Demonica Series: Passion Unleashed

Passion Unleashed is book 3 in the Demonica series and it is by far my favourite book in the series. 

Our hero is Wraith and he's a lovable, messed up, sarcastic moron. He's Eidolon and Shade's younger brother and this boy has been harbouring a death wish for a long time now. And his brothers have always managed to pull his dumb butt out of trouble. Unfortunately, Wraith, after a night of looking for trouble, lands himself in a jam that not even his brothers can get him out of.

He's been infected with a poison that has no cure. Bad enough that Wraith's dying, but it turns out that his life is tied to the existence of Underworld General. If Wraith dies, the hospital will be destroyed.

This is where Serena Kelley comes in. Serena is an archaeologist/treasure hunter and has been charmed by angels. As a result of this, she can never be harmed. Ever. But there's a catch: her charm only remains intact so long as she stays a virgin. If she gives it away, her charm will be given to the person she does the nasty with. Now, Serena may have been willing to consider giving up her charm if she didn't have one little problem: she's suffering from a demonic disease with no cure. The second she gives up her charm, the disease will progress rapidly and kill her within a few days. 

When Wraith is told about Serena, he decides to go off and seduce her. He knows what the consequences are of taking Serena's charm, but what is one human life compared to all that his brothers have worked for, right? So off Wraith goes to Egypt, where Serena is looking for some mystical something-or-other. He thinks that this will be one simple wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am kinda deal. After all, Wraith's a Seminus demon and he's never been turned down before. Easy peasy.

 No such luck.

Serena likes him well enough, but there is no way she's going there with him. She has things to do, so he can either help or get lost. So what if she has kinky dreams about him? There is a ginormous difference between fantasy and reality. 

Wraith decides to stick around and try to work his incubus magic on Serena. He seriously needs that charm because it's now worth more than just his life and the hospital's continued existence. But, for the first time, Wraith is having a serious problem: his conscience, dormant for most of his life, has just kicked in. Not only is he wildly attracted to Serena, but he likes her. 

I absolutely adored these two together. I didn't particularly approve of Wraith's motives for pursuing Serena. He lied to her so many times throughout the book. Serena thought his name was Josh for about 80% of the story. I don't care if he was doing the knight-in-shining-armour thing a lot too. The dishonesty was not on.

All that aside though? 

I love Wraith! You know that long list of fictional boyfriends we all have (don't look at me like that! I know you have one)? Wraith made it there within the first three chapters. He's such a moron. But a cuddly moron. He tries to act all rough and tough, but he loves his brothers so much. And he tries to keep an emotional distance between him and Serena, but he's just this big teddy bear. 

Serena held her own as a character too. She was no push over. She told Wraith when he was being a moron, and the fact that he's hotter than the sun didn't sway her when it came to the issue of sex. She hung tough for most of the book, only giving in when she had an emotional connection to him.

Passion Unleashed tied up a couple of loose ends and introduced a few new characters. The major loose end was Kynan and Gem's relationship. 

New characters include the sweetheart fallen angel, Reaver, and the sexy-as-sin new guy, Lore. Definitely looking forward to finding out what their respective deals are.

Just to share a few of my favourite quotes:

An example of Wraith seriously distorted priorities:

The worst part about dying slowly wasn't the dying part. It was the fact that the poison had all but killed Wraith's libido. 

Wraith doesn't like the succubus working as a doctor at Underworld General. If Wraith is unwilling to have sex with someone, it means that she is spectacularly unpleasant.

Even if it wasn't physically impossible for succubi and incubi to screw, he wouldn't touch her. In the dictionary, the word "bitch" ran and hid from her.

Shade is filling Wraith in on a few things he's missed since going on his seduction mission.

"...Our other brother, but he's in chains. He's also a total dick. You'll like him."

Know what I'm really liking? This series. Give it a try if you haven't already. 

No Church in the Wild

I don't know what rock I've been hiding under for the past few months that I only heard this song a few days ago, so I beg your forgiveness for only talking about it now.

No Church in the Wild is a collaboration between Jay-Z, Kanye West and Frank Ocean. I have no clue who Frank Ocean is. I'm sort of indifferent to Jay-Z beyond him being Beyonce's other half. I'm not a big fan of Kanye West. The size of his ego is off-putting, so I try not to pay to much attention to him. But I absolutely adore this song. It's so powerful! 

I found this music video and I'm not 100% sure if it's the official one or not. Either way, it's flipping fantastic. 

If you haven't seen it, watch it now.

If you have seen it, watch it again.

Demonica Series: Desire Unchained

Desire Unchained is the second book in the Demonica series, and here we deal with Shade and Runa. These two have a History. I liked Shade from Pleasure Unbound, but then I sort of stopped liking him for a while in Desire Unleashed. Let me explain why: Shade cheated on Runa, the rat bastard, and he broke her heart. Runa had the misfortune of walking in on him screwing around with not one, but two chicks.

 Does he apologise? No.

Does he make excuses? No.

He asks her if she wants to join them. 

I was thinking, while I was reading this, that I would have been sorely tempted to remove his man parts with a rusty knife. 

Moving on. Runa, understandably devastated, flees his apartment and runs smack into a werewolf who attacks her and infects her with lycanthropy. Runa becomes a werewolf and swears to herself that the next time she runs into Shade, she's going to kick his ass.

It's been eleven months since Shade and Runa last saw each other and their reunion doesn't take place under the best of circumstances. They are both being held captive in the dungeon of a raging loony who is responsible for harvesting demon organs and selling them on the black market. As if this isn't bad enough, it turns out that Shade still has the hots for Runa and his epic fit of jackass-ery with the threesome was an attempt to spare himself from his growing feelings for Runa. See, Shade isn't being one of those I-am-an-island guys just for the sake of it. He has a curse that promises a fate worse than death should he ever fall in love.

Now, he and Runa need to rely on one another to get out of this creepy dungeon in one piece. Making Shade's day even worse is that he inadvertently bonds with Runa and makes her his mate. Now it's only a matter of time before he falls for her and suffers an eternity of misery. 

I actually really liked Shade after getting over his initial bout of being an ass. The reader comes to realise that he wants the whole deal with his mate, the HEA and babies and the lot. But he can't. I was torn between wanting to give him a hug, and smacking him upside the head. 

I loved Runa. She used to be this really timid, shy type, but the werewolf bite forced her to toughen up. I liked that, for the most part, she didn't put up with Shade's crap. She was willing to be what he needed, but she refused to let him control her like he did when they first started dating. Though I do wish she had made him grovel some more. His offense was enough that I thought he should have kissed ass a lot more than he did.

Also loving the bromance that's forming between Kynan and Wraith. What an odd couple. 

Speaking of Kynan, his story line with Gem is killing me! Just when you thought that these two were going to get their shit together, Ms Ione swerves off track and takes them somewhere else. I think that, given the build up between these two, I was more interested in them getting together that I was in Runa and Shade.

My only problem with this story was the Bad Guy. I have to tell you that this guy was weak. I'm pretty sure that you'll have figured out who the bad guy is fairly soon into the book, and he was like the villain from a bad action movie. Too much monologue and explaining both his plans and why he feels wronged, and not enough action. Man, I wanted this guy to be bad.   

I  just want to share some of my favourite bits. I love Larissa Ione. This lady is funny! This conversation happens between Runa and Shade after they find themselves mated. Runa wants to know why any female in her right mind would willingly bond with a Seminus demon.

"...There are lots of reasons a female might bond with a Seminus demon."

"What about werewolves?"

"Out-of-this-world orgasms."

She stared. "That's it? Great sex? I'm forced to deal with you for the rest of my life and all I get out of it is great sex?"

I think this says a lot about how Runa feels about Shade at this point that "great sex" is nowhere near enough compensation for putting up with him.

It's the full moon and Runa is on the verge of turning into a werewolf and Shade, being Shade, thinks he's funny.

"Oh, hey... let's not do that yet. Sit. Stay."

Oh, he was hilarious. She was going to bite him as soon as the transformation was complete.

This is between Wraith and Kynan. After the Final Showdown with the wussy bad guy, Wraith, who is part vampire, needed blood. Kynan offered his blood since there was no way he was going to let Wraith bite Gem. Kynan is asking Wraith what he missed while he was out. Poor Wraith is feeling a little sheepish about nearly killing Kynan.

"What else?"

Wraith's head snapped up. "What do you mean, what else?"

"I mean, why the long face?"

"I nearly put you in the grave, you stupid human!"

Ah, now there was the Wraith they all knew and loved. 

I am seriously looking forward to Wraith's book, which is where I'm headed next.

The Dark Angel Series: Darkness Unbound

Darkness Unbound is book 1 in the Dark Angel series by Keri Arthur. The story is set in Melbourne and is told from the perspective of Risa Jones. Risa is half werewolf and half Aedh. Near as I can figure, Aedhs are a little like angels, in the sense that they're really beautiful and have wings. But Aedhs are also capable of sort of dissolving themselves and travelling around in non-corporal form. Risa lives with her best friends, Iliana and Tao, and she does her best to do the Average Jane thing. 

Despite her best efforts though, this doesn't happen often. Risa also has psychic powers. She can see reapers (those creepy folks who lead the dead into the afterlife), she can travel the gray fields, and she has a degree of precognition. One day Risa's mom contacts her and asks her to visit the hospital where a little girl is stuck in a coma for no obvious reason. As it turns out, the little girl's soul was ripped from her body. 

I don't know about you, but the very idea gives me the heebie-jeebies.

Then, as if all this isn't freaky enough, a reaper starts following Risa around. Apparently, the father Risa has never met is going to contact her. According to Azriel the reaper, her father has some nefarious plans that will eventually result in the end of the world as we know it.

But it's not all bad. Risa meets an Aedh called Lucian and they get physical pretty quickly. Which is good. Risa seriously needed someone to help her lower her stress levels.

I wasn't too keen on this book in the beginning. It felt like information was heaped on the reader and the names of people we hadn't met were being thrown around, so it was a tad confusing. I don't like feeling confused. With the information dump came the feeling that nothing was actually happening. It went on like this for roughly half the book and I was getting fed up. But then things started picking up and by the time I finished the book, I was actually interested in what was going to happen next. 

Darkness Unbound was a pretty good book once you get past all the non-happenings of the beginning. I don't think I would say I loved it, but I would recommend to anyone who's looking for something different to read.

Midnight Breeds Series: Kiss of Crimson

Kiss of Crimson is the second book in the Midnight Breeds series and this is Dante's story. I think I've mentioned this before, but I'm going to say it again: Dante is hot!

He reminded me a little of Rhage from the BDB in that he's this utter player on the outside but a bit of a lonely soul on the inside. Dante has had these visions of his death from an early age, so he's been doing all he can to outrun his eventual demise. Basically, he lives a hard and fast life, just waiting for death to crash into him. After a nasty fight with a group of Rogues, it looks like Dante is going to meet his fate a little early. And he does, just not in the way that he expects. He staggers in all bloody and bruised into the storeroom of a veterinary clinic, looking for a place to hide from the Rogues.

Enter Tess. Tess is a vet with a way with animals. She's also got a Dark Past. This means that she's unwilling to let anyone get too close to her emotionally. She is utterly dedicated to her practice, which normally leaves her working late. So, she's there when Dante shows up and she is scared as hell. Here's this huge-ass guy decked out in leather bleeding all over her floor, and he's asking her not to call the police. What is she supposed to think? 

Tess agrees to help Dante, but their first meeting goes downhill from there. Dante, in desperate need of blood, bites Tess. What Dante didn't realise is that Tess is a Breedmate and he's unwittingly claimed her as his mate. This is so not what Dante needs just then.   

Further complicating matters is the fact that a drug called Crimson is being sold to young members of the Breed. This drug seems very benign from a human perspective, but has devastating effects on vampires. It gives them brief episodes of Bloodlust and, if taken often enough, can turn them Rogue. It's up to the Order to find out who's dealing Crimson and get the stuff off the streets. 

We meet some new characters in this installment of the series. Special Agent Sterling Chase is apparently as straight-laced as they come and he's keen on helping the Order get Crimson off the streets. However, we soon realise that he's not as cool, calm and collected as he'd like everyone to believe. He has a ginormous tourch burning for his widowed sister-in-law, Elise, and he's pretty much alone in his affections. Elise misses her deceased husband terribly and she lives solely for their son, Camden. 

I have two issues with this book. The first is superficial and the second is something that bugged me in Kiss of Midnight too. 

Firstly, not enough Rio and Nikolai! I really liked these two, so I didn't like that they were in the periphery. We did see Rio for a little bit, just enough to know that he is having some serious trouble adjusting to things after the explosion in Kiss of Midnight.

Secondly, there was a whole lot left unresolved. And these aren't cliffhanger issues. These are directly related to the current story. Tess lost two people she cared about. So, what happened to the grieving process? Same with Gabrielle. Her best friend was kidnapped with her. How did they handle the fact that Jamie was involved in something he wasn't supposed to know about?

Overall I enjoyed this book and I quite like the series. I just think that Ms Adrian kinda rushes her endings. 

Oh, My Gaga

I have to tell you, I am not going to forget the sheer awesomeness that is Lady Gaga anytime soon. It's like, all the synonyms for "good" wouldn't even begin to cover her performance. I'm pretty sure that woman isn't even human. Man, I was tired from jumping around a little. She was doing all kinds of crazy stuff and it was like she wasn't even breaking a sweat. 

I know there are a whole bunch of people who don't like her, whether they think she's the Antichrist or, less dramatically, they just think that she's a "talentless freak" (I cannot believe someone called her that). 

But I don't think that anyone can deny that Gaga gives her performances her everything. Honestly, if she performs like that at every concert, I don't know how it is that she's still alive. She must be exhausted! 

My favourite bits of the performance were Unicorn Highway, Judas (I get chills just thinking about it!), and when she brought some fans up from the Monster Pit. 

I also think that her performance was about more than just the music. She also spent some time just talking to us. I am honestly more inspired to be a better person just by listening to her, than I have ever been by going to a church service. The talk about just accepting one another and, more than that, accepting yourself just brought a lump to my throat. 

I haven't been to many concerts but Lady Gaga absolutely blew every other performer out the water. For those of you in Cape Town, you are in for a treat. She will give you triple your money's worth. Also, once she says she's done do not, I repeat DO NOT, leave! She will come back for an encore. It was kinda sad because a whole lot of people left before she was done and missed the ending. So sit tight peeps!

I wasn't overly impressed by the opening acts. Lady Starlight was just freaky. I honestly had no idea what the hell she was doing and, going by the expressions of the people around me, I wasn't alone in my confusion. The Darkness weren't bad. It's just that the only song of theirs that I knew was "I Believe in a Thing Called Love". Maybe I was just impatient for Gaga. It felt like were waiting FOREVER, but the wait was completely worth it.  

For those of you going to watch the show tonight, I hope that you have an absolutely spectacular time. And don't drink too much! You are not going to want to miss this!