Angela Knight

Individual story reviews, than a wrap-up!

"Whisper of Sin" by Nalini Singh (futuristic paranormal)
I haven't read Singh's 'Psy-Changeling' series before, so I was a little apprehensive and worried I would get lost. Not so! Singh gave me a good sense of the world, the politics and who's who without making it seem contrived for exposition. I loved Ria's family--the scene at dinner when certain revelations are brought forth by her popo (grandmother) Miaolong in regards to the 'Great Match' was priceless. The threat level for the story was kind of middling however, for once having such a big bad impressively male specimen as the 'hero' of the story worked against it. Emmett and his pack were just so effective--in both action and from the stories--a human gang like Vincent's didn't seem threatening. At all. More of a mild irritant.

"Blood and Roses" by Angela Knight (historical fantasy paranormal)
As far as I can tell this isn't tied with any of her other series, but having not read her longer works (just the occasional short story), I can't be certain. Medieval vampire romance with lizard barbarians, wizards and violence aplenty. I was intrigued by the notion of the 'Blood Roses', women who were genetically predisposed to being the perfect bed mates for the Vampire Knights, men genetically predisposed to being super-awesome fighters for the king. Both the leads--Amaris and Raniero--had deep trust issues, but sex cured them of that. Sort of. Desperation I think also helped; Amaris was desperate to save her sister and Raniero was just desperate to keep himself alive and save the world. Still, I'm intrigued by the Blood Roses and would love to see more about that.

"Shifting Sea" by Virginia Kantra (historical paranormal)
This is part of her Children of the Sea series, of which I read one book from (Sea Lord, Book 3) and was not suitably impressed with to read the others. The covers are gorgeous however. Morwenna was a child of the Sea, finfolk and Jack was a recently injured soldier taking over a holding with hostile villagers and a self-satisfied steward. As I said, the series doesn't quite catch me and while I enjoyed this story and was delighted by the outcome it didn't change my opinion. Also, some of the issues Morwenna brings up--especially in regards to her brother Morgan--aren't given enough explanation in the end. I did find her attempting to live like a human amusing--in that she was kind of like the Little Mermaid, intrigued by shoes, a dress, riding a horse.

"Here There By Monsters" by Meljean Brook (steampunk paranormal)
This is the beginning to Brook's up-coming Iron Seas steampunk romance series. Its about Mad Machen (Eben) and his inability to properly court engineering whiz Ivy. No really that's pretty much the whole set up, but you see Eben is a pirate (with a very very bad reputation, that may or may not be taken completely out of context at times) and Ivy is part mechanical (her arms at least, though we're never told why). Ivy is dead certain Eben means her harm, Eben is dead certain he wants Ivy in his life for keeps and Lady Corsair (a female airship pirate--er merchant) is dead certain the two will be the end of decent pirating. Its at time amusing to see Eben try to quell his rather violent nature to reassure Ivy, while Ivy doesn't question the fact he's taking one coin a night to avoid 'mauling' her. Lady Corsair who pops up infrequently and tends to disturb the peace, was fun and I hope we see more of her! This just made me want the new series now and I'm rather cross I have to wait until October to read about the Iron Duke himself.

I tried to include the sub-genre each story was part of as well, but they all shared 'paranormal' and with the exception of Singh's were all set in a historical like time period (Medieval, Regency, Victorian). I definitely liked Brook's story the best, but I can honestly say I didn't dislike any of these stories. Some worked less well for me (such as Kantra's) and some I would have liked way more expansion of the world on (Knight's) and then I'm likely to go and find me Singh's other Psy-Changling books now, but in all this entire collection was a solid romance anthology.… (más)

The two novellas in this anthology collection share a prologue and opens with the heroines, sisters Corrine and Celeste, talking about the frustrating heroes in the romance books that they write. The women never expect those heroes to magically appear and kidnap them, sending them on the adventure of a lifetime.

