Shelly Laurenston – Here Kitty, Kitty

The third book in the Magnus Pack series, published in 2006, and on July 3, 2007.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: nice



What do you do when you've got a hillbilly tiger by the tail? Or maybe the question should be: what wouldn't you do... Nikolai Vorislav likes his single life just as it is. Simple, relaxing and quiet. What he doesn't need is some foul-mouthed Texan hellcat living in his house, eating his food, flirting with his idiot brothers and shooting holes in his home with his granddaddy's gun. But those long legs, dark eyes and lethal tongue are making Nik insane and he fears he may be caught in the sexiest animal trap ever. Angelina Santiago doesn't know how she got from Texas to North Carolina in a night or how she ended up in some hillbilly tiger's house wearing only a sheet. What she does know is that she doesn't like good ol' boys with slow, sexy drawls who can't seem to stop rubbing up against her. Yet in order to protect her friends, Angie has to stay with a cat who seems hell-bent on finding all sorts of delicious ways to make her purr. Warning, this title contains the following: explicit sex, graphic language, and strong violence.


Nikolai Vorislav´s is a Tiger shifter, and head of his clan. Tiger´s are not family people, and his father is considered a pervert for staying with his mother all his life. He even has real siblings instead of a lot of halves. Nikolai has no intention to bind himself to one female.

His two younger brothers are on a mission in Texas, to buy some land from a wolf pack, when they encounter the woman their brother was mooning over at the airport the other day. And when she is attacked by some hyena’s Bannik and Aleksei decide to safe her and bring her home with them. Even though she lives in a town with shifters, apparently she is not safe there. And their big brother liked her …
Of course, Angie is so not happy being kidnapped and taken to North Carolina. Doesn’t matter how handsome her captor is, she wants to go home! And she won’t surrender without a fight either, which Nik finds out in person. But when his sister tells him she is no ordinary human, but somehow part of the Magnus pack, with the crazy alpha female, he knows he is in big trouble.

When the pack is needed to keep Miki safe, and Zach cannot rescue her at once, Angelica needs to stay with Nik and his family for a few days, and she blackmails him into it. He will keep her safe for the next few days, or his brothers will go to prison for kidnapping her. And if he doesn’t comply, she will just start putting things on fire … Nik believes her, and he wants to get to know her, for a human she totally fascinates her. But first, Angelica needs to go shopping, as she needs clothes and other stuff. And with total disregard to him, Angelica knows how to shop and use a creditcard, not batting her eyelashes at the pricecards. And Nik can’t believe he just lets her run all over him.

Angie quickly gets friends with his sisters and other family members though, they adore her fashion sense and clearly need her help. Even his grandmother warms up to her. And both Nik’s brothers are trying to get her affection, and are fighting each other. Angie enjoys to watch it, though she is freaked out at the prey they lay at her feet.

Angie has always hated to be touched, but Nik has something about him, and he gets her to trust him enough to teach her that touching can be very nice indeed. When the hyena´s come after Angie, there is no lack of protectors to run them out of town.

In the meantime, Sara is going crazy that Angie is with strange shifters, she wants her home now. And when her mate doesn’t comply, she goes after her herself. And what she does to Nik is truly hilarious.


I liked this third book even better, because Angie is truly outrageous. She winds Nik around her little finger, but he also manages her with his touches. He won’t take no for an answer. Nik doesn’t spend time with human females as a rule, but he will have to make an exception for Angie, as she truly fascinates him. Body like a goddess, and a mouth like a Bronx trucker. She drives him insane. But she is not afraid of him, or of his tiger.

Again, lots of fun, action and shifters. A big family this time, with all the dynamics. And lot of tension between Angie and Nik, and some hot love scenes. I do think you should read those three books in order for the most enjoyment though they can be read as stand alones. And after two wolf shifter books, it was fun to meet the cats in a positive way.

8 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Shelly Laurenston – Go Fetch!

The second book in the Magnus Pack series, published in 2004, and on March 6, 2007.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: totally frustrated with his woman, lol



How much trouble can one small female be to a modern-day shapeshifting Viking? Well, it really depends on local gun laws. Conall Viga-Feilan, direct descendent of Viking shifters, never thought he'd meet a female strong enough to be his mate. He especially didn't think a short, viper-tongued human would ever fit the bill. But Miki Kendrick isn't some average human. With an IQ off the charts and a special skill with weapons of all kinds, Miki brings the big blond pooch to his knees-and keeps him there. Miki's way too smart to ever believe in love and she knows a guy like Conall could only want one thing from her. But with the Pack's enemies on her tail and a few days stuck alone with the one man who makes her absolutely wild, Miki is about to discover how persistent one Viking wolf can be. This book has been previously published and has been revised from its original release. Warning, this title contains the following: explicit sex, graphic language, and strong violence.


In the first book, Conall really fell hard for Miki, Sara’s friend. Miki is rude and has no brake on her thoughts at all. She is incredibly smart, and carries a lot of weapons with her. Miki keeps putting Conall in his place, but he doesn’t care, she is his and he will have her.
Before she will be taking her dissertation in college in Seattle, Miki will stay with Sara and her pack for a few days.
When Sara points Miki to her room, to unpack and freshen up, she ends up in Conall´s room, and does not know that. She just falls facedown on his bed, and enjoys the softness and the scent of the sheets. But Conall is very happy to find her in his room, and tries to seduce her. Miki is mortified when she finds out she is in the wrong room, and not Conall. Still, she has been dreaming of him for months now, just like he has done about her.
That evening they all get out to a local shiftersbar, but while on the phone outside, Miki is accosted by some strangers. She defends herself though, and gets back inside. Conall is furious that something dared to mark his female, and he still doesn’t know what species of shifter they are dealing with. It is the same scent they found on their land earlier.
Conall is determined to protect Miki. Even though she doesn’t want him to, nor need it. And so he will go with her to campus, and wait for her to take her back home.


I really enjoyed this book. Miki is outrageous. She even drugs Conall to keep him off her back. She is such a genius, she has invented some kind of fire weapon the government would kill to have, and she uses it when they are attacked at campus by a whole tribe of hyena´s. She is awesome.
And Conall might look like a huge blond teddy bear, but he is a Viking wolf, and when provoked, goes Berserker. And when his female is in danger, no one is safe from him. I loved them together, and I love how Miki treats the wolves like dogs, and tries to play catch with them. She can be adorable and geeky, and she does fall hard for Conall.

I loved their bantering, and the fact that the real sex scenes happened later in the book. Action, humor, delicious shape shifters, what more can I want in a book.

8 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Shelly Laurenston – Pack Challenge

The first book in the Magnus Pack series, published October 1, 2006.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: nice



What's an Alpha Male to do when he meets the Alpha Female of his dreams? Step one, hide all sharp objects...

All Zach Sheridan ever wanted was to become Alpha Male of his Pack and be left alone. What he definitely didn't need in his life was some needy female demanding his attention. What he never saw coming was the vicious, scarred female who not only demanded his attention but knew exactly how to get it.
Sara Morrighan knew this was the best she could expect from her life. Good friends. A nice place to live. And a safe job. But when Zach rode into her small Texas town with his motorcycle club, Sara knew she wanted more. She knew she wanted him.
But after one sexy encounter with her dream biker, everything is starting to change. Her body. Her strength. That new thing she's doing with the snarling. Even her best friends are starting to wonder what's going on with her.
But this is only the beginning. Sara's about to find out her life was meant for so much more. And Zach's about to find true love with the one woman who makes him absolutely insane.


Zach Sheridan is on a mission: to find Sara Morrighan and tell her about her heritage. And to that end he and his pack have come to the little town in Texas, were Sara was raised by her grandmother. And under the protection of Merrick, but Sara doesn’t know that.

Sara Morrighan has been raised by her grandmother when her parents were killed while camping. Or so she was told. Sara was found with some major wounds on her leg and her face, but she survived, though she has some major scars. And lately, especially her leg has been paining her. To the point where she passes out.
Her grandmother was a cruel woman, always punishing her and belittling her, and she is glad the harridan died 6 months ago. If not for her two good friends Angelica and Miki, she would not have made it. Sure, they fight all the time, but they are close friends and depend on each other. Miki is a genius, and paranoia to the extreme, while Angelica is gorgeous and love to make men insane with lust for her, and then just walk away. Sara is not used to male attention, they are put of by her scars, or by Merrick and his family.
Sara works for Merrick in his bike shop, Miki is the local barrista and studying for her next doctorate, and Angelica has her own fashion boutiques. They could not be more different.

But this Zach is different, he does not even see Angelica, he focuses completely on Sara. And she feels an instant attraction whenever he is near. So when they are invited to a rave the bikers are throwing, they are intent on going. Sara secretly is convinced she is dying, and she will have one fling before that happens.

But Zach knows what is wrong with Sara, the lionshifters (pride) that killed her parents, are know to poison their claws, to make their victims suffer. And that poison has slowly been killing Sara. Merrick never got the chance to take Sara to a hospital to take care of it, as her grandmother poisoned her mind against doctors and hospitals, and the girl just needs to bleed the poison out. So while making out with Sara, he takes care of that problem, and uses his claws on her leg. To say she is surprised by what he is doing to her is an understatement, but the next day, she is even walking without a limp. The changes in her body are instantaneous, and she needs some answers …


I enjoyed this fast paced novel, and the different types of shifters I was introduced to. Zach did not want a mate, but he did want to be alpha of his pack. His current alpha made a bad choice of mate, and it has weakened him. Zach is ready to take over.
But when he laid eyes on Sara, he knew she was his, and he would protect her, and have her as his mate, no matter what. But Sara is not a sweet little lady, she is a bitch herself, and fully capable of handling and defending herself, as he witnesses firsthand that day at the bar. She doesn’t take shit from anybody, and especially not from the alpha female of the pack. This is important, as she is to be the new alpha female. I did love those scenes a lot.
Sara has to be told everything about the world of shifters, and the different races, who are all predators. But she still insists there could be bunny shifters too. To the exasperation of her mate, but I think it is funny.

There is a lot of humor in this book, lots of action and fighting, and even more sex. Lots of cursing too. Still, I liked the three friends a lot, and did in fact read all three books the same day.

And one thing really stands out to me: neither Zach nor Sara ever wants to have kids, and in the next book, they even get themselves “fixed”. That is for me a first in an American book, because those oldfashioned family ideals are always at the core of every romance novel I have ever read. I like that in particular as I also never wanted to have kids myself. I am a stepmother now, but well, that was a package deal.

7 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Shelly Laurenston – Wolf with benefits

The eighth book in the Pride series, published March 26, 2013.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: I don’t like his eyes/face.



There's nothing like a good-ol'-boy wolf. And ace security expert Ricky Lee Reed serves, protects and seduces with all the right moves...
Sure, Toni Jean-Louis Parker has to be the responsible oldest sister to a crazy-brilliant clan of jackal siblings. But now she's cutting loose for some hot, sweaty, no-commitments fun - and the sexy, slow-talking, swift-moving predator assigned to keep her family safe is just the right thing to shapeshift her love life into overdrive. Trouble is, he's starting to get all obsessive wolf on her every time he looks in her direction...
Getting serious about anyone isn't in Ricky Lee Reed's plans. Hell, even now he doesn't really have a plan - outside of catching whomever is threatening this dangerously brilliant family. But the more he sees of Toni, the more he's howling for her. And whatever it takes to convince her that what they have is everything, well, this wily wolf is down for the sizzling chase...


I have read the previous book in this series, Bear meets girl, and really enjoyed that one. And when I read some reviews about this book, Wolf with Benefits, I knew I wanted to read this one as well. My best friend has been a fan of this series for years, and I just caved and borrowed them all from her. I finished this book in a day, while also watching the coronation ceremonies of our new King and Queen.

It is a fun series, with a great mix of shifter races. I have never read about jackals before, but I loved Toni very much. She is the oldest of 11 children, her mother and all of her 10 siblings are prodigies, meaning brilliant in their chosen thing. It also makes them very narcissistic and difficult to deal with. And that has been Toni’s job for way too long. It is about time she made a life for herself, instead of acting as a surrogate mother, agent, personal assistant and trouble-shooter for her siblings.
But when her mother decides they will stay in Manhattan for the summer, as she is really keen of getting a certain wild dog shifter as her own pupil (she is a violin virtuoso) Toni wants to find a job here in town. When her honorary uncle Ric (Ulrich Von Holtz) offers her a job, arranging all the travel arrangements for his all shifter ice hockey team the Carnivores, she is not sure she can handle the job. Ric and the trainer Cella “bare knuckles” Malone think she can, as they see how she handles their most dangerous team member Bo Novikov. Which comes very easy to Toni as she is used to OCD brilliant people.
When they want to send her to Russia though to negotiate with some bears about a match, she needs protection. Bears hate canines. And they send wolf shifter Ricky Lee Reed with her. Which he doesn’t mind in the least as he has had his eye on Toni ever since he met her the other day at the Ice Rink. He is very laid back for a wolf shifter, but is also good at his job as a security specialist. It will give them some time together without her crazy family around. They demand too much from Toni and really don’t like the fact that she is creating a life of her own. After all, their careers are so much more important, as they are all little geniuses. They need to have schedules and someone to remind them of it all, and make sure they get to their classes in time. So when Bo Novikov will take over for Toni, she is happy with that. After all, Bo knows the importance of schedules and appointment, and he will be able to keep her strange and dangerous siblings in line. And ofcourse, her best friend Livy will be staying with her family as well.

In Russia, the bears are only playing with her instead of really negotiating, and when a canine gets separation anxiety from her pack, that sure ain’t pretty. She totally destroys her hotelroom, and after that Ricky takes her out for a run. It calms her down, and one kind of exercise leads to another, and Ricky is very happy that he brought two boxes of condoms with him. A guy can always hope, can’t he?
Toni, with some help from Dee Ann, finally gets her other escort, Vic Barinov, to tell her how to deal with the bears.

Finally back home, dangerous things are happening to her family. Her psychopath sister Delilah is up to no good, and some full humans have broken into their home, searching for something. Livy has arranged for some additional security, but they have to find out what those humans are after, and how to stop them.


I enjoyed this book very much, the quirky and over the top characters, the secrets and the danger and the action. I really felt for Toni, having to deal with so many prima donna siblings, never getting a moment for herself. But Ricky Lee did not give up easily, and he was really intrigued by Toni. Not even her family could deter him. I loved how she trained her siblings to ask males who came on to her to ask: are you my daddy? That made me smile on the first page already.
Toni is good at her job, but she is used to dealing with full humans, and not with other shifters. So she really needs to get her backbone and her fighting spirit in the front line. With her job came an office, a secretary, a limousine with chauffeur, and an apartment in her boss’ hotel for her alone. Well, except for the wolf who fell in love with her big screen tv and did not want to leave. He did get them Chinese food though.
Ricky Lee is very easy to get along with, but underneath that Southern charm, he sure doesn’t know the meaning of the word quit. He doesn’t give up on something he wants, but he is also afraid of his mother and sister. His ex-girlfriend is trying to stir up trouble for him, but Livy takes care of that problem.

Then there is Livy, who is a very aggressive but small female, and what kind of shifter she is, is kept secret for a long time, and I was really dying to find out. Apparently, she is just what Dee-Ann needs for her police force.


I am really looking forward to going back to the beginning of this series, and discover the backgrounds of a lot of the shifters I met in this book. If you want lots of humor, great shifters, a great story and some hot love scenes thrown in, you really should try this series.

9 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Stephanie Laurens – And then she fell

The fourth book in the Cynster Sisters series, published March 26, 2013.
Genre: historical romance
Cover: nice



The only thing more troublesome than a Cynster man … is a Cynster Lady who believes love is not her destiny. Famously known in London society as “The Matchbreaker”, Henrietta Cynster’s uncanny skill lies in preventing ill-fated nuptials – not in falling victim to Cupid’s spell. But then she disrupts one match too many, and feels honor-bound to assist dashing James Glossup in finding a suitable bride for a marriage-of-convenience.
A task infernally complicated by the undeniable, unquenchable attraction that flares between James and Henrietta, who continues to believe she will never fall…


It has been 8 years since their cousin Anjelica handed the magical pendant to Henrietta, but Henriette has not worn it in years. She doesn’t think she is meant to find a love match, and the pendant is supposed to help her find her one and only hero, the one man who can make her happy in marriage. But Mary is 22 now, and she wants to start her own life, which means Henrietta has to find her husband first, and then she will be able to give Mary the pendant on the evening of her engagement ball, as tradition wants it.
She refuses to accept the pendant now, and Henrietta doesn’t have much choice but to start wearing it again, as her little sister is relentless when she wants something. It is apparent that Mary already has her eyes set on a certain gentleman, but she does not want to reveal his name, she wants things done properly, and the pendants acknowledgement. Of course fate doesn’t work that way, but Mary will find that out in her own book.

That evening Henrietta has to tell her best friend Melinda Wentworth and her parents what she has found out about Melinda’s latest suitor, James Glossup. Which is not easy, as James is one of her brother Simon’s best friends. But Melissa wants to marry for love, and James is not in love with her. She knows he has to marry to get his great aunts fortune. Which means he is not a fortune hunter, as he has money enough of his own, but he is not after Melinda for love. Melinda is disappointed, as James is a fine figure, but she also did suspect those facts already, or she would not have asked Henrietta to look into things.
James though is furious when he finds out that Henrietta meddled in his affairs. He needs to be married before the end of next month, or he will loose his great aunts money, and he needs that to keep up the properties he has inherited from her. Which means he will have to fire all the staff and servants, and he really does not want to do that. He is rich, but not nearly rich enough to pay for everything that is necessary. Of course Henrietta did not know that, and when he explains it to her, she promises to help him find a suitable bride.
With Henrietta’s guidance, he quickly gets access to the right kind of ladies, and he won’t be shunned when it gets known that the Wentworths have rejected him.

Henrietta and James have known each other for many years, as he is her brother’s best friend. But they never spend much time together, so they don’t really know the other. And now that they are planning and plotting and going out together to find him a suitable bride, there is this unsuspected attraction between them. To his own surprise, James enjoys her company, Henrietta is a smart and elegant young lady, and with 29 used to going her own way. She doesn’t need to be chaperoned by her family anymore, and goes out into society on her own.

Dangerous accidents are happening to Henrietta, but luckily James is there to safe her. And when they find out that a dangerous murdered is after Henrietta, as he thinks she might recognize him, they need the whole family to keep her safe and find this killer.


I really enjoyed this story. It read much easier than her previous books, as though she has changed her writing style a little. Less difficult words, and less time spend just thinking. I like this change a lot.
I liked Henrietta, she is very sensible and 29 years, which is firmly on the shelf in that time, but she enjoys her life. Finding a man to love was not on her to-do list at all. I like reading about older heroines in my books, although the sassy debutantes are fun as well. But Henrietta knows what she wants from life, and how to get it. She knows her place in society and uses that to help others find a love match. She is known as the Match Breaker, but she also approves a lot of matches.
James was never in a hurry to marry, which is why his great aunt put that stipulation in her last will. So now he has to hurry and find himself a bride, and one who will agree to be married really soon. He though Melissa would suit him, but he did not know she was after a love match. Nor did he tell her the truth about his own reasons. And while Henrietta is busy making a short list of suitable brides for him, he just wants to put her name on it. But he doesn’t want to scare her away by being too hasty. He will just invent reasons why those women won’t suit him at all.

But when Henrietta is in danger, all his protective instincts come to the fore, and he just knows she is his. Now he will have to convince Henrietta of this fact.

I loved seeing the whole family including Barnaby and Inspector Stokes rally around them, tying to catch the killer. And he really is a cold blooded psychopath, who managed to surprise me in his cunning ways.

I am looking forward to the next book.

9 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Duffy Brown – Iced Chiffon

The first book in the Consignment Shop Mystery series, published October 2, 2012.
Genre: cozy mystery
Cover: lovely



There's always something to gossip about in Savannah, Georgia, and Reagan Summerside always seems to be in the middle of it. She's busy enough running her consignment shop, The Prissy Fox, with her vivacious Auntie KiKi, but now the gossip - and the sales - are about to pick up after a gruesome discovery...
Reagan's messy divorce has left her with nothing but a run-down Victorian and a bunch of designer clothes. Strapped for cash, Reagan makes use of the two things she has left, turning the first floor of her home into a consignment shop and filling it with the remnants of her rich-wife wardrobe.
Thanks to his cunning lawyer Walker Boone, her ex got everything else, including the Lexus - not to mention a young blond cupcake. When Reagan finds the cupcake dead in the Lexus, she's determined to beat Boone to finding the murderer. As it turns out, the gossip fiends flooding Reagan's shop will give her a lot more than just their unwanted clothes - they have information more precious than a vintage Louis Vuitton...


After her messy divorce a few months ago, Reagan has nothing left but a run down old Victorian house that she fell in love with as a child, and is in the process of fixing up. Her husband took it all, the house, the car and the business, and he even has the new cupcake on his arm, all thanks to his smarmy lawyer Walker Boone. Reagan has a pile of bills to pay, and so she is ready to bring her designer clothes to a consignment shop nearby. Until the UPS lady and her vivacious aunt KiKi change her mind, and she decides to open up her own consignment shop.
When her ex Hollis and the new cupcake, Janelle, stroll in, demanding her set of keys to the Lexus, she really doesn’t want to give them up. After all, she paid for the car. But as she was so stupid to sign a prenup, and the car is in Hollis’ name, she has no choice. Especially as Hollis still hasn’t signed over Cherry House in her name, as was determined in the divorce settlement. She will have to play nice for now. But when cupcake wants to buy her favourite pink chiffon dress, she really doesn’t want to sell it to her, but she agrees to the outrageous price without blinking her eyes, and Reagan really needs the money to pay some bills. Hollis and cupcake will be attending a social event Reagan always loved, but she is no longer invited now she is just a poor divorcee instead of a rich wife who can donate to charity.

The next day, Raylene Carter wants to buy Reagan’s fountain for her garden, she is determined to win the next Best of Show. And she wants it home delivered that very same day. But Reagan has sold her car to pay some bills, and she cannot borrow her aunts car, as she is out to lunch with her mother in law, and she doesn’t want to ask her own mother. Gloria is a judge, and has warned her about marrying Hollis, signing a prenup, and putting only Hollis name on the Lexus. So she decides to just sneak into the real estate office, and borrow the cars to the Lexus to haul to fountain over to Raylene’s. IdaMae, who has been Hollis’ secretary and some kind of cousin, has been working there for many years, and doesn’t mind helping Reagan out. She really doesn’t like cupcake, who tries to have her fired so she can take over the office.

But when Reagan asks KiKi to help her get the fountain in the trunk, the trunk is already filled with something. Cupcakes dead body, wearing Reagan’s pink chiffon dress, wrapped in plastic. The police immediately suspect Hollis, as they were seen arguing at the party last night, and it is his car. And Reagan could really cherish the thought of Hollis in prison for a while, until he threatens to sell her precious Cherry House from underneath her, to pay for his lawyer. Which means there is only one thing to do, to find the killer herself.

And the more she learns, the more people she finds who had a big reason to hate Janelle. With a lot of help from her aunt KiKi, her nosy neighbours (a duo of professional mourners) and the unsuspected help from the sleazy lawyer, Reagan sets out to find the truth. So many suspects, so many motives, but in the end the killer knows she will figure it out soon, and tries to kill her as well.


I thoroughly enjoyed this first book in a new series. Reagan and KiKi are a hoot, real southern ladies with a lot of quirks, and a lot of energy. Reagan does her best to just survive, to pay her bills and earn some money for food, and to take care of her new found dog. She is reckless, but she is determined to safe her house and not let Hollis sell it, or let the lawyer triumph in solving the case before her. Still, Boone can be very nice, and he really saves her butt a few times, but he is also very closemouthed and irritating at other times.

The story is very well written, and nicely paced. With some bits about the consignment shop business, but mostly about Reagan being out looking for clues and answers and alibis. She discovers a lot of dirt on some of her acquaintances, but she handles it all very well. I did see some things coming, but it was well done. A nice mystery plot, with a lot of humor and Southern sayings. I did make me laugh out loud a few times.

I do recommend this cozy mystery series to all lovers of cozy mystery series with quirky Southern characters and am looking forward to reading the next book soon.

8,5 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian

Marlene Perez – Dead is a battlefield

The first book in the Dead Is ... (Spin-Off) series, published March 6, 2012.
Genre: YA urban fantasy
Cover: not my taste



Jessica Walsh is starting her freshman year at Nightshade High and trying to forget
about the tragic events surrounding her brother's graduation. She wants to have a normal
high school experience. But that's easier said than done in Nightshade.
When a new boy shows up at school, the girls are infected with a case of seriously creepy crushes. But when their obsession turns to violence, Jessica and her friends start to wonder if there’s more going on than just a little friendly rivalry. Are the smitten girls turning into love zombies?
And Jessica has other worries - like her crush on Dominick Gray, the cute but moody lead singer for Side Affects May Vary, and the mysterious tattoo that appeared on her arm one day that lets her know whenever there is trouble brewing. Jessica learns she's a Virago, a woman warrior chosen to fight evil whenever it threatens her hometown. But does a lowly freshman really have what it takes to keep Nightshade safe?


The end of the month was closing in on me, and I still had to read a book I have won. My eyes fell on this one, and as it was not too big, I started reading it. And even though it is YA, I liked it. It is the first book in a spin off series, and perhaps it would be more fun to read the previous series first, but I was not lost at all.

Jessica Walsh is a normal teenager on the outside, just starting highschool as a freshman in a few weeks. But the strange moving tattoo on her arm says something is different about her. And she knows the waitress Flo at Slim’s Diner has the same strange tattoo, so she has been avoiding her all summer. Jessica just wants to be a normal teenager, or as normal as you can be in Nightshade, California.

While leaving the diner with her best friend Eva, after Jessica has successfully avoided talking to Flo, they see a new shop opening announcement. The Look of Love. A creepy boy is handing out flyers, but they are not interested in that. The Black Opal is opening up again, and they really want to go. Eva thinks she can convince her snotty older sister to take them. Their favourite local band will be playing, Side Affects May Vary. At the night club, Jessica bumps into a new girl, Raven, and is making friends with her. Then they find out that the band has a new lead singer, who happens to be her gorgeous brother Dominic. Eva’s sister and her best friend are totally fawning over Raven, hoping she will introduce them to her brother. But Jessica is not interested in Dominic, unlike all the other girls present, she really liked the previous singers’ voice. But Dominic is intrigued by her, someone who does not fawn over him like he is used to.

After the club closes out, Bethany and Tiffany have just left Jessica and Eva, and now they will have to find a ride. Dominic thinks it is just a plot to get him to drive them home, and insulted, Jessica looks for another ride. And there is Flo, who is dating the drummer of the band. And she agrees to give them a lift home. But Flo also makes Jessica promise to come to the diner at three the next afternoon to talk. About what happened at Prom Night, and other things. And Raven will be there as well.
Jessica knows she has no choice, and so she meets up with Flo and Raven, and a strange older girl named Andrea (Andy). Flo explains that they all are virago’s, women warriors who protect their city. Raven and Jessica are new to this, but Andy proclaims to know all about it.
The bad news is, they will have to train to get in shape to fight evil, and they will have to patrol the city each night in teams. And they cannot tell anybody about it, not their parents, not their best friends. So how are they going to conceal all this?
To her dismay, Jessica is paired with Andy to go on patrol. They sure don’t like each other. When they hear some strange noises in the new shop, they set out to investigate. The strange boy opens the door and tells them everything is fine, but he does have a nasty bitemark on his arm. And it is not a dogbite as he tells them …

A few days later, school starts. And finding the right outfit for the very first day is the most important thing in Jessica’s life. You have to make the right impression. Being popular before doesn’t mean you will be popular in highschool. Eva is a bit jealous about it all, but when they start teasing each other about boys, they are fine again. Apparently Eva has a crush on Evan, a boy who really likes Jessica. But even though Jessica doesn’t want to, she is falling for Dominic. But she really doesn’t want to be like every other girl in town.

The Look of Love opens up that day, and it is a rush. There are 13 special flasks of perfume hidden in the shop, and the girls who find them, will be special as well. Jessica doesn’t get it, why is Eva suddenly so hung up about that strange boy, and why are all those girls dressing alike? It is like she is brainwashed, Eva is totally forgetting about her and ignoring Evan for this Edgar Love. They act as his personal fan squad.

What is happening with those girls, and especially her best friend? Edgar tries to get Jessica to join his team too, but she wants nothing to do with him, and luckily Dominic comes to her rescue. But will the virago’s be in time to stop what is going on and save the day?


As said before, I enjoyed this story. It was a bit predictable; it has some gross scenes in it, but not a love triangle. I liked Jessica, she does not want to be different, she wants a normal life with her family and friends, and not go out in secret at night to wander the streets. Jessica is not really paranormal like so many other YA heroines, but she does have a skill in fighting. I liked how she and Raven get closer, and how they find out the strange things about Dominic and the songs he starts singing while not on the bands repertoire.
The story and the paranormal things in this story sure are original, and I like it. The action and surprises kept my attention on the book until it was finished, and I am really thinking about buying the rest of the series.

8 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian