Fever Series review





The fever series was written by Karen Marie Moning. There are five novels in the supernatural suspense series. They are a continuation of Moning's previous novels, the Highlander series. The fever series is also continued by the Dani O'Malley series. The series has a total of five novels- Darkfever, Bloodfever, Dreamfever, Faefever, and Shadowfever.

These novels are highly entertaining and wicked fun. The first novel was a little slow until the ending, which picked up the pace tremendously. The other four novels, in the series, are all fast paced. I finished the series in five day, one novel per day. I just could not put them down. The novels are intriguing and thought provoking. I was always thinking about what could happen next, and about the questions that the author presents but does not reveal the answer to. These questions include: what is Barrons (love interest), can Mac (main character) trust Barrons, and who killed Mac's sister. Moning continually reveals answers, throughout the series, leading up to the biggest question of who is the ultimate bad guy. Moning does not reveal what Barrons is, but by the end of the series it almost did not seem to matter at all.

I love the development of the characters, their relationships, and the plot. Mac is definitely one of those characters that changes a lot through the course of the series. She went from way out of her league, helpless, and a person that wears a lot of bright colors, to a person that wears a lot of darker colors, that creates the plan to save everyone, and to someone who can fight with the best of them. She is a relatable character, one that is into the supernatural world and into impossible situations. It is interesting how much she changes and I liked reading the development her character made.
 

Barrons is just wow. Barrons is Mac’s love interest throughout the series and they always seem to have a love- hate relationship. I love their differences and the many conversations that they have without saying a word. Barrons is aggressive, smart, handsome, and wicked. I personally grew to love this character, because at first he was just a jerk, and while he continued to be a jerk I found there to be several redeemable qualities.
 

I love this series. It is a wild ride and extraordinary read. I would highly recommend these novels to anyone who has not read the series. Moning wrote a excellent series.

The Moon- a poem

 --inspired by Mirror by Sylvia Plath

I am circular and imperfect.

 

Watching over the deafening silence of the night, I see all.

 

I am the light in the darkness,

 

the eye of the night.

 

I am like the sun

 

stuck in a continuous cycle of day and night.

 

I am everlasting and immortal,

 

nothing can stop my appearance.

 

I am like a lamp

 

illuminating the night sky.

 

I am revered

 

by wolves, witches, and magic.

 

I am part of the mystery,

 

the mystery of life.   

 

It is bitter sweet to watch me leave.

 

 

Lines 11 and 12 are an allusion. Stereotypically witches are depicted as flying on a broomstick, under the moonlit sky and their magic is also typically done at night. Wolves are also associated the moon, because they are often found in pictures howling at the moon.   

 

Lines 9 and 10 are a simile. I compared the moon to a lamp, because lamps only give off so much light, much like the moon.

 

Line 2 is personification. The moon can not see, but I gave it the ability of sight. I used this to help better describe the immortal feel of the moon.

 

Line 6 is diction. I used the word 'stuck' to show the continuous nature and predictability of the moon. It goes through the same cycle every day, rising and falling. It also goes through the same cycle of moon phases every month. Line 11 is also diction. I used the word 'revered' to show the importance of the moon on stereotypical ideas involving the supernatural and with wolves.

 

I used anaphora to start my next idea and description. Every other line, I repeated the words 'I am' to further describe the moon and to keep the poem congruent and organized.

 

Lines 2 and 15 both have an oxymoron. With line 15, I wanted to describe how people feel when the night is over, but the day is just beginning. I feel like the words 'bitter sweet' communicate the right feeling that I wanted. In line 2, I used 'deafening silence' as again more description of the night.  

 

 I use several metaphors and line 4 is an example. I call the moon the 'eye of the night.' In line 2, I wrote that the moon can see and that it watches everything that happens. This metaphor just extends on line 2.  





One for the Money Review

One for the Money was written by Janet Evanovich, a #1 New York Time Bestselling author. I absolutely love this series. The Stephanie Plum series is in the mystery genre. Published in 1994, One for the Money is the first novel in the series.

The Stephanie Plum series is hilariously funny and it is the first novel of so far nineteen novels. I can not wait for the next book to come out in November of 2013. One for the Money has recently been made into a movie in 2012.  I devoured this series in a couple of weeks, after seeing the movie, for the first novel. I like the movie and I love the novels. One for the Money is a great beginning to the amazing series.

These novels are fun, fast- paced and a wild adventure. The characters are highly entertaining. Stephanie Plum, the main character, is adventurous, down on her luck, and lively.  Her luck changes in this novel- she finds a job, finds a mentor, and manages not to die while making some money.

Joe Morelli embodies the romance in this novel. There is not much progress in this novel, but it starts the flirtation between Stephanie and Morelli. Ranger, on the other hand, is this novel, Stephanie’s mentor and helper for bounty hunting. Whenever something happens, Ranger is very calm and collected, while Morelli is quick to explode. Morelli and Ranger, especially Ranger, are both very intriguing characters. Lula, a secondary character, is hilarious and turns into almost a sidekick for Stephanie.  These characters and others are extraordinary supporting characters for Stephanie.

It has the beginnings of a romance, mystery, laughs, and drama. It was laugh out loud funny. I would highly recommend that everyone should give this series a try. I love this novel and the series. One for the Money is a winner.

Guilty Pleasures Review

Guilty Pleasures is a crime supernatural novel, written by Laurell K. Hamilton. Published in the year 1993, Guilty Pleasures is the first novel of the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series. This series has twenty novels so far.  I reviewed the third novel, Circus of the Damned, in January of 2013. This novel immediately drew me in once I started it.

I started this novel, because of how many references there were to the Anita Blake series, in the reviews of the novels that I had read. It was unreal the number of comparisons to the Anita Blake series. So, I decided to give it a shot. I have not regretted it. I love the plot, the characters, and the dark aspects that appear in all parts of the novel. I only just recently started the fourth novel in the series and Hamilton continues to stay true to the characters and the overall feel of this series.

Anita Blake is a kick- ass tough woman. She is the main character of the series and everyone seems to want something from her. In this novel, two vampires want something from her. Jean- Claude, one of the vampires, wants to use her to survive, to gain power, and he even has a love- interest in her. There is not much interaction between these two characters in this novel, but Jean- Claude seems relentless in his pursuit of Anita. Jean- Claude is a rather interesting character, and I hope that in the future novels there will be more about him.  The other vampire is the reigning master vampire in the city. He wants her to solve the cases of the vampires that were murdered. Anita is very much a take action kind of character. She rebels against being told what to do, especially by vampires.  Anita is prejudice against vampires, and it was very interesting reading about her interaction with the vampires.

The novel is a thriller. Guilty Pleasures is a well written novel. Hamilton created such a dark intriguing world and series. It has action, violence, friendship, the beginnings of a romance and a murder mystery.  I would definitely recommend this novel.

Nightseer Review

Nightseer is Laurell K. Hamilton's debut novel. 1992 was the year it was first released.  Nightseer was originally supposed to be a series, but it never obtained much public interest. It is a supernatural alternate- reality novel.

I decided to give this novel a try, because I liked the first few novels of Anita Blake series, that I had already read  by Hamilton.  I did not like this novel. It really surprised me how much I did not like it. It was confusing. The beginning was confusing, the plot was confusing, and over half the time I kept thinking, "when is this going to get good." The funny thing was that the ending was the best part of the whole novel. It had humor, showed a different side of the characters, and it had something that I felt was missing in the rest of the novel.

Nightseer threw me into this world, with what felt like no preparation, no background. For some novels that works, with others not so much, and Nightseer was just one of those novels that it did not work for me. I would have liked more background and more information on the characters and the setting.

Romance, where to begin? The whole process that the 'romance'  developed was just not enough for me. I was confounded; by the fact that at the beginning, Keleios, the main character, hates Lothor, then in the middle, they are working together and slowly becoming friends, and finally, at the end, somehow they become more than friends. What? All of this happens in 303 pages. It was too much, with not a whole lot actually happening.

Nightseer, "her spellbinding debut novel," maybe not. Her debut novel, definitely. As for spellbinding, it could have been better. I can not say that I would particularly recommend this novel. I did not really enjoy reading this novel. It was confusing and bland. I do not know what it is, but there was just missing something for me.  I would recommend reading some of Hamilton's other novels. This was not her best.  

Should We "Let Teenagers Try Adulthood"

The essay, Let Teenagers Try Adulthood, was written by Leon Botstein, the president of Bard College. The essay states that we should send teenagers out into the world earlier to get jobs and/or continue their college education. This would allow the students to learn to contribute to and join the  society.  Botstein also wrote that the current education system is outdated, both culturally and biologically, and that is why he suggests that students instead graduate at the age of sixteen. I do agree that the education system is desperately outdated and needs reform, but I do not completely agree on his new education system setup.

Is sixteen too early for students to be sent out into the world? Maybe. Some students need the two extra years to mature. Others are ready to start their lives separate from their parents. Would changing the graduation date, two years earlier, change how we, as a society, look at who is an adult? Would a teenager, at sixteen, be legally an adult? Changing our education system, so that students graduate at sixteen, would be a huge change to our society and even to some of our laws. I believe that we should keep the graduation at eighteen, but allow for more freedom and exploration into the future. It would allow for the teenagers to have more time to mature and prepare for their future.

In the essay, From Report of the Massachusetts Board of Education, Horace Mann wrote that the people with the higher education get the majority of the wealth. Botstein wanted to forgo middle school, add 6th grade to the elementary schools, and lesson the amount of time spent in school by two years. I do agree that middle school was rather like a place holder and not worth the time and may be eliminated. Would our students, with less time in school, still get the same knowledge, will they leave high school with a better education, or will they leave with less than those who are using the current education system? I would worry that with a decreased time limit, the students would obtain a lesser education. This could also effect our wealth, with so many people obsessed with their own wealth, it would be something to address.

Both Botstein and Todd Gitlin, author of the essay The Liberal Arts in an Age of Info- Glut, complain that the education system is outdated. Gitlin wrote that it is because of the thousands of images that a person sees a day, by television or otherwise, that the majority is garbage and it causes a disregard for the liberal arts. Both also addressed that the world is different and our education should resemble that fact. This is something that I completely agree with. The times have changed and so have we.

While Botstein's idea of students graduating at sixteen is not the most appealing, his thoughts on modernizing the education system is ideal. Also allowing teenagers to 'try' adulthood is a great way to create a brighter and better future. Reforms are necessary, but more thought should be put into our ideas before we make any changes.

 

Literary works are teaching values?

In the essay, I Know why the Caged Bird Cannnot Read, Francine Prose criticized the use of literary works to teach students values. She wrote that focusing on one aspect of the challenging and extraordinary literature, takes away from the actual writing piece. I have to agree that Prose is correct in her allegation.

Most teachers focus on the values: good vs. evil, right vs. wrong, racism, sexism, and it continues to include everything wrong or right in this world.  We push these novels on students, not because of their ability to challenge our students on a more literary standpoint or to increase the students' reading ability, but to teach them our values. Teachers have students read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird to teach students about racism. To Kill a Mockingbird also has the ever present good vs. evil with its simplified characters. Why are they talking about ethics, when the point of reading these novels is to learn to appreciate the writing?

When did reading a novel in Language Arts class become less about the language, the style, the characters, and all of its complexity, to become more about teaching lessons that most students at the high school level should have already learned. Teachers have to show what is beneath the surface and what is above it. In the novel Gone with the Wind, Scarlett's character has much more depth than being just a selfish woman. Her character was a modern woman placed in a time that being a business woman and a woman that fought for what she wanted was not something that was accepted in the late 1800s. Teachers should not simplify novels, just because they are a harder novel to read and understand.

Teachers should have students read classic novels and intricate modern novels. They should show the students the elaborate plots and complex characters. The Style and the language are also important elements, that should have more time dedicated to them. If these aspects are not addressed, are we really surprised that many students do not like to read? The reading lists of the Language Arts classes should be changed and the lower number of students that like to read should also be addressed. What happens in Language Arts classes can and will influence some students' future reading comprehension or if they read at all. Language Art teachers, especially in high school, should leave teaching values to the students' parents or elementary teachers and start focusing on the writing itself.

Queen of Education

The question on many people's mind is what we should do to improve education. How do we change our education system? Many people have, over the years, complained about our education system and they want change. They keep so- called "reforming" the school system, but everything looks the same, all the books are the same, the children do the same things, it is the same as it was before. Reforms are needed to create a competent and successful new generation. This new generation is, many people hope, going to pay off our debts and lead the country to prosperity and happiness and even allow us to compete with other countries in all areas. Reforms for education are a necessity for a brighter future.

Our students’ effort and participation in schools should be recognized and they should be appreciated. Everyone has a different area that they are good at. There are also many different kinds of smarts. People can be horrible test takers or just bad at school and still try just as hard, if not harder, at school work. We say that effort, hard work, and perseverance will be rewarded, but where is that reward in the education system? We should award those that work hard at it, not just those that get the best grades.

Grades should not be everything to students, but they are. Grades help decide your future, your collage, and your future occupation. The importance of grades has been related with an increase in cheating in schools around the nation. In recent years, teachers and parents have been stressing that cheating is unacceptable, but that is not enough. Our schools should crack down on cheating by at least changing their policies to have stricter consequences for cheating. When the consequences are harsher, less students will attempt to chea

 Advanced placement classes should also be reformed. These advanced placement (AP) classes are supposed to prepare us for collage, but do they really? The AP classes do help you learn study habits and how write essays. Many of those classes are not structured like a collage course, so it does not prepare you for that aspect. Reforms should be made to recreate the structure of a collage course and use that structure in the AP courses offered in high schools.

 Everyone in this nation believes that reform in the education system is needed. Everyone in this nation also can't agree on how to accomplish these goals. I believe that reforms are essential in the AP classes and in our grading system. Schooling is all about you and your future. AP classes are the best college preparation classes that we have at this point. We should maximize their potential. The students' efforts should also be accurately shown and rewarded. Education has never been more important, than in today's society.

Trying Something a Little Different

I am going to do a post on education this week and will hopefully get back to my reviews soon. My teacher wants to try something a little different for blogging. I hope you like it and hopefully it will just be for this week.


Reader Anonymus

Next Time in March

I recently started reading the two novels, Emma and Dead Witch Walking. Emma is a classic novel and was written by the famous author Jane Austen. I am about a fourth of the way through the novel. It is not my favorite Jane Austen. The book that holds the title of being that is Pride and Prejudice.  It introduces a lot of characters in the first few chapters so I would suggest taking some notes on who all the people are. It has a lot of description and has that old English way of talking. Emma also has a movie, which I saw several years ago.  The movie is, so far, a lot like the book.

The other novel, Dead Witch Walking, is a novel that I finished just a couple of days ago. I found it to be very entertaining and I really liked the plot. It is the first in a series, named after the main character Rachel Morgan. It is in the supernatural fantasy action genre. The author is Kim Harrison. I would highly recommend because I could not put the novel down. It was extremely good and its characters are well written. A perfect first novel to the series.

Next month, I am going to review the novel Nightseer written by Laurell K. Hamilton.  This is the first novel that I read by this author and I did not particularly like it.  Something was just missing for me, to really enjoy reading it. It was Hamilton's debut novel. This novel is a supernatural fantasy novel. This novel may not have given readers a great novel, but it did give readers a great new (then) author.   I may not have liked this novel, but I really enjoy reading her series, the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter novels.

