It's a whole new world, well, new country but you get the gist.

It is safe to say that Mark doesn't feel like he is going to be promoted any time soon, if any thing is going to happen he will probably be re-located, again. That tends to happen when you are not very powerful. But after an eventful night with Were-cows, murder, mayhem, an old contract and a demon thrown in and you get a hilarious story about a guy doing an impression of a swan (calm on the surface, paddling like crazy underneath) and worrying that he's not doing a very good job at it. Throw in a crazy assortment of characters both old and new, an amazing storyline, an A.I with no filter and you have a fantastic new world to get lost in.

Undertow by Michael Buckley

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was hooked from the very beginning, the storyline is interesting and although not unique, is done in a way that makes it seem fresh and new. It is well-written with a great cast of characters that are both interesting and charming.

When the Alpha's first arrived en-masse, they were forced to live on the pier and beach at Coney Island, now known as Fish City. Now the Government are trying to integrate them into their lives. Starting with sending some of the Alpha teenagers to school.

Our leading lady, Lyric Walker is caught between a rock and a hard place, she has to balance school life, a friend who is being abused, a manipulative head teacher, a crazy senator who is hell bent on getting the Alpha's locked up or killed and being forced to spend time with Fathom, the Alpha's prince, all whilst keeping a dark secret that could get everyone in her family killed or worse.

I will be honest, this book made me cry in places but it also made me laugh and I cannot wait for the next book to come out. Talk about leaving me hanging.

Hotter Than Helltown by S.M. Reine

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I started to read this book I had to stop after the first chapter and purchase the first two in the series and read them first. I have a weird quirk, I can't start reading a series part way through, I have to start at the beginning. And what a great series this is.

Agent Cesar Hawke is trying to track down a murderer who is capable of clearing the minds of the dead so there is no way for him to find out what they last saw even with the help of a specialist. Soon enough he finds himself on the trail of the killer and even though that trail heads into Helltown, the bad guys there are scared of this killer.

When his boss is kidnapped, he works out why people are being killed, what is doing the killing and the reason why his boss has been taken. With the help of a medium, he tracks down his boss and in the process of rescuing him, he ends up bonding with him.

There is quite a lot I could say about this book but I don't want to give away any details. I will say that it is a fast-paced read with a great storyline, wonderful characters and witty one-liners.

I definitely recommend this to anyone who likes Urban Fantasy

Affliction (Anita Blake #22) by Laurell K. Hamilton

Although I've given this a 4 star rating but that's only because I can't give it a 3.5.

There is an actual plot this time instead of pages of sex, don't get me wrong I've nothing against sex but when every page is sex it gets old really fast.  I found myself speed-reading through the last few books.  

I liked the story-line in this book, the action scenes are great and Micah's family are wonderful but I thought the some of the sex scenes were there just to fill the pages.  I was really glad to see Edward and see Anita actually solving a crime and raising some zombies too.  

I thought the ending was a bit of a damp squib, a great build-up and then two pages and it was done.  It was as if the ending was rushed.  I'm not going to be in a rush to get the next book as I was a bit disappointed with this.  I think it's time Anita got back to solving crime and raising zombies again.

Tangled Threads (Elemental Assassin #4) by Jennifer Estep.

Another great book from Jennifer Estep.  It pelts along at a rip-roaring pace with no holds barred action.

Gin continues on her campaign to take down Mab anyway she can but this time there's an assassin named LaFleur to take care of too.  She's been hired by Mab to take over from Slater, her former head of security, she's also been hired to kill Gins' little sister Bria and McAllister has talked her into taking out Gin, not knowing that she and the Spider are the same person.

Gin also has to navigate the murky world of emotions, she's dating Owen Grayson but she keeps stumbling over the scars left by her last liaison.  I can't bring myself to call her ex a boyfriend as all they did was get down and dirty a few times, but it has messed with Gins' head and she keeps holding Owen at bay.  She keeps expecting to see revulsion and fear in his eyes as she did with her ex.

When she is in the alley behind the Pork Pit taking out the trash, she is accosted by LaFleur but as luck would have it, Bria steps out into the alley too.  They both get taken with LaFleur intent on killing them both.  In the act of escaping Gin finally comes clean about who she is to Bria but it isn't the happy reunion that she had hoped for, she can live with that as long as Bria gets out of the scrape they are in and Gin gets to kill LaFleur, striking another blow to Mab Monroe.

I can't stop reading this series, as soon as I finish one book I'm straight into the next.  It's a fantastic series that leaves you wanting more.  The characters are extremely likable and interesting, the elemental magic is used in a very convincing way, it's been thoroughly thought out and works extremely well.  

Anyone who loves urban fantasy, romance, suspense and murder with a dash of magic will find this series exceptional.

