Very. Very. Very.

Disappointed.

Review forthcoming.

/edit

Mood: - DISAPPOINTED

If I had read Flooze's review or talked to her about it then maybe, just maybe I could have saved myself the major disappointment of having to read this book. But I didn't. I read it with the high hopes that this book was going to be good. I mean the premise is pretty unique, the writing seemed light and fresh and I loved the covers. I mean, I only waited three or four years to get my hands on this book.

Well, life is not More...

This is the first book by Tate Hallaway I've read and I really enjoyed it. I'm glad I have the next two in the series on my TBR, unfortunately I'm on a challenge to read 9 books by authors I've never read in this month. So I'm trying to hold off reading the next two Garnet Lacey books!

I love the Wiccan with a habit of dating dead dudes. I love, even more, the killer priest army the Vatican sends out. My gosh, this is the best yet conspiracy theory of the Vatican I've come across. They train wit More...

Tall, Dark and Dead by Tate Hallaway
Paranormal Romance –April 3rd, 2012 (Reprint)
4 stars

Vatican agents out for blood and a sexy vampire make for an immersing and fun filled read.

Garnet Lacy is a witch who manages an occult bookstore. She is hiding from the dreadful Vatican hunters when a gorgeous vampire named Sebastian Von Traum walks in and changes her life. Sebastian has secrets and she finds that she oh-so willing to be a part of his future! When Garnet discovers a deadly Vatican agent after More...

The book started off lacking and imbalanced: the unimportant things seemed to be explained in too much detail (like her clothes and the habits of her co-workers, who in the end don't play a very large role) while I was left wondering why other points of interest were left largely explained. Sure, it's good for a novelist to leave some mysteries to unfold as the plot thickens, but I felt as though I knew too little about the heroin to truly care about her or relate, and some of those mysteries se More...

Taken from my review at RomanceJunkies.com

Witch Garnet Lacey had been late getting to her coven meeting. So when she arrived, expecting teasing, she found, instead, that her whole coven was dead and the Vatican hunters were walking among the bodies. Too late, they saw her. Calling upon the goddess Lilith, Garnet sought and won revenge against them, leaving a swath of destruction behind. With the help of her ex-boyfriend, vampire Daniel Parrish, she buried the bodies. Now eight months later, she More...

Tall, Dark and Dead is the first in the Garnet Lacey series. Garnet is a witch that recently had to move because the Vatican killed her entire coven. Her inner Goddess just so happens to be the one and only Ms. Evil herself, Lilith. After changing her entire appearance and dressing the "witch" part she thinks it will keep the Vatican witch hunters away. While working in her bookstore where she is the store manager and sells anything from grimoires to tarot cards (again all for her disguise) a ve More...

I'm not sure what to think of this series yet. The first part of this novel was entertaining, but the more I learned about Garnet and Sebastian, the more unbelievable this book became. And yes, I get the absurdity of that statement, since this is a novel full of witches, vampires, and Vatican-trained assasains.
Garnet is a recently reformed witch who refuses to use her powers due to an unfortunate incident involving the death of her coven members, a group of witch hunters, and that pesky Goddess More...

Garnet Lacey – 30 something – a witch – cohabitating in her body is the goddess Lilith, a goddess of war of some kind – hiding in Madison, Wisconsin from the Vatican Witch Hunters – manager of an occult bookstore –

Sebastian Von Traum – vampire – though changed to vampire by alchemy, not by a bite, so he’s not a typical vampire (ie : can be out in daylight, can eat, etc.) but the potion is wearing off, and he’s not sure of exactly how it worked the 1st time – over 1,000 years old – loved a witch More...

Garnet Lacey vowed never to do magic again. Not after that scene with the Vatican assassins in Minneapolis where she called on the Goddess Lilith, who left a swath of destruction so huge Garnet had to leave town.

Eight months later, and several hundred miles away, she’s now the manager of Mercury Crossing, Madison, Wisconsin’s premier occult bookstore and herb emporium where the employees are prime examples of witches without a clue.

