Mini-Review: The Ghost Exterminator

The Ghost Exterminator (Karmic Consultants #2)

by Vivi Andrews

Blurb:

Rebel meets by-the-book businessman. Love doesn't stand a ghost of a chance. A Karmic Consultants story. Jo Banks has been seeing ghosts since she was six, so normal was never really an option. Embracing the weird and shunning normalcy makes her the top Ghost Exterminator in her region. Then she meets Wyatt Haines, the uptight, materialistic and irritatingly sexy owner of a successful resort chain. Wyatt's new Victorian inn is extremely haunted and the Commando Barbie Ghost Exterminator is just the girl for the job. Except Wyatt doesn't believe in ghosts, or Jo, or anything outside the norm. He'll have to start believing fast, though, because Jo's extermination goes awry and accidentally throws two prankster ghosts into Wyatt's body to haunt him. Every time he falls asleep, the mischievous ghosts take over, turning his perfectly ordered life into chaos. His waking hours are no less chaotic, with his thoughts possessed by Jo's quirky appeal and Playmate physique. Unfortunately, Jo's ghost-exing mojo is on the fritz just when she needs it the most to unhaunt Wyatt and figure out why his inn is swarming with ghosts. Preferably before his spirit is permanently separated from his mouth-watering body. And before her heart is permanently attached to the most sexy, frustrating, normal man she's ever met. Warning: This book contains prankster ghosts, PG bondage, and a not-so-PG trip to the mile-high club.

Review:

Although I've read many stories by Vivi Andrews, I missed the first in this series, so I started off with a bit of catching up to do.  This series is based around a supernatural consulting firm, run by a mysterious and beautiful woman by the name of Karma.   Our story is about one of the consultants, Jo, and her skill as a ghost exterminator.  She is sent out on a job, only to come face to face with Wyatt Haines, an unbeliever of highest proportions, who called in Karmic Consultants in a last ditch effort to figure out why the universe is kicking his butt in the form of strange incidents on his new refurbishment project.

Jo immediately knows that this job is going to be complicated. The house itself is causing serious problems of the ghost kind, and she can’t figure out what, or ultimately who, is causing the problems.  Though there is an immediate chemistry causing flares between Jo and Wyatt, both refuse to embrace their connection.  As they work together to try to figure out who’s causing the problems, with Wyatt even being suspected as the bad guy at one point, the heat continues to flare and sooner rather than later they are no longer able to resists their connection.

When their connection begins to deepen, Wyatt and Jo continue to resist each other and the pull.  They are both so different on the surface that it doesn't seem they could ever find common ground.  But the love that blossoms between them is undeniable and shows them both that the differences between them are not anywhere near as important as their love and the passion that meshes in their lives to make them a perfect pair. 

This was a great story (not that I expected anything less from this author) and I am hoping to get the chance to read more in the series.  The love and passion between Wyatt and Jo was sexy and fun to read.  Both characters are witty and the sarcasm they use to keep people at a distance left me laughing so hard at times I thought I would cry.  Jo’s uncertainty about her true place in life reaches out to Wyatt and that vulnerability buried under a thick brittle shell makes him even more protective and determined to bring her out of her shell so she can be happy and complete.  I should also mention that the loving was intense and sensual throughout the story and definitely left me needing water and a fan.  Can’t wait for more.

Rating:   3.25 stars

Rose Rating:  

Review: Highland Scandal

Highland Scandal (The Scandalous Series #2)

by Julia London

Blurb:

On the run from the wrathful Prince of Wales, Jack Haines, Earl of Lambourne, is taken prisoner by a Highland laird who makes him an unusual offer: if Jack handfasts his niece, then his life will be spared. The old Highland custom -- a marriage lasting only a year and a day, unless both partners agree to make it a lifelong vow -- sounds preferable to Jack to being dragged to London in chains, and when he meets lovely Lizzie Beal, his dilemma starts to seem positively enjoyable. Until the hellion vents her fury...on him! Detesting the scandalous match that will end all her chances of making a respectable marriage, Lizzie can't abide living intimately with a fugitive nobleman bent on seducing her and then running off. But in teaching her the pleasures of a wife's duties, Jack sparks within them both a passion that will make him wish he could stay with Lizzie for much longer than a year and a day.

