Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress, #4)

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Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress #4)

by Jeaniene Frost (Goodreads Author)

4.38 of 5 stars 4.38 · rating details · 31,180 ratings · 1,531 reviews

Her deadly dreams leave her in grave danger...

Since half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years ago, they've fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it's time for a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when Cat awakes one night in terror. She's...more

Kindle Edition, Original edition, 399 pages

Published July 28th 2009 by HarperCollins e-books (first published July 15th 2009)

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Jul 30, 2009 Shawna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Fans of sexy vampires & urban fantasy romance

Shelves: pnr-vampires, jeaniene-frost, favorite-romance-series, hero-im-gaga-over, heroine-i-adore, marry-me-bones, hero-i-wanna-marry, 2009-reads, hero-alpha‎, hero-bad-boy-playboy, hero-abused-scarred-tortured-angst, favorites, i-read-own-faves-keepers, hero-cad-rake-rogue‎-scoundrel, badasses-hunks-in-leather, urban-fantasy, best-top-favorites, series-night-huntress-nh-world, favorite-romance-couple-hh-pairings, heroine-kickass-spirited-strong, pnr-angeldemon-fae-magic-witch-misc, bikers-sexy-as-sin, hero-stalk-me-baby-possessive, hero-stud-mantel-hall-of-fame, hero-gigolo-prostitute-escort, hero-expert-skilled-voracious-lover, first-person-pov, psychic-special-abilities-powers, assassin, humorous-at-times-or-fluffy-fun, hero-addict-excon-lawtrouble-thief, hero-attractive-handsome-heartthrob, 5-stars-or-higher, best-wittiest-banter-dialogue, paranormal-romance, best-snarkasm-humor, heroine-redhead, hero-or-heroine-illegitimate, hero-daddy-warbucks-wealthy, heroine-abused-traumatic-past-rape, hh-warrior, sizable-packages, a-all-time-fave-hero, a-all-time-fave-heroine, heartbreaking-gutwrenching-romance, angsty-dark-heavy-lotsa-drama, pnr-occult-magic, pnr-ghosts-spirits, pnr-living-walking-dead-zombies, hero-authentic-uber-rake, hero-besotted-so-smitten-its-sexy, hero-black-sheep, hero-brooding, hero-cold-cruelbrute-dark-dangerous, hero-commoner-self-made

5+ stars – Vampire Romance/Urban Fantasy

Considering this is one of my top preferred PNR series, that Cat and Bones are my favorite kick-ass romance couple, that Bones is my #1 all-time beloved bad boy vampire hero, and that I LOVED the previous three books, especially my favorite One Foot in the Grave; my expectations for Destined for an Early Grave were incredibly high. After all, it’s Jeaniene Frost, who writes some of the snarkiest, funniest, and most entertaining dialogue that I’ve had the j...more

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Sep 09, 2009 Summer rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal, paranormal-romance, urban-fantasy, vampires

I feel like this book didn't quite have the same magic to me as the first three. However, I liked the first three a lot more after reading them a second time so I might feel different about this one too if I read it again.
On the bad side, Bones and Cat fight a lot in this book. Maybe it's just me, but it felt really off. They butt heads and had a few fights in the first three books but not on the same level as this book. I think it's more that instead of their fights escalating throughout the bo...more

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Jul 30, 2009 Katie(babs) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I had finished At Grave’s End, the third book in Jeaniene Frost’s Night Huntress series, I was on the fence whether I wanted to go ahead and read Destined For An Early Grave. If you read my review for At Grave’s End, you know I was less than pleased. I was upset with my reaction because Cat and Bones are one of my favorite literary duos from this decade. And to think that I could turn my back on them because one book in a series I loved failed to deliver. It may be silly and pathetic to som...more When I had finished At Grave’s End, the third book in Jeaniene Frost’s Night Huntress series, I was on the fence whether I wanted to go ahead and read Destined For An Early Grave. If you read my review for At Grave’s End, you know I was less than pleased. I was upset with my reaction because Cat and Bones are one of my favorite literary duos from this decade. And to think that I could turn my back on them because one book in a series I loved failed to deliver. It may be silly and pathetic to some, but when you invest such emotionally into a series and turn away because it no longer delivers the goods, it can be earth shattering.

