Fury of Fire
Coreene Callahan
Montlake Romance, Feb 7 2012, $14.95
ISBN: 9781612182728

In Washington State, the hybrid dragon-human species are divided into two opposing groups. The Nightfuries vows to protect humanity with their lives; while the Razorbacks led by Ivar the scientist believe that the half dragon species should be at the top of the food chain vowing to destroy mankind. Hostility between the dragon shifter species is extremely high.

Bastien, head of the Nightfuries knows his duty as time runs short with the Meridian’s axis realignment in five days. He must mate with a human female in order to promulgate the first of the next generation males. However, Bastien knows his woman will die in childbirth.

Nurse Myst Munroe grieves the death of her murdered mom while making a house call on her pregnant patient Caroline Van Owen. When she finds Caroline lying in blood, she gives first aid to save the lives of the mother and her unborn dragon child. Bastian and his top aide Rikar arrive as emergency medical workers just before agents of Razorbacks. A battle ensues over who claims the infant. Meanwhile Bastien knows Myst is the one, but realizes he is condemning her to a death sentence.

The first dragon shifter romantic urban fantasy is an exhilarating thriller in which the Callahan mythos comes across as genuine with a refreshing concept of fostering the species. The storyline rotates perspective between the protagonists, Ivar, Riker and human police detective Angela Keen; this enhances the plot especially the fantasy elements but also takes some adjusting due to the volume of switching leads. Although Razorbacks will remind readers of vampires sucking energy not blood, readers will enjoy the seemingly bittersweet romance between Bastien and Myst.

Harriet Klausner

Bloodrose
Andrea Cremer
Philomel, Jan 3 2012, $18.99
ISBN: 9780399256127

Bellicose Calla knows if she is to be the Alpha of her pack, she must prove her leadership skills in combat and choose a mate. Ren and Shay vie to be that male. However, Calla makes it clear to both competitors and her pack she will not select anyone until the Keepers and their magic are defeated.

Calla also shows her loyalty when she protects her brother Ansrel, stripped of his essence, from those who want to kill him for being a traitor. However, it is what she prays is the final battle that she focuses on; a war Calla does not expect to survive and if she does she knows she will live with regret of having led brave warriors to their deaths; though she feels she had no choice.

The final Nightshade fantasy (see Nightshade and Wolfsbane) is an exciting thriller starring a heroine who was forced to detach her feelings for others in order to lead her side in war as she knows she will leave brothers and sisters in arms dead and maimed. A stunning twist adds to the realism that people die in war. Andrea Cremer provides a shocking but strong finish to an intriguing trilogy.

Harriet Klausner

Lenobia’s Vow
P. C. Cast & Kristin Cast
St. Martin’s Griffin, Jan 31 2012, $12.99
ISBN: 9781250000248

Today Lenobia is the horse mistress of the House of Night in St. Louis and Zoey Redbird’s favorite teacher. She and her mother were servants in 1788 at the Chateau de Naverre in Evreux, France. Her father the baron seduced her mother, impregnated her and cast her and their offspring aside. That child Lenobia looks identical to her spoiled half-sister Cecile.

When Lenobia is sixteen years old, the legitimate daughter dies from ague. Leonia’s mother arranges for her daughter to masquerade as Cecile in order for her to marry an affluent aristocrat. The plot works perfectly as Lenobia and other unmarried young ladies travel by ship to New Orleans to marry rich French aristocrats. While traversing the Atlantic, evil sorcerer Bishop Charles recognizes and announces the fraud as he coveted her back in France and plans to make her his mistress. A nun protects her and she decides to go to the cargo hold on the last level of the ship where she meets Quadroon Martin in the stables. She falls in love with him and the Percheron horse that his employer bought. He sent Martin to go to France so that he could take care of them over the long sea voyage. n The Bishop soon makes his move to rape Lenobia using all means available to him while Martin vows to keep his beloved safe.

The latest House of Night Novella (see Dragon’s Oath) focuses on the teen years of a secondary but popular character. Readers learn what shaped Lenobia’s present mysterious life as the child is the adult even if two centuries have passed. At sixteen, Lenobia displays the same traits she shows as a teacher: courage, honesty and inner strength. She wanted to be happy, but her choices were limited to be or not to be until a third option was offered. This is an engaging biographical fiction as the Cast crew entertains their fans.

Harriet Klausner

Darkness Bound
Stella Cameron
Forever, Feb 28 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9781455500154

After two years as a couple and a few days married, Chris died. Fourteen months later, his grieving widow Leigh Kelly decides she cannot live in their home filed with too many memories. She moves to Chimney Rock on Whidbey Island.