Review:

Highland Scandal is the second book in the Scandalous Series, set entirely around the scandal of Queen Katherine and Prince George of Wales.  The story picks up with Jack still on the run from the Prince’s men as they hunt for him through the Scottish highlands. Jack is on the run because many believe he has had an affair with the Princess and several other men that are suspected have already been hanged. The history and rumor in this story will keep any history buff happy and also give the story a richness and depth that make the love story more profound.

Jack is taken hostage by a highland laird and forced to join the laird’s spirited and stubborn niece in a handfasting that neither of them want.  When given the choice of death or spending a year and a day with this woman, what else is a guy to do? But this woman is definitely working extra hard to try his patience. Lizzie is an extremely independent woman, raised by a father that always indulged her and her sister in all their whims.  She is trapped in this handfasting, for now, but she is determined to get free of Jack and this ridiculous sham of a marriage.

Working together to keep her scheming uncle happy, while fighting to keep distance between them is making both Jack and Lizzie a little crazy.  When Jack is able to convince Carson to release them so they can return to Lizzie’s crippled sister and their estate, Lizzie and Charlotte infuriate me with the way they treat Jack.  They treat him worse than a prisoner, locking him away in cold rooms and trying to convince her staff that he is dangerous and they shouldn't trust him.  Many times I was so angry at them that I almost stopped reading the book.  Jack and his gentlemanly behavior and the obvious attraction he shows is the only thing that kept me reading.

Luckily Jack is finally able to thaw the servants, Charlotte and eventually Lizzie herself.  He is so wonderful, working hard to improve the estate and show Lizzie that he is more than just a rake.  He brings out a passion that Lizzie has never experienced and certainly never expected to feel for Jack.  Slowly they begin to grow together and finally realize that their feelings are true and that love is something worth working and sacrificing for.  But when her former suitor returns to the picture the problems just begin to compound.  When Jack and Gordon discover just what Carson has been up to with his blackmailing and scheming, Jack is determined to do whatever necessary to make sure that Lizzie has everything she wants, even If it costs him his life.

Jack was one of those characters who shows only the shallowest of his emotions to those around him, using his charm and wiles to get his way.  But as he embraces his predicament and works to make their lives as easy and stress free as possible, we see the depth and greatness that shines through the shallow veneer. Lizzie on the other hand is a character that you just really wish would grow up already.  She is a spoiled, willful and self centered young woman, worrying only about herself and her sister, not giving much thought to the fact that Jack is just as trapped in the situation as Lizzie herself. Thankfully as Jack begins to pull her from her shell she becomes less and less hateful, growing into a woman that is a match for Jack.

There were lots of laughs in this story to go along with all the intrigue and the battles of wits between Lizzie and Jack.  The plot is full of twists and turns, with Lizzie and Jack getting into and out of many scrapes.  The love between them was hard won and only when they are about to love each other and everything they didn't even know they wanted, do they both realize that they are meant to be together.  When Jack risks his life to try to give her everything she thinks she wants, Lizzie sees that she’s had what she needed all along—Jack.

This was a good story once you get past the idiocy of Lizzie in the beginning.  It moves quickly and there are some very passionate moments.  There are some really lovable characters and the ending was hilarious and heartwarming.  It was great to see Nathan and Evelyn finally having their HEA and to even get to see more about Fiona, Jack’s sister.  I am looking forward to the series finale and to finding out more about Christie.  In the meantime just knowing that Lizzie and Jack finally found their own HEA will keep me happy.  A great read and worth all the annoyance of dealing with a not very likable character until she grows up.

Rating:  3 stars

Rose Rating: 

Review: Shadow's Claim

Shadow's Claim (The Dacians #1)

by Kresley Cole

Blurb:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole introduces The Dacians: Realm of Blood and Mist, a new paranormal series following the royal bloodline of Dacia, a vampire kingdom hidden within the Lore of the Immortals After Dark.