I am also going to review the novel Guilty Pleasures. Guilty Pleasures was written by Laurell K. Hamilton. It is the first novel in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series. It is a supernatural action, crime novel. I reviewed the third novel, Circus of the Damned, in January. It introduced the story and the characters really well and had a great fast- paced plot to create an amazing novel. The novel has a rather dark setting, with characters that all have a dark aspect to their personality. This is perfect because this aspect of the novel shows up in all parts of the novel- the romance, the action, the mystery, the crime, the supernatural. Guilty Pleasures is a very good read.

Blood Before Sunrise review

Blood Before Sunrise was written by Amanda Bonilla. It is a supernatural action fantasy novel. Blood Before Sunrise was published last year in 2012. It is the second novel in the Shaede Assassin series.

As the second novel of the series, it builds on the characters and their relationships. This novel particularly builds on to the main character, Darian, and  her relationship with those closest to her. This novel starts several months after the end of the first novel.  Darian and her boyfriend, Tyler, are having problems in their relationship. Both of them want to protect the other and in doing so it makes the other angry. Darian also has problems opening up to Tyler and ends up lying to him, while she is trying to find her friend's daughter.  Every time she lied to him, I felt like screaming at her and then at the end Tyler leaves her, which was an absolutely awful ending.  I really hope that the next novel resolves this and that they get back together.

In this novel, I also discovered a progress in Raif, Darian's friend and mentor, and Darian's relationship. Raif become a best friend and a brotherly figure in Darian's life. He helped her with her issues and in this novel, she wanted to help him finally find his daughter. She is successful in her endeavor to find his daughter and helped reunited them, but not before discovering a plot to destroy all humans.  She is strong, independent (almost too independent), and a loyal character. She is only just discovering her full potential and is still discovering who and what she is.

I would recommend this novel, if you enjoyed the first novel, Shaedes of Grey. I thought this novel definitely could have been better and enjoyed the first novel much more. I would also recommend this novel to those that enjoy drama, romance, action, and the supernatural.  Blood Before Sunrise will hopefully just be a stepping stone in the series and that the next novel is better. I hope the next novel also brings Darian and Tyler back together, permanently. The author brought the two characters together in the first novel and she can bring them back together in the third. Blood Before Sunrise was not especially good, but it was not bad.

Touch of Frost review

Touch of Frost was written by Jennifer Estep. It is the first novel in the Mythos Academy series. Touch of Frost is a young adult supernatural fantasy novel. I read this novel a couple of months ago, and it was extremely good. I  could not put this novel down and read all the books, in the series so far, in a couple of days.  It was released on paperback in the middle of 2011.

I really liked the myths that were incorporated into the plot and the setting. The author used a lot of references to Greek, Roman, and Norse myths, in particular their gods and goddesses and  the different cultures warriors. These warrior included the Amazons, the Valkyries, the Vikings, and the Romans.  The main villain of the novel is also a myth, Loki, the Norse god of chaos and the main character, Gwen, is a gypsy.

Gwen is new to Mythos Academy, which is where people with abilities come to train and learn to protect themselves from Loki and his followers. Gwen has to adjust to this new system and culture that they have at the academy. She has not made any friends yet and just lost her mother before going to the academy. She is very curious and it shows throughout the novel. She uses this curiosity to get into dangerous situation and soon becomes aware that there is someone at the school that is dangerous. This curiosity also allows her to finally make friends with some people.

There is a little romance in the novel. There is not a whole lot because it gradually progresses throughout the series. In this novel, Gwen meets Logan, a Viking warrior. Logan has the image of a player, a bad boy, and one of the best fighters at the academy. Gwen initially does not want his attention and changes her mind about him several times throughout the novel. Logan does try to protect her when she is struggling to figure out who stole an artifact and murdered a girl in the library.  I hope this relationship between the two characters grows and that they resolve some of their issues. The author does not have a lot with Logan in this novel and I would like to see more parts of the next novel to include Logan.

I would recommend this novel, Touch of Frost. It was very good and I can not wait for the fifth novel, Midnight Frost, to be released. Touch of Frost is a must read.

Next Week 2-6-12

I recently read the novel Green- Eyed Demon. This novel is the third in the Sabina Kane series. I reviewed the first novel Red-  Headed Stepchild in December.  I really enjoyed reading this novel. The Green- Eyed Demon was written by Jaye Wells. The Sabina Kane novels are in the urban fantasy genre.  The plot was fast- paced and entertaining.  I liked the development of Sabina and Adam's relationship and hope to see more of that in the next novel, Silver- Tongued Devil. I can not wait to continue reading this series and hope that it continues to get better and better.

I also read A Sliver of Shadows. A Sliver of Shadows was written by Allison Pang. It is the second novel in a series. The first novel, A Brush of Darkness, was one of my first book reviews, back in September.  The main character, Abby, continues to grow into her new life. She found a new love interest, Talivar, who is an elven prince. I think that Talivar will be better for Abby than Brystion.  Abby also discovers the identity of her father in this novel. A Sliver of Shadows was very interesting and hopefully the third novel will be even better.