I can say with much certainty that Destined For an Early Grave is Jeaniene’s way of basically sitting on top of me and not letting me escape. “I won’t let you go without a fight!”. This book was a wild ride with a lot of action, drama and more snark then ever before. And the steamy, passionate love that Bones and Cat share that I found lacking in At Grave’s End? That has been pushed up a notch. Bones does love to use his fangs on Cat in so many ways. Destined For an Early Grave digs deeps into the psyche and emotions of Cat and Bones. This time they are not only tested by both outside sources, but also their inner turmoil. There is one such individual who wants Cat because he had her first before Bones. And then there are those doubts Cat still has when it comes to Bones. Cat may know how to kill the bad guys with great skill, but when it comes to Bones she shuts off. And because of these esteem issues she has, she is the one responsible for the possible destruction of her relationship with Bones.

Destined For an Early Grave begins with Cat and Bones going on a much needed vacation. Cat wants to go to Paris for no reason that she can think of. Bones is all for it because he wants to give his ladylove and vampire wife the world. Off they go not expecting an adventure that may ruin their whole foundation of devotion and trust. Cat shares her heart and body with Bones but won’t allow him access to her mind and deepest thoughts. Bones feels hurt even though he knows the Cat has problems with letting others get too close to her. I really do wish these two would go through some marriage counseling. And they are going to need some major counseling after they finish with Gregor.

Gregor wants Cat. A few weeks before Cat and Bones met at the bar where Cat so eloquently asked Bones, if he wanted to fuck her, she was taken by Gregor to Paris. Gregor tried to gain the trust of the fragile sixteen year old Cat, seduce her and marry her because he knew what Cat would be capable of in the years to come. Cat doesn’t remember Gregor at all because Bones, grandsire Mencheres was able to erase Cat’s memories of her time with Gregor. Mencheres also knows how important Cat is because he can see the future. He made sure Cat and Bones met. Mencheres manipulated their relationship but let nature takes it course. Now Gregor is invading Cat’s dreams. Gregor is a dream snatcher and can grab people from their dreams. He is trying to take Cat away from Bones because he believes that Cat is his wife.

Cat knows her heart belongs to Bones, but she needs her memories back. Bones is scared and doesn’t want Cat anywhere near Gregor. What if Cat regains her memories and wants to be with Gregor instead? Both Cat and Bones are walking on egg shells with one another. Cat wants to confront Gregor and the issue head on. Bones wants to place Cat in a protective bubble and kill Gregor himself. And when Cat goes off and deals with Gregor even after Bones tells her not to, he is fed up. What happens after that will have you clutching the book and gasping because the thought of Bones and Cat not being together is horrible.

Not only does Destined For an Early Grave give the reader more insight on the vampire culture Jeaniene has created, but this is where she shows how important friends and family are. Bones and Cat’s support system is wonderful. There are many times that Bones and Cat annoyed me to the point I wanted to smack them because they are just too stubborn to listen to one another. But to circumvent this, there are a few other characters that have grown on me. They keep things in perspective and light hearted. Jeaniene has written a great group of male figures. Bones will always be first in my eyes but now I am total fan girl of Spade, Ian and even Vlad. At first I felt Vlad was a bad rip off of the whole Dracula myth but Jeaniene really makes Vlad shine here. Menecheres is the voice of reason even though he is a manipulative bastard half the time. We also get a different side to Cat’s mother, Justina. She can be a harpy but something really horrible happens that may change your mind about her.

