(no subject)
I read a lot of books this summer and now that Autumn is here I can't recall what I read in which month. All books were read sometime between June and August. I'll break them out into categories to make it easier to group. Then you can skip the categories that don't interest you. *grin*
Madhouse and Deathwish by Rob Thurman -- books three and four of the Cal Leandros series. Wow, the twists and turns this series took. Deathwish was specifically a mind bender. There is another book in the series out now and I have to read it soon or I'll go nuts trying to figure out what happens next. If you don't know anything about this series, Cal is half human and half Auphe (elf) only elves aren't friendly. they are more like demons who want nothing more than the destruction of the earth. There are also other dark creatures - boggles, mummies, werewolves, sylphs, demonic clowns (I forget what creature they represent), pucks, vampires and all sorts of other creatures I can't recall. Dark fantasy set in NYC so it earns the Urban Fantasy genre title. I do like the writing but they aren't light and fluffy books. I do have to say, I wish the main character would grow up a little more. Then I have to remember he's only 18.
Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, and Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning -- the first four books in KMM's Fever series have been a reread for me this summer. I love these books. I'm going to be reading them at least one more time between now and the release of book 5 in January. I have no complaints about this series. They inspire me to go to Dublin, which was on my travel wish list anyway. *grin* They also inspire me to learn more about Gaelic culture. Anyone know of a good course or book on Gaelic culture? If so, let me know.
Forsaken by Shadow by Kait Nolan -- A debut short story in the paranormal romance genre by self published author Kait Nolan. I'm jealous of her storytelling ability and her moxie at self publishing. I do wish I could remember more about the story but I read it in June and my mind is blank. Oh, it is an eBook and available at all major eBook sellers in various formats and it is very inexpensive. I remember I enjoyed it. Dang it, I need to write my write-ups when I finish a book instead of months later. *sigh* Oh, and this falls more into paranormal romance than urban fantasy but I decided to lump them all together because I'm lazy. *grin*
A Wild Light by Marjorie M. Liu -- If you don't count the anthologies (which I don't because I haven't read them) this is the third book in Ms. Liu's Hunter Kiss series. Wow. I have no words for how amazing this story is and what it does for the world Ms. Liu has created for her characters. The writing is at turns full of dry wit and full of emotional resonance. The twists and turns are amazing and I love where the series is headed. Maxine Kiss is a demon hunter. Demons in her world are not spiritual beings but beings of another dimension who ride in people turning their hosts into zombies and wreaking havoc on the world. She is the last of the demon hunters, protected by day by tattoos that act as armor and at night by the demons those tattoos become. She loves a man who was once a priest and has the ability to change souls through music. Sounds crazy, I know, but the story works! And is much more involved than my lame attempt at explaining. The first book in the series, The Iron Hunt, was okay, and the second book, Darkness Calls built a stronger story. This book is stunning. Absolutely stunning.
If Angels Burn and Private Demon by Lynn Viehl -- I started a reread of Lynn's Darkyn series. The books are a study in finely woven plot lines and superb character development. They have almost ruined me for other paranormal romance novels. Almost. Yes, it's another vampire series, but this series looks at vampires as mutated humans who just happened to get caught up in the perfect storm of pathogens. One of the main characters in the series is attempting to figure out how to reverse this mutation so there's a science/medical element that almost gives the series Sci Fi status. I like that is is plausible, well thought out and well researched and gives a whole new twist on the mythology. Vampires are people who were dealt a bad genetic hand. The bad guys are religious zealots who believe the vampires to be demons. Trust me, this ain't Vlad the Impaler and it's not JR Ward. In fact, I often forget they are vampires at all.
Dreamveil by Lynn Viehl -- Book two of Lynn's Kyndred series is amazing. This is a spin off of her Darkyn series, which is good because there were some unanswered questions in her Darkyn series but her editor gave her one book's notice to finish that series. Damn editors. This series is a little harder to explain. I'm going to have to reread the first book to really give you an idea of where the series is going. I do know I'm very excited to take this journey with Lynn. She had me with her first book. *grin*
Beyond the Night, Embrace the Night Eternal and Abandon the Night by Joss Ware -- Joss, aka Colleen Gleason, writes a terrific post-apocalyptic the Envy Chronicles romance series. Imagine if there was a catastrophic event that destroyed most technology, changed the physiology of the continents and killed most of the people. 50 years later, 6 men wake up in a cave near Sedona. They haven't aged a day but the world around them has changed dramatically. Each man has also been gifted with a new "power" that may be a curse more than a gift. That's the basic premise of the series, but it's also more than that. There is mystery and intrigue, danger and adventure, not to mention hot romance. I like the series, but the final book didn't hold my attention. It was too clean and tidy for me. I wanted more from the hero of the third book and the he
Madhouse and Deathwish by Rob Thurman -- books three and four of the Cal Leandros series. Wow, the twists and turns this series took. Deathwish was specifically a mind bender. There is another book in the series out now and I have to read it soon or I'll go nuts trying to figure out what happens next. If you don't know anything about this series, Cal is half human and half Auphe (elf) only elves aren't friendly. they are more like demons who want nothing more than the destruction of the earth. There are also other dark creatures - boggles, mummies, werewolves, sylphs, demonic clowns (I forget what creature they represent), pucks, vampires and all sorts of other creatures I can't recall. Dark fantasy set in NYC so it earns the Urban Fantasy genre title. I do like the writing but they aren't light and fluffy books. I do have to say, I wish the main character would grow up a little more. Then I have to remember he's only 18.
Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, and Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning -- the first four books in KMM's Fever series have been a reread for me this summer. I love these books. I'm going to be reading them at least one more time between now and the release of book 5 in January. I have no complaints about this series. They inspire me to go to Dublin, which was on my travel wish list anyway. *grin* They also inspire me to learn more about Gaelic culture. Anyone know of a good course or book on Gaelic culture? If so, let me know.
Forsaken by Shadow by Kait Nolan -- A debut short story in the paranormal romance genre by self published author Kait Nolan. I'm jealous of her storytelling ability and her moxie at self publishing. I do wish I could remember more about the story but I read it in June and my mind is blank. Oh, it is an eBook and available at all major eBook sellers in various formats and it is very inexpensive. I remember I enjoyed it. Dang it, I need to write my write-ups when I finish a book instead of months later. *sigh* Oh, and this falls more into paranormal romance than urban fantasy but I decided to lump them all together because I'm lazy. *grin*
A Wild Light by Marjorie M. Liu -- If you don't count the anthologies (which I don't because I haven't read them) this is the third book in Ms. Liu's Hunter Kiss series. Wow. I have no words for how amazing this story is and what it does for the world Ms. Liu has created for her characters. The writing is at turns full of dry wit and full of emotional resonance. The twists and turns are amazing and I love where the series is headed. Maxine Kiss is a demon hunter. Demons in her world are not spiritual beings but beings of another dimension who ride in people turning their hosts into zombies and wreaking havoc on the world. She is the last of the demon hunters, protected by day by tattoos that act as armor and at night by the demons those tattoos become. She loves a man who was once a priest and has the ability to change souls through music. Sounds crazy, I know, but the story works! And is much more involved than my lame attempt at explaining. The first book in the series, The Iron Hunt, was okay, and the second book, Darkness Calls built a stronger story. This book is stunning. Absolutely stunning.
If Angels Burn and Private Demon by Lynn Viehl -- I started a reread of Lynn's Darkyn series. The books are a study in finely woven plot lines and superb character development. They have almost ruined me for other paranormal romance novels. Almost. Yes, it's another vampire series, but this series looks at vampires as mutated humans who just happened to get caught up in the perfect storm of pathogens. One of the main characters in the series is attempting to figure out how to reverse this mutation so there's a science/medical element that almost gives the series Sci Fi status. I like that is is plausible, well thought out and well researched and gives a whole new twist on the mythology. Vampires are people who were dealt a bad genetic hand. The bad guys are religious zealots who believe the vampires to be demons. Trust me, this ain't Vlad the Impaler and it's not JR Ward. In fact, I often forget they are vampires at all.
Dreamveil by Lynn Viehl -- Book two of Lynn's Kyndred series is amazing. This is a spin off of her Darkyn series, which is good because there were some unanswered questions in her Darkyn series but her editor gave her one book's notice to finish that series. Damn editors. This series is a little harder to explain. I'm going to have to reread the first book to really give you an idea of where the series is going. I do know I'm very excited to take this journey with Lynn. She had me with her first book. *grin*
Beyond the Night, Embrace the Night Eternal and Abandon the Night by Joss Ware -- Joss, aka Colleen Gleason, writes a terrific post-apocalyptic the Envy Chronicles romance series. Imagine if there was a catastrophic event that destroyed most technology, changed the physiology of the continents and killed most of the people. 50 years later, 6 men wake up in a cave near Sedona. They haven't aged a day but the world around them has changed dramatically. Each man has also been gifted with a new "power" that may be a curse more than a gift. That's the basic premise of the series, but it's also more than that. There is mystery and intrigue, danger and adventure, not to mention hot romance. I like the series, but the final book didn't hold my attention. It was too clean and tidy for me. I wanted more from the hero of the third book and the he