Next week, I will review the novels Blood Before Sunrise and Touch of Frost. Touch of Frost was written by Jennifer Estep. It is a young adult supernatural novel. Touch of Frost is the first novel in the Mythos Academy series. Gwen, the main character, is a very entertaining character to read about. She lands into situations that she never would have gotten into, if she was not so noisy. Gwen is still discovering where she belongs and is still trying to fit herself into Mythos Academy where everything is different. It has a very entertaining plot and I really enjoyed reading this novel.

I will also be reviewing Blood Before Sunrise. Blood Before Sunrise is the second novel in the Shaede Assassin series. I reviewed the first novel Shaedes of Grey, awhile back in September.  I read this novel just recently. I found it  to be a good sequel but was not crazy over the ending. I hope that the third novel resolves some issues and fixes Darian, the main character, and Tyler's relationship. I look forward to reading about what happens next and hope the third novel is better than this novel. Blood Before Sunrise was intriguing, but I had hoped for a better ending.

Once a Witch review

Once a Witch is a young adult fantasy novel. It  is the first novel in a series. It is a young adult fantasy novel. Once a Witch was written by Carolyn MacCullough. It was published in 2009. Once a Witch has a sequel called Always a Witch. Once a Witch is a decent read.

Once a Witch has family drama, romance, and magic.  The magic comes from the fact that the main character, Tasmin Greene, and her family are witches.  Tasmin grew up believing that she was the black sheep of the family, by not possessing any magic. This was not true and it starts some major family drama. Tasmin is upset, because she was lied to.  She felt betrayed and some of her family, especially her sister, made her feel abnormal when she was growing up. As the plot continued the reason for Tasmin being lied to is slowly being revealed.  The real reason does not even get fully revealed until the sequel, Always a Witch. I really did not like Tasmin's family for lying to her and for making her feel excluded.

The beginnings of romance is in this novel. The romance is between Tasmin and Gabriel. Gabriel liked her even when she was known not to have magic. He was her childhood friend and is a magic user. Gabriel helps Tasmin on her journey to save her sister from a family that hopes to destroy to Greene family.  

The villain is Alistair. He hopes to kill the entire Greene family and finish what his family started. His family hoped to gain power by killing humans. Alistair is a good character to put against Tasmin. Each character is driven and would do anything that is necessary to accomplish their goals.

I would highly recommend if you have read this novel to read Always a Witch, which has a good conclusion to the plotline. I would recommend Once a Witch to anyone who enjoys family drama and witches. It was an astounding novel with great characters.   

Top 5 Most Wanted Novels as of 1-30-12

Top 5 Novels That I Want:

 

1.      Blood of Dawn written by Tami Dane.  Blood of Dawn is the third novel in the Sloane Skye series. The series is of the paranormal crime genre.  Sloane is the main character. I would like the novel to resolve some of Sloane's romantic issues and for it to resolve some of her family issues. Sloane has three men that seem to be after her affections and I would like to see some development done on the romance part of the series.  I hope the series continues to build on the characters and to grow stronger. I liked that the novels go into the crime aspect and how they solve their cases. The first two novels were very interesting.

 

2.      Black City written by Christina Henry. It is a urban fantasy novel, with angels, demons, werewolves, mages and more. Black City is the fifth novel in the Black Wings series. I absolutely love this series and have enjoyed reading every novel. The main character, Maddy, has really stepped up in the last several novels and I can not wait for the Black City to be released.     

 

3.      The Vengeful Dead written by J. N. Duncan. The Vengeful Dead is the second novel in a paranormal crime series.  It is in a series called Deadworld.  The main character is Jackie. In the previous novel, Jackie lost her best friend Laurel.  I would like for Jackie, in The Vengeful Dead, to gain closure over her friend's death and to gain closure over her bad childhood. The Vengeful Dead will also hopefully have some development in the romance between Nick and Jackie.  The first novel was well written and its characters amazing.  

 

4.      House Rules written by Chloe Neill. House Rules in the seventh novel in the Chicagoland Vampires series.  It is an urban fantasy novel. I have read each and every novel of this series and continue to enjoy reading this series. I love the witty dialogue and the romance between Ethan and Merit, the main character.  This series has well developed characters, even the minor characters.  The Chicagoland Vampires series is a very good read.

 

5.      Shadows in the Silence written by Courtney Allison Moulton. The finial novel in the Angelfire trilogy.  I read the second novel just recently and found that I really want to read the complete the series. The previous novels were very good and very entertaining. The characters and the plot were well written. At the end of the second novel was a cliffhanger and Will, the main character's love interest, life hangs in the balance.  I hope Shadows in the Silence has an amazing ending, an ending that wraps up an amazing series.

Next Week 1-30-12

I recently just finished the novel, Wings of the Wicked. Wings of the Wicked is the second novel in a trilogy. It is a young adult fantasy novel. Wings of the Wicked was written by Courtney Allison Moulton. The first novel of the series is called Angelfire. I was very pleased with the progress in the plot and in the romance of the novel. I liked reading more about the main character’s powers awakening to their full potential. I also liked reading about Ellie, the main character, and Will’s relationship and the development of the romance in the plot. This cause more aspects of their personalities to shine through and to be conveyed throughout the novel. I found that I can not wait for the third and final novel to be release, so that I can find out how it ends.