The tension is very thick in Destined For An Early Grave but there are moments where the laughs come out. Jeaniene is a near genius at dialogue. The snarky one-liners are all over the place. I couldn’t stop chuckling and shaking my head at the same time because they are so good and somewhat shocking.

One example comes from Cat when a female patron at the Palais Garnier Opera House shows her appreciation for Bones a bit too much for Cat’s liking. Cat is on line at the bathroom and her bladder is about to explode, so she is not a happy camper to begin with. Cat’s response to the woman is priceless:

“He fucks even better than he looks,” I settled on saying. Several heads turned. I didn’t care, I was pissed. “And that beautiful face is going to be clamped between my legs as soon as we get ooome, don’t you worry.”

Not only are some pieces of the dialogue shocking in nature, but Jeaniene keeps thing lively with the vampire fighting and death. Some of the characters may not make it in the end and you will have no idea who will be alive at the end. Jeaniene does keep you guessing.

Destined For An Early Grave was a very enjoyable and fun read. Those who are fans of this series will be very happy with the results especially that of Cat and how she resolves her issues with her vampire heritage and her feelings for Bones.
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Feb 17, 2013 Brenna rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: audible, kindle

A different vibe for this series, but it totally worked for me! I loved it!

Destined for an Early Grave took a (slight) step away from action packed fight scenes galore and a step toward dealing with some much deeper issues. The book starts off with Cat and Bones getting some much needed R&R. Trouble soon presents itself when Master vampire, Gregor aka "the Dreamsnatcher" starts inhabiting Cat's dreams and threatens to literally snatch her from Bones. (view spoiler)...more

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Aug 31, 2009 Kathrynn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance-paranormal, series-nighthuntress_frost, own, 2009, reviewed

Outstanding! The fourth book in the Night Huntress series and I was riveted to the pages. Like the previous books in this series, the main characters are Cat and Bones. This time they have to work on the multitude of issues the author mentions in the earlier books.

Destined for an Early Grave was a nice change of pace from the previous in the series. Since Cat no longer hunted bad vampires for the government, the book went in a different direction and introduced a new bad guy. Gregor. How Gregor...more

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Aug 25, 2010 Kat Kennedy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kat-s-book-reviews

I'm not entirely sure why I read this entire series. Certainly the writing sometimes left something to be desired and eventually the plot became so ridiculously beaten, abused and tormented that I briefly considered starting a home for it and marketing telethons help others like it.

I think the only thing that saved this ENTIRE series for me was the relationship between Bones and Cat. Passionate, loving, flawed, sometimes almost breakable, realistic. I don't know and since I had to turn my brain...more

10 likes · like · see review

Aug 13, 2011 Annie the Destroyer *Leather Lust* rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr, vampires, own-but-need-to-read, ebooks, covers-to-covet, drinks-on-me, genre-urban-fantasy, wraith-or-ghosts, keep-a-spare-pair-of-knickers, read-in-2011

Now I know why this series is so massively popular!

I have a bit of a confession to make before I talk about this book. First off, I wasn’t too keen on the Night Huntress thing when I started the series earlier this year. In fact, I hated Cat and her beliefs about vampires and wasn’t that enamoured by Bones in the previous three books. That being said, I was skeptical going into this book because I was hoping and praying that this one would capture my attention. Going into this, my favourite book...more

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Sep 28, 2009 The Flooze rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy-paranormal, vanquished_2009, owned, glutton_for_punishment

The freakish villain, the raw emotions, the tense ending, and the inclusion of my favorite character, Vlad, made this one an interesting enough read. But I had many problems with it along the way.

You know that couple who love each other overwhelmingly, but are just so volatile together, you think they'd be better apart? Because you're sure one day they'll love each other to death?

Cat and Bones become that couple.

I was sure they'd murder each other before the threat was resolved. The lesson of...more

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Jun 29, 2010 Mel rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3,5 stars

Destined for an Early Grave was an okay read. The one-liners were hilarious, the story was okay and I liked the bantering between Cat and Bones. I'm a sucker for angsty love and since the relational problems were big in this book, I enjoyed the story.