Shadow's Claim features Prince Trehan, a ruthless master assassin who will do anything to possess Bettina, his beautiful sorceress mate, even compete for her hand in a blood-sport tournament—to the death.

He won't be denied...

Trehan Daciano, known as the Prince of Shadows, has spent his life serving his people, striking in the night, quietly executing any threat to their realm. The coldly disciplined swordsman has never desired anything for himself—until he beholds Bettina, the sheltered ward of two of the Lore's most fearsome villains.

She's bound to another...

Desperate to earn her guardians' approval after a life-shattering mistake, young Bettina has no choice but to marry whichever suitor prevails—even though she's lost her heart to another. Yet one lethal competitor, a mysterious cloaked swordsman, invades her dreams, tempting her with forbidden pleasure.

A battle for her body and soul...

Even if Trehan can survive the punishing contests to claim her as his wife, the true battle for Bettina's heart is yet to come. And unleashing a millennium's worth of savage need will either frighten his Bride away—or stoke Bettina's own desires to a fever-pitch...

Review:

I was thrilled to see this spin-off series created by Kresley Cole.  I have long been a fan of the Immortals After Dark series and after reading the last story in that series, Lothaire, and meeting the new species of vampire, the Dacians, I was looking forward to this for a long time.  I was a bit surprised to see that though this was a spin-off, it was actually happening at the SAME TIME as Lothaire's story.  Cole does this quite often in her series, but I had wrongly assumed that because this was a new series it wouldn't follow that trend. It made things even more interesting and it was fun to return to Lothaire’s story, even if just tangentially.

This story revolved around the tournament for Bettina’s hand in marriage and the chance to rule her world beside her.  Being that the world of these immortals is quite brutal there are definitely some terrifying moments and way more violence than I would normally be able to handle.  But the interactions between Trehan and Bettina are often sweetly sensual as he works to seduce her to his side.  Trehan is a great character and he is devoted to Bettina once he accepts that life without her will be impossible to accept. 

Bettina on the other hand is not a favorite character of mine.  She is very self-wrapped through most of this book.  She is determined to have only one man, the demon that she grew up with and believes she’s in love with.  No matter that Trehan is her destined mate, and Caspian has no interest in being her husband as he knows she’s not his true mate.  She refuses to see that maybe her life is destined for something different, but gradually Trehan is able to show her the beauty that can be found in his arms.  But sadly it takes losing him, to her own stupidity and insecurity, to see just how much he really means to her.

Trehan feels betrayed by Bettina, believing that she has sabotaged his chance to claim her, even though he has gone out of his way at every opportunity to prove to her that she is the most important thing in the world to him and he will do anything to make her happy.  And of course this makes him a little crazy, ehh, maybe a lot crazy.  Leaving his betrayer, his own mate, to live her life without him, he slowly falls further and further into his madness.  Strangely the only man who can talk him out of the madness and make him see the course he needs to take is Lothaire—ironic ain't it?

I very much enjoyed this story and was thrilled to see a lot of characters that we have grown to know and love making cameo appearances.  Typical of Ms. Cole’s work there was intense battles, sometimes a little too gory for me though.  Trehan and Bettina were fun to watch, seeing that even such powerful and magical individuals can screw up their love lives reminds us that at our base we are all just human and can make some seriously bad decisions when it comes to matters of the heart. The next in the series should be interesting and I’m hoping it is Cousin Viktor’s story.   I can’t wait to see how the possibility of opening up the world of mists will affect the Ascension, but I see that the changes to come will be vast and terrifying.  Keep the awesomeness coming please Kresley.

Rating:  4.5 stars

Rose Rating: 

Review: Price of Pleasure

The Price of Pleasure (Sutherland Brothers #2)

by Kresley Cole

Blurb:

Kresley Cole returns with a breathtaking romantic saga of love, honor, and passion unbound -- as a man of duty faces his greatest trial, and a young castaway discovers her greatest desire....

A man noted for his courage and integrity, Captain Grant Sutherland journeys to Oceania to find Victoria Dearbourne, an English girl lost at sea a decade before. He's given her ailing grandfather his word -- as a gentleman -- to find and protect her. But one look at a grown Victoria and Grant has never felt less like one.

