Really Unusual Bad Boys

Canis Royal #2 & 3 (Mating Season & Groomfigh

by MaryJanice Davidson

Three noble brothers from an enchanted land where pleasure is a commandment wreak havoc on the lives of three very special women in this sinful collection that includes "Bridefight," in which a lovely detective is transported to another world and into the arms of a naked prince. Original.

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Anthologies, Fantasy, Supernatural, Short Stories

241 pages, Paperback

First published August 30, 2005

About the author

MaryJanice Davidson is an American author and motivational speaker who writes mostly paranormal romance, but also young adult and non-fiction. She is the creator of the popular UNDEAD series and the time-traveling historical fiction A CONTEMPORARY ASSHAT AT THE COURT OF HENRY VIII. MaryJanice is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author who writes a bi-weekly column for USA Today and lives in St. Paul with her family. You can reach her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

www.maryjanicedavidson.org
@MaryJaniceD

MaryJanice's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/maryjanicedav...

http://us.macmillan.com/author/maryja...

Reviews

[Anna's Herding Cats · Rating 2 out of 5]

Aaaaaaand...short stories from hell. I think, maybe, I've outgrown MaryJanice Davidson or at the very least just do not enjoy her short stories. I used to LOVE her books. Especially her Alaskan Royal Family series. I'd be in tears laughing so hard. But the humor, for me, just isn't working anymore and that point was driven home by Really Unusual Bad Boys.

The three stories included revolve around the Royal family of the SandLands, an alternative universe full of kitty shifters. Each story features one of the Royal Sons finding their mates. The adults, for the most part, act like overgrown kids on a serious sugar high. The big "events" in each aren't all that exciting and overall I just didn't see a point in any of the stories. They were just kinda eh. The women are rather bitchy and hostile, the men big pushovers.

Bridgefight
Well this one did not get the anthology off to a good start. Lois Commoner is a jaded cop who has been put on desk duty after being injured. She's lonely after her parents deaths, in pain from her injury and unhappy with her life so decides to end it. Thus landing herself in SandLands and in the hands of Prince Damon, a puma shifter, who decides to keep her. Other than a few semi-funny lines we get a story of how suicide leads to oodles of fantastic sex, odd foods that all taste like candy and sweets, no pain, luxury accommodations and oh, hey, your mom that died has been living here too! Woohoo!

Mating Season
Anne Sanger lands in Prince Maltese's bath after time traveling from 1945 America. This story was so much better than the first. I actually liked Anne, or as Maltese calls her, Loo (short for Lieutenant-cute!). She's pretty gutsy and wants to get back home because she's determined to help her country during the war. I liked that she's a little tough and LOVED a scene where she stood up to Lois who was harping on her to 'suck it up' and accept being in the new world. I cheered for her just a little. Maltese is a bit goofy. Like an overgrown kid on Christmas. All excited about Loo arriving just for him. He's kinda cute though. Anne's reason for finally staying has me a little curious and I'll admit I do want to know the deal behind the 'dark travelers' and what they really want. This one was my favorite of the three stories and mainly because Anne didn't seem like a bitchy, ditzy woman.

Groomfight
What a let down! I was really hoping there would be something good behind the 'dark travelers' that spoke another language and would come and fight with the Royal family that we found out about in Mating Season. Ended up only getting once sentence on the subject and it sucked. As for the hero and heroine. Prince Shakar has always loved everything about his mother's home planet, earth. So when he falls through space and lands their at Rica Callanbra's feet he's thrilled even though he does miss his family! This one wasn't all that bad. I liked that it took place over a couple of months instead of days. The big blow up between the couple was a bit over the top but I did like Rica's "surprise" fix. Actually had me laughing at myself because I hadn't put it all together. Had a nice "well, duh" moment.

Originally posted at Herding Cats & Burning Soup

[Kait · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good set of intertwined short stories. The over-arching story line is about one family of were-pumas, and the women that they end up with. The individual stories are about the three sons and their mates, so we never really leave the story behind, unlike other short story books.

To be honest, the book wasn't a work of literary greatness, but it was amusing and entertaining and fairly well done in that sense. I'm also not rushing around recommending this book to everyone I meet. For one, there is a fair amount of bedroom scenes, and not everyone appreciates that. Also, it is comparable to the Betsy series (the Undead and Un... by Davidson) which isn't a compliment in this situation.

The thing that irritated me most is the title of the book. Honestly, there isn't a SINGLE bad boy in it. The male protagonists are interesting, different, but above all... they are GOOD guys! How could they accept this title? They should have called it "The Unusual Men of SandLands" or something like that. Granted, I picked it up because I enjoy good tales of bad boys... but this wasn't one.

Over all, the book entertained me, and I finished it in only a couple of hours, so I gave it four stars. It did the job it was supposed to, even if it wasn't a fantastic book.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

At first, I thought this was 3 novella's, but it really isn't. It's one big book about 3 brothers from another world. And apparently people from Earth & their world pop back and forth occasionally. The theory is that you are so sad/miserable that you get to go to the other world for another chance. Lois (first human to pop over) commits suicide. Later she finds her mom there -- who did NOT commit suicide, and yet, there was a body, because Lois had buried her mom, but here she is on this other world -- hmmm, major plot flaw. Most of this book didn't seem thought out. And really just bad writing. The 3 men weren't interesting at all and fell so quickly in love with humans. It seemed like they loved the women because they were from another world -- the world their mother was from -- hmmm, Oedipus complex??? And these guys might have been unusual (oh yeah, they could transform into pumas) but in no way were they "bad boys". Maybe "Really Unusual Boring Boys".

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read: August 2006
Read again: February 2008

This was a really quick read and really fun. Three short stories that all tie in together.

[Deana Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three quite inventive tales of women looking for a better world and the men who find them.

Lois is a cop who has been put on disability permanently and rides a desk, instead of a squad car. She bites the bullet and wakes up in a strange desert with a purple sky and lying next to a telepathic puma.
Anne is in the Women's Army Corp, and World War II has only begun. Anne is thrilled to have joined the army and finding she is very adept at languages. Look how well she'd learned french from the traveling farm hand, and not only the language. There are many things the French are known for and the beauty of their speech was only one. Anne demands to be returned but, since she had fallen thru a thin place between worlds, there was no return policy. 2nd to the throne, Prince Maltese is crazy for Anne and wants give her everything.
The youngest Prince of the Sandlands, Prince Shakar tries to tempt his mind away from all the romance at the Palace and the new Bridefight, where the well-born lady shifters will fight to win his hand in marriage. Shakar is unhappy and disgruntled and wishing he could get away from it all, when he falls thru a thin spot between worlds. There he finds beautiful Rica.

[Dascha · Rating 2 out of 5]

So I picked this up at my library when I couldn't find the next in any series I'm reading and it looked to be interesting. 3 related stories in one book with gorgeous men from an alternate universe where 3 unrelated women are exposed to these men. Sci-fi meets women's erotica. The author, Davidson certainly exploits desperate women readers who'd love to have "Mr. Perfect, gorgeous and well-endowed and is comfortable walking around naked and wants to ravish you and hold you up on a pedestal" drop out of the sky. The author follows the same formula for each story so by story 3 I was bored and chose not to finish. She gives you a simple fantasy that leads to graphic erotica, then happily ever after.

[Melea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hey! I read a boy and girl fall in love, and live happily ever after story! I'm getting better! It doesn't hurt that this particular book had 3 short stories, that were so unusually supernatural that it wasn't like reading the usual romance.

[Jamoz23 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have owned these books for ages and had posted reviews from the end of the books but they have disappeared.
I love to reread these when I want a bit of lighthearted whimsy. They are fun and uncomplicated, a great way to relax.
Having all three together is great.

[Raven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Feels like a 2.5 if I'm being honest.

Were these boys Really Unusual? Yes. Were they Bad? No, not in the sense of morally grey, would do anything for you including kill, type bad-boy I thought this might be. This was boundary stomping, lying and tricking to get our way, all while talking weird and walking around naked kinda bad, which is not really what I signed up for.

Bride Fight: was probably the cutest of them all. I was really annoyed with Damon tricking her into staying instead of wooing her properly. But it was the best out of the three.

Mating Season: A little more interesting, at least Maltese didn't trick her into staying. I liked that she found a purpose there, but it wasn't as cute.

Groomfight: My least favourite out of the three. This one was just plain ridiculous. No one was telling anyone anything. Also, that Groomfight could have been stopped at any point in time. Just explain the prince found a wife, stay, feast, be merry, if they want to fight for other men, that's doable. But nooooo... it's rude to cancel it. Well don't cancel it, change it, you're a king who's going to argue with you? If I could figure it out, they could have.

I will say, for each story the smut was spot on. And the romance, while a little annoying, was cute for what it was. I just don't think this author is for me, which sucks cause I think I have two more series of hers to try out.

[Greer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, and I don't mean that in a good way. I thought I was going to read something along the lines of her " Undead" books with some sort of feline boys mixed in. Instead I got soft porn. Three stories of royalty cat men getting their groove on with woman who seem to appear out of thin air. I'm just so glad I checked this out from the library, money saved, money earned.😸

[Juliana Broussard · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 ⭐️ I- if I DNFed hooks, this one might of been it. The last story was probably the better of the three. However the dialog was just all over the place, and the characters actions were too eccentric. I did wish there was more info about the Sandlands.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this anthology!
I can't wait to read more from these authors!

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Laurla2]

quaint and simple, dont know if i care to read more of her books.

[Carol Sturm · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't know how this actually became a book. Seems more like fanfiction. Not much of a story or content. Palate cleanser only.

[Shawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bride fight 2.5 stars
Mating Season 0.5 stars
Groom fight 2 stars.

[Maryjane Coons · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was not bad

[Angie Titus · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was definitely strange, and I sometimes had trouble figuring out who was talking. I did mostly enjoy it, though.

[Kimberly Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

quick read

The plot flowed well even between the stories. The characters were fleshed out well. I could have used a little context in some places but no worries

[CherylB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three interconnected love stories featuring shifter royalty, multiple dimensions and time travel. Lots of laughs and all the feels.

[Amanda York · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kind of silly, related short stories. Cute read.

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first story, Bridefight, piqued my interest, even if I didn't like the heroine (Lois). The beginning was interesting, very promising. Her first meeting with her love interest, Damon, was also pretty cool (in my opinion). However, it pretty much crashed soon after this. I think the reasons were, mainly, the characters; Lois was kinda erratic and bitchy, and Damon was sweet, and kind of innocent and... boring. The way in which Lois found her mother was odd, too, and didn't sit well with me. The writing was simple and easy to read, so I had no real qualms with that.

With the second story, Mating Season, I really liked the second heroine (Anne), how strong she was and how she spoke about 'finally getting out of the kitchen' (She came from 1945) to fight in WW2, but found the plot slightly boring. It also solidified my opinion of Lois; bitchy, unnecessary potty mouth. I liked how Anne ripped her a new one. Other than that, I found the story kind of tiresome. There was only one part that make me laugh a bit:

"And I'd better not push my fucking luck unless I want to sleep on the couch for the rest of the week."
"What is a couch?" Maltese asked.
"It is a thing where you cannot mate," Damon explained. "It is a terrible, terrible place."

Yeah, that made me lol.

Groomfight , the last story, was the worst, in my opinion. I was bored with both the plot and the characters. The hotties on my bedroom posters have more appeal and character than both the heroine (Rika) and hero (Shakar) put together. I was also irritated in the middle where Rika wanted to fight, and everyone but Shakar was willing to support her. Well, that's all fine and dandy, but RIKA is PREGNANT. I'm all for female strength and the ability to fight, but all that and pregnancy is an entirely different matter. Lois, staying within character, again proceeded to piss me off.

"Then he will get much more mad, because Rica will not fight."
"Well, it's not to the death or anything, right?"
"The baby must not be harmed. And Rica was not birthed here. She is from your world," he said, nodding at Lois.
"Oh, I get it. She doesn't do the Puma thing. Yeah, it doesn't seem like it'd be a fair fight. But I think a pregnant woman knows what she can and can't—"

'It's not to the death or anything'?! Well, not if you count the fact that Rika might miscarry. What are you going to do, Lois? Tell all of the contestants to go easy on her because she's got a bun in the oven? Stupid woman.

'I think a pregnant woman knows what she can and can't do'?! (I think that in itself proves my point) Stupid, STUPID Lois.


* * *

All in all, the book was meh. There were times where I shifted between mild interest and intense frustration (Lois). A few characters were okay, and the world building wasn't elaborate but it was, again, meh. The writing and descriptions were almost ordinarily bland, and I don't think I'm the first reader to point out that the title 'Really Unusual Bad Boys' was seriously misleading. My orthodontist is more of a bad ass than the entire royal family (King included).

[Gnome Claire *Wishes she was as cool as Gnome Ann* · Rating 1 out of 5]

Trigger Warning- Suicide

I don't think that suicide should have been included, especially given that the cover and blurb don't even hint at it. I honestly feel like Davidson could have written the story without including it (surely just having Lois realise she hated her life and wished she was anywhere else would be enough).

It's such a horrible and sensitive topic and I don't think it was dealt with very well, the suicide was treated almost casually. I think if suicide (or any other horrific topic) is included in a book the author should treat it with great sensitivity, it shouldn't just be a plot point and the author should try and raise awareness or help people come to understand people in those situations.

Whenever people are exposed to suicide (news, friends or family, reading about others suicide) they are at increased risk of committing suicide so I think anyone writing about suicide should treat it with all the sensitivity it deserves remembering that the Werther effect is real, instead it was used as a plot point, described as cowardly and done almost casually (Lois jokes about taking all her pain pills or watching a star trek marathon). I've read books that deal with suicide in a sensitive fashion but this is not one of them.


Ok rant over, onto the rest of the review. (I've given it 1 star because of the above, it would have got 3 stars otherwise)


the short stories here worked well together, they're about different members of a family of royal puma-shifters and each story is about one of the three princes, so while the stories about each prince are short we do get to know them better because they all feature in each other's stories. Saying that the princes are very very similar, really not much personality difference between the three of them. The women they choose are more different because they come from vastly different backgrounds but the characters are all pretty one dimensional.

It's funny and the characters are snarky but the dialogue seems to get a bit confused towards the end with so many of the characters being argumentative.

Also the name 'Really unusual bad boys' really doesn't suit the book, they're not really bad boys and it's all set in their world so they're not really unusual. The name really doesn't give any idea of what the story would be about, and doesn't hint at the fantasy aspect at all.

[Vickie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alrighty...I don't typically read paranormal romance or any romance books really. I like grit, humor, suspense, thrill, horror....romance just doesn't do it for me reading wise. It did back-in-the-day when it was a wonder-what-it-would-be-like or a salve after a breakup of my uber-casual relationships. Now the romance gets sort of in the way of the story, so I avoid them.




Except I felt like it would be fun to see what MaryJanice had to say since I knew it would be funny at least. And I was right. I like MJ's way with a title, her way with men and women falling over each other. Her women are sassy and I get along well with sassy.




Of the three women in the story, I liked Lois best, I think. She wasn't taking any McCrappe from anyone or anything.




This was a lightweight, easy-peasy read, so no coffee beans or diamonds, rather...




Three lightweight easy-peasy chocolate bunnies....

[Jage · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a fun read, more of a big book about three different romances than an anthology, especially since the first story is the only one that really felt like a thought out storyline for the main characters themselves.

There are some pretty major plot holes [she buries her mother but then her mother shows up in the Sandlands] and the 'bad boys' are as far from 'bad' as you can find. I mean, they're like puppies instead of pumas and everything really feels like a strange drug induced dream, even the conflicts don't make sense.

And like Lois pointed out, they were all set to go to war against brunette humans who didn't speak their language who were *from* their land, but they considered these strange women from another planet gorgeous and wonderful, even the black girl even though she's just as different from them as the 'warmongers' or whatever.

Still fun light read if not well thought out.

[Ori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE THIS BOOK!
I just picked it up at a nearby Borders store and couldn't put it down. Its three different stories that somehow make it a sequel to what happened after the ending of the first story. I don't really want to give anything away, but I love the plot, as well as the twists and turns in it. The characters are believable and not the usual mary-sue beauty perfection happening with the women but at the same, not the type of women where you think to yourself "Now that's just no way near possible for that to happen no matter what!"

I love it, I love the characters as well as the witty humor. It forces me not to try and laugh out loud while I'm in work and having a moment of a break to myself. The first story in this book is my ultimate FAV. But the other two are a big close 2nd to me.

[Momreadstoomuch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maryjanice Davidson is truly warped. I read a lot of fantasy, sci-fi,paranormal stuff. Davidson is one of those authors that really know how to take it that far and then move a bit over the mark.

This novel takes us to the Sand Lands. A parallel universe where the people are shifters and people from our universe drop in after dying for the most part. Our heroine is as usual for Davidson a bit of a self absorbed bitch. She committed suicide and ends up finding the man of her dreams who gives her the best sex of her life. And how does she repay him, she complains that he means to marry her. Then we hear the story of a few more ladies that drop in.

Overall it was a good story, but Davidson took it a bit too far for it to be a great novel. Thanks for always including a Black chick :)

[Asani Brewton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I first read these stories when they were published through Alura (sp?)'s Cave - website for this vein of ebooks many, many years ago. I liked them well enough at the time and was pleased to pick up the series in a nice paperback collection to add to my library. The first story in the series is my favorite, the others eh... It's a very light read with several yummo steamy moments. There definately could have been more of the yummo in my opinion. And the second story was more annoying than hot. Rereading these reminds me that I found much steamier and better written material through the website I originally picked the story up in. Perhaps I'll have to figure out the website and go hunting for more to read.

[Gmc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really Unusual Bad Boys by MaryJanice Davidson

The book contains three connected stories, Bridefight, Mating Season, and Groomfight.

In "Bridefight" Detective Lois Commoner is popping pain pills for her bum knee in her apartment; the next, she's in a strange land with a magically delicious naked man named Prince Damon calling her beautiful.

In "Mating Season" Lt. Anne Sanger joined the W.A.C.s so she could see the world. She fails into a bathing pool almost landing on a surprised Prince Matese. He thinks he wished her there and she doesn't think so

In "Groomfight" Rica Callanbra is used to odd things happening, but not usually sweet-god-like-hunky-men-falling-from-the-sky kinds of things. Prince Shakar is surprised but pleased to find himself on her world.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting storylines.

"Bridefight" - One minutes Lois Commoner is popping pain pills for her bum knee; the next, she's in a strange land with a magically delicious naked man named Prince Damon. Questions? Maybe one or two."Mating Season" - Lt. Anne Sanger jointed the W.A.C.s to see the world and meet someone, she meant Europe and nice Boise farm boy - not a feral, well-built, rakish man in a bathtub claiming he has wished her to be his mate."Groomfight" - Rica Callanbra is used to odd things happening, but sweet, godlike hunky men falling from the sky? She'll take him! Talk about heaven on earth.