In “Bound by the Dragon” by Diane Whiteside, romance author Corrine Carson is captured by a gorgeous seven foot tall, red-headed warrior who’s seriously angry with her. He takes her to his home in a mythical land, one that shouldn’t exist anywhere outside Corrine’s mind and the studio that’s turning her books into movies. She’s tortured this poor man time and again (in her books, that is), but once she lets herself realize that this magical world and Mykhayl are actually real, she feels horrible over what she’s done.
High King Mykhayl wants revenge, and he paid a sorcerer dearly for the magic to take him and his friend Jarred to Earth, so they could seek revenge on the women who have tormented them.
Corrine and Mykhayl are awesome characters. He’s tormented over his past and unable to move on, but determined to do so for the sake of his people. Though he has a hundred concubines at his command, he only wants Corrine even though he doesn’t trust her. Corrine wants to make amends for what she’s done and sleeping with Mykhayl is definitely not a chore.
Though I liked the book, some of the descriptive rituals and long, multiple sex scenes slowed the pacing. I loved both the formal and snappy dialogue, the world building, and the slew of secondary characters, especially Kyhber, the Imperial Dragon.
4 Stars

In “Bound by the Dream” by Angela Knight, sci/fi author Celeste Carson finds herself in another universe, a few hundred years into the future. The space captain/government agent she created is sinfully dark, hot, and erotic, a total dominant, and he’s holding her captive on his spaceship, vowing revenge for the death of his best friend and all the torture he’s endured.
Jarred Varrain has dreamed of revenge for years, but he cannot hurt a woman. He will, however, pleasure her to the point of pain and make her beg for release. He never expected to actually like and respect the courageous woman he’s tying up, but he’s determined to rid himself of the obsession he harbors for her by any means necessary, and then discard her.
WOW! What a story! I loved it! Jarred is definitely a tormented hero with a sadistic side, but Celeste is drawing out the honorable man inside him. She’s strong and capable and often stands up to and teases the overbearing man. They have great chemistry, both in and out of the bedroom.
Though there’s not a large cast of secondary characters, Jarred’s friend De’Lar is completely yummy. I love the world building. Most of the H/h’s time is spent on Jarred’s ship, but the sensory detail kept me interested and didn’t feel like padding. The sex scenes are awesome and very kinky with a BDSM edge, and though there were several of them, none felt repetitive. Each scene seemed to progress the H/h budding romance and drew them closer together.
5 Stars

Overall Book – 4.5 Stars

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“Dark Hunger” by Christine Feehan

In book 11.5 of the Dark/Carpathian series, activist Juliette Sangria breaks into a secret South American laboratory to rescue captured exotic animals and finds a bleeding man chained in a room. As she’s attempting to free him, he bites her and changes her life forever.
Captured and tortured, Riordan de la Cruz expected death, not his lifemate to come and free him. Taking Juliette away to protect her from the vampires after him, their attraction is instant even though she doesn’t trust him.
I’m not crazy about the de la Cruz brothers due to their extreme arrogance and highhandedness, but Riordan isn’t as bad as the others. He’s able to see the error in his judgment and able to apologize without much difficulty. He’s understanding and accepting of Juliette’s need to fight for those she loves.
I really liked Juliette. She’s sharp, mouthy, and a Jaguar shifter, and like any cat, she sometimes goes into heat. Thank goodness! This series is full of virgin heroines, so Juliette was a breath of fresh air.
It’s no wonder why Jasmine and Solange (Juliette’s sister and cousin) don’t like or trust Riordan, but they do grudgingly come around. Some of the Jaguar men are vile kidnappers, rapists, and murderers, so Juliette and her family have taken it upon themselves to protect their fellow Jaguar women. Despite their need for men when they go into heat, they hate and distrust men in general. Jasmine, especially, has been hurt. What she went through was absolutely terrible.
The plot is strong, despite several sex scenes, and I liked the story.
4 Stars

“Awaiting Moonrise” by Maggie Shayne

Professor Jenny Rose is searching for a previously unknown species of animal living in the Louisiana bayou, but never expects that animal to be a werewolf. After the creature attacks her during the full moon, she goes to the local clinic and meets a man with similar eyes to that of the wolf.
Living under a family curse, Doctor Samuel La Roque has long embraced his wolf side and does his best to keep a low profile. Then a sexy professor, her nosy colleague, and some students move in next door to his cabin. He can’t deny the attraction between him and Jenny, and soon controlling his wolf isn’t the only thing that’s endangering their newfound relationship.
The first scene where the H/h met is probably one of the hottest opening scenes I’ve read in a while. Samuel is definitely direct and goes after what he wants. At times, he moved way too fast, but Jenny matched his sexual needs with hers, even though she was somewhat more reserved.
I loved all the scenes with Momma Louisa. She’s a great secondary character.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the story, but I’m not sure how Samuel, Jenny, and Momma Louisa is going to keep Jenny’s students in the dark about werewolves.
4 Stars

