Review: Kinked by Thea Harrison

Kinked: Aryal and Quentin Caeravorn

(Elder Races #6)

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

Two opponents must confront the cause of their obsessive fury in the latest Novel of the Elder Races…

As a harpy, Sentinel Aryal is accustomed to dealing with hate, but Sentinel Quentin Caeravorn manages to inspire in her a burning ire unlike anything she’s ever known. Aryal believes the new Sentinel to be a criminal, and vows to take him out as soon as the opportunity arises. But the harpy’s incessant wrath has pushed Quentin to the limit, and forces him to make a deadly vow of his own.

To put an end to the conflict, Dragos, Lord of the Wyr, sends them on a reconnaissance mission to the Elven land of Numenlaur. Forced to work together, Aryal and Quentin’s mutual antagonism escalates. Each fight draws forth more passion—culminating in an explosively sexual confrontation. But when their quest reveals real danger, Aryal and Quentin must resolve their differences in ways beyond the physical, before the entire Wyr is threatened.

Review:

Kinked by Thea Harrison is the newest installment in one of my favorite series, the Elder Races. Thea Harrison has a great sense of humor and her characters are memorable and loveable. Wicked is another great installment in this fun series. Kinked takes place months after the Sentinel Games, tensions are riding high between Aryal and Quentin, Ayral has been investigating Quentin for a long time and things are finally coming to a head between them, and Dragos has had enough. Ayral and Quinton are sent from New York to an Other Land to work out their differences and to check to make sure nothing has happened to the Other Land since it is no longer occupied. Aryal and Quentin quickly realize that there is more to their tension then the mutual hatred they thought they were harboring, they realized a lot of the tension is sexual. Both Aryal and Quentin are sexually dominate and part of the fun is seeing who's going to be on top.

As with all Thea Harrison novels her trademark sense of humor prevails in this book, both Quentin and Aryal have sharp tongues and even sharper wit. They are both intelligent, funny, dangerous and thoroughly alpha. A lot of the fun of this book is watching two Alphas battle it out to be on top. Both are sexually dominate with a more then a bit of kink to their sexual preferences. They make a bargain, an arrangement of sorts, but their arrangement gets thrown to the side when all is not what it is supposed to be in the Other World and all of a sudden a simple mission becomes significantly more dangerous as they are attacked and Aryal may never be the same. I swear when Aryal is thinking about what had happened to her, she about had me in tears, a couple of times. Part of her was crushed, and it crushed more than just her bones. Aryal is a fierce warrior and a wild spirit to see her broken like that is disheartening, but its Quentin that unexpectedly help pull her out of it. Aryal and Quentin are both extremely passionate in nature and love as much as they hate so when their hate turns, is their hate to turn to love? It’s fun to watch them try to figure it out.

While the name of this book is called Kinked, it’s not very kinky and probably the least steamy of all of the Elder Races books. I think I know where Harrison was going with this but it didn’t quite make it there. She put two dominates together and wanted to watch them work it out, take turns but it mostly ended up being a lot of talk and little action. They did come together but mostly it was pretty vanilla and tame. Luckily, the rest of the story was action packed and kept the pages turning. Their mission was definitely interesting and takes a very dangerous turn very quickly when spirit wolves attack and a powerful witch comes at them, things take an even more dangerous turn when they are thrown bloodied and crushed with no access to their magic and healing powers in a dungeon where they find three missing elves on the brink of death. We are taken on a roller coaster of powerful emotion and ferocious action. All in all another great story from Thea Harrison can’t wait for the next!

Liam Takes Manhattan by Thea Harrison

Liam Takes Manhattan: Liam Cuelebre

(Elder Races #9.5)

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

Warning: This story contains a major spoiler from SHADOW’S END (book #9, released December 1st, 2015). If readers do not want to be spoiled, they should read the stories in order of their release dates.

This is a short story (15,000 words or 50 pages) intended for readers of the Elder Races who enjoy Liam Cuelebre as a character.

Reeling from a deep loss, the magical prince of the Wyr, Dragos and Pia’s son Liam Cuelebre, turns inward and withdrawn as he struggles to come to terms with who he is, along with the challenges that lie before him.

Hoping to ease his heartache and offer comfort, a concerned Dragos and Pia offer him a gift, something he has desired for a long time. Liam’s response has a ripple effect across all of New York. Soon miracles of all kinds start arriving just in time for Christmas, along with a visit from a mysterious person who gives Liam hope and a vision of his future.

LIAM TAKES MANHATTAN is the third part of a three-story series about Pia, Dragos, and their son, Liam. Each story stands alone, but fans might want to read all three: DRAGOS GOES TO WASHINGTON, PIA DOES HOLLYWOOD, and LIAM TAKES MANHATTAN.