One day, just as she’s closing the bookstore, in walks trouble More...

I'm not sure if it was the characters, the plot or just me but this story just did not click with me. It was an okay read. There was certainly potential for it to be much more but it didn't eventuate. I can't say I grew to be fond of Garnet or anyone else for that matter, I just didn't bond with any characters like I tend to do when I read a story. Well I did kind of feel for Matyas, and perhaps even Sebastian and Parrish a tad. Otherwise it was just okay, there were quite a few things that cou More...

This one was just ok. At the beginning I kind of felt it was not for me. It just did not hold my interest and the characters all felt flat actually I just did not like them. The guy feels like a jerk and not because he is all alpha male but because he is an unethical bastard which does not equal sexy. Then the heroine she was conundrum on the one hand she is a non-practicing witch but yet a goddess lives in her, then at times she was just TSTL. Not to mention the bitter dhampir (half human/half More...

"Tall, Dark and Dead" is the first Garnet Lacey book by Hallaway. The heroine is a witch, possessed by the witch goddess Lilith, on the run from a bunch of Vatican witch assasins after they slaughtered her coven (and she killed their agents in retribution).



This book is reasonably entertaning, and certainly has its fair share of hunky man candy in the form of alchemist vampire Sebastien and Garnet's ex-vampire lover Parrish. It's rife with cliche and has obviously been written for the mass young More...

Garnet Lacy has moved to Madison, Wisconsin, and is managing Wisconsin’s premier occult bookstore, Mercury Crossing. Her move to Madison was precipitated by the murder of all the members of her coven the prior Samhain (Halloween) in Minneapolis. Garnet, as usual, was late and when she arrived she the Vatican witch hunters (The Order of Eustace) had killed the other 11 members of her coven.

Garnet had summoned the Goddess Lilith upon the discovery and killed the Vatican agents. Then with the help More...

I gave this book a chance because after reading something like High Stakes by Erin McCarthy, I thought these light, “chick lit” paranormal romances weren’t that bad, and could be a great light read after potential heavy reads.

This one is slightly more darker, and with more action but not enough to take it away from the romance/chick lit genre. However what I really enjoyed the most out of this book was the humor. There was plenty of it. It’s Garnet Lacey’s wit that draws you to the story, and al More...

Tall, Dark & Dead
By Tate Hallaway
two to two and a half stars
The whimsical cover art promises a light humorous take on the vampire paranormal romance and this book delivers that for the most part. It goes to some very dark places but it is told in a snarky Sex in the City tone by the witty heroine. It was a pleasant enough breezy read but not worth continuing the series.

***Spoiler Alert***
This review contains spoilers.
The story starts off with a promising first line “What’s the best way to ke More...

Don't let the cover fool you on this one...it is not in any way funny or cartoony. Garnet is a witch inhabited by the Goddess Lillith, and Sebastian is a vampire warlock who has created a spell allowing him to walk in the sun. He has a mostly dead ex-wife and a dhampyr son. Garnet has a vampire prostitute ex-boyfriend who says he's still in love with her. They're all being chased by Vatican assassins.

Sound like fun? Well, it is.....parts of it were really campy, but it was action-packed! I'm rea More...

A truly amazing paranormal novel. Garnet Lacey is a character whom many women can identify with (this isn't to say this book isn't for men either) but it has a lot of reality undertones alongside the very imaginative goings on in the book.
Definitely one for those who are partial to a bit of witchcraft in their novels and , I have found, those who truly loved the plot of the Harry potter novels....Not the characters/actors ;)

I have read this particular book many times over that I had to buy a s More...

After starting two failed books, I needed a little pick-me-up in the fun sector. And this book delivers. A great, fast-paced paranormal romance with some mystery. Who is Sebastian Von Traum? Why are Vatican agents in Madison? How is Garnet going to deal with Lilith? Why is Parrish on her doorstep? And most importantly, what is she going to wear?

I really liked the main character, Garnet Lacey. She has enough no-nonsense spunk but still slightly insecure. She felt real to me. I wanted to be her be More...

