Holidays Are Hell by Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Marjorie M. Liu, Vicki Pettersson

Holidays Are Hell by Kim Harrison



This holiday, spend quality time with family and loved ones;living and dead . . .

There's no place like home for the horrordays;unless you'd prefer a romantic midnight walk through a ghost-infested graveyard . . . or a haunted house candlelight dinner with the sexy vampire of your dreams. The (black) magical season is here;and whether it's a solstice séance gone demonically wrong with the incomparable Kim Harrison, a grossly misshapen Christmas with the remarkable Lynsay Sands, a blood-chilling-and-spilling New Year's with the wonderful Marjorie M. Liu, or a super-powered Thanksgiving with the phenomenal Vicki Pettersson, one thing is for certain: in the able hands of these exceptional dark side explorers, the holidays are going to be deliciously hellish!

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I have written up a little review of each story. I did not realize it when I started the book, but I have books and/or series of books by each of these authors on my TBR shelf. But have not yet read any of them, with the exception of one Kim Harrison's 'Hollows' book that I don't remember being terribly impressed with. So here goes--





Two Ghosts for Sister Rachel by Kim Harrison--

I have read the first book about the Hollows by Harrison and while it was okay I was not blown away and have not read any of the others yet. But I have to say that I loved this story about a teenage Rachel. I have to go back and check my journal entry for the book that I have read, but I don't recall anything in it that relates to this story. In this story we have a young, sickly Rachel, who is fighting to overcome the remnants of a battle with an illness that no before her has ever survived. She wants to join the I.S. but her older brother wants her to move with him and study witchcraft. He makes a deal with her -- If she can perform a spell and bring back the ghost of their father to ask him what he thinks Rachel should do, and her father's ghost agrees that she should join the I.S., then he will sign the papers for her. Rachel performs the spell with success but the ghost that comes back is not her father. This leads to a race to find a young girl, who has been kidnapped by a vampire that the ghost Rachel brought back has battled before. All in all a very detailed and exciting story that makes me want to go dig out my Rachel Morgan books and read them now.





Run, Run Rudolph by Lynsay Sands --



This was a fun, romantic read. When Jill is zapped by an experimental ray from a molecular destabilizer that her brother has created, she suddenly becomes a shape shifter, able to instantly change into anyone (or anything) that she sees. This leads to a bit of chaos when a crazy lab assistant tries to kidnap her to experiment on. With the help of a guy she has been 'friends' with for the past 6 months, she has to escape the madman and try to keep her secret from her potential new guy, all of this while play Mrs. Claus in the annual Christmas parade. lol A wonderful, fun story that was quite enjoyable to read.





Six by Marjorie Liu --



This is a much darker urban fantasy than the first 2 stories in the book. The story takes place in Shanghai where we meet Six -- a young woman who has been raised by the government and trained to be a killer. She works for an elite team of female anti terrorists who are deadlier than any other weapon that the government has. While investigating a possible terrorist threat she encounters a man who is nothing like anyone she has ever met before. When he saves her from a vampire she decides to learn what she can from him about this new threat to her nation, even though it may mean she has to commit treason. Good read, good urban fantasy.





The Harvest by Vicki Pettersson --



I really enjoyed this story of The Zodiac. I have not read any of her Zodiac series of books yet, but I really enjoyed this one and look forward to starting them soon. I can't wait to see how the stories tie into this one. I was amazed at how much the author managed to include in a short story. It was great!! Zoe is an agent of the Light, a member of the Zodiac team. She has given up her powers in order to protect her daughter, who is supposed to be a the fulfillment of a prophesy. When her granddaughter, who is also a supernatural, but being hidden in the mortal world for her own safety, is kidnapped by the Shadows, she must contact her old love and convince him and the other members of the Zodiac to help her rescue the child. I am very eager to read more of her books and learn more about the Zodiac. Great Read!!


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Fish Out of Water (Fred the Mermaid, Book 3) by MaryJanice Davidson

Fish Out of Water by MaryJanice Davidson


red the Mermaid has taken the bait and chosen to date Artur, Prince of the Black Sea, over human marine biologist Thomas. And just in time. The existence of the Undersea Folk is no longer a secret, and someone needs to keep them from floundering in the media spotlight. Fred has all the right skills for that job, but has a hard time when her real father surfaces and tries to overthrow Artur’s regime.

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I am so sad to know that this is the last Fred the Mermaid book. I love Fred and totally enjoyed this series. In this final book Fred has to help Arthur and his father try to figure out what is happening to the Undersea Folk. Lots of them have been disappearing since their recent decision to show themselves to humans and Fred and the crew rent a mansion in Florida and begin to investigate. Add to this Fred's best friend, Jonas in the midst of his wedding plans and Fred's decision about which guy she wants to be with and you are in for a wonderful adventure. This is the MJD that I fell in love with!!


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The Man With the Golden Torc (Shaman Bond #1) by Simon R. Green

The Man With the Golden Torc by Simon R. Green


From the New York Times bestselling author of the Deathstalker and Nightside series comes a new kind of hero in an old kind of war.

All those things you hear about as a kid? The boogeyman under the bed? The creature in the closet? They're for real, people.

Eddie Drood knows they're for real. His family has kept humanity safe from the things that go bump in the night. For ages, they've held back the nightmares, locked the doors, barred the gates, and put righteous boot to monster arse on a nightly basis.

But now Eddie's in trouble. One of his own has convinced the rest of the family that Eddie's become a menace, and that humanity needs to be protected from him. So he's on the run, using every trick in the book, magical and otherwise, hoping he lives long enough to prove his innocence. And he knows how dangerous the Droods can be-because he's one of them

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first book by Green that I have read, though I have quite a few on my TBR shelf. I enjoyed it. I really like the main character and his sense of humor. That's Bond, Shaman Bond! lol For me this book is very tongue in cheek. Lots of James Bondishness. I have never been a James Bond fan and so was put off a little bit, but eventually was able to overlook it and really enjoy the book and the characters. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series soon.


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The Borderkind (The Veil, book 2) by Christopher Golden

The Borderkind by Christopher Golden


For centuries they lived amongst us. The frightful and wondrous, the angelic and bloodthirsty. Living in a reality just beyond the Veil, humanity’s myths and legends are caught in a struggle for their very survival—against hunters far more powerful than they are.

Into this struggle has stepped a New England lawyer who once wanted to be an actor—a man who both longs for the mortal woman he was to marry and is desperate to rescue the sister who’s been taken hostage. Neither hero nor warrior, Oliver Bascombe now finds himself brandishing a magical sword, walking in the company of a woman who sometimes appears as a fox and a man made of pure ice, and dueling with albino giants and winged killers. For in the world of the Borderkind—and the realms that exist beyond it—Oliver is discovering just how vulnerable are humankind’s myths, the dire consequences of their extinction, and the reason he was chosen to save them.…

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
This second book in the Veil series was a wonderful continuation of the story that we began in 'The Myth Hunters'. We follow Oliver Bascombe as he continues on his journey to survive and try to figure out what his place is on this side of the veil. He joins Frost and the other Myths in their attempt to discover who has sent the Hunters out to kill the Borderkind. Oliver discovers that his sister has been kidnapped by the Sandman and is being held as bait. But why is Oliver so important to this battle? We learn more about Oliver and his sister and the place they have in this epic battle.



Looking forward to finishing the story with 'The Lost Ones' which went on sale April 2008.


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Hell's Kitchen by Chris Niles

Hell's Kitchen by Chris Niles


Cyrus is a millionaire recluse. Oh, and a serial killer who preys upon apartment hunters in New York City. Armstead Maupin meets Carl Hiaasen in a brilliant black comedy that traces the paths of disparate characters floating through New York, about to collide in a treacherous story that will make you think twice about ever answering a classified ad.

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was a lot different that what I was expecting. While the book is about a serial killer (a rather inept one, who is really only a wanna be serial killer) the book is more about the relationships of about a half dozen different characters and how their lives intertwine throughout the book.



It was an okay read. I got a few chuckles out of it. I enjoyed some of the characters and how the culmination of the book brought everyone who we had met throughout the story together for the climax. An interesting read, but for me, not a really great one.


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Dark Carnival by James A. Moore


Synopsis
The circus is in town—the bad news is, it's raising more than a ruckus.It's raising the dead.

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was a so-so ending to the trilogy. My least favorite of the three books, but a must read if you have read the first two. I found this book to have a lot of carnage, that IMO, was not really necessary. The storyline kind of lost steam for me and I was not totally satisfied with the ending. There were some loose threads left hanging that I would have liked to have had sewn up, but it was an okay read. Seems there may be room for another story that involves Crowley which I would enjoy reading. Crowley was probably my favorite character and I would be interested to see his story continue.


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The Pack (Serenity Falls, Book 2) by James A. Moore

The Pack by James A. Moore


Welcome to Serenity Falls...A young girl is horribly tortured, a boy becomes a conduit to hell, the dogs of the town turn feral. One man has been enlisted to stop the encroaching evil. He'll soon discover that the true horror lies not with those who walk the earth, but with those who lie beneath it.

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Really enjoyed this second book in the Serenity Falls trilogy. This book is written quite differently than the first but I think that you definitely want to read the first book before this one so that you can have the background of the town and the introduction to the town that you get in the first book.



With this second book we actually get into the current day happenings in the town. There really seem to be two different forces at work here. One is the evil being that has lured the Hunter to town and seems to be possessing people to taunt Crowley and then we have the evil that is being generated by the man who placed the curse on the town (can not remember his name off hand). It occasionally gets confusing as to which evil we are currently dealing with but it also makes for a much more involved and intricate plot.



I do have to say that this book ended right in the middle of the story and I would be very unhappy if I did not already have the last book in the trilogy laying here to read right away. I do look forward to finishing the story, though.


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Writ in Blood: Serenity Falls 1 by James A. Moore

Writ in Blood: Serenity Falls 1 by James A. Moore


Serenity Falls is dead. No commerce, tourism, or good will. It gets worse.

An historian has uncovered the town's unspeakable past: lynchings, mass murders, sexual depravity, and rumors of the birth of the anti-Christ. But the darkest secret is yet to be revealed--in the Serenity Falls trilogy.

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I completely enjoyed this book. It is written in a very interesting style that has us bouncing back and forth between three different story lines.



In one we are following Simon MacGruder, and elderly man who has recently felt compelled to investigate and write the history of Serenity Falls, a town where he has spent his life. The history that he writes is not what you would typically find in the History books, though. It is a much more morbid history of all of the tragedies and atrocities visited upon or committed by the citizens of Serenity Falls throughout it's history.



The second part is that history of Serenity Falls as it would be written for a book. From the first settlers and the barbaric death that they visited upon one of the female settlers, through a history, that does not leave any of the descendants of those first settlers untouched by tragedy.



The third part of the book follows a Hunter by the name of Jonathan Crowley. Jonathan follows and kills evil supernatural beings across the country. He does not visit Serenity Falls in this book, but I have no doubt that it will be his destination in one of the next two books in the series.



Looking forward to reading the rest of this series as well!


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