Venom (Elemental Assassin #3) by Jennifer Estep.

From the first page, all the way through to the last, this is a well-written, none-stop, action packed tale with murder, magic, suspense and a dash of romance.

Gin gets involved when a local Vampire Madame is being stalked by Mab Monroe's head of security, a giant named Elliot Slater.  Besides being Mab's chief enforcer, Slater has a thing for stalking beautiful women, forcing them to act as his girlfriend before he brutally tortures, rapes and murders them and he's now set his sights on Roslyn Phillips.

Gin feels responsible as she thinks Roslyn only came to Slater's attention after doing a favour for Gin.  Seeing how terrified Roslyn is, she makes a promise to get rid of Slater for her.

Just to spice things up a bit, Gin's baby sister Bria is back in Ashland, she's a detective who is determined to rid the town of corruption and also seems set on helping Roslyn too, it's unfortunate that she doesn't get the help from the police force but Mab owns a large majority of the force.

Gin finally finds out why Mab killed her family and why she sent Slater and his men after Bria and now she's coming out of retirement and declaring war on Mab.

On to Tangled Threads, I can't wait to see what's next for Gin and Co.

Web of Lies (Elemental Assassin #2) by Jennifer Estep.

This story continues from Spiders Bite, it's set two months after Fletcher 's funeral.  Gin is now retired from the assassination business and is finding it to be boring.

When she is approached by a young woman asking for the Tin Man, she finds her interest piqued.  It seems that a local miner, Tobias Dawson is threatening her grandfather and herself, he wants their land and he wants it now.

Gin has also drawn the attention of a very powerful lawyer who works for Mab Monroe, a fire elemental who runs Ashland with an iron fist.  She stopped a couple of young men from robbing the Pork Pit and one of them is the son of the lawyer, he's also a fire elemental.  When she insists on pressing charges, his father tries intimidating her and getting her to drop the charges but he's chosen the wrong woman to mess with.  She's the assassin known as The Spider and she always gets her way.

In the process of getting close to Dawson so she can kill him, Gin finds herself at one of Mab's parties.  When she is recognised by Jake McAllister, the young man who tried to rob her place, she ends up killing him so he couldn't give her away or burn her as he promised.

Dealing with Dawson soon becomes a matter of life and death as he recognizes her power and knocks her out.  She wakes up to find herself deep in his mine with him and some of his men.  When he challenges her to a duel, she has to use her power to defend herself and to finish Dawson off once and for all, ensuring that Violet and Warren Fox never have to sell their property or worry about being murdered ever again.

This is a well-written story with great characters and none stop action all the way through.  I love Gin, Finn and the Deveraux sisters.  The situations that Gin gets into make me laugh out loud and I highly recommend this series to anyone who loves reading, you get magic, romance, suspense and murder.  A great urban fantasy.

The Monsters in your Neighbourhood by Jesse Peterson.

I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher with the condition that I post an honest review.
I found this to be a well-written, funny story.  The characters are extremely like-able and interesting.  The idea of monsters in group therapy is a brilliant concept.  The fact that the humans are more monstrous is also a stroke of genius.
Being hunted down by the Van Helsings' and having one of their own turned against them only makes them pull together, well eventually, after they get over the shock of it.
Led by Natalie, one of Frankenstein's creations and with the help of her boyfriend, Alex the Wolf Man, the monsters unite and together they stop the Van Helsings and Hyde from outing them to the public against their will.
They also have to do something about the chip's that some of them have had put in their heads without their knowledge.  (This part of the plot reminds me of The Initiative in Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer.)
This is a fun read and I shall certainly be looking for more of Jesse Peterson's work.

Charming by Elliot James

I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher with the intention of leaving an honest review.

This is a great story with an interesting twist on the Knights Templar, Valkyries, Werewolves, Vampires and Psychics. Throw in an Episcopalian priest, a bug exterminator, a cop and a Naga and you've got a great story. This isn't a fairy tale even though the main character is called John Charming, as in Prince Charming. The Charming name was given to all the brave men in fairy tales even if they weren't Princes.

John Charming is a Knight, a monster hunter and according to the Knights Templar, he's an abomination.

When his mother was in her last month of pregnancy, she was bitten by a werewolf. Although she gave birth to John, she died whilst shifting as a lot of people do. Because of this the Knights have kept a close eye on John, waiting for him to turn into a werewolf which he never has done, the only thing that is different with John is the fact that he has heightened senses and strength. If it wasn't for the fact that he almost died when he was in his early twenties, he would most likely have been killed. Instead the Knights relaxed their watch on him and he ran away. Now he's being hunted by the Knights.