Former Special Ops soldier Niles Latimer and his werehound Team are diligently watching the newcomer to keep her safe from rogues assaulting women. However, he also senses Leigh possesses something unique that could prove her compatible as life mate for a werehound. Nile realizes she knows nothing about her DNA or the existence of werehounds as he and his Team vow to protect her while the evil enemy senses who she is too and pledges to take her.

The first Chimney Rock romantic urban fantasy is a superb dark thriller in which Stella Cameron creates a deep mythos that feels genuine; inside of a fast-paced good and evil battle for Leigh. Loaded with chilling action, a strong lead couple and two camps of werehounds and other ilk, sub-genre readers will enjoy a visit to mysterious Whidbey Island where the paranormal is the normal.

Harriet Klausner

All Things Wicked
Karina Cooper
Avon, Jan 31 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780062046932

Juliet Carpenter the witch fell in love with Caleb Leigh but he betrayed her and killed her Coven of the Unbinding witches who treated him as family. Two obsessions keep Juliet going; she needs to know why but even stronger is a need to avenge what he did to her and her “kin”.

One year later Juliet finds Caleb in a seedy motel, just like the demons he runs from always do. Her compulsion to kill him supersedes her desire to know why so she goes after him with a knife, which she plunges into him. Caleb survives but feels overwhelmed by the guilt of the wicked thing he did though his motive was to protect his sibling Cordelia and himself from her coven’s power grabbing sacrifice of them. When adversaries arrive with dire intentions of abducting the girl and killing her ally, Caleb, who still loves his Jules, knows this is the beginning of his last stand to keep his pledge of insuring the witch who owns his wicked heart is safe as long as what is left of his declining brain stays rational.

The third Dark Mission romantic urban fantasy (see Lure of the Wicked and Blood of the Wicked) expands the incredible Cooper universe beyond the New Seattle environs in a stunning coming of age thriller. Fast-paced and filled with action, readers will relish the romance between two people struggling with an inconvenient truth of being in love at a time when both should be in hate (at him). Wickedly dark, Karina Cooper provides a powerful futuristic twisting tale.

Harriet Klausner

Spellbound Falls
Janet Chapman
Jove, Feb 28 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780515150360

Mother of eight year old Sophie, thirtyish Widow Olivia Baldwin and her Inglenook Camp counselor twentyish Mark Brier are at elderly widower Ezra’s trading post. Olivia hopes to buy Inglenook from her mother-in-law Eileen although she prefers to hide and run ever since her mom died when she was four and her dad stopped seeing her soon after. Mark assaults Olivia, but camp guest Max Oceanus intercedes. Max was unaware he sired his six year old son Henry until the child’s mom died two months ago; at the camp he plans for them to get to know each other.

Max thinks Olivia will provide him a pearl of wisdom on raising a child. She tells him he needs to understand Henry and they journey as a team. Their kids want the parents to date, but wise Sophie reflects that everyone eligible in Spellbound Falls is afraid of the ghost of Olivia’s late spouse Keith. Ironically Olivia hates Keith who failed to tell his parents they were divorcing when he got killed in combat. Over parenting lessons, the teacher and the student fall in love though she has childhood fears and he family issues keeping them apart. Additionally she, her daughter and her “guardian” Ezra recognize strange unexplainable behavior from his father and so that has her choosing flight.

The protagonists and the ensemble support cast are fully developed in this engaging romantic urban fantasy. The otherworldly elements blend smoothly with modern technology to bring about a fascinating environment that will turn even more uniquely. Although the storyline is thin and the children are too precocious, readers will enjoy learning just who Mr. Oceanus is and look forward to more adventures with the lead couple’s extended families (especially his).

Harriet Klausner

Unbroken
Rachel Caine
Roc, Feb 7 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780451464422

Cassiel the formerly powerful Djinn once thought the worst that could happen to her kind was being banished to reside amongst the despicable mortals, but since this happened to her she has come a long way to her astonishment liking these rug rats. With apocalypse pending for mankind, Cassiel ironically finds she obsesses with saving humanity from extinction especially Weather Warden Luis Rocha and his young niece Isabel.

Cassiel and Luis head to Seattle to confront Pearl the Djinn and her abducted kiddie children corps of Warden offspring. She knows the chances of her surviving the combat is nil, but the price of her life is worth the possibility of saving Luis, Ibby and mankind from Pearl’s species cleansing.

The final Outcast Season urban fantasy (see Unseen, Unknown and Undone) is a great thriller as the heroine recognizes how far she has come from despising to loving humanity. Courageous Cassiel accepts death is her expected outcome when she goes against an individual who possesses the power she once had. Although the trek to Seattle is exciting and loaded with action, the journey seems surrealistic over the top of the Mount Tamaulipas. Still Rachel Caine provides an entertaining finish to the Cassiel saga.

