Twisted Kingdom

Clay Bennett is a powerful DarkRiver sentinel, but he grew up in the slums with his human mother, never knowing his changeling father. As a young boy without the bonds of Pack, he tried to stifle his animal nature. He failed...and committed the most extreme act of violence, killing a man and losing his best friend, Talin, in the bloody aftermath. Everything good in him died the day he was told that she, too, was dead.

Talin McKade barely survived a childhood drenched in bloodshed and terror. Now a new nightmare is stalking her life--the street children she works to protect are disappearing and turning up dead. Determined to keep them safe, she unlocks the darkest secret in her heart and returns to ask the help of the strongest man she knows...

Clay lost Talin once. He will not let her go again, his hunger to possess her, a clawing need born of the leopard within. As they race to save the innocent, Clay and Talin must face the violent truths of their past...or lose everything that ever mattered.

Reason for Reading: I've been bitten by the Nalini Singh bug. Really, I woke up last weekend and had the strangest burning in my stomach. I quickly realized I needed to read some Singh.

The blurb above did a good job of describing what goes on without being spoilerish. And I don't really want to dole out spoilers for the series, I mean, there's a lot of complicated stuff going on with the Psy Council and some mysterious figure called the Ghost. oooohhhhh

My Thoughts: Ok, I need to be brutally honest here. The first half of this book almost had me ripping out my hair. I found Talin and her fear of Clay to be very very frustrating. I just couldn't get past how afraid she was! I just wanted to smack her. Also, I found Clay too...too much - his beast was always ready to pop out and wanted to scream and roar for his mate and blah. It was like we were being told Clay was on the edge to create some drama but I just wasn't feeling it because Talin's fear was so annoying all on its own. Clay's drama was just another annoyance.

Also, Talin comes to Clay to find one of her missing children (she works for an organization called Shine that helps disadvantaged children). Only they actually don't go about finding anyone until well after page 100. Because the first 100 pages is all about Talin's drama.

Can you see now why I was annoyed?

Fortunately, things pick up in the last half of the book. Talin eventually realizes that Clay would never hurt her (duh). Once that happens, my frustration melted away and I got into the story and could not put it down.

But - and there is a but - in all the other past books, there's been a lot of action. Like going after the Psy, actively going after them. In Mine to Possess, the resolution was handed to our characters almost on a silver platter and I wanted some action! That's my only beef with the last half of MtP.

I'm giving Mine to Possess a C+. Even after all the frustration, I still had a big smile on my face when I finished the last page.

I have to say that although I've been reading quite a lot of paranormal romances in the past few years, I've been sticking to the mainstream kinds - or perhaps, I should say, the authors have sticked to the mainstream kinds. However, this is changing and authors are starting to diversify the paranormal beings in their books. As a result, I've been wanting to read Hell's Belle ever since I've heard about it, because the main character is a succubus.



Hell's Belle by Jackie Kessler: 3.75/5
published in January 2007 by Zebra/Kesington Books (Trade paperback format)

Hell on Earth starts here…

Jezebel’s not your average exotic dancer. For one thing, she’s a 4,000-year-old succubus. For another, she’s on the run from Hell (which isn’t easy to do in high heels). Hiding on the mortal coil as a human doesn’t protect her from muggers, lactose intolerance…or having feelings for Paul Hamilton, a man haunted by his past. Demons are closing in, which is enough to make Jezebel shiver in her G-string. But it’s her love for Paul that’s going to have deadly consequences. (Humans, she laments, really should come with instruction manuals.)

I tried writing a synopsis for this book, but figure out that the book's back blurb was doing a better job than I was :P I'll just add this:

Jezebel was unhappy with the changes and new leadership in Hell and decided to pack and leave. As a result, the new Lord of Hell put a bounty on her head, sent his hunters after her to set an example. To escape, Jezebel obtained a human body through witchcraft, borrowed the look, identity, credit cards and amulet, which protects from Evil beings, of Cailtin, the witch who helped her and left Salem for New York. In the train station, she met Paul, a NY cop, and there was this instant connection between them. While adapting to her life, with the help of Paul who wants to help her (he thinks she was abused and forced into prostitution), she finds a job as an exotic dancer which is right up her alley. However, it doesn't take long for friends and ennemies to find her...

Series: Jezebel the Succubus
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Succubus

Review: I like the book and I was pleasantly surprised. Sure, I read the back blurb and wanted to read it for awhile, but that didn't guarantee that I would like the book right? Also, succubus are a bit out of my comfort zone. Another pleasant surprise was the beginning of the book. From reading the black blurb, I thought she was already settled and everything. Instead, we accompany Jezebel on her run and learns about the reasons through flashbacks. All in all, I thought the series had good potential, enjoyed the book which made me want to read more. However, the writing style takes a bit of getting use to and Paul is not developed enough ^^;

The Characters - I like Jezebel and I like how she stood up and decided to take her life in her hands when she was unhappy, even if it put her in danger. She definitively has more depth than you'd think a demon has and she's something :D I'm also happy that she's not entire clueless as how to behave like a human, since as a succubus, she did have to appear human.

