Review: Jeaniene Frost - One Grave At A Time

Night Huntress Series:

Book 6:

One Grave At A Time: Cat and Bones

Summary:

After the last battle against Apollyon in the grave yard, things finally look like they are calming down for Cat and Bones. When a ghost approaches Cat with the tale about how she died and how her murderer Heinrich Kramer a witch hunter of old is a ghost who never gave up his murdering ways. Each year on All Hollows Eve he can take physical form and he rapes and burns three female “witches” at the stake. Cat and Bones decide to take on the ghost Catherines ghostly tormentor. But how do you kill a murderous ghost? This time Cat and Bones ay have taken on the undefeatable.

Review:

I love my Cat and Bones and supporting characters! Jeaniene Frost is one of the most consistent authors in this genre and she scored another winner with this book. Ghosts are a refreshing change from the normal, there aren’t that many books in the paranormal genre where ghosts are a central focus especially not murderous ghosts. Along with the Kramer plat line there is a new thorn in Cats side, the new director of her old team. For some reason he is fixated on Cat and almost got them all killed. I am interested to see how this will turn out in future books. He seems like he’s going to be a major pain in Cat and Bones arses. What I also like about J. Frost is that her characters are not stagnating, they grow. You can definitely tell how Cat has matured especially in this book she trusts in her relationship with Bones and has come to realize that together they are stronger and not to leave Bones behind “for his safety”. This is touching to read, because she could be pretty bratty in past books. The biggest problem I had with this book was that my beloved Vlad was not in it! So sad! He’s my favorite, but he’s getting his own series so I guess I can live with him being missing from this book.

Rating:

4

ARC Review : Alyssa Day - Vampire in Atlantis

Warriors of Poseidon:

Book 7:

Vampire in Atlantis: Daniel and Serai

Summary:

Eleven thousand years ago Daniel was a blacksmith and Serai was an Atlantis noble. Daniel and Serai fell deeply in love, despite their differences. One day while Serai was visiting the jewelry shop that Daniel worked at it was attacked. Daniel shoved Serai into an underground hiding spot to save her life. Daniel wasn’t so lucky, when Serai managed to get out if the tunnel it was to find Daniel on the edge of death, she had to make a terrible decision that would mean a second chance at life. When Serai returned home Atlantis soon fell into the ocean and she “volentold” to be one of the “lucky” maidens placed in stasis to be the queen to some future Atlantis king.

Eleven thousand years later Daniel has had enough of life, he can’t keep going on as he has been. He has had nothing but despair and even after eleven thousand years he still misses his one and only true love Serai, he is ready to join her in the afterlife.  After eleven thousand years Serai has fully awaken only to realize that something is going wrong with the Emperor (A jewel from Poseidon’s Trident) that has kept the maidens in their magical stasis, only to be partially woken once a year to be feed information. Serai has woken too early and she is fully awake when she shouldn't be, seizing her moment she uses her magic and busts open her cell and runs for it. As Daniel is walking into the sunlight he is sucked through the ocean and dropped at Serai’s feet. He thinks he has finally reached heaven only to find out that he is in Atlantis and Serai is alive! Daniel and Serai can barely believe that the other one is there in front of their face’s, after eleven thousand years both thought the other was dead. Serai doesn’t have much time to marvel that Daniel is right there in front of her, she has to get out of Atlantis and she has to get out of it NOW! She has to track down the Emperor. Someone is misusing its power and it is killing Serai and her sisters. There is no way that Daniel is going to let Serai go now that he has found her, even if that means they die on this quest together.

Review:

This is an excellent book in the Warriors of Poseidon series, once I picked this book up and started reading I did not put it down until it was done!  This is a more emotional story than past books, however there is still plenty of action but it is more of a story of redemption. Daniel's whole existence has been about atoning for the first years of being a vampire when he was all about killing and maiming. Now that he has found Serai he knows he doesn’t deserve her, she is all that is light and good and he has done horrible things in his past but he still wants her. He would only leave her side if she was to ask him to and then he would even if it killed him. His devotion to Serai is of epic proportions, for eleven thousand years he has loved her. I’ve read a lot of books and I don’t think I have read one before that spanned eleven thousand years. I can’t even fathom that amount of time. All those years in stasis Serai thought about Daniel, each year when she was brought to consciousness he was her first thought, but she thought he is long dead. All these years she had some regret for the decision she made that night, but she knew she had to give him the chance at another life. But now she has a second chance with Daniel, but she has a very dangerous quest she has to complete first. Serai feels like she has to save her sisters in stasis. She knows she is the only one that can find it. She feels the pull from the jewel, if she doesn’t get to the Jewel and soon she knows she will die and in fact does. 

*I received this copy as a ARC review from the publisher. 

Rating:

Review: Alyssa Day - Atlantis Rising

Warriors of Poseidon:

Book 1:

Atlantis Rising: High Prince Conlan and Riley Dawson

Summary:

In the great cataclysm over 11,000 years ago Atlantis sank into the ocean where it has remained and thrived ever since. The Warriors of Poseidon are sworn to protect the royal family as well as all humanity. Since the Vampires and the Shape Shifter revealed themselves almost a decade ago that task has become all that much harder. Conlan is the current high priest of Atlantis; seven years ago he was captured by the goddess of death and was continually tortured for the next seven years when she suddenly just let him go. Conlan is sure he may never be whole again in mind, body and spirit. Upon his return it is discovered that Poseidon’s Trident has been stolen. Riley is a social worker and most days she is losing the battle and today is a prime example of that. She is trying to talk her young expecting mother client down from killing her boyfriend when everything goes wrong and the boyfriend almost kills Riley and would have succeeded if the young girl hadn’t pulled her own trigger killing the boy. This is the 8^th crime scene Riley has been in the middle of in a year. Not sure how more she can take she goes to the beach, where the water has always calmed her, only to be threaten by some drunk men. Conlan is breaking the surface of the water when he feels Riley in his head and her emotions are projected to him. Feeling Riley with everything in his being he sets out to protect her and is enchanted by the courage and capacity for forgiveness as well as compassion for man. Riley is not sure who this man is, but he just saved her from a fate she didn’t even want to contemplate and strangely she can hear his thoughts and see into his heart and knows he is honorable. Riley and Conlan have an intense and instant attraction and both know that they can’t let the other go… But, Conlan and Riley are in constant danger and if they even make it through all the threats there is still the problem of Conlan being betrothed to some unknown lady back on Atlantis.

Review:

This is a great start to this series. The concept of Atlantis although is not new, is presented in a new and intriguing way. Each of the warriors will quickly endear themselves to the reader; each has their own strong personality. Riley is such a compassionate young woman, I have a soft spot for social workers as my best friend is one. It is a hard thankless job and fight a losing battle every day.  Her capacity to keep on giving first to her young clients and then to the warriors is something to envy. She would gladly give life to save someone elses.  She is also perfect for Conlan, especially after his torture, she is able to calm his soul and make him feel whole again after he thought that may never happen again. He felt broken before Riley but with her she fills in the cracks of his soul. Conlan is a proud, brave, strong, slightly broken warrior. He is not sure if he has what it takes to be the king of Atlantis but he will certainly try to do the best by his people, but no one comes before Riley. His intensity of feeling for Riley is amazing! He would do anything for this woman even if it means giving up his own life. There is plenty of action and magic to keep even the most ADD reader entertained throughout the whole movie. In no time you will be addicted to this series and eagerly moving on to the next tale.

Rating:

Alyssa Day - Atlantis Betrayed

Warriors of Poseidon:

Book 6:

Atlantis Betrayed: Christophe and Lady Fiona Campbell the Scarlett Ninja

Summary:

Christophe didn’t particularly like humanity and didn’t particularly like protecting it from itself.  If humanity was stupid enough to destroy itself who was he to stop it and he had experienced firsthand how cruel humanity could be. Christophe is bored, bored with his “job” and bored with life, he is ready for something exciting and different and he hopes stealing the Siren will give him the excitement. It’s something different from killing vampires and saving human from themselves. Lady Fiona Campbell is the Scarlett Ninja the beloved cat burglar of the United Kingdom, only no one knows it’s really her. Her current job is to steal the Siren a gem in the Vanquish sword. This is not her typical kind of job but the world “money is no object” were uttered and she is not the type of girl to turn that down. When she is out scouting her job the impossible happens she is spotted by a gorgeous hunk of man who is trying to steal her Siren and makes her so now she has a man encroaching on her job AND he knows who she really is. This cannot be good, everything she has built could be tumble down around her and her family. Christophe cannot believe that the Scarlett Ninja is a women and Scottish to boot. This job is looking up! Fiona has to be one of the most beautiful women he has ever seen and he is drawn to her like no other. So what is a man to do except to follow her home. Fiona can’t believe the man from the museum found her at home so fast, what is she going to do, he can ruin everything! Christophe knows he has her now she will do anything to keep her identity safe and he realizes he needs her for this job so he purposes they become partners; only to realize the next day that the Vanquish has already been stolen. Now Fiona and Christophe have to steal the stolen object and it brings them in the middle of a vampire, Fae and Shifter dispute. They have to figure out who has their gem and fast before all-out war breaks out.

Review:

I have to admit I was not so much excited about this novel when it came out. Christophe was my least favorite of the Warriors so I wasn’t that interested in his story. By the 30^th page my opinion of Christophe turned around. It turns out Christophe can be a charming man when he wants to be with a sense of humor to boot! By the end of the book you love him as much as the other warriors. Fiona is a kick arse women, she is the world’s greatest cat burglar, a children’s author and illustrator and philanthropist as well as can tame the surly Christophe all while looking fantastic. All in a day’s work for our heroine! There is plenty of action is this novel so you are never bored. The only thing was the ending, I was left with unanswered questions like what is Christophe going to do with all his magic? But besides that it was a highly enjoyable novel.

Rating:

4.0 moons out of 5