Tori relishes freedom, untamed passion, and spontaneity above stifling order. Even more so when a proud, cold British captain arrives to rescue her, though she has no wish to be. As Grant tries to convince her to leave her island home, she begins to see in him a man hungering for more. A man who once laughed. A man who desires her but won't take what she offers.

Grant struggles to control his own savage passions -- and fails, Tori must decide what she wants more -- her unfettered independence or the only man who could tame her wild heart....

Review:

The second novel in the Sutherland brother series was not a letdown for me.  I really loved seeing Grant come into his own as a captain, landowner, and finally a good man. The series, based in early nineteenth century England was a surprise from one of my favorite authors.  I’d read a few of her other highland historicals, but this series was intense, fascinating, and full of themes one would expect to find in a modern storyline not this classical setting.

Grant, finally out from under his brother's responsibilities has taken on an outrageous challenge. Find and recover the shipwrecked granddaughter of a dying man, one who has been missing for over a decade, and most believed dead.  But he is determined to fulfill his bargain so he can earn the one thing he’s always felt he needed in his life:  an established estate to allow him to really become part of society and find himself a wife. He’s been out to sea with his crew for almost a full year and they will soon be forced to anchor through the storm season, but by some chance of fate they come across an island not on any map, and are surprised to find their quarry running across the beach. 

Tori had made her island a home.  Taking the terrible hand fate has dealt her and making it into a win.  She has built a suitable home for herself and her former governess, dealt with the tragedy of losing her parents, and is in no hurry to trust a stranger with her life and her freedom.  She is determined to keep Grant at bay, but interacting with him leaves her feeling needy and dealing with emotions she’s never experienced before and has no idea how to handle.  But slowly and surely he begins to earn her trust, make her believe that he will get her home to her grandfather.  So she decides to return with him, but hard-won lessons are sometimes the one thing a woman needs more than anything.

During the return voyage, Grant begins to see more and more that Tori isn't just a desirable woman that he needs to run from to keep himself protected.  She is full of life and verve and brings out the best in all of those around her.  But even though he’s starting to see a possibility for a future with her, he doesn't want anyone else to see this as a weakness. Tori however, sees his reluctance to embrace their connection as a challenge, until she hears part of a conversation never meant for her. Feeling betrayed by the man she was coming to love, she determines that the only option for her is to just get home to her grandfather and make her life the best she can.  Once again building her life from the ground up no matter what it takes.

The love story between Grant and Tori is great.  There is passion from the beginning, even though Tori doesn't really know how to handle the lust she’s feeling and Grant is resistant to it.  The moments when they do finally give in to their desires are extremely sensual and unexpected for the time period.  The innate sensuality and freedom Tori exhibits stems from her ability to live outside the normal constraints of English society. Grant has lost himself in recent years while being buried under so many responsibilities, most of which were never his to bear. But being with Tori finally brings him back to the man he once was and reminds him of the joys of life and how to embrace the joy.

Tori was a favorite character of mine.  I haven’t found a more interesting and lovable heroine in ages.  She begins the novel full of life and enjoying her freedom.  She’s never really had good experiences with men, only one scary attack that she and her friend lived through the last time her island was invaded.  This makes her determined to keep these new invaders from disturbing their lives or putting them in danger. She uses all her considerable intelligence and cunning to try to keep them safe.  I cringed at one point when she played a trick with a snack, but mostly because my brothers used to play the same trick on me!

The lush setting through the majority of this book, full of detail and beautiful to the extreme, leaves me wishing I could find my own deserted island.  And the exotic ports that they travel to are also interesting to see.  Never having traveled to many of those countries I felt like I was seeing everything and it was like I was actually there.  Even the estate in England is beautiful and the descriptions rich.  Makes you wonder if the author was really in all those places or if the worlds she has in her imagination are that vivid.

I enjoyed every minute of this book.  Full of emotional swings from the highest high to the most depressing of lows, this story will leave you feeling wrung out, but only in the very best of ways.  Grant and Tori are perfectly matched and once they both deal with their insecurities and decid to enjoy the chance that fate has given them together, the love they share will fill your heart. It was also fun to see Grant’s brother Derek and his wife Nicola all settled down in marital bliss. I was thrilled with this series and would love to see more stories from this world, maybe Ian (grant’s cousin) will get his own story someday so we can see what happened to him.  A great read and one that will leave you laughing, weeping, and wishing you could hop on a ship and sail around the world with a sexy captain all your own. 

Rating:  4.25 stars

Rose Rating: 

Review: Drive Me Wild

Drive Me Wild (The Others #7)

by Christine Warren

Blurb:

Tess Menzies can work a spell with a few blinks of her baby blue eyes. But this dedicated witch can’t summon up a single good reason she’s been made an envoy between her kind and Manhattan’s fiercest were-creatures. The two sides haven’t spoken in four hundred years, and she’ll need every miracle in the book to broker any kind of truce. And that means outwitting Council of Others leader Rafael De Santos whose tantalizing moves and fierce hungry kisses are magic even a formidable sorceress can’t resist . . .

It doesn’t take a cat’s supernatural senses for Rafael to suspect that there’s something strange about this unexpected peace offering. And finding the truth is just as tempting as uncovering the secrets Tess is trying to conceal. Why, she’s tantalizing enough to make this wandering were-jaguar think he’s found the perfect mate—one he’s only dreamed of. But his stealth and her spells can’t guarantee they have a chance at survival, much less a future together…

Review:

Drive Me Wild is a wonderful read, and as I have been reading the series since the beginning I have been longing to read Tess and Rafe’s story for ages.  This series was a frustrating one from me from the time One Bite with a Stranger was published.  Until that book was released the series had been moving chronologically and the world was captivating, but there were many couples that we didn't have a story for.   And then Ms. Warren started publishing the stories of the couples we'd been longing for.  So while this is the 7^th book in the series technically, it was the 14^th book I’ve read in this series.   But baring that annoyance with the series as a whole, Tess and Rafe’s story was sexy and compelling from start to finish.

From the beginning we see a side of Rafe we have only seen hinted at in past (or future I guess) books in the series—complete and total arrogance.  After leaving Vircolac, the club run by the local wolf alpha, Rafe realizes he has a tail (pun intended) and though he can’t believe someone is dumb enough to try to sneak up on him, he is intrigued by his mysterious stalker.  Deciding to turn the tables on them Rafe slows his pace and lets his stalker get close enough to him that Rafe can catch their scent. He is pleasantly and greatly surprised to realize his stalker is a female; one that smells sexy enough to eat and vaguely of magic.

Tess knows she has lost her mind as she stalks Rafe, following him in an attempt to deliver a message from the witches’ council to Rafe, who is the leader of the council of others. She like any woman is taken by his sexy arrogance and his cat grace, but she’s not interested in taking him on personally. But when the stalker becomes the stalkee and Rafe catches her in his web of lust, they are both instantly and enormously attracted. The two begin to work together to form a truce between the witches and the rest of the Other population. But then things get a bit more complicated.

There was a lot of heat between Tess and Rafe from the minute that Rafe catches her scent.  He begins to descend into and become controlled by his inner beast.  The sex scenes in this story steam right off the page and we get many of them.  Tess gives in to their lust only hours after their first meeting and she is unable to resist him from then on.  It was wonderful to see Tess deal with the truth of Rafe’s character as she learns that he’s not the playboy he’s been made out to be.    He treats her like a precious gem from the beginning, making her uncomfortable on so many levels as she comes to terms with his true nature.

I will say this was a VERY fast read, even compared to some of the others in the series.  As usual there was an intense amount of hilarity, especially with Missy and her girls, and Ms. Warren’s sarcasm and wit shine through once again.  I would have loved a longer story with more time for their relationship to develop and deepen before they mate.   The connections into the overall plot of the series was interesting, though of course some parts we already know about as this was written on a time scale that was several years before other books that were already read.  I think if you read the series in chronological order instead of the publication order like I have you’d enjoy these stories even more, but some of the suspense is just gone this way.   

I can’t wait to read the next book which is 8^th in the chronological order and will have all the holes filled in.  I’m curious to see what will happen after that, but I’m hoping she moves on with the series with a book sixteen. Christine Warren’s work is definitely worth any anxiety of waiting and confusion of the strange order of this series.  There‘s just nothing like the sex appeal of these alpha and deliciously sweet men and the fiery and hilarious women they fall in love with.

Rating:  3.25 stars

Rose Rating: 

Mini-Review: Nauti Intentions

Nauti Intentions (Nauti #4)

by Lora Leigh

Blurb:

Fourth in the New York Times bestselling series known for "blistering sexuality and eroticism."(Romance Reviews Today)

Since he saw Janey Mackay taking a dip in her bikini, Major Alex Jansen has had to quell the fire she ignites in him. Even touching her would mean death at the hands of the Mackay men. Until now, the girl of his dreams-and fantasies-has lived in a vacuum of affection, shying away from the danger she thinks men represent. Alex sets out to prove her wrong, with his torturously slow caresses.

Everyone thinks Janey's safe now, with her abusers dead. But when someone starts leaving spine chilling notes, Alex won't rest until she's completely safe. And completely his-body and soul...

Mini-Review:

The Mackay family Drama continues with the story of the only female of the generation, Janey Mackay and the only man she ever lusted after.  Alex Jansen is a covert operator who has been working with the Nauti boys and the department of homeland security on the homegrown terrorist threat developing in their hometown.

Alex has lusted after Janey for years, since well before she was old enough to really understand what his lust for her would entail were they to give in to it.  Janey is recovering from a horrific attack by her own father and aunt, trying to find her footing as an independent woman for the first time in her life.  But a threat to her life shows Alec that he can’t leave her alone to fend for herself anymore.   So Alex plants himself directly into the line of fire, bodily protecting Janey, but he demands something in return.  Her total sexual surrender.

Janey’s sensuality begins to bloom for Alex and the heat between them is blazing.  The sex between Alex and Janey is steamy, intense and will leave you panting.  I loved how Alex used Janey's innate sensual nature to bring her the confidence she needs to stand up to the danger she’s facing as well as her overly controlling brother.  When Janey finally decides to give in to Alex’s demands and give her his body, she tries her hardest to keep herself from giving him her heart and soul.   Alex has to use all his considerable skills to convince Janey he’s not just after her body but wants her for himself, even though he doesn’t believe in love.   When Janey is captured, Alex is faced with the truth about his feelings and understands finally that even though he couldn’t give it a proper title, he’s loved Janey for years.

This was a great addition to the Nauti series, full of all the sexual heat and emotional intensity we all expect from Lora Leigh.   Alex and Janey are a couple that you love to watch fight, because you inevitably know there will be great makeup loving.  It was also great to see the Nauti boys and their women, all of whom are pregnant, and see how Janey interacts with the part of her family who isn’t out to torture her into submission. Natches was especially awesomely idiotic the times he graced the pages.   The next in the series should be interesting and I’m hoping it is Rogue’s story.

Rating:  3.75 stars

Rose Rating: 

Review: Spellfire

Spellfire (Nightkeepers #8)

by Jessica Andersen 

Blurb:

Imprisoned and tortured by the demoness who tricked him into betraying the Nightkeepers and the woman he loves, Rabbit must endure excruciating pain to protect the diminished Skywatch army as the end-time approaches. Although an ancient prophecy says his unique powers are key to winning the final battle in the doomsday war, he hasn’t just lost his credibility—he’s lost his magic.

Myrinne is far from the woman Rabbit once knew—she’s got magic now, and despite emotional scars, she’s strong enough to help the Nightkeepers. And yet she’s not prepared to handle the fiercely driven man he’s become or the new, dangerous feelings that spark between them.

With the barrier ready to fall and a xombi outbreak in the human world, Rabbit and Myrinne must forge a new partnership amid dangerous instability and the threat of an undead army. In the end, it will be up to Rabbit to master his ferocious magic—or all will be lost. For him, for the woman he doesn’t have the right to love anymore, and for the fate of the world…

Review:

Spellfire is the long awaited conclusion to an awesome trilogy that has taken readers into the mystical and mostly unknown world of the Mayan and the descendants of their priests—the Nightkeepers. I have been hooked on this story since the beginning and have loved learning all about a new culture, even if some parts of it were more myth than fact.  Jessica Andersen’s imagination certainly knows no bounds and Rabbit and Myrinne’s book was the perfect ending to a series that that has captivated me and so many others since the very start.  