Whilst staying ahead of the Knights he still feels the need to hunt the monsters himself, due to the geas that all Knights have placed on them.

Whilst working as a bartender he meets Sig, who is hunting a Vampire. He scares the vampire off but knows it will be back later that night. When he's fighting the vampire and his hive mates, Sig turns up and saves his life.

From that point on, he knows he's going to leave town but he knows he's going to help Sig take out the other vampires because the geas will not let him leave before then.

With feelings running high between John and Sig and Sig already having a partner, well things go to hell in a handbasket very quickly.

This is a very well-written story with excellent attention to detail. It has a great cast of characters and the action is practically none-stop. I really hope that this is the start of a new series.

Dancing With The Devil by Keri Arthur.

I received a free e-copy of this book from the publishers on agreement that I would give an honest review.

I found this to be a different take on the usual vampire tale, for a start, we have a vampire who doesn't feed off humans and we have a very strong psychic who can't trust people or let anyone close.

When Nikki is employed by Trevgard to find his daughter, little does she realise that she is being led into a trap. Not by Trevgard but by his daughter, Monica. She is being used as bait for a vampire named Jasper who is after Nikki's powers.

Jasper is also being hunted by another vampire named Michael. Michael has been hunting Jasper for over seventy five years, from before he was turned. He was a murderer when he was human and became worse after he was turned.

Between Nikki being stubborn and unwilling to let anyone in and Michael being stubborn and also refusing to let anyone get close, this story doesn't rush to get to the end. Nikki gets taken by Jasper and tormented by him and though she escapes, she still can't let Michael close. When her boss is taken in a bid to lure Nikki back to him, she still struggles with her feelings for Michael and letting him in. Although they work together to get him back she still can't trust him. She's been used by others in her past and lost others too. She doesn't want to feel that vulnerable again or be used again either.

At the end of the book I was left wondering what was going on. I thought I had several pages left but it was all a ruse, there was a sneak peek of the next book. That's not a bad thing though as I shall be now getting the next book as soon as possible.

Spider's Bite by Jennifer Estep

I recently read Deadly Sting not realising it was one of a series, I enjoyed it so much that it became a goal of mine to read the first set of the series.

I started reading Spider's Bite as soon as I got it and I barely put it down. It's a fantastic introduction to Gin Blanco A.K.A The Spider, waitress by day at the Pork Pit and deadly Assassin at night.

When she is contracted to kill someone and gets double-crossed she would have let it slide, but the person who contracted her killed her handler, the closest thing to a father she has. So with the help of his son and a detective who is also targeted to be killed, she tracks down the elemental who is responsible and exacts her own retribution.

From start to finish this is a gripping tale with non-stop action, elemental magic and dead bodies galore. I can't wait to get Web of Deceit.

Jennifer's characters are well-written, very complex and very likeable. I can highly recommend this book to anyone no matter what their preference. There's plenty of violence, sex and action for everyone to enjoy.

Weird Detectives: Recent Investigations

This is a strange little mix of stories but an interesting one. There is a wide variety of genre's covered in this book. The stories aren't all about magic or ghosts.

I did find it a little slow going with some of the tales but others I just flew through, namely Jim Butcher and Charlaine Harris. In fact after reading this book, I now have a list of new authors whose books I need to check out.

If you're looking for something that can be read in short individual sittings then this is definitely one to get. I read one of the stories as I waited for an appointment, I even read another tale as I was travelling on the bus.

I would say don't discard it just because it's a book of short's. It should be thought of as an appetizer to new authors and new tales with a different spin.

I highly recommend it.

Mist giveaway and blog tour.

I'm doing a giveaway, you can find it here http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/107153-mist-giveaway

I'll be doing an interview with Susan Krinard and posting the interview and my review of her book, Mist on the 24th of July.

Winners of the giveaway will be chosen on the 8th of July.

Hot Blooded by Amanda Carlson

I received a free copy of this e-book from the publishers with the intent to read and leave an honest review.

This book starts were the first book finished. Jessica is getting ready to go and get her mate back from Selene, who just happens to be a wicked powerful goddess. She just has to wait for two vampires to arrive who are on loan from the Vampire Queen who had her kidnapped in the first book.

Before she even gets to set off, she has to contend with Ray Hart, a local police detective who has been harassing her and trying to pin anything he can on her. He just knows there's something off about Jessica. And he's about to find out just what that is. When Jessica gets home from talking to her father and persuading him not to kill Ray, she finds out that her building supervisor was a were-weasel and he had been caught breaking in to her apartment by one of her were-wolf friends. He had had to change and ended up killing him but the detective had seen it happen so he ended up stuffed in her wardrobe. Now he's going on a trip with Jessica, her brother Tyler, friend Daniel, the two vampires on loan from the Vampire Queen to get back her mate, if not he's going to end up dead.

