Marie August's Blog, page 8

Book Review: The Dimitrakos Proposition by Lynne Graham

Classic Lynne Graham!

The Dimitrakos Proposition by Lynne Graham

Reading Level:
Release Date: January 1, 2014
Publisher: Harlequin Presents
Pages: 192 pages
Source: NetGalley
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Acheron (Ash) Dimitrakos is a gorgeous, thirty-year-old Greek billionaire. He founded a global corporation called DT Industries, but his recently deceased father owned half of the company. In his will, Ash's father states that if Ash does not marry within a year, his father's share of the corporation will go to Ash's stepmother and her children, all of whom Ash despises and avoids. Ash knows he could snap his fingers and have his pick among unlimited numbers of desirable women competing to become his wife, but he has known since childhood that he never wants to marry or have children. He has a dark familial secret, and he does not believe that he would make a good husband or father.

Then Ash has an explosive first meet with Tabby Glover, a young woman in her early twenties. Tabby and Ash are the legal co-guardians of a baby girl named Amber, who is the offspring of Tabby's best friend and a young man who was a distant cousin of Ash. Both of Amber's parents are deceased, and Tabby has not been able to get Ash to take any personal or financial responsibility for Amber, which is a huge issue, because Tabby is broke. She and Amber's mother had a business together, but when Tabby's friend got sick, Tabby lost the business and spent all her time nursing her friend until she died, and afterwards dedicating herself to caring for Amber. As a result, Tabby is desperately close to losing Amber, because Social Services has declared that Tabby can't give the baby a proper home. Amber is extremely attached to the baby, and Ash is her last chance to stop them from taking Amber away from her within the next few days and putting her up for adoption.

Ash is appalled at the temerity of the small, angry woman who is rudely confronting him at his place of business. Everyone in Ash's rarefied circles is in awe of him and strives constantly to impress him. But this young woman has dared to appear at his place of business dressed in a worn jacket, sweat pants, and athletic shoes, and she hasn't put on a drop of makeup or fixed her hair. He decides at first glance that Tabby is plain, until he glances into her stunning, violet eyes. Ash refuses to tolerate anyone cursing at him as Tabby does, and he threatens to throw her out of his office, until it suddenly connects with him who, exactly, the baby's father is. He was not merely a cousin, but the son of Ash's mother's caretaker during her final illness, a relative who was very kind to Ash at a vulnerable time in his childhood.

It abruptly occurs to him that he and Tabby could be of mutual use to each other. He needs a wife to keep his corporation in his hands, and she needs a husband who can assure she gets to keep Amber. He proposes a marriage of convenience, and thus begins the wild ride that is their relationship.

If you are a fan of Lynne Graham, you will very much enjoy this classic, Harlequin Presents (HP), marriage-of-convenience plot. The requirements of this romance line as to its plot lines are so stringent, it takes real genius to write fresh, exciting, sensuous romances within their confines. Ms. Graham is one of the very best at this creative feat. In this particular story, both Ash and Tabby are strong, sympathetic characters. I liked them both very much, and I greatly enjoyed the progress of their relationship. The two of them share a fascinating commonality in that each had an extremely difficult childhood, and in both cases, rather than adversity breaking them, it made them strong. Their mutual flaw is great difficulty in trusting others--especially each other. As a result, their relationship is full of the fiery battles, and equally passionate love scenes, which Ms. Graham does so extremely well.

I've read every one of Ms. Graham's 70-plus HP romances, and I can't say that for any other prolific, HP author. Though no author can be expected to hit a home run for every single book, Ms. Graham's HP novels generally run from very good to outstanding. This book is definitely in that range.

I rank this book as follows:

Heroine: 4.5

Hero: 5

Romance Plot: 4

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

 
 

Book Review: Crash Into You by Katie McGarry

Beautifully written, very moving, YA contemporary romance

Crash into You by Katie McGarry (Pushing the Limits #3)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: November 26, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 496 pages
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Rachel and Isaiah are both 17, but they are years apart in hard, life experience, and they are also a year apart in school, with Rachel a junior and Isaiah a senior. Isaiah has been in the foster-care system since he was six years old. Unknown to his social worker, Isaiah is currently living with his best friend Noah (the hero from McGarry's first book in this series, Pushing the Limits), who at 18 has aged out of the foster-care system. Isaiah's foster parents allow him to live independently as long as he stays out of trouble with the law and they can keep claiming their monthly checks from the state in payment for presumably having him live in their home. Isaiah has been endlessly exposed to the dark side of life in the bad part of town during the past decade, but in spite of all that, he rarely drinks, doesn't do drugs or smoke, and he resists all temptation to turn to criminal activities, such as dealing drugs or stealing cars, in order to make enough money to survive.

In contrast, Rachel is the pampered daughter of a prosperous, upper-middle-class family. Her four older brothers and her mother and father all treat her as if she were made of spun glass. Several years ago, a public-speaking assignment triggered terrible panic attacks which became bad enough that she spent the night in the hospital, and for a while afterward she regularly went to a therapist. Two things have kept her, in the years since, from overcoming the crippling case of social anxiety which continues to induce panic attacks. First, she already feels smothered by her overprotective family, and if they knew she still has such deep-rooted anxiety, they would ratchet up their all-encompassing care to the point that she'd feel as if she were locked in a padded cell. Second, and most importantly, her mother has never gotten over losing Rachel's sister to leukemia a few months before Rachel and her twin brother Ethan were born. Rachel has felt her whole life that it is her assigned job in the family to replace the lost daughter by being a clone of her, thereby keeping her mother happy--or at least preventing her mother from falling into a month-long, grief-based depression every January, shortly after the dead daughter's birthday in December. Rachel experiences her life as a constant, exhausting performance, and that it will never be all right for her to reveal to her mother who she really is. She is not the frilly, girly girl her mother wants, but a wannabe mechanic of fast cars. The only moments in Rachel's life when she is truly herself are when she manages to briefly escape her gilded cage, sneaking out, with her twin Ethan covering for her, and driving at high speeds on back roads in her Mustang GT.

As a result of intense, familial insulation, Rachel is abnormally naive. She has never kissed a boy, because she has never dated. If Rachel's own shyness weren't enough to turn away any boy who is interested in her, the menacing attitude of her four brothers would do the job. Until the night that Isaiah comes into her life.

Rachel is shaken to the core after giving a short speech to a leukemia charity--another attempt to be the Good Girl that Rachel feels her mother and her family need her to be to prop up her mother. As a means to recover from the trauma, she sneaks away, with Ethan's help, and goes for a long, fast drive in her Mustang. While stopping to get gas, she runs into former high school classmates of her older brothers, and they bring her with them to an illegal drag race, where she is pitted against Isaiah in a race. Suddenly, Isaiah hears police sirens. When everyone flees but Rachel, Isaiah ignores his own safety to help her escape. She returns the favor when he, soon after, blows a tire, by giving him a ride in her car. In the following, three, highly compressed hours they spend together, they both encounter something neither had imagined would come their way: a kindred spirit who is loyal and true, an ideal friend, and potentially so much more.

This third book in the Pushing the Limits series by talented young-adult author, Katie McGarry, is a worthy addition to a highly emotional, extremely well-written, contemporary-romance series. Like the previous two books, there is a powerful subplot of family and social drama beneath the central, romantic plot. In addition, with each successive book, McGarry ratchets up the thrilling action, to the point that, if this were an adult romance, it might be classified as "romantic suspense," because there are not merely very flawed parents who are antagonists to the protagonists, but some scary villains as well.

This book is told from alternating first-person points of view of the heroine and hero, just as McGarry did for her other books. I hope she continues writing in this fashion. It allows readers to intimately know her wonderful, endearing heroes as well as her highly sympathetic heroines.

The romance plot itself is extremely well done. It is tender and sweet, with poignantly rendered sexual tension. Nothing is ever crude or coarse between the two protagonists. Though on the surface Rachel and Isaiah seem very different, it is clear that on the inside, where it counts, they are made for each other, not least of which in their shared passion for cars. Though each suffers from low self-esteem due to their life circumstances, both have a strong, inner core, and together they amplify each other into bigger and better people than they were able to manage in their separate lives.

Finally, the writing, in general, for this book is superb, highly polished, and essentially flawless. This is romance writing at its very best, a book that will be enjoyed by romance fans ranging in age from teens to adults.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Social/Family Drama Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Reviewer Note: I received a review copy of this book through Amazon Vine, and Harlequin Teen actually provided copies of the hardcover version which will soon be on sale. I therefore was able to see how gorgeously this book has been designed. In addition to the paper, dust jacket that goes over the book, the book itself has a casebound, printed, graphic cover that matches the dust jacket. This is one of the more high-quality hardcover editions I've seen in the teen market or any other. A real collector's item.

 
 

Book Review: Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega #1) by Patricia Briggs

Review of audiobook

Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega #1) by Patricia Briggs

Reading Level: Paranormal Romance & Urban Fantasy
Release Date: January 15, 2009
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Listening Length: 10 hours and 6 minutes
Source: Purchase
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

This book begins immediately after the end of the short story, Alpha and Omega by Patricia Briggs, from which this series gets its name. It is not absolutely necessary to read that story first to keep from getting lost in this book's narrative, but I highly recommend reading that story.

Anna Latham is in her early 20's and was physically and sexually abused by her werewolf pack for most of the past three years, ever since she was, against her will, turned into a werewolf via a vicious attack by a rabid werewolf. She did not find out until she was rescued by Charles Cornick, a 200-year-old werewolf, that she is a rare omega wolf. She is neither an alpha, a powerful, aggressive werewolf whose drive is to seek dominance over other alphas and defend weaker members of his/her pack, nor a submissive, a wolf who has zero drive to dominate and is strongly protected by alphas. Instead, the omega cannot be dominated mentally by even the most powerful alpha werewolves on the planet, but has no desire to dominate others his/herself. Instead, the omega has a mentally and emotionally calming effect on the anger, aggression or any other negative emotion such as despair of werewolves around him/her. All alphas are driven to protect and defend omegas, and they are rare treasures that any werewolf pack would feel blessed to have.

It is obvious to Anna and Charles that the werewolf side of their natures instantly chose each other as mates, and Charles knows that his human side wants Anna's human side desperately, as well. But Anna is intensely struggling with self-esteem issues after her brutal experience, and she feels unworthy of Charles on multiple levels, including the fact that the gorgeous home he takes her to in the small town in Montana where he lives is miles above her social and financial status.

Charles is the son of Bran Cornick, the Marrok, an ancient werewolf who rules all werewolves in North America. In order to help his son cement his relationship with Anna, Bran offers what he assumes is a routine assignment to Charles, which Bran feels is quite safe enough for Charles to bring Anna along. They are to hike into the snowy, wintery, mountainous, wilderness terrain of Montana and seek out and destroy a lone, rabid werewolf who has killed several people. Unfortunately, nothing is as it seems with this werewolf, and Anna and Charles soon find themselves pitted against an extraordinarily dangerous foe who has magical abilities which endanger not only Anna and Charles, but potentially every werewolf in America.

I am a huge fan of Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and I am equally in love with the Alpha & Omega spinoff series set in the same urban-fantasy universe. I read the Alpha and Omega series, book by book, when they first came out, but I recently had the great good fortune to experience them for a second time as audiobook recordings. All of the Alpha and Omega books, including this one, are narrated by a brilliant voice talent, actor Holter Graham. His ability to provide distinct, character-appropriate voices for multiple, very different characters in this story is superb. He is, in fact, one of the best voice talents I've ever encountered.

A crucial issue that arises for me as a jaded reader when experiencing a novel as an audiobook is this: Most of us can read silently about three to five times as fast as an actor can narrate, and that slowness allows every tiny flaw in a given author's writing to become glaringly obvious. Sadly, many novels do not stand up well under this kind of spotlight, but that is definitely not the case for Patricia Briggs's books. She is such a highly skilled writer that hearing this story read aloud allows the happy reader to savor every well-conceived word more fully.

If you enjoy urban fantasy, this series is a unique take on the genre, even for Ms. Briggs herself. It is set in the same urban-fantasy world as Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and as for the Mercy books, there is a murder mystery to solve, and tons of action scenes in the pursuit of the killer. But in contrast to the Mercy books, where there is a lone protagonist fighting the good fight mostly on her own, in this series there are two protagonists, Anna and Charles, who work as a team. Since this couple is growing their relationship as humans in the midst of a type of "marriage of convenience" foisted on them by their werewolf side, this series, including this book, has a very strong romance plot. The initial short story and each of the books in this series are told from the dual point of view of Anna and Charles, which is a common feature in the paranormal romance genre and which is almost never found in urban fantasy, including the Mercy books. It adds a delightful depth to this series to be allowed to immerse in the inner life of both a male and female werewolf, as well as experiencing the unfolding of their mating bond as it blossoms into a rare and moving romantic relationship.

I love Briggs's version of werewolves in that there is a human side and a wolf side to each werewolf. Charles is unusual among the werewolves of this particular urban-fantasy world in that he is the only living werewolf who was born, not made. His maternal grandfather was a Native American shaman, and his paternal grandmother was a witch, causing mystical abilities to run very strongly in Charles. Rather than his wolf and human sides being enmeshed, they are distinct beings within Charles such that he has named his wolf side, "Brother Wolf." Even more fascinating, Charles's wolf can communicate telepathically with Anna.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Audio Narration: 5

Overall: 5

Get it on Amazon:Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega #1) by Patricia BriggsAlpha and Omega (Alpha and Omega #.5) by Patricia BriggsThe Mercy Thompson series

 

Book Review: Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs

Review of audiobook

Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs

Reading Level: Paranormal Romance & Urban Fantasy
Release Date: January 15, 2009
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Listening Length: 10 hours and 6 minutes
Source: Purchase
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

This book begins immediately after the end of the short story, Alpha and Omega: A Companion Novella from to Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs, from which this series gets its name. It is not absolutely necessary to read that story first to keep from getting lost in this book's narrative, but I highly recommend reading that story.

Anna Latham is in her early 20's and was physically and sexually abused by her werewolf pack for most of the past three years, ever since she was, against her will, turned into a werewolf via a vicious attack by a rabid werewolf. She did not find out until she was rescued by Charles Cornick, a 200-year-old werewolf, that she is a rare omega wolf. She is neither an alpha, a powerful, aggressive werewolf whose drive is to seek dominance over other alphas and defend weaker members of his/her pack, nor a submissive, a wolf who has zero drive to dominate and is strongly protected by alphas. Instead, the omega cannot be dominated mentally by even the most powerful alpha werewolves on the planet, but has no desire to dominate others his/herself. Instead, the omega has a mentally and emotionally calming effect on the anger, aggression or any other negative emotion such as despair of werewolves around him/her. All alphas are driven to protect and defend omegas, and they are rare treasures that any werewolf pack would feel blessed to have.

It is obvious to Anna and Charles that the werewolf side of their natures instantly chose each other as mates, and Charles knows that his human side wants Anna's human side desperately, as well. But Anna is intensely struggling with self-esteem issues after her brutal experience, and she feels unworthy of Charles on multiple levels, including the fact that the gorgeous home he takes her to in the small town in Montana where he lives is miles above her social and financial status.

Charles is the son of Bran Cornick, the Marrok, an ancient werewolf who rules all werewolves in North America. In order to help his son cement his relationship with Anna, Bran offers what he assumes is a routine assignment to Charles, which Bran feels is quite safe enough for Charles to bring Anna along. They are to hike into the snowy, wintery, mountainous, wilderness terrain of Montana and seek out and destroy a lone, rabid werewolf who has killed several people. Unfortunately, nothing is as it seems with this werewolf, and Anna and Charles soon find themselves pitted against an extraordinarily dangerous foe who has magical abilities which endanger not only Anna and Charles, but potentially every werewolf in America.

I am a huge fan of Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and I am equally in love with the Alpha & Omega spinoff series set in the same urban-fantasy universe. I read the Alpha and Omega series, book by book, when they first came out, but I recently had the great good fortune to experience them for a second time as audiobook recordings. All of the Alpha and Omega books, including this one, are narrated by a brilliant voice talent, actor Holter Graham. His ability to provide distinct, character-appropriate voices for multiple, very different characters in this story is superb. He is, in fact, one of the best voice talents I've ever encountered.

A crucial issue that arises for me as a jaded reader when experiencing a novel as an audiobook is this: Most of us can read silently about three to five times as fast as an actor can narrate, and that slowness allows every tiny flaw in a given author's writing to become glaringly obvious. Sadly, many novels do not stand up well under this kind of spotlight, but that is definitely not the case for Patricia Briggs's books. She is such a highly skilled writer that hearing this story read aloud allows the happy reader to savor every well-conceived word more fully.

If you enjoy urban fantasy, this series is a unique take on the genre, even for Ms. Briggs herself. It is set in the same urban-fantasy world as Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and as for the Mercy books, there is a murder mystery to solve, and tons of action scenes in the pursuit of the killer. But in contrast to the Mercy books, where there is a lone protagonist fighting the good fight mostly on her own, in this series there are two protagonists, Anna and Charles, who work as a team. Since this couple is growing their relationship as humans in the midst of a type of "marriage of convenience" foisted on them by their werewolf side, this series, including this book, has a very strong romance plot. The initial short story and each of the books in this series are told from the dual point of view of Anna and Charles, which is a common feature in the paranormal romance genre and which is almost never found in urban fantasy, including the Mercy books. It adds a delightful depth to this series to be allowed to immerse in the inner life of both a male and female werewolf, as well as experiencing the unfolding of their mating bond as it blossoms into a rare and moving romantic relationship.

I love Briggs's version of werewolves in that there is a human side and a wolf side to each werewolf. Charles is unusual among the werewolves of this particular urban-fantasy world in that he is the only living werewolf who was born, not made. His maternal grandfather was a Native American shaman, and his paternal grandmother was a witch, causing mystical abilities to run very strongly in Charles. Rather than his wolf and human sides being enmeshed, they are distinct beings within Charles such that he has named his wolf side, "Brother Wolf." Even more fascinating, Charles's wolf can communicate telepathically with Anna.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Audio Narration: 5

Overall: 5

Get it on Amazon:Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf by Patricia BriggsAlpha and Omega: A Novella from On the Prowl by Patricia BriggsThe Mercy Thompson series

 

Book Review: Alpha and Omega (Alpha and Omega #.5) by Patricia Briggs

Review of audiobook

Alpha and Omega (Alpha and Omega #.5) by Patricia Briggs

Reading Level: Paranormal Romance & Urban Fantasy
Release Date: October 20, 2008
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352 pages
Source: Purchase
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Twenty-something, Anna Latham, has been physically and sexually abused by her werewolf pack for most of the past three years, ever since she was, against her will, turned into a werewolf via a vicious attack by a rabid werewolf. It never occurred to her that she could seek outside help to prevent the daily horrors within her pack until, shortly after her alpha allows a young man to be involuntarily turned into a werewolf just as she was, one of the wolves in her pack gives her the phone number of the Marrok, the leader of all werewolves in North America. Based on Anna'a report, the Marrok sends his son Charles Cornick, an intensely alpha werewolf who is the Marrok's enforcer, to act as judge and executioner if Charles discovers that major werewolf laws have been broken.

I am a huge fan of Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and I am equally in love with the Alpha & Omega spinoff series set in the same urban-fantasy universe. The latter series began with this short story. I read it when it first came out some years ago, and this week I had the great good fortune to experience it for a second time as an audiobook.

I am stunned at the brilliance of the narration by actor Holter Graham. His ability to provide distinct, character-appropriate voices for multiple, very different characters in this story is superb. He is, in fact, one of the best voice talents I've ever encountered.

A crucial issue that arises for me as a jaded reader when experiencing a novel as an audiobook is this: Most of us can read silently about three to five times as fast as an actor can narrate, and that slowness allows every tiny flaw in a given author's writing to become glaringly obvious. Sadly, many novels do not stand up well under this kind of spotlight, but this is definitely not the case for Patricia Briggs. She is such a highly skilled writer that hearing this story read aloud allows the happy reader to savor every well-conceived word more fully.

If you enjoy urban fantasy, this story is a unique take on the genre, even for Ms. Briggs herself. It allows the reader to experience--by the author showing it rather than merely telling it--how two werewolves discover their true mate. I love the take on that connection that Briggs has, that there is a human side and a wolf side to each werewolf, and they are separate enough that the hero, Charles, calls his wolf, "Brother Wolf." The wolf can claim as a mate the wolf side of a fellow werewolf while the human side of that werewolf simultaneously feels a weak or nonexistent attraction to the other werewolf's human side. By the same token, the human side of a werewolf can fall in love with the human side of another werewolf, but their wolf sides may refuse to mate with each other. In either case, attempting to become spouses/mates is a real problem. In the case of Anna and Charles, their wolves are instantly, intensely bonded to each other, and the bonding of their human sides is more complex and takes more time, especially when Anna's self-esteem has bottomed out from years of horrible abuse.

Finally, I love that, as for a traditional romance novel, this book is told from two points of view, both Anna and Charles.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Audio Narration: 5

Overall: 5

Get it on Amazon:Alpha and Omega (Alpha and Omega #.5) by Patricia BriggsThe Mercy Thompson series

 

Book Review: Alpha and Omega: A Novella from On the Prowl

Review of audiobook

Alpha and Omega: A Novella from On the Prowl by Patricia Briggs

Reading Level: Paranormal Romance & Urban Fantasy
Release Date: October 20, 2008
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352 pages
Source: Purchase
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Twenty-something, Anna Latham, has been physically and sexually abused by her werewolf pack for most of the past three years, ever since she was, against her will, turned into a werewolf via a vicious attack by a rabid werewolf. It never occurred to her that she could seek outside help to prevent the daily horrors within her pack until, shortly after her alpha allows a young man to be involuntarily turned into a werewolf just as she was, one of the wolves in her pack gives her the phone number of the Marrok, the leader of all werewolves in North America. Based on Anna'a report, the Marrok sends his son Charles Cornick, an intensely alpha werewolf who is the Marrok's enforcer, to act as judge and executioner if Charles discovers that major werewolf laws have been broken.

I am a huge fan of Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson series, and I am equally in love with the Alpha & Omega spinoff series set in the same urban-fantasy universe. The latter series began with this short story. I read it when it first came out some years ago, and this week I had the great good fortune to experience it for a second time as an audiobook.

I am stunned at the brilliance of the narration by actor Holter Graham. His ability to provide distinct, character-appropriate voices for multiple, very different characters in this story is superb. He is, in fact, one of the best voice talents I've ever encountered.

A crucial issue that arises for me as a jaded reader when experiencing a novel as an audiobook is this: Most of us can read silently about three to five times as fast as an actor can narrate, and that slowness allows every tiny flaw in a given author's writing to become glaringly obvious. Sadly, many novels do not stand up well under this kind of spotlight, but this is definitely not the case for Patricia Briggs. She is such a highly skilled writer that hearing this story read aloud allows the happy reader to savor every well-conceived word more fully.

If you enjoy urban fantasy, this story is a unique take on the genre, even for Ms. Briggs herself. It allows the reader to experience--by the author showing it rather than merely telling it--how two werewolves discover their true mate. I love the take on that connection that Briggs has, that there is a human side and a wolf side to each werewolf, and they are separate enough that the hero, Charles, calls his wolf, "Brother Wolf." The wolf can claim as a mate the wolf side of a fellow werewolf while the human side of that werewolf simultaneously feels a weak or nonexistent attraction to the other werewolf's human side. By the same token, the human side of a werewolf can fall in love with the human side of another werewolf, but their wolf sides may refuse to mate with each other. In either case, attempting to become spouses/mates is a real problem. In the case of Anna and Charles, their wolves are instantly, intensely bonded to each other, and the bonding of their human sides is more complex and takes more time, especially when Anna's self-esteem has bottomed out from years of horrible abuse.

Finally, I love that, as for a traditional romance novel, this book is told from two points of view, both Anna and Charles.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Audio Narration: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: Crimson Dahlia by Abigail Owen

The third book in the Svatura, young adult, urban fantasy series

Crimson Dahlia (Book #3 of the Svatura Series) by Abigail Owen

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: August 22, 2013
Pages: 254 pages
Source: Author
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Crimson Dahlia (Book #3 of the Svatura Series) This is the third book in the Svatura, young adult, urban fantasy series. If you have not read the first two books, please do not read this review, as it contains spoilers for those books. Here is a brief summary of the crucial plot points of the first two books as a memory jogger for those who read them a while ago:

The Svatura are humans who genetically inherit magical powers of all sorts, such as: shape-shifting, super strength, super speed, teleportation, telekinesis, healing, controlling the earth, controlling the weather, and producing fire, ice and toxic gas. Svatura are very long-lived, as much as several thousand years. They are not immortal because they do age, though extremely slowly, and they can be killed. Their powers begin to manifest at puberty, but it can take decades--and in some cases as much as several hundred years--for a Svatura to reach full mastery of his/her power(s). Since there are not very many Svatura in the world, they are not always able to marry another Svatura, and even more rarely are they able to find a fellow Svatura who is their "te'sorthene," a magical soulmate. In a mating of a human and a Svatura, the offspring, if they become a Svatura, usually only inherit one power. When a Svatura is born of two Svatura, it is possible to inherit two powers, but this usually only occurs in the case of twins, and the twins can share the three to four powers that they have inherited between the two of them.

In Book 1, Blue Violet, the heroine is Ellie Aubrey, who looks as if she is about 18, but in fact is over 150 years old. She meets, falls in love with, and marries her te'sorthene, Alex Jenner, who appears equally young, but is of a similar actual age to Ellie. In that book, we are introduced to her twin brother, Griffin Aubrey, and Alex's family. Hugh and Lucy Jenner are te'sorthene who have been together for centuries and are the parents of Lila and Adelaide Jenner and are Alex's adoptive parents. The Pierces are a companion family to the Jenners. Charlotte and Dexter Pierce are te'sorthene who are the adoptive parents of Nate Pierce and Ramsey Pierce, and Nate and Ramsey are a similar age to Ellie, Alex and Griffin. In this first book, the Svatura band together to defeat their long-time enemies, the Vyusher, who are Svatura who can morph into wolves as well as having additional powers. For over 130 years, their leader, Gideon, has enslaved his sister Selene with his power of mind control, forcing her to use her own magical powers in his war to exterminate non-wolf-metamorph Svatura. Selene has the ability to turn off temporarily or permanently the magical powers of Svatura and to visit dreams. The primary focus in this story is Ellie, and the A Plot is her romance with Alex. The B Plot involves the skirmishes and final, epic battle with the Vyusher in which Ellie, utilizing her ability to morph into a dragon, kills Gideon and, presumably, ends the Vyusher war.

In Book 2, Hyacinth, Selene, Queen of the Vyusher, is redeemed and brought into the Jenner-Aubrey-Pierce family circle by Ellie. Selene is Griffin's te'sorthene and a similar age to Griffin. She has visited Griffin's dreams for many, many years, and until he met her in the flesh, he had no idea she was a real person, though Selene was very aware of Griffin as a real Svatura, and had used her powers to protect him and Ellie from her evil brother. In this book, once again the Jenner-Aubrey-Pierce family circle unites to defeat terrible villains. Though most of the Vyusher, under Selene's command, have given up the war against their fellow Svatura which was forced on them by Gideon's mind control, a mysterious Vyusher named Maddox is, for reasons unknown, continuing to persecute both regular Svatura and Selene's Vyusher subjects. Maddox is traveling the world, seeking out Svatura communities, convincing them that Selene's Vyusher are still their enemy, to the point that they must pre-emptively strike against the Vyusher before the Vyusher can come after them. This book is narrated from multiple points of view and is written as an ensemble-cast story, rather than primarily focusing on a romantic couple, as was the case with Ellie and Alex in Book 1. The A Plot in Book 2 is "woman power" and the magical enhancement gained by Ellie, Selene, and the other women in the Jenner-Aubrey-Pierce family circle due to performing ritual, group magic with each other. The romance between Selene and Griffin is secondary to the female-friendship plot and the action-adventure plot of the battles against Maddox and his allies.

In this, Book 3, the battle against Maddox and his minions continues, and this book, like Book 2, is narrated from multiple points of view and is written as an ensemble-cast story. The A Plot is how the Jenner-Aubrey-Pierce family circle, in cooperation with Selene's Vyusher pack, works together to defeat Maddox and his murderous minions, and a big part of the story is discovering how Maddox is obtaining minions and what his motivation is. The romance between Lila Jenner and Ramsey Pierce is a strong B Plot. Lila's inherited Svatura powers are the ability to sense when others are telling the truth and the ability to sense and heal emotions. Within the sisterhood plot of Book 2, she additionally gained the ability to share Ellie's falcon morph power and telepathy (a power that Ellie shares with Griffin) and dream visitation from Selene. Ramsey is a firestarter, a feared and dreaded power since it is one of the most destructive and most difficult to control.

Fans of action-adventure-fantasy books and films with a focus on teamwork to overcome impossible odds, in particular those which include female team members who are co-equal warriors with the males, will greatly enjoy this latest addition to the Svatura series. The world-building remains very well done and highly entertaining, and the one-for-all and all-for-one mentality of the heroic Svatura is very appealing. No matter which of the characters are your favorites, this book offers a chance to revisit all previous members of the Jenner-Aubrey-Pierce family circle once again. The ensemble-cast approach to YA urban fantasy that this series takes is quite unique, and readers looking for an original YA read will be delighted with the Svatura books.

I rate this book as follows:

Ensemble cast: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Disclosure: The author contacted me to review her book because I am a top reviewer on Amazon. I rarely accept such requests because I don't have a lot of time, but in this particular case I am very glad I did.

Book Review: Boy Swap by Kristina Springer

A fun read for fans of YA chick lit

Boy Swap by Kristina Springer

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: October 13, 2013
Pages: 120 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By:Kate McMurry

When seventeen-year-old Brooke Thomas is invited by Cassie Deegan, the most popular girl in school, to join a secret club, Brooke eagerly anticipates that membership will greatly improve her lowly social status. But at the initiation meeting, she learns that the group is called the Boy Swap Club, and the only reason Brooke has been invited to join is because she has "a desirable boyfriend," a fellow band geek Brook has been dating for four months. Brooke agrees with the assessment about her boyfriend Chris, whom she regards as quite handsome, though she hadn't until now realized that the popular girls shared her opinion. Confused and overwhelmed by what is at stake in the Boy Swap Club, Brooke allows herself to be pressured into signing a pledge that consists of four startling rules:

Never hog your boyfriend all to yourself.Never get mad at a sister member for dating your guy. Don't go all the way with any of the swapped guys. And never, ever, fall in love with any guys involved in the swap.

Within days of committing herself to the club, Brooke painfully discovers that these rules have concrete consequences when Cassie starts hitting on Chris, and Brooke's assumption that her boyfriend would never cheat on her is proved horrifyingly incorrect.

This book reads like a classic plot for a comic teen movie such as Mean Girls, and I can easily imagine it optioned to become a film. As is typical for chick lit, the story focuses almost exclusively on girl power rather than romance, though there is a bit of romance in a significant subplot. There are many humorous moments as mild-mannered Brooke becomes the "worm that turned," working hard to outwit Cassie and beat her at her own game.

Fans of YA chick lit will find this an entertaining read.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Chick Lit Plot: 4

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: Awakening by Christy Dorrity

Exciting, YA paranormal mystery

Awakening (Book One of The Geis) by Christy Dorrity

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: September 16, 2013
Publisher: Mythic Studios
Pages: 300 pages
Source: Author
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Fans of paranormal YA will enjoy this unique tale rooted in Celtic mythology.

Though sixteen-year-old McKayla McCleery has multiple family members who claim to have magical talents, she doesn't really believe them and views herself as a normal girl. There is nothing magical about the fact that she has friendships, enjoys ballet and Irish folk dance, and has a crush on a cute boy in her physics class. Then her eccentric Aunt Avril, who works as a psychic for the FBI, arrives in McKayla's home town in pursuit of an evil, supernatural murderer--and every assumption McKayla previously held about her life is flipped upside down.

This YA novel is an exciting mashup of fantasy, action-adventure, and mystery, with a touch of romance thrown in for good measure. McKayla is an appealing heroine, and there are many intriguing subcharacters, most especially, McKayla's colorful aunt. The forward motion of this story never lags, and the book as a whole is very well written.

I read this book in a Kindle edition, and it is professionally designed, formatted and edited.

I rate this novel as follows:

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Mystery Plot: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author to enable me to read it so I could write a review.

Book Review: The Lion's Lady by Julie Garwood

Review of audiobook

The Lion's Lady (Crown's Spies) by Julie Garwood

Reading Level: Adult Romance
Release Date: August 31, 2010
Publisher: Pocket Books
Pages: 372 pages
Source: Purchase
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Princess Christina Bennett is the daughter of a British aristocrat and the deposed king of a small European principality, a man she has never met. The tiny, gorgeous blonde has taken the Regency ton by storm during her first visit to England. Christina claims, when pressed for information, that she was raised in a convent in France, but this is far from the truth. Christina was raised by the Dakota Indians in America, and she is not here to socialize or find a husband, as society assumes. Her true mission is to seek justice for her mother's death, something she believes only she can achieve. Christina succeeds admirably in keeping her true background and goals hidden from everyone--until the night she encounters the devastatingly handsome widower, Lyon, Marquis of Lyonwood, a man with his own dark and mysterious past.

Trained as a spy for the Crown to ferret out secrets and lies on behalf of his country, Lyon is instantly attracted to Christina and very soon becomes convinced of two supremely important things: Christina will be his, and his alone, and he will not stop until he discovers every detail about her past, no matter how many times she sidesteps his probing questions.

This historical romance was originally published as a mass market paperback in 1988. The audiobook narration by talented, British actress Susan Duerden was produced in 2012.

For romance fans who are seeking a change of pace from the hard-edged secondary plots of romance novels from the past decade or so, with lots of dark drama in the form of paranormal monsters, action, suspense and thriller storylines, this vintage Garwood novel from the laidback 80's might be just the ticket. Both Lyon and Christina are trained warriors, and if this book were written today (or by some other author), there would probably have been a lot more fight scenes and Christina would have had a chance to prove her mettle with her knife in more extensive ways, and the villain would have had many more opportunities than in this book to menace our intrepid heroine. Instead, Garwood chose a much lighter, often humorous, battle-of-the-sexes approach to her story, making this book a kind of "dramedy," part comedy, part drama. The love scenes are both tender and sensual, and the two protagonists are more than a match for each other, being equally strong willed.

The audiobook narration is very well done. Susan Duerden has an excellent range for both female and male voices of all ages, from children, to early adulthood, to old age. This is an unabridged version providing 13 hours and 26 minutes of sterling entertainment.

This book is the first in a series called Crown's Spies. They are loosely linked together by the reappearance of particular subcharacters, but the main romantic couple is different in each book:

The Lion's Lady (Crown's Spies, #1), originally published 1988

Guardian Angel (Crown's Spies #2), originally published 1990

The Gift (Crown's Spies, #3) , originally published 1991

Castles (Crown's Spies #4), originally published 1993

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 4

Hero: 4

Subcharacters: 4

Romance Plot: 4

Action-Adventure Plot: 3

Historical World-Building: 5

Writing: 4

Audiobook Narration: 4

Overall: 4