Dakota Cassidy: Accidentially....

The Accidental Werewolf
Dakota Cassidy
Published February 5, 2008 by Berkley Trade
ISBN: 0425219305
326 Pages


Synopsis:
Book One (The Accidental Werewolf) stars Marty, a door to door cosmetics saleswoman. Marty gets bitten by a 'dog' while walking her teacup chihuahua, and with the help of her friends and a mysterious kook claiming to be the dog that bit her, she comes to terms with her changes. There is good conflict in this story, and Marty shows real strength of character when dealing with an unaccepting wolf pack and a jealous... *ahem* female dog.




Book Two (Accidentally Dead) stars Nina a cranky, foul-mouthed, not afraid to tell it like it is, diva who gets bitten by a vampire while completing his dental work. She wakes up the next morning with new hunger cravings, and is forced to seek out her mysterious patient. With the help of her friends, and some serious whining and denial, Nina accepts her new lifestyle, AND the hunky vampire. Oh, and this one follows the same patterns of the jealous girl from his past, and the challenges and drama that presents.




Book Three (The Accidental Human) stars Wanda, a conservative, insecure divorcee. Wanda is terminally ill, and is bitten by a vamp AND a werewolf in the attempt to save her life. Who knew that along the way she would find her own paranormal HEA.





Book Four (Accidentally Demonic) stars Casey, Wanda's sister. Casey gets Demon blood spilled on her and begins levitating and shooting fire out of her fingertips. She too has to deal with the 'other woman' before getting her HEA.





Book Five (Accidentally Catty) stars Katie, a divorcee who is bitten by a cougar. This 41 year old veterinarian becomes a cougar in more ways than one.







Musings
These books were super cute, and yes - I cringe as I type that, but it's true.  I read them out of order, which I do not recommend. (The correct order is listed above).

Cassidy's writing is sophomoric, but it makes for a quick, fun read. These books did help expand my vocabulary though!  I learned the proper use of the word 'Hawt' (as in: he is so damn hawt!) and 'Evah' (as in: he has the cutest butt evah!). I also learned more romance novel jargon than I had ever gotten in a single dose. I know what a HEA is (Happily Ever After), and a TBR (To be read) list. There are more, but those are the ones that stick in my mind.

Writing style aside, the stories were fun (if totally far fetched). A group of girlfriends who met while working at the same kooky cosmetics company (Avon calling!), get their own paranormal infections, followed by their HEA in each book.

My favorite of the group was the Accidental Human, with Werewolf being a close second. I enjoyed the differences in Human compared to the other novels, and connected with the character.  In Werewolf, I think the writing was better, and the ideas more thought out. The novels tend to go downhill as they progress.
Overall - I might recommend them, if they are your style.  :)  3.5 Stars.

-Rita

_______________________________________

New books - no new posts?

I have done a terrible job at posting reviews... but I have updated the Reading List.

I plan to play catch up and post some of my jabbering about the books on the Reading List, it just may take me a while. Let me know if there are any you are particularly interested in hearing about. 

Oh! and I am on the look-out for a good read. Any suggestions?

-Rita

_______________________________________

Fever Series on the Big Screen?

DreamWorks has optioned the film rights for Karen Moning's Fever Series! Read more or visit Karen Marie Moning's Website.

The Series:

• Darkfever
• Bloodfever
• Faefever
• Dreamfever
• Shadowfever

Totally Exciting!!

-Rita

_______________________________________

Maggie Stiefvater: Forever

Title: Forever
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Publish Date: July 12, 2011
Pages: 390

Goodreads Synopsis:
"The thrilling conclusion to #1 bestselling Shiver trilogy from Maggie Stievater.
In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. In Linger, they fought to be together. Now, in Forever, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in."

This is the conclusion to the three part series, and was way better than Linger. Although I will say - the ending was very abrupt, but it left you with the ability to hope for the best.