What I liked:

The premise was great and different.

The naming of the main character Garnet Lacey. Nice mix of hard and soft qualities. And also more than happy to see one less Diamond, Ruby, type of name for a character. Not to say I hate gem stone names. But seriously the usual ones get a little played out for me.

Vatican witch hunters is still kind of cool in a way.

Loved the witchy magical element.
What I disliked:

How ADD the author seemed to be with her characters. I mean I get Garnet had some ob More...

Tate Hallaway’s Debütroman "Nicht schon wieder ein Vampir" ist der Auftakt zu einer humorvollen, paranormalen Romanreihe. In dieser neuen Fantasy-Romance Reihe dreht sich alles um die Hexe Garnet Lacey.

Verfolgt von der Kongretation des Vatikans, die ihren gesamten Zirkel vernichtet hat, flüchtet Garnet in das Städtchen Madinson. Dort baut sie sich unter neuem Namen und neuem Aussehen ein neues Leben auf. Eines Tages taucht in Ihrem astrologischen Kuriositätenladen ein äußerst attraktiver Vampir More...

This is a very promising start to a series of books about Garnet Lacey - a witch who is trying really hard to no longer use her magic. She used to be a practising Wiccan until she turned up late one day to a coven meeting & discovered Vatican assassins had slaughtered all of the other coven members. In her desperation to save her own life she called for assistance from the darkest Goddess she could think of - Lilith. Now Garnet is on the run and Lilith has taken up residence inside her. She More...

Synopsis:

Garnet Lacey vowed never to do magic again. Not after that scene with the Vatican assassins in Minneapolis where she called on the Goddess Lilith, who left a swath of destruction so huge Garnet had to leave town. Eight months later, and several hundred miles away, she’s now the manager of Mercury Crossing, Madison, Wisconsin’s premier occult bookstore and herb emporium where the employees are prime examples of witches without a clue.

One day, just as she’s closing the bookstore, in walks More...

True friends don't let their pals read bad books. In this I have failed. To prevent letting down any others, I shall say that this book was heaps and heaps of meh, with a side of lukewarm disappointment. As CJ (that friend I failed) said in her review:

I read this with high hopes only to be slapped in the face with the wake up call that this book is like that c+ student you can't help but you know that he/she has potential so you agonize on how to help them.

With a hypocritical heroine and a promi More...

Garnet Lacey is a witch who has quit magic cold turkey. An explanation of why will be given in the book, but Garnet feels like a junkie in need of a fix. She also has an inner Goddess, Lilith, who has taken residence in her womb, a destructive creature that threatens to surface every time Garnet has strong emotions. Lately Garnet finds herself less able to control Lilith, and things get turned upside down when Sebastian walks into Garnet's shop. Garnet realises that Sebastian is dead, and soon s More...

This book was surprisingly enjoyable. While it is run-of-the-mill pop-Wicca schlock, it recognizes itself as such, which makes it readable. It's also very well written and the cheesiness is successfully diluted with unexpectedly realistic characters, while also being darkened at points by bloody violence that is plenty graphic without being over the top. So, while it was somewhat cookie-cutter at points and I wouldn't recommend it for any awards, it was a fun read and I will be reading the other More...

I expected this to be a more humorous book than it was. Instead it was sort-of an introduction into magic and witches.

The main character is a complete slut...in 24 hours the main character meets a guy, sleeps with him and then sleeps with her ex-boyfriend who happens to show up (even though she moved to a new town to hide). What is worse is that she doesn't even feel shame about it.


Of course I'm going to finish the series. I am hopeful that the second book is better.

I couldn't really get into this book. I usually love paranormal books, but this premise and story just didn't appeal to me.

The main character, Garnet, is a witch and is also host to the goddess Lilith. She is on the run from Vatican agents, witch-hunters essentially, who killed her entire coven.

I just think this book needed a bit more time brewing. The concepts are there but just not complete. It all came across as just kind of weird. I still don't have a clear picture of these bad guys. Presen More...