But still... By now I should be used to the one-dimensional characters, the lack of back story and the waste of all the nice ideas Frost has. And I am. A bit. Still I can't bear to see characters come and go without any explanation. Like T...more

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Feb 02, 2011 Angela the Fair ~Lusty Lace~ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2011

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 03, 2013 Mitabird rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, re-read

Update: 6/6/11 - Very good read. It wasn't as stressful this time around since I knew what was going to happen, however, my heart still dropped at some of the scenes between them.

Original review: 9/10/2009 - I have to say that this was my least favorite of the series, but enjoyable nonetheless. I just want Cat and Bones to be happy and there was way too much emotional angst going on. I get that things need to be a bit spicy to keep things interesting, but it was almost like a soap opera. There w...more

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Jun 12, 2010 Dorsi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-by-me, paranormal-witchy, romance

I loved this entire series, it's one of my tops! This one was really good but I didn't like how Cat & Bones were at odds for so much of the book! That's the reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. The rest of the book was great....lots of action! I hope Jeaniene Frost continues the story of Cat & Bones! I would definitely change one thing though....make Cat's mom quit being such a whiny bitch!

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Apr 10, 2013 The UHQ Nasanta rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 4th-in-series, format-audiobook, own, series-0-connected-family, series-books-night-huntress, reviewed, species-vampires, species-ghouls, species-ghosts, read-books-2012, narrator-1st-person, protagonist-female, setting-location-france, setting-location-la, theme-relationship-drama, group-challenge-nbrc-towerteamb

2 - 2.5 stars

Narrated by Tavia Gilbert

I found this book rather trying. On the relationship side of things, Cat and Bones were so snippy and unfair with each other. Bones's overprotectiveness and Cat's insecurities and bitchiness were too much. Their constant arguments, deliberate lack of communication, jealousies, suspicions about betrayals, nastiness and anger with each other got so tiring and frustrating that on one level, I wondered whether they really ought to remain together. While it may h...more

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Oct 04, 2011 Paige rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: i-own, 2011-books, all-time-favorite-books

WOW. What a change in pace.

You would have never guessed at the start of this book just what all challenges were to come.

It seems our beloved characters were on Possessive, uncommunicative, spiteful, and mood alternating pills. Both Cat and Bones were acting like possessive pigheaded know-it-alls.

Whether from his recent power increase or just a nasty bug up his butt, Bones for some reason thought Cat should bow down to him now and watch her actions around him.

Cat also took a 180 with her emot...more

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Mar 28, 2011 AngelLeah rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I feel like I should write two reviews for this, one for the majority of the book and one for the ending.

Catherine (Cat) Crawfield started out as a bad-ass, tough woman; who was an intelligent, take-charge leader. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way we lost that character. Through the majority of "Destined for an Early Grave", the 4th book in the Night Huntress series, the reader is forced to listen to the inner dialogue of a woman with a very low self-esteem. When did Cat become this woman?...more

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Sep 07, 2011 Zeek rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr, alpha-hero, kick-ass-heroine, favorite-hero, favorites-pnr, vamps, own

Thinking they are headed to Paris for a much needed vacation- imagine Cat and Bones’s surprise to find out they were lured there by a Master Vamp Dreamsnatcher named Gregor who insists he has a prior claim on Cat. You see vampires mate for life so if Cat really is mated with another vamp, she and Bones will have to part ways. Yeah bones aint likin that one to too much but instead of communicating honestly with each other, Bones and Cat once again work at cross purposes until they, actually rathe...more

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Jan 02, 2011 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: guilty-pleasures, vampires-etc

Book #70 of 2009

I'll admit that about 1/2 of this book had me seriously pissed off. I guess it was probably because the book is in first person and we get to hear all of Cat's mental berrating of herself and only get to witness what Bones does. But for awhile I was wondering where the strong female heroine from Book #1 had gone that she would accept that SHE had done something wrong, rather than stand up for herself and her reasons for acting the way she did. But, the latter part of the book mad...more

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Feb 14, 2011 Steph rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, series-ongoing, my-re-reads, 2011, author-웃, author-favorite, series-i-love

Duplicate Listing

1st read: 1 Aug 2009
Re-read: 15 Feb 2011

[Initial Review ~ Rating remains]

Re-Read Review (2011):

As always, Jeaniene Frost never fails to keep me entertained. There are fantastic quotes throughout, as with all her books, Cat-fights, Bare-Bones, and Vlad. ;)

I found myself more interested in Spade, Mencheres, and Vlad this time, most likely due to their books/appearances in her spin-off Night Huntress World books.

I'm SO excited to read more about Vlad. He is quickly becoming one o...more

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Dec 28, 2009 MK (Consultant, Corporal Therapist) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of Cat and Bones, the Night Huntress series

Shelves: romance-vampires-demons, challenge-state-ohio

I enjoyed continuation of the Night Huntress. With a broad brush stoke the author painted the world crimson and weighted the characters down with more emotion than the previous 3 books!

Cat is being tormented with nightmares and when she finds out why, she gets mad. She wants to get even but, of course, Bones want to protect her. Some of the the strong secondary characters are well played. I especially liked appearances made by Vlad and Annette [Anette had some GREAT lol lines:]. The dynamic[s:]...more

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Jun 27, 2010 Mollie *scoutrmom* rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of paranormal romance

Shelves: paranormal, read-in-2010

This story was heartwrenching. I wish Jeaniene Frost had included Bones' point of view, but that's not really her style. This plot was more about the relationship between Bones and Cat than the earlier stories, and the external threat just highlighted that.

I found Cat's thinking processes fascinating. I thought it was very realistic for Frost to have her not realize until near the end of the book that she was not giving Bones the complete committment he needed. I also found that for me, their co...more

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May 11, 2012 ♥ Ashleigh ♥ contrary to popular belief im not actually mad! rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: to-buy, vampires, adult, heroine, 2011

re-read - 10.05.2012 - Possible Spoilers.

i have to say i have pretty conflicted feelings about this book. while my heart broke for Cat about Bones im glad there was more Vlad time which was great.

how funny was it when Justina punch one of the guardians in the face?? LOL. classic.
i wont change my rating of this book from the first time i read it, but if i where to i'd give this book 3 stars. i'd enjoyed it but not as much as i did the first time... but i suppose nothing was a surprise so i didnt...more

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Dec 09, 2011 Titis Wardhana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal

udah buku 4, pas mau ngepruf, mikir apa lg yg bakal diceritain ya, kirain bakal boring. Eh salah besar gw ternyata. dari awal udah seru banget, alurnya cepet, konflik ok, dan masalahnya juga rumit bener ampe pengen buru2 tau endingnya kayak gimana. en yang paling ok, kekuatannya Cat juga nambah

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Apr 15, 2013 Dawnlight rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-romance, romance, scifi-paranormal, romance-suspense, alpha-heroes

This is how I have them in my head!

Bones
description

Cat Crawfield
description

I enjoyed this book more than the second and third book. Maybe because I have quite a long break between book 3 and this. Halfway through the book, I was thinking, why is this series not made into a movie? Shall take a break before reading the 5th book!

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May 13, 2013 Amarilli73 rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

E siamo al quarto episodio della serie fantasy della Cacciatrice della Notte. Forse vado a cercare il pelo nell’uovo, ma, rispetto al titolo originale, quello italiano mi è parso un po’ imbarazzante: avrei capito il profumo, ma perché l’Odore della notte? C’è il rischio di smorzare sul nascere ogni aspettativa romantica.

