Sherrilyn Kenyon – Night Play

The fifth book in the Dark-Hunter series, published August 1, 2004.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: I don’t like the new covers, my book has the small one.
Re-read for the third time.



Bride McTierney has had it with men. They're cheap, self-centered, and never love her for who she is. But though she prides herself on being independent, deep down she still yearns for a knight in shining armor.
She just never expected her knight in shining armor to have a shiny coat of fur...
Deadly and tortured, Vane Kattalakis isn't what he seems. Most women lament that their boyfriends are dogs. In Bride's case, hers is a wolf. A Were-Hunter wolf. Wanted dead by his enemies, Vane isn't looking for a mate. But the Fates have marked Bride as his. Now he has three weeks to either convince Bride that the supernatural is real or he will spend the rest of his life neutered--something no self-respecting wolf can accept...
But how does a wolf convince a human to trust him with her life when his enemies are out to end his? In the world of the Were-Hunters, it really is dog-eat-dog. And only one alpha male can win.


It has been over two years since I read a Sherrilyn Kenyon book. She used to be autobuy, but I fell out of love with her books with the Dream Hunters, and what she wrote after Acheron. But I still do love her earlier books in the series, especially the Were-Hunters, so when Paranormal Haven blog hosted a contest and asked for my favourite SK books, I knew which ones were my favourites at ones, and then I had to re-read them immediately. I am happy to report back that those books have not lost their magic for me; I really enjoyed re-reading them again.


Bride McTierney has just been dumped by her boyfriend of five years by Fed-Ex, and she is hurt. Yes, she did see it coming, but it still hurts. He only used her to get the tv job he always wanted, and now that he feels secure, he has dumped her. He never accepted her for who she was, always trying to change her, putting her on diets, signing her up for exercise classes. Yes, he was handsome and she was flattered by his interest in her. But now she is pissed, she is through being the nice obedient girl she has been all her life.

And then suddenly there is this incredibly hot guy in her store, and he seems to be interested in her. Attracted to her. He senses her sadness and hurt and anger, and tries to make her feel better. He buys a very expensive necklace from her, and gifts it to her. And then just walks away again. But Bride runs after him, she can’t accept such a thing from a stranger. But when he is confused that she won’t accept his kindness just for what it is, she breaks down in his arms and starts to cry, and he carries her back to her shop, effortlessly. And they end up making love in her dressing room, like she has never been loved before. Did she just made the biggest mistake of her life by having sex with a total stranger, or by letting him walk away from her?

Her two best friends try to console her over dinner, both willing to badly hurt her ex-boyfriend and wanting to help Bride to get over him. And then suddenly a strange mark appears on her hand, and she doesn’t have a clue what it means.

Vane Kattalakis is a Were-Hunter, and a wolf shifter. His life has been brutal, both his parents have tried to kill him, he has recently lost his sister, and now his younger brother is in a trauma induced coma. He will do anything to protect Fang, but he is drawn to this lovely human woman as he has never wanted any female before. To him, she is beautiful, inside and out, but he can’t drag her into his world of violence and death. If his former pack members smell him on her, they will use her to hurt him and kill her. But when the mating mark appears on his hand, he doesn’t know what to do. Yes, he will protect her with his life, but he can’t claim her as his, can he? So getting dating advice from some Dark Hunters and their mates, he sets out to court Bride. And if his human form can’t be with her, his wolf form will be fine as well. And to Vane’s own surprise, he asks Fury, another wolf shifter, to help him out if necessary and protect his mate.


As said before, I really enjoyed re-reading this book. Thanks to her sister and her ex-boyfriend, Bride is very insecure about her looks. She is a normal size 12, and not a skinny person. She can’t seem to believe that Vane’s interest in her is genuine, as he is the most handsome man she has ever laid eyes on. Surely there are beautiful women in his life. Vane does his best to act human, something he has never learned to do, growing up as a wolf, fighting for his life and surviving. I really enjoyed that, and the honest way he felt about her. Keeping her safe from his enemies was not easy, but he has more friends than he realizes.
His life has been horrible, only his brother and sister cared about him, and now he is virtually alone. But Vane is very powerful, and with the help of Acheron, he finally puts a stop to his parents trying to kill him and his brothers. I loved that part of the ending. A very suitable punishment.
The love scenes are very hot, and there are many, but it were the feelings of being brothers, of grief, and of finding a place to belong that make the story for me. Sherrilyn Kenyon writes great characters, and amazing stories that are still original.

I enjoyed meeting some of the other Dark-Hunters and their mates, and of course Acheron and Simi. And now I want to re-read some more book sin this series …

9 stars.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Susannah Sandlin - Chenoire

A stand alone novella, published December 18, 2013.
Genre: paranormal romance
Cover: different



When Faith Garrity's twin sister died, she lost a part of herself. Unable to move past the pain, the once-driven ornithologist is at risk of losing her career as well. To save her job, she heads to the oil-ravaged wetlands of Louisiana. There, in the bayou community of Chenoire, she encounters the handsome but guarded Zackary Préjean, still suffering from a great loss of his own.
She's drawn to Zack, but soon finds that the Préjean family isn't what it seems... They have dangerous secrets - and deadly enemies. Caught up in a feud that threatens the area's uneasy truce, Faith and Zack must learn to trust each other. Survival will require enormous sacrifice, but it just might also give them both a way to move on.


A short story from an author whose work I admire, is of course autobuy for me. I liked this one a lot and would certainly not mind to read more about this wonderful bayou world Susannah Sandlin has created.

This is a really sweet story, where a woman goes out into the swamp to study birds affected by the oil spill, and a man who is more than human. A man who distrusts city woman for they can only be trouble, and a woman who is trying to safe her career after grieving too much over her lost twin. There is danger, there is discovery, but it really is about two lost and grieving people finding each other. No it is not insta lust or insta love in just one day, but they will see what will happen next. And I am really happy with that solution.

If you are looking for a fast and original paranormal story, you can’t go wrong with Chenoire. I recommend it. Susannah Sandlin has a way with words, and she paints the Louisiana bayou very vividly, I can see it in front of me. And being Dutch, there is no such a thing in my country that I can compare it to.

8 stars.





Buy from Amazon:

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Rachel Caine – Lord of Misrule

The fifth book in the Morganville Vampires series, published January 6, 2009.
Genre: YA urban fantasy
Cover: nice



Morganville Texas. Just South of normal.
In the college town of Morganville, vampires and humans have coexisted in relatively) bloodless harmony … until the arrival of Bishop, a master vampire who threatens to put the evil back in evil undead and smash the fragile peace. But Bishop isn’t the only threat ….
Violent black clouds promise a storm of devastating proportions. As student Claire Danvers and her friends prepare to defend Morganville against the elements – both natural and unnatural – the unexpected happens: Morganville’s vampires begin to vanish one by one. Discovering why leads Claire to one last choice: Swear allegiance to Bishop … or die.


As Anna from Herding Cats and Burning Soup stated earlier this week, Rachel Caine is the Queen of evil Cliffhangers. Each book makes me eager to read the next one, as she ends it with such a plot twist, I never see it coming. And this book is not different in that. Lucky for me, I do have the rest of the series, so I can pick up the next one whenever I want to.


Things are bad in Morganville. Bishop has challenged Amelie for the rule of the town and its inhabitants, and he is winning. People are taking their lives in their own hands, thinking they can be free of vampire rule for ever if they just kill them all. But some stay loyal to Amelie, like Claire and her friends. Amelie has some dangerous jobs for them, but they are willing to do what ever they can to keep themselves and their friends alive, and to beat Bishop. He has captured Myrnin, and Amelie really needs him at her side, sane and well.
It is dangerous to be out and about on the streets right now, Bishops vampires are openly hunting, not honouring the Protection bracelets, and people are taking revenge on other people they consider traitors, and worse. Shane’s father is back in town, ready to take advantage of the ongoing war, but he is only being used. Claire seems to be the most important piece in the chess match though, thanks to her ties to Amelie. And the ending, o that evil ending…


