This month I have quite  a blend of books to read.

 

Harder (Caroline & West #2) 

by Robin York

This is the second (and last) book in the series, the first been Deeper which I absolutely LOVED! no surprise there! I loved everything Robin wrote in the pan name Ruthie Knox, so naturally I utterly fell in love with this one as well. Yeah, it's going to break my heart but I can't help myself, I really can't..

 

Marked by Midnight (Midnight Breed #11.5)

by Lara Adrian

Another short novella in a series I really enjoy. Can't wait for the full novel though so this one is a fair teaser ;)

 

Daylight Again (Hell or High Water #3)

by SE Jakes

I planned on reading this book in the previous month with two other novels in the world of Hell or High Water but didn't find the time. Hope it'll be as good as "Free Falling" which was really a pleasure to read!

 

The Siren (The Original Sinners #1)

The Angel (The Original Sinners #2)

The Prince (The Original Sinners #3)

The Mistress (The Original Sinners #4)

by Tiffany Reisz

I got a really good recommendation for this one and I postponed it FOREVER since I wasn't sure how I would feel about it, but after reading Beyond and loving it (though I though I wouldn't :P) I really want to give it a (fair!) chance.

 

Back to You

by Leighton Rose

Another one which came with an amazing recommendation! 

 

Need You Now (1001 Dark Nights)

by Lisa Renee Jones

Though I was disappointed with "Inside out" series I DID enjoy Lisa's other short stories. 

 

The Vampire Shrink (Kismet Knight, Ph.D., Vampire Psychologist #1)

by Lynda Hilburn

I read a great review of this one and really felt like giving it a go! Just recently I've realized it's actually a series... so we'll see how it goes.. 

 

Fatal Shadows (Adrian English #1)

A Dangerous Thing (Adrian English #2)

by Josh Lanyon

I've heard this one is a good MM series so I'm giving it a go. Didn't plan for the next books in the series since I have SO MUCH books to read so I'll see what I'll do with the rest of them if they're as great as I've heard. 

 

This month I think the "better" greetings will be - GOOD LUCK :)

 

 January Goals / January Recap

February Goals / February Recap

March Goals / March Recap

April Goals / April Recap

May Goals / May Recap

June Goals / June Recap

Up to the point where she was involved in a ceremony where nothing was explained and everybody just kept going "later" to her I liked this story. However, this was a sticking point for me. It's a lazy cliche being used in too many books to bind the heroine to the supernatural creature without actual consent being involved and this is where I have issues with a lot of Urban Fantasy. Without consent this is morally dubious at best and downright issue-laden at worst, and what's worse for me is that this is becoming a regular feature of books I'm finding. Safe, sane and consentual. These are three words that should dominate romance but they don't, they're not even regularly discussed and this character (and her creator) is a shrink. The story starts with our heroine Kismet Knight dealing with a girl who wants to be a vampire which leads Kismet into the vampire underworld of her city and some relationships with people who will change her life forever. Including a guy who is trying to get his revenge on the man she is falling heavily in lust with. It wasn't bad but I think it could have been better.

3.5 stars.

Up to the point where she was involved in a ceremony where nothing was explained and everybody just kept going "later" to her I liked this story. However, this was a sticking point for me. It's a lazy cliche being used in too many books to bind the heroine to the supernatural creature without actual consent being involved and this is where I have issues with a lot of Urban Fantasy. Without consent this is morally dubious at best and downright issue-laden at worst, and what's worse for me is that this is becoming a regular feature of books I'm finding.Safe, sane and consentual. These are three words that should dominate romance but they don't, they're not even regularly discussed and this character (and her creator) is a shrink.The story starts with our heroine Kismet Knight dealing with a girl who wants to be a vampire which leads Kismet into the vampire underworld of her city and some relationships with people who will change her life forever. Including a guy who is trying to get his revenge on the man she is falling heavily in lust with.It wasn't bad but I think it could have been better.

Lovelorn Kismet Knight learns that becoming a psychologist to the vamps can be hazardous as well as extremely rewarding.

This was one of those bipolar books in which the things I liked I really liked, and the things I hated I *really* hated.

The book got off to a great start. The heroine is likeable, and she has a lot of concern for her patients. She's a regular person with a not-so-great past, and at first, her character is very believable. Also adding to the plus side of the equation is the interesting premise. A vampire shrink is a new take on an old trope, and I enjoyed the doctor/patient scenes in which Kismet first explores the world of vamps. Finally, I liked the plot itself. The threads were all fairly loose, but they tied together fairly well at the end.

Unfortunately, there was also a lot that I didn't like. For one thing, the sex was all over the place. I don't mind R-rated scenes, but in order to be any good, they have to flow with the characters and the story. These didn't. Although a self-proclaimed good girl who had kept her panties on for the past two years, Kismet suddenly becomes infatuated with any guy who said 'hello'. Not only that, the guys don't seem to mind that she sleeps sleeps around. Her vampire lover shrugs it off, and her human one tells her he'll wait for her to make up her mind. As if Kismet could ever make up her mind! One moment, she's so in love with Devereaux the vampire that she can hardly stand it, and the next she despises him. She tells Allan, the human, she only wants to be friends, then she asks him to join her in the shower.

There were other things that bothered me. For example, the heroine's name. Kismet would work if her parents had been carefree artistic types, but according to her, they were unimaginative drones. Also, an estranged boyfriend makes an appearance at the beginning of the book, yet completely disappears midway through without anyone caring. I have no idea what his purpose was. Kismet constantly forgets to lock her doors despite the fact that she's being stalked by a rogue vamp. Then there were the Canadian spellings...ordinarily, not a bad thing unless the story is written about an American from a first person POV.

I had really wanted to like this book, and there were quite a few good things about it. Unfortunately, there were even more bad things that I disliked.