Le avventure della mezza-vampira Cat e del suo amato Signore Vampiro Bones sono, come al solito, romantiche ed elettrizzanti: i due decidono di concedersi finalmente una fuga a...more

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May 11, 2013 Natalie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal, urban, 2013, vampires, series, kindle

This was my least favorite in this series so far. It was too dramatic and I felt that Cat was acting out of character - letting herself be bossed around and not standing up for herself. Bones was also playing the "dominant male" card which I can't stomach. I hate that. I felt like neither of them were acting like themselves.

Turns out, when Cat was younger, she was kidnapped by a super powerful vampire named Gregor. He had visions of Cat in the future and wanted her power for himself ((view spoil ...more

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Apr 14, 2013 Sylvie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: of-egyptian-myths, of-vamps-and-suckers, romance-paranormal, series-night-huntress, urban-fantasy

As with most urban fantasy series I read, I tend to fall in love with the side characters. For the moment, I'm more interested in Ian, Juan, Tates, Spade, Mencheres, and Vlad. Luckily, there are stories for three out of the six characters I listed. Again, as with most vampire stories I find it perplexing that for a species that live forever, why and how are they all so unintelligent when dealing with their own species. I mean, their advantage of being around for over hundreds of years means that...more

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Apr 12, 2013 Miraphora rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-romance, vampiri, urban-fantasy