Setting off in the bright yellow hummer that her brother has bought, they head north to Canada. On the way she realises that they will have a problem with Ray at border patrol so she has the vampires fly him over the border, hoping it will make him change his mind and realise that in order for him to stay alive he will have to comply with the Alpha's demands.

As they get nearer to Selene's lair they have to leave the hummer behind and start to hike. This is were I started to get annoyed again.

Whilst the book has a great story line and clips along at a good rate, it's spoiled again by the constant conversation, argument or telepathic conversation when danger is imminent or they are in the midst of a fight. It ruins the flow of the tale for me.

This was a fault that I found in the first book and I was disappointed to see it had continued on in the second book. I also found it annoying that no matter what they came across, after the argument, discussion, whatever, it would turn out to be her blood or only her power that could fix whatever was wrong. I understand that she is the main character and that she is something more than a were-wolf, she is turning into the True Lycan but I really hope that the third book doesn't follow in the same lines or that it's not constantly brought up.

That said I will definitely be reading the third in the series.

Full Blooded by Amanda Carlson

I received a free e-copy of this book from the publishers with the intent to read and give an honest review.

We start this story with Jessica changing into a wolf for the first time. To say she is shocked is an understatement, she never expected to change as there are no female werewolves, at all. She is only alive because her father is Alpha and her mother died giving birth to Jessica and her twin brother Tyler.

Having changed though, she now needs to keep this information secret as she will surely have the other wolves out for her blood due to a prophecy that states that a female werewolf will bring about the downfall of the wolves.

You would think it would be easy to keep a secret as she has been living under an alias for seven years but you would be wrong. Not only does someone know, they want her dead. It could be anyone too. Not just the wolves but the other sects out there, vampires, witches, warlocks, demons, you name it, they are gunning for her. Not only having to contend with that she also realises she's not quite a werewolf, she is a Lycan.

After returning home after visiting her father to try and work out what's going on with her, she's attacked in her apartment by a rogue werewolf, this just after using a cover story of a break in for the damage she did herself during her change. Now she's being dogged by a police detective who knows there's something different about Jessica but he's not sure what but he's determined to find out what it is.

It all sounds like a great story and it is, kind of. It canters along at a good pace with interesting characters and backstories but the one thing that spoilt it for me was the action scenes. Just as a fight was getting started or something dangerous was happening, Jessica would start to have an argument or conversation or start to talk telepathically with some one and it would stall the flow of the story. Even when she calls on the use of her wolf, she starts to talk to her and it distracts from what is going on.

Other than that I really liked the book and I shall be following the tale of Jessica McClain in the next book in the series.

Blood and Magick by James R. Tuck

I received an e-copy of this book from the publishers on the condition that I write an honest review.

First things first, I haven't read the first two in this series but I'm now on a mission to find them.

I found Deacon to be just the right side of Alpha without coming across as a total Tarzan, "me say you do this, so you do this" type. I found him refreshing and also at times a little vulnerable, especially when he's remembering the family he lost.

I wasn't sure at first as to what was going on, I mean who starts out a story in a restaurant but from the first paragraph, I was hooked. From the very first scene, where he isn't happy about wearing a suit that doesn't fit to describing Tiff. That was it for me, hook, line and sinker. Then we get the explosion and that's when the action really takes off. It's a non-stop rollercoaster of action with barely a moment to breath, well except from a quick little shower sex scene but that just added to the story.

I loved his priest, a chain-smoking, alcohol-drinking holy-roller. As is mentioned in the story by one of the characters "Best. Priest. Ever". Which is saying something as I don't believe in religion, no matter what form it comes in. But that's just me. I loved all the references to all the different types of Were's he knows or has killed. My favourite mention of all is the shout out to Laurel K. Hamilton's Anita Blake and Jean-Claude, as if they are his shooting or monster hunting buddies. That just made me smile, it's not often another authors creation gets a little mention.

I loved the triplets, they sound so cute calling him "Unca Deacon" and constantly changing from one form to another, never all the same. The whole book is full of wonderful characters that I could picture in my head which to me, makes a book. If I can picture them as they are portrayed it makes it seem more real. There's a better connection.

I felt his pain at Kat's demise and he was right, it was all Larson's fault, he brought the whole shebang down on their heads by messing with things he didn't understand. Although I think leaving Larson as he did is probably going to bite him in the ass at a later date. I did actually laugh at him describing the Cockatrice, just picturing it in my head was mental.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys urban fantasy and paranormal. I would rank Mr James R. Tuck up there with Jim Butcher, Kim Harrison, Laurel K. Hamilton and Patricia Briggs.