I also read the novel The Mage in Black. The Mage in Blackwas written by Jaye Wells. It is the second novel in the Sabina Kane series. The series has five novels total. The novel is fast- paced and does not lag in any parts. There was not much development on Sabina, the main character, and Adam’s romance, which was disappointing, but hopefully there will be more in the third novel, The Green- Eyed Demon. I liked learning more about Sabina as a character and her past. I enjoyed reading about Sabina’s twin sister, Maisie, and reading about how different these two characters are from one another. The Mage in Black was very interesting and I can not wait to start the next novel.

Next Week, I will update by list of the Top 5 Novels That I Want. I have not updated this list in a long time, so it is due for an update. The last list that I posted was for the holidays, which was a month or so back.

I also plan on reviewing the novel, Once a Witch. The novel, Once a Witch, was written by Carolyn MacCullough. It is the first novel in a young adult urban fantasy series. This novel was very interesting and the family drama is also very relatable to real life. The situations may be completely different but the underlying causes are something we can see in reality. The main character, Tamsin, is a strong character that many people can empathize with in some way. The novel also contains romance for the main character. Once a Witch’s plot is continued in the sequel called, Always a Witch.

Cry Wolf review

Cry Wolf was written by Patricia Briggs. It is a supernatural fantasy novel and the first full length novel in the Alpha and Omega series. The Alpha and Omega series is an offshoot to the Mercy Thompson series. I reviewed the first novel of the Mercy Thompson series, Moon Called, last week. Cry Wolf was published in 2008.

I loved learning more about some of the minor characters in the Mercy Thompson series, which are now more major character in this series. Now when I reread the Mercy Thompson series, I better understand and know some of the characters that briefly come into the plot or are mentioned while reading one of the novels. These characters include Bran and the main characters, Charles and Anna.

Anna is the omega which is a werewolf that is outside of the normal pack structure. An omega werewolf has the ability to influence the emotions of the werewolves around her and she calms their aggressive tendency. Omegas are highly valued pack members and Anna is just beginning to understand her importance because of how new she is to being a werewolf and was never properly taught the ways of her new society. Charles is the alpha werewolf. Charles is an old werewolf at over two hundred years old. Alphas are very dominant and protective of those they consider weaker than them, including submissive werewolves. Omegas are also very important to protect because with the Omegas comes the ability to keep more werewolves alive, by stopping some more violent tendencies.

I like the pace of which Charles and Anna’s relationship developed. It made their relationship very realist and gave a solid foundation for their relationship. As a couple, they had a lot of problems to overcome. Anna needed to get over her abuse past and to feel confident around other werewolves. Charles has guilt over his own past and he starts to come to terms with the fact that he has to defeat this guilt that he feels. I really enjoyed reading about these two characters.

I would definitely recommend Cry Wolf to anyone who likes the supernatural, action, and romance. I would also recommend this novel to anyone who liked the Mercy Thompson series. Cry Wolf was very well written. Cry Wolf was an exceptional read.

Mercy review

Mercy was written by Rebecca Lim. It is the first novel of the Mercy series. Mercy is a young adult supernatural novel. It was published in 2010. I read this novel several months back and found it to be not too bad.

It was not as grabbing as I would have liked this novel to have been. It was pretty good, but there was something missing that just did not capture me, as some other novel have.  There were also times were the plot was rather slow or events in the novel just did not have a big impact. I did not immediately race to finish the novel even after the big climatic events took place. I just finished it because I wanted to be finished.

Besides from my personal feelings towards how gripping the novel was, Mercy did have an interesting plotline and characters. The main character, Mercy, was no idea who she is or how she comes to be in different people’s bodies. Mercy’s character is not developed as much as I would have liked. I want to read about Mercy and the different sides to her personality. I also want to read more about Mercy’s past and why she is the way she is. While she possesses these people, she tries to help them by dealing with whatever situation they have to resolve. In this novel, Mercy helps Carmen, the girl that she is possessing, stand up for herself and she helps solve a serial kidnapping case.  

This kidnapping case is something that changes Mercy’s life. Throughout the novel, she gets closer to Ryan and it sparks the beginning of a romance. Mercy tells Ryan about the real her, not about Carmen. Ryan’s sister is one of the kidnapped girls, so Mercy offers to help.  Mercy is even further involved when she, as Carmen, is kidnapped as well.  I hope to see much more development of both characters, Ryan and Mercy, and of their relationship and how that continues in the next novels.

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys angels, mystery, and young adult novels. Mercy was not one of the better novels that I have read but is a decent read.  I would love for the next novels to have more development of the characters and for Mercy’s past to be fully revealed.  I look forward to finding out about the next woman that Mercy will possess.  

Moon Called review

Moon Called was written by the author Patricia Briggs. It is the first novel in the Mercy Thompson series. Moon Called was published in 2006. It is a supernatural fiction novel.  The Mercy Thompson series has an offshoot series called Alpha and Omega, which is also really good. I personally prefer the Mercy Thompson series to the Alpha and Omega series.  Moon Called was an excellent novel and a perfect first novel to a series.

This novel, Moon Called, thoroughly hooked me to the Mercy Thompson series. It is one of my favorite series. Mercy, the main character, is interesting and exciting to read about and Mercy is portrayed and was created very well by the author, Patricia Briggs.  Mercy is independent, smart, and witty. She is also very tough, because of the things she survives and because of all the things she has been through in her life. Mercy is a walker, which is a coyote shifter.  Mercy’s love interest is Adam, who is a werewolf.  Adam is a good man for Mercy, because even though he is an alpha werewolf, he will never try to control her and what she does. He also is fiercely protective and intelligent. Even the secondary supporting characters are well written and you can get a good sense of who they are as characters.

Moon Called is a supernatural, mystery, romance, and action novel. The romance was already mentioned with Adam and Mercy, although not much development takes place in this book on that aspect.  There is a murder and the kidnapping of Adam’s daughter, Jesse, at the beginning of the novel and Mercy and Adam try to get justice and get Jesse back.  While the plot continues there are several fight scenes in the novel leading up to a bigger fight scene at the end of the novel. Moon Called has many different supernatural creatures in it including werewolves, walkers, vampires, witches, and the fae.

I would recommend Moon Called to anyone who enjoys mystery, action, witty dialogue, great characters and lots of supernatural creatures. Even if you do not like to read many novels, I would still suggest you read this novel and continue reading the series.  Moon Called was very good. I have read this novel several times and I still love it. It is one of my absolute favorite novels to read.

Circus of the Damned review

I recently finished the novel Circus of the Damned, during my break from posting. Circus of the Damned is written by Laurell K. Hamilton. It is the third novel in the Anita Blake, vampire hunter series. The novel was published in 1995.  The novels get better and better as the series progresses.

This novel was composed of mystery, violence, darkness, and death. All of these qualities are used to make the Circus of the Damned a compelling third novel. These elements are found in every corner of the Anita Blake series. The novel begins with introducing the work of the new monsters in town. This “work” is the death of a man. Anita is compelled to find this pack of vampires before they kill again. This vampire pack hunts together to kill one victim, and because of that they will have to kill often. Anita is unaware that she won’t need to look for them, because they will come looking for her. I really like this part of the plot because of the mystery. She deals with situations almost blindly and without any amazing amounts of power and manages to kill things that are hundreds of times stronger than her. Anita has a lot of luck and courage that is needed to deal with big bad monsters.

Violence is very common is this series. In the beginning, Anita, Jean- Claude, and his people fight a giant snake. Then throughout the novel, Anita is placed in dangerous situations that get out of hand. I never can figure out how she is going to come out alive, but she always manages to come up with something to save the day.

Anita is no longer bound to Jean- Claude at the end, which is good for her. Jean- Claude also has competition for Anita. His competition is non-other than Richard, a werewolf. Richard was introduced by Jean- Claude, so it is his own fault.  Jean- Claude is a very conflicting character. He is harsh, demanding, and violent, but also has a more sensitive side that appears throughout the novel.

Anita is a strong leading character. Her loyalty has no bounds. She is tough, independent, and an unmovable force. Her moral compass may not always point due north, but she follows a strict code of honor.

The Circus of the Damned is an amazing and gripping third novel.  It is has violence, mystery, murder, mayhem, and a bit of romance. It makes the perfect action novel.

Next Week 1-23-12

Magic for a Price was written by Devon Monk.  I finished this novel just last week and could not put it down.  It was a satisfying ending to a beloved series.  It is the ninth and finial novel in the Allie Beckstrom series.  Magic for a Price is a supernatural action novel.  I love happy endings and was especially happy that the author, Monk, gave the characters the ending they deserved. I love the characters in this series and was thoroughly entertained by the journey that they go on.

I finished this novel The Shattered Dark. The Shattered Dark was written by Sandy Williams. I loved the first novel called the Shadow Reader.  I liked the continuation of the romance between Aren and Mckenzie and would like to see even more development in that aspect of the plot, in the next novel.  I hope that Aren and Mckenzie resolve their issues in the next novel as well. The Shattered Dark picked up right where the Shadow Reader ended.  I really am enjoying reading this series and look forward to any future novels by this author.

Next Week, I will review the novel Cry Wolf. Cry Wolf was written by Patricia Briggs.  It is a supernatural action novel. It is the first full length novel of the series, Alpha and Omega. The first actual novel was in a book with several short novels written by several authors called On the Prowl. I loved reading about the development of the two main characters, Charles and Anna. I also enjoyed reading about Anna and Charles’ relationship and how it progressed. The plotline was entertaining but had some slow sections. The Alpha and Omega series is an offshoot of the Mercy Thompson series. Cry Wolf is a pretty entertaining novel to be engrossed in. 

I will also review the novel Mercy, next week. Mercy was written by Rebecca Lim. Mercy is the first novel in its series. It is a young adult supernatural novel.  Mercy is a fallen angel, who wakes up in human bodies and tries to help the humans with whatever problems they were currently having.  Mercy has no memory of her life before she fell.  In this novel, she awakens as Carmen and helps discover who was behind several kidnappings that were happening.  Mercy is a very likable and sympathetic character.   I liked this novel, but it was not my favorite angel novel.

Next Week 1-16-12

I finished the novel Cry Wolf last week. Cry Wolf was written by Patricia Briggs. This is the first full length novel of the series.  It is an off shoot of the Mercy Thompson series. The series is called Alpha and Omega.  I really enjoyed about the adventures of werewolves and mates, Charles and Anna. So far the series has three full length novels.  I loved the Mercy Thompson series, so finding out about some of the minor characters was very fun.