Harriet Klausner

Shadows In Flight
Orson Scott Card
Tor, Jan 17 2012, $21.99
ISBN: 9780765332004

Julian “Bean” Delphiki suffers from a genetic alteration, in which his brain is light-years beyond genius, but his body suffers from extreme gigantism; he will be dead soon though he is only in his twenties. He left behind his wife Petra and their normal offspring to leave earth in 2210; taking with him their three infant triplets suffering from the same Anton’s Key disorder (see Shadow of the Giant). Over four centuries have passed on earth and his spouse and their kids dead; while on the vessel five years have passed. Fourteen feet tall Bean is unable to leave the cargo hold. Ender, named after his father’s friend, is a biologist seeking the cure for their genetic illness. His sister Carlotta is the engineer who insures their ship Herodotus functions properly. Finally the third sibling Cincinnatus better known as Sergeant is a soldier prepared for combat.

The triplets find an anomaly of a Formic colony ship that revolves around a planet; inside the vessel they find the Hive Queen dead along with her soldiers. However, they also find living things even as their dying father whom they call Giant reveals his master dream for them.

The latest Ender universe tale is an interesting character driven space odyssey. Readers get inside the minds of the four weary travelers; as the three kids feel the hopelessness of their flight while the Giant hopes rest on a dream for them. Series fans will appreciate the parallels between the earthlings and the Formic survivors while learning how the Hive actually thought when they Formic-formed China. Although the action is extremely muted, Shadows In Flight is a fun tale filled with aphorisms like parents lie to their children for the latter’s sake.

Harriet Klausner

Deadtime Stories: Grave Secrets
Annette and Gina Cascone
Starscape/Tor, Jan 3 2012, $14.99
ISBN: 9780765330659

Amanda Peterson hits the walk off homer, but neither she or her friends (Laura Baxter, Kevin Stewart and Jarrad Clark) celebrate as the ball lands inside 704 Shadow Lane owned by the creepy old witch ”Barnsey”. Her mates tell her to forget the ball that landed right near the shred where Barnsey tosses rat heads by reminding her what the witch did to Luzard and French. Amanda retrieves the ball but bony fingers grab her wrist while the tweener hysterically shouts at her friend to not let Barnsey take her into the dungeon. Barnsey lets go, but a frightened Amanda panics as she lost her friendship bracelet. The four tweeners fear Barnsey will use the bracelet to cast a spell on Amanda.

The friends search in Amanda’s yard, but find a dead squirrel. They decide to bury the deceased in Amanda’s pet cemetery where Ralphie the hamster, Herman the goldfish, and Snitch the canary reside. Jarrod digs a hole when they hear mama. He uncovers a buried doll with no voice box. Amanda learns from her parents the pet cemetery was land that once belonged to Barnsey. The quartet uncovered a malevolence that makes little old lady-witches seem benign as they fear for themselves and Amanda’s five year old naive sister Robin.

The first Deadtime Stories is a terrific tweener horror thriller starring four children whose imagination runs wild, but does not compare to the realism of what they face. While Amanda’s parents insist Mrs. Barnsey is a nice neighbor, the buddies believe she is a witch although Jarrod is a skeptic. Fans will enjoy this entertaining tale from Team Cascone as the Youngers find out what evil truly is.

Harriet Klausner

Nameless
Kyle Chais
Hunter/Gallery/Pocket, Jan 10 2012, $15.00
ISBN: 9781439187258

In the purgatorial Nameless realm, they are the Nameless Fallen who are interchangeable with one another as names and individual identities belong to the masters. These Nameless are neither saved nor destroyed as they just exist in excruciating tedium.

One Nameless watches humans in New York City. This Fallen becomes fascinated by the self-destructing behavior of a pathetic gambling alcoholic dying from cancer. When thugs are about to murder this drunk Aurick Pantera for failing to pay his gambling debt, his Nameless watcher possesses his body saving his worthless life. Once inside the human shell the Nameless refuses to leave as the five senses are nirvana. Over the next three years, the new improved Aurick becomes a rock star, continues the psychiatric practice of the body’s predecessor, and wants to date a patient journalist Helena Way. Other bored Nameless observe Aurick and want the same. They are willing to go to war to activate the senses rather than remain in their eternal passive nonexistence prison. Nameless Aurick can join the others which will surely lead to the Null for celestial crimes against mankind or choose his beloved and the rest of humanity.

This is a fascinating cosmological urban fantasy that takes a deep look at the non-life of the “wicked” Fallen. Nameless Aurick is an intriguing protagonist who has found life and love inside the shell of a human loser. Although the Chais celestial mythos at times slows down the entertaining tale of Nameless Aurick, who defies heaven, hell and in between as Alfred Lord Tennyson (In Memoriam A.H.H.) states: “I hold it true, whate’er befall; I feel it, when I sorrow most; ‘Tis better to have loved and lost Than never to have loved at all.”

Harriet Klausner