Another great instalment in the Morganville Vampires series. Yes, it is YA and that is not my favourite genre, but Rachel Caine has written such a compelling world and story and characters, I can’t help by devour the books and be very happy I don’t live there.
I like Claire, she is really getting stronger and going after what she wants (which is Shane!). She stands up against her parents who want her to come live with them instead of in the Glass House. Shane is torn though, between his hatred of the vampires, and his friendship with Michael. They are not all bad, so how can he still condone what his father wants? He admits he is in love with Claire, and that was a sweet scene. Especially as he stays strong and keeps his promise. I like the friendship between Michael, Eve, Shane and Claire a lot. Sure they fight at times and bicker, but they look out for each other and will do anything to keep their friends safe.

The plot keeps progressing, there is a lot of action, and to my regret, Monica still lives. No matter how many times she is saved by Claire, she doesn’t improve at all.

8 stars.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Sabrina Jeffries – ‘t Was the Night After Christmas

The sixth book in the Hellions of Halstead Hall series, published October 30, 2012.
Genre: historical romance
Cover: nice. My book has a half naked couple on it.



Pierce Waverly, the Earl of Devonmont, has never forgiven his parents for inexplicably abandoning him to distant relatives as a child. Nevertheless, when he receives word that the stranger he calls “Mother” is gravely ill, the unabashed rogue makes a rare return to Montcliff, his country estate. There he finds that the woman is perfectly healthy – and that he has fallen for a cunning ruse crafted by her lady’s companion, Mrs. Camilla Stuart. The lively vicar’s widow, too bright and beautiful not to arouse the scoundrel in Pierce, is determined to reconcile the Earl and Lady Devonmont. None of them can predict the secrets, both heartening and shocking, divulged between a mother and son, and between two lovers, each haunted by their pasts, that will make Christmas night at Montcliff one to remember – and the glorious night after, one to treasure for a lifetime.


Pierce Waverly, the Earl of Devonmont, has never found out why his parents abandoned him to the care of relatives when he was eight years old, not even accepting him back home when he reached his majority. He was a sickly child back then and missed his mother dreadfully but she never once wrote to him. So when his father died, and his mother started writing him letters, it was too little, too late. For 23 years she has ignored him, so why should he want to see her now? She probably just needs his money. But when the companion he hired for her, writes to him, telling his mother is gravely ill and he needs to come home, he finds out that he still cares about her. And so he sets out for home, to the manor (now dower house) they lived in as a family before his father had the monstrous new manor house build. He will pay his last respects to her, and be on his way to the Waverly family for Christmas, as he has done for so many years now.

His mother is stunned but so very happy to see him, and not ill at all. So it was all a ruse to get him here? Well, he won’t play their game. He will just go to his room, have dinner there and be of the next morning. But faith in the form of Camilla Stuart intervenes. She is his mother’s companion, and she wants to mend the rift between mother and son. She has no idea what has happened in the past, but she cares deeply for his mother and wants her happy. And spending time with her son, will surely make her happy. She misses him dreadfully and there goes not a day buy she doesn’t talk about him. Sure, they do read about his exploits in the paper, but that is not the real Pierce.
To her surprise, Pierce agrees to come down to dinner, on the condition that afterwards Camilla comes to his rooms to entertain him. Refusing to share his bed with him, she agrees to entertain him otherwise, and so Pierce has no choice but to join the ladies downstairs.

His mother flat out refuses to tell him why he was cut out of her life, she just wants to bury the past and start anew, but Pierce cannot possibly do that. He needs to know the truth, or else he can never move forward with his own life. But the dowager fears he will despise and hate her even more if he knows the truth, if he will cut her out of his life again, so be it. And not even Camilla can convince her otherwise. But hearing Pierce’s recountings of the past, she does feel for him, and she believes that he is not the wrong doing party here. But still, she is loyal to his mother, and will never become his mistress… She has her son to think of too …


I really enjoyed the previous books in the Hellions of Hellstead Hall series, and I was hoping this one would pull me out of my historical romance reading slump, but alas. I did like the story, but it was nowhere near as good for me as the rest of the series. It is just lacking that certain something that makes a story a great book. And I have no idea what.