Now Paul is yummy :D No wonder Jezebel falls for him so quickly :D He's a cop who has lost his fiancee to a hit-and-run a few years ago. Because he couldn't handle the pressure his soon-to-be-in-laws were putting on him, he moved to New York. There's an instant connection between Jezebel and him and he's determined to pursue it. I have to say, although he's yummy, there was something that bothered me: he was hanging out in a strip-club ^^; Not usually an attractive trait in a hero, but then, at the end it made sense. Also, I liked how he tried to understand and help Jezebel. I know that I did say that he was not developed enough, but I guess that given the fact that Jezebel is the main character, it is understandable that the focus is on her and so, the author did a good job.

Other characters we get to meet are Jezebel's best friend - a fury, Daun - an incubus and also, Jezebel's friend and Lilith - queen of Hell. There's also a few of Jezebel's co-workers, but really, the book mainly focused on Jezebel, which is good :D

The Style & Writing - This is where it started getting tricker. Basically, I didn't have any problem with her writing style, as in how she formulates her sentences, dialogue and so on. What took a bit more of getting used was how Ms. Kessler broke down the book. Basically, Hell's Belle is divided into many parts (I think 6) and each part is given the name of a character. First was Jezebel, than the fury friend, Paul and etc. So the story is told, but in each part, there'll be a flashback of Jezebel and whoever is the character of this part. This wasn't a bad idea, but the problem was the transition between the parts. The transition wasn't always smooth, which results in breaking the flow, and it was a bit confusing at first. So it took a little bit getting used to, but still, I was able to enjoy the book.

The Cover - I think the cover is nice :D I guess there's a leg fetish going on in the cover industry, but I don't mind. I think it's better than a man's torso ^^;

Am I keeping this book? Yep, I am. I'm also going to buy the next one when it comes out :D

Anything else? Well, I wasn't sure I would like to read about a succubus, because of all the sex... I'm the kind of person who likes faithfulness and usually one man-one woman relationship. However, the characterization, setting and story won me over, but I'm still ticked at Jezebel for having sex with Daun, even if he was in the disguise of Paul...

anyway, here is Ms. Jackie Kessler's website.

Hourrah, hourrah! This is our first review for an e-book and we hope that everyone will enjoy it :)

Wings of Love by Dayna Hart
published in February 2007 by Forbidden Publications, available here.

Aimée is about to celebrate her 21st birthday and is very excited about it. However, her life suddenly takes a new turn and changes forever when she starts seeing fairies. The news does not please her mother, Cristina, at all and her behavior becomes even more erratic and high-strung than usual. It is only when Aimée meets Lael, a cupid fairy, that she discovers that her life, her mother and her father - a father that she has never known - are linked tightly to the world of fairies and that they need her.

Nath is in black and Kailana is in this colour.

Review: This is the first fantasy e-book that I have read and I think it holds a lot of promises. The story is a bit slow at the beginning and a bit confusing which is due, I think, to Ms. Hart trying too hard to be mysterious. However, the pace picks up and it becomes very interesting once Aimée meets Lael, as the truth unveils. This is my first fantasy e-book too. Normally I avoid e-books because I find it hard to read on the computer. I get too distracted. I agree that it starts off a bit slow, but my problem with it is more that just when the book gets interesting, it ends. I found the book too short. I was glad to hear that there is supposed to be a sequel because now I want to know what happens next.

Now, the characters. I think that Aimée is an okay heroine. The main problem I see with her personality is that she acts and sounds like an 16 years old girl instead of a 21 years old woman. Since the story is quite short, readers do not have time to connect fully with her so it's quite hard to form an opinion; however, I think that Aimée would have been more likable and readers would have been more sympathetic/compassionate with her if she'd been described as an 16 years old girl. As for Cristina, she's not very likable and it's all due to her attitude. It's hard to tell whether she's a good mother or not, it's hard to tell whether she loves and cares for Aimée or not. I guess she's bitter and have grieved too much? Although her attitude is understandable by the end of the book, it is not excusable. Finally, Lael - probably the most interesting character of the book. He's very intriguing and steals the show from Aimée by his look and personality. I found Aimee really childish, too. I do not think that she acts almost 21 years old at all through the book. I thought she could have been represented a bit better, or as Nath says, be about 16 instead of 21. I liked Aimee enough to read the whole book in one sitting. Her mother annoyed me, though. She was believable for our time frame, though, a time frame where women are looking for new ways to stay young. Cristina is very big in the plastic surgery and other age-saving methods. It makes her hard to read because her face does not reveal facial expressions. You do get to understand her by the end of the book, but I am not sure if she handled situations that well. Lael was my favourite too. Just look at the picture on the front of the book and remember that he is cupid, of all people. Not your conventional cupid, huh? He was my favourite character in the book, and I look forward to seeing more of him in future books.

Verdict: As a story, this book falls short a little bit as there are many unanswered questions at the end and the beginning was quite slow and confusing. However, if this book is the beginning of a series, then there's a whole lot of potential and I'll keep reading just to find out more about Lael and Aimée. I agree. When I finished it I wondered about the ending. It made a big difference to me to learn that there were more to come, it makes the book better to know that I will hear more about Lael and Aimee in the future. I look forward to seeing more from them in the future!