Lo ripeto anche in maiuscolo CIPIACECIPIACECIPIACE!
Finalmente, porca miseria! Finalmente posso dare un altro voto pieno -ma che dico PIENISSIMO- a questo nuovo titolo di Cat&Bones.
Santo Cielo, quanto mi è piaciuto!
A differenza del precedente, di medio gradimento, questo mi ha letteralmente incollata alle pagine. Non solo! Ho subito un'inglobazione totale, un assorbimento istantaneo nella storia tale da farmi aprire il libro mentre slurpavo la minestrina a tavola.
Finalmente, finalmente ar...more Lo ripeto anche in maiuscolo CIPIACECIPIACECIPIACE!
Finalmente, porca miseria! Finalmente posso dare un altro voto pieno -ma che dico PIENISSIMO- a questo nuovo titolo di Cat&Bones.
Santo Cielo, quanto mi è piaciuto!
A differenza del precedente, di medio gradimento, questo mi ha letteralmente incollata alle pagine. Non solo! Ho subito un'inglobazione totale, un assorbimento istantaneo nella storia tale da farmi aprire il libro mentre slurpavo la minestrina a tavola.
Finalmente, finalmente arriva il coinvolgimento emotivo che tanto desideravo da questa serie. Arriva il conflitto interiore di Cat, di Bones e anche il conflitto che si crea tra di loro e che fa sprizzare scintille e poi fiamme e poi esplodiamo! XD
Tutto comincia quando l'idillio tra Cat e Bones inizia ad incrinarsi, causando insicurezze, gelosie e risentimento. Cat non riesce a lasciarsi andare al 100% e ad accettare il fatto che la sua natura è sempre stata per la maggior parte vampira. Il continuo disprezzo della madre, il trauma di essere diversa e di non aver mai avuto un punto di riferimento hanno contorto la sua visione delle cose, tanto che per lei essere vampiri significa essere cattivi. Nemmeno la presenza di Bones nella sua vita è riuscita a scalfire le sue paure e le sue convinzioni nascoste. Solamente di fronte all'evidenza dei fatti e al rischio di giocarsi tutto ciò che ha Cat riesce a vedere le cose in modo diverso e ad accettare la sua natura. La particolarità di questo cambiamento sta nel fatto che Cat non vuole cedere solo fino a quando non è costretta, ma nel suo rifiuto non c'è negazione, solo paura. Cat ha paura di lasciare un territorio conosciuto per qualcosa che non conosce, ma soprattutto teme che una volta trasformata non avrà più lo stesso rapporto con Bones, con sua madre e con la sua ex-squadra. Nel suo essere chiusa, e nel suo causare casini, c'è solo una gran paura.
La cosa emozionante e coinvolgente è il risultato della reazione di Bones di fronte al muro emotivo di Cat. Lui non ha idea di come gestire la situazione, ha un terrore folle e immaturo di perdere ciò che ha e al tempo stesso ha paura di averlo. Cat è imprevedibile, quindi incontrollabile per cui Bones sa di non avere potere su di lei, solo il suo affetto riesce a influenzarla. Ma Bones non lo capisce e reagisce in modo estremo, violento con conseguenze devastanti. Cat e Bones sono sulle montagne russe, un momento sono affiatati e innamorati e quello dopo si scannano e si odiano. Gli alti e bassi sono così tanti che non si fa in tempo a riprendersi da uno che l'altro ti investe senza preavviso. Si passa dalle gelosie, ai sospetti fino al culmine di nome Gregor.
Il personaggio di Gregor ha importanza per quello che rappresenta, non per quello che fa. Ogni sua azione, la sua stessa presenza sono la trasposizione delle paure di Cat e di Bones.
Il Rubasogni ha lo scopo principale di mettere in discussione la relazione di C&B, scuotendo le fondamenta del loro amore. Da parte di Cat si insinua il sospetto del tradimento di Bones e la sua incapacità di cambiare e di lasciarsi alle spalle i suoi trascorsi di 'gigolò', puttaniere, dongiovanni, mentre per Bones il sospetto è che il suo amore e la sua devozione per Cat non siano abbastanza e che lei non voglia diventare vampira per stare per sempre insieme a lui. Le loro paure, combinate, sono il vero pepe di tutta la storia. Che poi Gregor sia il cattivo e che il cattivo venga sconfitto ha poca importanza, quello che conta è il tragitto che porta a quel lieto fine. La serie di battibecchi, litigi, manifestazioni d'amore e di passione così intense da bruciare le pagine, questo sì che è quello che conta. Sembra quasi che la Frost abbia voluto conservare i fuochi d'artificio per chiudere in bellezza un capitolo di questa serie.
Ci è riuscita, indubbiamente, e nel frattempo ha saputo anche aggiungere dei personaggi che hanno lasciato il loro segno: Vlad, Spade e un po' di meno Mencheres (troppo abbottonato, per i miei gusti). Se non avessi la prova materiale che la serie continua, anche con spinoff, direi che la serie di Cat&Bones è finita in grande stile, con il botto.
Ma siccome sappiamo che ci sono almeno altri due romanzi su di loro, credo che d'ora in poi si respirerà un'aria diversa, anche se spero che la tensione tipica a cui ci hanno abituato fin dall'inizio non scompaia. Dopotutto, mi piace soffrire. Purché ci sia il lieto fine, s'intende.(less)

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Jan 29, 2013 Melanie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Destined for an Early Grave was my favorite installment in the Night Huntress series! I bought it really fast on my kindle before bed, intending to read a few chapters then sleep. I ended up staying up all night reading it. I loved it. I am so happy I started this series (even though I’m super late compared to all my friends). I love Vlad so much in this series also! Everything in this book made him even more amazing in my eyes! I still love Bones, even though he was acting a little more Barron-...more

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Jan 12, 2013 Johanna rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: goodreads-paranormal-romance-challe

After the big showdown in „At Grave’s End“ with Mencheres’ ex-wife, Cat and Bones decide to spend some time in Paris. But soon enough new trouble is showing up on the horizon. Cat is having dreams of a powerful (what else?) vampire named Gregor, the dreamsnatcher. He claims to be her rightful husband and that she was unwillingly ripped from his arms 12 years ago. Mencheres then deleted these memories from Cat’s mind, which can now only be restored by Gregor himself.

While trying to make up her m...more After the big showdown in „At Grave’s End“ with Mencheres’ ex-wife, Cat and Bones decide to spend some time in Paris. But soon enough new trouble is showing up on the horizon. Cat is having dreams of a powerful (what else?) vampire named Gregor, the dreamsnatcher. He claims to be her rightful husband and that she was unwillingly ripped from his arms 12 years ago. Mencheres then deleted these memories from Cat’s mind, which can now only be restored by Gregor himself.

While trying to make up her mind about whether she wants to have back those memories or not, Bones threatens to start a war over Cat. Under the immense pressure, their relationship and absolute belief in each other starts to crumble. Cat fears to give away details of her whereabouts in her dreams and thus needs to be kept out of all plans and drugged heavily in order not to meet Gregor in her sleep any more.

At the same time, the supernatural world grows ever more uncertain of Cat’s plans to change into a ghoul or a vampire. People will have to make choices and choose a side.

I truly adore Cat and Bones.
Yet, this book didn’t quite do it for me as the first two did. I admire J. Frost for daring to accompany a couple on their path together because this is a hard thing to do without boring the reader. Relationships are never easy, they consist of misunderstandings, jealousy, quarrels and lots of hard work. Frost shows us how Cat and Bones try to overcome all of those obstacles. One could almost argue that the rest of the plot is marginal. The novel is suspense-packed, yet still focuses on Cat and Bones.

At times, I was overcome with frustration and just wanted to yell at somebody, preferably one of the protagonists. But with strong emotions involved, the actions are very authentic the way they are. Some aspects of the plot were quite predictable (e.g. considering Cat’s abilities) yet nevertheless exciting to read. Throughout the story, Cat is considerably growing as a character, which really was about time. Her rash decisions and imprudent actions have often been hard to “bear”. I love Frost’s style. Normally, I’m not that much into fighting or battle scenes, but in this series they are nerve-wrecking.

I also appreciate the development of the other characters such as Vlad, who I just adore. He’s not the ordinary, beautiful vampire but a man with rough edges. I can’t wait to read more about him in Frost’s new series.

Even though I really enjoyed the book, it just wasn’t as perfect as the ones before. It was missing a lot of the typical humour. I was also a bit disappointed about Gregor’s true reasons for pursuing Cat. This made it rather a pseudo-plotline.

Still, this book is worth 4 out of 5 stars and I will definitely read everything else that Jeanine Frost is writing.(less)

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Dec 18, 2012 Brandy Dorsch rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Finally a break from all the constant battles, right? Not as much as you would think. For Cat and her new vampire blood-bonded husband Bones, there is never really a vacation. What started out as a trip to Paris turns into a living nightmare, literally, when Cat starts having horrible nightmares. When they arrive in Paris, they are met by Mencheres and it is discovered that Cat is being hunted by the Dreamsnatcher, Gregor.

Gregor claims that he blood-bonded with Cat when she was 16 years old and...more

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About Jeaniene Frost

Jeaniene Frost is the New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author of the Night Huntress series, the Night Prince series and the Night Huntress World novels. To date, foreign rights for her novels have sold to nineteen different countries. Jeaniene lives in North Carolina with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends....more

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Books by Jeaniene Frost

Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, #1)

One Foot in the Grave (Night Huntress, #2)

First Drop of Crimson (Night Huntress World, #1)

This Side of the Grave (Night Huntress, #5)

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Quotes from Destined for an Early ...

“Then you remember the dream,” Mencheres stated. “That bodes ill.”

The fear of that made my reply snappy. “Hey, Walks Like An Egyptian, how about for once you drop the formal stuff and talk like you live in the twenty-first century?”

The shit’s gonna splatter, start buggin’, yo,” Mencheres responded instantly.

I stared at him, then burst out laughing, which was highly inappropriate considering the very grave warning he’d just conveyed.” — 528 people liked it

“He f**ks even better than he looks”, I settled on saying. Several heads turned. I didn’t care; I was pissed. “And that beautiful face is going to be clamped between my legs as soon as we get home, don’t you worry.” — 463 people liked it

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Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress #4)

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