Previous Post: Shiver & Linger

Charlaine Harris: Dead Reckoning

Title: Dead Reckoning
Author: Charlaine Harris
Publish Date: May 28, 2011
Pages: 336

Goodreads Synopsis:
"With her knack for being in trouble's way, Sookie witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte's, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is now known to be two-natured, suspicion falls immediately on the anti-shifters in the area. But Sookie suspects otherwise and she and Sam work together to uncover the culprit - and the twisted motive for the attack. But her attention is divided. Though she can't 'read' vampires, Sookie knows her lover Eric Northman and his 'child' Pam well - and she realises that they are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, she is drawn into the plot -which is much more complicated than she knows. Caught up in the politics of the vampire world, Sookie will learn that she is as much of a pawn as any ordinary human - and that there is a new Queen on the board..."

Hmmm... not my favorite Sookie book.

Eric is becoming moody & temperamental, Sookie is struggling over the same fundamental issues over and over, no new and exciting characters were introduced, the big reveals weren't momentous, in fact I had to re-read the page to decide if the secret of Sookie's telepathy was even relevant.

The book was childish. "I love you, my wife" blah, blah, blah. Sookie and Eric are soo in love but they never see each other, never sleep over, and only have one (maybe two?) unmemorable sexual encounters in the whole book. And if they are in love, why is everything treated like they don't even care about each other, or think about the other when making decisions?  They don't even fight like a couple.  I rooted so hard for Eric, and the boy is just letting me down.

Bill is mooning about, and there is so much going on, that nothing gets said or elaborated on. The book is filled with event after event, so that you are almost tired of reading, but once your are done you look back and can almost convince yourself the book had to be awesome, just because it was so packed with action and events. Pssshhh...  Pull out half the events, make the rest meaningful, and this would have been a lot better. Things slid by so fast, you didn't care that they happened at all.

That bit of rant out of the way, it wasn't by any means a bad book... I just wouldn't recommend it to someone who wasn't devoted to the series already. We got a lot of the old favorites paraded in front of us. Alcide, Jason, Amelia & Bob, the Faries, Mr. Cataliades, Bill, Bubba, Eric, Pam, the Fangtasia crowd, Sam and the Merlott's crew, Remy & Hunter, Victor and his bad guys, - even the private detectives hired by Sandra Pelt.

You get to find out back stories like the truth of where Sookie's telepathy came from, and what Gran really knew and thought about Fintan and the 'fairy' situation. Sookie works out if she is really in love with Eric, and the issue of Victor is dealt with at the top level - but boy could that stir the pot for the next book. Oh, and did I mention that Eric might be getting married?

Lots of death, lots of reveals - a must for the Sookie fan. :)

Carrie Vaughn: Kitty

Title: Kitty and the Midnight Hour
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Publish Date: Nov 1, 2005
Pages:  259

Goodreads Synopsis:
Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station - and a werewolf in the closet. Her new late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged is a raging success, but it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf-hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew?



Title: Kitty Goes to Washington
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Publish Date: July 1, 2006
Pages: 321

Goodreads Synopsis:
Talk radio meets supernatural fantasy in Carrie Vaughn's second adventure to feature Kitty Norville, a popular late-night radio host who happens to be a werewolf. In Kitty Goes to Washington, the lovable lycanthrope is subpoenaed to attend upcoming Senate hearings regarding paranormal beings. After Kitty consults with her lawyer, she reluctantly agrees to go to Washington. As a rogue wolf without a pack and no territorial home (see Kitty and the Midnight Hour), her brief stay in D.C. may even be a kind of vacation. Upon her arrival, she is accosted by Alette, the vampiric Mistress of the City, who insists that Kitty stay with her. The matriarchal bloodsucker says that she fears for Kitty's safety and even assigns her bodyguards; but as the renowned radio host sees more of the city and meets a group of peaceable lycanthropes that include a hunky were-jaguar, she begins to realize that the Senate hearings are only the tip of the iceberg of the complex and highly volatile subject of supernatural beings. Are they human? Do they have the same rights as everyone else? Or are they a disease that should be eradicated? While pondering these issues, Kitty becomes a prime target in a dangerous political game that includes a witch-hunting senator, an unethical doctor, and a reporter who will do anything to get an exclusive interview with Kitty.

Wait - what?!? no Cormac? no TJ? no magical succubus needs to satisfy all readers?
Yeah, that's right. I feel like this author took a page out of Laurell's books, then tore it to shreds then pasted it back together with pieces missing. She has a lot of the same attitudes as LKH, but it falls a little flat. Also, as she builds all these different possible romantic interests, the one you are led to wish for - AAANTT! not happening. The character you didn't pay attention to, or really give a hoot about gets the girl....I say again - wait...what?!?

When I found out Cormac went to prison while Ben gets to be the werewolf, I decided I didn't need to read any further in the books. While they were fun reads - I am not into disappointment.

Anne Bishop: Shadow Queen

Title: The Shadow Queen
Author: Anne Bishop
Publish Date: March 3, 2009
Pages:  429

Goodreads Synopsis:
Dena Nehele is a land decimated by its past. Once it was ruled by corrupt Queens who were wiped out when the land was cleansed of tainted Blood. Now, only one hundred Warlord Princes stand—without a leader and without hope.

Theran Grayhaven is the last of his line, desperate to find the key that reveals a treasure great enough to restore Dena Nehele. But first he needs to find a Queen who remembers the Blood’s code of honor and lives by the Old Ways. The woman chosen to rule Dena Nehele, Lady Cassidy, is not beautiful and believes she is not strong. But she may be the only one able to convince bitter men to serve once again.

This is the story of Cassie, a homely Rose jeweled Queen who goes from losing her village to ruling an entire territory. This is not without it's challenges though. There are a lot of lovable characters, new to the Black Jewels novels. You get to love and hate them, and continue down the story of Daemon and Janelle.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a follow-up to The Invisible Ring, which provides a lot of history and back story, but is not required.

Highly recommended.

Diana Gabaldon: Outlander

Title: Outlander
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: July 26, 2005
Pages:  850

Goodreads Synopsis:
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.


This book was recommended to me by my cousin. She warned me of it's pitfalls, but still sung it's praises. Outlander does start off slow. Takes you a while to get into it, but it is a fantastic, gritty, historical, thoughtful tale.

The book is about a woman living in 1945, who gets whisked back to 1743 via a circle of stones in Scotland.  She theorizes it is a fairy hill, but there are no faeries in this story. Other than the time slip, and the differences of a woman from the 40s living in the 1700s, this book is historical fiction. We find our how clans in the Highlands lived. There are politics, intrigue, romance, battle, and human interaction. The characters are well built, and motivations are realistic.

Our heroine experiences both inner emotional conflict, and must fight her way out of many situations. She was a nurse in 1945, having seen her share of gruesome scenes from working in a hospital ward during WWII.  Her husband in 1945 was a historian, providing her with some knowledge of the place she ends up. This is all she has to prepare her for the adventure she steps into.

If you are looking for a fun, but intelligent read - I would recommend it.

Gena Showalter: Heart of the Dragon

I love romance authors who love to make fun of themselves. Gena Showalter is one of these. Her characters often joke about their favorite romance novel stories, and how their fantasies could play out 'in real life.'

I started and finished Heart of the Dragon in the same day... Hey, I am on vacation! It was a good read. Funny, endearing, not too unbelievable (and by that I don't mean I think it could actually happen, but that I was able to sink into the story without the thread being broken by randomness that didn't fit.)

This story takes place in dual worlds - Modern
day Manhattan, and a mystical underworld beneath the sea... Atlantis. But - instead of this great city of super-advanced, intelligent beings that sunk because of a cataclysmic event, Atlantis is instead the hiding place of mythological beings
like the dragons, vampires, and minotaurs. They were placed there by the Gods in an attempt to hide the mistake of their creation. And so they live, guarding their existence from humans.

Of course, our heroine just happens to be marching through the Amazon jungle trying to find her brother who has become entangled in a plot to steal riches and magic from Atlantis (he is completely innocent to be sure). She slips through the portal, and the being responsible for the protection of the realm falls for her... hard(double entandre implied), and cannot kill her as is his duty. They go back and forth, and like any good
romance novel traipse between his world and hers, until they reunite and save the day.

It's a fun read, and the first in a whole series based in a world where Atlantiens exist. To any paranormal romance novel enthusiast, I recommend.

Twilight's Dawn to be Published March 1st, 2011

Yesssss!!!

Read an excerpt on Bishop's official website.