I also read the novel Touch of Frost. Touch of Frost was written by Jennifer Estep. It is a young adult supernatural novel. It is also the first in the Mythos Academy novels. It has myths from mainly Greek and Norse mythology, but also contains myths from many different cultures.  The main character, Gwen, is fun to read about and essay to sympathize with. She has been thrown into this crazy world and it is interesting to see her navigate her way through it. The novel was very grabbing and I could not seem to put it down. I would definitely recommend this novel to people who enjoy romance, action, the supernatural and myths.

Next Week, I plan to review Circus of the Damned. Circus of the Damned was written by Laurell K. Hamilton. It is the third novel of the Anita Blake series. I have been writing about this series for a while and have thoroughly enjoyed the series so far. I have to applaud the author for creating such amazing intricate novels. I loved learning more about the characters and the different relationships between them. The main character, Anita, is strong and fierce and through Hamilton’s writing it shows up time and time again.   This novel grabbed me from the beginning with the violence and mystery that showed up so early in the novel.

I also plan to review the novel Moon Called. Moon Called is the first of Mercy Thompson series, which I mentioned earlier.  I loved reading this novel. I think I have read it at least three times. Moon Called is the first novel in the series. I thought it was an excellent read and very entertaining. The main character, Mercy, is an exciting character.  Mercy has such controlled defiance and strength. She is very independent, but likes to help people when she can.  Moon Called is of the supernatural genre. It is a must read.

Deadworld review

Deadworld was written by J. N. Duncan. Deadworld is a dark urban fantasy novel. It is the first in a series called Deadworld. It was published two years ago in 2011. Its sequel is number seven on my Holidays: Top 7 Novels that I Want list. The sequel is called Vengeful Dead.  It is a supernatural murder mystery novel.

It took me a long time to start reading this novel and I can not remember why I did not start it sooner. Deadworld has everything that is wanted for its genre. It has action, murder, suspense, a dark tone, and haunted and tough characters. The author even included the paranormal.  It has vampires, ghosts, and physics.  

Deadworld’s two main characters, Jackie Rutledge and Nick Anderson, are both haunted by their pasts. Jackie can not seem to let many people close to her and has a hard time forming romantic relationships because of it. Nick is a vampire, who is haunted by the death of his family and a serial killer. This serial killer is the one that killed his family and continues to punish Nick by killing people and dressing them as Nick’s family members.  Nick and Jackie are drawn to each other throughout the novel, and I hope to see more romance between them in the second novel.

Jackie and Laurel are police officer partners and best friends. They are the detectives investigating the murders that have recently been occurring. These murders are the work of the serial killer that killed Nick’s family. This makes Jackie, Laurel and Nick work together to stop the serial killer.

Jackie is a tough and rough around the edges detective. She, underneath the surface, is insecure and emotionally damaged. Laurel grounds Jackie and keeps her sane. Jackie then in return always comes to Laurel’s defense even though Laurel does not care what people say. It will be interesting to read about how Jackie picks herself back up after Laurel death at the hands of the serial killer. At the beginning of the novel, it become apparent that something bad is going to happen, but you do not know what it is. Laurel’s death was that something bad as you felt for her as a character and because Jackie was so devastated when she died.

I would recommend Deadworld to anyone who enjoys the paranormal, murder mysteries, and suspense. Deadworld was a very gripping novel. I really enjoyed reading it.

Ill Wind review

Ill Wind is the first novel of the Weather Warden series. Ill Wind was written by Rachel Caine. Many people are most familiar with Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampire young adult series. The weather warden series is geared more towards adult readers.  Ill Wind was published in the year 2003.  It is a urban fantasy novel. 

The novel begins by dropping you in to a situation where the main character is looking for powerful allies and running for her life. The situation is revealed slowly by flashbacks. I liked the flashbacks in this book. They helped create an air of suspension and intrigue. 

The main character is very smart and powerful. Her name is Joanne Baldwin and she is a weather warden. I really enjoyed the weather warden aspect. It is something that I have never seen done before, nor have I read anything like it. Not many novels have supernatural references to the weather.  The novel as has Djinn, which are like genies.  A Djinn helps Joanne reveal and prove her innocence to the other weather wardens. They had accused Joanne of murder, before learning all the facts. Joanne was in fact protecting herself. She killed in self- defense. She immediately fled to find someone help her survive, because the man she killed put a mark on her that would kill her eventually.

The Djinn that helps her is called David. David and Joanne meet in the beginning of the novel and soon began a relationship. That relationship is something that I hope continues to grow throughout the series. This novel does not have much information about David and I hope as I continue reading the series my information of him grows.  I would also like to see a bit more romance between Joanne and David. I would be nice, that as the series continue, that the characters continue to build a bit more.

I loved the ending with its cool twists and turns. It put a refreshing spin on an ending that could have been incredibly easy to guess. Joanna is now stronger than ever to take on whatever obstacle that is in her path. I can’t wait to read on and find out what adventure will happen upon Joanne and David.  

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys romance, the supernatural, mystery, and the weather. The characters were endearing and interesting. The plot was fun and entertaining. Ill Wind was a satisfying read. Its world is entertaining enough to enjoy and escape for a few hours.