Second Grave on the Left (Charley Davidson, #2) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Oct 02, 2011 Katyana rated it liked it

Shelves: ass-kicking-women, w-t-f, ghosts-spirits, uf, fantasy, redeemed-criminals, demons

I just finished, and I can't make up my mind about it. On the one hand, I wasn't bored by it - I read it every chance I had (it has been kind of busy the last 2 days), and I liked the Mimi storyline, so that was all good. But on the other, I feel strung along. We're two books in, and I still feel like I have no idea about Charley's abilities, limitations, role, ... who in holy hell is she? So, okay. Reyes is the son of Satan, as we found out in the last book. He carries on him the key to hell. H I just finished, and I can't make up my mind about it. On the one hand, I wasn't bored by it - I read it every chance I had (it has been kind of busy the last 2 days), and I liked the Mimi storyline, so that was all good. But on the other, I feel strung along. We're two books in, and I still feel like I have no idea about Charley's abilities, limitations, role, ... who in holy hell is she? So, okay. Reyes is the son of Satan, as we found out in the last book. He carries on him the key to hell. He elaborates on that a little bit at the end of this book: (view spoiler) And actually, if something like that is the case, I'm interested. It's a cool storyline. But thus far... I just feel like I don't know anything. And two books is a pretty large amount of time to invest and still not know anything.

Here's the other thing I am of two minds about. Alright, everyone is going to hate me for this, but I am just not fond of Reyes as her love interest. Don't get me wrong, he's hot for sure. He's got a great bad-boy thing going on. But... he's a bit of an emo douchebag. Eh. He spends this entire book (view spoiler), for crying out loud, and doing this really obnoxious schizophrenic song and dance of "I am dying horribly, being tortured... and btw, you have major superpowers and could kill all the demons" and "Don't find me! Don't even look for me! Don't you dare! I will kill you and everyone else if you do!" WTF Reyes, seriously. He needs to be put on medication, because I am getting whiplash. Other schizophrenic Reyes douchebaggery: he spends the first 40% or so of the book insisting that he's evil, and Charley should stop looking at him with rose-colored glasses... and threatening her friends, saying he has no problem hurting innocent people, etc melodramatic menacing etc. But then when Charley finds out that (view spoiler), he gets all kinds of offended that she is concerned about it. That she would believe that of him. You can't have it both ways, buddy. You're either some big badass who has no qualms cutting down fields of innocent bystanders and she needs to open her damn eyes, or you are a good guy at heart and are looking for a way to change your destiny. But he, in this book, simultaneously insists that he is both. WTF. >.<

He's an interesting character. The overall story - what he his, what he'll do, what Charley is, what she'll do - is an interesting one. But if you want me to buy him / root for him as a romantic lead, you need to make him more consistent, less emo, and just less of a general bitch. Seriously. Also, what was the "whore" thing? That was so out of left field that it ... it just doesn't even make sense. I don't know what the fuck happened there.

Though to be fair, I don't agree with what Charley did in the end. (view spoiler) If I were him, I'd never fucking talk to her again. Which is fine. Without him saving her ass, she'll likely be dead 15 pages into book 3 anyway. It sounds like that was pretty much a constant job for him over the course of her life, so she's kind of fucked now.

The stuff with her family... also left me baffled. Why would her dad not tell her? (view spoiler) It was a move that was fucking stupid - from a character that we have been lead to believe is very smart about this kind of thing - that I am just completely lost. And the stuff with Gemma... WTF, seriously. (view spoiler) *eyeroll*

I don't know. Thus far, I like it well enough to keep reading, but I am worried that ... I don't know. That it will never pan out to be what it could be. I am feeling preemptively disappointed. Which is maybe unfair, but I don't care. I'll read the third out of morbid curiosity, but if there isn't some real development, I don't know how much longer I'll hang in there. ...more

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Oct 28, 2011 Paula Phillips rated it it was amazing

When I read First Grave on the Right , I loved it to pieces as I fell in love with the character of Charley Davidson who turned out to be one awesome chick with the ability to not only see the dead and help them cross over but she also runs her own PI business and can kick some serious butt and then she topped it off by falling in love with the Son of Satan Reyes.
In Book #2 Second Grave on the Left we are reunited with Charley and her best friend Cookie as they get a mysterious note saying that ...more

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