Rabbit has led a very tough life, full of disillusionment and rage, but he’s finally able to become the man all his fans knew was hidden deep inside the immature jerk he showed the rest of the world.  If you haven’t read any of the other stories in the series you might feel a bit baffled as to the depth of change Rabbit goes through in this book, but you won’t feel completely lost as there are enough details in this book to fill you in.   Rabbit’s story picks up right where Magic Unchained ended, with Rabbit being held captive and tortured by the demoness that played with his mind through that novel.   He’s almost lost the will to live, ready to give his life to pay for his past mistakes, but the demoness threatens the only thing he really cares about any more—his witch girlfriend, Myrinne.  Finally motivated, pissed off to the nth degree to be honest, Rabbit is able to escape his chains and battle his way to freedom, with the last minute help of his friends.

Myrinne (Myr to Rabbit) finds herself in a strange new situation once Rabbit is captured.   During his last minute attempt to keep her from dying, Rabbit’s magic has transferred to Myr and now she is a Mage, sort of.  Her fear of repeat danger keeps her from celebrating the long awaited return of Rabbit and she decides that maybe it’s time to move on.  But when she’s confronted by the demoness and her minions, the only one that can save her is of course the one man she doesn’t want to see.  Determined to due whatever is needed of her to help prevent the apocalypse, she agrees to work with Rabbit to hone THEIR magic, but refuses to let the heat and emotion he’s always pulled from her lead them into another disastrous relationship.

As the end time draws nearer, the team is faced with many challenges, even more than simply understanding how Rabbit is supposed to be the one to affect the final battle for good or evil.  There were so many twists and turns in the overall plot of this book that affected that whole series that at times you might find your head spinning a bit. I can honestly say I never saw the ending to this one coming.  Things changed so drastically for the Nightkeepers and crossed into territories not really explored in previous books, though they were slightly hinted at so the changes weren’t completely out of left field.  You will find yourself leaping from your chair and saying WTH a few times, I guarantee.

Rabbit and Myr’s relationship is rocky to say the least.  Having to get over him almost killing and then giving himself to save her life isn’t something that is easily forgiven or forgotten.  They spent so many years wrapped up in each other, often to the detriment of their individual growth during the most important formative years.  Rabbit was the center of Myr’s life for so long and Myr was the only one to accept Rabbit, but they held each other back for sure.  Only by having their time to grow and handling the crucial changes in their situations, are they finally able to mature and become the mages and warriors they need to be to prevent the apocalypse.  I enjoyed reading the way they were able to come together again once they matured.  We are able to fully appreciate the love that might have been based in their adolescent infatuation, but is a true and abiding love between two settled and tested individuals that are willing to work hard to build a life together.

Happily there was a side romance for the only single member of the Nightkeepers left—Anna.  In the course of events dealing with the xombi epidemic that has hit the central Mexico area, Anna runs across a very sexy and sweet Australian doctor.  They immediately are drawn to one another and throughout the story they get to have some great scenes together.  I’m happy to report that Anna too got her HEA and was able to finally be all she’d ever wanted—a seer, a wife, and a mother.

This series has been building up to this book for so long I was afraid I would be disappointed when I finally read it, but I was thrilled to find out that this book was all it was hyped to be.  Rabbit and Myr were both great characters to read about and I enjoyed seeing them finally come together for the long haul. The plot of the end of the world was full of twists and turns and blending of new and old beliefs, educating the reader about myth and legend while giving them a modern version they could relate to their personal lives.  I was thrilled to see the way the end time prophecy was handled and that in the end the good guys prevailed even though they weren’t sure they were the good guys at some points.  I will be telling everyone to read this story once the end time has passed without the world ending, just so everyone else can see why there was never any doubt we would be fine. *wink wink*

 Rating:  4.5 stars 

Rose Rating: