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Four Elements #2
The Black Rose
Max is back! Book #2 in the "Four Elements" series of supernatural mysteries, by #1 bestselling authors J.R. Rain and Matthew S. Cox!
Max Long enjoyed a pleasant, if secluded, life in the small mountain town of Shadow Pines. Things had been quiet—until he discovered the elements obeyed him.
As if learning vampires truly existed didn’t shock him to his core already, Max grapples with the reality that he’s been given real magic. He has the power of all four elements at his fingertips.
They say every good private eye story starts with a crying girl walking through the door. Crystal hadn’t been the first upset woman to ask him for help, not in a town with a murder rate far worse than any big city. Unfortunately, he’d made the biggest mistake of all… falling in love. As if becoming romantically entangled with a client didn’t complicate matters enough, he’d fallen for a half-succubus.
When a group of senior citizens on a day trip go missing, Max suspects the local vampires have stopped caring about subtlety. People who rock the boat in Shadow Pines tend to disappear painfully, but if he doesn’t start making waves soon, his beloved home town will become nothing more than a graveyard.
Max Long enjoyed a pleasant, if secluded, life in the small mountain town of Shadow Pines. Things had been quiet—until he discovered the elements obeyed him.
As if learning vampires truly existed didn’t shock him to his core already, Max grapples with the reality that he’s been given real magic. He has the power of all four elements at his fingertips.
They say every good private eye story starts with a crying girl walking through the door. Crystal hadn’t been the first upset woman to ask him for help, not in a town with a murder rate far worse than any big city. Unfortunately, he’d made the biggest mistake of all… falling in love. As if becoming romantically entangled with a client didn’t complicate matters enough, he’d fallen for a half-succubus.
When a group of senior citizens on a day trip go missing, Max suspects the local vampires have stopped caring about subtlety. People who rock the boat in Shadow Pines tend to disappear painfully, but if he doesn’t start making waves soon, his beloved home town will become nothing more than a graveyard.
- GenresParanormal
278 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 15, 2019
119 people are currently reading
41 people want to read
About the author
J.R. Rain
696 books1,730 followersJ.R. Rain is the author of 110 novels and counting. He lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest, where he's hard at work on his next novel... and fighting off sparkly vampires.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 18, 2019
Max is business has picked up since he hooked up with his girlfriend Crystal. One of the cases, is a missing werewolf named Jackson. His girlfriend is a newly turned vampire, he has been trying to break the curse on her. He working on finding the vampire that had bitten her. No one has seen him, so she decided to go to Max for help in finding out what happened to him or finding him.
While looking into the case, another person comes to asking him to find her parents. They were at a casino when she last spoke to her mother. Now, her mother will not answer and goes straight to voicemail. She tried the going to the police, but she is getting the brush off.
Max decides to go the casino and drive along the path that the driver of the van would have taken. He speaks to the head of the van service. He decides to track down mechanics, he gets a hint where to look for the missing bus.
He makes the discovery that he didn't want to. He then gets more information.
Max will find out the vampires reach is goes as far at the police department, that they are not going to be helpful. He will track down what needs to and force their hands.
Max will also find out the vampire that attacked Jackson's girlfriend. It will take more than just him, to take care of the problem. Max and Crystal are going to be in major danger. There are a lot of players that they will have to work through. There is more to it than meets the eye.
The author keeps up a great pace of this book. There is something for everyone in this book. I really enjoyed the second book of this series. Want to see what else Max and others will be up against in book 3.
I received an ARC Copy of this book, this is my honest review.
While looking into the case, another person comes to asking him to find her parents. They were at a casino when she last spoke to her mother. Now, her mother will not answer and goes straight to voicemail. She tried the going to the police, but she is getting the brush off.
Max decides to go the casino and drive along the path that the driver of the van would have taken. He speaks to the head of the van service. He decides to track down mechanics, he gets a hint where to look for the missing bus.
He makes the discovery that he didn't want to. He then gets more information.
Max will find out the vampires reach is goes as far at the police department, that they are not going to be helpful. He will track down what needs to and force their hands.
Max will also find out the vampire that attacked Jackson's girlfriend. It will take more than just him, to take care of the problem. Max and Crystal are going to be in major danger. There are a lot of players that they will have to work through. There is more to it than meets the eye.
The author keeps up a great pace of this book. There is something for everyone in this book. I really enjoyed the second book of this series. Want to see what else Max and others will be up against in book 3.
I received an ARC Copy of this book, this is my honest review.
November 20, 2019
Into The Fire
This series must be read in order. The first book is "The Elementalist". This is the second book. I can't wait to read more!
Max has had an uptick in business ever since Crystal got to move home and decided she would become his assistant. If someone could afford his services and needs his services, she would charm them into availing themselves of his services. Taking a case from a Vampire (even one he didn't want to kill on sight and who only smelled like a dusty old stake crypt) to find a Werewolf has him in edge... But he did take the case so he better start working it before she loses her cool and becomes a full vampire. He wouldn't want that on his head. How long can she resist the urge to kill? Will be fine her werewolf boyfriend alive? Will be instantly want to kill him? Or is Crystal right? Are Werewolves allies of Mother Nature? Could this guy be an ally against the Vampires?
This series must be read in order. The first book is "The Elementalist". This is the second book. I can't wait to read more!
Max has had an uptick in business ever since Crystal got to move home and decided she would become his assistant. If someone could afford his services and needs his services, she would charm them into availing themselves of his services. Taking a case from a Vampire (even one he didn't want to kill on sight and who only smelled like a dusty old stake crypt) to find a Werewolf has him in edge... But he did take the case so he better start working it before she loses her cool and becomes a full vampire. He wouldn't want that on his head. How long can she resist the urge to kill? Will be fine her werewolf boyfriend alive? Will be instantly want to kill him? Or is Crystal right? Are Werewolves allies of Mother Nature? Could this guy be an ally against the Vampires?
November 4, 2019
Great Read!!!
I rate this book so high due to it's being full of action fantasy. I
Would recommend it to anyone who likes to read books that keep you
so wrapped up in the storyline that you are finished with it before you know
it haven't put it down it has been so much "fun" to read.😊
I rate this book so high due to it's being full of action fantasy. I
Would recommend it to anyone who likes to read books that keep you
so wrapped up in the storyline that you are finished with it before you know
it haven't put it down it has been so much "fun" to read.😊
November 5, 2019
Excellent, lots of fun reading.
I think this second book in the series is better than the first. Max is in control of his powers given by mother nature, and he has Crystal as an awesome sidekick. They are clearing their town of vampires. Hopefully there will be another Elementalist book.
I think this second book in the series is better than the first. Max is in control of his powers given by mother nature, and he has Crystal as an awesome sidekick. They are clearing their town of vampires. Hopefully there will be another Elementalist book.
November 7, 2019
Elemental vs vampire
I love this series! I'm really not good at writing reviews, but this was so good I had to write something. Read this series it's great!
I love this series! I'm really not good at writing reviews, but this was so good I had to write something. Read this series it's great!
June 22, 2022
After reading the first book in the series I wrote that it was decent enough that I would give the second one a chance so here we go.
The book tells the continuation of the story from the first book but, since all the characters and everything else has now been set up, there is less setting up work going on. Apart from that the book is really more of the same.
Max and Crystal is a couple and they complement each other well. Max with his elemental powers that he is still coming to grips with and Crystal who knows her powers very well and brings a lot more to the table than one would have first thought a succubus would do. The latter is generally bad news for the various vampires infesting Shadow Pines.
The books follows a pretty straightforward path of investigation, discoveries, a few twists and of course plenty of vampire killing tied together with generally good dialogue and character development, especially for Max of course.
I like both Max and Crystal and Crystal’s family isn’t too bad either now when the reason for her “expulsion” out of the family have been cleared out. I was a bit worried that it would turn into urban porn with Crystal being a succubus but, luckily, that didn’t happen. Actually, the succubus part is only a small part of Crystals supernatural “features”.
This book introduces the werewolf community as an additional element in the story. Unfortunately this is where the author decided to throw in a little bit of woke, anti companies, anti fracking etc. rubbish but at least most of the book is free from that nonsense.
The book is not really more than three star material but it is a solid three stars and it is the second book in a trilogy so I’m definitely going to read the third, and final, one as well.
The book tells the continuation of the story from the first book but, since all the characters and everything else has now been set up, there is less setting up work going on. Apart from that the book is really more of the same.
Max and Crystal is a couple and they complement each other well. Max with his elemental powers that he is still coming to grips with and Crystal who knows her powers very well and brings a lot more to the table than one would have first thought a succubus would do. The latter is generally bad news for the various vampires infesting Shadow Pines.
The books follows a pretty straightforward path of investigation, discoveries, a few twists and of course plenty of vampire killing tied together with generally good dialogue and character development, especially for Max of course.
I like both Max and Crystal and Crystal’s family isn’t too bad either now when the reason for her “expulsion” out of the family have been cleared out. I was a bit worried that it would turn into urban porn with Crystal being a succubus but, luckily, that didn’t happen. Actually, the succubus part is only a small part of Crystals supernatural “features”.
This book introduces the werewolf community as an additional element in the story. Unfortunately this is where the author decided to throw in a little bit of woke, anti companies, anti fracking etc. rubbish but at least most of the book is free from that nonsense.
The book is not really more than three star material but it is a solid three stars and it is the second book in a trilogy so I’m definitely going to read the third, and final, one as well.
July 10, 2024
Crystal Bradbury is now Max’s assistant with her own desk. She’s been very handy in several of their normal cases. There’s one case that involves a vampire and her missing werewolf boyfriend that Max has been putting it off. When he finally investigates, it turns out more involved and important than he expected.
First couple chapters are mostly rehashing events and info from previous book that you can skip over.
After some dangerous sleuthing, Max & Crystal attack Wakefield mansion and win the first skirmish in the war against the vampires.
Fave scenes: Max’s three options, the backwards truck, uncovering the grave and finding the little girl.
First couple chapters are mostly rehashing events and info from previous book that you can skip over.
After some dangerous sleuthing, Max & Crystal attack Wakefield mansion and win the first skirmish in the war against the vampires.
Fave scenes: Max’s three options, the backwards truck, uncovering the grave and finding the little girl.
December 14, 2020
Max the PI is hired by a young vampire, who hasn't completely turned yet, to find her werewolf boy friend. Max also tries to find and destroy the vampire that turned the young woman before she kills someone and it's too late for her. The trail leads to a surprising discovery.
February 18, 2021
This is a terrific center point for this trilogy! I would love to see it expanded. There is so much more this team could accomplish!
March 4, 2020
Brilliant
Brilliant supernatural book, you have to read the first book to see how the characters evolve. Max is an elementist and can call earth, water, air and fire. His girlfriend is half fae and succubus. Together they fight vampires and others that have turned bad. I can't wait to read the next book.
Brilliant supernatural book, you have to read the first book to see how the characters evolve. Max is an elementist and can call earth, water, air and fire. His girlfriend is half fae and succubus. Together they fight vampires and others that have turned bad. I can't wait to read the next book.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews