In my review for the companion anthology, Immortal, I said I wanted more anthologies of this kind in the future. Young Adult Paranormal Romance stories these may be, but they're dark and tinted with a reality I appreciate. Love doesn't conquer everything in these stories.

"Bloodshed" by Claudia Gray
Set in her Evernight Universe
Its a good idea to have read "Free" in Immortal because a lot of Patrice's actions are a direct consequence to the tragedy in that story. Patrice is probably one of my favorite characters in Evernight, especially now that we've been given a more in depth look into her past. The story was touching and heartbreaking, but it made me want to read more about the consequences of her actions this time around.

"Say Yes" by Lili St. Crow
I'm fairly certain the name of the main character isn't mentioned in this story, not once. Its told from her POV, but it felt weird trying to put a name to her when writing this review. Lifestyles of the idle and rich teens of America, if you've ever seen the movie Clueless than what these girls (and guys) get up to shouldn't be a surprise. I was a little confused, near the end when the MC meets up with Jack again and what's done is done, with the implication on the newscast. I would like to see what happens to the MC in the future, but far as I can tell this has no connection to her Strange Angel series of books.

"Letters to Romeo" by Nancy Holder
Oh Romeo, who I have said on many an occasion is the original 'emo' boy. This was an odd story, maybe more so because it didn't end like I thought it would. More than anything I felt bad for 'Juliet'. I do wonder what it must be like, 700 years he remained loyal to his 'wife', loyal to the love they shared. If nothing else this should shush the naysayers who the think their love was less true because they were so young. In the end though I didn't enjoy this until the ending, when everyone did what was right finally.

"The Other Side" by Heather Brewer
Score one for Brewer she had me blinking at the ending. Then re-reading it and then just staring. Unfortunately I didn't like how the story played out. It was kind of melodramatic and given over to sentimental moments. I haven't read Brewer before, though her Vladimir Tod series has always interested me, so I can't say if this is how she ordinarily writes or not. The ending intrigued me however and I want to read more about a world where they are considered 'myths'.

"Drama Queen's Last Dance" by Rachel Caine
Set in her Morganville Vampires Universe
Told from Eve's POV, it was interesting to see Eve act the adult. When Oliver said "Love is rarely that simple...or painless." I felt that sort of summed up the Morganville series in general. No one has an easy time of love in this series. Ever. And though this series tops my top 5 series to read and love, I'm not fond of Eve's style of narration. Its blunt and sharp, like she is, which is fine when its from Claire's POV, but from hers it begins to grate pretty swiftly. The rival, Gloriana, I'm guessing will be a player in the new story arc of the series, and apparently it worries Oliver. I wonder at Oliver's great sadness though and hope we get a short story about his past at some point. And more Myrnin being in the story and not just mentioned is always appreciated (another reason I love Claire's POV).

"Thief" by Jeri Smith-Ready
A heartbreaking story of what love can transcend. Oh Jeri, if I didn't already love your writing this would make me do so. Its tender and brutal and makes you wonder what happens next. I wonder why Brendan thought it would be better for the community and why Mary's mother wanted better for her daughter, but wouldn't fight for it. Why go to all that trouble and then roll over? And I certainly hope that Gavin gets what's coming to him. Why were the boys so scared of Brendan? It sounded like the community's justice was ample times worse. Here's hoping there's more stories in this world sometime!

Like the first anthology this story was a lot of heart break and sadness, but equally powerful. Oliver definitely said it best--love isn't simple or painless. It requires sacrifice and knowing yourself, something all these stories had in common. ( )

Eternal: More Love Stories with Bite is the follow up to yesterday's review of Immortal: Love Stories With Bite. P C Cast has gathered another group of talented authors in a collection of vampire-related stories. Claudia Gray, Rachel Caine and Nancy Holder also contributed to the first anthology, with Lili St. Crow, Heather Brewer and Jeri Smith-Ready rounding out the group.

The anthology opens with "Bloodshed--A Story of Evernight" by Claudia Gray. I've stated previously that I had not read the Evernight series, but this second short story from the series has me curious. Patrice, from the short story in Immortal: Love Stories With Bite, is in love with a human who is being shipped overseas during WWII. She finds out that he has been captured and is being held prisoner by the Nazis. She goes to Europe to rescue him, but ends up with a lot more than she bargained for.

The next story "Say Yes" by Lili St. Crow is a fascinating tale of a girl whose image of herself as being in the background of life leads her to take action that she seriously regrets later. She truly can't believe that she is special enough to have been chosen over her popular friends and betrays someone who could have been important to her. I'd love to see what happens to her after this story, but couldn't find any hint of a connection to this story in any of the books on Lili St. Crow's website. Although, I do think I'll be looking into adding some of her work to my to-be-read list.

"Letters to Romeo" by Nancy Holder is an interesting twist to Shakespeare's classic tale of star-crossed lovers. Romeo hasn't died, he is a vampire who has waited for 700 years for his Juliet to return to him. He believes he has found her in a 15 year old girl from Florida, whom he plans to turn in order to spend eternity with her. But, the tragedy of his tale still clings to him...

Heather Brewer's "The Other Side" tells the story of Tarrah & Cody, lovers who are kidnapped and held together in a small room while awaiting their captors. The twist at the end was one I didn't see coming though, and the 'myths' mentioned in her story are really interesting.

Two of my favorite authors round out the book: Rachel Caine and Jeri Smith-Ready. Rachel Caine provides another story of the Morganville vampires with "Drama Queen's Last Dance" or, as I like to think of it, All About Eve. Eve is what brought me to the Morganville vampires series, having read
"The First Day of the Rest of Your Life" in Many Bloody Returns. This time a new vampire in town has her sites on Michael, and Eve, despite being told by everyone that it's lost cause, is determined to break Gloriana's spell. Eve is an awesome character, strong and self-confident, but still showing some of the normal insecurities of being young. This story is a great showcase for her character.

"Thief" by Jeri Smith-Ready has me chomping at the bit for the next WVMP book! The story introduces us to Cassie & Liam, who are "Irish Travelers" and I believe Cassie is a relative of Ciara from the WVMP series. However, as highly as I recommend the WVMP series, you don't have to have read it to enjoy Cassie's story. Cassie and Liam are engaged and inseparable. Unlike most Traveler girls, Cassie is in love with her betrothed. Her father wanted her to be happy and promised her to Liam, despite his disabilities. Unfortunately, her father is dead and her step-father is threatening to tear Cassie and Liam apart by promising her to another. Cassie is determined to be with Liam no matter what, even if it means being dead to her own family. "Thief" is listed as a tie-in story to the WVMP series on Jeri Smith-Ready's website and I can't wait to see how she and Liam fit into Lust for Life, due out in fall 2012.

I've mentioned before how much I love anthologies: I get introduced to new authors that write about a subject I'm already interested in reading and I get little tidbits to tide me over until the next offering in a series I enjoy. Eternal: More Love Stories with Bite provides all of this in some really cool vampire stories :)

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