Pierce was too nice, too open, and too easy to read for Camilla. She was a stranger and saw straight into him. She did not fear him, nor his wrath at being deceived. Sure, she is a widow and not a gentle bred miss either. She grew up in the orphanage and then married a vicar who thought her a convenient hardworking wife.

I just did not fall for Camilla and Pierce as a couple either, perhaps because they kept meeting in the evenings in his bedroom, and not a lot of their time together is shared. Too much tell too little show perhaps? My emotions never really got engaged and as I am usually easily ensnared by a book, that is a bad thing.

5 stars out of 10.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Heather Webber – Digging up Trouble

The third book in the Nina Quinn series, published March 28, 2006.
Genre: cozy mystery, with gardening tips for a hummingbird garden.
Cover: beautiful, the real cover is brighter than this picture.



Digging Her Own Grave

Landscaper Nina Quinn makes her living from surprise garden makeovers. It's not her fault that someone duped her into digging up the wrong yard. And she certainly can't be blamed when her handiwork turns the unsuspecting real owner apoplectic and he drops dead from a heart attack . . . can she? Nina's got enough trouble already, with her divorce from faithless hubby Kevin nearing completion and her unruly stepson up to his teenage neck in possibly illegal mischief. Now she's in danger of losing her business! But there's something screwy about this rather convenient "accidental" death of a man whom apparently no one could stand -- not even the "grieving" widow who's threatening to sue Nina's overalls off. To save her livelihood -- and her skin -- Nina's going to have to dig deeper into the dirt than she ever has before . . . and see what sort of slimy secret things crawl out.


Another great instalment in the Nina Quinn series.
Nina Quinn is a very curious woman and when her almost ex-husband’s former sister-in-law Lindsey Lockhart wants to hire her to create one of her surprise gardens, she accepts. Nina does sense that something is not quite right here, but she wants to use the connection to get some answers about Kevin’s first wife, who died in a boating accident. But Lindsey refuses to tell her anything, and as the garden make over has been paid for already, Nina has no choice but to get on with it.

And so, early one morning they begin the gargantuan task of transforming a garden that has been neglected for decades into a beautiful piece of paradise. But when a strange man accuses them of trespassing in his garden, and falls dead at Nina’s feet because of a heart attack, she doesn’t know what to do. Lindsey doesn’t answer her phone, and the suddenly arriving widow accuses Nina of murder.
If Lindsey has tricked her, she really could be sued for murder as she has no permission from the home owner’s to be in their garden at all.

Her almost ex-husband Kevin is a homicide inspector and is assigned the case. He can’t believe his former inlaws are behind this, but there is no other solution. Apparently everyone hated the dead man, Russ Grabinsky. Lindsey’s husband Bill and Russ were partners in Growl, a very successful vegetarian fast food restaurant, and the same place Riley is now working part time.

When Nina goes back to the house the next day, to try to persuade the widow to let her finish the job on the garden, and to have her drop the possible law suit, she gets rebuffed. Greta does not want to talk to her, and she appears to be really grieving for her louse of a husband. But why did Lindsey and Bill pay such an enormous amount of money to have someone else’s garden made over?

Something more is going on here, and Nina is determined to find out what. Why is Bill sneaking around the house while she is doing the same? Who has been arguing with Greta about being blackmailed? What is it with the lawsuit the home owners association? Why does Bill need the accounting books back so badly?


I really enjoyed this third book in the series. I like how Nina and Riley’s relationship has changed from the teenager who could barely stand her, to what it is now. Nina’s personal life is a bit of a mess though. Her husband cheated on her with his female partner, and Nina kicked him out. But she still has feelings for him, and now he is making sounds of regret and wanting her back. So why is he still living with Ginger? But Nina is also seeing someone else, the attractive vice principal of Riley’s school, who is really good to her. What is she to do?

