Archive for top fantasy books
Seduced by Shadows by Jessa Slade
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Title: Seduced by Shadows
Author: Jessa Slade
Release Date: October 6, 2009
Pages: 400
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Seduced by Shadows by Jessa Slade is a unique new take on the paranormal urban fantasy and it had me entranced after the first chapter. Sera Littlejohn is an isolated survivor, having come out of a horrendous car wreck with a severe limp and a crippled spirit. When she meets a mysterious stranger who accosts her on the street, and he knows her name, Sera doesn’t realize that her life is about to be changed forever because she is going to be introduced to a world that she cannot believe truly exists – and given a revitalized body to boot.
Archer is a demon-possessed fighter who battles daily to keep his humanity alive and whose mission it is to keep the evil demons of the other worlds at bay. He is drawn to Sera, knowing that she is next on the list for possession by an emerging demon, and that she will be the first demon-possessed female to fight alongside his men in their demon-fighting entourage. An undeniable attraction develops between Sera and Archer but they both fight it, especially since Sera finds the whole concept of a group of demon-possessed fighters saving humanity just too hard to believe, let alone trust.
I loved this story.
Jessa Slade makes Archer ultra-tough yet vulnerable. Sera is damaged both physically and emotionally, yet Archer is able to complete her by allowing her to gradually awaken and find her true calling in life. While reading the book I could totally connect with the characters because the author seamlessly takes you from the normal, everyday world into a strange, unknown place that runs parallel to our reality. It’s a place where an unusual religious order is fighting to keep humanity safe while also fighting to maintain and control the demons inside themselves.
If you like urban fantasy (and you know you do) pick up Seduced by Shadows. I just found out that the sequel Forged of Shadows is now available. Sweet!
Living With the Dead by Kelley Armstrong
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Title: Living With the Dead
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Release Date: August 25, 2009
Pages: 560
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Best Book Quote: “. . . the greatest impediment to justice is prejudice.”
I was only going to read for a minute when I picked up Kelly Armstrong’s book Living with the Dead. I have always been a fan of her stories but believe me when I say that this book is not a “just gonna read for a minute” kind of book. Once I started, I had to find out how it ended.
The main character, Robyn Peltier, is a public relations consultant who becomes accused of a crime she didn’t commit – the murder of her annoyingly irritating celebrity employer. She finds her boss shot dead and to all outward appearances it looks like she did it. But when she goes on the run to save her life it leads to her immediate guilt in the eyes of the police and more importantly, the gorgeous lead investigator, Detective Finn. Luckily for Robyn, she finds help from her best friend Hope Adams (a half-demon) and Hope’s werewolf boyfriend, Karl. Apparently, Robyn has inadvertently became involved in a supernatural mess that could kill both her and her friends. But this doesn’t stop them in their mission to prove Hope’s innocence.
I was surprised to find that I was so quickly hooked on this story since I usually avoid the “innocent person accused of a crime” plotline. It’s a testimony to Kelly Armstrong’s great writing style that I kept on reading.
This novel has pulse-racing writing combined with Armstrong’s usual wit – a combination I’ve really come to like. The author makes Robyn a sympathetic character that you connect with and pull for throughout the book. Comic relief is provided by the ghost of Robyn’s husband who was killed but has come back to help her; the twist is that he can only be seen by Detective Finn! Whether you like “innocent girl wrongly accused” storylines or not, give Living with the Dead a try. If I hadn’t, I would have missed out on a really fun read.
Chick With a Charm by Vicki Lewis Thompson
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Title: Chick With a Charm
Author: Vicki Lewis Thompson
Release Date: March 2, 2010
Pages: 336
Genre: Fantasy Romance
If you’re familiar with books by Vicki Lewis Thompson, then you are going to be excited by her latest book, Chick with a Charm. If you haven’t read her before, then you have a whole new author to begin enjoying. With a series name like Babes On Brooms, you know you are in for a great ride. Witches and gorgeous men are just the beginning of the story in Chick with a Charm.
Lily Revere is a witch who does not like to wait for what she wants and who has no compunction using a little magic to make things go her way. Lily has her eye on a hot lawyer, Griffin Taylor, but for some reason he doesn’t seem to notice her interest. She has her sister’s wedding coming up and needs a date. So, what’s a good witch supposed to do?
She decides to give Griffin a little “push” in the right direction.
With the help of Lily’s extremely intelligent dog and a potion of adoration, Griffin not only gets a little nudge in the right direction, he gets bulldozed – he literally cannot get enough of Lily. Ever heard of too much a good thing? Well, Lily is just beginning to understand this particular problem when love knocks at her door and she realizes that small changes can lead to big consequences.
This titillating supernatural romance will leave you breathless and very glad no one else is in the room while you’re reading it. The sexual chemistry between Griffin and Lily starts on page one and never lets up. Vicki Lewis Thompson has one heck of an imagination, especially in the bedroom. While reading the book I kept thinking – how can they keep doing that? Have I ever done that? Hmmn, maybe I should try that . . .c
One thing is for sure, after reading this provocative and captivating novel, sleeping will be the last thing on your mind.
I’m off to find my hubby . .
Fantasy Book Anthology – Dogs and Goddesses
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The multi-author novel, Dogs and Goddesses, breaks the mold of the typical anthology offering. Yes, it is written by three different authors – Jennifer Cruise, Anne Stuart and Lani Diane Rich – but instead of three separate stories, you’ve got one story with three distinct female leads with each lead having her own unique life story and romantic interest. The authors do an excellent job of weaving the lives of the three women together, using dogs and ancient goddesses as the things that link the three of them.
The story starts out with Abby, a young woman who has inherited her grandmother’s property in a college town. She arrives in town with her pet Newfoundland, Bowser, to claim the building that contains a coffee shop and several apartments. Next, Daisy is introduced: she’s a woman who works at the local college, is in her thirties, and who’s dog-sitting her mother’s terrier, Bailey. And finally, Shar arrives on the scene: a forty-eight year old college professor, unhappy in her current relationship, who seeks comfort from her best friend, a dachshund named Wolfie. Notice a pattern here? Yep, you got it – they are all linked to a dog.
Each woman sees a notice for dog training being held in the history department at the college, a department that is housed in an ancient temple structure that was transported straight from Mesopotamia. A mysterious woman named Kammani, is leading the “dog training” session which is in reality Kammani’s search to find the descendents of her servant goddesses who can restore her to her former glory. It is at this class that the three woman meet and are told they are the ones who can raise Kammani back to her ancient heights of power. The three women’s stories continue to intertwine as each meets a man who is perfect for her – they just don’t know it yet!
I loved the way the story effortlessly connected the women’s adventures, even though you knew three different people were writing it. It was a unique approach to the usual anthology setup of separate storylines and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The authors give us a lot of action, cute dog sidekicks, and three top notch romance stories that all come together in the end. Here’s hoping the ladies are working on another book together! Dogs and Goddesses rocks!
Hellishly Good Fantasy Book – Salt and Silver
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Anne Katherine has written a fun fantasy book about “hell” in her new book Salt and Silver. You wouldn’t think you could have the words “fun” and “hell” in the same sentence, but this author has achieved it with her paranormal tale of supernatural beings and human heroes who protect the earth in both the above-world and the underworld.
In the story, there are many hells and each one has a special door to enter through and for each door there are nine more doors and so forth and so on. See the opportunity for endless story lines? What is even more unique about this is that a door to hell can open anywhere in our human world and when it does, a special hunter will show up – just in time – to keep any nasty “hellish” things from coming through that door.
To start out, you meet Allie, a former rich girl, whose mother abandoned her and left her to work in a diner to make ends meet. The only things she has left from her previous life of wealth are her two best friends, Amanda and Stan.
Six years ago, Allie inadvertently opened a door to hell in the basement of the diner and with that door came a really cute hunter named Ryan who would just as soon shoot her as look at her. However Allie has a major crush on Ryan and has spent the last six years trying to get him to like her (romantically, of course). However, since Ryan’s main interest is in teaching Allie the tricks of the hunter trade, he resists her efforts to turn their relationship into something more personal.
To summarize: Allie can kill a vampire, a hound from hell, a wyvern or just about any supernatural creature that can come through the hell door – but she doesn’t have a boyfriend.
As Allie continues working with Ryan and other hunters around the world, she learns that she has a very special relationship with the door in the diner basement – she can talk to it and it grants her wishes.
Suddenly doors are not just portals into hell; they’re entities with actual personalities. Allie is just beginning to enjoy learning more about her door when – poof – it suddenly disappears! From the hunter’s perspective, this is not a good thing – a hell door has never disappeared before. Since none of the hunters know how to handle this new situation and the door is the responsibility of Ryan and Allie, it’s up to them to enter hell and find out what has thrown off the balance between earth and hell before everyone and everything on earth is destroyed.
I admit when I first started reading this fantasy book, I was intrigued with the premise but I did not like the lead character Allie very much. That totally changed as I got further into the story and realized how much personal growth she was gaining from her experiences with the hunters and the doors. We see her grow from a spoiled rich girl into someone who appreciates the little things and who has learned to not take life for granted. A lesson many of us could learn . . . ?
I also liked her wit and the way she handled challenging situations. It was a good read, it’s a very original storyline, and I was quite glad to find it – right now there are so many authors trying to fit into the urban fantasy craze that it was great to find someone who knows how to write a truly good paranormal romance!
Salt and Silver was a joy to read. Check it out at places like Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Can’t wait for the next book in the series!