“The Night Owl” by Emma Holly

Mariann O’Faolain has always loved to bake, but after divorcing her cheating husband and now fighting with her ex-bakery partner over stolen recipes, she only finds solace when working in her family-owned bakery and in her deliciously dirty dreams she can’t stop having.
Bastien Luce and his friend Emile are renovating the Night Owl Inn and have earned a reputation as wealthy eccentrics in the small Vermont town. They’re so eccentric that they only come out at night, never by day. Both are uypr—shape-shifting vampires—and Bastien needs to be in control of his own pack. Then he meets Mariann and knows she’ll be perfect as his queen.
Mariann and Bastien have raw chemistry, even though he was pretty tongue-tied around her at first. The uypr history and Bastien’s back-story was interesting. Though I liked the story and the characters, I don’t understand why Mariann and Bastien didn’t care to find and punish the woman who ran Mariann off the road and nearly killed her. Luckily, Emile took care of that for them.
3.5 Stars

“Seduction’s Gift” by Angela Knight

In this Mageverse novella, police officer Grace Morgan doesn’t want anything to do with her cold, manipulative grandmother or the seductive man trying to woo Grace out of her pants. She knows all about magic, witches, and vampires, but has shunned that part of her life.
As a Magi—a vampire—and a Knight of the Round Table, Lancelot du Lac is also known as the Seducer of Avalon and will sleep with any woman the High Council deems necessary. For several centuries, the mystical council has been protecting humankind from destroying themselves and Gifting humans of the right bloodline with the power of the Magus (vampires) and the Majae (witches). Lancelot, Arthur, Morgana le Fey, and the other knights lead the council, and since Grace refuses the Gift, Morgana sends Lancelot after her wayward granddaughter, determined that he seduces Grace and gives her the Gift.
I really liked this story and the twists on the Arthurian legends. Lancelot and Grace are fun, strong-willed characters. Romance bloomed quickly between them, but it felt natural since they have known each other for years.
4 Stars

Book Overall – 4 Stars

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In the first book in the Time Hunters series, genetically bred machine-like warriors, Warlords and Warfem (men and women respectively), come from the planet Vardon. Other than warring with the vicious Xerans, they police time travel to protect the people in the past, the present, and the future. The Warlords rely on their computer and sensory implants to do their jobs, which makes them tougher and smarter than most normal humans.
Temporal Enforcer and Warlord Galar Arvid goes back in time to 2008 to save artist Jessica Kelly from a time jumping thief/murderer, but the attempted murderer isn’t an art thief as Galar and his team believed. Instead, it’s a zealot, religious cyborg assassin from a Xeran faction, and he’s determined to kill Jessica and her mysterious roommate.
Jessica is a struggling human artist in her own time, but her supposed “death” rocketed her to stardom, and people three hundred years into the future are collecting her art. Torn between the life she left behind and the one awaiting her in the future, she finds peace and understanding from the man who saved her life. But Jessica is more than just human, and her newfound abilities—along with the fact there’s a spy on Galar’s team—threaten to destroy the happiness she’s found in Galar’s world.
Galar and Jessica are interesting characters, but I couldn’t relate to them. There’s desire, friendship, and trust between them, but then doubt destroys that trust. Though I understand why Galar purposely hurt and accused Jessica of espionage and murder, she forgave him way too easily, and that affected my liking of both characters.
Galar first appeared as a ten-year-old in the novella “Warfem.” In that book, he was a brilliant smart-mouthed kid who helped his parents fight the bad guys, but there was no brief recap about it in this story, which would’ve further explained his past and answered some questions.
Frieka, my favorite character from “Jane’s Warlord,” returned in this one, but he didn’t play as large a role. Riane, Dona, and Dyami were awesome characters, and I definitely liked them. The Sela aliens and the T’lir were confusing, and I’m not even sure what the T’lir is. There are unanswered questions and loose ends, but I think the plot lines carry over into the other books.
Overall, I enjoyed the time traveling parts and side characters, but I just wished I could’ve connected better with the H/h.
3 Stars

Disclaimer – I bought this book for my own enjoyment. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
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