[COVER ART] Hunting Ground (US) – Patricia Briggs

US cover art for Patricia Briggs’ Hunting Ground. Found on Facebook, and I couldn’t find it elsewhere, so I saved the image. US release date is 28th July, and UK release date is 5th November. Buy (US) Buy (UK) Buy (CA)

September 2008 Reads

Reminder: September 2008 Releases & October 2008 Releases.

Blood Bound – Patricia Briggs “…a decent read.” Buy

Night Child – Jes Battis “Night Child stands above most…Definitely one of my favourite books of the year…” Buy

Netherwood – Michele Lang “…outstanding, a true example of fabulous world-building…if you’re looking for an ace setting with vivid detail, you’ve come to the right book.” Buy

The Bride of Casa Dracula – Marta Acosta “Highly quotable, this third book is the best in the series…” Buy

Blood Lite – Kevin J. Anderson (ed.) Pre-order

Night Shift – Lilith Saintcrow “…enjoy the ride…a good, different read.” Buy

Awaken Me Darkly – Gena Showalter “Fascinating world-building and a unique serial killer make Gena Showalter’s Awaken Me Darkly an engrossing read.” Buy

[REVIEW] Blood Bound – Patricia Briggs

Patricia Briggs
Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2)
Penguin Ace (US: 30th January 2007); Hachette Orbit (UK: 3rd July 2008; AU: October 2008)
Buy

Vampires, sorcerers and demons take the stage in Mercy Thompson’s second chronicled adventure.

A coyote “walker”, she often has to intervene when her werewolf buddies are doing the whole “mine’s bigger than yours” faff, and the vampires are no different in this respect.

But the link between vampires, sorcerers and demons becomes clear; placing innocents in danger, and Mercy’s vampire pal Stefan goes missing. Not to mention the wild outbreak of violence from seemingly on-the-level citizens. So where you do find a demon? In a church, of course.

I had the same problem with this that I had with the first book in this series, Moon Called. They’re okay, but they’re just not wowing me. And the endless talk of dominants and submitting to them gets old fast. As a coyote, Mercy’s more American than the werewolves and vampires, who came from Europe. Yes, Europe has royalty, but it’s evident that North America has blatant class systems of its own, so don’t go thinking that dominance and submission is an archaic European thing that’s come along to the free-spirited West. I’m not sure what the author’s trying to say with this.

But while this series isn’t quite a page-turner, it’s still a decent read. Even if some werewolves and vampires do deserved to be kicked in the crotch.

October 2008 Releases

Patricia Briggs
Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2 – Paperback)
Hachette Livre Orbit (AU: October 2008)
Buy
Mechanic Mercy Thompson is woken at 3am by a vampire calling in a favour. He has to deliver a message to a fellow undead and needs a witness that won’t be noticed – and Mercy’s shapeshifting abilities make her the perfect candidate. But the assignment turns into a bloodbath and Mercy attracts the attention of not just a powerful vampire, but the even more powerful demon possessing him. She can count on the supernatural community for protection – and alpha werewolf Adam would like her to rely on him in other ways too – but when it comes to being proactive, she’s on her own.

Anya Bast
The Chosen Sin (Trade Paperback)
Penguin Berkley (US: 7th October 2008)
Buy
The Chosen are vampires fighting for their very existence. It is Daria Morris’s destiny to become one of them…Daria is a special forces agent with one obsession: to wreak vengeance on the vampire who nearly destroyed her. But to succeed, she must become something she detests: a vampire. Her fate rests upon Alejandro Martinez, a sexy vampire with whom she once shared an unforgettable night of scorching passion. Now, while Daria struggles against her newfound bloodlust, the two must slip into the shadows to bring a monster to justice – even as their desire threatens to consume them…

Charlaine Harris & Toni L. P. Kelner (eds.)
Wolfsbane and Mistletoe (Hardcover)
Penguin Ace (US: 7th October 2008)
Buy

The holidays can bring out the beast in anyone. They are particularly hard for lycanthropes. Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner have harvested the scariest, funniest and saddest werewolf tales by an outstanding pack of authors, best read by the light of a full moon with a silver bullet close at hand.

Kevin Anderson (ed.)
Blood Lite: An Anthology of Humorous Horror Stories Presented by the Horror Writers Association (Trade Paperback)
Simon & Schuster Pocket (US: 21st October 2008)
Buy
Charlaine Harris reveals the dark side of going green, when a quartet of die-hard environmentalists hosts a fundraiser with a gory twist in “An Evening with Al Gore”…In an all-new Dresden Files story from Jim Butcher, when it comes to tracking deadly paranormal doings, there’s no such thing as a “Day Off” for the Chicago PD’s wizard detective, Harry Dresden…Sherrilyn Kenyon turns a cubicle-dwelling MBA with no life into a demon-fighting seraph with one hell of an afterlife in “Where Angels Fear to Tread”…Celebrity necromancer Jaime Vegas is headlining a sold-out séance tour, but behind the scenes, a disgruntled ghost has a bone to pick, in Kelley Armstrong’s “The Ungrateful Dead.” Plus tales guaranteed to get under your skin – in a good way – from Janet Berliner, Don D’Ammassa, Nancy Holder, Nancy Kilpatrick, J. A. Konrath and F. Paul Wilson, Joe R. Lansdale, Will Ludwigsen, Sharyn McCrumb, Mark Onspaugh, Mike Resnick, Steven Savile, D. L. Snell, Eric James Stone, Jeff Strand, Lucien Soulban, Matt Venne, Christopher Welch.

Kelley Armstrong
Living with the Dead (Women of the Otherworld, Book 9 – Hardcover)
Random House Spectra (US: 21st October 2008)
Buy
Robyn Peltier moved to Los Angeles after her young husband’s sudden death, trying to put some distance between herself and her memories. Though she’s still grieving, the challenges of her new life as the PR consultant to Portia Kane – the world’s most famous celebutante wannabe – can sometimes be amusing, even distracting. But when her client is gunned down in the back room of a nightclub, Robyn is suddenly on the run as the prime suspect in the murder. And as more bodies pile up around her, it seems like only Hope Adams, Robyn’s best friend, and Hope’s somewhat spooky boyfriend Karl are on Robyn’s side. Hope Adams follows the kinds of stories whose headlines scream from supermarket checkout lines. But the difference is that Hope’s stories are even weirder – and they’re all true. Though determined to help Robyn, Hope knows it’s only a matter of time before her friend is caught. But it’s not the police Hope is worried about. For Robyn has gotten herself in the middle of a turf war between two powerful Otherworld cabals who’ll spill any amount of blood – human and inhuman – to protect what they consider theirs for all eternity. And the only way Hope can keep her friend alive is by letting her enter a world she’s safer knowing nothing about.

Mario Acevedo
The Undead Kama Sutra (Felix Gomez, Book 3 – Mass Market Paperback)
HarperCollins Eos (US: 28th October 2008)
Buy
Felix Gomez returned from the war in Iraq a changed man – once a soldier, now forever a vampire. So the undead underworld put his skills to work as a private detective, specialising in the sordid, the sexy, and the supernatural. After surviving aliens, nymphomaniacs, and x-rated bloodsuckers, it’s high time for a vacation. Now the aliens are back in a fiendish conspiracy with the U.S. government, and only Felix stands between them and the Earth women they covet. But when an army hit man attacks Felix and the bodacious vampire sexpert, Carmen, not even the astonishing erotic powers of the Kama Sutra for the Undead may be able to save them.

Keri Arthur
Destiny Kills (Myth & Magic, Book 1 – Mass Market Paperback)
Random House Dell (US: 28th October 2008)
Buy
When Destiny McCree wakes up beside a dead man on an Oregon beach, she knows only this: she has to keep moving, keep searching, and keep one step ahead of the forces that have been pursuing her from the heart of Scotland to this isolated spot. Why? The death of her lover has left her alone, with little memory of her past. A glimmering serpent-shaped ring is the one clue she has – and a bargaining chip in a most dangerous game. Enter Trae Wilson, a master thief with a sexy, knowing grin and a secret agenda of his own. Destiny and Trae both have powers far beyond the human – and both are running for their lives. Together they’re riding a tide of danger, magic, and lust…but with killers stalking their every move, they must use any means necessary, even each other, to survive – until the shocking secret of one woman’s destiny finally unravels…

Kim Harrison
A Fistful of Charms (The Hollows, Book 4 – Hardcover)
HarperCollins Eos (US: 28th October 2008)
Buy
The evil night things that prowl Cincinnati despise witch and bounty hunter Rachel Morgan. Her new reputation for the dark arts is turning human and undead heads alike with the intent to possess, bed, and kill her – not necessarily in that order. Now a mortal lover who abandoned Rachel has returned, haunted by his secret past. And there are those who covet what Nick possesses – savage beasts willing to destroy the Hollows and everyone in it if necessary. Forced to keep a low profile or eternally suffer the wrath of a vengeful demon, Rachel must nevertheless act quickly. For the pack is gathering for the first time in millennia to ravage and to rule. And suddenly more than Rachel’s soul is at stake.

A. J. Menden
Phenomenal Girl 5 (Elite Hands of Justice, Book 1 – Mass Market Paperback)
Dorchester SHOMI (US: 28th October 2008)
Buy
Lainey Livingston has just been made a member of the Elite Hands of Justice, the world’s premiere cadre of superheroes. Her work with the Red Knights and the Power Squad was impressive; all her senses are extraordinary, and her great strength and ability to fly are equally remarkable. But no one gets a free pass to active duty, and Lainey’s next test is going to be her hardest. She’s to train with the Reincarnist. Robert Elliot, the Reincarnist. A magician who has lived multiple lifetimes, he’s the smartest man in the world – and Lainey’s last obstacle. He was personally responsible for seeing Pushstar wash out. But his eyes are the softest, kindest that Lainey has ever seen, and he’s just the sort to knock her for a loop. Lesson #1: Romantic entanglements among crime fighters are super exploitable, and falling in love with a man who “can’t die” is like waving a red flag at a bull. Especially when the most fiendish plot ever is about to break over Megolopolis like a wave of fire.

August 2008 Reads

9 books. Because I’m not going to finish a 10th before midnight (it’s almost 10PM).

28 Days Later: The Aftermath – Steve Niles, Dennis Calero, Diego Olmos, Nat Jones

LifeMate Connections: Eryn – Keri Arthur “…the mystery itself is actually quite interesting…” Buy

The Taste of Night – Vicki Pettersson “The Neon Boneyard is a brilliant setting as always, and Joaquin’s underground lair is genuinely creepy. The melding of science and magic is a big part of what makes this series a winner…” Buy

Some Writers Deserve to Starve! – Elaura Niles

Already Dead – Charlie Huston “…like me you’ll be hoping to encounter the second Joe Pitt novel, No Dominion, in the near future.” Buy

Silver is for Secrets – Laurie Faria Stolarz “…compulsively readable…Upon finishing I immediately wanted to read the next in the series…Laurie Faria Stolarz is my kind of writer.” Buy

Moon Called – Patricia Briggs “This series has its fans, and there’s reasonable enough evidence in the world-building and class structure.” Buy

Wifey – Judy Blume “That something published in 1978 seems more believable, realistic and relatable than most books on the market today says a lot.” Buy

Darkling – Yasmine Galenorn “Everything fits together well, the characters seem well formed, and the plot’s intriguing.” Buy

[REVIEW] Moon Called – Patricia Briggs

Patricia Briggs
Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1)
Penguin Ace (US: 1st February 2006); Hachette Orbit (UK: 5th June 2008)
Buy

There’s more to paranormal creatures than mechanics in the opener of Patricia Briggs’s popular urban fantasy series.

Mercedes “Mercy” Thompson is a hereditary walker, brought up in a werewolf foster home. Now Mercy runs her garage specialising in German vehicles, and takes on a new assistant – who happens to be a werewolf with a lot of trouble on his back. But it’s hard to make friends when you’ve been kept in a cage, and experimented on.

When a corpse is dumped on her front step, and next door there’s more destruction, and a teenage girl is missing…it all leads to Mercy working with werewolves, vampires and fae to get everything resolved.

This series has its fans, and there’s reasonable enough evidence in the world-building and class structure. But yet these are also its downfall. All urban fantasy requires some form of suspension of disbelief, but this involved too much – Mercy doesn’t experience pain when she “walks” into coyote form and back, because for her it’s magic. But at least I was cool with the werewolves actually changing shape and experiencing pain.

The fae have been public for quite some time now, but are still discriminated against in many ways. And they live on a reservation. This is good world-building as it demonstrates social commentary…but bad because I would’ve felt more connected with the characters had they been gay and/or Native American (as the “coming out” and “reservation” seem to refer to), and not mythological creatures. This is a matter of personal taste, however, and shouldn’t bother your average reader.

But for me this book was very easy to put down, and I was never in a rush to get back to it. It wasn’t bad, but it just didn’t work for me. However, I own Book 2 in the series, Blood Bound, so I’m willing to give the author another chance.

Tez and the City, Part II

To the left we have Victoria’s own Simmone Howell, author of Notes from the Teenage Underground and the upcoming Everything Beautiful. To the right we have America’s Rachel Cohn, author of…more books than I can count on one hand. (I’ve read all except Cupcake and the co-written with David Levithan Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List.) Both authors are doing several sessions at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival, and because they’re part of the Schools programme, the tickets are cheap ($6). And even those of us older than schoolies can attend. They’re witty and urban women who unintentionally made me realise I don’t know my own city very well. But who cares? I managed to find Gloria Jean’s on Flinders near Elizabeth, which means victory is mine!

And hooray for public transport, which helped me get reading done. I finished Patricia Briggs’s Moon Called yesterday, and read half of Judy Blume’s Wifey in bed. And I finished that off today on the train and in the aforementioned Gloria Jean’s. And read the first two chapters of Yasmine Galenorn’s Darkling on the train home. This is as productive as my reading as been lately, so lap it up.

And dear A. J. Menden’s Phenomenal Girl 5 cover flat arrived today, and thus I photographed. The cat had just woken up from a nap and wasn’t ecstatic. I tried to take a second photo, but by then he was licking himself. So while I don’t have photographic evidence, I can assure you that Manny did sniff the cover flat. He did ignore the MendenPen on his side, but what can you do?

LOL – ur doin it rite

NowPublic have done another article on LOLcats, and requested to use some of mine. Including ‘s Kippy, ‘s Suzy and ‘s Harlee. And one of Manny with Kat Richardson’s Poltergeist. (“CAT – ur spellin it rong.”) These are just some of the hundreds of LOLcats on the article’s slideshow. See here.

What someone typed into Google to get to my WordPress: writing with a russian accent
Nup, I don’t write with a Russian accent, so I can’t help you there. But Russian accents are nifty, though.

Since I was tagged:

1. Pick up the nearest book of at least 123 pages.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.

I think that means to post the fifth, sixth and seventh sentences on the page.

“I swear.”

It took long enough that I got worried, but finally he opened the door and called me over. He hadn’t rolled down the window because I had the keys and the windows were electric.

–Patricia Briggs’s Moon Called

More New Books to Pre-Order

Keri Arthur
Deadly Desire (Riley Jenson, Book 7)
Hachette (UK: 2nd April 2009)
Pre-order

Patricia Briggs
Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson, Book 4)
Penguin (US: 3rd February 2009)
Pre-order

Jim Butcher
Turn Coat (Dresden Files)
Penguin (US: 7th April 2009)
Pre-order

Rachel Caine
Lord of Misrule (Morganville Vampires, Book 5)
Penguin (US: 6th January 2009)
Pre-order

Rachel Caine
Undone (Outcast Season, Book 1)
Penguin (US: 3rd February 2009)
Pre-order

June 2008 Releases

Have you got your May shopping list sorted? (If not, check May 2008 Releases.) Good. Now to sort out June:

Jennifer Armintrout
All Souls’ Night (Blood Ties, Book 4)
MIRA (1st June 2008) – Mass Market Paperback
I have reached my breaking point. And now I will not, cannot be stopped. With the Soul Eater on the verge of god status, it’s time for me to take a final stand, even if it means losing everything I love. Even if it means losing my life. I’ve got plenty of power on my side, and some I didn’t know I could count on in the first place. But it’s nothing compared to the army of the undead the Soul Eater is building up. And time is running out. They say that good always triumphs over evil. I hope that’s true. Because the odds aren’t in our favor, and the fate of the world is in our hands.

Vicki Pettersson
The Scent of Shadows (Zodiac, Book 1)
HarperCollins (2nd June 2008 – UK Edition) – Paperback
When she was sixteen, Joanna Archer was brutally assaulted and left to die in the Nevada desert. By rights, she should be dead. Now a photographer by day, she prowls a different Las Vegas after sunset – a grim, secret Sin City where Light battles Shadow – seeking answers to whom or what she really is…and revenge for the horrors she was forced to endure. But the nightmare is just beginning – for the demons are hunting Joanna, and the powerful Shadows want her for their own…

Vicki Pettersson
The Taste of Night (Zodiac, Book 2)
HarperCollins (2nd June 2008 – UK Edition) – Paperback
Even mortal, Joanna Archer was nobody’s idea of a victim. But now, infused with the supernatural power to alter the battle between Shadow and Light forever, what she’s become is a target. And when a toxic virus invades the valley, her allies are targets are well. To find the cure that will save them, Joanna must embrace her Shadow side…even if it leads her into an all-out battle with the demons of her past.

Rachel Caine
Feast of Fools (Morganville Vampires, Book 4)
Penguin (3rd June 2008) – Mass Market Paperback
In the town of Morganville, vampires and humans live in relative peace. Student Claire Danvers has never been convinced, though — especially with the arrival of Mr. Bishop, an ancient, old-school vampire who cares nothing about harmony. What he wants from the town’s living and its dead is unthinkably sinister. It’s only at a formal ball, attended by vampires and their human dates, that Claire realizes the elaborately evil trap he’s set for Morganville.

Patricia Briggs
Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1)
Orbit (5th June 2008 – UK Edition) – Paperback
Mercedes Thompson runs a garage in the Tri-Cities. She’s a mechanic, and a damn good one, who spends her spare time karate training and tinkering with a VW bus that happens to belong to a vampire. Her next-door neighbour is an alpha werewolf – literally, the leader of the pack. And Mercy herself is a shapeshifter, sister to coyotes. As such, she’s tolerated by the ‘wolves but definitely down the pecking order. As long as she keeps her eyes down and remembers her place, the pack will leave her in peace. Hardly a normal situation, but then, Mercy Thompson is not exactly normal herself…and her connection to the world of things that go bump in the night is about to get her into a whole lot of trouble.

Laurell K. Hamilton
Blood Noir (Anita Blake, Book 16)
Orbit (5th June 2008 – UK Edition) – Hardcover
Jason is a werewolf. He’s also one of Anita Blake’s best friends and sometimes her lover. And right now he needs her – not to be a vampire hunter, or a federal marshal, or a necromancer, but because his father is dying. Anita can make him look like an everyday guy, helping him say good-bye to the abusive father he never loved. The fact that Jason is not ‘everyday’ and Anita is far from being just a pretty woman is something they figure they can keep under wraps for a couple of days in a small town. How hard can that be? Really, by now, Anita Blake should know better. And this is the weekend that Marmee Noir, ancient mother of all vampires, picks to make a move. Somehow she has cut the connection that binds Anita and vampire Master of the City Jean-Claude, leaving them vulnerable. Dangerous even as she sleeps, buried in darkness for a thousand years beneath the old country of Europe, Marmee Noir reaches out toward power – she has attacked Anita before, but never like this. Anita has what she wants – and now she’s going to take it. Review

Marta Acosta
Midnight Brunch at Casa Dracula (Casa Dracula, Book 2)
Simon & Schuster (24th June 2008) – Mass Market Paperback
Hip, funny Milagro de los Santos thinks she’s finally found love and a home at the California ranch of fabulous Oswald Grant and his urbane relatives, who have a rare genetic disorder that some call vampirism. But Milagro is bewildered when she’s excluded from an ancient and mysterious midnight ceremony whose participants include Oswald’s unfriendly parents, a creepy family elder, and Milagro’s ex-lover, the powerful and decadent Ian Ducharme. What skeletons are the vampires keeping in their designer closets? When Milagro’s life is threatened by a rogue family member, she flees to the desert to hide. Instead of solitude, she encounters an egomaniacal actor, a partying heiress, a sly tabloid reporter, and a lavish spa full of dark secrets – all of which might help her find a way home.

Kim Harrison (ed.)
Hotter Than Hell
HarperCollins (24th June 2008) – Mass Market Paperback
Beyond the boundaries of the everyday is an unseen realm where anything you imagine is possible. Your demon lover is waiting for you in the shadows, ready to fulfill your secret wishes and most dangerous fantasies. Here passion has a face and form both titillating and terrifying—and love has teeth and claws. Get ready to give in to your craving for something exquisitely dark…and different. Hotter Than Hell gathers together a baker’s dozen of today’s boldest and best authors of supernatural fiction and paranormal romance in a breathtaking anthology that blends black magic with red-hot desire. From the tantalizing tale of a conflicted psychic vampire driven by a powerful, savage love to the strange saga of a Greek warrior woman battling to save the world, these are stories outside the limits, as hypnotic as the full moon…and hotter than the sun.

Marjorie M. Liu
The Iron Hunt (Hunter Kiss, Book 1)
Penguin (24th June 2008) – Paperback
Demon hunter Maxine Kiss wears her armor as tattoos, which unwind from her body to take on forms of their own at night. They stand between her and her enemies, just as Maxine stands between humanity and the demons breaking out from behind the prison veils. It is a life lacking in love, reveling in death, until one moment — and one man — changes everything.