As her cousin Ana is a parole officer, almost all of her employees are former convicts. And now one of them is giving her trouble by not showing up at work, or being very late. She hates to have to let him go as he is very good at finding the special objects for her gardens. But her other employees have to work harder to catch up for him, and she can’t have that. So Nina and Ana try to figure out what he is doing, if he is violating his parole or if he is in trouble. And of course that means donning wigs and trying to find him in the seedier part of town. Where they happen to find someone completely unsuspected instead …

Nina’s star secretary and good friend Tam is going into labour, and she really needs a replacement. At first she is so not happy with whom Tam send to her, but when the lady has to leave again, she sorely misses her competency.

Nina’s mother and sister are a real pain though, and at first Nina is happy with what they have surprised her with, but well, things get worse and worse. Still, it does help her finally end up in the arms of the man I want her to choose, so all is well after all.

The plot of this mystery was not all that hard to guess, but it was fun to see Nina unravel it nonetheless. I liked the ending, the good deed that Nina did with the blackmail pictures. I was surprised by the killer though. I was suspecting someone else completely.

I really enjoy Heather Webber’s writing style, her quirky characters and her sense of humor. An older neighbour Lothario, who has a name of being a jinx and getting his female companions killed. Nina’s former English teacher whom she still fears but is again a part of her life. Her employees with their colourful backgrounds. But I do admire her for giving these people a second chance. A huge dog called BeBe with a crush on Nina …

9 stars.






It is not available as paperback at the moment, but you can buy the ebook at Amazon: here

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Lucy Arlington – Book, Cooks and Crooks

The third book in the Novel Idea Mystery series, published Febuary 4, 2014.
Genre: cozy mystery
Cover: lovely



The national bestselling Novel Idea Mysteries are back, as Lila Wilkins—literary agent and sleuth—is setting up a delicious cookbook fair. But the tension in the kitchen is about to boil over…
Inspiration Valley, North Carolina, is bubbling with excitement for the Taste of the Town festival, and Lila is right in the middle of it all. Along with her coworkers at the Novel Idea Literary Agency, Lila is organizing a grand celebrity chef event, featuring food television's biggest stars, complete with cooking demonstrations, cookbook giveaways, and even a culinary writing contest.
But just as the celebration is about to start, the demo kitchen blows up, taking one of the star cooks with it. With all the explosive egos of the cook's colleagues, it's hard to find someone who didn't have a motive to eliminate the competition. Now Lila will have to scramble to figure out which of her clients is a killer—before someone else gets burned.



The Novel Idea Literary Agency is sponsoring the towns newest festival, the Taste of the Town. A lot of fun events are planned, for adults and for kids. Some famous t.v chefs are competing in a contest; there are new cookbooks to sell and dishes to judge. There is so much work behind the scenes to have it all go smoothly, and I enjoyed reading about that aspect of the festival as well.

But those famous tv personalities are not so charming and loveable in real life, they seem to dislike each other intensely, and say spiteful things behind the others back, and in their faces. And when one of them is killed, there are surely suspects galore. Lila’s boyfriend and police officer Sean Griffiths sure can use her help in finding out the nasty truth behind it all. Especially when another chef gets killed, someone who everyone seems to hate.

When those famous chefs are forbidden to leave town until the murders are solved, as they are all suspects, it is up to Lila and her co-workers to keep them entertained, and to flush out the murderer.


I do love this world the writing duo named Lucy Arlington has created. I want to live there. I always love coming home to Inspiration Valley, it is such a lovely little town and I would love to visit the coffee shop and meet Lila’s best friend and barista Makayla.
I like reading about Lila’s work of reading query letters from authors and finding new gems in the rough the represent at the agency. Her co-workers sure an eccentric mix of characters.

I like the literary agency as a backdrop for the series. And this time it has famous t.v. chefs who want to become the next best selling cook book authors as well. They all have different specialities, so they should not really be so competitive, but they are. They won’t share the limelight with anyone else. They are convinced they are the best and the competition is not good enough. Being Dutch myself, I loved the fact that one of them uses the Dutch recipes of her grandmother (oma) and uses the Dutch language. To suddenly see dishes I like appear in a book is fun.

I loved finding out their secrets with Lila. Lila is a great character, she has raised her son Trey mostly by her self and now he is safely off to college after his previous adventure at a commune. They are close, and I enjoy their new dynamics. Lila’s mother Althea has the second sight, and although Lila does not really want to believe in that, she cannot refute everything her mother tells her, or warns her about.
Sean is also great for Lila and their relationship is progressing nicely.

Makayla has found herself a secret admirer, and she is really happy about that. I absolutely loved how he revealed himself to her, and asked her out. That was amazing, and I really cannot see something like that happening in real life at all.

Now the murderer, that was a bit of a surprise, I became suspicious when he or she tried to frame someone else. But the reason behind it all, that was unsuspected and a kind of scary and sad.

A very well written murder mystery, with loveable characters, a great setting, what more can you want? Read it.

9 stars.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian

Recommendations from Peggy for February 2014.

In order to bring some more variety to my blog, I have asked some of my bookish friends to tell about the books they have in the past month, and to give us a recommendation. Today’s post is made by Peggy from Belgium.

Peggy:

I have read 11 books in the past month, and the 3 books I enjoyed the most are:

1. For you – Kristen Ashley



2. First grave on the right – Darynda Jones



3. Smart, sexy and secretive – Tammy Falkner



The one I can recommend to all Aurian’s readers is: Darynda Jones – First grave on the right



A smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper
Charley sees dead people. That's right, she sees dead people. And it's her job to convince them to 'go into the light.' But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e. murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she's been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.


I’m a really big fan of Kristen Ashley and I really, really loved this book but I will do my review about the Charley Davidson series from Darynda Jones. When I first heard about this series I was very intrigued. And I had very high hopes about this series and I wasn’t disappointed. I have read the first two books from this series and I really enjoyed them.

Charley Davidson is a young woman who can see dead people. She has seen dead people since she was born. So for her, this is a normal thing. For the people around her, seeing dead people isn’t a normal thing. Especially her stepmother thinks that she’s strange. Luckily, she has some friends who don’t mind when they see her talking to ‘air’ (because she alone can see the dead people). But Charley can’t only see dead people, she’s more. She’s a grim reaper. Her job is to convince the dead to ‘go to the light’. Not everyone’s dead is a natural dead so sometimes she helps the dead to find the bad guys who murder them. When she was young, her father who was a policeman helped her with this. Now her father is retired and she’s a private investigator, so now she brings the bad guys to justice (with a little help from her uncle who’s also a cop and her assistant Angel, who’s a dead gangster). Saying her life isn’t normal and strange, is saying the least. Luckily she can also count on her neighbor/best friend and receptionist Cookie to help her. They also share the same addiction, drinking lots of coffee. And I mean, lots and lots of coffee!
Lately Charley is having very erotic dreams about a man. But is he a man? Or is he more? Who or what is he? That’s the puzzle she has to solve, together with doing her job as a private investigator and being a grim reaper. So she’s a very busy woman. But then she finds out that she’s sharing erotic dreams with the Son of Satan! Speaking of hot relationships, I really loved this series about Charley Davidson, her crazy friends and her family. And of course, the very hot Reyes Alexander Farrow alias Son of Satan. Charley is a crazy, sweet, coffee addicted woman who tried the best she can, being the only grim reaper in the world. (It isn’t like you’re born with a manual.) If you like humor, coffee and a hot man (literally) in your books then this is a series for you. I loved the first two books and I can’t wait to read the rest of this series. I really want to read more about Charley and Reyes.

Aurian: Thanks for the recommendation Peggy! I have read this book two years ago, and you can read my review here
I have book 4 on my shelves, and book 5 has been ordered.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian