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The Secret Guide to Dating Monsters by Sierra Dean
Series: Secret McQueen #0.5
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Published by Samhain Publishing on July 19, 2011
Format: eBook
Pages: 47
Source: Gift
Purchase: Amazon • Barnes & Noble
A great introduction to kick ass heroine Secret McQueen and her dangerous escapades!
As a bounty hunter for the vampire council, Secret McQueen is pretty much a hired assassin for rogue vampires that need to be eliminated. She vampire-werewolf hybrid with no alliance to either of her kind. Her supernatural status and spending time hunting rogue vampires doesn’t exactly leave time for much of a love life, but her best friend Mercedes is more than happy to help in that department. When she sets up Secret on a blind date with Tyler, Secret is hesitant but agrees to meet the handsome police officer. As luck would have it, her liaison to the council has a new assignment for her on the same night that involves a very famous vampire. Never one to pass on a job, Secret decides to kill two birds with one stone which ends in a memorable night!
“Not really something you can use as an opening line when introducing yourself to guys. Unless of course they have a weird Buffy the Vampire Slayer fetish, but I try to avoid that comparison whenever possible.”
THE SECRET GUIDE TO DATING MONSTERS is a fabulous short story filled with action, suspense and a badass, sarcastic katana wielding heroine! This is my first introduction to Secret McQueen and I absolutely love her character after just a few chapters. A big thanks to Jennifer @ The Book Nympho for gifting me this novella and giving me the extra push to start this awesome series!
I can already tell Secret is going to be one of those feisty leading ladies that I love to read about. She stands out instantly, I haven’t read too many vampire-werewolf hybrids but am really intrigued by her background. She’s not invincible and takes a beating in this story, but she always gets back up! McQueen is well aware of a vampire’s strengths and weaknesses and often uses that knowledge to her advantage when dealing with these fierce predators. Even though she’s a tough chick Secret has a softer side that longs for companionship which makes her relatable in my eyes. I appreciate her confidence, she isn’t all “woe is me” about being a vampire or a werewolf, with the exception of dating, she has no identity issues. What else do I love about her? her snark…she manages to say/think the funniest things in any given situation.
The humor in THE SECRET GUIDE TO DATING MONSTERS is one of my favorite elements to the story, I really wasn’t expecting it but Sierra Dean knows just where to sprinkle it in. This paranormal world in set in New York and as a native New Yorker I was thrilled to read McQueen’s vivid descriptions of the city I live in and love. Another great surprise to this novella was a little smexy romance teaser, Secret might have been attracted to Tyler but the real chemistry lies with her vampire liaison Holden…I never thought a kissing scene could leave me so hot and bothered, that’s all I’m saying. While this was just a small glimpse into Secret McQueen’s world, it was just enough to get me hooked and continue reading about her adventures!
RtDS Recommendation: Fans of Jennifer Estep and Chloe Neill’s snarky, kick ass heroines will love the Secret McQueen series!
