Rush of Darkness by Rhyannon Byrd

Raine Spenser is on the brink. Held prisoner because of her abilities, Raine—a powerful psychic as well as vampire—desperately needed a savior. But the last one she expected was the green-eyed soldier who'd once hunted her kind. Since her rescue, she's tried to forget Seth McConnell, unable to cope with the strange, simmering attraction that draws her to the compelling human.

But their goals—find the Kraven who held Raine captive and destroy him—are the same. The ever-growing web of danger surrounding them draws these two unlikely allies closer together, and anger slowly turns into an explosive passion they're finding harder and harder to deny...

~~

**I requested this title for review from NetGalley**

I have kind of weird feelings about this one. It was a good book but at the same time it didn't really hold my attention the way the previous installments did. Now this could be attributed to a few things - the first thing that comes to mind though is that this book is coming a pretty long time after the previous one. As it's not written to act so much as a stand alone I had to do a lot of mental digging to pull out plot lines and character backgrounds to remember what the heck was going on.

What keeps this from being a total thumbs down? Seth and Raine. Their emotions and chemistry are so explosive that I was completely drawn into wanting to know what happened with them. The Markers? So-so. The Casus? Eh. When the heck Seth was going to seduce Raine into raunchy hot sex? SO IMPORTANT. I've been reading Byrd for a while - her online stuff is still my favorite - and I have to say she's near the top of my list of great sex scene writers. Byrd always takes the time to write realistically hot scenes that you're almost flipping through the book just to find - they're seriously that good in my opinion.

Ultimately if you haven't read the rest of the series you're more than likely going to get lost with the continued plot path laid out here, but Byrd does a decent job of bringing the reader back into the battle between the Watchmen and the Casus + Death-Walkers.

Overall Feeling  - eh.

Series - ...5) Touch of Surrender 6) Touch of Temptation 7) Rush of Darkness 8) Rush of Pleasure (8/11)

Dreamlight Trilogy by Jayne Ann Krentz

More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsession fueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man's decision has reverberated throughout the family line, rewarding some with powers beyond their wildest dreams, and cursing others to a life filled with madness and hallucinations.

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I'm going to try not to gush too much, as I think it shows I'm probably a little too emotionally evolved to review these books, but I do think Jayne Ann Krentz did a wonderful job with this series. Readers are treated to 3 really interesting stories that intertwine with themselves and the particular environments of the 3 types of worlds Krentz has created.

As Krentz she wrote a contemporary romance, as Quick a historical, and as Castle a futuristic; each one worked well within her established environments. Thus nothing felt forced and instead flowed with the personalities of the characters. I would say though that for people trying to save their pennies the romances are a little similar (especially when read back to back) and it might be worth trying a novel or 2 from the library before buying the whole set. Since I like the way Krentz frames her narratives and like the back and forth she sets up between her heroes and heroines before the HEA I'm still a happy camper - but keep it in mind, this stories are in the same vein as what she usually writes.

Now on to a small little con (that is only really a con because I read all the installments so close together and am actually following the whole series) - the family history in each novel is almost overwhelming. In each novel we get another explanation/retelling of the tale of the original Winters and Jones. It's great from a publisher's stand point because then each novel works well as a stand alone story but it get's old pretty quickly from my viewpoint as the reader. That's kind of why I say it's a small con, because as annoying as it is to reread I understand the purpose of it and truthfully it's not that much of a hardship to flip a couple pages.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs up for all!

Series - 1) Fired Up 2) Burning Lamp 3) Midnight Crystal

Hugo Award Nominees + A Personal Fail. Yay!

I am a bad Geek. In fact someone should probably take my Geek/Nerd card away and shred it. Why you may ask? Because the Hugo Award Nominees were announced yesterday and I only recognize 2 of them. And I've only SEEN 1!

**crickets**

I mean I'm not ashamed to say that I saw Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - in fact I loved that movie. And I guess it's ok if I only recognize Feed by Mira Grant because of the many positive reviews I've read about it.

But I'm still pretty sure this is a big personal fail. Sigh.

Take a look at the whole list of nominees here, on one my favorite new sites in life, The Mary Sue. 

The Adventures of Dana: Book I (pic heavy)

(click to enlarge)

**and now with a bit of spell check**

It's hard to stay on track

You know what I've been thinking about a lot these past couple weeks? I just don't enjoy reading new books when I'm in a bad mood. They're not something I look forward to; in fact they're the exact opposite - they become weight, excess baggage, that I feel I have to shove somewhere.

Even when they're GOOD books coming out I still seem to feel the same way. Which makes it slightly hard to be as up to date as I'd like to on RAtChaos cause you know what I'm reading right now?

&

Well maybe not those titles specifically but the authors. The authors are what's important here. Especially cause Janet Chapman did not used to be one of my comfort read go-tos. But you know what? They have good heroes and feisty heroines and mostly uncomplicated HEA's.

Nice.

So please excuse me as I wallow a bit in my unhappy mood and pick a few comfort reads from my shelf. And try to figure out what the hell I'm doing with myself. Luckily this mood combined with a comfy couch and bad tv is not too bad a scene at all ;)

P.S. - Things start to look up even more when you add in this little joy from Whole Foods:

Russian Roulette - Review Style

I know, I know - I've been really lax on the review front lately right? Well it's mostly because I'm having trouble finding some of the new books I want (though I've also been too lazy to order them) and because I'm in a rereading mood apparently. 

Doesn't make for the most exciting-fantastically-amazing review space let me tell you.

At least I have one thing to offer here, a little Russian roulette of the read-o-sphere that's been going on in my life. A quick look at the anthology Real Men Last All Night.

~~

Luring Lucy by Lori Foster

All Lucy was looking for when she went to her vacation home was in innocent fling to quell the yearning she had felt since her husband died four years ago. She never expected her longtime friend Bram to lure her into a love affair so hot.

Cooper’s Fall by Lora Leigh

Former ranger turned bar owner Ethan Cooper never expected to get an eyeful of prim Miss Sarah Fox from his attic window one hot summer afternoon. But now his blood is on fire for the delicious little minx.

The Edge of Sin by Cheyenne McCray

Zane Steele lives a life of extraordinary danger as a government agent and has never let anyone get too close. Then he sees the one woman who changes his life forever.

Wanted: A Real Man by Heidi Betts

Claire left her high school sweetheart Linc, in search of a better life. Ten years later she needs his help as a U.S. Marshal to find her missing daughter…Linc's daughter. Reeling with the knowledge of a daughter he’s never known, Linc sets out to claim what’s his.

~~

This is an old time re-read for me, though I only went back over Foster's and Leigh's stories. Why? Because they're the spiciest and most fun. They're completely unrealistic and kind of focus on non-flattering depictions of male/female interactions, but they're the most fun. Great beach reads or reads for when you're wanting something that's quick and hot - which who doesn't want that from time to time?

It is a little expensive as a trade paper, but it might have been released in mass market at this point or if not there's always your local library  :)

Mini Me: Dreams of a Dark Warrior by Kresley Cole

HE VOWED HE’D COME FOR HER . . .

Murdered before he could wed Regin the Radiant, warlord Aidan the Fierce seeks his beloved through eternity, reborn again and again into new identities, yet with no memory of his past lives.

SHE AWAITS HIS RETURN . . .

When Regin encounters Declan Chase, a brutal Celtic soldier, she recognizes her proud warlord reincarnated. But Declan takes her captive, intending retribution against all immortals—unaware that he belongs to their world.

TO SATE A DESIRE MORE POWERFUL THAN DEATH . . .

Yet every reincarnation comes with a price, for Aidan is doomed to die when he remembers his past. To save herself from Declan’s torments, will Regin rekindle memories of the passion they once shared—even if it means once again losing the only man she could ever love?

~~

Yep this is gonna be a mini review. Why? Cause this book was a hit and a miss for me. I like the character building the change we see in Declan as he becomes less the Magistrar and more himself. But you know what? Torture is hard for me to read. Vivisection is hard to read about it.

So....yeah. 

I liked Regin as usual, and even learned to appreciate Declan as her mate - after the whole 'I'm gonna torture and break you' thing - but it did take away a bit of my enjoyment of the whole thing. It's all well written though and I do consider it a good addition to the series.

Just not my favorite.