Review:

This is a pretty short novella, I definitely wanted more from this story; mostly because I love this family so much!  We were there when Liam was conceived to his birth, to his first day of school, his first shift, his first crush; our baby is growing up too damn fast.. Literally. Liam is technically only about a year old but he grows in leaps and bounds and is now closer to a 19 year old in temperament and appearance. Liam makes a decision that will take him far from home and outside of Dragos and Pia’s purview which i’m sad about but I guess I understand.  There isn’t a whole lot a can say about the story without spoilers especially since it’s so short. I can say, I enjoyed the read and the quick look into one of my favorite fictional families lives, but at the end I think I was left a little disappointed that it didnt give us more. Im going to assume that Thea Harrison has some awesome plans and roll with it.

**Review copy was provided for an honest review. No other compensation was provided.

Review: Pia Does Hollywood by Thea Harrison

Pia Does Hollywood:  Dragos Cuelebre and Pia Cuelebre

(Elder Races #8.6)

Pia Does Hollywood on Amazon

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

After making a diplomatic pact with humankind and the other leaders of the Elder Races, Pia Cuelebre, mate to Dragos Cuelebre, Lord of the Wyr, reluctantly heads to Hollywood to spend a week with the Light Fae Queen, Tatiana, before the busy Masque season hits New York in December.

Dragos has never let the lack of an invitation stop him from doing anything he wanted. Unwilling to let his mate make the trip without him, he travels to southern California in secret to be with her.

But when an ancient enemy launches a shattering assault against the Light Fae, Dragos and Pia must intercede. The destruction threatens to spread and strike a mortal blow against all of the magically gifted, both human and Elder Race alike.

Working with the Light Fae to neutralize the danger, Dragos and Pia find their deepest vulnerabilities challenged and their most closely held secrets threatened with exposure.

Review:

From the very first page we are brought back into Pia and Dragos world, we are sitting on the couch enjoying a zombie movie with Liam. Sometimes it’s the quiet moments that are the best moments. Quickly the landscape changes as Pia heads off to LA for her required week with the Light Fae. Of course Dragos is not going to be left behind but all is not what it seems and all of the sudden Dragos is facing his own mortality.  We are pulled into a centuries old feud with life threatening stakes.  

We get small glimpses of the new baby who I think is going to be very fierce, touching moments with Dragos and Pia being her usual strong under pressure self. I really enjoy Harrison’s novellas they give us quick but substantial looks into the Elder Races world. I would love to see another full length book featuring the family. 

*Title was provided through NetGalley for an honest review. No other compensation was provided. 

Dragos Goes to Washington by Thea Harrison

Dragos Goes to Washington: Dragos and Pia

(Elder Races #8.5)

Review:

From Goodreads.com

ragos Cuelebre, Lord of the Wyr, needs to throw a party without maiming anyone. That isn’t exactly as easy as it might sound.

After the destructive events of the last eighteen months, the Elder Races are heading to Washington D.C. to foster peace with humankind. Not known for his diplomacy skills, Dragos must rely on his mate Pia to help navigate a battlefield of words and polite smiles rather than claws. With Dragos’s mating instinct riding close to the surface, his temper is more volatile than ever and the threat of violence hovers in the air.

Then the human spouse of a prominent politician winds up murdered and Dragos and Pia must race against time to hunt down those behind it before they are held responsible for the crime.

Review:

I adore these small glimpses into Dragos and Pia’s lives, its quick and all too short but it’s nice to have none the less.  In this one we have a brief glimpse of Pia and Dragos at Liam’s soccer practice which is super cute! Which is promptly followed by sexy times, LOTS of sexy times. This is a pretty steamy novella, which I am not going to complain about at all. Most of the novella takes place in Washington where tension against the Elder Races is ramping up, it’s building to some interesting stuff. In the middle of all that Pia’s gets fairly ill at the least opportune time. This short novella packs a lot into a few pages and made for a highly entertaining read. Im looking forward to the next one in the this mini three installment novella series. 

*This novella was provided to me through NetGalley for an honest review. No other compensation was provided. 

Review: Thea Harrison – The Wicked

The Elder Races Series:

Book 5.5

The Wicked: Sebastian Hale and Olivia





Purchase on Amazon: Thea Harrison - The Wicked (A Novella of the Elder Races)

Summary:
From Goodreads.com
The adventure of a lifetime might just end in turmoil, but when it includes meeting your future mate, who gives a hoot?

A Novella of the Elder Races

For a librarian with a focus on rare magic books, Olivia’s new job is a dream come true. She has been hired as part of a team to help manage the safe transportation of the collection of books owned by the Vampyre sorceress Carling Severan. The fact that the library is located on a mysterious island in an Other land only heightens the adventure.

Head of security for the expedition, Sebastian Hale is tired of his rootless life of adventure and finds himself attracted to the calm, beautiful librarian. But he is living a personal nightmare. He has been hit with a curse that is slowly taking away his sight, and he doesn’t know if he will survive the results.

But the powerful feelings growing between them, along with Sebastian’s inner turmoil, take a backseat when they learn there is a traitor lurking among their expedition team. With Elder Races politics and a priceless library on the line, they’ll have to rely on each other to survive the experience.

