Dark Seduction
Kathleen Korbel
Silhouette Nocturne, Feb 2008, $5.25
ISBN: 9780373617814

Her older sister Nuala has escaped the wrath of their mother by accepting mortality and love (see DANGEROUS TEMPTATION). Queen Mab has written off her oldest daughter as an undesirable exile, but her anger is at her two other offspring. Her middle child Sorcha was guardian of the Coilin Stone that was part of the crown of the Tuatha de Dannen before it was stolen due to her neglect and her sister Orla enabled the Dubhlain Sidhe to steal the gem. The seer warns the queen that the Dubhlain Sidhe grows stronger with no feminist balance since they lost the Dearann Stone while the Tuatha de Dannen will turn much weaker as there will be no spring without recovering the two stones; eventually all on two realms will die.

Mab commands her daughter Sorcha to travel through the gate to England to retrieve the Dearann Stone so that can be used to barter for the Coilin Stone. In England, Sorcha meets Harry Beverly, who does not believe that the fae exist although he wonders if his attraction for her is magically based. As he comes around to believe, they learn a rival seeks the Dearann Stone for some dark purpose. The duo knows time is running out for everyone.

DARK SEDUCTION is a fabulous romantic fantasy starring a heroine who believes she is not worthy or capable and the mortal who brings her confidence in herself. The story is fast-paced with its world in jeopardy premise always at the surface even as the lead characters acknowledge their love for one another. Readers will believe in the Korbel realm where mythos species seem genuine while also knowing that Orla is out their on her mission.

Harriet Klausner

Happy Hour of the Damned
Mark Henry
Kensington, Mar 2008, $15.00
ISBN: 9780758225221

There are two distinct zombie species. First there are the Breathers who just need to exhale on a person to convert them to the living dead and then there are those changed by a bite or scratch. In Seattle advertising executive Amanda Feral was riding an elevator when she was breathed on; when she next awakens she has no idea what happened to her. She is walking in confusion on when Gil the vampire stops her and explains to her what she has become. He further informs her that there is a world of the supernatural with stores and clubs for paranormal shoppers that mortals cannot see.

Horrified by her suddenly pale sickly complexion, Amanda breaks into a mortuary to obtain some make-up for the recently departed. There she meets fellow zombie Wendy seeking cosmetics too. At a HAPPY HOUR OF THE DAMNED club, the two females meet Lisle the succubus who turns the twosome into the three supernatural musketeers. Though time has a different connotation, not long afterward Lisle sends a text message “help” to her two pals. They fear for their buddy who vanished immediate after hitting send. As they search for Lisle, Amanda and Wendy uncover a plot to turn the world into a zombie playpen by using a zombie virus. To prevent this from happening, they need to uncover the identity of the mastermind, a devilishly diabolical genius.

This chick lit urban fantasy is an amusing tale that lampoons chick lit urban fantasies. Amanda and Wendy come across as “Valley Girls” a la the 1980s movie Night of the Comet while Gil and Lisle add biting humor by satirizing vampire romantic thrillers. The plot is fun with its spoof of save civilization as we know it theme. Mark Henry provides an enjoyable tale in his opening salvo that will have readers who appreciate a lighthearted romp waiting for future happy hour stories.

Harriet Klausner

Cuts
Richard Laymon
Leisure, Mar 2008, $7.99
ISBN: 9780843957525

In North Glen, Illinois in 1975, seventeen years old Albert Prince is looking forward to having sex with Betty, but he is shocked when she demands twenty dollars. He is six dollars short; she tells him to come back when he can afford her. He leaves outraged.

Albert knifes a stray dog, which gives him some sadistic pleasure. On a supermarket checkout line, he observes the address on a check of a female customer. Not long afterward, he breaks into her home and hides in the closet until a man and woman arrive; he knifes the male and begins cutting the woman ending the crescendo with a final plunge. He hitches a ride out of state and kills the driver. He seeks young attractive females so he can break into their homes and terrorize them with his knife before killing them. He ends up in California where he meets some people from a college. The daughter of one of the teachers was attacked by him in Denver. He is about to learn that California girls are nothing like the females he browbeat into doing what he demanded of them.

CUTS is a horror story that in spite of no supernatural element cuts deeply into the psyche of readers; sort of like the first Jaws movie did. The antagonist is an amoral cold blooded monster of the human kind who thinks nothing of torture and murder especially getting off when it occurs in the sanctuary haven of someone’s home. Richard Laymon’s thriller is very frightening because Albert seems plausible as he craves the slice and dice of a sexual snuff predator, knowing he will never change; the only prevention of his sick sexual slashing is to either kill him or lock him away forever.

Harriet Klausner

The Quest
Lindsay McKenna
Silhouette Nocturne, Feb 2008, $5.25
ISBN: 9780373617807

The search continues for the gems that make up the Emerald Necklace. Two Tage Warriors for the Light and their soulmates have already successfully completed their missions (see UNFORGIVEN and DARK TRUTH). Archaeologists Kendra Johnson and Nolan Galloway of the Ecuadorian based Vesica Pisces Foundation are sent to work together to uncover clues to the whereabouts of the third stone.

The pair has a torrid history that ended in guilt and tragedy in which only his telekinetic power saved his life; both are wary but still in love. Besides these two Warriors for the Light, the evil Tupay send super villain Victor Guerra to follow them and if they succeed, kill them and take the gem as chaos on earth remains their objective and the jewel can help them achieve their strategic goal.

The third Warriors for the Light romantic suspense fantasy is an exhilarating entry that though the overall plot is similar in tone to the first two novels retains its own freshness due to the previous relationship between the lead couple. Nolan and Kendra were selected because their skills complement one another making achieving their quest a strong possibility; however their trek on the Colorado in the Grand Canyon left her younger sister Debbie dead and their relationship shattered. Thus both must overcome the ghost of her sibling if they are to succeed on the mission with a lethal adversary on their tale and perhaps forgive the past with their love for each other. Lindsay McKenna provides a deep entry in a strong saga.

Harriet Klausner

The Girl Next Door
Jack Ketchum
Leisure, Feb 2008, $7.99
ISBN: 9780843960976

Suburban 1950s New Jersey is a great place to raise kids; just ask twelve year old David, who loves playing in his idyllic neighborhood where crime is nonexistent. Next door Ruth Chandler, single mother of David’s best friend Donny and two brothers, takes in two young distant cousins whose parents died in a horrific automobile accident. The older sister fourteen years old Meg seems to have fully recovered; the younger sibling Susan needs crutches and wears heavy metal braces on her legs while mentally she is totally broken.

David is immediately attracted to the lovely Meg and they begin meeting at places like “Big Rock”; they make a charming cute couple. Ruth lives in the past when she was the office manager of a large firm; she hates suburbia and being saddled with five children. She takes her growing rage out on her new charges, physically and mentally abusing Meg and Susan, especially Meg who reminds her of all she gave up to have kids. Her sons by omission support her actions. David also knows that Ruth is violent towards Meg, but though he loathes what she is doing, he is also fascinated by her dehumanizing the one person who reminds her how far she has fallen.

This reprint of a 1989 deep psychological study focuses on the watcher-narrator David who learns about abuse and helplessness when he fascinatingly observes the pain a human inflicts on another while neighbors ignore the truth. The story line hooks the audience from the opening line as a wizened David understands pain and never lets go as the serene middle class suburban neighborhood enables ugliness to hide behind the scene (mindful of the Kitty Genovese killing in 1964 Queens). This book also includes two short stories and an interview with Jack Ketchum, but cannot be considered padding since the novel is 340 pages. Readers will be shocked by the horror of customized violence that society chooses to ignore when it happens to THE GIRL NEXT DOOR.

Harriet Klausner

Tomorrow’s World
Davie Harrison
Medallion, Mar 2008, $15.95
ISBN 9781933836355

The environmental disasters of the past century have taken their toll on the earth. However as a byproduct of the toxic wasteland, everyone lives in a computer controlled orb making the various hates like racism, religion, sexual preference obsolete. However, a new kind of bias has occurred between the “Name” natural born and the “Number” engineered lab rats.

Logipol policy is to assign a Name and Number as a police team to maximize the skills of both as the Name brings passion and dreams to a case while the Numbers bring superior mental and physical attributes. The brass assign “Name” cop Ben Travis and his partner “Number” cop Perfect Paula to investigate the death of Name plant dealer Douglas MacDougall. Paula believes he died from a self-induced drug overdose, more likely suicide than accident; Ben thinks otherwise as his gut screams homicide made to look like a suicide. The Name and the Number follow the clues trying to resolve their difference re the death of a Name.

Extrapolating the environmental trends of today into the next century Davie Henderson paints a dismal picture of a dying globe in this interesting science fiction police procedural. The story line is at its best when the Name and the Number argue the case; when the plot turns to the past global environmental disaster and its consequences, it loses steam as that feels more like a preacher shouting brimstone. Still this is a fine start of what looks like a solid twenty-second cop series in which hopefully Mr. Henderson explores the newest form of prejudice by looking into the relationship between the two cops.

Harriet Klausner

The Wrath of Zar
Shayne Easson
WestBank, Nov 2007, $24.95
ISBN: 9780978984014

Although they are brothers, Adan Caynne would choose flight while Dex would choose fight. Thus they are opposites with Dex wanting to become a warrior and Adan turning the other cheek because he has some inkling of his father’s former life as a Ches warrior who barely survived a demonic led assault.

Keeping his head buried in the sand, Adam is ignorant that a demon army is destroying Yannina. However, he becomes aware that something is wrong when his sibling vanishes and a neighbor Cadin brutally killed. Vowing to find and rescue his brother from whatever, Adan wonders if his father’s newly arrived fully armed visitors he never met before are involved with the recent events. However, his quest turns surreal when the Andar apprentice Hythe informs him he is the only hope to defeat the Demon Vayle and his horde destroying the guardian who imprisoned him. Soon others including Zar the dragon ally with him even as he insists he is not fighting demons or anyone for that matter.

This action-packed quest fantasy stars a wonderful reluctant hero, who has enough personal issues trying to remain stalwart on his personal hunt only to have an assortment of entities claim he’s the man. Readers will feel they are trekking alongside Adan and his band as they search for his twin while preparing for the larger mission of battling the invincible demon army led by a champion who chooses flight not fight. Shayne Easson provides readers with an outstanding opening adventure in his Demons of Destiny saga.

Harriet Klausner

The Ravening
Dawn Thompson
Love Spell; Feb 2008; $6.99
ISBN: 9780505527271

After years away, Brotherhood warrior Milosh returns to the Hyde-White family manor in Cumberland, England to complete his long term quest of killing the lord of the evil vampires Sebastian. He is stunned with what he sees as the house is a ruin obviously destroyed by fire and his friends like Joss are gone. However, most shocking is the Gypsy living amidst the wreckage.

He demands Paloma explain why she hides in this cold dump. She tells him she took refuge in this forbidden place that no one visits anymore here praying and waiting in hope that someone would come to teach her the Blood Moon technique so she can control her blood lust thirst. Paloma further explains a shapeshifting vampire bit her. Milosh is further stunned as he realizes he wants Paloma, but must not allow her to become a pawn in his war with Sebastian who he assumes bit her. She makes it even more difficult to resist her when she offers her love, body and soul to him.

Decades since the events of early Victorian THE BROTHERHOOD and even more years since Regency THE BLOOD MOON, the final tale in the Chronicles of the Blood Moon Victorian vampire saga is a superb final confrontation between good and evil. The key to this excellent vampire romantic suspense is how Dawn Thompson keeps the feeling that the bad guy is going to win as the hero is distracted by love. THE RAVENING is vampire historical romantic suspense at its best.

Harriet Klausner

Shapeshifter
J.F. Gonzalez
Leisure, Jan 2008, $7.99
ISBN: 9780843959734

Lycanthropic Orange Coast College student Mark Wiseman controls his urge to kill when he shifts to a werewolf; he also hides his condition from everyone until he is caught changing by a security camera while working in the Tape Library of the Computer Operations of Free State Insurance.

The firm’s CEO Bernard Roberts lives for his work though he makes time even at his executive office for sex with his executive secretary Carol Emrich. He owns the videotape in which Mark is filmed shifting. The wealthy amoral mogul blackmails Mark into cooperating with his desires. He orders Mark to kill any board member supporting a merger that if agreed will lead to an audit and ultimately expose Bernard’s embezzling of company funds. To further insure Mark cooperates, Bernard has evidence that links Mark to the bloody murders of the werewolf’s parents. Mark’s only hope for freedom resides with Carol whom he just met and can sense her attraction to him.

This is an entertaining fast-paced horror thriller in which readers initially will wonder whether the wolf will do the killings or not and whether Mark will ever be free from the malevolent Bernard. J.F. Gonzalez keeps the audience wondering how Mark will expedite himself from this mess once he decides not to kill Bernard at least for now. Though neither of the male leads showcases much in the way of any redeeming qualities as a survival of the fittest killer instincts rules; fans of in your face werewolf tales with plenty of gore will want to read this exciting story.

Harriet Klausner

Time Transit
Kay Austin
Dorchester Shomi, Jan 2008, $6.99
ISBN: 9780505527158

In the twenty-second century TIME ROGUE Maude Kincaid is one of the best at insuring temporal rifts do not occur. On her last mission she met and was attracted to twenty-first century inhabitant Dr. Gil Gillespie, but knew nothing can come of her feelings. Instead his memories of her are deleted.

However, for whatever reason, perhaps love is too strong to erase, but Gil somehow remembers her. He is brought forward a century to her natural time, but learns she is to die in 2152. Meanwhile in Outskirt 13 of the sub-orbital tram station where it all began thirty or so rotations ago, Maude, having done her duty by eating a bullet in her gut to save CORE, her friends and the time line, is dying with no hope for help, thirteen miles from home. However, Maude never expected that her friends led by a frantic Gil refuse to allow her to die though they make unauthorized leaps through time as they believe they have all the time in the world to save her.

This sequel to the wild TIME ROGUES is a fabulous science fiction romance, in which dedicated heroes understand protecting the time line is more important than saving a friend, a loved one, or one’s self; that is until Gil makes a different plea to test time in order to save Maude. Gil and Maude are terrific protagonists who are ironically the ultimate star-crossed lovers as they have no time at all for one another yet all the time to try i they dare. Although the future world is never developed beyond the physics principals of time management, sub-genre fans will find this action-packed thriller worth the time to read it.

Harriet Klausner