Tag Archive | vampire

Hexed… a Book Review

Well, after finishing by Hounded Kevin Hearne, there was nothing to do but get the second book in the Iron Druid Chronicles – Hexed. Back to the world of an Irish Druid, his apprentice and his wolfhound (Oberon is STILL my favourite character)… don’t forget the widow down the street (another absolute gem) and Atticus’ lawyers – a vampire and a werewolf… the list goes on and on, so many amazing and hilarious characters in this series. I have grown firmly attached to them all.

Hexed, as you get a hint of in the name, deals more with witches this time round. Two warring factions, in fact. Now is as good a time as any to remind you to READ THESE IN ORDER, much of the conflict has bearing on past conflicts both resolved and unresolved… oh and it is also good to note… EVERYONE seems to dislike THOR in this universe…

Hexed, like Hounded, is a terrific mix of occult, adventure, humour and general shenanigans. Atticus, the main character, while being basically immortal is flawed and rather human. His friends and associates are equally as flawed and individual. No one is a perfect being, god, demon or other… rather it is a world of super humans, humans and more all trying to find their handhold on the powers available. I will warn you, sex, violence and some adult language is encountered in this book… but there isn’t the crass detail that I personally dislike.

The Iron Druid Chronicles is (at least by the second book) a well thought out and executed series of books. I find that I am sucked in almost immediately. It is relatively easy to follow the characters (though I did get confused on a few of the witches and their names but that may have just been inattention on my side), and equally as easy to find yourself deep into the book while the chores and other humdrum life items pile up around you. I do what to emphasize once again – READ IN ORDER! But what a wonderful continuation to a series that has not yet disappointed. I look forward to getting my hands on the third installment – Hammered and see what all the fuss is about Thor!hqdefault

The Utterly Uninteresting & Unadventurous Tales of Fred. The Vampire Accountant… a book review

Continuing in the spirit of Halloween and once again hunting down my list of… found free… why nots?… The Utterly Uninteresting & Unadventurous Tales of Fred. The Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes is my newest read. And an utterly successful one at that!

What is more humourous than a logical, calm ACCOUNTANT vampire? The first chapter had me hooked with Fredrick Frankford Fletcher’s dry delivery, matter of fact story telling. Living his life with slight changes to deal with the need to avoid the usual – sunlight, silver and garlic, Fred has found a way to make even being a vampire humdrum… until he decides to throw caution to the wind and (cautiously and well planned) head to his 10 year high school reunion. I love this line:

And there it was. My unlife was so boring that even the woman who hunted monsters saw me as harmless.

In fact, Krystal the hunter of ‘parahumans’ (those who we consider monsters) shows up to inject some action into his solitary life. Leave it to an old high school friend to reconnect with a bang.

Fred the non-confrontational accountant vampire is stronger and quicker and much less clumsy but still avoids arguments, difficult situations and saying no. He is the most mild mannered “badass” of them all and you can’t help but love him for it. Black napkins to avoid stains and a complete ineptitude at feeding off of living victims, Fred is a blood bank sort of man. 

Ghouls, werewolves, vampires, high school reunions, weresteeds, undead assistants, Vegas, LARPing… have I sold you yet? Because if I haven’t, well… you are simply going to miss out! This is a collection of interconnected stories really all centered around Fred from his point of view. So if you enjoy some supernatural dry humour, this is the book for you! And if you don’t, give it a try, it may grow on you!515Sh2sKnRL._SX321_BO1,204,203,200_

Forever Charmed… a book review

With a first name like Halloween how can you grow up to be anything but an amazing witch? Well Halloween LaVeau managed it. A witch, yes, the best, not so much. Living in Enchantment Pointe (don’t you just love the name?) in a lovely old mansion she inherited from her aunt there is an attic to conquer and a bed and breakfast to run. A seriously seasonally appropriate book for my Halloween spirit. Forever Charmed is the first in the Halloween LaVeau series by Rose Pressey. Pressey has multiple supernatural series out for the read. I have read several of hers and fallen in love instantly. This book is no exception.

Halloween comes from a long line of strong witches… until she came along that is. Her best friend is a non magical named Annabelle who is well aware of Halloween’s heritage. I love the names of the characters in this story… Halloween, Annabelle, Nicolas Marcos, Liam Rankin, Isabeau…

With one man appearing in gorgeous perfecting during a a stormy night and another hunk at the light of day what’s a girl to do? Well trying out random spells from a book that only gives an English translation when it wants to of course.

One of my favourite lines is in regards to the vampire (nope not telling who)… when asked when he was turned:

It was around the Civil War. I just got caught up with the wrong crowd. We don’t need to discuss me right now.

With two excessively attractive men lurking around and ghosts and spells and witches and all, what more can you ask for but a mystery connected to a spell book? A coven that doesn’t appreciate 

Hallie’s efforts (perhaps because every time she does a spell it fails and someone else in the area has a spell mess up to?), a mother who is determined to support her daughter while reminding her of a rather major past error. There is comedy, romance, adventure, mystery and even the hint of murder. What more can you ask for with a suitably supernatural novel the night before Halloween??51WiGp23lvL._SX310_BO1,204,203,200_