Warning: When a librarian who likes to nest meets an owl Wyr who has always lived for adventure, their romance won’t just be fly-by-night…

Review:
I have to say I quite enjoyed this novella, it was short but sweet. We originally meet Olivia in Oracle’s Moon; she quickly becomes Grace’s friend and is a witch at the largest witches’ library of the Elder Races. She tends to be quiet but is ready for adventure so she takes the opportunity to pack up Carling’s personal library. She never expected that her life was about to get significantly more exciting. Sebastian is under a Curse, as an Owl Wyr his eyesight is one of his greatest strengths; but the curse is winning against his natural defenses and he is slowly losing his site. He is drowning in boredom and misery when he takes the position as head of security to transport Carlings personal library. He never expected that his boredom was about to come to end, but there is still the curse to deal with.

From the moment Sebastian and Olivia the passion smolders but I like how Sebastian keeps his cool. Outwardly you wouldn’t know that he is insanely attracted to Olivia; he’s not one to wear his heart on his sleeve. Olivia is not sure what to make of this man, but she knows there is more than what he presents to the world. When there is a bit of danger towards Olivia all Sebastian’s protective instincts go haywire and he can’t deny his attraction any longer. I like his concern for Olivia, not only protecting her from outside threats but his concern for her on what her life would be like if she got chained to him since he is cursed and all. What I liked even better was Olivias reaction to his impending blindness. She accepted him and what may happen with his eyesight. She was all in, it didn’t matter to her whether he could see or not, even bringing up a seeing eye avian shifter so that he could still fly. I thought that so sweet and thoughtful. Their talk about their future talk had me in an awe moment as well as well as laughing a bit. I forgot how funny Thea Harrison could be. It’s been a while since I had read one of her books so when I broke out laughing a few times, it was like an ahhh… I forgot… moment. Unexpected, but very welcome. There is also a bit of action in this book, not a whole lot, I mean it’s only about 100 pages but Harrison manages to get it in there to keep things interesting. If you enjoy this series, I definitely recommend this novella. It’s a quick fun read that fits in quite nicely with the rest of the series.

Rating:







This review can also be viewed on http://romancenovelreview.wordpress.com/ .

Review: Thea Harrison – Lord’s Fall

The Elder Races Series:
 
Book 5:
 
Lord’s Fall: Dragos and Pia Giovanni
 
 
 
Click Here to Purchase on Amazon: Thea Harrison - Lord's Fall (Elder Races)
Summary:
From Goodreads.com:
In the latest Novel of the Elder Races, two mates find themselves on different paths, torn between their duty to the Wyr and the passion that binds them…
 
Before she met Dragos, half-human/half-Wyr Pia Giovanni was alone and on the run. Now she’s mated, pregnant and heading south to repair the Wyrs’ frayed relationship with the Elves. Being separated from Dragos is painful, but for the good of the Wyr demesne they need to figure out how to be partners—in more places than just the bedroom.
 
In New York to preside over the Sentinel Games, Dragos is worried about his mate, but knows that finding two replacement sentinels is essential to show the rest of the Elder Races just how strong and brutal the Wyr demesne can be. But as the Games heat up, Pia’s negotiations with the Elves take a turn for the dangerous, straining her bond with Dragos and threatening everything they hold dear…
 
Review:
I am so glad we got to go back to Dragos and Pia, together they are a compelling couple. Separate the force of their personalities still make for interesting reading. In this book it is approximately seven months after the fateful day that Pia stole a penny from Dragos. Dragos is the head of the Wyr nation and arguably the most Powerful being on the planet and is as old as the planet or as Pia likes to say “As old as dirt”. Pia is in her 20’s and half Wyr and half human. She has spent her life hiding what she is and has only recently come into her Power. Pia is now seven months pregnant with “peanut” their little dragon baby. On top of the pregnancy stress the Wyr nation is in upheaval. Dragos is down to two Sentinels and the trade embargo with the elves is really hitting his business hard. Pia is determined that she can’t do anything about the Sentinels but she can with the elves. So Dragos and Pia separate for the first time and she heads south to the Elvin demesne.
 
Since Dragos and Pia are already an established couple we didn’t have to go through the whole mating process; however, that doesn’t mean life is all hunky dory for these two. Neither one of them really knows how to navigate their mating. Dragos is old as dirt and Powerful as all get out. He is not used to having any of his decisions questioned and does not compromise. Pia refuses to let Dragos treat her like an employee, argues with him and makes him compromise. They know that they love each other but know if this is going to work they have to find a way to be partners or this relationship will fail and that is not an option. Their first step as partners is for Pia to try to fix things with the elves.
 
On her way to the elves she realizes she may be in way over her head. She has never been involved with politics before and she realizes she has no idea on how to fix things. Her nervousness is real and to be expected. When she arrives she finds out that things have just become even more complicated. The High Lord has gone into the Wood and if she wants to talk to him she has to follow. This makes Dragos blow a gasket, which in turn angers Pia. This trip has really put stress on their already stress riddled relationship. I do love how Pia handles Dragos, she gives as much as she gets and she does not back down from his formidable temper. In turn it is amusing to watch Dragos be brought down by the peaceful Pia. When Pia arrives in the Wood things are worse then she could have even imagined. She has a nagging feeling of doom and has no way to contact Dragos. All may be lost before its even begun.
 
This novel is emotion filled and a surprising amount of conflict. In true Thea Harrison fashion there is still plenty of laughs to be had. Pia’s “Psychos” can be quite amusing. Pia finds out just how strong she can truly be in the face of true danger. The Sentinel games offer a bit of Gladiator to this book and the elves some strife. Dragos even makes an apology; this book is worth it for that alone. LOL! I love when Pia talks to “peanut” it is super cute and loving. That little baby is going to be a force and a true handful. The ending of this book is one of the cutest ending ever, it was the perfect way to end the book! I really hope that in the future we will come back to Pia and Dragos as they are quite the memorable couple.
 
While it is not completely necessary to have read all of the books in this series, I would not read this book without having read Dragon Bound. I would also recommend having read Serpents Kiss, I didn’t read it and I knew I was missing a few little tidbits from that book in reference to Dragos and Rune’s falling out.
 
Rating:

Review: Thea Harrison - Hunter's Season

The Elder Races Series:
 
Book 4.7:
 
Hunter's Season: Xanthe and Chancellor Aubrey Riordan
 
 
 
Purchase this book on Amazon: Thea Harrison - Hunter's Season (Elder Races)
Summary:
From Goodreads.com
A Novella of the Elder Races

Duty. Devotion. Desire. When fate brings two isolated people together, love is in the cards.

As a palace guard and assassin for the Dark Fae, Xanthe always wore a mask, hiding her emotions to do her duty. But when her identity is compromised, she trades undercover work for guarding Queen Niniane—a position that often brings her in contact with Chancellor Aubrey Riordan.

Aubrey’s trust is shattered. A year ago his wife tried to assassinate their new queen in his name, a betrayal of everything he believes in. And now an attack on his life is proof the dark conspiracy is not yet over. Although injured and weak, Aubrey can’t help but be drawn to this shy assassin and loyal protector. Xanthe is everything Naida wasn’t, and the passion she stirs in him is something he thought had long passed him by.
Warning: Take a man recovering from an assassination attempt, the assassin sworn to protect him, add in a magical Tarot card deck and an isolated cabin, and watch the sparks fly!
 
Review:
I adore Thea Harrison and her Elder Races series. They add a refreshing mix to the paranormal genre. She writes heartwarming funny stories that rarely miss their mark. This is another solid addition to this series.
 
In this story I’m so glad we got to return to Tiago and Naida’s domain. I’ve missed them and seeing them did my heart some good. However, these two while are scene stealers the story belongs to Xanthe and Aubrey and they can hold the story down on their own.
 
Xanthe has had a hard year tracking and finally killing the last of the traitors that tried to take out Naida. The year has taken a toll on her and she is happy to be home. In her first meeting with her boss Tiago, Chancellor Aubrey Riordan is in attendance and her flutters. She has been admiring him from afar for most of her life. When she finds out that he is being threatened she doesn’t take kindly to that as he is such a good man. She never acts upon her desire for the Chancellor as their stations are too far apart and he has never noticed her. But when he is almost killed all of her protective instincts come out and she volunteers to hunt down the assassins. What she got instead was the Chancellor in her house all to herself! Xanthe is a quite person which I can get down with, not everyone has to be outgoing and talk all the time. She is basically a loner and has been all of her life, but she finds she likes the Chancellor in her space. She takes such good care of him while he is injured. Xanthe is a very easy character to like, her heart is warm and she has been so alone you are thrilled when she finds someone.
 
The Chancellor Aubrey Riordan has also had a tough year. He was betrayed by the person he trusted most, his wife. She went behind his back and tried to kill the rightful queen. For that she was killed and the betrayal almost killed him. Now he is being threatened by her family and possibly almost killed by them? Aubrey wakes from his injuries and see Xanthe at the foot of his bed, at first he expects the worst and then he assimilates what he knows of her and realizes she is friend not foe.  Since his wife’s betrayal he has felt nothing for the opposite sex but as the days pass and Xanthe takes such incredible care of him he begins to feel things he hasn’t in years.  Aubrey knows what he is feeling is rare and acts on it. I love that he doesn’t care about their difference in social status. He sees Xanthe as a woman and the woman that he wants and that is it. He loves her protective streak and determination. He doesn’t care what a relationship with her would mean to him socially.
 
The passion between these two burns bright and there is never a dull moment in this novella. The romance is at the heart of the story and what a great romance it is.  Although, this tale is short I didn’t feel cheated. I feel like we got a full story out of this novella. The characters were not lacking and there was plenty to keep you entertained. I quite enjoyed it from beginning to end.
 
Rating:

Review: Thea Harrison – Devil’s Gate

The Elder Races Series:
Book 4.6:
 
Devil's Gate: Duncan Turner and Seremela Telemar
 

 
Summary:
From Goodreads.com
"When it comes to love between a medusa and a Vampyre, it's every man, woman, and snake for themselves. "
"A Novella of the Elder Races"
 
As a coroner, medusa Seremela Telemar has always felt more comfortable chatting over a dead body than over drinks. But when her wild niece, Vetta, runs off to Devil's Gate, a lawless town that has sprung up overnight in a modern-day gold rush, she knows she has to extricate her before the rebellious girl gets into real trouble. Though she's confident in her head snakes' ability to defend her against attackers, Seremela is still a bit nervous about braving this modern-day Wild West by herself.
 
Vampyre Duncan Turner is not about to let his new co-worker go into that chaos alone. His Vampyric power and lawyer smarts make him the perfect ally, and the fact that he already had his eye on Seremela for more...personal reasons, doesn't hurt matters. Any romantic thoughts pull up short, however, when they arrive at Devil's Gate and learn Vetta is set to hang by morning.
 
In order to save Vetta and themselves, Seremela and Duncan are going to have to fight fire with force and magic with fangs. And pray they make it out of Devil's Gate alive.
 
Warning: Contains mother effin' snakes in planes, cars, tents, and beds. Luckily, our hot Vampyre hero doesn't mind them one bit...
 
Review:
 
This was a great novella from Thea Harrison! I have really come to enjoy her Elder Races novellas, it has given us a chance to follow up on some previous characters, meet new characters and get stories outside of the current Elder Races story line.
 
When I saw that this book was featuring a medusa, I was a little worried about how T. Harrison was going to handle Seremela’s snakes. I have to admit, Harrison pulled it off quite well. I think giving the snakes their own personality and how they responded to Duncan was the correct way. I think it could have gone horribly wrong, if not done correctly, but we end up viewing the snakes as sentient beings with a bit of a rascally personality. Seremela herself was a sweetheart, she typically put her family before herself and when push came to shove she could become a fierce momma bear type. She is a bit on the shy side and has a hard time believing that someone as handsome as Duncan who ever be attracted to her, she does consider herself all that glamorous or sexy. But Duncan sees something in her that she doesn’t see herself and I loved that about Duncan. He appreciates her mind as much as her body. He likes that she’s on a bit of the shy side and a researcher and academic. It gives us geeky types a bit of hope. LOL Duncan is dominant without being overly so, he knows when to step up and when to back down and accept that Seremela was not going to back down.
 
The story itself was interesting, basically Seremela and Duncan have to enter dangerous territory to find and bring back her runaway niece. Devil’s Gate is a ruff “town” that sprang up and there are all sorts of interesting characters there. That deck of Tarot cards we have seen before pops up again. They seem to be following our characters around. We get to encounter another Djinn, and I have to admit I’m becoming fascinated with Djinn’s! There is a build up the sexual tension between Duncan and Seremela, I kind of wish it had exploded earlier, but I understand that there really wasn’t time for it within the story. It was so packed with other goings on. This was a fast paced entertaining story which if you have already been reading this series I would highly recommend it. If you have not been reading the Elder Races I would suggest at least reading the first two book before taking on this novella. There were details from the 2^nd book that probably wouldn’t make much sense if you haven’t read that book and I don’t think the 2^nd book would be as enjoyable without the 1^st book.
 
Rating:

 

Review: Thea Harrison - Oracle's Moon

The Elder Races Series:

Book 4:

Oracle's Moon – Khalil and Grace Andreas

 

Click Here to Order on Amazon:  Thea Harrison - Oracle's Moon (Elder Races 4)

Summary:

Grace comes from a long line of Oracle’s, the power of the Oracle passes down from one gifted female in the Andreas line to the next. When Grace wakes up in the hospital and realizes she has come into the Oracles power she knows something terrible has happened. Grace was never supposed to get the Oracles power, when her grandmother passed it went to Grace’s sister, now that Grace has the power she knows her sister is dead and she inherited this power along with an aging house, a pile of medical bills and two small children her niece and nephew.  Now several months later Grace is struggling to keep it all together when several of the highest levels of the Elder Races show up at her door. One of them is Khalil a Djinn Prince who Grace has secretly named Khalil “The Bane of My Existence”.  When Khalil first meets the Oracle he is less than impressed, her house is falling apart and she has a bad attitude; however, her kids fill a void he didn’t realize he had until he stayed to protect them.

Since the attack on her property that morning Grace realizes that she needs protection, she can feel “The Bane of her Existence” continued presence in her house and realizes he might be a pain in the a$$, but he’s a powerful pain in the aSS. As the days pass and her Power grows so does the threat to her life and that of her children, it starts becoming clear that the Law that protects the Oracle is no longer enough. What Grace didn’t realize is when you  bargain with a Djinn you better be prepared to pay up more than you ever thought you were bargaining.  Khalil can’t believe that Grace entered into a bargain with him for something he had already given her freely, but he doesn’t feel compelled to correct her as is the nature of a Djinn. The more time Khalil spends with Grace and the kids the more realizes  there is more to Grace then he first thought and this bargain will either be the best or the worst of his long long life. 

Review:

I absolutely adored this book; I actually have read it twice already! It has to be one of my favorite releases so far this year and that is saying a lot considering there has already been so many great books in the first quarter of 2012. I was a bit scared to start this book because I didn’t read the third book in the series “Serpents Kiss”, and this book picks up also immediately following the conclusion of that book so I thought I would be lost. There were a few references to the previous book; however, they were vague enough that I didn’t feel lost. I would definitely recommend that you have at least read the first book of the series before this book to better understand the different roles the characters play, but any of the other of the series is not necessary.  I was also a bit hesitant to read this book because typically I’m not a big fan of books where the plot has an emphasis on kids. I’m not a big fan of kids in general (Don’t judge me! Lol) so I usually avoid books with kids; however, in this book the kids where as they were a central theme they did not detract from the story. Chloe the young toddler had a cute spunky personality of her own which added humor to the story.   I found the children to be a value add to the story. Also in typical Thea Harrison fashion, there is a lot of light humor. She doesn’t rely on her humor to carry the book but it is strategically placed so that without really realizing it you are laughing at something that happened or was said. I think “achieving” pancakes was one of my favorite humorous parts of the book.  I didn’t want this book to end, but I feel like Thea Harrison left it where she will be able to come back to this couple in the future, and I hope she does because I know I didn’t get enough.

 Khalil is one of my favorite males of this series, I can’t decide if he surpasses Dragos or not, but it is definitely a close call. Khalil is one of the oldest of the Djinn, with extreme powers. His Power can take out entire cities so it’s a good thing he has a tight rein on his emotions until Grace and her kids enter the picture, now all bets are off. Khalil at first stayed because of the kids, he missed his own daughter who is damaged, but the more time he spends with the kids and in turn Grace, the more he realizes he has missed much in his long life. When we first meet Khalil he is uptight and removed from humanity, but little by little Graces knocks down his stiff attitude until he is teasing Grace as much as she teases him. His fierce protective nature and vast power is completely sexy and it is no wonder that he quickly moves from Grace’s “Bane of her Existence” to wanting to jump him at every opportunity. And let me tell you after reading this book I want a Djinn of my very own.

Grace is everything you want in your heroine she is feisty, strong, compassionate and a survivor. After the accident that permanently damaged her legs and killed her sister and brother in law, she doesn’t throw in the towel, but tries to make the most of a crappy situation.  At 23 she finds herself the newest Oracle, something she never wanted in the first place and the caretaker of two small children with a bum knee that pains her almost constantly.   She has next to no money with very limited opportunity to earn more with the kids and her duties as the Oracle. Her medical bills, student loans and day to day living have completely wiped her out. You never hear Grace complain about the cards she is dealt but instead tries to make the most of the situation. When Khalil enters her life, she at first finds him extremely arrogant and a pain in her a$$, but as she sees how he treats her children and his willingness to protect them, she quickly changes her initial opinion of him. Grace initially struggles with her new Power, but is able to take control of this Power and was able to do something no other Oracle in the past was ever able to do, which makes her a force to be reckoned with…

Rating:

2011 A look back list. The Best and the Not So Great:

The Best Books of 2011:

I can’t pick a best so I’m going to list some of my favorite releases of 2011 they are all about equal in my eyes and have different qualities that make them awesomeness all around. These are in no particular order since I love them all equally. 

*To make any of these lists the book had to be published in 2011

Kiss of Snow – Nalini Singh: Click here for review

Dreams of a Dark Warrior – Kresley Cole: Click here for review

Dark Taste of Rapture – Gena Showalter: Click here for review

Archangels Blade – Nalini Singh: Click here for review

Dragonbound – Thea Harrison: Click here for review

Eternal Rider – Larissa Ione: Click here for review

The Darket Surrender - Gena Showalter: Click here for review 

Touch if You Dare – Stephanie Rowe: Click here for review

Great Hexpectations – H.P. Mallory: Click here for review

Real Men Will – Victoria Dahl (CR) Click here for review

Funniest of 2011:

Dark Taste of Rapture – Gena Showalter

Is this even a surprise? Gena Showalter is seriously one of the funniest authors out right now. She can effortlessly integrate laughes into all of her books. And this one is no exception.

The Darkest Surrender - Gena Showalter

Would be a very close second. Strider turned out to be pretty damn funny and its not surprising that Kaia was a bunch of laughs as well.

Dreams of a Dark Warrior - Kresley Cole

Dreams of a Dark Warrior had a slightly more serious tone then some of Kresley Coles other books, although with Regin leading the way there were laughs to be had in this book as well.

Eternal Rider – Larissa Ione

I laughed so hard in this book in places I literally cried. Larissa Ione with her sarcastic wit never fails to make me laugh, even though her works tend to the darker side. She knows just where to place something to make you burst out laughing. Love it. 

Favorite Heroine:

*This does not include the lead character for entire series. Ex: Cat – Night Huntress Series

Regin: Dreams of a Dark Warrior – Kresley Cole

For those who read the Immortals After Dark series how could you not love Regin. She is the prankster of the Valkerie and makes Demons eat hubcaps and radios. She is always has a smart ass comment to make and is a renowned swordswoman. She is my type of chica! She gets my vote.

Favorite Hero:

*This does not include the lead character for entire series. Ex: Bones – Night Huntress Series

Hector: Dark Taste of Rapture – Gena Showalter

Oh Hector how I love you. All muscled, aggressive, tattooed, tortured soul type and a virgin to boot. The number of ways I could have helped you rid of that particular problem. You are hotness personified, literally, since you have difficulties controlling your fire. Lol

There were so many great heros this year it was really hard to pick one but Hector won out. It was probably the combo of tattoos and the virginity that pushed him into the winner circle. LOL

Most Alpha Male:

Dragos: Dragonbound – Thea Harrison

Is there a bigger alpha male then Dragos? He is the head of all the Wyers and is the most powerful person in this world that Thea Harrison wrote. Also he is possibly as old as time itself, which creates a whole lot of arrogance.

Ares/War: Eternal Rider - Larissa Ione:

He's War for heavens sake and one of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Need I say more?

Unexpected Greatness:

Archangels Blade – Nalini Singh

I didn’t expect to love this book as much as I did. I enjoy the Guild Hunters series but it is not yet a favorite series. And let’s face it in previous books Dmitri was a total dick. But we saw a new side to our reluctant hero Dmitri in this book. I came to love him and Honor and now I’m loving this series more, it’s got great potential with the Seven.

Favorite Contemporary Romance:

Real Men Will – Victoria Dahl

I know I write a Paranormal blog, but I loved this book so much I’m sharing it on this list. It’s a part of the Donovan Brewery series and I so didn’t expect to like Eric’s book so much as he was the quietest and most serious of the Donovan family. But like they say, “It’s the quiet ones you have to worry about…” This book was seriously HOT! I highly recommend this book as well as the series. It’s the last of three and I recommend reading the first two before this one.

Biggest Disappointment:

Lover Unleashed – J.R. Ward:

It’s been since March and I am still mad about this book. Mad that I spent 17 bucks on it, mad that I wasted hours of my time on it, mad that I can only remember um like 1 scene from the entire what 700+ pages (I have a Kindle we don’t have page numbers, so that’s a guess). J.R. Ward has made a name for herself with the Black Dagger Brotherhood, the brotherhood is much beloved by the PNR community. I myself have enjoyed most of the books and was really looking forward to Payne’s story. But this wasn’t Payne’s book it was V’s book and he was my favorite brother until J.R. Ward again made him look like a pansy a$$ nut case. This is the 2^nd time she has ruin V’s story for me. And poor Payne was basically neglected. Then she introduced us to the bank of Bastards as the new villains, and really I didn’t get the point of them. Their bastards and they hate the brotherhood, who cares! And Qhuay! Don’t get me started on Qhuay, is she dragging this out long enough for you. ERG!!!

Biggest SnoozeFest:

Where Demons Fear to Tread – Stephanie Chong

I didn’t even finish it. It was boring and predictable. The heroine was so perfect she was seriously boring. Even the bad boy demon couldn’t save this book.

Least Likeable Character Male or Female:

Serena St. Clair: Where Demons Fear to Tread – Stephanie Chong

Oh little miss perfect, you were so perfect and such a worrywart that I just could not like you at all. In fact, I stopped reading this book because I couldn’t relate to you in the slightest bit. You are a yoga instructor with no vices who is all about purity of mind and body. You had no life even when you were human; definitely boring in your predictability. 

Review: Thea Harrison - Storm Heart

The Elder Races Series:

Book 2:

Storm Heart: Tiago Black Eagle and Niniane Lorelle

Summary:

For the past 200 years Niniane has been known as Thistle Periwinkle. As Thistle she acted as the PR spokesperson for Cuelebre Enterprises. When she was just 17 Niniane’s family was slaughtered by her Uncle to take the throne from her family, barely escaping with her life she headed to NYC and to Dragos where he has hidden her and kept her safe from her uncle. Now that her uncle is dead (circumstances of his death are in book 1) Niniane has returned to Chicago take her place as the rightful Queen to the Dark Fae.  Back into the fold of the Dark Fae Niniane has already had an attempt on her life. Her cousin thought that he could take her out, but thanks to the Wyr she calls family he was not successful, but he will no longer be trouble for her.  Terrified for her life, Niniane takes off on her own.  Back in NY Tiago is prowling, he hates the city and itching for a war any war to participate in. Maybe he’ll start a war just so he can fight. As one of the truly ancient Wyr’s he is more feral then most and can barely tolerate civilization.  When he hears Niniane has gone missing, he immediately takes off for Chicago to find her. Tiago does not reflect on his behavior, unlike his fellow Wyr’s he barely knows Niniane and has only talked to her a handful of times over the past 200 years.  When he finds her drunk and bleeding, he realizes he is in more trouble than he ever realized and then he realizes that Niniane is in more trouble then they realized as another attempt on her life is made.  More determined than has ever been in his life, Tiago vows that no one is going to get to Niniane again. No one will be able to budge him from her side, not even Niniane herself.

Review:

Oh how I love Tiago! He is all alpha male, dark, intense, brooding, warrior, more in touch with his animal self then his human self.  He knows what he wants and does not hesitate.  His animal self is quite intriguing as well as one of the only Thunderbirds in existence.  Lightening can shoot from his eyes and he can bring on a vicious storm from his temper. He is not a bird you want to mess with … EVER! He was once even revered as a God in ancient times. Niniane is Tiago’s total opposite, more comfortable in a spa then the outdoors. She is girly girl personified!  She is a woman after my own heart, she likes her shopping, shoes, fashion magazines, but has a spine of steel, she is not someone you want to tangle with or you may lose your own life.  (Just look at what happened with her cousin, he didn’t live to tangle with her again) After the deaths of her family she found a way to survive and find her way to Dragos demanding he take her in and protect her. I can respect a feisty, determined, girly girl. When Tiago and Niniane tangle sparks fly and sensuality reigns supreme.  The chemistry coming off these two is off the charts. I love how protective Tiago is of Niniane and how well he adapts to her lifestyle. He is a man used to war not politics but he quickly adapts to this new life and becomes an asset to Niniane as they navigate the world of Elder Races politics. Thea Harrison, creates a fun, dangerous and intriguing world with this series. Its where Wyrs( including dragons, unicorns, griffons), fae, witches and elves rub elbows and everyone just tries to get along enough to not kill to may “people”. One of the most fun worlds I have read to date.  I flew right through this book and enjoyed every moment of it. I highly recommend this series to paranormal lovers, you will not be disappointed. I’m just sorry it sat in my TBR Mountain for so long before I got to it.

My only dislike is the covers: The covers on this series really leave something to be desired. That may have been one of the reasons this series kept getting pushed back. Snobish I know, I can't help it. I instinctively am more drawn to a better cover or at least not a cheesy cover.

Rating:

5

Review: Thea Harrison - Dragon Bound

The Elder races Series:

Book 1:

Dragon Bound: Dragos and Pia Giovanni

Summary:

All Pia’s half-breed life she has been taught keep your head down, keep a low profile and RUN! Why oh why did she not listen to her mother?!? She is having the worst week, she never should have told that rat bastard of an ex-boyfriend any of her secrets because now he is using them to blackmail her. She’ll be lucky if she survives the next 15 minutes, when “The Dragon” finds out she stole from him, he is going to come after her. NOBODY steals from him, NOBODY… The fact that someone had the audacity to steal to steal from is inconvincible, but there is something about the thief; something that nags at his memory. All he has is a hand written note, but that note is enough to have him curious about the woman who dared to steal from him.  Pia is on the run for her life, she knows the most feared creature is after her and she will be caught. When Dragos catches up with his thief she is more than he expected, for the first time in centuries he is not bored. For that alone he may consider keeping her alive.  But now there other threats trying to take his new possession from him and there is no way he is going to let anyone else steal anything else from him, including HIS thief.

Review:

So for a while now my bookish friends have been telling me to give this series a try, and for a while now it has been pushed down on my TBR pile, until again someone left me a comment on my favorite series list that I needed to read this series. So, finally I picked up the first book that has been lingering in my pile for months now. Now, I am upset with myself for not listening to my bookish friends all those months ago and picked up this book when they told me to. I really enjoyed this book, it had all the ingredients to keep me engaged. Super smoldering, brooding alpha male, check, a pretty kick arse female that overcomes difficult obstacles, check, lots of action in bed and out of it, and a great sense of humor, check, check.. Thea Harrison has created an interesting world where the immortal creatures of magic mix with mere humans and everyone tries to get along, “try” being the key world. However, one has more power than the rest (Dragos).  Others want that power and are willing to do anything to get it, and don’t care who they have to trample (Pia) to get it. Once Pia and Dragos meet the chemistry is combustible.  Dragos is certainly not used to anyone daring to fight with him and Pia figures she’s going to die anyway so she doesn’t have anything to lose by standing up to the formidable dragon so the arguing makes for some good times. I am really looking forward to continuing this series and I may even be rushing this review so I can start on the next book. Sorry about that, I’m impatient when it comes to my reading…

Rating:

5